::I was in Prague at an outoor market when I found the stone in one of
the
little stalls they have...you remember those, dont you, Spike? How we used
to
find ones full of pretty baubles...and eat the keeper? I got so many of
my
beautiful necklaces that way....:: Spike was grinning.
Angel cleared his throat. ::The stone, Dru?::
::Oh yes, it was just lovely! All smooth, and shiny and green...Daddys
favorite color, you know. And it wanted me. I could hear it. It wanted
to be
with me. The old man didnt want to part with it...well, perhaps he didnt
want
to part with it for free... Or maybe, he just didnt want to die. Whichever.
He tasted like hummus. I hate hummus..... ::
<<And this is my Princess *not* crazy. Behold!>>
:: When I took it home with me, it got louder and louder. Then the dreams
began. And the visions. It became all consuming. It chased away Bealcho.::
::Beal-who?:: Angel asked. He realized his error too late, as Spike winced.
The Fungus demon Dru had left him for.
::At first I feared it. I fought the magic within it. But then, it taught
me
things. And I
stopped being afraid.::
Angels voice was soft. ::Taught you what kinds of things, Dru?::
::I learned everything about what I am. What we are. It gave me all the
secrets of the
Universe. ::
Angel nodded sympathetically. Yup. Still nutty as a March hare.
Spike broached the important question. ::Thats great, pet. How do you hold
it
all in that pretty little head of yours, hmm? Now, by chance, did it tell
you
how we get out of here?:: Angel could tell the vampire was making an effort
to restrain himself, but his voice had cracked lightly on the last words.
:: I know you two think Im still insane. But Im not. The Essence demon
cleansed me. It showed me all of my sins and now I am whole again.::
Angel cringed. Sin and redemption; Druscillas Essence. The young girl he
had
casually and systematically destroyed in a Catholic church over a century
ago. Come to haunt him even now. Gods finest punishment for him, really.
::Its not about that Angel!:: She cried, jumping up and grabbing the dark
mans face in both her small hands. ::Its about creating what you want.
It
showed me all my hopes and dreams, all my plans and creations. And it showed
me my offenses. It showed me and my soul shook.... ::
::Uh..Dru, love of my black heart.:: Spike commented. :: Were vampires,
sweets. We dont have souls.:: He thrust a thumb in Angels direction. ::
Cept
o course for Nancyboy over there.::
::But thats where youre wrong Spike!! We *do* have souls. Well, you and
I do.
Maybe some others. We have a part of our souls anyway, not complete like
Angel. But its because of Angel that we have any at all...::
Spike made a faint noise of frustration. He did not like the turn this
conversation was
taking. He was willing to pander to his dark goddess on almost any count.
Sin, redemption and soul-having were not among them.
::Listen to me Spike! When he made us, he neglected to perform certain
rituals. Some by choice, some by chance, but the end result was the same.
We
retained a larger part of our humanity than most vampires. Dont you remember
what the Judge said about us? About our feelings for oneanother?::
Spike snorted loudly now. ::That big, stupid assembly required demon? What
the hell did he know?::
Angel answered quietly. ::Apparantly enough. I didnt bury either of you.
You
never rose. And...your families. Neither of you made them your first meal.
Family blood is a pretty well accepted rite of passage.... I didnt realize
it
would effect the strength of your demons...::
He choked back the familiar taste of guilt. Of course Druscilla hadnt killed
her own family. Angelus had already done it for her. And Will never had
one
to kill, which made him all the more easy a target for predators. Such
as
Angel himself.
::It didnt effect the strength of our demons, Angel. It did, though, effect
the
counterbalance. It allowed us to feel love, even if only for another demon.::
Spike looked incredulous. He was desperate not to believe this. But it
resounded inside of him with a strange and certain familiarity. Bonds between
demons, even to the extent of claiming mates, were customary within
understood limits. But his feelings for Druscilla had always gone way beyond
the traditional model of dominance and sexuality. There were no other
soulless demons he knew of who could ally with such a relationship. It
had
always set him apart. He wondered how much it had contributed to Druscillas
lunacy as well.
:: When I realized that I had humanity... *within me*, all this time, I
was....lost. I
wandered for weeks unable to hunt, unable to feed...I was killed shortly
afterward by a Slayer in Europe. I didnt even put up much of a fight, really.
Hardly worth her effort.::
The men were silent as she finished. Then she walked back over to Spike,
and
lay her dark head in his lap.
::Im sorry, Druscilla.:: Angel whispered. A pathetic offering in exchange
for all she had lost. And an admission of further guilt... that after
everything which had ever passed between them, he was still releived she
was
..... no longer able to hurt anyone else....
(dead)
Spikes upper lip quivered in a silent growl. Angel knew he had heard the
last
sentiment, and he could not bring himself to meet the younger vampires
gaze.
::Its all right, boys. I promise you, its better now. Im whole again. Im
clean.::
Spikes growl was audible now. ::Yea? That so? Youre so effin whole n clean
then why the hell are you here with us in this rediculous mirage? And how
the
fuck do we get OUT OF HERE WITHOUT BEING DEAD?!::
Druscilla remained unmoved by the familiar loud display of frustration.
She
merely
shrugged. ::Im here because I sent Angel the stone before I was killed.
I
asked it to help him find peace too. And I could *feel* when it started
working on him, and you.... apparantly our Essences are connected to
oneanother. Something unresolved with us all. I dont know what it is, and
I
dont know how to get out of here. I like it here though, dont you? Dont
you
like being together?::
She leaned forward and kissed the younger man again, running her fingers
through his hair, and arching against his chest.
Angel closed his eyes; his mind was spun with the fantastic tale she had
just
related. He wasnt sure he believed it. Wasnt sure what he believed. There
was
a crude sort of fair play in the fact that it had been Druscilla who caused
his little exit from reality. Truly poetic justice if such ever existed.
According to her tale, however, it had all been quite unintentional. Some
grand cosmic accident. Looking back, his life was awash with such fantastic
conicidences. Maybe all mortals lives were. Maybe it just seemed that those
in his existence were grander somehow, because...they were his. And because
hed had more than three lifetimes in which to gather them.
He was beginning to feel like hed lived through two of those lifetimes
in the
span of the last twenty-four hours. He could not recall the last time he
felt
so completely exhausted. The vampire entertained the idea of sleeping right
here and now by the fire, and curled up around one of the fluffy pillows
with
a small sigh. So what if it wasnt real? It was warm and cozy and his Childer
were here......
::Dru-pet? Where are the drapes?:: Spike queried, noting for the first
time
that a key
ingredient to vampire safety was notably absent from the otherwise flawless
reproduction of their long ago home.
Angel looked up now, startled. Suddenly it occured to him; it wasnt so
far
fetched a
notion that she had brought them here with the intent to kill them too,
come
sunrise. A kind of empyrean family reunion. It made a Druscilla kind of
sense.
(Poetic justice.)
::We dont need curtains here! The sun never rises. Its one glorious,
everlasting night!:: She leaped to her feet, and swirled around as if to
offer it all to them, the house, the memories, the comfort of the night.
Her
skirts whirled about her slim legs in a carousel of colour. She spun faster,
and faster, tossed back her head, and laughed. The childlike sound danced
along Angels skin.
A shudder ran up him before he could squelch it. Rabbits running over your
grave, his
mother used to say. Despite the heat of the fire, he shivered again.
End Part 14b