Angel woke a few hours later and took in the sight of the two slumbering men next to him. Spike was sleeping with one arm wrapped protectively around Xander's chest while his hand held Angel's. His right leg was wound around the boy's right leg and he had his face buried in the dark curls at the nape of Xander's neck. Xander's arm was still thrown over Angel and his head was laying on the pillow directly in front of the vampire. Xander's handsome face was slick with sweat and his brows were furrowed in a frown. Angel felt the pain radiating from Xander and remembered that they had forgotten all about the pill Xander had asked for before their earlier round of lovemaking.

Angel cursed himself for his thoughtlessness as he reached over and fumbled around on the nightstand. He found the pills and the glass of water that was sitting beside them and he opened the bottle and got out one of the pills before capping it and putting it back on the table. Angel grabbed the water and as he turned back towards Xander, he saw the boy had started to wake up.

"Hey, Angel whatcha doing?" Xander asked, still half asleep.

"You need to take your pain pill, sweetheart," Angel told him and watched as Xander smiled at his use of the word sweetheart. Angel decided if this was a dream he never wanted to wake up. He just wanted to hold on to what he had for as long as he possibly could. It felt like forever since he had allowed anyone to enter his heart like Xander and Spike had done.

"Here, take this," Angel prodded Xander, trying to wake him up. Finally, Xander opened his eyes and looked at Angel.

"Yes, mom," the boy grumbled as he took the pill and washed it down with the water. Xander handed the glass back to Angel as he lay back down on the pillow.

Angel set the glass back on the table and once again turned back to Xander, cuddling up to him. Angel leaned over the small distance between him and the boy. "Oh, I'm definitely not your mom and I can prove it," he said as he rubbed his erection against Xander's stomach before slowly licking up the bead of sweat that was falling down Xander's right cheek.

"Talks like a mom and acts like a puppy," Xander mumbled. "A very horny puppy." Xander moaned as Angel continued to rub against him, licking the beads of perspiration from his face. "Feels so good, but isn't that gross?"

"No. I love to taste you. Love to lick you, love the taste of you when you come, and I especially love the taste of your lips on mine," Angel told him as he made his way to his boy's lips. Angel nibbled at first one corner of those luscious lips and then the other before taking Xander's mouth in a passionate kiss. He knew that he should be letting the boy get some rest, but his body was protesting against any coherent thoughts and had been since he first woke up and caught sight of his two beautiful boys.

The kiss went on and on until Xander had to pull back so he could breathe. Xander looked into Angel's eyes and smiled before returning Angel's kiss with one of his own, and Angel soon found himself drowning in the boy once again. Angel felt Xander's hands roaming across his chest, playing with each nipple before his right hand wrapped around Angel's erection, gently sliding up and down the hardened shaft. Angel moaned into Xander's mouth and felt the boy's warm tongue running across his own as he tasted every inch of Angel's mouth. Soon Angel was pumping his hips against Xander's hand, trying to get the friction he needed to step over the cliff he was teetering on. He felt Xander's mouth on his neck and before Angel knew what the boy was doing he felt Xander bite him and that was all it took. He came with a roar, ropes of cum landing on Xander's stomach.

Xander was still nipping and kissing along Angel's neck when he felt Spike stirring behind him. Spike had taken his leg off Xander's and placed it gently between the boy's, careful not to put any pressure on the burn inside Xander's thigh. Xander's legs were spread and Spike reached down and opened Xander's ass cheeks, revealing the pink hole that was just begging to be touched. Xander felt Spike's hard cock against his ass and soon he was being filled slowly, inch by inch, with Spike's erection. Xander tried to press himself back so that Spike's cock would be filling him completely, but Spike gently held Xander still.

"No, no pet. Long and slow. I want you to feel every touch of my cock as it slides into you, filling you up and making you moan in pleasure," Spike whispered into his ear before running his tongue around Xander's ear, making his boy shiver with want and need.

"Please Spike, take me now. I need you inside me so badly," Xander groaned as Spike continued his torturous teasing. Xander tilted his head back against Spike's shoulder and turned to face the vampire before kissing him gently but firmly on the lips. He ran his tongue across Spike's parted lips, taking first the top one and then the bottom into his mouth, sucking and nibbling on each one as Spike tried to capture his mouth in a kiss.

"Uh, uh. You give me what I want and I'll give you what you crave," Xander teased him before biting Spike's lip, sucking at the wound and tasting the blood that had risen from it. He shivered as he felt the power from Spike's blood coursing through his body.

Spike was in heaven. Xander's lips were doing wonderful things but he wanted more. He wanted to taste his boy, claim that mouth with a kiss that would make Xander's toes curl. Instead, the boy was doing just that to him and he lost all thoughts of teasing when Xander bit his lip, sucking the blood into his mouth.

"Oh, fuck," Spike groaned as he felt the bite and then Xander's tongue lapping at the blood on his lip. Before he knew what he was doing, Spike thrust into Xander's hot, tight channel still slick from their earlier play, until his cock was firmly entrenched in the boy's spasming hole. Spike slowly eased his cock in and out searching for Xander's prostate. He knew he had reached his destination when Xander started pressing his body back against Spike's, trying to get the vampire's cock in as deeply as he could before wiggling his ass around Spike's length.

Angel had seen Xander bite Spike, had watched as the boy shivered from the taste of Spike's blood and knew the younger vampire was too far gone to warn him about taking too much of it. He reached out and cupped his hand around the back of Xander's head, pulling the boy towards him.

"That's enough, Xander. Our blood is powerful and you can't have too much," Angel explained as he looked into the boy's glazed eyes. "Let's try this instead," he said as he kissed Xander, slowly devouring the boy's mouth. Angel felt Xander's erection rubbing against him as the boy rocked himself back and forth on Spike's shaft and a thought came to him. Angel broke the kiss and reached for the lotion, putting some on his fingers before he reached around and prepared himself. Xander was watching him, his eyes filled with desire before Spike reached his hand up to cup Xander's chin and gently turn the boy's face towards him.

"You're getting what you want, you sneaky brat," Spike teased. "Now I want what I was promised." He gave Xander a smile before taking his boy's mouth into a long, slow kiss. No crevice was forgotten, no inch was not explored as Spike's tongue claimed Xander's mouth. When the kiss was finally over, he looked at Xander and smirked, knowing that he had accomplished what he had set out to do. Xander's breath was coming in gasps as he once again started to rock back against Spike, brown eyes never leaving blue ones as the vampire let the boy ride his cock. All of the sudden, Xander's eyes grew wide and he turned towards Angel, a loud moan escaping his mouth. Spike looked over and saw that Angel had turned and was pushing back into Xander.

"Fuck me, Xander," Angel was almost begging now. He had been watching Spike and Xander kiss and had been so turned on he thought he was going to cum before this even got started. Angel felt Xander reach down and take his hips in his hands before he lined his cock up with Angel's ass. The older vampire moaned as he felt Xander's warmth inside of him and felt his hand pumping Angel's cock in time with his thrusts. Spike joined in and soon the three of them were thrusting in time with one another, Spike's cock in Xander and Xander's in Angel's, as the older vampire thrust into Xander's hand.

Xander had watched as Angel prepared himself, knowing what the brunette vampire was doing and wanting it just as much as Angel did. Then Spike had made him forget everything else as he had kissed Xander like the boy had never been kissed before in his entire life. Xander had been in a trance since the kiss ended until he had heard Angel begging Xander to fuck him. Now the feeling of being seated in Angel as Spike filled him was overwhelming all of Xander's senses. Nothing existed in the world at that moment except making love to Angel as Spike made love to him. The earth could have opened and swallowed them up and Xander knew he wouldn't care as long as he could feel the kisses, the touches, and the bodies of the two vampires that surrounded him.

Xander tried to hold out, but soon found himself falling into his orgasm as he filled Angel with his seed. The clenching of Xander's muscles around Spike's cock soon had the blonde vampire spinning into his own orgasm. Angel felt Xander fill him with the warm cum and heard Xander and Spike's shouts of ecstasy he felt his own orgasm wash over him as he spilled his cool semen over Xander's hand and onto the bed. All three lay on the bed trying to come down from the high of the orgasms that had ripped through them. There were several minutes of gentle touches and kisses between the three before Angel finally got up and went into the bathroom, coming back with a clean washrag. He washed Spike and then Xander, giving each of them a long kiss before cleaning himself up. Angel remembered he hadn't washed Xander's hand off from where he had cum and was just about to do that when he froze at the sight in front of him.

Xander had lifted his hand to his mouth and was licking Angel's seed from the back of his hand. Xander's eyes were closed as his tongue flicked in and out. He groaned at the taste of the older vampire. *Tastes so good, so powerfully good* Xander slowly sucked his index finger into his mouth and rolled his tongue around it, making sure to capture each and every drop. He opened his eyes when he felt someone staring at him and was surprised to see both vampires watching him, their eyes full of burning desire. Xander grinned wickedly at Angel before he turned to face Spike.

"God, Angel tastes incredible. Want a taste, Spike?" Xander teased as he put his middle finger up to Spike's mouth. The younger vampire needed no further coaxing and latched onto Xander's finger, taking it into his mouth and sucking on it before grabbing Xander's hand and pulling it close. Spike's tongue caressed first one finger and then another as he dipped in and out between each finger before sucking on them until Xander's hand was cleansed of Angel's essence.

Now Xander's teasing had been turned on him as Spike licked his fingers while his beautiful blue eyes held Xander's brown gaze. Xander could feel himself growing hard at the sight of those blue eyes watching him as Spike's tongue did all those wonderful things to his hand and was amazed at how good it felt. He groaned, throwing his head back onto the pillow and felt cool lips take his in a powerful, sensual kiss. He wrapped his free hand around Angel's neck, pulling him in closer as the passion started to escalate between the three once again.

As Xander and Angel stopped kissing, Spike kissed the palm of Xander's hand before he wrapped the boy's hand around his arousal. Xander gently squeezed Spike's erection and ran his thumb across the top, feeling the pre-cum that was already starting to pool there. He raised his hand up once again and licked Spike's cum from his finger before reaching down and gathering more. Xander raised his finger up and put it into Angel's mouth.

"Your turn now, Angel," Xander said as he watched the brunette vampire suck on the finger until he had gotten every bit of Spike's pre-cum off. "Spike tastes really good too, doesn't he?"

"Fuck, yes," Angel groaned as the taste of Spike mixed with Xander made his own shaft harden.

Spike rolled over and pinned Xander's shoulders on the bed as he headed towards the boy's hardened cock. "Don't hold out on us, pet. We want to taste you, too," he said, glancing at Angel before he licked up the left side of Xander's cock. Angel had gotten the hint and had moved down to the other side of Xander. He ran his tongue up the right side of the boy's cock and Xander had to hold on to the sides of the bed to keep from thrusting upwards as first Spike and then Angel licked and kissed along the head of his cock, swirling their tongues into his slit and lapping at the fluid until it was gone.

"Tastes bloody delicious, he does," Spike groaned as Angel agreed.

"Certainly does. Seems he's insatiable too, doesn't it?" Angel asked before taking Spike's mouth in a hard, eager kiss. As they kissed their hands joined and they started running their entwined hands up and down Xander's shaft.

"What are we going to do with him?" Angel asked after they stopped kissing. The vampires hands were still working their way up and down the boy's cock and they watched as Xander twisted his hands into the bed covers, his face turned up towards the ceiling as he moaned in pleasure.

"We keep him satisfied," Spike placed his mouth around Xander's leaking cock. He teasingly licked around the head before taking Xander's entire shaft into his mouth, bobbing his head up and down the hard cock, stopping every time to swirl his tongue around the head before diving back down again.

"God, Spike feels so fucking good. Don't stop, please don't ever stop. Never want it to end," Xander was babbling as he reached over and ran his finger's through Spike's hair. He felt the bed dip beside him before he felt Angel's soft lips on his and he melted into the kiss.

Angel gave Xander one more kiss before getting up and going to the end of the bed. He took in the sight of Spike's taut buttocks before he parted the cheeks and leaned down, licking along the outside before he pushed his tongue through the tight ring and entered Spike's cool channel. Angel heard Spike moan and felt the younger vampire press back against his face as he worked his tongue around until he felt the small nub. He ran his tongue along it over and over and soon Spike was writhing in ecstasy. Angel raised up and spit on his hand before running it over his own erection. After he had gotten it slick, he lined his cock up to Spike's hole and thrust in, taking Spike all the way to the hilt. Angel reached around Spike and took the blonde's erection in his hand, working it up and down as he thrust into the other vampire's hole.

Spike had been enjoying the taste of his boy and the feel of his hard shaft in his mouth when he had felt Angel's tongue enter his ass. He moaned around Xander's shaft as he felt Angel's tongue hit his pleasure spot and felt the boy jerk under him from the vibration of his moan. Just as Spike was working his way towards another orgasm, he felt Angel's tongue leave his body and was just about to protest when he felt Angel's hard shaft enter his body, his hand working Spike's cock. Spike kept fisting Xander's cock as he raised his head up.

"Fuck, Angel, feels so good. Pound into me, take me hard, don't hold back," he urged as he felt Angel speed up. Soon Angel was pounding into Spike's ass and he once again took Xander's cock into his mouth, swirling his tongue around the head as his hand continued stroking the length. Spike took Xander's balls into his hands, gently kneading them. He felt the boy's balls start to draw up and knew he was close to orgasm. Spike reached underneath Xander and put a finger into Xander's ass. That's all it took to set Xander off and Spike felt the warm cum enter his mouth and greedily swallowed it down as he heard Xander's cries of pleasure.

"Oh, God, feels so fucking good. Gotta cum, Spike, gonna cum," the boy shouted as he filled Spike's mouth. Xander's cries of pleasure sent Spike over the edge and he spilt his seed over Angel's hand and onto the bed. Angel felt Spike's ass muscles clench as he came and soon he was following the others with his own orgasm.

Spike fell on one side of Xander as Angel collapsed on the other. They lay there for a minute before they sat back up and looked at the boy. Both of them started to laugh as they realized that Xander had fallen asleep after his orgasm. Between the vigorous round of lovemaking and the pain pill, Xander was completely unconscious, a big grin on his face.

"First time I've ever sucked anyone into unconsciousness," Spike said.

"Yeah, but at least he's happy," Angel smiled at the look on Xander's face. He looked completely and utterly debauched.

"He's so fucking beautiful, just like you Angel," Spike leaned over to kiss Angel. Angel tasted Xander's essence mixed with Spike and he grabbed the other vampire's head, pulling him in for a deeper, passionate kiss.

When they broke apart, Angel sighed. "I never looked that innocent though. He looks like a little boy who's having a wonderful dream."

"Yeah, right, peaches," Spike laughed. "A thoroughly debauched little boy who's dreaming of having his own harem of handsome men."

Angel laughed as he and Spike stood up. Angel's amusement turned to sadness as he thought about Xander as a little boy. Angel wondered if Xander had ever been this content when he was younger. He looked at Spike and saw the same look on the younger vampire's face as he watched Xander sleep.

"Do you suppose Xander ever had any good dreams when he was a child?" Angel asked.

Spike turned towards Angel and shook his head. "No, more like nightmares. From what I've heard that was what his life was like as a child. A nightmare. And no one seemed to notice or even give a flying fuck about what was happening to him, not even his friends. No telling how bad it was, or how long it lasted." Spike said sadly, before he thought of something. "Do you suppose his dad still hits him?"

Angel looked at his childe not knowing whether to tell him the truth or not. He knew Spike's temper, knew it was much worse than his own and knew that if he felt like killing the man, Spike just may do that very thing now that the chip was out of his head. Finally, he decided to tell him the truth. If they were all going to have a relationship, they had to trust each other and be honest with one another.

"I know he still does," Angel said as he saw the darkness that was a mixture of hatred and bloodlust cross over Spike's face. He went over to Spike and pulled the younger vampire to him for a hug. "When he came back to L.A. that second time he had some bruises on his face and arms. When I asked him if Buffy had done it, he told me it was a drunken demon that went by the name of Harris. That's all he would tell me and Doyle before he changed the subject."

Spike growled into his sire's chest as he felt Angel's embrace tighten. He knew that Angel was thinking he would kill the man and he was right except for one thing. Spike wanted Angel and Xander to be proud of him and while he knew that Angel probably felt the same way he did, Xander would never forgive him for killing that bastard, no matter what the fucker had done to the boy. Spike hugged Angel back before he stepped away from him and walked over to pick up his clothes that were lying on the floor next to the bed.

"Guess we better get dressed before someone shows up to see Xander." Spike broke the silence. He was buckling his pants when he ventured a glance at Angel. The older vampire was watching Spike as he got dressed.

"Don't worry, Angel. I'm not going to kill the bastard. But all promises are off if the man ever touches him again. I won't see Xander hurt ever again without getting revenge on whoever causes the pain." Spike finally answered the silent question that he knew had been running through Angel's head. His _expression changing from anger to surprise when he heard Angel's simple but heartfelt response.

"I agree."

The two vampires finished dressing and Angel went out to get some clean bedding and towels for Xander's room. The nurse that gave him the requested items just smiled at him in that 'I know what you've been up to' way and if Angel hadn't been a vampire he would have been blushing as he grabbed the bedding and towels and practically ran back to the room. Angel was ready to open the door when a sign hanging from it caught his eye. Angel pulled it off and chuckled as he read what was on the paper.

He walked into the room and saw Spike sitting on the side of the bed, his fingers gently running through Xander's long dark locks as he watched the boy sleep. Spike looked up as Angel crossed the room and shoved the sign into his hands.

"What's this, then?" he asked, taking the paper.

"Just read it," Angel smiled. "It must be someone's idea of a joke."

Spike read the paper and began to laugh. "It's no joke, it's the bloody truth." he said as Angel joined in with the laughter. Spike laid the paper over on the table and reached across the bed, picking Xander up and walking over to the nearby chair. He sat down, gently pulling Xander close to him as he cradled the boy in his lap. Spike watched as Angel changed the bedding, grumbling the whole time.

"I don't see why I have to be the one to change these sheets all the time. And that nurse gave me a look when I asked for more bedding and towels. Next time you go fetch the sheets and change them while I hold Xander," he mumbled before stepping back outside the room, finding a linen basket not far away. Angel threw the soiled laundry in the cart and hurried back to the room just as Spike was placing Xander back on the bed. They put the boy's boxers and pajamas on him before tucking him in. Xander hadn't even stirred the whole time, the pain pill having it's desired effect.

"You get to do the clean up because you are the neatness freak. I could live in a soddin crypt and be happy as long as you and Xander were there," Spike answered his question from before. He sat down on the right side of the bed while Angel sat on the left. Both of them would have loved to climb back in and cuddle with Xander but they knew they had been lucky so far that none of the Scoobies had found them together already. Angel and Spike weren't worried about their group as Cordy and Doyle knew how they felt about Xander and each other and they didn't feel like Wesley and Oz would have a problem with it either. But the Scoobies were a different story altogether.

"I definitely vote for the waiting till we get home concept," Angel answered, thinking about Buffy's reaction to him being with not only Spike but Xander as well. "The problem will be getting Xander back to L.A. without telling them why. You heard how they got when I mentioned it before. Even though they haven't been paying too much attention to him lately, I find it hard to believe that they would be so stupid as to let him go without a fight. Then there's the fallout from this whole Initiative business still to worry about and Thanksgiving is the day after tomorrow. You know that Willow and Buffy will definitely want Xander here for that."

"Don't care what they want," Spike shot back. "All I want is to get us as far away from this town as possible. I know that Xander's grown up here, but from what I can tell it's been pretty much a bad life for the boy. Parents and family that hurt him, demons that want nothing more than to catch a tasty morsel like him and eat him up, and friends that tend to take him for granted. You've got a lot of bad memories too and I've had nothing but bad luck here. I wouldn't have even stepped foot back in Sunnydale if it hadn't been for the boy. I was trying to find Xander when those stupid soldiers got hold of me. Which brings us back to the concept that it's not safe for any of us here."

"Truer words have never been spoken," Wesley's voice came from the doorway. Angel and Spike looked up to see not only him but Cordy, Doyle, Oz and Clem as well.

"Well, well the gang's all here," Spike said as the gang filed in and closed the door before looking around the room. He watched as they inspected the room and noticed that Doyle was especially wary. "Okay, what's up with the whole secret service attitude?"

"Doyle had a vision," Cordy answered him as she walked over to the bed and took Xander's left hand into hers. "How's he doing?"

"Much better. We're waiting on the doctor to come in and tell us when we can take him home. He should be making his rounds pretty soon." Angel told her.

"The boy's out of it right now. Gave him a pain pill earlier and it knocked him for a loop," Spike told them.

"That's good. Xander can sleep through what I have to tell you and it won't get him all upset again," Doyle said as he came over to stand next to Cordy, slipping his arm around the worried girl and giving her a hug of support.

Angel and Spike took in the sight and Angel said, "I'm taking it that the news you don't want Xander to hear isn't about you and Cordelia because Xander's been playing matchmaker for weeks now. So what is it?"

"It's about my vision. At least I think it was a vision. I didn't have that mind numbing feeling with this one. I just experienced a feeling of being very afraid and in pain."

Angel and Spike exchanged glances. So the Powers That Be had made good on their promise to Xander and eased up on Doyle a bit. Still he had mentioned the feelings and that's what they honed in on. Fear and pain.

"What was the vision about?" Angel asked, as Doyle stared at the floor for a minute before looking at the boy lying in the bed.

"Not what. More like who. Or rather whom. It was Spike."

"Hey, slow down. Don't kill the messenger."

"Sorry," Angel relaxed his death grip on Doyle. "So tell me what you saw."

"It was really weird. All I could see was darkness, but I heard voices talking about making the boy pay for killing Professor Walsh by taking out Hostile 17 once and for all. Something about making Xander feel the grief they were experiencing."

Spike seemed to get paler at Doyle's words. He knew that there was a possibility that this would happen, after all he had spent more time with those soldiers than he had first thought. The memories confirmed just how long and he knew how ruthless they could be. Spike had been hoping that they would scatter after Xander's attack, but now it seemed unlikely. Doyle's visions were always spot on.

Angel glanced over and saw the way Spike had paled at the mention of the Initiative. "Don't worry, Spike. We'll take care of them and this time there won't be anyone left to do anything to you anymore. I'll not show mercy like Xander did. They were given a chance to get out of town and leave everyone alone and evidently they didn't take that opportunity. So now they pay the price."

"I'm not going to say that I don't have bad memories of the time I had with those soldiers, but I can fight now. I'm thinking along the lines of payback time."

"I have to protect you. I won't see them doing any more experiments on you. I wasn't there for you the first time but I'm here now and this time it will be a fair fight. No sneaking up on anyone while their back is turned. No chips in the brain to keep you from fighting humans. This time I'll be right at your side," Angel promised him, before turning to Doyle. "Did you see anything that would give you any indication where they might be? Xander and Wesley blew up the place, so it's not habitable right?"

Before Doyle could answer Clem interrupted. "Uh, guys. It's not like you have to take on all the soldiers, just a small band of them. I've been nosing around while Xander's been in the hospital and a lot of them were really upset at being used as human experiments. Seems it was alright to do things to demons but when it came to themselves, they were mighty pissed at this Professor Walsh for feeding those drugs to them without them knowing about it. Most of them have been shipped back to wherever they were originally from. But there's about 20 of them camped in the woods right outside of where the Initiative was. Seems like they're being led by that Forrest fella."

"The one that was in here mouthing off about hating Buffy?" Cordelia asked.

"Yeah. Now that he's been released my sources tell me that he's gathered a bunch of those soldiers and is planning on revenge - tonight as a matter of fact. That's why I was coming to get you when Doyle had that vision of his - to tell you we needed to warn Angel and Spike about what was coming."

"Thanks for that, mate," Spike said, clapping Clem on the shoulder. He turned to Angel and amber eyes held for a moment. "So, let's go take out some G.I. Joe's shall we?"

"Wait a minute. You said earlier that you can fight now. Does that mean you got the chip out?" Cordelia asked him.

"Yeah, thanks to Xander. It's a long story and we don't have time for it right now. Just know that I won't be killing anyone - not unless they ask for it," Spike reassured her. When he saw the look of happiness at him being free of the chip turn into one of fear he took her other hand and gently squeezed it. "I promise you Cordelia. I would never do anything to make Xander or Angel upset with me and killing their friends or innocent people would definitely have that effect. So it's only bad guys and bagged blood for this vampire from now on."

Cordelia smiled at him before returning the squeeze and letting his hand go. "So how are we going to do this. We have to fight some soldiers, human soldiers at that. So I'm thinking asking Buffy and the others for help is out."

"Definitely. We don't want Buffy to know anything about this. Look, I know that you all aren't comfortable with the thought of Spike and I killing humans but I'll do whatever is necessary to protect me and mine and that includes killing if I have to. Anyone who doesn't understand or can't get behind this, please feel free to leave." Angel told them.

Angel waited as everyone stayed where they were. Finally Doyle spoke up. "I'm thinking if the Powers that Be sent me this message it was meant for you to take these guys out. Evidently they're going to be a threat to any of the PTB's warriors from now on so I think I'm speaking for everyone here when I say that those people are as bad as any demons we've ever fought. We're behind you 100 percent.

"Besides, I have selfish reasons, too. I wouldn't mind a little play time with those soldiers, not after what they put me through," Oz told them. "So how do we do this?"

"I'm thinking you, Spike, Clem and I will go fight the soldiers while Wesley, Doyle and Cordelia stay with Xander. I'm sure Buffy, Willow and the others will be by later on. They may not notice that Oz or Clem are not here but they'll wonder why we left Xander. Make up some excuse. Just tell them that Spike needed to get out, smoke a cigarette or two, after all this waiting. Tell them that I went with him to protect him from humans. That way they won't know anything about the chip being out because we definitely don't want Buffy knowing that." Angel told them as he put his coat on.

"Thanks alot for leaving me to Buffy watch," Cordy complained.

"Think of it as protecting Xander from anything that comes his way. I don't like the thought of leaving him while he's still healing. Keep a watch on him and be on the lookout for anything unusual." Spike told her.

"Well, that should cover just about everything. We're on the freakin hellmouth, Spike. Besides, I'm thinking it's you all who need to watch out for nasties," Cordelia muttered.

Spike saw the fear in the girl's eyes and walked over to her, wrapping her tightly in a hug. "It'll be alright, Cordelia. I'll take care of peaches and everyone else. We'll be alright. And if you need us for anything we have these handy cell phones don't we? Just call us and we'll be here in minutes."

Cordelia hugged him back and stepped away, smiling. "Just promise me that you'll look out for each other. I don't want anything happening to you...well because I wouldn't want to have to tell Xander when he wakes up," she said, trying to cover up her own worry for Spike and the others. "Make sure you keep your phones turned on and call us as soon as it's over with. I'm leaving that up to you Spike because Angel never has learned how to use one of those things."

"Hey, I've gotten better at it," Angel protested as he checked to make sure his cell phone was still in his coat pocket. He held it up in the air as he said, "See? It's turned on."

Angel had bought everyone at AI Investigations a cell phone after Xander had demanded that he get one. At first he had bitched about the unnecessary expense but now he was glad he had bought them. He walked back over to the side of the bed and kissed Xander gently on the lips before turning and walking to the door.

"Anyone coming with me, let's go," he said.

Oz and Clem followed him towards the door as Spike went over to the bed and kissed Xander on the lips. "Be back soon, luv. Sweet dreams only." he whispered against the boy's lips before giving him another light kiss. Spike grabbed his duster off the chair and pulled it on. "Make sure nothing happens to Xander while I'm gone. If something does, I'll not be held responsible for my actions. I will rip apart anyone who hurts him." he said before exiting.

Wesley, Doyle and Cordelia pulled up some chairs and sat down next to Xander's bed. They had all seen the brief kisses and knew that Xander, Angel and Spike were together. They also knew how dangerous Angel and Spike would be if anything happened to Xander. They only hoped the two vampires and their friends came back unharmed.

"Are you sure those three can watch out for Xander?" Spike asked Angel for the 20th time since they had left the hospital. While a large part of him wanted to get this over with, to get those damn soldiers out of their lives once and for all, another part of him hated leaving Xander behind.

"For the 100th time Spike, I'm sure," Angel exaggerated. They were almost to their destination and his nerves were on edge already from the want of getting back at these soldiers for what had happened to Xander, Oz and especially Spike. Angel's bloodlust was at an all time high, he was worried about Spike's state of mind going into the fight, Xander being left behind while still healing, and whether he could keep his own mind on the fight, without having to answer Spike's questions.

Angel glanced over and saw the hurt look on Spike's face as he puffed on his fourth cigarette. He motioned for Oz and Clem to go on ahead as he turned towards Spike. Angel grabbed the other vampire's arm and pulled him close.

"I'm sorry, Spike. I'm just edgy about this fight. I've been waiting a long time to seek my revenge on these bastards for what they did to you. As proud as I was of Xander, Wesley and Clem for how well they did in the fight against the soldiers, I felt cheated. I don't like that we have to take another risk with your life but I'm going to help you end this nightmare once and for all. However, I'm worried about your state of mind. I don't want you going in there and getting yourself killed because you're worrying about Xander. That's how they got you the last time - because your mind was on Xander."

"How can I not think about the boy? Tell me you're not thinking about him too." Spike dared, as he hugged Angel back. It made him feel good that his lover was so intent on getting revenge on these soldiers for what they had done to him, but he was still upset at the thought of leaving Xander in the hospital. "I've waited a long time for revenge, but I'm worried about you as much as you are me."

"Alright, Spike. You know I'm thinking about Xander but it won't do him any good if we get ourselves killed. Then who will look out for him? So let's quit worrying about him and each other and just go in there and get this over with. Put this chapter of your life behind you so we can all get on with the next part of our lives."

"The good one right? Cause I got to tell you Angel, I've had enough bad chapters to last me for the rest of my un-life." Spike gave him a quick kiss before taking the path Clem and Oz had earlier.

"Definitely a good one, Spike. I've been waiting too long to be this happy to let it end now. We're going to take care of these soldiers, get back to L.A. and live happily ever after with Xander and the others. Our family." Angel smiled at the thought as he joined Spike.

Spike shook his head at the thought. He never would have dreamed that he would have people in his life that cared so much about him. Not even in his human life had there been anyone that really cared for him except his mom.

"Never one for fairy tales, peaches, even when I was a poet, but I have to tell you this is one I hope comes true." Spike thought for a minute before saying, "Who would have thought that the Scourges of Europe would end up with not only a human family and a human lover but fighting with the white hats?"

Angel laughed at the thought. "Never me. Not in a million years. I'm glad it worked out this way, though. But for the next few minutes, let's pretend we're the Scourge once again. How about it?"

"Got my vote. Let's do it then, mate." Spike said, as they joined Clem and Oz who were waiting for them on the outskirts of the little camp of soldiers. Normally, there would have been a lot of torture along with the mayhem but tonight it was going to be a quick, fast kill. They had a dark haired, brown eyed boy to get back to, and that was more important.

Xander woke up to find the doctor shining a light in his eyes. He quickly swatted at the penlight before he realized what was going on. When the doctor stepped back giving him a mock glare, Xander looked sheepish.

"Sorry about that, doctor," Xander apologized. "I didn't mean to slap at you, it's just that I've never been good at waking up. Always seem to roll over on the wrong side of the bed you know."

"It's alright, Alexander. I was just checking you over before I discharged you. One last check-up as it were."

"You mean I can go home? Right now, right this minute?" Xander sat up so fast that he almost bumped heads with the doctor who was examining the burns.

"Whoa, wait a minute young man. I didn't realize that you were in that big of a hurry to leave. From what the nurses have been telling me, you've seemed to enjoy this hospital stay," the doctor said, looking pointedly at the sign on the table. Xander followed the doctor's eyes over to the sign laying on the table. Cordelia reached over and picked it up reading, "'Do not enter. Patient being administered stress and endurance test.' Why did you have a stress and endurance test done when you're in here for burns?"

Xander blushed several shades of red before he could think of anything to say. He looked around the room, trying to find Angel and Spike, but they weren't there. Xander figured Spike must have wanted to smoke or something and the vampires had been cooped up in his room with him for almost two days. Which brought him back to the question Cordelia had asked him. Great. Leave it to Spike and Angel to be gone when he needed help with an explanation for this.

"Uh...well, you see...they needed to do...you know the test...because...because..oh...because they had to make sure that I could walk and you know stress on the leg here and everything yeah that's it, stress and endurance test for the leg," Xander finally blurted out an answer.

The doctor looked amused, Cordelia looked confused and Doyle and Wesley were smiling. Wesley couldn't help but add to Xander's discomfort by teasing the young man. "Xander, a stress and endurance test is administered to find out how well your heart can hold up under stress, not your leg. Isn't that right, doctor?"

Before the doctor could reply, Xander interrupted. "Wesley, for your information there are all kinds of stress tests. You know.. some are for your...nerves and ...and...your heart...and your, you know...limbs...for like endurance," Xander concluded, giving Wesley a mock glare as the doctor joined in with the teasing.

"Yes, that's right young man. From what I understood, the test must have been pretty painful for you, although your endurance level was rather high. The nurses said they could you hear you groaning all the way out at the nurses station."

Xander blushed a deeper red if that were possible as Doyle, Wesley and the doctor started laughing. Cordelia glared at all of them before reaching out and patting Xander's hand.

"You poor thing. How could you three stand there and laugh at him like that? And to think they used to call me a bitch. At least I never laughed at anyone when they were in physical pain. And of course his endurance level was high. He's always been able to handle his pain well cause he's had so much practice at it," she admonished, which only made the three men laugh harder.

"What's this riff?" she asked, getting angrier. Doyle walked over and put his hand on her shoulder. She glared at him as he wiped the tears from his eyes.

"Cordy, honey, think about it. It's a joke. Angel, Spike and Xander in here all by their selves all night long, the groaning, stress and endurance. Am I ringing a bell here?"

Now it was Cordelia's turn to blush as she put it all together. She snatched her hand back and stood up to glare at the men in the room. "Men are such pigs."

"I totally agree with you, Cordy," Xander said, before remembering he was a guy too. "Hey, wait a minute I'm a guy."

"Well, duh. Xander Harris I can't believe you. All this time I was worried about you and you were up here having an all night sex marathon with two vam-"

"Damn fine looking men," Xander interrupted her, before she could finish her word in front of the doctor. "I mean, really Cordy, can you blame me?"

"Yes, I can. You were supposed to be hurt and in pain not relaxing at some hotel resort with your lovers," Cordelia retorted, still angry at being the last one to get the joke.

"Sorry there wasn't enough Xander pain for your liking. You know what? Enough said. It must have been my multiple personality guy talking. I call him Idiot Chad - glutton for punishment."

"We're sorry, Xander. Just having a little fun with you is all. It's good to see that you're feeling well enough to...go home," Doyle finished, feeling sorry for the boy.

"So can I go home? Like right now?" Xander asked the doctor, practically bouncing off the bed at the thought.

"Well, you seem to be much better than I would have thought. Whatever...uh...treatments you've been given has definitely been good for you. I don't usually allow patients to leave at this time of night, but since I would like my nurses to actually do some work tonight, I'll make an exception. Give me a couple of hours to get the paperwork in order and your friends can take you home. But you'll have to follow my instructions and take your medicine as I prescribed. Is that understood?"

"Yeah. I promise. Thank you so much, doctor."

"Don't thank me, thank the nurses and the other patients. The patients couldn't get any rest and as I said earlier the nurses couldn't seem to keep their minds on their work, since they were all gathered around your door trying to get a look inside. I had no choice. I'll just go get the paperwork done so you can be discharged." the doctor said as he walked out the door.

"God, that was so embarrassing," Xander covered his face with his hands.

"You should be embarrassed, Xander Harris. Disturbing the other patients like that. While I'm glad that you're better, I can't believe you did that right here in the hospital with Spike and Angel," Cordelia scolded him, before her eyes grew wide. "Oh, my God, you did it with Angel. You know what happens when he gets a happy. Doyle, you get a stake and I'll get an axe. When he comes back, you stake him and I'll cut his head off." she said as she pulled a stake from her purse and handed it to Doyle. She continued looking around the room. "Damn, doesn't a hospital have anything to cut someone's head off with lying around?"

"No, Cordelia, most hospitals are in the business of saving lives not taking them," Wesley told her.

"Cordy, calm down. You don't have to worry about the curse. It's gone. You don't think I'd do something stupid like that do you?" Xander asked, as Cordy gave him a look. "Fine, maybe you do. But the point is, the curse is gone. No more Angelus, not ever. Angel and Angelus were merged while he was in hell that time."

"Again with that moment," Doyle grumbled as Wesley looked confused.

"What do you mean Angel was in hell. When did this happen?"

"It was before you came to Sunnydale. Didn't Giles or the Watcher's Council tell you about Buffy and Angel, the gypsy curse, the one true moment of happiness and how it turned Angel into Angelus?" When Wesley nodded, Xander continued, "Well, he tried to end the world. Buffy had to send him to a hell dimension and while he was there the Powers That Be merged his two personalities. Angel is who he is now and forever. What you see is what you get and all that."

"You mean all that time that he and Buffy didn't do anything because they thought he would turn back into Angelus was all for nothing?" Cordelia asked.

"Yeah, I guess so. I never thought about that," Xander admitted.

"Buffy is going to be so mad when she finds out about this," Cordelia said. "Especially when she finds out that you get to do it with him."

"We're not going to tell her, Cordy. Not yet, anyway. At least, I don't think so. Shit, this is all so confusing. Just promise me that you won't say anything to her about this until Angel decides what he wants to do."

"I promise," Cordelia assured him. "I mean, after all I don't want to see you get beaten up by the pissed off slayer."

"Gee, Cordy thanks a lot." Xander said, thinking about how his ass was grass and Buffy was so the slayer lawnmower.

"You have right behind you, Xander, only further back." Doyle told him.

"Yes, and I think in this case when it comes to Buffy knowing about your relationship with Angel that discretion is the better part of valor." Wesley said, knowing that Xander and Angel were in for a world of hurt when they told Buffy. He knew how much the girl loved Angel. Wesley remembered how Buffy had quit the council when they wouldn't help her save Angel after Faith poisoned him. He was pretty sure that she would not take the news well.

"Wesley, you could have just said let's keep it quiet. God, are all you Brits such drama queens?" Xander asked, trying to lighten the mood.

"I was only saying that telling Buffy about your relationship with Angel and Spike could lead to a fairly cataclysmic state of affairs."

"Again, so many words. Couldn't you just say we'd be in trouble?"

"Whatever," Wesley said, throwing up his hands in annoyance.

"See? Much better. Notice the economy of phrasing. Whatever, simple, direct. I'll have you talking more American in no time at all." he said, smiling at the other man before looking around the room. "Where are Spike and Angel, anyway? Getting blood or having a smoke or something? Did they take a break since you guys are here?"

"Yes...they uh stepped out for a few minutes...for a break," Wesley said, not wanting to tell Xander where they had really gone.

"Okay, give. What's wrong? And don't tell me nothing because that's not a nothing face." Xander asked, worried now.

Doyle was getting up the nerve to tell the boy about his vision when he remembered Xander's words from earlier. "Xander, you said you talked to the PTB about my visions? Is that why this last vision didn't hurt too bad?" Doyle asked him, getting excited at the thought of his visions not being so mind numbing any more. Even though he had felt a little pain, it was nothing compared to what he had been living with.

Xander smiled at his friend. "Yeah, they promised me that your visions wouldn't hurt quite so much anymore. I'm glad they did whatever they did and you're feeling better with the vision thing. Speaking of which, you brought this up when I asked where Spike and Angel are so I'm assuming you had a vision that made them leave. So what was it about?"

Doyle took a deep breath and told Xander about his vision. He watched as his friend got more and more agitated as he went on with his story. When he got to the part about the soldiers wanting to get hold of Spike, Xander jumped off the bed.

A sudden wave of fear had washed over Xander at Doyle's words. "What? I've got to get out there with them. If something happens ----"

Doyle and Wesley stopped Xander from leaving. "Xander, they wanted us to keep you here. They wanted you to relax and heal while they took care of this," Cordelia told him as Xander struggled to get away from the two men holding him.

"Relax? How am I supposed to relax when two people I care about are out there fighting those creeps? I can't just sit here and do nothing."

"Yes, you can. Look, I know you want to help them. So do we. But this is something that Angel and Spike need to do for themselves. Xander, think about it. You know how much you wanted revenge on these guys for what they did to your friends? Well, stop and think about how Spike feels. After all, he was the one that was tortured by these soldiers. And what about Angel? He's been sitting back for weeks waiting to hear from Buffy about what happened to Spike and what was going on with these soldiers so he could plan his revenge. He needs to make them pay for hurting his childe. Then you got hurt. Angel needs to feel like he's protecting the ones he loves." Doyle reasoned with him.

Xander thought about what the man was saying and stopped struggling. "Okay, Doyle. Point taken. I know you're right but it's just so hard. How long have they been gone?"

"Just a little while. They took Oz and Clem with them and they promised to call us the moment it was over - you know to let us know they were alright. I'm sure it won't be long now. Then you can tell them the good news about being discharged. They're going to be so happy." Cordelia told him.

"Yeah," Xander answered, his mind on other things.

"What's wrong, Xander?" Wesley asked. "Besides the obvious worry, I mean?"

Doyle made me remember something I had forgotten in all this mess. Riley told me that Buffy has known for weeks about vampires having chips stuck in their brains to stop them from killing people. How could I forget about that? Buffy promised us that she would call and let Angel know what was going on. She lied to Angel, to all of us. Why would she do that?" Xander asked, angry at his friend now that he had remembered this fact.

"Because she hates Spike," Willow said as everyone turned to see her and Tara standing in the doorway. The tension in the room was so thick you could cut it with a knife, as she made her way over to Xander's bed.