Rating: NC-17, possibly including non-consensual sex, depending on your point of view. This is a very dark story.
Pairing: Fred/Angelus
Disclaimer: I acknowledge Joss Whedon as god of gods. All the characters in this story are his creation, along with Fox, the rest of the Mutant Enemy Crew, and whomever else wants to lay claim to them. I'm merely killing time by putting them in totally unrealistic situations :-)
Summary: Sequel to Sweet Irish Brogue, which was based on Angelus' line to Fred in Calvary: You know, I had a bit of an Irish brogue back in the day. If you like, I can use it on you when I rape you to death.
Spoilers: Takes place during season 4 of Angel. Spoilers for Supersymmetry and Calvary
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Angel looked over at the unconscious brunette hanging limply against the chains of the cage. Thoughts of sorrow, self-disgust and horror floated through his mind, chasing each other for dominance. Once again, Angelus had done the unthinkable and now Angel was left to pick up the pieces. But this time, he wasn’t sure if he could ever make up for his alter ego’s horrific deeds.
Fred was the gentlest, kindest person he knew, and Angelus had tied her up and used her like a cheap whore. The only saving grace was that he hadn’t killed her. If that had happened, Angel knew he would have walked into the sunlight rather than go on. Maybe that was cowardly of him, but there was just so much that the soul could survive, and that was beyond the limit.
He knew he had to do something before the others returned; they couldn’t see her like this. So the dark vampire began to untie his unconscious friend. She showed no signs of waking, so when her body was free, he gently lifted her into his arms and carried her out of the dungeon.
As he reached the lobby, he glanced around almost furtively, looking for clues as to where the others might have gone, and when they might return. Nothing caught his eye, but that was hardly surprising. As far as they were aware, Angelus, now Angel, was still locked away in his cage. Leaving a note for him upstairs would have been pointless.
So, there was no sign of when the others would return. Best to get Fred up to bed and comfortable, and then figure out how the hell to answer the inevitable questions and accusations. ‘Yes, hide the evidence,’ his demon accused, calling him a coward, a bastard, and many other names that Angel knew were perfectly true.
Taking the steps slowly in an effort not to wake the girl, he felt a slight sense of relief when he finally laid her down upon her bed. Her room was filled with things uniquely Fred. The poster of a frazzled Albert Einstein smiled at him from next to the door. A desk covered with papers, the papers covered with scribbled notes, sat in front of a window that overlooked the courtyard. Stuffed animals of all shapes, colors and species dotted the room, adding a bit of color to the otherwise stark scheme of brown and white.
Angel looked at the brunette again, deciding that he’d better try to clean her up before putting her to bed. He grabbed a damp washcloth out of her bathroom, and quickly but gently cleaned the residue of his spent passion from her legs and feet. As his finger ghosted over the bite marks on her inner thigh, he heard a slight sigh moan come from between her full lips, but other than that, she still showed no signs of awareness.
Finally, when he had done all he could for her, he covered her with the white comforter and sat in the chair next to her bed, waiting for her to wake.
As Angel sat in silence, he did his best to ignore the demon raging inside him. ‘Take her, again, you fool, she wants you,’ he snarled, replaying the images of their coupling again and again. The way her body felt against him; the way her internal muscles squeezed him as he pounded into her; the taste of her blood, sweet and smooth, as it flooded his mouth. All these images flashed through his mind like a kaleidoscope of lust. He could still faintly smell her arousal, along with his scent, and his pants suddenly seemed tighter as he felt himself harden again. Finally, the tortured vampire could stand it no longer, and he stood, his plan to flee the room until he could get his demon under control.
As he reached for the door, he heard Fred stir. She was beginning to wake up now, and regardless of his own personal demons, both literal and figurative, he needed to be there when she came to. He needed to explain, to apologize, to—make amends, however he could. So instead of leaving, he retreated back to his chair and waited for her eyes to open.
He could sense the exact moment when she woke. Her breathing got a little more rapid, her pulse a little faster. Slowly her eyes fluttered open. Confusion showed in their depths as she surveyed her surroundings. Angel gave her time to take in her room, and then when her eyes found him, as they inevitably did, he sat back and did his best to appear non-threatening.
“I’m alive?” she asked hesitantly, her eyes wide with surprise. “Why didn’t you kill me, Angelus?”
His eyes caught hers, hoping that she would be able to see the regret and sadness within them and know that he was no longer Angelus. And strangely enough, she did.
“Angel?”
“Yes, Fred, it’s me.” He covered his weary face with his hands, trying to hide from her undoubtedly accusing eyes. God, this was just so hard. All he wanted was to make the last 24 hours go away. To wipe the images of what he’d done from his mind and hers.
“What happened? How did…”
“I think the others must have found a way to re-curse me. I don’t know what happened. One minute he was in charge, and the next I was free,” he lifted his head from his hands, looking into her eyes again, his chest wanting to burst from the burden of his sorrow. “But it was too late—Fred, I’m so sorry. What he did to you, when I couldn’t stop him. I would do anything I could to undo it.” He buried his face back into his hands, trying to hide again.
Fred was silent for a moment, trying to find the right words to lighten Angel’s burden and explain her actions. She grabbed one of his hands, holding onto it tightly. “Angel, this wasn’t your fault. For that matter, it wasn’t Angelus’ fault either. ”
Out of all the words in the English language, those were the ones he least expected to hear. He looked over at her, and instead of seeing pain and anguish in her eyes, he saw determination. There was no trace of hatred or bitterness, just a desperate need to make him understand.
She looked him in the eye. He needed to understand that she meant every word she said. “What happened downstairs, that wasn’t your fault and it wasn’t Angelus’ fault. It was my fault.” She released his hand, putting her fingers to his lips as he made an attempt to forestall or deny her words. “Let me finish! I deliberately let myself get close to him. I knew the risks. But I wanted to play with fire; I wanted to see what it felt like to be burned.”
The shock and denial in his eyes spurred her on. “I wanted to feel free, out of control, wild. I wanted someone—I wanted Angelus—to show me what it was like to feel that darkness and not have to turn back, because it was ‘wrong’ or ‘not me.’ I hoped that he would help me to become someone who wasn’t all about purity or innocence.”
Fred watched the dark vampire for several seconds, his hands steepled in front of him, his eyes closed, a slight frown on his lips. She knew he had heard her, knew he was trying to process all she had told him.
Finally he gave her a look filled with regret, and told her softly, “It doesn’t work that way, Fred. You can’t just ‘sample’ the darkness. You either give into it wholeheartedly, or you fight against it. Once you allow it to taint you, once you’ve lost that innocence, there’s no way to get it back. Is that really what you wanted?”
“I—I don’t know now. I thought I did. He…he was very—”
“Seductive? Alluring?” he spoke the words softly, bitterly. “He always could turn on the charm. Confuse you into thinking that night was day, and day was night. Turn you in circles so that you had no idea who you were anymore. That’s how he’s always operated. And your innocence must have called to him like a beacon. He never could resist a beautiful, innocent woman.”
She sighed, her feelings jumbled and confused. But one word stuck out in her mind. Beautiful. She asked hesitantly, “He though I was beautiful?”
“You *are* beautiful, Fred,” he told her, his tapered fingers reaching out to capture a lock of her long hair and wind it around his finger. His eyes were trapped in hers, unable to look away, unwilling to break the contact.
What the hell am I doing, he asked himself. He dropped her hair as if it were burning his fingers and ducked his head back down to look at the floor again. His large hands went to rub the back of his neck, further evidence of his confusion.
I’ve had my soul back for almost an entire hour, and now I’m trying to lose it again? Angel knew that the demon was attempting to work its way free again, playing upon his feelings for the brunette as a way to unleash itself. More images of her, bound and helpless, flashed through his mind. He didn’t know how much more of this he could take.
“I’m sorry Fred, I can’t do this right now,” he told her, fear and sexual frustration making his voice rough and harsh. “The demon, it’s too strong. If I don’t leave now, right now, I’ll do something that we’ll both regret.”
“What, Angel?” she asked softly, putting her hand on his wrist in an attempt to stop him. “What do you want to do?”
“God help me, I want to carry you back downstairs and take up where I left off,” he told her desperately. He jerked his hand away from hers and stood angrily. As he left, he gave her a warning look, telling her without words not to follow him, and then bolted for the door.
~~~*~~~
Angel sat brooding in his office, waiting for the return of his friends and colleagues. His mind was whirling, images of Fred and their time together continued to torture his soul. Time, he just needed time, he assured himself. Tomorrow he would be stronger, and the demon would be weaker. He could decide what to do about Fred then.
He heard the others approaching, their quiet whispers reaching his ears easily, well before they entered the lobby. Time to go and face the music, he thought, as he headed out into the lobby.
"Angel--it is Angel, isn't it?" asked Willow, peering at him uneasily from across the room. Wes and Gunn stood on either side of her, ready to protect the small redhead if he made any sudden moves. Lorne stood next to Gunn, seemingly trying to look into Angel's eyes and read his soul. The vampire's appearance in the lobby had obviously thrown them for a loop. They had not expected to see him out of the cage, he remembered, so he quickly put their minds at ease.
"Yes, it's me," he said, the sentence ending on a slight sigh. "Fred was with me when you did the spell, and she let me out. She's upstairs now sleeping. She was rather…tired."
"Sing for me, Angelcakes," Lorne insisted. It looked like Angel, brooded like Angel, sighed like Angel, but was it really Angel? There was only one way that Lorne could know for sure.
The vampire gave him a look, but he knew that there was no way to get out of this. His friends had to know for sure. The expression on his face was one of pure embarrassment as he began to sing 'Oh Danny Boy'--very badly.
After about ten seconds, Lorne had heard all he needed. Thankfully, he walked over to Angel and asked him to stop, for all their sakes. Angel gave a shy smile and a sigh of relief, a sigh that was echoed by the others as well.
"Man, not that we're not glad you're you, and all, but have ya ever thought of taking some voice lessons?" Gunn asked him, smiling, as he gave the vampire a quick hug and a slap on the back. "Because if we could bottle that sound you just made and sell it, no demon with a sense of hearing would bother the owner ever again."
"Yeah, I'm glad to be back too, Gunn," Angel said smiling, ignoring the words, but not the meaning behind them.
Wes still stood hesitantly beside the young witch, his face reserved as always. "Did everything go well with the restoration? We thought it best not to let Angelus know about it beforehand--the element of surprise doubtlessly worked in our favor."
"Yes, Wes, everything went fine. I--I'm sorry for what he did, the things he said. I'm sure it wasn't easy for any of you. But it wasn't me; you guys know that, right? He had my memories and all, and he did his best to use them against you, but none of that was me." Angel ran a weary hand through his hair, trying to clear his mind. Did he tell them about Fred, or let her decide when and where to spill that particular secret?
"It really worked," Willow said in wonder, a small smile playing on her pixie face. She ran over to Angel and before he knew what had hit him, he had an armful of redheaded witch in his hands and a sad smile on his face. She must have come up from Sunnydale to do the restoration spell, he assumed.
"Thank you, Willow. For everything," he murmured into her soft red hair. "You don't know how grateful I am. You'll never know."
"There's more, though," she told him, stepping back and looking up at him apprehensively. "No, you need to hear this," she told him as he made a move to silence her. "The soul restoration spell I did before, well, that spell wouldn't work again. Things were different this time. So, um, I had to do something else. A different spell."
Before he could say anything, she took a couple steps back from him. Clearly, she was uneasy. Why though, Angel couldn't guess. "What's the catch, Willow?"
"What catch? Um, okay, so you've figured that out, huh. Well, because I was being all cagey and stuff, right? Oh, Angel, I hope you're not mad. I really am. But this was the only way I could find to give you your soul back. So I had to do it."
Angel stalked towards the redhead, feeling extremely uneasy. As he moved towards her, she moved even further back, until finally her back was resting against the wall of the hotel. "Just what did you do, Willow? Why would I be angry?" His voice was low and confused, the soul doing the double duty of fighting the demon, who insisted she must die for her actions, and trying to sooth his growing unease at her behavior.
"I--kind of had to curse you. It's this weird curse I ran into in a book I got from Giles. An old book, and it was mostly about werewolves. Apparently, you can curse someone into being a werewolf, if you're an extremely powerful witch. And so, I had some help, and I tried it, and well, I think it worked." The words tumbled from her mouth in a rush, excited, doubtful, and giddy.
"I don't understand. You made me a werewolf? That's…odd. And it brought the soul back? That doesn't make any sense, Willow. Are you sure that it worked? I mean, I'm here, and I'm not Angelus, but there must be more to it than that."
"No, it's not *quite* like that. I made some alterations to the spell. Just a couple of little ones, really. And so you've got your soul now. All the time. Except that…" This was obviously the part that bothered her. The little redhead looked at the floor, around the hotel, anywhere but at the dark vampire who stood in front of her.
"Except that?" he prompted uneasily, taking in her inability to look him in the face and fearing the worst.
"Except that onceamonthyou'llbeAngelusjustlikeahumanwouldbeawolf." The words came out in one quick tangled sentence. "But you can be happy, and you won't lose your soul, so overall it's good, right? Please say yes," she begged, her big green eyes swimming with unease.
"Okay, a quick recap here for anyone who is--well, me?" he asked her, frowning slightly. "The happiness clause is gone, but I have my soul. And the drawback is that for three nights a month I'll have to be chained up downstairs because Angelus will make an unwanted appearance. Is that the whole thing? No other stipulations or problems?"
Willow nodded, then returned her gaze to the floor, her red hair hiding her nervous face from his searching eyes.
Taking them all by surprise, Angel let out a whoop of pure joy and grabbed the redhead into his arms. He spun her around in a circle, his excitement and joy becoming plain to see, and infecting Willow as well. He had his soul, and he could be happy and in love and it would still be okay. It was everything that he had wanted for so very long. So what if there *was* a small price to be paid. He could deal with that.
He stopped spinning Willow and gently put her back onto her feet. She had a slightly greenish tinge to her face. "Please make the room stop spinning," she begged.
Angel chuckled as he led her over to the couch and sat with her, trying to think of some way to thank her for all that she'd done for him. He'd have given her a million dollars if he could, but it still wouldn't be enough. Plus, he thought somewhat sadly, he didn't have a million dollars, so it really was a moot point.
Willow closed her sparkling green eyes and took a deep breath, willing the room to stop its dizzying journey. When she opened her eyes again, it was to see Angel looking down at her with a look of such tenderness and gratitude that she knew that she had done the right thing. "So I did good?" she asked quietly.
"You did very good," he told her, cupping her delicate face with his hands and giving her a gentle kiss on the forehead. "I will never be able to thank you enough Willow. Whatever you need, ever, you will have it. Thank you."
~~~*~~~
After Willow left, things got pretty much back to normal. Save the world, kill a demon or two, and dust the bad guys as needed. As far as Angel was aware, Fred had never said a word to anyone about what had transpired between them. For that he was grateful. Maybe it was cowardly of him, but he just didn’t want to have to face up to the rest of his friends and have them know what he had done. What they had done.
What was more difficult, however, was figuring out how to deal with his feelings for the brunette. The demon was clamoring again, and as the night before the full moon grew closer and closer, Angel was unsure of how he was going to keep himself under control. He avoided Fred as much as possible, but he knew that sooner or later the situation would come to a head.
It didn’t help matters that Fred was no longer seeing Gunn. They seemed on friendly terms, but had never gone back to try to rebuild their relationship. He blamed Angelus, and the things he had said and done, for that. Surprisingly, however, she hadn’t taken Wes up on his obvious interest in her either. She seemed content to spend most of her time alone, although occasionally he would catch glimpses of her hanging out with Cordelia or chatting with Lorne over some take-out.
To take his mind off of Fred, Angel spent most of his time preparing and making plans for the quickly approaching full moon. The bars on the cage were tested and reinforced, the doors leading up into the lobby and down into the tunnels were both put on time-release mechanisms. Even if, god forbid, Angelus managed to free himself from his cage, there was literally nowhere for him to go. He could batter his head against the door for hours on end, but nobody on either side would be able to let him out. And come morning, Angel would be back and in control, and Angelus would be no more.
It was decided that they would take turns watching Angel during his transformation. Perhaps, down the road a couple of months, they would feel a little more secure about the locks and restraints, but just now they didn’t want to take any chances. Wes was to be on watch the first night, Gunn the next night, and then Lorne the last night. If, after the first couple of months, Angelus behaved himself, they would consider whether any alterations to the arrangement could be made.
~~~*~~~
The first two nights went smoothly enough. Wes and Gun both reported that the transformation took place shortly after sunset, as expected, and that although Angelus had been unpleasant and insulting, he had been unable to cause any real harm. Both men had considered bringing earplugs with them the next time that they had demon-sitting duty, but neither had mentioned it just yet.
On the third night, just minutes before he was supposed to head downstairs to take his turn, Lorne received a call from his manager. A fight had broken out between two of his employees at the club and they needed him to come down immediately and take care of the situation. The green demon, who had been chatting with Fred at the time the call came in, tried to explain that he had urgent business and couldn’t get in until the next morning, but his manager was insistent.
Finally, after she listened to Lorne argue unsuccessfully for several minutes, Fred waved her slender hand, attracting his attention. Placing his hand over the mouthpiece, he gave her a questioning look.
“I’ll watch Angelus tonight,” she told him in a whisper. “You need to be at your club.”
“Nonsense, this is more important than the club, sugar-pie,” Lorne reminded her. “You remember our buddy Angelus? Evil demon, not a nice person. Snappy dresser, but that’s beside the point.”
“Lorne, I’ve looked after him before, remember? I’ll make sure nothing happens. Besides, he’ll be all locked up safe and sound. He can’t get anywhere near me.” As he looked at her again, she gave him a small grin and forestalled his protests with her slender hand and the mouthed words, “I’ll be fine. Trust me.”
“You’re sure?” he asked uncertainly. At her nod, he returned to the phone and snapped quickly, “I’ll be right there,” before flipping the phone closed.
“You’d better get down there quick then—Angel’s already downstairs and locked up. Run upstairs and grab whatever you need, and I’ll hold the fort down until you’re all set.”
She gave him a frazzled thanks and then bolted up the stairs. Running into her room, she quickly grabbed a couple of books at random, along with a few CDs and a small pocketknife. Just in case, she thought to herself, remembering the last time that she had “watched” Angelus. Not that the small knife would have done her much good then. Not considering the way she had acted.
She pushed her mind away from such thoughts and quickly flew back downstairs. Blowing a stray hair out of the way, she faced Lorne with a smile and a quickly muttered, “I’m ready,” before darting through the open door. She heard the heavy steel door clang shut behind her, and knew that she was stuck in this room until 9am the following morning. That was the time they had agreed upon, just to be on the safe side.
Well, might as well go and face the beast, Fred thought. Just remember to stay calm and don’t let him trick you into doing anything stupid, she told herself. Finished with her mental pep talk, she began to make her way down the stairs, her footsteps slow and quiet.
As she reached the bottom of the stairs, Fred realized that Angel’s transformation had already begun. She could see the fight he was undergoing in an attempt to maintain control. He slipped easily in and out of ‘game face,’ the change back and forth looking almost as smooth as the wave of a magic wand.
He must have smelled her scent, because suddenly he realized that he was not alone. His eyes locked on hers and suddenly Angel was gone. The being that remained stared at her as a predator stares at his prey. What she saw when she looked deep in those hard brown eyes was rage, hatred and lust.
Then, suddenly, those emotions were gone, and his face was as blank and impassive as the best poker face. When he opened his mouth to speak, his voice was soft and sensual. “What a pleasant surprise, Fred,” he purred like a contented kitten. “I was expecting someone greener and hornier than you, but this is certainly an improvement.”
Fred looked at him uneasily, noticing but not commenting upon his choice of words.
“Cat got your tongue, kitten?” he asked, waving her over to the sofa that had been brought down to keep the various ‘demonsitters’ comfortable.
She looked at the sofa, then back at Angelus. “Would you like to hear some music?” she asked uneasily, his response to her making her feel uncertain and awkward. “I brought some Enya, and some Massive Attack, and Dido. I thought more mellow music, because, well, we didn’t want to get you all worked up or anything.” The brunette put a sudden stop to her babbling, waiting for the demon to reply. Instead of replying, he eyed her curiously, waiting to see what she would do next.
“Fine,” Fred said quietly, fishing out one of the CDs at random and sticking it in the player. As she waited for the music to play, she sat down on the very edge of the sofa, as if ready to bolt at the first sign of trouble.
“Nice choice,” Angelus commented distractedly, listening to the opening bars of Enigma’s Principles of Lust. “Seductive, soft, sweet. Just like you, Fred.”
Fred gave Angelus a look. The one that said 'don't try to bullshit me'. When that look seemed to stop him not a bit, she turned and laid on her side on the couch, picking up a book to read in an effort to ignore the dark vampire. Her very body language screamed, "do not disturb."
"Fred? Oh Fre-e-e-d," he called out softly. There was a lilt to his voice, but also a thread of anger running through it. He was not going to be ignored. His tone contained a promise that the harder she tried to disregard him, the more he'd push for her attention.
"If you want to look like you're ignoring me, little girl, then it might be a good idea to turn the book you're reading so that it's not upside-down."
Fred hid her face behind the book and grimaced, then slowly lifted her eyes above the pages and stared back at him. "Fine, Angelus. What do you want? Do you want to talk?"
The dark vampire walked up to the front of the cage and pressed his body against the bars. He was as close to her as he could get, while he was still inside the cage. Stretching lazily, he grabbed the bars with his strong, well-toned arms, knowing that she was watching the muscles move as he flexed. A slightly sarcastic smile flitted across his face as he looked at her. "Talk. Yeah, talk is nice. But I was thinking of something a little more…intimate that we could do with our time together. You know…you, me, here alone. Remind you of anything?"
His slight smile blossomed into a full-fledged grin as he watched her face turn a bright red. She was so sexy when she did that, he thought, as he watched the color drain away again. Such the blushing virgin. Except that she was no innocent. They had already established that, and he had enjoyed every minute of it.
The brunette stared back at him, and then reached a shaky hand to pull her hair back away from her face. She tucked the offending locks behind her ear as annoyance poured into her soft brown eyes. Finally, she gave a sigh, put her book down on the floor, and sat to face the vampire. He was bathed in shadows, the faint flickering lights in the room giving his face a slightly demonic caste. How appropriate, she thought. The smile on his lips faded slightly as she faced him, but the lust that still lingered his eyes made his intentions quite clear.
"Is that all there is to you, Angelus? Just lust, sexual innuendo and leather pants? Is there nothing more that you have to offer? No intellect, no sense of humor, no interests?"
He looked at her with hooded eyes, his lips curving back into that smug smile that she was beginning to hate. "It wasn't my sense of humor that you were squirming on the last time we met, Fred. Seems to me you were a little more interested in my fucking you and a lot less interested in my views on current events."
Her cheeks turned a million shades of red, and her eyes widened slightly. She paused a moment, waiting for the heat she felt to dissipate. When she looked back at Angelus, she again felt calm and in control. "Things have changed since then, though, haven't they Angelus?" she taunted, her voice tight and strained. "You're not in charge anymore. Angel is. You're just a momentary aberration, a nuisance he puts up with a couple of nights a month in return for the ability to experience true happiness. And I bet it makes you insane, doesn't it?" She murmured the last words like a curse, knowing that he hated her for saying them.
"Bitch," he growled, his long fingers grasping the bars in front of him in frustration. "If things have changed, then I'm not the only one they've changed for. He's avoiding you. Did you know that? Can't stand the sight of you." His beautiful face was transformed into an ugly snarl; his eyes delighted in the pain his cruel remarks caused her.
Fred flinched as his words cut deep. It was true; things between her and Angel weren't good right now. They had never really cleared the air about what had happened between them. Their one aborted attempt at a conversation had failed miserably. Both been secretly relieved when it had been interrupted by a phone call from Wesley.
Since then, avoidance had become their watchword. They were never alone together, never intimate, and no longer shared the easy friendship that they had enjoyed in the past. As much as it hurt, Fred knew that it was better this way. There was no way that they could ever have pursued a real relationship. Too much had happened to them. Between them.
"What's the matter, sweetheart? Did I hit a nerve?" Angelus asked, as if he could read the regret in her eyes. "You got a little taste of something, didn't you? And you liked it. Now you have to do without. Such a pity," he mocked her, his brown eyes oozing sex and promises. He continued softly, "But it doesn't have to be that way, Fred. Maybe you can't have the white knight, but there's always me."
Her soft hazel eyes filled with horror. The very idea of what he suggested filled her with disgust. It would be like taking advantage of Angel while he wasn't there to defend himself. He wouldn't want her like that. Didn't want her at all.
"What? You think he doesn't want you?" Angelus asked, as if able to read her thoughts in her oh-so-expressive eyes. "Wow, then he's a better actor than I thought. Goes to sleep with an image of you in his mind. His sweet, gentle Fred." He sneered those last words. "He wants you so badly that it's all he can do some nights to keep away from your bed. To keep from tying you to the bedposts and fucking you until you scream."
Fred looked down at the floor, but even that was not enough to keep the images from flooding her mind. Angel above her, around her, inside of her.
"But no," Angelus continued softly, seductively, "He plays the white knight. The good little soul-boy who suffers alone in his self-imposed martyrdom. But little does he know, you want him just as badly as he wants you. Don't you, princess?"
"What are you suggesting?" Fred answered him softly, a little piece of her soul breaking away with the effort.
"It's fairly simple, little one. Maybe you can't have him, the good little vampire with the heart of gold," he said with a sneer, his eyes cold and hard, "But you can have me. We can do all those nasty little things you've wanted to do for so long. Test the limits of your ability to withstand pain and pleasure. Indulge yourself." Then he smiled again, and she saw the lust shining from his eyes. The same lust she feared was mirrored in her own.
Every single piece of her screamed 'no,' but when she opened her mouth, the only sound that came from between those lips was a softly spoken, "Yes."
His predatory grin widened as her eyes flew open wide at the sound of the word she had whispered. "Wait, I mean no. NO. I might as well give you the keys to the door right now if I allow that. Might as well just step up to the bars and bare my neck for you. Give you a straw even." She shook her head, disgusted at how easily she had almost fallen under his erotic spell.
Angelus threw back his head and laughed, as if she'd said the funniest thing in the world. When he stopped, he looked at her and smiled again, the look in his eyes making her want to run away and hide. Hide from him or from herself, though, Fred wasn't sure.
"You think I'd kill you, don't you? Think about it, Fred. Admittedly it would be fun during the moment," he commented, watching her shiver at the thought of him eagerly contemplating her death, "But I'm a long-term planning type of guy. I kill you, and I figure it could go one of two ways. One," he said, holding up a long tapered finger, "Soul-boy sees your broken body and decides to go get himself a nice suntan. Cause of death? Unbearable guilt."
"Now option number two? I think we'd both prefer this one; its much more dramatic," he winked at her conspiratorially, "One of your little boyfriends, and I'm putting my money on Wes this time, decides that Angel is just too dangerous to have around, no matter what the consequences. So he gets himself a nice little weapon and chops my head off. Or stakes me. Either way, I'm just as dead."
"My point is," the vampire continued, his voice turning serious again, "If I kill you, I die. One way or another, I'm gone. Plus, you're gone. And right now I'm just having too much fun thinking of all the wicked things we could do together to contemplate your death. You're worth so much more to me when you're alive."
Angelus sat down on the floor of the cage and rested his head between the bars of his prison. He looked at her with puppy-dog eyes, doing his best to exude truthfulness and trustworthiness. "It's all up to you now, Fred. What's your decision?"
“What’s your decision, Fred?” The words danced through her head, bringing with them visions of what could be. She knew she couldn’t trust Angelus, not completely, but what he offered was exactly what she wanted. What her body ached for every night.
Fred got up slowly, moving hesitantly to the door of the cage. As she reached the lock that would release the demon to the entire dungeon, she hesitated. Her thoughts were in a whirlwind, warnings and reassurances pairing off to fight each other in battle to come to a decision. Just when Angelus thought that she had decided not to let him out, she reached forward, and with shaking hands, unlocked the door to his cage.
Moving so quickly that he brought a gasp from her lips, the dark vampire grabbed Fred, and pulled her into the cage. He pushed her against the bars of the prison, his body pressing urgently into hers.
“So glad you decided to join me,” he whispered, the words sending chills up and down her body. “We’ll have such fun.”
His lips crushed hers, demanding her obedience. She opened her mouth and his tongue invaded, thrusting inside and exploring her soft cavern. He wasn’t gentle; there was no tenderness to his gestures. He was branding her, making sure she understood that she belonged to him and no other.
Hands roamed her body eagerly, covering her back, tangling in her hair, using her long tresses as a leash to pull her head back and expose her smooth white throat. She started to struggle. He had never promised not to kill her, had only commented that he would be stupid to do so. Suddenly she realized the distinction and wondered if she had made a terrible mistake.
She was struggling in earnest now, the perfume of her arousal and her fear scenting the air. Angelus held her still, pressing her body hard against the cage, as his eyes gazed into hers, and showed her that he was still in control. He snaked out his long tongue and ran it slowly up the side of her neck, teeth scraping gently, but not breaking the skin. He felt her body relax again and continued his exploration.
Her hands slid up into his hair, toying with the spiky points and gently massaging his scalp, then slid downwards, tracing the muscles of his shoulders and the broad expanse of his back. She sighed as his lips found hers again and continued their exploration, gentler than before, but just as thorough.
Needing more, Angelus stepped back from his partner, his eyes moving over her body possessively. His nimble fingers quickly undid the buttons of her shirt, pushing the garment off of her shoulders and watching it float slowly to the floor. His hands next relieved Fred of her bra, sending it to join the shirt in the rapidly growing pile on the floor.
The brunette reached tentatively for the top button of Angelus’ shirt. When he did not object, her racing hands quickly undid the buttons, pushing the shirt off of him and letting it fall to the ground. Her gentle hands explored his chest, grazing softly against the muscles of his abdomen, then moving up to whisper across his nipples. She brought her lips in for a moment, using her tongue to gently lave the taut points, her teeth scraping slightly, bringing a satisfied sigh from the vampire’s lips.
Nibbling her lower lip gently, Fred’s eyes traveled down his lean body before stopping at the zipper of his pants. Her hands reached out and deftly worked the button and zipper, pulling his pants down and freeing his erection. Her eyes widened slightly and her breathing quickened as she looked at his thick cock.
Chuckling slightly at her appreciative appraisal, Angelus stepped out of his pants, kicking them away to join the rest of his clothes. He kneeled down, pulling the brunette’s pants and underwear down with him. She stepped out of the clothes and they quickly joined the rest of the discarded clothing.
Still kneeling before her legs, Angelus nudged them apart slightly, running his hand up her thighs and between her legs. Fred squirmed a little, widening her stance to give him better access.
His fingers danced along her lips, teasing and exploring, making her groan in frustration. Finally, he gave her what she craved. Finding her clit, he rubbed it in a light circular motion, causing the girl to moan softly and her legs to buckle slightly. He felt her hands descent onto his shoulders, seeking to regain her balance.
“Angelus,” she moaned quietly, the sound bringing a satisfied smile to his lips. She knew who was bringing her such pleasure. He was glad.
The vampire stopped then, wringing a sound of regret from the brunette, and got to his feet, her hands still on his shoulders. He put his hands on her hips and used them to turn her so that she was facing away from him. His eyes roamed hungrily over her shoulders, her smooth, unmarked back, and her soft, round ass.
Angelus guided Fred’s hands to the bars, folding her slim fingers around them and wrapping his own larger hands around hers. His erection poked threateningly into the cleft of her ass. The young woman waited, letting the vampire make the next move in their play.
He released one of her hands, reaching down to run his fingers teasingly between the lips of her sex, then continuing up to her ass. Her brow crinkled in confusion, unsure of what he was trying to accomplish. Then she felt the feel of his finger, wet with her juices, slowly penetrating her virgin hole.
Standing still as a statue, she tensed as his finger slipped inside, stretching and teasing her opening. When his finger left her, Fred sighed in relief. Her relief was short-lived, though. Angelus again teased her pussy, this time easing his straining cock inside of her, thrusting once or twice to cover his member with her juices. Then, coated with her secretions, he moved his cock back to her rear and with an even pressure, began to push inward.
“Stop,” Fred begged, pain shooting through her at his intrusion. She started to struggle slightly, trying to move away from him. Angelus stilled, bringing his hands around to cover hers again, forcing them back against the bars. She gripped them tightly, her fists clenching and releasing over and over.
“Shhh, relax little one,” he whispered into her ear, the nearness of him unnerving her. He released one of her hands and gently stroked her hair, then her arm, finally moving down to caress her breasts. He spoke softly, soothingly, as if trying to quiet a small child, or break a young horse. “If you don’t relax,” he continued, “then this *will* hurt. If you calm down and loosen yourself, then this will be pleasurable for both of us. Either way, I *am* going to do this.”
“But I’ve never--” Fred said uneasily. His sensual tone and the gentle stroking he performed were beginning to take their toll. She felt her body start to relax and melt into his again.
“I know, little one, I know. That’s why we’re taking this slow,” he purred seductively. “Ready to try again?” he asked.
She looked back at him uncertainly, the uneasiness still lingering in her soft hazel eyes. “I—I guess.”
“Good girl,” he murmured. Slowly, exercising infinite patience, he eased into her passage. She continued to moan and shudder slightly, unable to relax completely. Once he had entered a couple of inches, he placed the palm of his hand on her abdomen, moving it downward in teasing circles until it reached the juncture between her legs. He teased the curls there, losing his fingers in the wiry brown hair, until he smelled her arousal building again. The scent teased him and his cock swelled slightly in response.
Moving his hand down further, he reached for her clit, rubbing it languidly. Fred’s body started to let go slightly, her orgasm building thanks to the ministrations of his talented fingers. Her breath started to come in small pants and her fingers continued to grab and release the bars in front of her. Finally, sensing that Fred was nearing her climax, Angelus thrust a finger inside her at the same time that his thumb scraped her clit roughly. Fred cried out in release, the sound echoing off of the walls of the basement.
As Fred experienced wave after wave of orgasm her body relaxed, falling limply back against him. Knowing that this would happen, Angelus used the point of her release to push himself into her tight channel again, managing to slip the rest of his cock past the elastic ring of her asshole. Fred moaned in a combination of pleasure and sensual pain, but endeavored to push back against him, helping him sheath himself into her to the hilt.
“See, I knew you could take this,” he whispered huskily, his hands moving to tease her breasts, his fingers lightly manipulating the taut nipples. Slowly he began to move inside her, pulling out a bit and pushing back in, giving her time to adjust to the sensations. Her body was his for the night, he reminded himself, no need to come and go like a horny teenager who had no control.
Sensing that she was ready for more, he began to increase his pace, pulling back until he was almost out of her and then shoving back in until he was fully sheathed within her welcoming body. From the way her hips moved back to meet his thrusts, he knew that she was beginning to enjoy the feelings he invoked.
Moving even more quickly now, he began to ride her body hard, pushing into her as far and as fast as he could. His hands moved down to tease her clit again, beginning to bring her to another orgasm. Finally, just as he could feel his own release approaching, he inserted two fingers into her warmth while he squeezed and plucked her clit. She came hard, her muscles contracting and spasming around his fingers. Fred screamed as she came, a long, wordless sound of release. The contractions in her pussy and the sounds of her scream were enough to send Angelus over the edge as well, and he slammed into her one last time as his orgasm hit him, pumping his cold seed into her clenching ass.
~~~*~~~
Fred awoke slowly, her body feeling like it had been hit by a truck. A truck by the name of Angelus, she remembered suddenly, her hazel eyes flying open. Cold arms surrounded her, holding her tightly against him. She shivered a little, her skin cold and clammy in the dampness of the basement.
She turned slightly and looked back at her partner. Her lover. In the cold light of day, figuratively speaking, she knew that what they'd done had been a mistake. Things were beyond complicated. She had taken a lover who was only around three nights a month. The rest of the time his body was controlled by another being entirely. How much more complicated could it get? Fred shook her head sadly, wondering how her world could have gotten so messed up.
They were curled up together on Angelus' bed inside his cage, his cold arms circling her protectively. Or should that be possessively, she wondered. Fred cast a quick glance at her watch and saw that it was slightly after 8:30 a.m. Within a half hour the door to the world above would open and she would be free to leave this room.
She thanked whatever god might or might not exist that it was still early. If one of the others had come in and found them like this, she didn't know what she would have done. It would be bad enough when she had to face Angel, the brunette thought uneasily.
Turning slightly, she tried to slip out of the vampire's arms without waking him. He moved slightly, growling a little in his sleep, but his eyes didn't open. She slid slowly to the floor, the need to be graceful falling by the wayside in her efforts to extricate herself without waking her partner. When she was finally free, she got up quickly and grabbed her clothes, quietly exiting the cage and closing the door behind her.
As hurriedly as she could, Fred dressed and tried to make herself presentable. She ran her hands through her wild, tangled hair, anxiously attempting to flatten it down. Lipstick was probably everywhere, she knew, but without a mirror she simply did the best she could to be sure that it wasn't smeared all over her face. She put a finger to her tingling lips, realizing that she could still feel the touch of Angelus' lips on hers.
She couldn't—wouldn't—think about that right now. Pacing uneasily in front of the couch, Fred tried desperately to think of anything she might have forgotten. No, everything was in order, her racing mind assured her, and once 9:00 rolled around—
"Fred."
The soft-spoken words brought her whipping around to face Angel. She knew, long before she saw his face, that it was indeed Angel who had spoken. The sad tone of his voice, sure to be mirrored in his eyes, told her all she needed to know.
"Angel."
Their eyes locked, hers looking guilty, his sad. "Why, Fred?" He moved closer to her, still inside the cage but pressing his long body up against the bars.
"I'm sorry, Angel," she whispered, walking to meet him and looking deeper into his dark brown eyes. "It wasn't fair to you. I know that. In a way, it was as bad as rape; I took advantage of you while you weren't able to defend yourself. All I can say is that I'm sorry. It wasn't something I planned. None of it." Tears of regret and helplessness began to build in her eyes, tiny teardrops slipping slowly down her flushed face and melting harmlessly onto her shirt.
Angel crossed the room, stopping to grab his pants and shove his legs carelessly into them. His footsteps echoed in the cavern as he yanked open the cage door. As he walked over to Fred, he held out his arms and pulled her gently into his embrace. The room was silent, save for the sound of her sobs and his soft whispered words of comfort.
Finally, she pulled away just enough to look up at him. His face was serene and relaxed, displaying none of the turmoil that he felt inside. He knew that Fred was confused and needed him to be strong for her. He wouldn't fail her in this.
"Do you hate me, Angel? For being weak, for giving in to him again?"
He looked down at her sad, forlorn face and brushed back a lock of her auburn hair, tucking it gently behind her ear. Then he told her the words he knew she needed to hear. "Fred, I could never hate you. You're my friend." He sighed softly, but continued, knowing he needed to tell her the rest of what he was thinking. "But this thing between you and Angelus. It's not healthy. You *know* that. And you need to put a stop to it, now. I know that the demon can be incredibly seductive, but in the end, he cares for nothing but his own pleasure. He doesn't care about you, only about what you can give him. Sooner or later, he'll tire of you, and then he'll hurt you, one way or another."
There was silence as Fred digested his words. In her heart of hearts she knew he was telling her the truth. This relationship, if she could even call it that, would not end with hearts and flowers and a house in the suburbs with a white picket fence. But was that what she really wanted, when it came down to it? Was it better to live her life safe, behind walls erected so high around her that nobody could get it? Or was life meant to be a fire that consumes and burns brightly, if only for a short time? She honestly didn't know.
Fred buried her face against his chest again, and mumbled the words so softly that Angel thought maybe he had been mistaken. "Maybe that's what I want; what I deserve. Maybe I want to go out in a blaze of glory. Forever and white picket fences don't sound so important when I'm with him." Her soft words and even softer breath warmed his naked chest, but at the same time they chilled his soul. "Does that make me a terrible person?" she wondered aloud.
The vampire rested his chin on her head, slowly stroking her soft hair as he spoke. "It doesn't make you a terrible person, Fred. And you don't deserve what's happened to you. Never think that," he told her fiercely. "But you need to see Angelus as he really is, and not as some tragic romantic hero that will some day be changed because of your feelings for him and his for you. Because that will never happen. He is who he is, a brutal, vicious killer." The demon inside him raged against the effect that the words were having on the young brunette, but Angel was well in control and was determined to say what he needed to say.
Fred lifted her head as if to tell him something, but he stopped her with a hard look. "You've got to realize it, Fred. He is not going to change. You will never change him. Ever. He would kill you in a heartbeat if he knew that by doing so, he would be free."
"Fred," he said, lifting her chin to look into her eyes, "Do you trust me?"
"Of course, Angel."
"Do you believe me?"
She looked down to the ground, fresh tears threatening to spill around the edges of her eyes. "Yes, Angel," she whispered sadly, her voice cheerless and beaten.
He looked at the brunette and almost relented. Almost. But what he was doing, what he was saying, it was all for her own good. That knowledge was what gave him the ability to hold on. "I'm sorry, Fred. But you need to believe this," he told her, murmuring quietly into her hair.
Suddenly, the sound of the door opening above them jolted Fred out of his arms. She flew quickly up the stairs, never looking back at the dark vampire. Angel followed behind her at a more leisurely pace, glad that he wouldn't need to spend any more time in this room for almost a month.
His demon, on the other hand, was envisioning Fred, chained to his bed, her body twisting and writhing in passion. Passion that he created, that he could feast on.
The End