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Lindsey's Angels January 27, 2005 Hyperion Hotel 5.15 pm "Didn't see much, my head was still hurting from the vision just before it. Anyway, this second vision of Spike means that the PTB are now officially shitting their knickers. We need to find him NOW!" "But how...where the hell do we start looking?" Once again, the library played host to a discussion about one of the still missing friends. Angel sat in his favoured wing back armchair, opposite the couch that held Wesley and Doyle. Riley, Graham and Joyce had squished up together on the last remaining couch that was situated between the armchair and first couch, opposite the doorway. This wasn't the first time that Doyle had gotten two visions in one day, but it was certainly the first time he had received two featuring the bleached vampire. "Joyce, are you able to do a location spell, you know, like the one we tried to do for Xander when he first went missing?" "She's nowhere near that stage yet...admittedly, she is getting quite good at spell-casting but to do that will take a lot more practice than what she's had." Nodding her agreement with Wesley, the older woman wriggled slightly, a little uncomfortable from being jammed between the two ex-soldiers. After the disaster with the fire spell, she had reluctantly resumed practice after Angel had surprisingly announced that he had found them an abandoned building to practice in until the repairs in the hotel were finished. The older vampire had been fairly pissed at the damage to the hotel, but understood that sometimes spells did go wrong, especially when you were learning. Upon being asked what had gone wrong, Wesley had been at a loss to explain but hadn't let it deter the older woman from giving it another try. It was true, the more spells she was able to perform correctly, the more her confidence was rising. So far, Joyce was doing fairly simple spells, mostly creating little gusts of wind and getting them to follow her directions, learning to turn light switches on and off with a simple command. Yesterday, Wesley had gotten her to levitate a plastic plate over and over until she had been able to get it to float for a whole five minutes. The abandoned abbatoir had echoed with their excited clapping and this morning, he had gotten her to do it with two heavy metal plates. Something that she had been able to do with ease. "He's right, I haven't really done much, but maybe if we concentrated solely on the detection spell....maybe we could give it a go?" Deep in thought, Wesley merely hmmmed at his apprentice, wondering if she would be able to pull it off with her lack of experience. He really didn't see a problem as long as they practised the words and actions for a few days beforehand. She had the strength but still lacked the ability to concentrate on a spell for longer than five minutes at a time. Joyce was a natural at the art of magic, something that convinced Wesley that she had been an unidentified Slayer candidate herself. The spells that he was getting her to do were simple but they had an effect of draining the caster's energy severely. Joyce, however, wasn't in the least bit affected by it. The ex-Watcher could vividly remember sleeping for a whole day after levitating two solid metal plates as he had gotten Joyce to do that morning. Like he had been able to guess, the older woman had been barely drained by the after effects of the spell. "Yes....but after a lot more practice Joyce, I'm not going to deny that I think you're particularly talented, but you're still learning...Remember, it took both Tara and Willow to do the spell. You still need to learn to concentrate more" At the sound of Doyle's mug smashing into the locked cabinet behind Angel's chair, everyone stared open mouthed as the Irishman got to his feet, hands clenching almost convulsively as he radiated anger. "This is FUCKED! The bloody spell should have been the first thing to teach Joyce, not some idiot lighting a candle thing...No offence, Joyce but making plates float in the air is just bullshit! What is it that you lot aren't getting? The PTB are not giving me daily bloody visions of Spike because the scenery is pretty....there is something MAJORLY FUCKING WRONG and it's centred around Spike." "Doyle, we *know* that and I realise that the visions hurt but really, we are trying our best here an..." "No you are fucking *not* trying your best Angel, I want Cordelia found but I have to just accept that Spike is meant to be found first and that hurts....it hurts a lot. Jesus...She could be duffed up to some one right as we speak, like Willow! Fucking practice, practice, practice...isn't that what you always say Wes? Well, how about just stop giving your 'Master' blowjobs and concentrating on finding Spike?" Shocked silence descended upon the library as Wesley blushed and tried to think of an answer, horrified that everybody knew how he liked his sex. Angel continued to stare open mouthed at his friend as he rubbed the last of the tepid coffee that had splattered over him into his dark charcoal slacks, while Graham, Riley and Joyce tried to look anywhere but at Wesley and Angel, all quiet. It was Doyle who broke the heavy silence, his quiet voice heavy with weariness. "I am *not* going to start having twice daily visions of Spike. You lot don't have to see him each time...Wes, what do you need to do to make the spell successful, is there anyway that we can help you and Joyce with this?" The sound of a throat being cleared came from both couches as Wesley tried to answer the half-demon with as much dignity as he could gather. "Well...ummm. It *is* a hard spell, hard because it requires an enormous amount of concentration on the caster's part. It's also dangerous if done incorrectly. Done right, it will allow those present to see the subject clearly in a bowl of water via the caster holding a personal item of the subject's as an anchor. If done right, and by a fairly strong person, you can move the scene that's being viewed around a bit, like a video camera and would be able to get a better idea of where they are." "And done incorrectly?" "Yes...if done incorrectly then there's a good chance that the caster's mind will be linked to the water in the bowl until a counter spell is performed or it wears off...And before you ask, I don't know of a counterspell. At the very worst, the caster's mind will be linked until they die. Ahhh, if the water happened to be spilled, then so would that person's mind....What I'm trying to say is, that if Joyce was unsuccessful, she would be a vegetable sitting in a seat and requiring 24 hour care while her conscious mind floated in a bowl" Graham was horrified at the learning of the consequences of a spell gone wrong. Not caring that everybody would be able to see him, he slipped an arm around Joyce's shoulders, trying to give her a little support. He knew that the older woman was strong and that she wouldn't disappoint the troubled blond vampire. He wasn't wrong either. "I'm willing to take the risk. I'm sure that there horrible consequences for each of the spells that I'm already doing if they went wrong...oh Wesley, I *know* that look, just tell me....Remember, I'm a mother and I will get it out of you eventually, Doyle..Please sit down?" Unable to hide a small smile at both Joyce and the sight of Doyle sitting down next to him again, Wesley leaned over and gave the half-demon a reassuring pat on the upper arm. "Actually, the consequences are just as horrible but I didn't tell you about them because the spells are just too easy for them to stuff up..Yes, I know...the fire. Anyway, that one really didn't go wrong, the result was just a bit stronger than expected. *IF* it had gone wrong, Joyce would have more than likely sucked the flame into her body and died from being burnt from the inside out....or just had a bad case of heartburn. I'm really not sure but I do know that if the iron plates had gone wrong, they would be stuck to your body like a magnet until the spell wore off. What? Oh...would usually take few weeks until they just dropped off one day.....Anything else?" With a nervous swallow, Joyce asked her tutor if she really wanted to know the consequences of getting the rose petal and lily shower wrong, at his suddenly serious face, Joyce quickly told him that she didn't want to know anyway. Leaning back into the strong warm body of the ex-soldier beside her, the older woman decided that it was time to take the blossoming relationship to the next level. They had already gone to the movies three times, bowling once and to dinner twice, both enjoying the time together, and not just because it gave the vampire and his lover a chance to have sex without Joyce's knowledge. She just wished the younger man wasn't so shy, it was becoming hard not to just straddle his well muscled thighs and suck on his nipples until he moaned. Head shaken, she listened as Wesley told Doyle that they would attempt the spell at the end of the week, in three day's time. "Three days! Three more fucking days? Fine...." "After we do the spell and it is successful, we rescue Spike and then we look for the others, Cordelia first, OK?" "No...no it's not ok. It's gonna have to be Willow next, not Cordy...I'm so sure that it was Willow I saw, and if she's got a baby then she comes next." Wesley couldn't even begin to imagine how hard it was for Doyle to see his fiancee slip into a lower place on the rescue list. Making a decision, he told everyone that he and Joyce would start learning the spell in the morning. "Everyone is tired, take the time to relax and take some time for themselves alright?" As everyone got up and stretched their stiff limbs, the group headed down the steps, towards the kitchen, each one except Doyle carrying an empty mug or cup. As they passed the front desk, the five men paused as Joyce ran to answer the ringing phone with the usual greeting, noting as her face took on a hard expression. It could only mean one thing. "Yes..yes, right. I have that....Fine" Not bothering to say goodbye, Joyce slammed the phone back down into its cradle as she finished jotting down the address the teams 'employer' had given her. "What does that prick want now?" "Ri...Don't. Where to, Joyce?" "Well. Your to go to No. 243 Houston Avenue, apartment No. 74. There you will retrieve a carved wooden statue of a wolf. It's to be delivered to the Carlton Royal Hotel on Sutcliffe. Gift wrapped like usual, just buy one of the gift boxes that you usually use, Angel. Umm, it's to be addressed to Andrew Mortimer, room 313." "Who?" "Andrew Mortimer...Wes, why are you asking, you know they are just fake names?" "No....No, this one isn't. You know the boys that we rescued from Eternal, well remember how they would only answer to their 'prostitute' names for ages, Xander included? Well, Andrew was Robin's name at Eternal and his surname is Mortimer. I only remember that because Rupert was telling me one day that Robin was still signing documents as Andrew Mortimer in the same week that Rupert died. He told me that because apparently Robin had the most beautiful antiquated style of writing, almost like copperplate that one of his favoured clients had taught him." "Well then, I'm guessing that this might just not be a coincidence then?" Angel, Wesley, the two ex-soldiers and the still blue Doyle, all nodded at Joyce as she spoke what was on everybody's minds. Same time, Sanity. Shivering in both excitement and fear, Scott rubbed the last of the thin lotion into his body. With particular attention paid to his long fingers, the tall brunette flinched as a roar echoed around the room next to him. Randall was selling him. He knew that the older man had been having financial difficulties with running Sanity. It was glaringly obvious. Things had gotten worse in the last month, so much so, that all the Keepers - bar two - had been let go. The bar staff had had their shifts cut down to the point that Scott and the other boys had been the ones cleaning the bar after it closed for business each night, in addition to helping Fletcher take care of their service rooms and sleeping cubicles. As Adam had screamed at them, Randall could no longer afford to keep them as just 'pampered pets' and they would have to pull their weight if they didn't want to end up as a round of demon snacks. So, all ten boys had put in extra time on top of the already exhausting hours that Randall and Adam demanded of them. Each one had tried to prove to their bosses that they could do more things than just entertain demons in the off chance that they would somehow have a change of duties, Scott included. Jerking again as another booming roar reached his ears, the nervous prostitute found himself giving Aiden and Ashley a brief smile as the identical twins were led past him, into the main bar and presented for auction. Heart starting to pound faster, Scott knew that he was next and he couldn't decide whether he was frightened or excited. Everyone had known something was up as soon as Adam had announced that the bar was to be closed, only three days before. Suspicion as to what was going to happen had led to all of them being jumpy and unable to relax even from the almost unknown idea of having not to work. Adam had had to physically stop a few fights between the other boys before they had gotten out of hand. Scott, Christopher and their workmates from the Eternal had clung together, trying to stay out of harm's way as the newer boys had let the tension get to them. The brunette couldn't blame the new boys, he felt a bit sorry for them as they just weren't as experienced as he and the others were. Eyes closed for just a minute, Scott felt his stomach clench as a dry hand touched his bare upper arm. A deep breath and the brunette allowed a wide smile to cross his face, not even having to force himself to do it. Glancing down at his nude body, Scott checked that he was presentable and clean before following the Head Keeper down the hallway that led to the service rooms. Just entering the main bar, the grinning male obediently cast his gaze around the crowded bar, desperate to make eye contact with one of his favourite clients in the hope of prompting them to buy him. Stepping up onto the raised box beside Randall, he ducked his head shyly, his thick dark hair falling across his brown eyes in a manner that elicited a smattering of applause through the warm room. As Randall ran a large hand across his chest, Scott twisted his upper body to display his liking for the caress, his smile stayed in place as the older man slowly reached down to cup Scott's testicles. Glancing over the crowd again as he felt the older man stroke him into an erection, Scott knew it was only a matter of minutes before Spike came into the bar to rescue him. Spike would buy him. The vampire had promised Scott that he would find him just before they had been dragged apart after the funeral. Feeling the excitement well up inside of him at the prospect of seeing the bleached vampire again, Scott thrust eagerly into Randall's hand as the bidding started. January 30, 2005 Hyperion Hotel 10.56 am. "Right then. All ready?" With a firm nod, Joyce shook her hands in an effort to loosen them up. Catching Wesley's eye, the older woman gave her tutor a small smile of confidence. Joyce knew that she could do this. She had practiced all day and night since the decision had been made to try the location spell on Spike. The only time she hadn't been running over the words or actions had been when she had been occupied by sleep or eating...and consummating her relationship with Graham. Wesley had made it clear that she wasn't to be needlessly taken from practice, even going so far as to practice abstinence along with Angel, thus ensuring that *nothing* had disturbed her concentration and valuable rest time. A glance around the room as she went over the words and delicate actions once again in her mind, Joyce started her breathing exercises. Deep slow breathes and she sat cross-legged on the floor opposite an already sitting Wesley, a large child’s wading pool in between them, filled to the brim with water. The large size of the pool would allow them a good view of the kidnapped vampire and surroundings in case Joyce proved too inexperienced to pan the scene around. Graham and Riley were standing in between them on one side of the pool while Angel and Doyle stood opposite them on the other side, all men making sure that they were as quiet as possible. Joyce worked on clearing her mind as she slowed her breathing even more. Blinking a few times, she allowed her eyes to close firmly. One, two, three breathes and she started the incantation while performing the intricate actions with one hand while she held the missing vampires t-shirt with the other. "In trua mobutani." "MAAith liniamu qyun t'rum...HUNIOmanui." Gathering her next breath, the older woman clutched the bleached vampire’s black t-shirt tightly as she heard a bubbling sound coming from in front of her. "Questrum MAAith wrethahn." "Isht...ragmorum...Isht..Isht...ragmorum." Heart beating fast, Joyce opened her green eyes and looked at the pool in front of her. The water was bubbling like it was in a saucepan on the stove, the only difference being the lack of any heat being thrown off. A movement from Wesley and she was reassured that she had done it right by the look of pride shining in his eyes. Looking at the bubbling water once again, the woman gave a small gasp as an image flickered over the water, staying for only a few seconds before disappearing. Suddenly, the large pool was inundated with images of Spike, each one only staying for a millisecond before another one from a totally different direction replaced it. Her eyes already hurting from trying to keep up with the rapidly changing pictures, Joyce wondered just what was happening and from glancing around at the others, she knew that she wasn't the only one to be having that thought. "Wesley...what's going on? I thought that it was supposed to just stay with the one angle, not just flick all around the place?" Shoulders shrugged in confusion, the ex-watcher indicated to his apprentice that he truly didn't know what was going on. As he stared into the child’s pool, the sitting man slowly got to his knees and moved towards Joyce, all the while trying not to squint as the fast changing pictures threatened to give him a headache. As he came to sit beside the older woman, the images of the vampire started to slow down. Puzzled, Wesley was at a loss to explain what was happening, he had never come across something like this before. "Maybe the spell needs to settle before it presents just a single image? Either that or you need more experience at concentrating so that it does just show one single image...I'm really not sure? You did do the words and actions perfectly...I couldn't have done them better myself....JESUS F'ING CHRIST!" As one, all people in the room leapt away from the kiddie pool as the water suddenly spewed upright into a tall funnel of still bubbling water, images of Spike still flickering through the cylinder. "What? What's happening, Angel..let go." "Uhhh Wesley? *What* is happening now?" "How the hell should *I* know Riley? I'm not a bloody expert on this stuff. Everyone, just keep clear...just Joyce and me near this thing for the moment...alright?" Wesley was fascinated by the water funnel rising from the blow up pool, only barely registering the other four men obeying his order to keep clear, Riley and Graham moving around the pool to join Doyle in the corner in which Angel had bodily dragged him into. With a gesture, he motioned for a visibly nervous Joyce to stand next to him. "I'm sorry Wesley, I think it's stuffed up...can we try again?" "What? Oh...lets just give it a few minutes...you know, see what happens, if anything changes...ok?" Nodding her agreement, the woman switched the faintly smelly garment into her other hand as she watched Graham and Riley argue over how to describe what was happening to Doyle, who was looking increasingly annoyed by Angels refusal to let go of his upper arm. As the minutes ticked by, the gathered friends watched the water spout for any useful images of the bleached vampire. Arms crossed over his chest, his gaze firmly studying the unusual spell result in front of him, Wesley at first didn't pay any attention to what the older woman was saying. "What…sorry Joyce, what did you say?" "Can you put this on the table?" T-shirt held out to her tutor, Joyce smiled as Wesley reached out to take the dirty garment and put it on the table next to him, both uttering a small scream of fright as the water spout, without warning, shuddered and twisted. The black cloth held between them was forgotten in an instant as the tall shaft of water slowly unravelled into a wide bubbling wall, images still continuing to flicker across it. "What the hell?" "What is happening *now*?" "I don't know Doyle,...I truly do not know." Taking a step forward, away from Joyce, Wesley slowly raised a hand to touch at the wall. As the t-shirt dropped from his hold, the ex-watcher swore as the wall crumbled back into the toddler play pool, all images disappearing. Disappointed, the man shrugged his shoulders again as everyone crowded him for answers as to what had happened. "I don't know ok? Joyce did the spell perfectly...nothing was wrong with the way she did it. The result was, as you all just saw, weird...I've never seen anything like that before, there was only supposed to be one image of Spike that we could concentrate on not all those other odd ones...did anyone get a good view?" "I know, both you and Joyce did the actions the same." "Oh my God! I know why it went wrong!" Joyce felt faint, one hand over her mouth in shock as she registered what Riley had just said. As everyone stared at her, she hurriedly explained what she meant by the words. "Wesley..you did the actions with me didn't you? Yes...and you also did the same thing with the flame spell....I think we're meant to work together on this. That’s why the flame went haywire, it was affected by *both* of us doing the actions....Wes, what would happen if you spoke the words as well, I mean, you know?" Feeling himself pale at the numerous possibilities flowing through him, the ex-watcher held his hand up to indicate that he needed to think for a moment. Slowly, he ran through everything in his mind. It was true, he *had* done the actions in time to Joyce's with the flame spell, the same as he had just done and the flame had gone strange. The new room was proof of that. "I think your right Joyce...as I said before, the spell didn't fail, it was just a hell of a lot stronger than it was supposed to have been. I'm not sure why this is happening but I think that *together* we may just double the strength of any normal spell." With a groan, Wesley rubbed his temple as he felt a few more of Drusilla's rambled words click into place. Both he and Joyce had totally forgotten about that in the all excitement of the fire, what Joyce hadn't mentioned was that he had also spoken the words of the spell which meant his voice had totally overridden hers during the spell casting. Meaning, effectively Wesley had done the spell, not Joyce....sort of? At Angel’s quiet queries, the frustrated man gestured for his lover to shut up for a few more moments. Taking a deep breath, he informed his friends of what was going to happen next. "Right. Joyce and I will *both* do the spell in a few minutes. I would rather experiment a bit more with this but like Francis is saying, we don't have the time to fuck around. I mean really, I don't know whether it's because I'm speaking through Joyce, whether it’s Joyce’s actions as well as mine or the whole package? I'm inclined to think it’s the whole package though and as soon as we get this done, we test some theories." The following day. "How is he doing?" whispered Joyce to a concerned Graham. At his shrug and raised eyebrow, the older woman nodded her head. She was still coming to terms that they had the bleached vampire back. Settling her gaze back onto the sight in front of her, she wondered how long it was going to be before Spike was able to walk again. "Angel...Angel, do you need anything?" "Yeah, more blood. Lots more, human." Watching Graham leave the training room, the trainee witch inched closer towards the two vampires before a warning growl stopped her. At Angel’s apology, she gave the brunette a hesitant smile knowing that the growl had been caused by one of the many instincts that the older vampire fought to control each day. Her weight shifted onto her left foot, the tired woman looked on as Angel hovered over his last remaining Childe. One that was in a horrific state. "Angel, just leave Spike alone for the minute ok? I want you to do something for me...go downstairs and tell Riley that you won't be coming after him again, can you do that?" "What? Shit...yeah, suppose I'd better. Riley's probably already broken out the iron knickers...I didn't mean to growl at him but Spike...you know?" "I know, we all know. He's in the kitchen with Doyle...be nice!" With that, the older woman moved from the doorway in order for the vampire to leave. Crossing over to the far side of the training room, Joyce felt her gorge rising as she got a closer look at the smaller vampire. Silently, she took in the numerous atrocities that had been inflicted onto the bleached male as she sank slowly into the chair beside the mattress the sleeping vampire was lying on. Feeling tears well up as she glanced over the pale form, she took in the missing foot, a thigh that was half a size smaller than that of the other, fingers on one hand that had re-grown to the second knuckle. "You poor, poor man." Unable to help herself, Joyce let her mind take her back to the previous day. The second attempt of the spell had been successful, the water from the wading pool instantly forming a large wall in front of the spell casters and onlookers. This time, only a single image of the vampire had been displayed much to everyone’s horror. Everyone had finally been able to see why the constant visions of Spike had upset Doyle so much. The image had shown the bleached vampire strapped naked, in a spread-eagled position, to a large operating table. They hadn't been able to see much of the room Spike had been in but that wasn't what they had been staring at. It had been the missing body parts and numerous surgical clamps that had been imbedded in the slim body. What had made Joyce throw up was the way the vampires whole front had been cut from the base of his throat down to his groin, the skin peeled back and held into place with more clamps to expose his internal organs. Graham had rubbed her back through it all, murmuring comforting words while Angel had started to growl softly. It was then that Spike had opened his eyes and looked towards them. Joyce had stood with stomach heaving, just staring at the blond vampire who was looking empty eyed straight back at them, not once blinking. It had been a soft word that had scared them all. "Sire" Spike had whispered as he had shifted his gaze to rest upon a snarling Angel. An uproar had been caused by that one word. Wesley had informed them all that it wasn't possible for Spike to be able to see them, that the spell just didn't work that way and that because both Joyce and himself had performed the spell, it must have evolved somehow. As the friends had argued between themselves, they had listened in horror as the bleached vampire had quietly begged for them to help him. Wesley had quickly come to the conclusion that the location spell had actually mutated into creating a portal that led directly to whoever they were intent on locating. After only a few moments of discussion, Angel, Riley and Graham had steeled themselves to step through the wall of water, Wesley warning them to just get Spike out as they didn't have time to dither around. It had been a stupid risk for the three men to take, no-one knew just how long the portal would be open for them. It could have closed off at anytime, stranding the three men with Spike. So, the vampire and two humans had jumped through the water, landing heavily on the concrete floor on the other side, the portal being a good four feet higher than the dirty ground on Spikes side. Joyce and Wesley had stood watching them, urging them to hurry all the while, Spike’s black t-shirt had been clutched between them, Doyle had also hurried them along, not being able to see anything but nevertheless, adding his support. She had watched the three males struggle to release the vampire from the restraints only to finally carry the whole table and Spike through the portal, Riley getting back through first and pulling it backwards with Doyle’s help as Graham and Angel pushed it through. As both Wesley and Joyce had come forward to help them carry the table, the ex-watcher had let go of the t-shirt, causing the water wall portal to gush back into the wading pool. Wesley had immediately collapsed into unconciousness, eliciting more snarling from Angel as Riley had attempted to move the older human. The ex-soldier had promptly left the room when the brunette vampire had gone into game face and taken a step towards him, leaving Graham and Joyce to deal with the situation. Jerking back to reality as Spike whimpered in his sleep, Joyce watched worriedly as the vampire's face scrunched in pain as he attempted to move one of his thin arms. "Its time to roll you over, I'm sorry Spike. I know its going to hurt but we have to do it...I'll wait for Angel to get back ok?" said Joyce softly. They had to roll the smaller vampire from side to side every four hours to let his front and back heal properly. He was suffering from pressure sores over his entire back, buttocks and upper thighs from having lay on them for so long. His four limbs stiff to move as they had remained in the one position for months, Dr Sawyer reccommending daily massage to loosen them up again. Spike had only been able to tell them that he had been strapped to the table since being taken before he had passed out with pain from being moved from the table to the mattress on the floor. His opened front had been the worst, Dr Sawyer had done a great job of doing the stitches holding him together as small as possible. Unnecessary really as Spike wouldn't scar, all wounds and scars eventually disappearing. Jumping slightly as she realised that Angel was standing beside her, Joyce looked up at the taller man. "Hey Angel, Riley ok? How’s Wesley...still out like a light?" "Riley's good..he..he understands why I snarled at him. Said he forgives me for you know..before. Wes is still sleeping, not too worried about it though, he will probably sleep for another day...be really tired for a couple of more after that. Usually goes like that after a big spell, why you aren't sleeping is another question entirely?" As the two friends looked at the small figure in the bed, the brunette vampires watch beeped, signalling that it was time to turn the bleached blond. As one, Joyce and Angel ignored the small groans of pain as they tried to shift Spike as gently as possible. Once it had been achieved, Angel gestured for the human to follow him to the training room doorway. Quietly, the older vampire informed Joyce of what he was going to do once Graham got back with the human blood. "I'm going to give Spike as much of my blood as I can handle. It'll speed up the healing process for him. He's already pretty strong because of the human blood that he was being drip fed but Sire blood is the strongest healer around for vampires." "God Angel, are you sure? Isn’t the human blood for Spike or is that for you?" "For me. I'm going to drink the human stuff myself..I know, I don't ever touch it but in light of the situation, this is the best excuse I'll ever have for drinking it again." At Joyce’s smile, Angel hoped that he was doing the right thing. He was going to take the opportunity to completely drain Spike to point of almost dusting him then re-feeding him with as much Sire blood as Spike could take, all the while re-enforcing the Twilight Instructions. Giving the shorter woman an answering smile, he suddenly hugged Joyce. "Angel! Are you alright?" "Yeah Joyce, I am. Spike is back....I still don't like him and as soon as he opens his mouth again, we'll all be wishing he had his jaw wired shut but it’s good, he's back. It's a good sign." "Yes, it is isn't it? First we get everyone else back and then we find out who did this. I want them to suffer for what they have put us all through, I hate them for this Angel. I mean, look at Spike, I know he's evil but nothing and no-one should ever suffer what he's been put through but he's back and that *is* a good sign" "Nothing and no-one. They won't get away from answering for this, we *will* bring them down....if it's the last thing I do." "Last thing that anyone of us does." February 1, 2005 Hyperion Hotel 2.35 pm "No, you heard right Graham. Twenty-four pints of blood ASAP please. The drip seems to be working well and we want to get more into him." "Uuuhhh, sure. Be back soon...I'll take Joyce with me, she's beside me anyway...sorry, you probably already know that...We'll go now." Not needing to respond, Wesley took his finger off the 'talk' button on the internal intercom and turned back towards his lover and Angel’s Childe. Both were sleeping for the moment, Angel on one of the library's sofas that Riley and Graham had managed to wrestle into the small elevator and up to the training room while Spike lay on his side, entangled with the thin sheet that covered him, still in a virtual coma. Small smile adorning his face, the ex-watcher slowly made his way over to change Angel's drip now that the current bag his blood flowed into was almost full. Kneeling beside the dark blue couch, he tried not to startle the brunette vampire with any sudden movements, lightly running a hand down the well formed black clad shoulder, touching the crook of Angels left elbow and the needle inserted deep into his vein. Empty blood unit bag gathered up, Wesley quickly switched the drip tube to the new bag, the full bag closed off and lay carefully to one side. "Wes." With a strangled yelp of startlement, the younger human snapped his head up to find that the brunette vampire was waking although very groggy due to the massive amount of blood loss, blood that was being replaced just as fast with human blood. For every bag that Angel filled with his Sire blood for Spike, the brunette vampire drank a double amount of human blood, bought from the morgue at the hospital. Everyone had been worried as to how the blood loss would affect the older vampire but surprisingly, he was pretty much alright, just alternating between dizzy, light-headed euphoria and sleepiness. Upon finally waking for the first time since the location spell, Wesley had been informed of what Angel had decided upon doing for Spike. As soon as Dr. Sawyer had finished with the bleached blond and had instructed everyone in how to move the smaller vampire and provide the remedial massage, she had also given them all, bar a still sleeping Wesley, a crash course on how to work the drips. Angel had decided to bag as much of his potent blood as possible, drip feeding it to the younger demon after an initial feed directly from his body, something that the brunette vampire had insisted on doing in private. The upshot of it all was that Riley, Graham and Joyce were taking it in shifts to change the drips and make sure that Angel kept drinking. Now that he was awake, it was Wesley's turn to stay with the vampires, taking over from Joyce after being shown what to do himself. Thankfully, he wouldn't have to massage Spike, the older woman having just finished as the ex-watcher had come to relieve her. Angel was filling the bags a lot slower than a human would, taking almost twenty minutes for each one while Spike was being fed a bag every hour meaning that in-between the changes, it gave Wesley plenty of time to work on finding a spell that would protect Spike from being found via magical means, something that Joyce had already started the search for. Unable to resist, Wesley reached a hand up and patted at Angels face, prompting a giggle from his lover. At Wesley's gesture, the vampire nodded and grinned, confirming that he was indeed hungry. Leaning in towards the older male, Wes softly pressed his lips to the much cooler ones only to squawk in light protest when Angel gripped his hair with a strong hand and forced Wesley's head down towards his bulging crotch. "Youth goth thoo be shithing me?" "Suck." Shaking his head, Angel thrust his hips up into Wesley's face in an all too clear gesture, his eyes lighting up in anticipation. He felt good, really good and it was all due to the human blood he had been consuming over the past two days. The vampire took in the exaggerated roll of Wesley's eyes and grinned harder as he heard his zipper being undone. A glance at his Childe lying on a mattress only a few feet away and he saw that the bleached blond was still in a deep sleep. Not one that he would be coming out of it any time soon, the huge amounts of Sire blood being drip-fed to him having caused Spike to fall into an ongoing black out. His aching erection forced the thought of the blond right out of his head as Wesley gently nipped at the head of his cock. "Fffffuuuuuck!" "Youth weeth." A little clumsily, Wesley worked his tongue under the vampires pale foreskin, twisting his tongue around the warming head while his right hand crept under Angel’s cashmere sweater to softly tickle a pale navel, the left hand keeping the zippers metal teeth away from anything that could be snagged in-between them. A quick look at a panting vampire and the ex-watcher was proud to see that his lover was already in full game face, something that turned Wesley on more than anything else. Head positioned so that the younger man could rub his tongue scar into the vampires weeping slit, Wesley knew that it would be only a matter of a minute or two before Angel came down his eager throat. Hearing Angel moan as he pulled away momentarily, Wesley risked a look at the bleached vampire only to be backhanded for daring to stop. Breath caught in his throat, the ex-watcher demurely hung his head in mock shame, his own cock begging to be stroked to completion while his cheek burned with a sweet pain. "Bad Wesley." "Marshta?" "Open wide" Unable to stifle his own moan of pleasure, Wesley found himself gagging slightly as the vampire rammed his hips upwards as he wrapped his lips around the hard cock once again, the cool shaft filling his mouth entirely. With one of Angels heavy hands forcing his head down, Wesley immediately relaxed, taking the throbbing organ deep down his throat. He paused for a bare moment, almost coming in his pants as Angel both growled softly and tightened his grip on Wesley's hair to painful proportions. At Angel’s rough and fast guidance, the smaller man made sure the almost seamless scar on his tongue rubbed along the underside of the thick cock. "Whore...do you like that? Do want me to fill that little girly mouth of yours more? Mmmmm, fucking suck me..harder..harder. Ooohhhh I'm gonna be giving you the biggest bitch slapping of your life if you don't do as you're told...SLUT!" Angel wished that he didn't have the drip attached to his other arm, he wanted to wrap both his hands in Wesley's soft hair. Wanted to make his lover cry in pain just from having his beautiful hair pulled...and he knew full well that Wes wanted the same thing. As he harshly whispered more demands, the brunette could feel himself coming close to the edge. Only a few more seconds, damn if he didn't feel good! With his demon strength, he held the humans head still as he thrust his hips up towards the wet warmth, shuddering in delight as he felt a fine line grate along the underside of his cock. Soooo good! "Almost..almost...swallow. Go on...Yeeesssss! Godamn SWALLOW! Good..good boy, aren't you a good boy to drink me down like that. You want to come?" SLAP At the feel of a large cool hand connect with his already sore right cheek, Wesley had the pleasure to feel himself explode in his new woollen trousers as he savoured the rich coppery taste of Angels cum. The humiliation of having cum in his pants making the orgasm all the sweeter for the ex-watcher. Thanking his Master obediently, the ex-watcher dutifully tucked Angel back into his trousers, only now wondering how the vampire could be so horny after so much blood loss. Wesley shrugged his shoulders, Angel was a vampire and it had probably been the smell of his own blood that had gotten him hard, that and the thought of another bag of human. Zipper wiggled a little in an effort to get it fully done up, Wesley again gestured at the vampire, asking if he was still hungry. "Ravenous Wes...did I hurt you? No? Let me guess, not enough?" Waggling his eyebrows at the vampire, the ex-watcher pointed downwards, indicating the growing wet patch decorating the front of his navy trousers. Angel reached over to squeeze his lovers wet crotch, causing Wesley to squirm a little as the large cool hand rubbed the cum into the trouser material more thoroughly. Wesley laughed in both nervous humiliation and growing anticipation as the brunette vampire promised to make the ex-watcher do the same thing in public one day. The laughter died quickly as a groan of pain came from Spike. Wesley nodded as Angel quietly told him that the bleached vampire was still buried deep in a restorative sleep and not to worry, Spike was probably just feeling some of his injuries continuing to repair themselves. "Still going to take a lot of time until he's fully recovered. Took a few weeks for my finger to be 100% and the bone was only chipped. I mean, his foot is fucking *gone*! The whole bone has to grow back, the muscles and tendons, skin..everything." "Hoow wong?" "Honestly? I don't know. He's just lucky to be old enough to even regenerate lost limbs. The Master and Darla weren't exactly forthcoming with all the little tidbits about vampire physiology, I've never had a discussion about this with them and lets face it, I can't now. Not just age either though; he's got strong blood running through him anyway. He's a great Grandchilde to the Master, very strong blood." Nodding again at his lover’s words, Wesley rose from his knees and made his way over to the corner opposite Angel and Spike, ignoring the cooling wetness covering his crotch for the moment. Large yellow cooler opened, the smaller male got out two packets of blood. Mug taken up from the newly washed collection gathering on one end of the trestle table, Wesley carefully tore open a packet and poured the contents into a mug before placing it in the microwave that took up the other end of the table. Microwave set on high for a minute, Wesley stared at the bleached vampire's uncovered back. He could already see that most of the horrible weeping sores that had covered the pale back were well on the way to healing fully, sores that would have taken a human weeks to recover from. Jumping as both the microwave and the timer that indicated Spikes rollover went off, the slender man carried the mug of warmed blood over to the eagerly awaiting vampire. "You've got to roll him Wes, I mean I would but you know? Can you do it yourself? Alright...don't scowl at me, I just asked." "Yeth!" "Sorry, I thought you might still be a little tired? No?" Head shaken at the brunette, Wesley was not going to admit that he was in fact still feeling drained from the location spell that he and Joyce had performed a few days ago. As soon as he had let go of the black t-shirt to help the others with Spike, he had been out like a light, the switch shut off instantly. He had only woken up a few hours ago, henceforth why Angel was worried and he really had to find out why Joyce had been barely affected when they had done the spell together. Breath taken as he reached the smaller vampires side, Wesley knelt in front of the pale form and rested a hand on Spikes bony shoulder. "Hey Sthike, ull bwee caawful." whispered Wesley. He knew that the vampire probably couldn't hear him but he felt that it was necessary to tell Spike anyway. Reaching a hand up, he made sure that the drip was switched off before gently rocking the thin form. Rocking motions increasing, Wesley pushed Spike flat on his back, trying to ignore the grunt of protest. It wasn't the easiest way to turn the younger vampire but Wesley did the best he could. Once the pale form was resting somewhat on his right side, the ex-watcher looked closely at the marred back. It definitely looked like Angel's blood was doing the trick, another day or so and his back would be fully recovered. With a glance at Angel, he saw that the older vampire was watching him sleepily, finishing one yawn only to launch straight into another. Spikes drip turned on again, Wesley saw that the bleached vampires latest bag was almost empty. He waited for a few minutes by the shorter mans side before gathering up Angels latest bag of blood, fixing the drip up to the full bag. "Wes, I tried the Twilight on him last night.." "Andth?" His attention snapped back to Angel almost instantly, Wesley crossed back to the blue couch, shoving the brunette’s legs to one side so he could sit down. The ex-watcher listened as his lover told him of how he had taken the opportunity to fully drain the blond to the point of being almost dusted, Angel then slitting his wrist and allowing his Childe to feed from him. The older demon had made sure to re-instate the initial instructions from so many years ago, this time in a softer, much gentler tone of voice. "I'm hoping that Spike will be less aggressive and rude to everyone but like you said, it may just be his overall personality. I just don't know...Christ, there is so much that we don't know." "Hoow didth ith go?" "I hated it, every second of it. When a Childe feeds from you, its usually one of the most pleasurable things a vampire can do, secondary only to feeding from your Sire. It was hard, I had to keep cutting my wrist for him to feed from because he couldn't bite properly...his fangs still need to grow a bit more before he can use them. I just had to sort of make sure my blood dribbled into his mouth, didn't work too well actually." "Thinth ith workthd?" "Only time will tell really...Wes, you're getting easier to understand. Mmmmm, you smell nice." Eyes rolled as the larger brunette tried to yawn and giggle at the same time, Wes thanked his lover somewhat sarcastically for his kind words. Gesturing for Angel to continue with what happened the night before. Wesley quietly nodded as he was told of how Angel had fed Spike enough of the potent Sire blood for the younger vampire to bypass the initial euphoria stage and continue through the various stages until he had feed enough to the bleached blond for him to lapse into a deep sleep. The smaller human knew that the brunette was going to keep feeding the blond Sire blood until the worst of the damage was fixed. How long that was going to be was anybody's guess, Angel providing him with the answer before he even had the chance to ask. "I'm thinking of doing the transfusions for at least another day or so, then starting him back on regular human blood with at least one bag of mine to every bag of human. I gotta admit though, I'm shattered....and hungry again? Wes, could you?" Agreeing, Wesley got up and prepared Angel another mug of blood after changing the now full bag for another empty one. As the vampire steadily drank the fragrant liquid, Wes could see the brunette start to blink heavily, indicating that he was almost asleep again. Mug taken from Angel’s hand, the slender man watched as his lover succumbed to the lure of sleep, a slight smile gracing the pale face. Once he was sure that his employer was fully asleep, Wesley ventured downstairs to their bedroom with the intention to change his slacks and get an icepack for his aching cheek before gathering new reading material. He wanted to see if there was some way to locate the bleached vampires soul and study it before attempting to curse the smaller man forever from having his soul returned. Wesley was still puzzled as to why the PTB considered Spikes soul to be worse than Angelus. As he walked towards the bedroom door, the ex-watcher wondered how Joyce was going with her own research. Febuary 16, 2005 Hyperion Hotel 3:12 pm At the little girls bellow of rage, Cordelia sighed and relented, giving Gonturan another piece of fairy bread. Instantly she knew she had made the wrong decision, watching in resignation as the happy child smeared butter, bread and tiny coloured balls of sugar over her face and semi clean clothes. Turning to Joyce, she asked the older woman to hand her a cloth so she could give the munching toddler a face wipe. "I can't believe how much they have grown...and they're such lovely little girls, you should be proud of yourself Cordelia." "I know. I love them to pieces. Would never have thought that I would be such a Mommy. I mean I always planned on having children some day but I didn't think that I would get two in one hit, not to mention Christopher but...." Falling silent, the brunette woman gave a protesting Gonturan a thorough wipe with the damp cloth, making sure to clean her fingers on both hands before the active youngster managed to anoint most of the Hyperion with mashed bread. She was back. It was something that she couldn't quite believe, expecting to wake up each morning and find herself back in her tent. Two weeks. Well, thirteen days to be exact. Thirteen days since a huge shimmering wall had appeared in front of her, scaring both her and Kimlai as they had washed the breakfast dishes in a barely thawed stream. She had almost fainted when Riley and Graham had stepped through and told her that they were taking her home, screaming in delight when she realised that she could see Wesley and Joyce on the other side of the wall. Angel hadn't been able to participate much in the rescue, as it was daytime where she was and being a vampire, he would have been pretty much dusted. After talking to her companion, she had told the two ex-soldiers that Kimlai needed to go and get the twins before she could return. Through the portal, she had told Wesley about what had happened to her and the twins since being taken, reassuring her friends that none of them had been hurt in anyway. Ultimately, things had been fine. Kimlai had returned quite quickly with the twins and her owner. Everyone had been surprised to find that Wesley spoke a language very close to the demon’s own and the ex-watcher had managed to convince the shaggy creature that Cordelia and the twins actually belonged to him and that he only wanted his rightful goods returned, Riley dashing back through the portal and getting a photo of Wesley and Cordelia as proof of ownership. She had been a little shocked upon seeing and hearing Joyce speak for the younger man but she had kept quiet, knowing that she would get the full story later on. Her master had been quite sad to see her leave and to be honest, she had really liked the tall red-haired beast and would miss him, the family and Kimlai. She had said her goodbyes amidst a few tears and hugs, her owner included and had excitedly stepped through the portal to the Hyperion. "Alright..alright, back to the play room with you both I think." Child gathered up, Cordelia followed Joyce and Aiesha from the kitchen to the lobby, giving David Nabbit a smile as he continued to instruct Doyle in how to use a Dictaphone with foot pedals. Pausing, she watched as her soon to be husband slowly typed on the Braille computer. Her smile grew as Doyle got all of the other man's instructions right. She loved Doyle with all her heart and she was proud that the Irishman hadn't let himself fall into a pit of self-pity. Upon seeing him for the first time since being taken, she had been horrified by what had happened to him, crying in a mixture of anger and sorrow but overall, relief that he was still alive and relatively unhurt. She had refused Doyle’s attempts to break off the engagement, stating that although she was upset about his appearance, she loved him and he wasn't getting rid of her that easily. It had taken a few days before Doyle had accepted that she really did want to still marry him, longer for him to let her touch his face. Cordelia had only been allowed to touch the horrible scarring earlier in the morning after they had made love for the first time since she had returned. Standing quietly, she absently jiggled a squirming girl up and down on her hip as she watched her fiancee turn to face her. "Hey Princes, who have you got there?" "Ginny. Shay's with Joyce...I'm going to put them to bed for a little while then you and I are setting a date for this wedding Mister. No more fussing around. I don't care what I wear, an old potato sack will do me just fine as long I'm Mrs. Francis Doyle." "Gee..already the nagging missus aren't we?" Doyle swiftly caught his betrothed's hand as he felt a sharp tug on one of his earlobes, giving the long fingers a lingering kiss as he felt a wave of happiness flow over him. His Cordy had returned to him. Healthy, whole and with bossy personality still firmly intact, something that Doyle hadn't even realised he had relied on so much until he had been taken. Cordelia could cut through a diamond with the acid tongue she had in her head, the only one who could match her was Spike and quite frankly, the Irishman had been excited when the vampire and ex-cheerleader had started sniping at each other over a minor issue. It had been like old times. Almost. Head cocked as he listened to Cordelia walk to the elevator, he chuckled when the two girls emitted matching screeches of anguish at leaving the much loved hotel lobby. They were going to adopt the girls as soon as their marriage was legal, relying on a priest from the Christian Refuge to perform the ceremony with one of Kate’s contacts being able to fiddle papers in City Records with the adoption. For a price, something not quite legal. At David’s request, the now normal colour Irishman gave an exaggerated sigh and gently pressed the 'play' button on the foot controls for the Dictaphone, continuing to type out the notes for David's last board meeting. Head cradled in his hands, Spike sat on Xander's bed, hating the disturbing scenes his mind was throwing at him. Scenes that were showing the brunette dead, being raped or worse, being pulled apart limb from limb and watching his own flesh get eaten. The blond hoped that the brunette was alright but he knew that in all reality, Xander was probably getting fucked for all he was worth right that minute. Spike was hoping that being taken a second time hadn't tipped the shy boy into the nuthouse, like Drusilla. A pang of sorrow washed over him as he thought of his Black Princess, snorting to himself as he recalled what he had read of her last words. He really needed to take another look at what was written, see if he could make more sense out of it than what had been made so far. Dru's future ramblings had always been tricky and had a tendency to bite you on the arse if you weren't careful. Scratching at his still tender stomach, the bleached blond gingerly ran a finger down the slim scar that ran from the base of his throat to his groin. He was healing, the scar had flattened out in the past few days, going from an angry red raised slash to a smooth pearly white stripe. Would be gone in another two or three days thought the vampire, wishing his foot would hurry up and grow a little more. His fangs were almost their original size, his thigh having finished healing the day before. How did he know? He was no longer feeling the constant pins and needles running from his hip to his knee, something that he was thankful for. He still had waves of pain rolling through his abdomen as his intestines grew back, the doctor had told him that his whole large intestine and about half of his smaller one had been removed, along with his left kidney and pancreas. It wasn't what he had wanted to hear but then again, it had been his own fault, he had asked Dr. Sawyer and she had told him. Thank Christ his fingers had grown back entirely and his limbs no longer needed their daily massage as of a few day's ago. Meant he could use the crutches Angel had gotten for him after Spike had broken the wheelchair the older vampire had first appeared with. Something that his Sire was going to be pissy about until he decided on his next brooding subject. "Sodding wheelchair...like I'm gonna use *that*? Peaches must have been brain damaged when Slag turned him...hang on, maybe Woos sucked too hard and there’s nothing left in his cock to think with?" Stomach rumbling, the bleached vampire shifted his legs over the edge of the bed, setting the aluminum crutches upright so he could stand. With a grunt, Spike hefted himself upright, wobbling for all he was worth. Another rumble of his stomach and the demon slowly clacked out of Xander's bedroom and down the hallway, the metal bracelets clanking against the crutches. It had been Joyce who had hit on the idea of retrieving the bracelets and necklace that had been buried with Theo, everyone agreeing with the idea even if it had been rather unpleasant, especially when they realised just how the jewellery was going have to come off. Angel had sent Riley and Graham to Sunnydale later the next day after arranging with Willy to get someone to dig them up, the ex-soldiers waiting just outside Sunnydale limits for the barkeeper to hand them over. In what had been a suprise, they had found out that the necklace and braclets had been able to be taken off like normal jewellery. Wesley putting it down to the fact that Theo was dead, therefore any glamour was now totally gone which is why there were now clasps included in the silver links. Spike had whole heartedly put them on after Wesley had told him that they should protect him from being found by any magical means, the ex-watcher coming to the conclusion that the vampire had been held by a Warlock who used the dark arts. The instant he had put them on, he had expected the clasps to diasappear but it was something that was yet to happen. Wesley had been giving Spike his daily massage the day after Cordelia's return, the vampire grumbling about how much of Passions he had missed when Joyce had come into the bedroom to ask if Spike wanted her to bring up some of the roast she was cooking once it was done. He hadn't been able to help himself, he had started to weep the instant he smelt the rosemary and thyme that Joyce hadn't washed from her hands properly. Both Wesley and the older woman had tried to calm him down but all he had smelt was the herbs, the closer she had come, the more hysterical he had gotten. He had honestly thought he was alright and that his experience hadn't affected him much. Spike had bellowed for the smell to go away, swearing and making threats to kill until he had prompted the chip into blacking him out. Upon waking again, he had been surprised to see Wesley and his Sire sitting at his side, gently asking for him to explain what had just happened and Spike had told him everything he could. Told them about his 'host' and how the man had smelt like rosemary and thyme only when something was going to be taken from the vampire. The younger vampire had been amazed to see Angel get angry after being informed that no anaesthetic had been used and that the only way the vampire had been able to get pain relief was to make enough threats for the chip to shock him into unconsciousness. Silence had descended upon the room as Wesley had slipped into deep thought, Angel looking at him with pity until Spike had given his Sire a two fingered salute which had made the older vampire smile, prompting a small one of his own. Spike had been unable to stop himself from feeling nauseous when Wesley had told them of what he thought the younger vampire had been held for. The ex-watcher had explained that some magic orders used human body parts as ingredients, almost always the dark arts. Wesley had reluctantly told the vampires that because their species was hardier than a regular human, Spike’s organs and body parts probably gave better spell results. That the younger demon had been nothing more than a never ending supply of body parts and that they shouldn't be surprised if there was another vampire already in Spike’s place. The bleached vampire had been pleased to see Angel throw a tanty and kick in a closet door, usually it was the older vampire kicking Spike’s arse. The bleached blond knew that Joyce and the younger man hadn't been able to locate Xander or Christopher with the spell they had performed for himself and the others, nor had they been able to locate Willow. It was assumed that she had a set of the jewellery as well. After all, she had been born on the Hellmouth like Xander. Why Cordelia hadn't been made into a demon whore puzzled them all although they were relieved that it hadn't happened. Everyone was waiting for Doyle’s next vision of the red-haired witch, hoping that it would show him a location or as Spike had sneered, a street sign. He was just thankful that he had been found first and he was curious himself to find out why the PTB had wanted him found so quickly. In what had been a surprise to himself, he had answered all of Angel and Wesley's questions about his human life as truthfully as possible. The bleached vampire had told them that he had been quite a sickly child, confined to bed for most of his younger years. The ex-watcher and his Sire had been more than a little disturbed to learn that he had also suffered from numerous dizzy spells right up to the time he had been turned. When questioned about the uniform Angel had seen him in on the night of his turning, the younger demon had been not in the least bit embarrassed to tell the larger vampire that he had in fact been an apprentice confectionary maker, specializing in boiled sweets, working in the shop that his uncle owned. Angel and Wesley had eventually given up on the questions after it had been made clear that the bleached blonde’s human life had been fairly ordinary, falling back once again on the numerous old tomes that were stored in the library to find out more about the mysterious 'Soul of Blood'. On a whim, the bleached blond decided to see if Joyce would make him a hot chocolate, the beverage didn't taste as good if he made one himself, thoughts of Xander pushed aside for the moment as he struggled to open the elevator's sliding door while trying to stop the crutch underneath his left armpit from sliding to the floor. "Unbelievable!" The Warlock couldn't believe that such a simple spell had failed yet again. It was a beginner grade spell as far as he was concerned, nothing to it. First the Irish half demon and now the vampire, both being unable to be seen in the scrying bowl. He had no idea of why he couldn't perform such a simple incantation. At first he had put it down to his latest apprentice being unworthy of further tuition after her numerous attempts had failed but after trying the incantation himself, Tomas realised that April had in fact done everything correctly, thus saving the apprentices life in the end. Poor April, she had been convinced that she was destined for a flotation tank and it had taken the Englishman hours to persuade the young woman that she was to continue her studies. Every morning and afternoon since the vampire had been discovered missing, Tomas and April had performed the location spell to try and find out where the creature was but so far, nothing. Even Tomas' use of a newly souled vampires whole internal system, leaving only the heart, had proved fruitless. April had been sure that using another vampires parts would prompt the spell into action, the restored soul giving it an extra kick. Tomas had to hand it to the girl, she was good and came up with some astounding ideas. Hopefully, this one would graduate. Peering into the bowl of blood, Tomas saw that nothing had appeared in the shallow liquid. With a sigh, he tipped the blood into a plastic bag, tying the top in a knot so that it didn't leak before he got back to his apartment. It would give the chocolate cake frosting a richer taste, so much nicer than the usual cream cheese frosting these Yanks always raved about. He just hoped that Holland's wife appreciated the offer of the cake. Poor dear was feeling a little under the weather, a lovely lady really. Once the spell components were cleared away, Tomas knew that he was going to have to get another vampire either tomorrow or the day after, the one he had was almost wiped out. He had been disappointed to find that the one Wolfram and Harts private squad had procured was too young to regenerate any lost organs or limbs, her blood too weak and diluted to be very effective for spell casting, obviously a minion Sired by a minion itself. He had literally struck gold with William the Bloody. The vampire had been of a good age and lineage not to mention chipped against hurting any humans, a useful thing to have if he had managed to get free one day. Lindsey also had nothing left to prod the souled Angel with either, unable to threaten the older vampire with bodily harm to his only remaining Childer should he refuse to retrieve any requested items. How the older lawyer was going to ensure Angel's continued help was another question entirely. The Warlock knew that the bleached vampire had been taken via magical means, there was no other way that the male could have been stolen but how, was the thorn in his side. No matter anyway, he had more pressing matters to attend to at the moment, he could puzzle over the vampire later. Tomas shoved the thought into the back of his mind as he left the main casting room, walking down the carpeted hallway and stopping at the last door on his left. Punching in the security code in the keypad next to the heavy metal door, the Warlock quickly waved his fingers in a pattern that signed for the protective spell barrier to let him through the now unlocked security door without causing his brains to dribble from his ears and nose. Once stepped through the doorway, Tomas made sure that the solid door was locked behind him, the protective spell re-instated. Glancing around the room, the dark haired man smiled with satisfaction, the time was almost near. William the Bloody's strong blood had made finding the last few items a lot easier for the Warlock. Had cut down on a lot of the false leads. The Englishman now had all the items he needed to start calling forth and storing all the souls that the Wolfram and Hart original senior partners wanted. Once he had achieved this, he could then concentrate on looking for the one person in the world who was capable of hosting the multitude of souls. Someone who had been born without a soul of their own, an empty vessel. Tomas walked over to the long list of names that was blu-tac'd to one wall of the bombproof room, shaking his head over some of the people who had been included in the list. Murderers, thieves, artists, pedophiles, rapists, teachers, army officers. There was even a few Nobel Prize winners on the list. Everyone who had been included on the list had been or still was the elite in their chosen profession, some were still alive but that didn't matter. As soon as he started to remove their souls, they would die of a massive heart attack. Done carefully enough, the body could be kept alive but the law firm wasn't interested in that, they would have no further use for the physical body once they had the soul. Why Wolfram and Hart wanted to construct a 'Soul of Blood' was beyond him but then again, he really didn't care as long as he got paid and didn't get killed in the process. As he finished reading the long list, Tomas wondered if he should put Mother Teresa's or Ghandi's name on the bottom just for a joke, Holland would get a laugh out of it. Pity that Lindsey couldn't bring himself to loosen up around the Warlock, the older lawyer would more than likely appreciate the joke as well but Tomas knew that the other man was frightened of him. Tomas wasn't too sure why but he suspected it was because he had been caught staring at Lindsey's ears one day. He hadn't been able to help himself from telling the other man just how lovely they were, something that had made Lindsey pale, the older man having not come to visit the Warlock’s inner sanctum since. With that thought in mind, Tomas wondered if he should make a cake for Lindsey as well, maybe strawberry frosting instead of chocolate. Febuary 18, 2005 Hyperion Hotel 4.56 pm "Uhhggg, nothing in this one either. God, I'm so tired of looking in these books," sighed a weary Cordelia. The brunette woman had wanted nothing more than to just spend the whole day in bed with Doyle, doing nothing but dozing in each others arms in-between long bouts of love making. Unfortunately, reality had punched a hole in those dreams via two hyperactive toddlers, grocery shopping for the week and research on souls. Glancing over at a vampire who was growing more annoyed by the moment, she asked Spike how he was going with his current book. "This sodding thing is useless as well, bloody book is all about how to see your auras or some other bullshit. We're getting nowhere fast." "I know...why the PTB can't just whap open a book at the right page is beyond me. I mean they can do just about everything else, you'd think that if the 'bloody soul' or whatever it is, is so important, that they would get off their butts and help a bit more." "Because that would be called common sense, remember, these are the same wanky twats that killed the only one who even had the remotest chance of understanding this bloody rot. Fuckin’ morons, should've let Dru hang on for a bit more....could've had a yap to her, fine tuned this drivel," replied the bleached blond, nodding his head in agreement. Slightly stunned that he was actually having a civil conversation with the girl for the first time they had known each other, he could tell from her face that she was feeling the same way and was waiting for him to call her something vile so that they could get back into the realms of normal. "Right then, speaking of fat arses, how about you get off those binty buns of yours and get me a coffee? Ah..ah..ah, invalid here...see? Crutches, I *can't* carry an effin' drink back up here can I?" "Hmmm, and your point would be?" "Bitch." "Really? Thanks, I think that's the nicest thing you've ever said to me...are you hitting on me?" "Fuck off Slag..go on, go and get some 'wife' practice and make the superior sex a coffee...Oi! Don't hit me, save your foreplay for the Mutt." Giving the younger woman his usual leer and two fingered salute, he made sure to wipe off a dribble of cold coffee on his mug before handing it to Cordelia as she passed by him on the way downstairs, copping a slap across his upper arm for his attitude. "Bloody hell, what is she on, steroids? Bint never hit like that before," he muttered to himself, one hand rubbing his upper arm. Felt good to have his sparring partner back, Cordelia was the only one who could give him a run for his money in the hotel. As far as he was concerned, trying to get a rise out of Graham was like poking road kill with a stick, nothing would happen and he was more interested in discussing the man’s endowments with Joyce...that is if he could get her tipsy enough one night. Riley...well really, why even bother? Wesley had been marked as off limits by Angel and he really didn't want any of his bones broken in the near future by a pissed off Sire just because he had dared to taunt the gimp, no matter how tempting it was. Angel was still fair game and so was Doyle, Joyce was someone that he could talk to about anything and he admitted that she was his friend, besides she was currently coming up with some of the dirtiest jokes he had ever heard and he was loving each one. The twins, well, it was amazing the filthy language kids picked up these days. With a sigh, he pulled himself out of his thoughts, glancing back down at the large book covering his lap. Pages flipped as fast as he could skim the words, the bleached vampire knew that continuing to look through the book would prove useless but he also knew that Pansy Arse Wes would know instantly if he had put the book down before reaching the end. How the younger man could tell was something that continually puzzled Spike but after being caught out each time he had done it and having to sit through the Poof’s lecture about how important the research was each time, he made sure that he was at least looking for the two key words, blood and soul. After Wesley and Angel had learned of his human life, the two men were no longer so sure that the 'Soul of Blood' applied to him. "What hell would I do with an f'ing soul anyway? Hang on..I know, stake meself...be buggered if I'd prance around like the wanna be Batman downstairs, not even if Robin’s arse was thrown into the deal." Head shaken, the bleached vampire shut the finished book and threw it across the room, punching the air with one fist as he watched it disappear down the side of the huge pot that housed a rather droopy palm tree. Spike couldn't wait for Weakly to have a panic attack over not being able to find the book and anyway, he had only agreed not to verbally taunt the stick thin ex-watcher. Just because people had put their lives on the line to save his didn't mean that he was going to cut them any slack. While he was wondering when his coffee would arrive, the vampire reached over to the coffee table and picked up another book. Groaning when he saw that the title was in French, he mentally slapped himself for having reminded Angel that Drusilla had managed to teach him something in her more lucid moments. Even though the psychic vampire had done it out of her desire to be read to rather than any thought to if he had wanted to learn French or not, Spike had eagerly jumped at the opportunity once he had seen that it had gotten him away from a few bedroom sessions with Angelus and Darla. "Where the sodding hell is that coffee, what did the stupid cow do, start digging a friggin well for the water?" Book opened to the first page, the vampire froze as a gurgling sound came from the baby monitor sitting on the lamp table next to the couch that Cordelia had so recently vacated. Spike relaxed when he heard the brunette woman’s soft voice soothe a girzzling toddler back to sleep. At least he knew why the drink was so slow in coming, grimacing when he thought of how cold it was going to be. Still, the bitch had made herself useful and that was the most important thing, the half-breed should be thankful that the vampire was making an effort to get the woman used to her wifely duties. The bleached blond couldn't suppress a snicker when Cordelia whispered into the baby monitor that his coffee was coming and not to whinge when he got it. First chapter finished, Spike kept skimming the words, only looking up when his drink finally arrived. Sure enough it was almost stone cold but after a warning look from an expectant brunette, he kept his mouth shut. Time passed slowly, the quiet atmosphere of the library only broken by weary sighs coming from opposite ends of the room. "I think I've got something. It doesn’t actually say 'Soul of Blood' but it is describing a person who is born soulless. Apparently, the unfortunate person who is born without a permanent soul of their own can 'host' any soul that is placed in their body without the usual battle between their own and the intruding one. The one that is sent into them can stay indefinitely because there is nothing already there to force it out. Well, that makes not so much sense to me...how about you Blondy?" "Don't ask me, ask Wankley. He's the head honcho with all this crap. About sodding time something came up...he still up on the third floor with Joyce?" Nodding to the question, Cordelia told the vampire that the two magic users were still erecting magic wards to each floor of the Hyperion, doubling the protection for every single room. After it had been decided that a Warlock had been in possession of the bleached vampire, Wesley had launched into paranoid mode. The ex-watcher and his voice advocate going from room to room and setting up a barrier spell that prevented any magic item from entering or leaving the room, the silver jewellery that Spike wore made into the only exclusion. Each spell was taking almost two hours as Wesley had had to work in a few clauses for safety reasons such as the special jewellery, he had also included a dampening effect that would stifle any attempts of magic use in a room or hallway once the wards were in place, something that could only be lifted and replaced again by a key word while visualizing the area to be affected. One that everybody had memorized. Spikes room had been first, the spell taking almost all day as Wesley and Joyce had tried to iron out the kinks in the spell. The only rooms left were the unoccupied ones and the hotel lobby, the sheer size of it ensuring that both Joyce and Wesley would be out of action for a few days, the reason why it was being left until last. After a bit of trial and error, it had been found that spells were doubled in strength when Wesley and Joyce performed the finger actions together with Wesley reciting the words through Joyce, arms linked so that they touched. That way, Wesley had found that he didn't end up blacking out, the energy drain was shared equally between them. Any other way and Wesley risked copping the full brunt of the spell drainage once it was over, although Joyce was proving to be quite capable of producing rather effective spell results by herself. "Well, don't just sodding well sit there...go and show the Poof’s arse boy and see what he has to say about it?" "Wow..still making with the nice. Is it...David, what's wrong?" "What? You still fucking here? Don't you have a company to run, new Dungeons and Dragons movie to wank over....OW! Don't hit the invalid, you stupid trollop of a bitch." "Uhhh, I retired three years ago...keep going in because I get bored at home, you know..help out a bit. Anyway, Francis just had a vision of someone...Todd I think was the name he gave me. Who's Todd...is there really a new D&D movie out? Wank...that's the same as drool isn't it...just 'wank' being the English term? Wonder if Kate wants to go? Ouch!" The bleached vampire rolled his eyes as Cordelia shoved the nerdy billionaire out of the way in her rush to get downstairs and gather the details on the latest vision, Spike once again rubbing an abused upper arm. His attention turned to the deep in thought man, wondering how anybody so naive could be wealthy enough to be able to retire at 35 and also be dating a hot piece of arse like Kate Lockley. Barely able to suppress a snigger, the demon did his best to answer the younger man with a straight face. "Yep, you're right...wank, drool..it’s all the same meaning. Use it a bit, slot it in where it fits..anyway, Todd's one of the kids we busted out of Eternal last year..you know, Mathew? This'll be the first bit of info on them since they were bloody well taken for a second time....Hey, be a pet and pass me the crutches? Ta mate." "Don't suppose you would go to the movie with me if Kate doesn't want to...don't think D&D is her thing actually, doesn't quite wank over it like I do...have you ever played yourself?" In what was quite a rare occurrence since being turned, Spike found himself speechless and just stared at the goofily grinning man, the vampire standing motionless while balanced on his crutches. Just how had Cordelia let this one slip through her fingers? Why settle on a half-breed when quite obviously here was a man that every woman wanted to be seen with? Grimacing, he bit back the almost overwhelming amount of one-liners and acid tinged expletives that were battling to make themselves known to David Nabbitt, knowing that everyone in the hotel including Joyce would be fighting to be the one to stake him if he managed to offend their benefactor too much. So, going completely against the grain, he said nothing and twisted his face into a deeper grimace. "Spike..Spike are you alright? Your foot hurting again?" "Wha..nah mate, everything's fine....the movie..ummm, not really my type either but thanks anyway." "Oh...well, how about playing? I just got this new..." "NO! Fuuuthanks again. Look, take this book to the twit upstairs and I'll see how the Mutt and Slag are doing." With that, the bleached vampire clacked out of the library as fast as he could before David decided to try and bond some more. He really did want to find out what Doyle had seen, curious to know why the PTB would send a vision of one of the boys from Eternal. Elevator reached, Spike sighed in relief as the small lift started its journey downwards before the retired businessman could enter the confined space with him. ***Character Death and unpleasant things ahead*** 2.36 am Last of the onslaught of demons dealt with, Graham found himself still keyed up and ready to do battle with anything that came at him. Out of the corner of his eyes, he watched as Riley and Angel tried to subdue the one remaining demon without killing it while the smaller ex-soldier slowly circled the main room with his pump action shotgun at the ready. "Christ Angel, just grab it will you?" "Speak for yourself!" The brunette vampire ducked and rolled as a set of massive retractable claws whistled towards him, grunting in protest as the creature managed to kick him in the ribs. Amnruth demons were hard to grab hold of, especially when extremely pissed off and no doubt about it, this one was. Riley was all for just blowing its head off but Wesley had insisted that he wanted one brought back to the hotel so that he could question it as to how it had possession of Todd. They had been able to deal with the other seven demons easily, Graham and Riley showing off their skill at now being fully re-trained using their opposite hands and had downed the demons in a matter of seconds, all with clear head shots. "Ri..Angel, step back" BANG...BANG Howling in agony, the mauve skinned Cyclops collapsed to the ground as Graham blew both its knees apart. Unable to help himself, Angel sympathised with the creature for a few seconds before grabbing hold of one flailing arm just as Riley attached himself to the other. Telling the two men to watch themselves, Graham gave the demon a solid whap across the back of its head with the shotgun butt, pausing for a moment to see if it was out cold before he gave it another hard smack just for good measure. "Thanks Gra...why the hell didn't we do that to begin with?" panted an exhausted Riley to a shrugging game-faced vampire. Demon hogtied with steel wire construction rope and rolled to one corner of the blood drenched room, Angel told Graham to look in the basement, Riley in the attic and upstairs rooms while he checked out the ground level and to hurry, they had to be out of the place before someone reported the gunshots. All men were hoping that the boy was still alive and in one piece but after hearing what Wesley had been able to tell them about the demons, they weren't expecting much. Stairs climbed slowly, the tall blond kept his shotgun aimed forwards, sweeping the weapon from side to side as he stepped into the upstairs hallway. Inspecting each room thoroughly, including the toilet, Riley informed Angel and Graham that the upstairs was secure, using the new Navy SEAL armed forces only communications devices Graham had picked up a few day's ago. Amazing what you could get your hands on when you joined a rifle club made from ex-military types, something both Riley and Graham had done in the hopes of being able to track down the men who had turned Giles' wake into a bloodbath. No go with locating the mercenaries as of yet but it was paying off with the amount of specialized electronics and weaponry that had suddenly become available to them. Attic given the all clear, Riley gave a quiet chuckle as he listened to Angel push every button in an effort to tell the two ex-soldiers that the ground level was also clear only to start back downstairs when Graham requested that Angel and Riley meet him at the basement door. Trailing behind the brunette vampire as they made their way towards the kitchen at the farthest end of the house, Riley found his pulse rate increasing as Angel suddenly clapped a hand over his nose and started gagging. "Jesus...God!" "You should smell it when I open the door...there's no light down there and I can't find a torch...Angel, you go first, you've got better eyesight in the dark," grimaced Graham, pinching his nostrils shut with one hand, his expression shifting to a bare smile as he watched his best friend do the same when the blond took a big hit of the rotten odour emanating from the behind the basement door. "Riley..gaackk, there's a torch in the..cough...aaggh..car trunk." "Right, on it." As Riley dashed back out of the house and towards the classic car, Graham watched as the brunette vampire continued to dry retch from the obnoxious smell. It was bad, quite possibly one of the worst stenches he had ever had the opportunity to smell but the smaller ex-soldier thanked god that he didn't have the enhanced senses of the vampire. All three men had winced at the foul odour that radiated from the old farmhouse the very moment Angel had parked the car outside but compared to what was behind the solid basement door, it was quite nice. "Angel, go upstairs to the bathroom and see if there is any Vicks or some other chest rub. If there is...bring it down." Chest heaving, the brunette nodded thankful for the opportunity to get away from the smell. He knew what was making the odour, decomposing bodies as well as a few other things he didn't want to think about, and he knew that they would find the houses original inhabitants down in the basement. How many other unfortunate people there were was the question. The smell was too strong for just one or two bodies. Bathroom reached, Angel wrenched open the cupboard. Throwing things left, right and centre, he almost whooped in triumph when he located a small tub of Vicks behind a home pregnancy test. Steps taken three at a time, Angel ran back to the kitchen with the jar, placing it on the kitchen bench. The vampire watched as the smaller man twisted the lid off the jar and held it towards Angel as he started to cough again. "Right, smear this under your nose, it'll hide the smell a bit." "Oooh..it..aarggk..stings." As he finished smearing the steadily heating ointment underneath his nostrils, Angel found his torch shoved at him, allowing Riley and Graham to do the same with the Vicks. With his double blade axe in one hand and torch in the other, the vampire held the beam of light steady as Graham opened the basement door. As one, the three men took a step backwards as the stench hit them full force. Riley recovered first, giving the brunette a small shove towards the stairs while both he and Graham followed the vampire down into the basement. "Uhhhh..." The torch beam slowly showed the three men a countryside hell. Wherever the light fell, there was a body in a decaying state. Bottom of the stairs reached, both Riley and Graham found themselves being violently ill, the vampire sounding like he wasn't far behind them. As the smaller ex-soldier stood upright again, chest heaving, Graham felt in his trouser pocket for the tub of chest rub. Smearing another layer underneath his nose, this time, he poked a finger full up each nostril, ignoring the burn as the menthol and camphor soaked into the sensitive tissue. Once Angel and Riley had followed his actions, he slipped the jar back into its place while everyone tried to get their bearings in the crowded space. "Riley..Graham, there's..urrgh..*two* heartbeats down here...one's...argck..almost gone...the other almost off the scale....There! Look there, that's where the weak one’s coming from." Trying not to slip on the slimy flesh and rancid bodily fluids that were decorating the basement floor, Angel quickly made his way over to some of the more recently deceased corpses. Lifting a few out of the way, Angel assisted by the two ex-soldiers so that they could get to the heartbeat. What met their eyes as they shifted the last one was horrifying. There, buried half underneath the newer corpses was Todd. "Oh God...Hey there..Todd..." Graham honestly didn't know what else to say, what did you say to someone who was in the process of dying because their internal organs were leaking in a liquefied state from their anus? The boy was lying on his side, his back facing the shaft of light, giving the three men a clear view of the lumpy clotted blood and tissue that flowed over the dirt encrusted thighs. How Todd could still be alive was astonishing but the slow rise and fall of the equally filthy chest was evidence enough. As Angel and Riley moved a few paces away to his left, Graham knelt down beside the youth, gently touching the young face. There was not a sound from Todd, nor did he acknowledge their presence in any way. The youth just stared straight ahead at the wall infront of him, his blue iris' almost totally eclipsed by his pupils. Shifting the naked youth slightly only produced a deep sigh and slow blink, the gory tide prompted into flowing faster. A hand waved in front of Todd's face did nothing, a touch to his pupil producing another slow blink, not the twitch that Graham had hoped for. Wesley had told them that the demons sperm was acidic, pretty harmless in small amounts, usually only causing an uncomfortable sting. In large amounts, it would build up and eventually eat away at the insides of the recipient and liquifying, killing them in the end. No-one had wanted to know just how the book's writer had known that, they just knew that they had to get to the youth before it was too late, Doyle’s vision having shown the demons repeatedly raping the boy. Something that had distressed the Seer immensely, not to mention everyone else when he had described it. "Angel...Angel? He's gonna die isn't he?" "Yeah Graham, he is...soon." "Sure?" "Yeah" CRACK The smaller ex-soldier gently twisted the youths head back the correct way, laying Todd's head against the concrete floor again. There was no way he was ever going to feel guilt or regret for doing what he just had. Graham had given Todd the kindest death he could. Rising to his feet, he gave the youth one last look before he went to help Angel and Riley find the other heartbeat. A glance at the vampire and he saw an expression of understanding in the brown eyes even as Angel switched back to his gameface just as he was feeling Riley squeeze his shoulder. At an unspoken command, the three men started to move towards where Angel had pinpointed the other heartbeat as being, ignoring the swarming flies that crowded over anything they could. "Hey..it's alright..we're here to help you, you can come out now..don't be afraid." Quietly gesturing towards a relatively un-crowded dark corner, Angel highlighted the area with the torch, while Riley and Graham started to shift the few bodies in the way in between being ill, the two humans thanking the higher beings that they were wearing gloves even though they had been donned so they didn't leave any fingerprints in the house. As they struggled with a fairly large corpse, Angel kept up the re-assuring words, wondering just how many bodies had been thrown into the basement. So far, he had counted thirty-six and he knew there was more. It looked like the demons had been residing in the dilapidated house for a few weeks or more, abducting and fucking anybody that had crossed their path. The vampire was pretty sure that most of the immediate neighbours were amongst the dead. "Yep...you'll be home soon, back with your family...safe and sound," stated Angel, almost choking again from the stench. As if on cue, a thin wavery voice broke through the dank air. "Aaaaangel?" "Shit! Christopher...is that you?" Instantly, Riley and Graham found themselves almost thrown out of the way as the brunette vampire shoved past them in an effort to reach the child buried under a badly decomposed black man. Body hefted out of the way at last, Angel bent down and gathered up the small boy, grinning like mad as he switched from game-face to human. "Are you alright Christopher...are you hurt?" asked the anxious vampire, hugging the dirty naked child to his chest in a strong grip. Unable to help themselves, the three men found themselves laughing in relief as Christopher complained that he was hungry and that he wanted a drink of water. Riley couldn't believe their luck, Doyle’s vision certainly hadn't indicated the man/child's presence, just the unfortunate Todd's. Torch and axe taken off the vampire, Riley and Graham gave the crowded basement one last sweep before stopping to remove the dead boy's jewellery for Wesley to study. Once done, the two men ventured back upstairs. With a hastily washed and clothed Christopher clinging to Angel and Graham in the backseat and a still unconscious demon in the trunk of the classic car, Graham set off on the two and a half hour drive back to the Hyperion. Febuary 29, 2005 Various places, 3.25 am ***References to Child Sex*** We're in deep trouble and it’s only going to get worse. Things are coming to a head finally between Angel and the much despised Wolfram and Hart. Truly a group of people that make Angelus look like an advertisement for Mother Teresa's Nanny Graduate of the Week. The most disgusting thing of all is to find out that we are all just pawns in some sick plan that they are slowly unravelling. None of us are too sure of what is going to happen but knowing the law firm, it’s going to be catastrophic. Angel is almost beside himself again with stress, I did something really silly tonight and I'm hoping that it’s not going to rebound. I slipped him a few sleeping tablets tonight in a glass of bourbon, the foul taste of the liquid hiding any trace of the drug. He hates bourbon, says that it reminds him of fly spray, it apparently has the same smell. To get him to drink it, I told him that I wanted to get fucked by a redneck and that smelling bourbon on him would bring a little more reality. He just slammed it down with only minor whinging and then proceeded to chat me up with the worst Southern accent I have ever heard. I had to keep kissing him to hide my laughter until he fell asleep. Only drugged him so I could have a restful sleep myself, I'm sick of him tossing and turning. It's all he's done for the past week and a half. Even if he feels that he doesn't need sleep, I do. I could just move into another room for a few nights but that would just make him worse and more than likely snarly at everybody. Something that no one deserves, especially at a time like this. We are all on edge about how Todd's death is going to affect the future. Was he supposed to have a child somewhere down the line, one that may have joined the good fight? Graham is trying not to let the boy's death affect him but how can you just brush aside something like that? I'm to blame for that really. I couldn't help but shout at him, completely ignoring the fact that he had done the best thing for the poor lad. Even after Angel told me that Todd was going to die, I still blamed Graham for murdering the boy. Surprisingly, it was Spike that made me see sense. Took me aside and calmly told me that I was a wanker and that maybe Todd's death was meant to be. Told me that maybe it was Christopher that was meant to have children one day and not Todd. He likened the boy to a dog, said that if you knew an animal was going to die and was suffering, you would put it down to save it more pain in the end. Graham was just doing the same. It stunned me that William the Bloody could put things into such perspective. Of course, less than two seconds after I had been nearly floored with such wisdom, I learnt that I was nothing more than a limp wristed fag and since his Sire was getting blown everyday, Spike didn't see why I couldn't blow him as well. Needless to say, the bonding moment was shot to smithereens. That was this morning and I still have to apologise to Graham for being so callous. As soon as I do that then maybe Joyce will start to talk to me again. The only one who will, apart from Angel, is Christopher. Apparently I'm an uncle now to the small boy/man. Doyle and Cordelia are now Mum and Dad to him, something that he is delighted in. I only wish that the title came under better circumstances. The first night that Christopher came back, he had a nightmare so he climbed into Cordelia and Doyle’s bed. Snuggled down in-between them and everything was fine until Doyle sneezed and spiked out. He then broke their hearts, he said it was ok for Francis to have sex with him because the half demon was nice and Christopher liked him. It was almost a repeat of Xander, how the boy was so used to being abused, he really didn't understand that there were other ways to live. It had taken until the early hours of the morning for both Cordelia and Doyle to make Christopher understand that no one in the hotel was going to have sex with him. At first, they told him it was because everybody was his friend and friends didn't do that. Both Cordelia and Francis were ill after the small boy had told them that his workmates at Sanity were his friends and they had sex with him. Although they hadn't wanted to ask, they hadn't been able to help themselves and they ended up learning that Xander had indeed had sex with him. Doyle had then told Christopher that all the men in the hotel were actually his Uncles and that uncles didn't have sex with their nephews. The small boy had cried because he wanted to call Doyle Dad, something that Cordelia and Doyle had readily agreed to. Upon learning what the small boy had told his new parents, everyone including Spike had been horrified. We're now more than ever concerned about Xander and the other boys’ mental health. I wouldn't be surprised if having to do such dreadful things has pushed them all into a hole that they can't climb out of again. I only hope that Randall suffers for what he has managed to do to so many lives. It had really come as little surprise to learn of Wolfram and Hart’s involvement with the club, Sanity. They had organized the whole thing apparently including the auction. Angel and the two ex-soldiers had cheerfully beaten the information out of Todd and Christopher’s original buyer. The Exeth demon had gifted the boys to the pack of Amnruth's after they had performed a few tasks on the other demon’s behalf. We now know that Lindsey McDonald is Randall’s main contact at the law firm. After managing to find another boy, Leo, and having a talk to his buyer, we have been able to put numerous pieces together. We now know that Wolfram and Hart are behind everything that has befallen us. They organized the kidnappings a second time around and helped Randall set up Sanity. Tomas is a Warlock in the firm’s employment, the reason why Angel’s demon contacts have been reluctant to talk with him. Apparently, they had been threatened with ending up in some sort of flotation tank in which the man keeps his spare body parts for his work. He is also the same man who had possession of Spike for so long. With that in mind, we are very sure that it is the law firm that is giving us the phone orders, after all, they would have had access to Spike in order to blackmail us. We also suspect that there is a tie between Wolfram and Hart and the 'Soul of Blood', what exactly, we're not too sure. We still don't quite know what the 'Soul of Blood' is but we do know that it is to go into Spike unless there is a way to curse him forever from being able to host a soul. Joyce and I managed to cast enough spells and chant some incantations to learn that Spike was indeed born without a permanent soul of his own. It's quite sad actually, my theory is that he suffered dizzy spells all his human life because he had numerous souls flitting in and out of him over the years. The dizziness occurring as his body tried to adjust to each one. Certainly, when we tried to call forth just his in order to talk to it, we got flooded by too many to actually count. Unfortunately, they were unable to help us any with the 'Soul of Blood'. Angel, Riley, Graham, Spike and myself are working on a way to get to both Lindsey McDonald and Randall Hargraves. We need to find Sanity's boys faster, something that I'm sure Randall can help us with. Also, we need to find out more about this 'Soul of Blood' and what is so bad about it, apart from its name that is. I just wish we could talk more with Leo but the poor boy is deep into denial that there are demons. How he has actually convinced himself of such a thing is beyond me but we do know he wasn't born on the Hellmouth, which indicates there is more than just the one kidnapping ring operating around the state. I'm sure that both men can help us get into contact with the organizers of the operations. We're not naive enough to expect that we can totally wipe out the slavery rings but if we manage to wipe out a few, it’s a big step. I have to admit that I'm scared. Wolfram and Hart are no lightweights in the field of making mischief, instead they seem to have invented it. They are completely ruthless in whatever they do. We have managed to stop them a few times over the years, which is why they split us up and had Angel running all around town for them. In all reality, why we are still alive is another question. I know that if I were in their position, I would have had all of us disposed of at the first opportunity. And that most certainly is a thought that scares me the most. What possible plans do they have for all of us? If they have managed to unsettle us so much in the past, then they won't hesitate to do it again. Because we don't know exactly what we are dealing with, we are particularly vulnerable. I'm not the only one scared. We all are. We're scared but we're also angry. Spike I'm scared. Yep, me. William the Bloody, murderer, rapist and part of the Scourge of Europe. Disabled Will. The body bag of spare gibbies. Won't tell Peaches and the rest of them though. None of their business really. But I am. I don't want a soul especially one with a poncy dumbfuck name like the 'Soul of Blood'. I think that the Watcher knows I'm scared, he watched me real close at the meeting in the library this afternoon. When I went to give him the usual finger, he just looked at me and gave me this little half smile and such a quick nod, I really didn't think I saw it at first. Didn't end up giving him the finger, just sort of nodded back. Wolfram and Hart. Big building full of pricks that has even my poofter Sire quaking in his boots. That was what really tipped me off that things were heading up shit creek. Definitely no paddle in the near future. Pretty sure it’s a barbed wire canoe as well. Nothing scares Hairboy. Well, nothing up until now. As long as the Angel of Painfulness has been in L.A., the law firm has been a thorn in his side. Used to laugh at some of the things he would rant and rave about at the 'Find Xander' meetings. His voice would go all high, like a teenage girl who just discovered she has tits. Not laughing anymore. I'm certainly not finding anything funny about being born without a permanent soul. Woos reckons that’s why I was so sick as a kid. I was apparently like a lightening rod, sucking souls into me like a black hole. One comes in, makes me dizzy until I was used to it, it then gets shoved out again by the next one, I get dizzy until I get used to it and so on. When those filthy gypo's cursed Angelus with a soul, they could only put his back into him because that was the only that would fit into his body. Even if they had tried to give him another person’s soul, it wouldn't have worked because it wasn't designed to fit in his body. With mediums it’s a bit different, they can channel other peoples souls, host them for a bit in their bodies but only until their permanent soul pushes it out again. Wes reckons some people are born with this ability naturally, others can learn it if they have a strong enough mind to suppress their own souls to allow another to come into them or some such rot. I'm scared because Wes thinks that anybody's soul can fit my body. If the soul resides long enough in my body, it will eventually influence how I act and think. It would be able to stay as long as it liked because I don't have anything already in me to tell it to piss off again. Worse if the soul was bound to me from ever leaving. Like Angel’s soul. I won't be me anymore. I'll be whoever the soul is. I could be the old man selling newspapers on the corner of 42nd street or some twat from Australia who choked to death on a sausage roll. I could even be Drusilla or at least that’s the general theory. And it’s one that should be tested out because Dru is the only one who can make real sense of this twaddle. First thing in the morning, I'm gonna have a word to the Bobbsey Twins of magic and see what they can do. We need an inside word on this. I just hope that they can get rid of her again. Don't get me wrong, I adore my Wicked Plum but I don't want her in me forever. I don't look good in velvet empire style dresses and that’s a theory that’s been tested. Most of all, I'm scared because if Angel and the others can't stop Wolfram and Hart, then I'm gonna get staked. The firm needs me if they want to dabble around with souls and unless there is another person in the world without a soul of their own then they’re gonna come looking for me any day now. Ironic that they had me under their noses all that time. In the end though, me getting staked is gonna be the easiest solution for them all. Xander He promised me that he would find me. And he hasn't. I was so sure that he was going to come walking through the doors of Sanity on auction night. He was going to be flanked by Wesley, Angel, Riley, Doyle and the other one, Graham. Together, they were going to fight their way through all the demons, axes and swords sweeping from side to side as they made their way towards me. All the demons who were bidding at the auction were going to drop to their knees in fear of Angel and Spike; beg their forgiveness. They were going to deliver justice to Randall for being the monster that he is. I was so sure that I was going to see Angel smash Adam into the ground before delivering the killing blow. Angel was going to have to do it because Spike can't hurt humans. Spike was the one who was going to find clothing for me and wait until I got dressed while the others did the same for the rest of my workmates. Spike was going to let me hold his hand in the car back to the Hyperion. We were going to have cake the next day in celebration of us all being free and the wicked witch being dead. I was going to stay safe with Spike forever, he was going to look after me and he wasn't going to let anyone hurt me again. Christopher was going to live with Doyle and Cordelia and everyone else got to go home to their families or the Christian Hostel. I was so sure that it was going to happen. Spike promised he would find me. He did, he really did promise. Spike wouldn't lie to me. He was going to kiss me when he saw me again. I was going to see Mrs. Neal three times a week and go to the library with Wesley twice a week. Cordelia was going to talk with me each night after dinner and Christopher was going to watch TV with me. He is going to find me, I know that but it’s hard not to cry. I know because that’s what I'm doing now. I'm crying because Spike promised. March 4, 2005 St.Martins Cigar Bar - Men only. 11.21 am "Join me in a cup of tea?" enquired a crisp English voice. At the other man's nod, Joyce gestured at a passing waiter, indicating for him to approach the table. Looking down for a brief second, the older woman idly brushed at a non-existent speck of dirt on her charcoal grey slacks. As the waiter finished crossing the small distance to the table, the witch ordered a pot of Earl Grey tea to be brought to the white linen clad table. Once the waiter had smiled his approval at the order, she turned her attention back to the man sitting opposite her. "Well Jerome, lets you and I discuss a little business while we wait for our refreshments...you know, I've never been here before and I must say I'm definitely thinking of coming again" drawled Joyce with an almost careless glance around the cigar smoke filled room. Heart beating almost out of her chest, she let her eyes skim over the two laughing men only three tables away. Momentarily reassured by their presence, she casually rested a large forearm across a well muscled thigh as she crossed her legs. Almost instantly, she found she had to suppress the desire to ask if it was the correct etiquette for a man to cross his legs in the presence of fellow men. However, as she wasn't told to reverse the action, Joyce gave Jerome a slight smile as he extolled the virtues of relaxing every few weeks in the men's only cigar bar. "Mmmm, yes you're quite right. Completely lovely...Now business?" "Yes of course. What exactly is your client looking for?" Taking in the silver-haired gentleman opposite her, Joyce wondered just how someone, a human himself, could cause so much misery to members of his own species. As she let Wesley's voice flow through her, the older woman wished once again that she hadn't been put in her current position. Conducting a business deal with Randall Hargraves or as he was now calling himself, Jerome Sheridan, was not something she had ever wanted to do. The only thing consoling her was the knowledge that if she managed to pull it off without any hiccups, she would be able to lead the L.A. team to the man's current pit of depravity. "That's the thing, he's actually not too sure. He does know that he wants one from the Hellmouth, easier to adapt, right? Yes, thought so." Her head nodding as Randall explained that he had just got his first batch of stock, Joyce had to concentrate on resisting the temptation to attack the smooth-tongued man. With that thought in mind, the woman realised that she was in fact the appropriate choice to meet face to face with Randall - anyone else would have given into the urge. Conversation broken temporarily as the waiter arrived with the tea, Joyce was slightly awed to see how large her hands were as she attempted to grasp the delicate teacup handle without snapping it off. As Angel's soft voice vibrated inside of her right ear, thanks to the latest issue army satellite communications device, the witch took a sip of the fragrant brew as instructed, Wesley staying silent for the moment. "Mmmm lovely. Please, continue....You were saying that you can make their looks to order..How?" gently asked the crisp accent as Joyce furrowed her brows in compliance to the brunette vampire's instructions. Thank God they had practised this sort of thing before the actual meeting. Joyce hated to think what would have happened if she had had to face Randall without being allowed to get used to the glamour and various communication devices. For the previous two days, Joyce had been officially male, looking like a cross between Giles and Wesley. Your average tweed wearing upper class Englishman. In an effort to save its own skin, Leo's buyer had offered to organise a meeting with the former brothel owner, an offer that was immediately accepted. Angel had been all set to meet with the older human until they had realised that Randall would recognise him, Wolfram and Hart no doubt showing the pimp who had freed the whores in the first place. Glamouring Angel had been the next option but in a weird twist, it had been discovered that the magic didn't cling too well to essentially dead flesh, the new image tending to dissolve after a few minutes. It had then been time for plan C - Someone else. Doyle, Wesley and Spike were immediately out of the question, as were Riley and Graham as the two ex-soldiers proved unable to act their way out of a paper bag. That had essentially left Cordelia and Joyce. With Randall expecting to meet with another male, the choice had been narrowed to Joyce. It had been decided to use the voice talent to everybody's advantage. So, for the next two days, Joyce had been given a crash course on how to act like a male, once the glamour had been applied. She had then had to get used to the tiny ear piece and Angel's voice instructing her what to do whilst she projected Wesley's voice. The ear-piece wasn't the only piece of electronics the two ex-soldiers had managed to pick up through one of their new contacts. Joyce also had a small microphone taped to her chest which transmitted straight to Wesley, Riley and Graham's ear pieces. Angel and Wesley were keeping an eye on her via a link to the small camera placed in the briefcase that Riley had carried in with him, courtesy of David Nabbit's laptop computer skills in a hotel room opposite the club. The only real protection she had though, was an equally glamoured Riley and Graham pretending to relax and soak up the atmosphere only a few tables away. The whole point to the exercise was to get Randall to agree to both Joyce and her 'client' going to view what was available, a rush deal. As she was instructed to take another sip of the Earl Grey, Joyce smiled and nodded again as Randall told her about some of the permanent changes he could arrange. Stomach churning at the thought, she threw the first spanner in the older man's plans for her 'client'. "Ahhh. That's a slight problem. My...client...is extremely sensitive to any vibes that glamour projects. Yes, I know...rather unfortunate. Quite allergic to them, actually his whole..family..is. So, he would be after something quite natural if possible." "Right..Right. Well then, that makes it a little more difficult. What I have at the moment is two white and blond, two tanned and dark with the other white and light brown. All natural, not going to change them until the deal's made." admitted Jerome, smiling at his customer. After a brief hesitation, the former brothel owner told Joyce that both herself and her client could come and choose from the available stock providing she paid a deposit, nodding in satisfaction when the answer was a suggestion of half the usual sale rate. If her client failed to find his current stock to his liking, then the deposit would ensure that the customer would have the first choice from the next batch. Another few minutes discussion about the money arrangements and the older woman was quite amazed that the whoremonger didn't want the deposit in cash, preferring to do things over the internet. At Angel's instructions, she pretended to think it over for a moment before giving Randall a wide grin and nod. "Fantastic, you can just give the account details to my lawyer when you arrive. He'll take everything from there... Just out of curiosity, what type of client is he?" "Yomlm. One thing though, because he's so allergic to the enhancements, I do need to ask that you shut everything down from the time he arrives till the time he goes....You will be compensated for any incidents occurring due to this." came Joyce's immediate reply. Three tables down, Riley and Graham gestured and nodded at each other, simulating conversation even as they listened to Joyce and Randall's transaction. Neither of them were happy for the older woman to be so close to the action but there wasn't any other option other than just clubbing the older man over the head and then beating the information out of him once he regained consciousness. Something that everyone really wanted to do but with so many lives at risk, they couldn't take that option. As the two men continued to listen, they shot each other a small cold smile as the former brothel owner indicated that Lindsey McDonald would be at the meeting in three nights time. It was going to make everything so much easier. Two birds with one stone. Same time Hyperion Hotel, Stepping out of the lift and turning to her left, Cordelia walked towards Leo's room, a plate of sandwiches held in one hand while her other grasped a glass of protein enriched milkshake. With a wide smile plastered to her face, the brunette woman took a deep breath to prepare herself for trying to have a talk to the Asian youth. Plate and glass balanced in one hand, she rapped twice on the doorframe, waiting to be acknowledged. "Who is it? Who..who's there? You..you're there, why? Why are you there? What's that? You're one of *them* aren't you?" came the rapid fire questioning, the dark haired male angling his head wildly in an effort to see if anyone was behind her as he sat on his bed. Once established that she was alone, he leaned back against the wall again, turning his unblinking gaze upon her face while he idly picked at the hem of his pale blue shirt. "Hi Leo, good to see you...I've got some sandwiches here. There's cheese and pickled onions, peanut butter and jelly and there's also some honey and banana. I wasn't sure what you'd like...How are you today?" said Cordelia gently. The plate was placed on top of the dresser, just next to the milkshake. Standing beside the doorway, the brunette woman stood passively as the slim youth continued to stare at her. "Do I look hungry? Am I? Why are you feeding me? You're just going to keep me forever and let me starve to death...You're a thing..like the *others*." "Honey...if we planned on starving you, we wouldn't feed you. Please eat, you'll get sick if you don't. Leo...I'm human, just like you. Just like Christopher and Robin and Wesley..like your Mom and Dad..You can go home to them soon ok?" "LIAR! You lie..Everyone lies! I know what you are..I *know* where I am...as soon as I eat, I'm gonna be sleepy and I don't want to be sleepy. You're gonna hurt me." "Leo..we are *not* going to hurt you. Remember, Angel, Riley and Graham came and got you off the demon an...." "LIARLIARLIARLIAR! Yes, you are. There are no such things as demons...only *those*. I know you put stuff in those sandwiches and you're going to make me sleepy and I don't want to be." "Yes, you're right. These sandwiches are going to make you tired and then you'll go to sleep. Tell you what, I'll just take these away ok?" asked Cordelia with a serious face, unable to smile even as it looked like the reverse psychology was going to work again. As she made a move to pick up the plate of sandwiches, Leo's brow furrowed, the youth telling her that she was lying again and that she really wanted him to starve to death. Head nodding at the accusations, Cordelia worked up a sad smile as the slim male got up from his bed and walked over to the dresser. Watching Leo sniff at a sandwich before taking a tiny bite, the brunette woman's smile got a little bigger as the youth started to convince himself that he was being poisoned. Every time that Leo opened his mouth to say something, no-one was sure what was going to come out. The dark haired male was currently convinced that there were no such things as demons and that he was being held prisoner by creatures that wore human skins. Creatures that were either going to starve him to death or poison him. How Leo could believe in 'creatures' but not demons was worrying to say the least. Cordelia turned and left the youth to his mutterings, secure in the knowledge that even if most of the sandwiches were left uneaten, Leo would have at least finished a glass full of one of Wesley's special protein drinks. As she glanced down at her watch, she realised that it was almost time for Robin's former owner to come for a visit, a large smile gracing her face as she felt her heart skip a beat. It was nothing short of a miracle that Robin had been bought by such a kindly demon. Leo's former owner had led Angel and the others to the Trunth demon only three day's ago. The three men had burst into the demons apartment, weapons at the ready, all gung-ho and anxious to deliver justice to the obviously evil demon and rush the victimised youth to safety. What they hadn't counted on was, Robin leaping in front of the slender white and grey mottled creature in order to protect it. The two males had clutched at each other, screaming wildly, terrified by the weapon wielding intruders. Both Robin and W'nth trying to calm each other down in between telling the vampire and two ex-soldiers not to hurt the other. Finally, Riley and Graham had managed to separate them amidst tears and wailing from them being torn apart, the youth fainting under the stress. It had been the demons quiet pleading for them not to hurt Robin that had made the three men re-evaluate the situation, thinking that there might just be more than what it looked like. So, they had waited for Robin to regain consciousness while the lightly furred demon had done its best to tell the men about his relationship with the youth. Angel, Riley and Graham had been staggered to find out that the two had been more or less involved in a romantic nature since the demon had discovered Sanity only a few day's after it had first opened. W'nth had admitted that it had been a case of love at first sight for him, Robin taking longer to feel the same. The demon had told the trio of how he had asked to buy Robin everyday with Randall always refusing, therefore leaping onto the opportunity when it presented itself. Robin had confirmed everything once he had come around, begging the three men not to hurt the demon. After more discussion and tears, the youth had agreed to come back to the Hyperion for his own safety but only if W'nth could visit daily. Once back at the hotel, Robin had told them everything. About how he had been 'encouraged' to leave the house, the re-training process and the events leading to the auction. Head shaken, Cordelia walked down the second floor corridor until she reached Robin's room, knocking lightly at the door. "Come in..Is he here yet?" "Hey Robin and no, he isn't yet but he won't be too far away. Wow, you look good...Dressing to impress, hmmmm?" grinned the brunette woman. With a glance, she took in the light camel slacks and dark grey knitted pullover, noting that the youth blushed at her words. The very idea that Robin could find love after all he had been through, especially with a demon, was something that was giving hope to everyone regarding the boy's future. "I want to look nice for him. He..He's good to me." came the soft reply, Robin smiling shyly as the blush deepened. Ducking his head as he giggled slightly, the blond sat on his bed and reached for his shoes and socks. "You don't have to stay with him just because he's good to you...I mean you can go home, back to your parents. I'm sure that you two are always going to be friends?" "No. I can't go home. Not again. If I get taken again, its going to kill my parents and sister. You haven't called them yet have you?" asked Robin, suddenly anxious. "Even if I don't get taken, the never knowing if and when is just going to drive them to an early grave. It's better if they think I'm dead." "You can't be serious? I know that you're not loopy like Leo but that is just stupid...I'm *sorry* but it is." "If I'm dead, they can go on with their lives. They can weep over a photo each birthday, Christmas and Thanksgiving. They can tell my nieces and nephews all about me an....I'm finally happy and I have someone who loves me. He's ugly and furry and he's spotty. He has really bad breath in the morning, especially after he's eaten anything with pesto sauce the night before...and he never closes the shower door so the bathroom floods each time and he always forgets to replace the bin liner bu.." "But, just because you think you owe him for being nice to you doesn't mean you should deny your family from ever seeing you again. What about if you have children, how can you deny your children their grandparents?" asked Cordelia, arms crossed over her chest as she looked at the youth with compassion. She knew that Wesley, Angel and even Joyce had been down this track with Robin before but it didn't hurt to try it again. Everyone wanted to be sure that Robin was only staying with the demon out of love and not obligation but from what they had seen, love was definitely a major factor in the relationship. "Please..as I was saying, I'm happy because he loves me. He told me that the first time he hired me and he didn't lay one finger on me. Not the first time, not the second time and he didn't touch me the third time either. He waited for me to touch him and it took a while. There..there was a hi..hire that hurt me so badly and all Adam did was yell at me and I was hurting because both my arms and my right leg were broken. W'nth wanted to hire me straight afterwards but Adam said he couldn't until after I was better." whispered Robin, his gaze focused on the wall just behind Cordelia. Fingers playing nervously with his shoelaces, the youth continued. "He stood up to Adam but when that didn't work, he bribed one of the Keepers to sneak him through to my sleeping cubicle for a few hours. He cried....he sat on the floor next to my mattress and cried. I was in so much pain but all I could think was that I was happy to see him. *He* made me happy. How do I tell my Mom and Dad that I'm gay? Better yet, in love with a demon? What do I tell them when they ask why I'm not getting any older?" demanded the youth in soft voice, barely above a whisper, a few tears falling from his bright blue eyes. "I feel like you're all trying to break us up and that's not fair...What I have with W'nth might not last for ever but...I want to see where it goes. Please, I want the chance to do it." "Oh Robin...I..I'm sorry, we're not trying to break you up. I just so don't want you to make a mistake. You really do love him, don't you?" softly enquired the brunette, wiping a tear away from her own eyes. "Yes." stated Robin, rising from the bed now that his laces where tied tightly. Face wiped free from the tears, he sniffled into a tissue while offering the box from his bedside table to Cordelia. Hands smoothing down the front of his pale slacks, he asked the woman if he was presentable, earning himself rolled eyes and a snort from the older human. "Yes..Of course. Come on, he's probably already down in the kitchen and having a stress attack because you're not down there yet...I wonder how he went today?" mused the brunette as Robin tried not to show how much he wanted to run down the stairs. God, if all had gone well with W'nth, Xander should be back in the Hyperion the next day. The demon had met with a few of his friends who knew which demons had brought some of the other boys, Scott, Aiden and Ashley, the last two being sold together. W'nth wasn't too sure where the rest of the boys were but had been horribly distressed when he had learnt about Todd's death, vowing to help Angel get the others back, something that had helped the demon become somewhat accepted. Surprisingly, it hadn't been that hard to do. The lightly furred male was one of the nicest people that Cordelia had ever known. Still, with that in mind, she had asked everyone to keep an eye on Christopher whenever the demon was visiting the hotel as she wasn't too sure what would happen if they were left alone together and she really didn't want to find out either. Smiling to herself again, the brunette woman felt the excitement well up again at the thought of Xander returning to the Hyperion. She knew that everyone else was excited as well. Christopher had been asking when the younger man would be back every waking minute that he wasn't occupied with reading to the twins. Angel and Spike however, had acted weirdly upon learning that Xander would be back at the hotel in only a few days. Spike had growled, snapped and snarled at everyone who tried to tell him it wasn't a good idea for him to help collect Xander from his buyer. The blond demon had steadily worked himself into what could only be termed as a fit of hysterics, vampire style. After yelling and insulting everyone hadn't worked, Spike had vamped out and started making odd little whine/growl noises that rattled right in the back of his throat, looking directly at Angel. The two vampires had stared at each other for a good minute, Angel being silent while the smaller demon continued to make the thick watery sounds. In a move almost too quick to register, Angel had suddenly been only a few inches away from his Childe, standing in front of him also in full game-face. Cordelia still didn't really believe what had happened next. Angel had spoken to the younger male in a firm voice, full of command. He had said only two words. 'Childe' and 'No', and without one bit of argument, Spike had dropped his head and nodded, the whining noises stopping instantly. Cordelia knew she hadn't been the only one staring at the vampires, and she also knew that she wasn't the only one wondering just how Angel had made Spike obey him without beating him into the ground. Tomas' Inner Workroom Same time "Well, thank goodness that's all done!" exclaimed the bone-weary Warlock. Arms lifted from his sides, he flexed his fingers while rotating his wrists to alleviate the muscle soreness. Something that he felt in every fibre of his body. Shoulders also rotated a few times, he winced as he heard the bones creak and groan before finally feeling a crack between his shoulder blades when he hugged his arms to his chest in a tight grip. "Ahhhhhh...sooooo goooood. Bloody tired though." Neck cricked from side to side a few times, the dark-haired male awkwardly rose from his knees to his feet, swaying a little as the blood rushed to his head. His legs made themselves the centre of attention as pins and needles scurried their way from his buttocks to the very tips of his toes. Lip bitten in an effort not to start squealing from the unpleasant experience, Tomas stiffly walked around the blood drenched room, feet squelching in the soggy wet carpet. He was thankful that most of the hard work was over now. All the souls that Wolfram and Hart wanted were now stored in their transitional vessels, a place that they would stay before being combined into one soul and transferred into the appropriate host. "Soul of Blood....yep.." snorted the Warlock, smug in the knowledge that there was no way for the law firm to keep an eye on him, not with all the cloaking magic at work. He still had no idea of why the senior partners wanted to dabble in something so stupid but then again, as long as he got paid, then Tomas really didn't care. Who cared how many psychos and insane genius' were crammed into one body? Taking a long slow look around the small room, Tomas was once again astounded at how much blood had been used in the rituals. Almost a pint for each soul had been splashed around the room, coating the floor, ceiling and walls, not to mention his own entire body. The blood that had called forth all the required souls had brought the darkest aspects of the personalities to full fruition, binding them to the forefront of the soul while all the more 'human' qualities had been suppressed to the point of being non-existent. Whoever was going to host the 'soul', was going to be certifiably insane once the body adjusted properly. With the type of personality mix of the souls that had been cast into their temporary homes, Tomas wouldn't be surprised if the host broke free within a year and managed to destroy most of America single handedly. Of course, Tomas would be hopefully closer to finding his brother and returning them both to England before jumping to a much safer dimension. With a sigh, Tomas knew that he would have to rest for at least another week or two for him to be strong enough to start the search for the one born without a soul. The pins and needles finally beginning to diminish a little, the Warlock took a look around the deep crimson room, wondering how long it would take April to finish cleaning the blood from the walls and ceiling. Bare foot raised, he grimaced slightly as the thick liquid dripped from his small toes. He needed a shower and then a long soak in a bath with some camomile oil to help him relax and the carpet certainly needed replacing. A groan as he glanced at the fifty two various statues and bowls that currently hosted the souls and Tomas caught himself thinking about how long it was going to take him to actually pinpoint the correct host. He would have to cast the spell world wide first and then each day, he would have to tweak it in order to narrow the spell down. It had to be done very gently so as not to tear the spell apart or even let it develop a minute rip, he would have to have patience. He only hoped that the senior partners would continue to be so willing to give him space and time. They were not 'people' that he wanted to get impatient. |
