Angel awoke aching and bleary-eyed, he was used to keeping human hours for the benefit of Cordelia and Doyle but his actions of the night before eliminated any chance of rest.
He glanced over at the hastily covered window. How was it, in a house with a resident vampire, that most of the windows needed emergency covers?
He listened for the activity in the house and was relieved to find the room next door silent. He didn't think he could survive another encounter.
Laying there, listening to the chatter and eating noises from downstairs, Angel thought about where he had been and where he was. It was clear that everyone in the house had played at least a small part in freeing him and for that he would be eternally grateful. But it was Spike he remembered most clearly from the night before. It must have been him, rousing the older vampire by plying him with family blood, hauling him through the hazards into the outside world.
Angel did not deserve such actions from anyone, let alone one he had hurt so much.
But the thought, even as it depressed him further, gave him some hope. If Spike cared enough to come to his rescue, then maybe forgiveness could be possible.
* * *
Spike was relaxed. The conversation flowed around him and he found himself taking part without difficulty. Which was a far cry from his stony silence of the night before.
Buffy was rested against his side eating waffles with the occasional saucy grin directed his way. It was difficult to worry about anything when one had a warm and wiggly Slayer all but in one's lap.
They were making plans for a Pythonathon for that evening. This was a tradition for Spike and Tara. It involved excessive viewing of Monty Python's Flying Circus (including all three movies) and even more excessive junk food consumption.
Buffy had never even heard of the evenings entertainment, but was very willing to give it a go, seeing as Spike was so in love with it.
And something with a lot of junk food involved could hardly be that bad.
Xander, who had only really seen Life of Brian, The Holy Grail and a few sketches, had wrapped a sheet around himself and was attempting to impersonated Brian's mother.
“BRIII-AN! I want to go to the stoning!”
It was at this point Angel walked in.
He stared at Xander for a few minutes, blinked, and shuffled a little further into the room.
Tara with her Southern sense of hospitality in full swing with all the guests present, got up to make him a mug of tea. She set a mug of Mint Magic down and Angel didn't even consider refusing.
Xander meanwhile, ignored Angel completely and moved on to the Knights Who Say 'NI'.
Spike kept a close eye on his grandsire, but relaxed again when Buffy wrapping one deceptively small, strong arm around the small of his back and laid her head on his shoulder.
I'm not freshly turned anymore, Spike reminded himself; I'm a master vampire sitting in my own home. My girl is making it clear I'm her priority and my best friend with zap him into next week if he even looks at me wrong. This isn't one hundred years ago or even two years ago. It's over and it won't happen again.
Spike sat up a bit straighter and cocked one eyebrow, “Oi! Peaches! Want to see a trick?”
Angel glanced up sharply to see Spike get up and swing the east-facing kitchen door opening. He immediately leapt to his feet to stop the apparently insane younger vampire, when he noticed no one else seemed concerned at all.
Then he noticed Spike wasn't burning. He wasn't even smoking a little bit.
Spike leapt down the kitchen steps into the garden and started turning cartwheels, “Hey, bet you can't do this!”
Buffy turned to observe Angel's stunned reaction when the voice of her lover called to her, “Hey, Buffy watch this! Are you watching? Watch me!”
She turned back with a sardonic smile to see his balancing precariously on the garden fence, “No, wait I'm not ready yet! Don't watch!”
Buffy giggled and was about to explain about the spell when Tara interrupted her, “Well, since Spike brought it up-“
Another, “Watch me!” was heard and everyone turned to face the garden.
Tara laughed, “Since Spike brought it up, I guess it really is time to come clean.”
Tara called Spike in and they all sat around the table to hear the tale of the Gem of Amarra.
* * *
Buffy kept poking his abdomen and it was very disconcerting.
“So this is where it is right? Can you feel it when I do this?” She gave him a firmer poke.
Spike oooffed, “No, it's higher, under my ribs.”
They lay sprawled on the bed after a day of loafing about, Spike and Angel had actually managed a few civil conversations, and Buffy had avoided working on two papers.
Xander and Anya were still parked on the hide-a-bed; Xander still convinced he might be needed for a staking opportunity if Angel made a wrong move. He was quite willing to take all the guilt of Angel's demise onto himself so Buffy and Spike could be spared.
“How selfless of him.” had been Buffy's response.
“Can you feel it when I do this?” Buffy tickled him shamelessly along the sides of his torso where he was most sensitive.
Spike twisted in a futile effort to avoid losing his dignity but was forced to submit to a total loss of control. He giggled wildly.
And would deny it later that any sound as unmanly as a giggle had ever escaped from his mouth.
“No! No! Stop-“ He collapsed in relief when Buffy let up on her assault.
“Can you feel it when I do this?” Buffy snaked hand beneath the covered and grasped something no even remotely Gem-like.
“Yes, I think you've found it. But you had better keep prodding in the interests of science and all that.”
So she did.
* * *
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