Full Circle 6 – 10
Less than thirty seconds later...
Xander ran to the phone, all the while chanting what would probably become his own personal mantra, ´Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit...´ Skidding to a halt when he reached it, he picked up the receiver from the wall with a shaky hand, punching the speed dial to Giles´ shop while the freaked boy tried to take in what he had unwrapped in the bathroom.
"Come on G–Man, be there already?" Listening to the phone ring while he paced back and forth, Xander let his mind drift back to what was lying on the bathroom floor. He had seen beaten to a pulp before, mainly thanks to the ´Punch and Judy´ shows that his parents liked to display both to him and the immediate neighbours, but he had never seen *anything* like the extent of Spike´s injuries.
Whoever or whatever had attacked the chipped vampire had been vicious in the beating department. Sure, Xander conceded, Spike had probably more than likely provoked the attack himself, but from what Xander could tell, the retribution had gone waaay overboard. Judging from the number of bones sticking from the shredded skin of Spike´s right hand, the injury had taken a few tries from the attacker to be so bad and Xander wasn´t even about to start thinking about the vampire´s mangled foot and ankle. Chasing the unpleasant thoughts out of his mind for time being as he heard the phone connect, Xander started to speak but was almost immediately overridden by Anya.
//Yes?//
"Anya, it´s me, Xander! Can you please go get Giles for me, I *really* need to talk to him?" stated Xander, groaning inwardly as he listened to the all too obvious annoyance in Anya´s tone of voice.
//Xander!//
Cursing the Fates for deciding that the already bitching ex–demon would be the one to pick up the phone, Xander continued. "Yes, now go get Giles."
//Orgasms. You remember those Xander, remember what you *promised* me last night? Because if you don´t, you can ask Willow, she was there and heard your promise.//
Oh My God, thought Xander, cringing as he did indeed remember Willow´s face going red as Anya had forced him to agree to the promise. "Anya, not now! Can you please... please go and get Giles. I found Spike and he´s at my house, I need help."
//So, // came the icy reply. //You would rather hang around with that disgusting creature in that horrible hovel you call home than live up to your promises, giving me the orgasms you owe me and you´re going to ask Giles to help you with the hanging?//
Open–mouthed at her question, Xander barely registered the brief scuffle on the other end of the line only to be instantly relieved to hear Giles on the line.
//Xander, what´s happened?// asked Giles, an exasperated tone to his voice.
"Oh, thank God! Don´t you know by now to keep her away from the phone?"
//What... Oh, yes. Yes I should know that *all* too well by now// stated Giles as annoyance crept into his voice. //Now, what´s happened, are you hurt? Did you do something?//
"Me? Why do you always think that I´ve done something and no, it´s the former Big Bad. Something or someone has really beaten the proverbial shit outta him. It´s serious Giles, too much for me to handle on my own and... and uh, where some of his bruises are... well..." admitted Xander, rolling his eyes as Giles sighed on the other end. Emitting his own heavy sigh, Xander hung up after Giles promised to come around as soon as possible with more blood and first aid supplies.
Angered by Anya´s attitude and her obsession with *her* pleasure, Xander found himself cringing again, more in embarrassment for Giles than himself. Even though Giles had tried to muffle the sound as much as possible, Xander had still been able to hear Anya demanding that Giles find out when her orgasms would be arriving. Still cringing, Xander decided once and for all that, no matter how good the sex was with Anya, he just couldn´t take the hassle and constant embarrassment that his girlfriend directed his way. With that thought, he vowed to talk to Anya as soon as possible.
Somewhat reluctantly, he walked back towards the bathroom and Spike, leaning against the wall and sliding down beside the tarp. Drawing his knees up to his chest, he waited for Giles to arrive as he stared at the multitude of injuries that had been inflicted on the once pale body. Xander couldn´t help but shudder a little as he saw that the most obvious of them all were the broken left ankle and right hand. Mentally gagging, he leaned forward, taking in the broken ribs on each side as he avoided staring at Spike´s relatively unmarked genitals. A hint of a blush stained his cheeks as noticed the size of Spike´s penis before his gaze came to rest on Spike´s thighs.
Gagging for real now, Xander was shocked to see that the blackness between the inner thighs was severe bruising, dragging his vision along Spike´s twisted limbs, he realised that almost all the discolouration covering Spike wasn´t dirt from the crypt floor as he had first thought. It was a soft whimper from Spike that snapped Xander out of his contemplation, forcing the unwilling boy to continue to catalogue the vampire´s injuries. His gaze dragged from Spike´s purpling and swollen kneecaps to Spike´s face, Xander saw a line of finger sized bruises covering the jaw line, from ear to ear. Almost absently, Xander noted that the bruises looked to be human sized.
With an unbelieving shake of his head, Xander let his head drop back against the tiled wall behind him as he wondered if the fact that he felt pitiless towards Spike made him a bad person. Quickly deciding that it didn´t and that whoever it was had just beaten Spike at his own game, Xander was jogged out of his thoughts by someone knocking at the basement door. Knowing it would only be Giles, Xander bounded up the stairs to let him in, warning the older man about the mouldy step as he led Giles down into the basement and towards the bathroom.
"Bleedin´ Hell, what happened to him?" questioned Giles as he joined Xander in staring at Spike.
Two hours and 26 minutes later...
Giles stood by Xander´s double bed, looking down at the vampire lying stiffly between the sheets. If it had been anyone other Spike that had been injured, they would have been dead. If not from the obvious head and internal injuries, then from simply bleeding out on the crypt floor.
After almost two hours of painstakingly slow and careful work from both him and Xander, Spike was now clean and taped up to the best of their abilities. Neither of them had wanted to cause the battered vampire any more pain than was necessary. As it was, both Xander and Giles had done their best to ignore the breathy grunts of pain that had come from the barely concious Spike each time one of them had touched him. However, none of the injuries compared to what had confronted them once they had turned the vampire over.
Slowly and carefully, Xander and Giles had dabbed at each of the numerous deep, bleeding welts that had adorned the vampires back, buttocks and upper thighs. Once the raw wounds had been dealt with, Xander had hesitantly pointed towards the deep purple and black bruising between Spike´s buttocks. Unable to hold back a sigh of annoyance, Giles had been ready to snap at Xander. Taking in the look of uncertainty and tiredness on the young face, Giles had instead sent Xander to make the bed ready for Spike. Hesitant to go to such a private place himself without permission, he had glanced at Spike´s face, only to flush with embarrassment when all Spike proved capable of doing was closing his eyes and turning his face away.
From the first touch between the once pale buttocks, Giles had been more than unsettled to find that the vampire had started to tremble, Spike breathing in quick gasps. Making sure that he was cleaning the torn anus as gently and as fast as possible, Giles had a good idea of what had caused such injuries, something that Spike would never want another person, let alone him, to know. He lay a steadying hand on one of the vampire´s less bruised shoulders, keeping it there until he felt some of the shaking subside.
As he listened to Xander grumble to himself in the basement´s main room, Giles had rolled Spike onto one side so that he could tape up the broken ribs. Wincing himself as he had finished taping up the four ribs then rolled Spike over to the other side, Giles shook his head at the strangled gasp as Spike had came down heavily on his broken hand. The second and third ribs taped up, Giles had then proceeded to cut away some of the ragged flesh that clung to the edge of the wound on Spike´s ankle. With a deep breath and one hard shove, he had pushed the anklebone back into its flesh casing. With a look towards Spike´s face, he hadn´t been surprised to find that the vampire had passed out. The advantage taken, Giles had quickly bound the ankle together, wrapping the tape around the slender foot down to the toes to give the shattered bones some support while they knitted together.
Spike´s broken hand had been next. Giles had to get Xander to hold the trembling hand steady so that he could carefully poke the bones sticking out back into place. Once done, Giles had also taped the edges of the gaping wound together, continuing to wrap the whole hand with the white sports tape. In a combined effort, Xander and Giles had re–located Spike´s hips back into their sockets, an action that had wrenched a gurgled scream from the vampire before he had lapsed into a continual whimper as Giles and Xander taped up a hip each. The very last thing had been the dislocated left shoulder, again causing Spike to choke out a quiet whisper of agony as the shoulder popped back into place, Giles using the tape to ensure the shoulder remained immobile.
Together, the two men had moved Spike as close to the bathtub as possible, positioning his upper body over the edge so that the congealed dirt and blood could be washed out of his hair. The utmost care had been taken when coming into contact with the cracked side of Spike´s skull, the small area of depression all too obvious when touched. With Spike´s hair clean, Xander gave the now blond hair a brief towel dry before helping Giles dress Spike in a pair of Xander´s too big boxer shorts. As gently as they had been capable of, Spike had been carried over to the double bed and manoeuvred between the covers.
At Giles´ suggestion, Xander had gone to clean up the bathroom and filthy tarp while Giles questioned Spike as to what had happened to him. It was all too clear what *had* happened to him, but how was what Giles wanted to know. Something that wasn´t going too well at all. With a sigh, Giles gave his glasses one last polish with a tissue, replacing the glasses on the bridge of his nose while he shoved the crumpled tissue into his pocket. Gesturing towards Spike, Giles asked the vampire to try to tell him what had gone on back in the crypt. "Right then, lets try this again shall we? Try to relax your throat, start slowly and let´s see how you go this time."
Spike closed his eyes at the sight of one of the two men that he had never wanted to see him as helpless as he currently was.
~ If my soddin´ Nancy Boy of a Sire comes down those stairs, I´ll bloody well stake myself. I don´t think I could cope with both the Watcher and the Poof seein´ me like this. Hell, I *know* I couldn´t. ~
Drawing in a shuddering breath, Spike concentrated on doing what Giles had asked, relaxing his throat muscles and speaking softly and slowly. Finally, feeling his muscles relax as much as they were going to, he ventured forth with a new sentence. "Gasp... nnnrght... retch... cough!"
Unable to choke back the tears that had been threatening to fall all night since he had found out the Whelp had contacted the Watcher, Spike lay on the saggy mattress as he let the pink tinged tears slide down his bruised cheeks, staining the pale pillowcase. Shoulders shaking in a combination of shock, tiredness and anger that he felt so stupid to be crying, the worn out demon sobbed without looking up at the increasingly flustered man standing beside him. Wiping at his eyes with his taped up right hand, Spike accidentally jabbed at his face with his broken fingers a little too hard, retching when his fingers grazed along his sore jaw line.
~ Bloody Hell, why don´t they just do me a favour and stake me? I´m useless. ~
And with that thought, the distraught vampire sobbed all the harder.
Reluctant to say anything and not knowing what to do for once, Giles reached down with the half–hearted gesture of giving Spike´s taped up shoulder a reassuring pat only to snatch his hand away when he felt Spike flinch away from the contact. Whether it was in reaction to the weight of his hand or it had been the distaste that Spike felt for the other man, an emotion that Spike had made obvious when living with Giles, the former Watcher didn´t know, and he really wasn´t sure that he cared. Leaving the weeping, snuffling vampire in relative privacy, Giles walked to the bathroom to see how Xander was going with the cleaning up.
Xander was on his knees, back to the doorway as he scrubbed the blood from the bright blue tarp. Doing his best to ignore the sounds coming from the direction of his bed, Xander wondered where the hell it was he was going to sleep. I´m sure as hell not gonna share a bed with that arsehole, I´m not a ´bloody poofter´ to quote the former Big Bad, he thought to himself. Hearing Giles´ politely quiet cough behind him, he stopped trying to clean the filthy plastic, a job that he was fast considering useless, and turned to face the older man.
"How long is he going to be here?" demanded Xander, bitterness all too obvious in his tone.
"I... I really don´t know. Usually, according to the Watcher´s Diaries, when a vampire is that badly injured it is culled from the Clan. Because it´s considered a liability, it´s either drained or staked, sometimes even left to its own defences and survival," replied Giles quietly, glancing at the still sobbing vampire.
"Gross, so other vampires really do kill their own? I mean, I *know* they do but..?"
Speaking with authority and more comfortable now that they were dealing with a topic within his field of expertise, Giles told Xander that essentially, vampires acted very much like some pack animals did. When one member was injured beyond what would normally be two to three days´ healing, the other members of the pack would kill it in order to retain the pack´s strength. However, Giles admitted that such culling had only been observed amongst minions, and because Spike was once a favoured Childe, none of the usual rules applied. Lowering his voice, he went on to say that he had no idea how long it would take Spike to fully recover from his injuries.
"We´ll talk tomorrow, Xander. For now, let´s just get some sleep and deal with this once we have clearer heads."
With a nod, Xander grinned tiredly at the older man as he struggled to get to his feet while trying not to slip on the slick tiled floor. At Giles´ gesture, he looked towards the bed, raising a questioning eyebrow at Giles´ as he realised that Spike must have cried himself to sleep. Xander´s grin broadened when Giles shrugged and headed towards the basement stairs, Xander following quietly so as not to disturb Spike lest it brought on a fresh flood of tears. Stopping at the base of the stairs, Giles turned to face Xander.
"Xander," Giles started softly, "he´s going to need full time care for probably over a week. Helping him feed, wiping him down, moving him around the bed... I...I know that this a big ask, but do you think you could possibly do this?"
"But what about my job, I mean, I´m actually good at this and I can´t afford to lose it?" came Xander´s annoyed and flustered reply. "Why do I always have to do the dirty work? It´s bad enough that he´s in *my* bed, but I really don´t wanna wipe him anywhere... *again* that is."
Taking in the look on Giles´ face, Xander sighed, holding his hands up in a placating manner. "Fine, whatever, but he had better appreciate this. Seriously though, one wrong word outta him and a stake is gonna be the answer to all his problems."
Xander watched as Giles started up the stairs, shivering as a gust of cold air descended down through the dank room as Giles passed through the doorway before pulling it shut after him to activate the deadlock. Half turning, half stumbling towards the basement´s closet, he rummaged through his drawers for a clean pair of boxer pants and pyjama bottoms. Once found, Xander made his way into the bathroom, desperate to get out of his blood spattered clothing. Not even trying to entertain the idea of cleaning his ruined cargos and shirt, Xander rolled them into a ball and threw them on top of the still filthy tarp. The rest of his clothes shoved into the washing basket, Xander peeked out of the bathroom towards Spike, making sure that the vampire was still out of it before closing the bathroom door. Boxers and socks stripped off and included in the washing, Xander turned the shower on.
With a weary sigh, he stood under the hot spray, relishing the way it soothed his tense body. Content to stay under the pounding water for the time being, Xander allowed himself to zone out until he could feel the water beginning to cool. Water shut off and hair given a rough towel dry, he quickly dressed in the boxers and pyjama bottoms, scratching at the cheap material that held his boxers together. Opening the bathroom door, he stood inside the doorway, trying to decide whether to sleep on the couch or share the bed with Spike. His gaze following the last of the steam as it floated into the main room of the basement, Xander snorted, "Bastard. My bed so I´m *not* moving. If he´s got a problem with it, then he can fucking well move!"
"This is sooo what I didn´t get this double bed for, Bleach Boy" he whispered to himself as he sank heavily onto the unoccupied side of the bed. Sure, the bed had been on sale at the Goodwill Store, but the fact remained that he had originally bought the bed so that he and his soon to be ex–girlfriend would have the room to roll around and experiment in. Sharing it with a liberally beaten male vampire hadn´t once entered the decision making process. With a jaw wrenching yawn, he climbed into the beckoning comfort, all the while trying not to hit a squeaky spring. Getting comfortable underneath the covers, he resisted the almost overwhelming urge to shove Spike out of the bed and onto the floor. Another yawn and Xander turned off the bedside lamp, plunging the basement into total darkness as he turned away from his unwanted bed companion and closed his eyes, dipping into a deep slumber almost immediately.
Two days later...
Xander wriggled around in the hard chair, struggling to get comfortable in the confines of the prickly material covering the old piece of furniture. With a glance towards the slumbering vampire that was still confined to one side of his double bed, Xander, not for the first time, wondered just who had worked Spike over so viciously. It was a question that the whole Scooby Gang, including Riley, Anya and Tara, wanted answering. However, each time either Giles or Xander had asked Spike, the distraught vampire had burst into very un–demon like tears.
Whoever it was, and both he and Giles had come to the conclusion that it had been a human someone because Spike could fight fellow demons, had gone out of their way to cause Spike as much harm as possible, short of actually staking him.
Finally getting somewhat comfortable in the chair, Xander thought back to the conversation that he and the gathered friends had had the next afternoon while at the Magic Box, Xander frowning with annoyance at the gasping and moaning that Spike was uttering. His frown deepened as he tried to block out the only noises that the vampire now seemed capable of as he followed his train of thought.
Giles had been worried by Spike´s inability to keep any of the blood that he had been fed once settled into Xander´s bed. Xander had been unable to stop himself from commenting how lucky Giles had been not to get splattered by the red wave that had come from Spike. However, Giles was mostly concerned by the dent in Spike´s skull right above where the chip was known to be, and Spike´s definite loss of speech.
Tara, in a surprisingly strongly offered opinion, had come up with the possibility that Spike´s inability to utter more than soft grunts and whispered squeals was due to the chip maybe having been damaged in the attack. Willow had looked at her girlfriend with pride before agreeing with the idea, the rest of the friends coming to the same conclusion only a minute or two later.
Sitting on the sofa as close to Riley as she could, short of actually sitting on his lap, Buffy had tossed her hair and declared that it might be best for Spike to just dust himself and save her the trouble of getting ´icky demon particles´ out of her new clothes. Riley, holding his lovers hand firmly in his own much larger grasp, had agreed at once with Buffy, stating that if Spike could no longer talk, then he was essentially useless and should be removed instead of letting a damaged hostile continue its existence.
It had only been the protests of both the witches, pointing out that they still didn´t know if Spike was good for anything else, that had the five other Scooby members reluctantly agreeing to see how Spike´s recovery progressed. Once this had been decided, Giles had left with Buffy and Riley to speak with the new army of demons and try to persuade the ´meows´, as they had been named, to leave Sunnydale to the Slayer.
The demons had regretfully complied with the ex–Watchers request to leave, but only after offering Buffy her own slice of Sunnydale. Having instructed Giles to decline politely on her behalf, Buffy and the others had watched as the ´meows´ had gathered up their possessions and stepped into the swirling void that had appeared between the cloven feet of their leader.
Or at least, Xander had been told that the void had been all swirly and, according to Willow, emanating serious mystery. Sighing, he came back to the present, bitter that he had been forced into the role of vampire nursemaid, but somewhat grateful that Giles had been able to speak directly to his understanding boss. Although his boss had been less than happy to give Xander time off work, Giles had convinced the man by fabricating a tale of home nursing and a sick mother.
Thankfully, his boss had understood and agreed to let Xander off work for two full weeks, without pay, but Xander having the advantage of having a job waiting for him. Giles, posing as Xander´s uncle, had been satisfied with the result.
Seeing that Spike was starting to wake out of his deep slumber, Xander rose from the chair and padded barefoot into the kitchen. Fridge opened, he took a blood bag from an overflowing shelf, hoping that this time, Spike would keep most of it down.
Spike jerked at the ding of the microwave as it finished heating, instantly relieved to be away from the nightmare that featured the five members of Arseholes Incorporated beating into him again. Not fully awake, he watched warily through half closed eyes as Xander walked from the kitchen towards him, a mug clutched in one hand and a tea towel in the other. As soon as the smell of the warm blood wafted his way, Spike felt his stomach clench in anticipation, a low rumble signalling how hungry he felt. His hunger was slightly dampened as he worried if he was going to be sick this time.
~ Christ, I´ll be givin´ that Twiggy bint a run for her money if I keep this bulimia bullshit up! ~
Unable to stop himself, Spike found himself shrinking back into the pillows as Xander approached Spike´s side of the bed. As Xander scowled at him, a mug was placed into Spikes left hand; the mug tipping dangerously due to the awkward position that the vampire was lying in. Trying to sip the thick liquid slowly, Spike was hesitant to go any faster in case his stomach rebelled, as it had on all previous occasions. Still, Spike was relieved to feel himself slip into full game face as he gulped down his blood, the first time since being found in the crypt.
~ Aarrrgghh... cack! F´n awful, but it´ll do. Friggin´ starvin´ anyway. ~
Swallowing a little faster, Spike visibly flinched when Xander reached down towards his face to wipe at the excess blood trickling down Spike‘s chin, threatening to stain the bed sheets.
~ Wow, don´t I feel like the manliest of all men with the Whelp goin´ all Mr. Mom on me. Remember Spikey, former Master Vampire here... hmmph, like anyone gives a shit right now? ~
Spike allowed a small smile of triumph to twitch across his face as he was able finally to finish a whole meal without throwing most it up. His eyes drooping from the sheer effort of trying not to tremble from the obviously frighteningly close presence of the Harris boy, Spike willed himself not to fall straight back into the dream that had featured Riley and his mates wrenching his limbs out of their sockets in some bizarre Hellmouth version of ´Twister´.
Xander stood with the empty mug clutched in his hand. Unable to stop himself, he cautiously reached out with his free hand to stroke lightly at the bleached blond locks of the twitching, moaning vampire. A frown slid across his features as he wondered why he had reached out to comfort someone he hated, Xander walking back into the basement‘s tiny kitchen to rinse the blood from the mug. With a shake of his head, Xander put the incident out of his mind and concentrated on washing his breakfast dishes.
Meanwhile, Spike whimpered as the soft caress on his still aching head left and he was once again in his crypt with five figures coming towards him.
Alone as he always seemed to be.
Four day´s later...
Xander was tired from both the stress of being a full time nursemaid and from having to live in such close confines with someone that he disliked. Not only that, he honestly didn´t know how to take it every time Spike jerked away and whimpered whenever Xander made sudden movements or caused loud noises. The flinching every time Xander approached him and the cringing as Xander touched Spike, well, they were really starting to wear him down. He knew that they weren´t directed at him intentionally but still, he had to admit that he *really* didn´t like it at all.
He had more or less been in a constant state of annoyance since the vampire had moved in, a situation not helped by the fact he couldn´t go about his normal routine in case he upset Spike and brought on a flood of tears. Xander was sure that the vampire could smell the emotion on him, not to mention Xander´s continual frustration at being unable to masturbate in relative privacy. Every time Xander had been about to give in to his hormones and jerk off, he would remember that he was living with someone who would know the very instant he had manually relieved himself, a closed bathroom door proving no barrier to pheromones. Normally, he would have gone straight to Anya´s and stayed a few hours, but since breaking up with the ex–demon a few day´s ago, Xander was unable to do anything but ride out the vampire´s stay.
Hearing the shower turn on, Xander muttered that the Bleached Bastard should just really get over it and fuck off back wherever. It had been a week and a half since Xander had found the badly beaten Spike and thanks to vampire healing, Spike was almost in tip top shape again. It wasn´t as if Spike hadn´t been seriously hurt before, thought Xander, recalling the time that Spike had been confined to a wheelchair.
"I´m sooo sure that he didn´t act this way with his Nutbag Princess and that complete dick, Angelus," whispered Xander bitterly. Knowing what Spike´s Sire was capable of, he had come to the conclusion that if Spike had acted this way while in the wheelchair, Angelus would have put the blond out of his misery just for daring to be so weak.
Still, even in all his annoyance and anger over his totally disrupted life, Xander knew that something really serious must have happened in the crypt for Spike to be acting so unlike his usual self. Sighing as he continued to listen to Spike in the shower, Xander racked his brains as to what could have been the cause of Spike becoming Kleenex´s favourite customer. It wasn´t as if thevampire had been able to tell Giles or himself what had happened, Spike´s speech showing no definite signs of improving, and the tape binding his right hand together made the task of writing nigh on impossible as of course, fate being kind had made the demon right handed at most things, including writing.
Now no longer having to give Spike even the most rudimentary of sponge baths since the day before, not that Xander had ever dared to venture below Spike´s belly button, something that Xander was mightily thankful for, he ignored the sound of something clattering onto the bottom of the bath and poured milk over the mountain of cereal in the bowl in front of him. Trying to shovel as much of the soggy mess into his mouth as possible, Xander lifted a hand to wipe at the milk spluttering down his chin. With no signs coming from the bathroom that the water would shut off anytime soon, Xander continued to slurp and crunch his way into thinking of the only other time that he had seen Spike´s type of behaviour.
There had been a girl in his biology class in his second year at high school who had behaved similarly to how Spike was now. That same girl had later committed suicide and no–one had known why until a few months later, when the distraught parents had found the well hidden note explaining the suicide. It had turned out that Stacii had been sexually molested since puberty by an uncle and had been too ashamed to tell anyone.
Word had spread around the school like wildfire. Principal Flutie had organised counselling for the students that had shared classes with Stacii and included the topic of abuse, be it verbal, physical or sexual, in the sex–ed classes. Xander hadn´t really paid attention to the sex–ed classes, more interested in scribbling rude pictures in his text books. He had, however, paid slightly more attention to his counselling session, only because it had gotten him out of a double period of math. In between staring out of the window and wondering if the counsellor was wearing a wig, Xander had listened to the different types of abuse and rape and how to spot some signs that someone might be being abused or had been in the past. And right now, Spike was clearly displaying some of the signs of having been abused.
Getting up and walking with his spoon and bowl to the kitchen sink as he heard the water in the bathroom turn off and the shower curtain crinkling, Xander felt himself go cold when his train of thought suddenly made things sparklingly clear, the bowl and spoon clattering into the sink as he paled. "Oh My God!"
"No way... uh–uh... absolutely no way on this green earth did it happen to the Big Bad!" And yet, from all the injuries he had seen inflicted on the pale body, Xander knew that this was the only possible explanation for the bruising *between* Spike´s buttocks and for Spike´s anus to be almost black in colour. Shaking his head in disbelief and hoping for once he wasn´t right, Xander spun around at the sound of the bathroom door opening only to stare, open–mouthed, at the still dripping towel clad figure before him.
"You were *raped* weren´t you?" he demanded from Spike, mentally cursing himself as the words came out far harsher than he had intended. Groaning, Xander watched as Spike´s eyes filled with pink tinged tears.
Spike had stopped dead in his tracks at the accusation in Xander´s voice. Not knowing where to look as he felt the tears well up for what must have been the thousandth time since being found, he sagged heavily against the bathroom doorframe, one hand rubbing across his eyes. Lifting his taped hand, Spike fiddled with the paint flaking off the doorframe, twisting them off and dropping the tiny bits onto the floor, his tears following only moments later. As his sobbed hiccup broke the silence, Spike glanced at the staring boy and shrugged minutely. Dropping his gaze to the slippery white tiles, he gave a slight whine as he started to pant in panic and shame.
Open–mouthed in shock, Xander couldn´t recall Spike ever looking so defeated, not even in the few days after the planned betrayal with Adam had backfired. The Big Bad, standing in one Xander Harris´ bathroom doorway, clad in only a moth eaten bath towel and in tears. Never had Xander thought he would ever be a witness to such a scene. Wishing now that he had paid at least some attention in the class, Xander was somewhat at a loss as to what to do next.
Spike had been raped. Sure, Spike hadn´t come right out and *admitted* it, but he sure as Hell wasn´t doing anything to deny it, either. Actually, all the vampire was doing was some heavy duty hyperventilating. That, and stripping most of the doorframe of its shitty paintwork, something that Xander had to stop before Spike managed to inhale some of the paint flakes.
What did he say to Spike? What did you say to someone who had been raped, a *male* someone... someone that you hated with every fibre of your entire being? Xander shook his head in disgust as his mind threw scenario after horrific scenario at him. Was he supposed to do something for Spike? God, he sure hoped he didn´t have to anything for the vampire. As far as Xander was concerned, after giving up his work, bed, social life and private time for Spike, he had already done more than enough.
Yeah, being raped had probably been bad. OK, it *had* obviously been more than just bad if it had affected the usually nasty vampire so much, but it didn´t mean that Xander had to start being nice to Spike. After all, Xander *knew* that Spike had done far, far worse to his victims before the chip, a few looks through Giles´ hidden Watcher Diaries had told Xander more than he had originally wanted to know about Spike´s past hobbies.
Fucking arsehole, Xander scowled, got what you deserved. Karma, my most hated buddy, Karma.
Still, the memory of seeing Spike´s welted buttocks covered in dried, flaking semen caused Xander to grimace, shuddering as he slowly approached the trembling figure in the bathroom doorway. Xander´s grimace slid into an expression of annoyance as he tried to ignore the way Spike shied away from him, instead inching back into the steamy bathroom. Lifting a hand, Xander grabbed at the vampire´s pale upper arm, tightening his grip when Spike started to pull away from him, a strangled wail filling the close confines of the tiled room.
"Spike, I..." started Xander, only to stop when he realised that Spike would more than likely just sneer at whatever he said, later ridiculing him as he had on so many previous occasions. Xander stood for a moment, looking on as Spike kept wailing, the vampire´s shaking becoming full–bodied tremors. Taking a breath, he tried again. "Stop it, Spike, I´m not gonna hurt you... come on, it´s me, Xander Harris... Whelp... Donut Boy, ringing any bells here?"
"Jesus, Spike, will you just... Whoa... OK, hang on?" Xander found himself grappling with a tangle of limbs as Spike suddenly collapsed to the floor, rolling into a tight ball at the same time, the ongoing wail muffled slightly as the vampire pressed his face to the floor. Uncertainty, along with a touch of concern, now coloured Xander´s thoughts as he wondered if he should try to get Spike up off the floor or if it was best to leave the distressed vampire alone until he had calmed down. Bottom lip nibbled, Xander hesitantly crouched down beside Spike, reaching out and gently patting at Spike´s still damp and curling hair. "Uuuhhh, you... um, right there?"
~ No, Pet, not right... not right at all. They... all of them, they... Nooooo, nononononono! Not again, for God´s sake, not again? ~
Eyes tightly screwed shut, Spike was unaware that his panting had taken a turn for the worse as he tried to shut out the memories of his degradation in the crypt. As soon as Xander had come close enough to grab at him, Spike had been overwhelmed by the sensation that his attackers were closing in on him once again, Xander´s unintentional harshness bringing forth sounds and smells of a night Spike would give his unlife to forget. A touch on the side of his head caused Spike to yelp, fearful that it was only a prelude to yet another cock being forced inside of him. Spike wrenched his head away from the fingers running through his hair, violently banging his head onto the side of the toilet. A pained hiss escaping him, the trembling vampire dry retched as two heavy hands manuvoured under his armpits, slowly lifting Spike from the bathroom floor.
Xander groaned in exasperation as Spike proved less than willing to be lifted off the white tiles, the vampire twisting and turning in an effort to escape Xander´s hands. As Spike continued to dry retch, Xander gave up his idea of trying to get Spike back into bed and instead, slowly but surely manuvered the sobbing vampire to his feet, pushing Spike´s head over the bathroom´s hand basin. Xander wasn´t sure that Spike was going to be sick but thought it best to be safe than sorry, as he really didn´t relish trying to clean blood vomit off the murky grey walls. With his arm around Spike´s middle holding the swaying vampire on his feet, Xander tugged the towel up a few inches only to swear under his breath when it fell to the floor, leaving Spike naked. The instant that the towel slid from around Spike´s waist, Xander felt the vampire freeze even as the retching continued on unabated. Gripping Spike tightly against his side, Xander watched in sick fascination as the vampire´s hands flew from dangling at his sides to pick weakly at Xander´s arm, tugging and pulling at his hand and fingers with less strength than a newborn baby. Shaking his head as he felt his stomach roil at how fragile Spike suddenly was, Xander gently placed Spike´s hands on opposite sides of the bathroom´s basin.
~ Gentle... gentle? Don´t hurt me, careful, I´m gonna bleed... but... but that´s what you all want innit? ~
Spike gripped the edge of the cold stone coffin for dear life, bracing himself for what was only a prelude to yet another assault, his stomach muscles cramping in fear as he felt himself being handled by one of the ex–soldiers. Where the others were, he didn´t know but he suspected that they would come along soon. They always did. Every time he had thought his night was finally over, one of them would suddenly notice him again, ensuring that he was the centre of their collective attention once more. As the grip around his waist tightened, Spike did the right thing; he spread his legs as much as his still ruined hips would allow.
~ Ready. Jus... just do it quick like, right? ~
Dry mouthed, Xander stared as Spike thrust his backside out, spreading his legs. With a heavy swallow, he refused to go where his mind desperately wanted to take him. Instead, he tore his gaze away from the completely healed white skin of Spike´s arse, twisting the little sinks taps on and adjusting the water temperature until it was just above lukewarm. Slightly shocked to find that his hand was shaking as he wet a face washer underneath the stream of water, Xander gave a hesitant dab at the tears running down Spike´s face, only for the vampire to twist his head away.
~ Not in me mouth! Not yet... Jesus, give me time...? ~
Jaws clenched tight, Spike gave a barely audible whine as he tried to avoid the cum soaked cloth being rubbed over his face. He knew that he would end up sucking whatever they wanted him to but if he could just put it off for a few more moments... A hand rested on the back of his head, fingers making small gentle circles against his scalp, a subtle warning that things would be worse for him if he continued to resist. Choking on another dry retch, Spike forced himself to be still, barely opening his mouth as the piece of material was scrubbed across his face. Not sure that his chip could survive another bashing on the corner of the stone tomb, Spike mewled as he submitted to what they wanted him to do. In one slow motion, he halted the harsh scrubbing of his face as he sucked a warm finger into his mouth, reaching up and unfurling another finger from the washcloth, that too added to the one already in his mouth. Head bobbing up and down as he imitated the blowjob he knew he would have to give one of the other men soon, Spike caressed the whorls on the fingers with his tongue, his stomach knotted in fear as he registered that the oddly comforting hand on his head had stilled.
~ I´m doin me best... really, I swear I am! Gettin´ em nice and wet for you, all the better for you to shove up in me... pokin´ at me... inside... ~
Xander watched in shock as his fingers disappeared once again into the wet cavern of Spike´s mouth. Open–mouthed, he let the face washer fall from his limp grasp, oblivious to the wet splat as it fell into the hand basin. The bathroom was silent except for the running water and Spike´s quiet slurping. A minute, two minutes passed by before the still quiet was broken by a low moan, prompted from Xander as Spike added yet another finger to his cool mouth. His trance broken by the sound, Xander instantly let go of Spike, his fingers ripped from the vampire´s mouth as Xander stumbled backwards, horrified and appalled that he was both well on the way to being hard and that he had allowed Spike to do such a thing to him. Barely registering that he was panting in heavy arousal, Xander tightened his grip in Spike´s hair until Spike squealed from the force. "What. The. Fuck?"
~ What you wanted... what you *all* want... just doin´ me best. I did wrong but didn´t I... what did I do... tell me... I won´t do it again... I promise, promise I won´t? ~
As he let go of Spike´s waist, Xander found himself holding the vampire up by only the bleached locks as Spike let go of the hand basin, a loud yelp reverberating around the small bathroom as Spike dangled from Xander´s grip for a moment before dropping to the floor. His temper billowing up almost to full force, Xander dropped to his knees beside Spike as the vampire tried to curl into a protective ball, Spike wrapping both arms around his head. Xander stared at the pathetic figure on the bathroom floor, disgust colouring his words as he spoke. "What the fuck do you think you were doing? Hello? Hello, Snivelling Spike? Hey, open your eyes... look at me?"
~ Just do it... hurry up and do it. Don´t make me wait, I already know what you´re gonna do so just do it! Not looking, not looking, not looking. ~
"Spike? Spike, will you just open your eyes? Com– oh! Ahhh, no. No, don´t do that... umm, so very not of the good!" exclaimed Xander, the disgust touched with concern over Spike´s well being as the vampire rolled himself onto all fours, whimpering as his crooked hips creaked loud enough for Xander to hear. As Spike started to spread his legs once again and lean down further onto his elbows, Xander realised that Spike actually wasn´t in the bathroom; that the vampire was trapped somewhere in his tortured mind. Swallowing his misgivings and distaste at the situation, Xander wondered just what the hell he was supposed to do. Throat cleared a few times, Xander spoke softly as embarrassment came to the forefront of his current feelings. "Spike, come on. It´s all right, sshhhh, it´s all right. You´re safe now. They´re not here... and never will be. I, ahhh, promise?"
As he continued to speak gently to the shaking vampire, Xander firmly re–tied the towel around Spike´s waist, his face flushed with mortification as he did his best not to notice each time Spike thrust himself backwards towards Xander. Slowly, so as not to spook Spike, Xander crawled over to the bathtub and picked up the hairbrush resting on the side before making his way back to Spike. With small movements, Xander crawled around to the front of Spike, all the while telling Spike in a low voice exactly what he was going to do. "Now, don´t get scared or anything. I´m gonna touch your face, not much though, I... I have to because I´m gonna, you know, brush your hair and for that, I have to touch you. Shhhh, come on, it´s alright... not gonna hurt you."
A deep breath taken, Xander reached out and lightly rested a hand on top of Spike´s wet hair. When the vampire didn´t attempt to shake him off or duck from underneath, Xander allowed the full weight of his hand to rest upon Spike´s head.
~ Oh... Oh it´s comin´, make way... big cock–a–comin´ for me! ~
Spike felt the hand on his head get heavier while another brushed across his forehead, a thumb wiping lightly over his eyes as he continued to weep in fear of what was coming. It wasn´t a towel that was tied around his waist, instead, it was Spike´s dark blue shirt tied around his waist, handy as a rag so that all the others that came after this soldier could wipe the cum that would flow from his torn hole. The mumble of words he could hear was punctuated with the ex–soldiers belching and laughter, his senses filled with the scent of old sweat, beer and drying blood. Opening his mouth, Spike snaked his head forward, intent on getting it over and done with.
"Oh Jesus!" Xander swore to himself. Grimacing at what he knew Spike was about to do, if not already doing, in his own private hell, Xander grasped Spike´s chin and closed the vampire´s mouth before continuing to push Spike´s head up and away from his crotch so that he could run the brush through the platinum locks. Gripping Spike´s chin tightly in one hand, Xander forced himself to ignore Spike´s whimpering as the brush smoothed the blond hair, firmly turning Spike´s face one way and then the other in an effort to see how it looked once done.
"Stop. That!" snapped Xander, his limited patience grinding to a startling halt as Spike strained to lick at the fingers holding onto his chin. "Right. That´s it. You are going faaaar away from me!"
Even as he said the words, Xander got to his feet, leaning down and gripping Spike´s upper arm. Hauling Spike to his feet once more, he tried to walk the vampire forward by tugging Spike after him. It was a good idea except for the fact that Spike stood stock still and not even all of Xander´s combined strength and weight could make Spike budge an inch.
"Spiiiike, come *ooonnn*!" whined the annoyed youth, leaning back and pulling on Spike´s arms with all his strength. Just catching himself before he landed on the floor as Spike took a small step forward, Xander felt a surge of relief that, finally, he seemed to be getting somewhere with the vampire. Without thinking, he gave Spike´s hair a quick ruffle, smoothing the strands that stuck up, "Good, good, Spike. That´s so fucking good... can you do it again? Hmmm, can you?"
~ Where... where do you want me to go now? My place not good enough any more, was good enough before... do–... don´t touch me like that. Which one of you is touching me? Nope, not opening me eyes, do that an´ I´ll know which one of you´s gonna go next... not looking, not looking, not looking. ~
Spike was terrified of what was going to happen next, why would the Initiative men take him somewhere new? More importantly, where were they taking him? This wasn´t right; they didn´t take him anywhere that night. That night? It was *that night* wasn´t it? He was trapped in his crypt with five ex–soldiers, wasn´t he? They were coming for him again; he could smell them, smell the aroma of dangerous lust and need to dominate whirling around him. Almost. But... but, Spike reasoned to himself, I heard them... fuck, I *tasted* them... didn´t I? Gulping down huge lungfuls of air, Spike slowly came out of his panicked delusion, shame coursing through him as he realised that all he had been experiencing was a flashback and that he was nowhere near his old home. As the fingers continued to be run through his hair in what was the gentlest touch he could currently remember, Spike was relieved that he could no longer smell the stench of drying piss, tears and an overabundance of testosterone. Infact, he couldn´t even hear the five men anywhere near him. Instead, all he could hear was Xander repeatedly asking him to open his eyes and take a step forward. Slowly, Spike opened one eye, gasping in fright as a figure loomed in close to him.
"Spike... about fucking time! Sorry, I mean, good... that´s good. Actually, really good." encouraged Xander, reaffirming his grip on Spike´s upper arm as the vampire shied away from him. With a gentle tugging on the pale arm, he tried to get Spike moving forward once again even as Spike opened his other eye to stare tearfully at the floor. Caught between feeling embarrassed and annoyed, Xander wasn´t about to acknowledge the tiny shred of sympathy that was battling to make itself known as he watched the vampire´s tears start to dry up even as they continued to decorate the grimy linoleum floor of the tiny kitchen.
Xander looked at the heavily panting demon in front of him and wondered why he was even bothering to try and help someone who had tried to kill not only him but every one of his friends over the past few years. An overblown case of White Hat Syndrome obviously, Xander snorted to himself, a half smile plastered over his face as he encouraged Spike to take another step forward. He breathed a small sigh of relief when Spike shook off Xander´s grasp and limped awkwardly past him, heading towards the double bed. Still unsure of what the exact protocol was in dealing with the information he now found himself privy to, Xander hesitated a few moments before he trailed after Spike, helping the shaking vampire in–between the covers. Wondering if he should call Giles and inform him of the update, Xander bit back a sharp retort when the bed covers were ripped out of his hands, Spike pulling them up and over his head as the vampire curled into the foetal position as much as his crooked hip would allow, a few strands of bleached hair poking out from under the covers. Head shaken as he tried desperately not to think of what male–to–male rape entailed, Xander leaned down and twisted the damp strands of hair between his fingers, tugging them gently before giving Spike´s head a few pats, his large fingers gliding over the vampire´s scalp in what Xander hoped was a soothing manner.
His shaking just starting to ease off, Spike snuffled the last of his tears as he pulled the covers around him a little tighter in an unconscious effort to feel more secure in his makeshift cocoon. Even though he knew he was somewhat safe in the company of Xander, Spike was terrified that it was only a matter of time before Riley and the rest of Arseholes Inc. would come for him again. As far as Spike was concerned, staying with either the Whelp or the Watcher were his only safe options and no matter how bad his life might have gotten, there was no way in hell he was going back to Old Crusty´s bathtub. Besides, he knew that Cunty had a spare key to her Watcher´s place, something that Cornfed could easily grab a hold of and use to Spike´s disadvantage. Only the witches had a key to the boy´s place and no matter how the ex–soldier put it, for him to ask for Xander´s spare key would be completely out of character. So, that left the dirty, smelly, mould riddled basement Spike was currently ´guesting´ in and as stupid as he thought the Slayer´s boy was, he couldn´t see Riley and his cohorts breaking into Xander´s place just to give him another game of ´Twister´. And really, Spike thought to himself as he shifted so that Xander had more of his head to run his hand over, if this was how he was going to be treated by the boy from now on, why should he move before he was forced to?
Still, Spike wondered just when he would be kicked out of what had become his own little safe haven. Not even bothering to deny that he liked the way Xander´s hand was running through his hair and really, why should he be ashamed of accepting a little comfort after all he had been through, Spike tried to think of a way to convince Xander to let him stay for just a bit longer, until he had himself sorted out again. With a jaw wrenching yawn, Spike found the corners of his mouth twitching into a small smile as he realised that he was relieved to have been able to admit to someone, even if he hadn´t been able to go into the details, what had actually happened to him that night in the crypt. Eyes closed, Spike fell into a deep sleep almost immediately, not noticing as Xander gently pulled the bed covers down from over his head, smoothing the blanket just under his chin.
Giving the vampire´s hair one last pat, Xander looked down at the emotional wreck in his bed, chewing the inside of his mouth as he thought of just who would be so sadistic as to go beyond a brutal beating and actually do everything in their power to come as close to destroying a once proud individual as possible, an evil but proud being all the same. Not for the first time since Spike´s shocking admission, Xander wondered if there had been more than one or two attackers in Spike´s crypt. Bed covers smoothed down a final time as Spike mewled in his sleep, Xander straightened up, frowning as he adjusted himself in his jeans as they proved to be a little on the tight side. Much as they had been from the moment that Spike had started sucking on his fingers.
Later that night...
In a desperate panic, Spike ran from one corner of his crypt to the other, vainly trying to get away from the five taller men that were in the small, dank, torch–lit room with him. As he dodged the numerous hands grasping at him, the vampire shouted at them to leave him alone, for Riley and his friends to gather up their shit and to just go. However, even as Spike knew he had pronounced the words correctly, he became ever more increasingly distressed as he heard himself tell the five laughing men that they could do whatever they liked to him.
"Go on, Mate, do what you like. Trust me, I don´t give a shit." Shaking his head in denial at what he had just heard himself say, Spike feinted a dash to the furthest corner of the crypt, turning at the last moment towards the crumbling stairs.
Before he had managed to take more than two steps in the new direction, Spike was surrounded by the five men, all kicking and punching at him until he fell onto the rough and chilly stone floor. His whole body repeatedly kicked until he was lying on his back, Spike looked up at his attackers, shuddering as he took in the identical looks of anger intermingled with lust. Even Buffy´s fucktoy, the farmboy, had an aura of dangerous arousal about him. Opening his mouth in order to make one of his trademark vicious quips, Spike was horrified the instant he started to speak. "I´m just a slag, an´ you know what? Runs in the family, me Mam was one too. Go on, fuck me over, I´m just *begging* for it!"
Eyes widened in shock at the pure lust dripping from his words. Spike batted uselessly at the five pairs of hands grabbing at him once again. As he was jerked off the ground and hauled towards the stone slab in the middle of the crypt, Spike struggled to get free from the five men who were agreeing with him; telling Spike that they had known he was nothing but a pussy, whore, slag and a fucktoy from the moment they had set eyes on him.
"Damn, you boys are getting me just waaaay too hot, keep goin´ and I´m gonna explode in these pants o´ mine." Whimpering helplessly as he recognised his own vocal betrayal, Spike hissed in pain as he managed to wrench one of the ex–soldier´s hands from his shirt, his chip firing off even as he tried to defend himself from further harm. Thrown face down on the chipped, stone slab, Spike´s already aching stomach muscles protested as the hard edge slammed into him, even as he felt rough hands reaching around the front of him to his belt.
Spike snarled menacingly at his assailants, only to yelp in pain as he felt his shoulder muscles and ligaments straining as both of his arms were wrenched out of their sockets by Riley and Graham. Both men laughing at his agonised panting as they hauled his upper body over the wide expanse of the slab topping off the stone coffin. Frightened by what was happening, the vampire tried to kick at the hands that were working his tight black jeans down his trembling legs. A whine escaped his lips as he felt all movement stop as the jeans reached his ankles. Spike´s stomach clenched in fear as he turned his head to one side, temporarily blind as the light from one of his attacker´s torches glinted off the large bladed knife that Graham had in his hand. Blinking, as the light was suddenly gone, he froze for a moment before resuming his kicking as he both felt and heard the knife cutting away his much loved Doc Martens. As he managed to free his right foot from the soldier holding onto his lower leg, Spike lashed out as hard as he could, howling when he felt his chip fire off, the intense pain sending him into a momentary blackout.
His head ringing from the electric shock that had coursed through his brain, Spike couldn´t help but shudder as he felt his shirt being ripped from his upper body, his t–shirt following only a minute later. Whimpering at them to stop, Spike felt tears well up as he heard himself tell the men that the rougher they treated him, the more he would enjoy it. He flinched as howls of laughter rang throughout the dank cold room, the ex–soldiers all agreeing to do as he asked. Finally he was completely naked, the camouflage clad man standing directly behind him slapping his exposed buttocks hard, pinching and twisting the pale flesh hard enough to leave the beginning of a purpling bruise. Groaning under his breath, Spike tried to shut out the sound of his voice telling the man to slap him harder, making his attacker promise to twist his balls hard enough for Spike to pass out. Eyes screwed shut at the request of the Mexican that Spike be lifted up for easier access, Spike suddenly squealed in pain as he felt numerous blunt fingertips dig into the already bruised flesh of his hips.
"If you´re gonna fuck me, just wanna let ya know... I want it hard and I want it to last. Make me beg for it, boys, you won´t be sorry, that´s for sure!" came the words from Spike´s trembling lips. Unable to stop himself, he instinctively clenched at the feeling of a finger probing at the tight ring of muscle in his anus. Teeth gritted as he unleashed a howl of denial in his mind, Spike knew without a doubt what he was about to be subjected to, and with that knowledge in mind, he tried to relax himself as much as possible.
Still, Spike was truly unprepared for the pain when it came. In one white–hot punch, the grunting and straining soldier behind him ploughed his way through the tight muscles with one unlubricated push of his cock, forcing the long unused muscle unnaturally wide. With tears streaming down his face, Spike shrieked in both the agony and the shock of being brutally penetrated without any preparation or lubrication. "Jesus, mate, you can do better than that. Just go harder and I´ll lay over easy for your mates as well. That´s it, harder... oh yeah, harder... oh God, this is soooo damn good!"
His head shaking from side to side as he tried to clear the grey haze that had sprung up in front of his eyes, the vampire heard a sickeningly dull thud as his head was smacked into the corner of the tomb, a flare of nausea welling up from deep within as the resulting sharp, throbbing pain threatened to overcome him. His head forced still upon the rough stone by unseen hands, Spike dry–retched as he heard himself moan in pleasure, begging the soldier that was currently slamming into him to reach around his middle and play with his foreskin. Spike sniffled at his traitorous voice as he told the soldier to try and rip the foreskin off in one pull, whining in terror as he immediately felt an arm snake around his waist and a hand start tugging and twisting at the sensitive skin, stretching the thin skin as far as it would go.
After what seemed like hours, but could have only been mere minutes, Spike gasped as his assailant pulled out of him to a resounding chorus of cheers. Shaking uncontrollably, he wondered if it was cum, blood or even both running down the back of his legs. The pain crawling over the chipped side of his head and his penis from Martinez´s rough hands was nothing compared to the sharp, stabbing pain radiating from Spike´s anus, the vampire sobbing all the harder as he watched Martinez blow him kisses at him while relieving Graham of his hold on Spike´s right arm. Graham, slapping the swarthy Mexican on the back in congratulations, walked slowly around the back of Spike, all the while undoing his belt and pulling at the zipper keeping his army pants up.
His stomach gurgling and churning in reaction to the horrendous amount of cum he had been forced to swallow from each of the ex–soldiers before the night had taken a turn for the worse, Spike found that no matter how hard he tried to will his body to move, he was unable to do anything but feel the full force of every single thrust as Graham pushed his cock through Spike´s steadily bruising anal tissue. Spike was shamed to his very core when the third rapist, an unnamed figure with a penis, made a mockery of wiping at the tears running down the vampire´s face; the dark haired man sneering and laughing at him even as he held out a strip of cloth torn from Spike´s shirt for the vampire to blow his nose on. Too terrified to even try and struggle any more, Spike let out a small whisper of protest when he felt the ex–soldier ready himself by gripping onto Spike´s tender hips, the vampire telling the unknown man that as he was feeling just a little *dirrrtty*, please, could he do the right thing and piss *in* him once he was done; after all as Spike cheerfully stated, he really was nothing more than a walking toilet. The request was dutifully carried out, a humiliated Spike dry retching when he smelt the urine as the warm liquid trickled down his inner thighs. Twice more Spike had to endure the relentless thrusting of a man determined to show a Master Vampire what his true place in society was, the vampire cheering the remaining men on even as he scrunched his eyes closed tight, not wanting to see any indication of whether they were going to start another round of rapes.
"Damn! Wasn´t that just the best?" screamed Spike, a happiness he sure as hell didn´t feel colouring his words as Riley and the soldier he had never caught the name of let go of his arms and in one sudden movement, shoved him off the slab with such force, he landed a good few feet from the stone coffin onto the dirt encrusted floor of the chilly crypt. Shaking and weeping as he attempted to curl into a tight ball, the degraded vampire continued, "Thank you, and I seriously mean it, thank you so damn much for what was possibly the best fuck up the arse I´ve *ever* had and because you lot did such a f´n fantastic job, I´m gonna get you to line up so that I can personally clean you all off. Remember, born to do this job I was, bloody great at it as well."
Pulled, pushed and bullied into kneeling, the vampire scarcely paid any attention to the broken mortar digging into his battered kneecaps. A high–pitched parody of a laugh escaped him when he noticed that his nose was running, Spike reaching up with a trembling hand and wiping underneath it as he asked for the first volunteer to step up so that he could begin. Shoulders spasming in pain and fright, he couldn´t understand why he was saying the exact opposite of what he wanted. Touching lightly at the ribs that Spike knew without a doubt had been broken by Graham´s stomping when he had spat out the blond´s foul tasting cum after being forced to suck the man off, the vampire watched with a sick feeling in his stomach as all five men pulled their army pants down to their knees, not having to unzip them as none of them had even bothered to do them up after raping Spike. A glaring indication that it was going to be a long night for Spike.
Swallowing in nervous fright as he saw the red haired Corey approach his open mouth while stroking his semi erect cock into a harder rod, Spike jumped as he heard a noise behind him. With an ear bent towards the repetitive sound, Spike hoped that it would help to take his mind off the revolting taste in front of him. Eyes scrunched tightly shut once more, Spike forced himself to concentrate on what sounded like his name being called louder and louder rather than the warm flesh being slid between his lips.
//Spike, wake up!//
The vampire frowned, holding his head rigid as the hard cock repeatedly grazed the back of his throat. He knew that voice but he just wasn´t sure where from. It was definitely familiar though. The instant he felt a gentle hand run fingers through his hair, Spike gave into another wave of panic, gagging as he feared that the soldier was preparing to shove his cock as far down his throat as it would go.
//SPIKE... SPIKE, WILL YOU WAKE UP?//
"Spike, wake up!"
"SPIKE... SPIKE, WILL YOU WAKE UP?" demanded Xander, annoyance staining his words as he tried to get Spike to wake up from whatever nightmare he was currently stuck in even as he ran a gentle hand through the gagging, bleached blond´s hair. Looking down at an increasingly distressed vampire, Xander wondered if what had been revealed earlier that day in the bathroom had been the trigger for what just had to be one hell of a nasty nightmare.
Xander was still half asleep, only a few minutes fresh from a weird–arsed dream in which he had been baby–sitting a dog that had done nothing but whimper and whine at him. He had been setting down another plate of rainbow coloured peppermint ice–cream for the dog to eat in an attempt to get it to shut up when he had been jerked awake by the sound of something or someone trying to be violently ill. Heart thumping a million miles a minute, he had flailed around blindly in the dark for the bedside light, snapping the switch on just as he managed to convince himself that there was a demon in his basement that was preparing to dismember and eat him. Oh yeah, there had been a demon in his basement all right, just not one that looked like doing anything to him in the near future.
Xander had been stunned to see Spike in the throes of a very vivid dream, quickly putting two and two together and realising that the crying dog in his dreams had actually been the vampire. Pretty sure that a bowl of ice–cream wasn´t about to make anything better for Spike, Xander had instantly reached out a hand, stroking his fingers through the softly curling bleached hair when Spike gave a strangled shriek and flinched from whatever his mind was showing him.
"Come on, Spike, I know that you can hear me. Just wake up and everything will be fine,” said Xander, his words punctuated by yawns as he fought to stay awake. Continuing to make small circles over Spike´s scalp with his longer fingers, Xander sighed in irritation as he saw that the nightmare had too much of a hold on Spike. Hand pulled away from the soft hair, Xander chewed on his bottom lip for a moment before lifting his hand, and slapping Spike none too gently across his face.
Jerking awake as the sudden pain dulled into a warm bloom across his right cheek, Spike panted in shock as he looked wildly around the room, terrified that he was still trapped in the horrendous nightmare and that he would be bent over another inanimate object in only a few seconds time. He yelped as he noticed someone sitting only a hands width from him, gagging once more, this time in relief as he realised that it was only the Whelp sitting on the bed with him.
~ Bloody hell, the boy must have slapped me one! ~
"You OK now?" yawned Xander, rubbing a hand across his eyes as he peered blearily at the still shaking vampire.
Even as Xander spoke the words in a gratingly annoyed tone, for a brief moment, Spike fancied he could hear an element of concern colouring the words. As fleeting as the concern for his welfare had been, Spike nevertheless grabbed onto it, nodding at Xander even as he flinched in fright when one of the bed springs pinged under his shifting weight.
~ No, not bloody likely, Mate. F´n well glad you woke me up but... ~
Not bothering to finish his train of thought, Spike sighed and sniffled wetly as the last of his tears tapered off. Embarrassed that he had been crying yet again after almost two weeks after his beating and gang rape, the vampire threw back the worn blankets and sheets, getting to his feet. The wall behind the bed held onto for a moment so that he could steady himself, Spike slowly hobbled the few steps into the kitchen, the small area dimly illuminated by the bedside lamp. Reaching into the cupboard underneath the scratched and dented linoleum counter, Spike pulled out two glasses, looking over at a still yawning Xander and shaking one at him.
No, no, I don´t want a fucking glass of water. I want to go to sleep, alone. All by myself, in *my* bed, *alone* in my bed and I really want you to just fuck right off but hey, White Knight here which means I´m a sensitive new age kinda guy so what the Hell? Xander swallowed his continual resentment of being forced into Spike´s presence as he was almost overwhelmingly tempted to take Spike up the basement stairs, open the door, shove the blond outside and lock it. Instead, he nodded his head at the visibly trembling vampire. "Um, yeah... yeah, thanks."
~Not a problem Harris, least that the former Sunnydale Terror can do for his human keeper~
Twisting the kitchen sink´s tap on so that a slow trickle of ice cold water started to fill one of the chipped glasses, the corners of Spike´s mouth twitched in a ghost of a smile as he cocked on ear towards the bed, listening as Xander mumbled under his breath to himself. FUCK! I can´t believe I´m going to do this. Giles soooo seriously owes me for this! Xander snarked to himself. "Ahhh. Ummmm, do you... you know, wannatalkaboutitorsomethingelse?"
Spike froze, the filling glass forgotten for a moment as he ran Xander´s question through his mind. Did he want to talk about what had happened in the crypt? Not a fucking chance in Heaven. Shaking his head, Spike gave a few strangled noises in Xander´s direction as he decided that even though the boy and the Watcher already knew about some of the more humiliating things inflicted on him during the attack in the crypt, he would die a happy second death if no–one else ever found out about that he had been the unwilling bottom for a pack of humans. His soft smile broadened for a brief second as he took in Xander´s obvious sigh of relief. As far as Spike was concerned, the only thing more humiliating than being a bitch for Riley and Arseholes Inc would have been if he had gone down on all fours willingly and without a fight. Taking a deep breath as the memories threatened to overwhelm him once again, Spike reminded himself that he *hadn´t* just rolled over and given his arse up, that he *had* kept saying No, even if he had been forced to ask for it in the end. The glass full, Spike gathered up the first one and walked towards the uncomfortable bed, only spilling a few drops due to his ungainly walk. One glass handed to a steadily awakening Xander, Spike placed his own on the floor beside the bed before climbing back into it. Refusing to look over at Xander as the younger man sipped at the cold water, Spike lay on his completely healed back, ignoring the twinges of his still aching ankle and hand as he tried to find solace from his nightmare by staring at the scungy roof.
"As unpleasant as this little holiday has been for me, I´m going back to work on Monday. You´ll have to run around after yourself now, you know, actually do stuff for yourself like maybe find another crypt or one of those abandoned warehouses that your kind like so much. I mean, you´re walking pretty well now, so you´re good to go." Xander stated, glancing towards Spike to see if his words made an impact on the vampire.
~ Why don´t you just say it, Pet, fuck off! You don´t want me here, I get that... none of you lot want me, couldn´t give a continental shit what happened to me, but I´m tellin´ you right now... this is how bloody sad I´ve become, I don´t want to leave. I hate that I´m like this, a sissy boy. I hate the way I feel, so stupid and weak and inadequate. I´m a demon, Master Vampire I am and have been for over 70 years. Great Grandson to the Master Aurelius himself, in line for the leadership of the Clan after me Sire, Angelus. I´m William the Bloody, and I don´t want to leave because I´m scared!~
Unable to voice his fears to the person next to him, Spike simply shrugged and turned on his side away from Xander, wiping discreetly at the tears that had started to roll down his face.
~ What the hell do I do if Arsewipe and Pricks find me again, because they won´t be leaving me alive next time. I don´t want to die a final death, not just yet, no matter how tempting it has been and still is. I can´t, I won´t give in to what they want, even though I keep thinking how easy it would be to just blow away in the sun or stake meself with a coffee table leg. Can´t though, because when it comes down to the crunch of things, me survival instinct is too strong. F´n hell, I tried though... when you went to the Watchers house for the last Scooby meeting. Ripped the leg of that ugly piece of shit you call a coffee table. Held the broken bit to me chest, couldn´t push it through though... hands wouldn´t work so I couldn´t. Dropped the bit of wood on the ground and stared at it for the next half hour. ~
A hiccup broke through the silence in the chilly basement as Spike recalled how he had tried to dust himself, only to find that the inbuilt survival instinct that came with being a vampire was all too strong.
~ Sorta just glued it back on and hoped you wouldn´t notice the table´s wobbly now. Don´t know why I even tried... stupid wanker that I am. Never heard of a vampire offin´ itself, especially not a Master Vampire. Only ones who bloody do are the minions and that’s only on a Sire´s orders anyway. Deserve it most of the time as well, stupid gits. Anyhow, *that’s* why your table leans to one side now. ~
Xander sighed at the vampire rolling onto his side so that his back was facing Xander, wondering who had been the people that had beaten and raped the demon. As much as he disliked Spike and tried to tell himself that he didn´t care what happened to the bleached blond once he left the basement for good, Xander found that he had a tiny spark of compassion for Spike. Small, weak and threatening to blow out for good but nonetheless, it was there. It was the compassion that made him concerned for the vampire’s safety. Acknowledging that he was often too nice for his own good, and thinking that it was just another symptom of the ongoing White Knight Syndrome, Xander knew that he couldn´t just kick Spike out into the frosty night without being assured that Spike wasn´t going to walk straight back into danger. Besides, he knew without a doubt that Willow and Tara would give him their most disapproving and disappointed frowns when they learnt of what he had done, something that he was powerless against.
Shaking his head as he tried to ignore the sobbing broken up by soft hiccups coming from Spike, Xander turned off the bedside lamp, plunging the dank basement into total darkness. Surprised by a yawn, he snuggled down into the barely warm covers of the thin blankets, on the verge of slipping into sleep. Eyes closed and concentrating on evening out his breathing, Xander felt Spike move around the bed before lying still once more. As images rushed towards him signalling what was the beginning of a technicoloured dream, Xander barely registered the feel of a small, cool hand clutching at his larger one, holding onto it tightly. Not bothering to shake the other hand off, Xander allowed the dream to envelop him.
