Spike snorted as he was dragged into the hospital by Tara. For some
reason they actually thought he cared about the idiots that were
hurt. Giles, Buffy, Willow, and Xander had been hurt in a battle and
it didn't look good for any of them. Or so Tara and Riley liked
to
think. They just liked to worry in his opinion.
"I'm here to see Willow Rosenberg and Rupert Giles," Tara
said and
got directions to their rooms. Riley got the directions to
Buffy's.
Spike just plopped into an uncomfortable chair.
"Do you want to go see the other young man who was brought in
with
them?" the nurse working asked him. Spike snorted and shook his
head. "That's a shame...Would you at least go and check on
him for me?
He's been in here a lot and I admit he's my favorite
patient." She
gave him a pretty little smile that made Spike get out of the chair.
He sighed deeply and moved towards the room. He looked in and was
surprised to see Xander looking almost fine; just asleep. A doctor
was scribbling notes down on a piece of paper. Spike coughed as he
entered the room. "I came to see how he was."
"Family, friend," the doctor led on waiting for his answer.
"Friend. William Brendan." Spike lied quickly and smoothly.
"Well, Mister Brendan," the doctor said, "for the most
part Alexander
is fine." Spike could feel the but come on. "But he appears
to have
gone into a coma. Nothing is in danger at the moment but the longer
he stays in it, the harder it'll be to come out of it."
Spike thought he heard the sound of a whispering voice but dismissed
it as the doctor continued. "Anything could help; a familiar
smell or
voice..."
"Well then, doc," Spike said with a snide tone, "looks
like he isn't
coming out of it. I know for a fact that no one will be able to visit
him."
"Wait," the doctor called out as Spike left, "what about
you?"
"I'll think about it." Spike tossed back.
***
Spike's guilt, did he have that?, wore at him. He showed up three
days to check on the group. Buffy had been found out to have lost
feeling in her arms. Giles no longer had feeling in his legs. Willow
could no longer sleep for fear of dying while doing so. Xander was
still stuck in his coma. He just wanted to check on them and he would
be on his way. But when he went to the doors, he was blocked.
It was an angel. Not Angel but an actual angel. Her wings sparkled a
dull color of cold, wide blue eyes, street clothes. Her hair went to
her shoulders and was teddy brown. Large boots stuck out of the legs
of tan khaki pants. The only words to describe them were Herman
Munster boots.
"Little late for Halloween, isn't it love?" Spike asked,
trying to
get around her.
"No you don't!" she growled, shoving him back. Angrily he
got up in
her face and wheeled back his fist. When he got no pain he lunged it
forward. She leapt out of the wall. "Would you stop looking like
an
idiot?! No one can see me but you!"
"Who the fuck are you?" he hissed. If she said he was the
only to see
her, she was probably right.
A light surrounded her, "I am your guardian angel, Jessica."
Spike
burst out laughing and the light clicked off. "Hey! Do I laugh at
you
when you introduce yourself!?"
Spike wiped his eyes, "That's just very funny. A guardian
angel...named
Jessica."
Jessica shifted, "Blame my parents for the name. I wanted to be
Melody but oh no..."
"I can't have a guardian angel, I have no soul." He was
talking with
a really slow child.
"Everything has a guardian angel, soul or not. I didn't want
this
job. I wanted that cute little thing with the curly hair..."
Jessica
placed her hands on her hips, "Now, you are going to march into
Xander's room and help Travis get that boy up!"
"No bloody way!" Spike forgot no one could see her and
everyone
looked at him. "Why can't you be seen?"
"I'm an angel, I'm not even supposed to be seen by you.
But you're
not gonna complete destiny if we don't do something. NOW MOVE
IT!"
Spike prided himself in being the Big Bad but NO ONE messed with a
girl who seemed to be going through PMS.
They passed the other patients' rooms and he could see all sorts
of
angels. There were even ones in Buffy and crew's room. The one in
Buffy's room was fiddling with her arm. She leapt back they
passed,
trying to look innocent. The two angels waved at each other.
Spike was forced into Xander's room where another angel sat. His
hair
was brown, he wore glasses, and his wings were silvery white. He had
gone for the commercialized angel; white robe, golden rope around the
waist, and halo. "Hey, Travis, when are you gonna get some normal
clothes?"
"These are normal." Travis said with a confused little note.
Jessica
shook her head and slammed Spike into a chair.
"Hey! Watch it!" Spike protested. "I bruise easily."
"No you don't."
"Well...I did..." Spike grumbled softly. God, angels were
pushy for
supposed heavenly beings. "Now what's going on?"
Travis stroked Xander's hair back from his face. "He'll
be waking
soon...Things won't go smoothly."
"Which is why you're here," Jessica flashed a toothy
smile.
Spike blinked slowly and Travis continued. "He's a mutant,
William.
He can't survive here anymore. The cell that would have activated
was
forced to activate early. Any hope of slowly learning what he needed
to know before it happened is lost."
"Bloody hell! Why do you need me?" Spike ground out.
"You're the only one who has anything to bargain with and
half way
likes him." Jessica commented.
"I hate the whelp!"
"An act," she said with a sing-song tone. "But you
can't fight
destiny that'll happen anyway; early or not. We're here to
make a
deal."
"A deal?" Spike snorted, "Not very heavenly. Don't
you like spout
some nonsense of God and how he'll save my soul or something?"
Jessica laughed, "You're thinking of someone who wasn't
born in the
80's and didn't die in the 90's. Hey, I barely believe in
God and I'm
forced to see him every day. The deal is, I'll take the chip out
if
you promise to take care of Xander until you learn to love him."
Spike snorted, "That'll be the day. Just protect him? Why
does he
need protecting?"
"Yes or no? Is it a deal?" Jessica demanded.
"Tell me why!"
"Do you want the chip out or not?" Their fighting had brought
in a
doctor. The same doctor who had been taking care of Xander the first
day of the coma.
"I told you to talk with him, not scream." The doctor was
frazzled
but since it didn't do anything to hurt Xander, couldn't
complain. "I
wish you could have at least told me you we-" The doctor was cut
off
mid sentence as the machines surrounding Xander began to beep. The
boy's eyelids fluttered softly, then rested.
The doctor and Spike believed Xander had fallen back within the folds
of the coma but the machines still beeped wildly. Again Xander's
eyes
fluttered and opened. They stared into the bright over head light and
then slipped close once more. The doctor was by his side and pulled
out a pen light.
He opened Xander's eye and swore. Spike looked into Xander's
eye and
stepped back. The pupil was black, no color left to them. The whites
of the eye had seemed to have popped a vein within it and was now
blood red with none of the white. When the doctor shined the light
into his eyes, a film slithered across them. When the light
disappeared, the film left and Xander's eyes slipped to half
closed.
"Xander?" the doctor's voice was cajoling and soft,
"Xander, I need
you to answer a few questions for me. What day is it?" Xander
just
stared at him through slitted eyes. "Xander? I know you're
awake, can
you answer me? I need you to answer me."
Still no answer except a slow blink of eyes. "Come on, can you
sit up
for me?" This request was met. Xander sat up with no argument but
his
face was still blank. "Very good. Can you give me your left
hand?"
Again the instruction was followed and the doctor smiled. "Good.
We
know he can understand us. Xander, if you can understand what I'm
saying, say so. I want to hear you speak."
Now there was silence. Just the soft sounds of panting breaths. The
doctor sighed, removing his glasses to rub his eyes. "It seems
whatever Xander saw when he was hurt sent him into a catatonic
state."
"What?" Spike shook his head. "But he can understand
you!"
"Yes he can. That doesn't exactly mean he's aware of ever
little
thing. He knows a voice is talking to him and that he should respond.
He probably blocked off the rest of his body's function including
the
speaking one." The doctor shook his own head. "This just
leads us to
another case of something like a coma." He left, muttering words
about arrangements.
Spike was left with Xander and the two angels. Jessica was smirking
in triumph and Travis was stroking Xander's arm. Xander just sat
there and stared at the wall. Now Spike had a fair decision but
Jessica knew how much he wanted the chip out. How hard could it be to
take care of a catatonic Slayerette? "Yes, okay, you got."
Jessica clapped her hands, grinning wider. "It's gone,"
she said a
moment later.
"What? That's it?" Spike had been expecting more.
Jessica sighed a long suffering sigh. She snapped her fingers and she
was in classic angel garb, surround by sparkling light. Travis began
strumming a harp which echoed along the room. She clasped her hands
together and to her breast. "Oh, William...As you take this
earth bound
angel into your care you shall receive that which has hindrance you.
Or something to that effect. Better your highness?"
Spike glared at his angel. "So my sarcasm isn't handed down,
it's
you." Jessica nodded happily as her clothing went back to
normal. "Well I see you again?"
"If you screw up, yes."
"I'll behave." And then only he and Xander were there.
Spike was
about to scamper out and test his ability but then he remembered
Xander. He grabbed the boy's hand and pulled him away. Xander
went
along with no resistance and they left smoothly.
The night was young and Spike was hyped up to kill. On the way, Spike
ripped out a human's heart. No pain. He fought the urge to break
down
a dance. He may be old, but he could still get jiggy with it. He
looked over his shoulder at Xander. His eyes were open now and he was
staring at the body. No fear in his eyes, just slight curiosity.
"You're gonna be a drag with this aren't you?" Spike
asked the boy.
Xander's eyes traveled up to look at the vampire and cocked his
head. "Yeah...that's what I thought." Rolling his eyes,
Spike dragged
him down the streets. The heartbeats and blood were singing to him.
So no one could blame him for just shoving Xander into his crypt.
Xander slid down heavily and almost ran into the coffin Spike used as
a bed. But he didn't react to it; just stared at the marble.
"Be
good, pet, I'll be back before dawn." Then the slab was
sliding back
in place.
