Roomies

Author: Poison

Rating: so far it’s PG – 14 but time will change that

Pairing: A/S/C

Summery: Challenge fic

Spoilers: mostly up to and including Rm W/a Vu (season 1 episode 5 - Angel) – the events while Cordelia and Angel are living together. Though the time she’s at Angel’s is a lot shorter in the show.

Note: this is a challenged from XtinaA17. Basically all asked was that someone please write a A/S/C fic

Feedback: OMG! Please!!!! I’m begging you. Not once have I received any feedback on previous fics (and yes I know that this is a desperate plea)

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~Part: 1~

Cordelia patted down her wet hair as she walked out of the bathroom wearing only a plain black towel. Thankfully the towel was oversized and covered everything and more. Moving in with Angel had been a tough decision but she had made it. She had nowhere else to go unless she was willing to live with Doyle, which was totally out of the question.

With a sigh the brunet dropped onto the couch, making sure that her towel was tightly secured around her body, before searching through a duffle bag that she was sure contained her blow drier. As she pushed through the bag she let her mind wander. The last time she had experienced a shower where the water stayed warm for more then thirty seconds and the walls around her didn’t groan seemed like a lifetime ago. The first few months that she had been in LA had been horrific. Especially since she had lived in “Apartment Buildings: Brought To You By Hell.”

She let gave a silent shout for joy when she had found the blow drier and immediately plugged it into the nearest outlet. She hummed softly as the machine worked its magic on her hair. In minutes her hair had just the right amount of shine and that slight curl that she loved.

Her makeup would be another story though due to the lack of a proper mirror being present. She wasn’t as worried as one would suspect mostly because she had spent the last few months in an apartment where the only mirror had a permanent bloodstain on one side and a large crack through what had been left of it. Fifteen minutes of shuffling and silent bitching and she figured that if anybody saw they wouldn’t be completely disgusted by eyes wrapped in dark circles and taunt, hollow cheeks.

All that was left for her to do was pick out her clothes for the day. She sighed as she surveyed the three duffels placed at the end of the couch and the two suitcases stacked against the wall. All that was left of her once luscious lifestyle was down to five bags.

A promise she had made to herself was what had stopped her from unpacking when Angel had said that she could stay as long as she needed to. She would never let anyone try to help her take care of herself. The only thing she needed Angel for was a job that she could come to every day and a nicely sized paycheck to go along with it.

At the moment she was bunking with him because he wouldn’t let her go back to her apartment but that didn’t mean she was staying. As soon as she found a good place that wouldn’t cost her a fortune she would be gone. Until then she be stuck living out of her suitcases.

Pushing her dreary thoughts aside she dove into the first bag that she new held a various assortment of suitable work clothing. The first thing she came across was a pair of stretch jeans. They weren’t something she would usually wear to work but they also weren’t something she would have to iron. Pleased with her selection she moved on to find the perfect shirt to go with it.

She was so content on finding her treasure that she didn’t hear the person walking into the room behind her – not that she would have even if she had been listening for him. Angel couldn’t help but smile at the sight she made. Sitting on the couch, her makeup done, hair perfect, jeans on but with a huge black towel for a shirt.

His grin disappeared though, when she moved to pull the towel away without even checking to see if she was alone. He backed up a step and deliberately stepped on the part of the floor that squeaked badly.

Cordelia glanced over her shoulder, screeched and grabbed the towel to cover herself. “Damnit, Angel! Warn a girl before you scare her like that.”

Angel snickered slightly at her remark before continuing on to his previous destination – the kitchen. “Sorry Cordelia, but it’s been a long time since I’ve lived with anyone let alone anyone female. Even if I knew what it was like living with a female, you are one of a kind and I still wouldn’t – don’t know how to act.”

“Is that supposed to be a compliment?” the brunet asked as she carefully pulled her shirt on, being sure not to flash the dark vampire. Her cheeks were burning at the thought of having almost been seen half naked in front of her handsome boss. “Cause if it was, you know… it really is having a hard time showing itself.”

Angel threw a grin over him shoulder before tossing his “dinner” in the microwave. “It was barely dawn an hour ago, why are you up so early?”

“I’ve got a game plan,” Cordelia declared as she sat down with a cup of the coffee that she had made before jumping into the shower. “If I get the office earlier then – well I ever have before I can work on house searching when I have no Work work to do. I figure, that way, I get work done for you plus some personal work done for myself.”

Angel sighed as he dumped the warm blood into a mug and sat down across from the girl. “Cordy, Doyle offered to ask around for you. He’s got some pretty good connections as far as I’m concerned. Why don’t you let him look for you?”

With a shake of her head the girl stood. “What do you take me for, Angel – one of your cases? I’m not hopeless. I’ll do this on my own even if it kills me. I won’t let you and Doyle take care of me no matter how much you want to or I want to let you.” By the time she was finished, Cordelia was shaking with panic, shame, and anger.

She jumped when Angel’s arms came to hold her around the shoulders. After a moment she relaxed in his embrace and let his silence calm her. When she looked up at him she couldn’t help but wince at the turmoil that rolled through his features.

“I’m sorry. I don’t want you to think that I see you as another hopeless, faceless, customer. I need you. Don’t you think anything other then the fact that if you weren’t here all the paperwork this kind of business takes would be in utter chaos.”

Cordelia smiled through tear-filled eyes then suddenly backed away from him and waved her hands in her face. “No, no, no, no! I can’t cry. I spent to much damn time with the stupid handheld mirror to start crying.”

With a smile and a slight shake of his head at Cordelia’s antics, he sat back down and finished his dinner.

~Part: 2~

Angel glared at the screen in front of him. The latest evil was extremely… slimy. There wasn’t any other word that he could use to describe the demon. He tilted his head to one side in an attempt to make anything else out of the picture that Cordelia had presented him with. Though this angle provided him with was a raised eyebrow from the brunet sitting behind him before she went back to her work.

The Mooragh demon was described to be seven feet tall, three eyes, and extremely racist. It had a knack for using black magic to help it obtain its victims though usually it just used its bulk. It could only be destroyed using a pure iron tool, which had to be put through its middle eye. Getting near it was the hard part because the only time it approached a vampire was when it needed a new toy to play with.

The word out on the street was that the demon had a Master vampire in its possession. Angel hadn’t wanted to go after the demon at first mostly because in killing the demon he would also have to fight a vampire that would most likely be as strong as he if not stronger. The only thing that had convinced him to start hunting the demon was Doyle’s vision. That and the fact that Angel was getting more and more vampire callers about the demon roaming into their territory. Even though rumors said that it already had a vampire they still wanted it destroyed - just in case.

Usually vampires took care of trespassers themselves but not many vampires had Internet or the smarts to go to an occult bookstore to find out how to kill these things. Finding someone else to do the nitty-gritty had much better appeal.

Now Angel was stuck with trying to figure out where the demon was holding up. So far “sewers” was his only lead. That gave him two choices. Either he did it the hard way and tried to track down the demon by scenting it, which could take days or speak with other vampires in the LA area and find out where the demon had been spotted over the past couple weeks and narrow down his search.

He glanced over his shoulder at Cordelia who was turning the page in the newspaper. He knew that she wasn’t looking for reports on sightings of strange characters. Her mind was set on getting out of his apartment.

He stood. “Cordy, I’m going to call it a night. Are coming?”

Cordelia looked up from her newspaper and smiled weakly. “Yeah, I guess it’s getting late. You going to start tracking the Mooragh tomorrow?”

Angel nodded an affirmative. “First thing I plan on heading into the sewers. Going on what Mirak and Ans have already told me I think I’ll be able to start out somewhere near our demon – if I’m lucky.”

Standing, the brunet gave him what he guessed was supposed to have been a helpful ‘you’ve-got-me-if-you-need-me’ look. She gathered some papers before following him to the elevator. “I hope we get this thing. The last thing this world needs is another racist group.”

~~~

Down in Angel’s apartment, Cordelia sat on the couch. She was glad that Angel had decided to get one of those fold out ones but found herself hating him for it too. She didn’t need him to do more for her then he already was. Yet she couldn’t tell him that to his face.

“I’m making some cocoa. Do you want some?” the vampire called from the kitchen.

She accepted his offer and went back to her thoughts. Over the past couple weeks things had fallen into a routine. She got up usually when he came in from the night’s adventures, they would talk over coffee then she would go upstairs and start with the day’s work. By the time Angel came up to the office around two she would already be working on apartment searching. Around ten the vampire would say he was turning in and she would follow him down the stairs. He would make cocoa or tea – never coffee - and they would talk about her luck for the day. She would crawl under her covers after a shower and listen to him move around for a while. Soon she would fall asleep but would wake to the sound of his trap door to the sewers opening. She figured that was when he went to get his blood or did the whole meeting with contacts thing.

Today had been like every other day except for when Angel had come in that morning he hadn’t said a word to her and had gone straight into the shower. She had been stewing over why he had done that all day and had got nothing done. The fact that there had been few calls and Doyle not receiving any visions lately made it so that her preoccupation didn’t make her fall behind.

With a sigh she stood and pulled out the bed. She fixed the blankets and set up the pillows and sat back. Glancing at the nightstand that Angel had moved next to the couch she saw that he had placed her mug of cocoa there and left.

Her heart drooped. Her eyes went to the door of Angel’s bedroom and stared at it. Without realizing it there was an intense longing in her eyes that the vampire saw the second he opened the door.

“Hey, sorry. I just needed to change,” he said softly not quite understanding the look in her eyes.

Blushing slightly, Cordelia looked away laughed nervously. “Why are you sorry? I didn’t say anything.”

Angel didn’t reply to her statement he just sat next to her where the back of the couch connected to the arm so he was facing slightly towards her, his back cushioned by pillows. “Oh. I thought…” he trailed off, not sure what to say. A thought hit him and he looked up abruptly. “About this morning. I’m sorry but I got ‘attacked’ in the sewers. There was some pretty rotten smells and I didn’t want to bother you. You in the morning are a very scary thing.”

Cordelia smiled her first real smile in a long while. “I wouldn’t have minded if you had told me what had happened.”

“I’ll quote you on that in case I ever come back smelling awful and you comment about it.” Angel’s tone held a kind of humor that hadn’t been there for ages and his eyes were twinkling with amusement.

Laughing softly, Cordelia leaned back into her pillows and sipped at her cocoa trying not to let her eyes stare at the huge amount of flesh that Angel didn’t appear too concerned about showing. She had a feeling that they were in a stage of their friendship where showing flesh wasn’t a big thing but the fact that Angel was only wearing a pair of sweatpants that seemed to be hanging off his hips kind of threw her. She had no idea where she was supposed to look. His arm kept drawing her gaze because every time he lifted his mug the muscles there rippled and tightened.

“So, Angel. How long do you think it will take you to track down the Mooragh?” Cordelia asked as she ran her brush through her hair. She figured that if she could keep her mind away from his skin she might stop staring at it.

Angel shifted slightly and frowned at the waves of tension that he could sense rolling off the girl. “I’m not exactly sure. First I have to rule out certain areas. That website you found was pretty helpful. They don’t like clean water, which isn’t anywhere near LA but they love the smell of damp soil. That along with sightings should narrow down the search quite a bit. If this thing does have a Master vampire in its custody then it will probably be sticking close to the layer. I don’t care what you think – I won’t let anything starve to death even if it’s a soulless creature of the night.”

Soft breathing drew his mind back to the girl next to him and Angel watched her watch him for a moment before saying, “What’s wrong?”

Startled, Cordelia spilt her hot cocoa down her shirt. Crying out softly she put the cup down and immediately stared pulling her shirt off. Angel had already gone to the kitchen to grab a cold towel. When he appeared at her side she took the cloth and pressed it to her near bare chest and bit her lip to stop herself from crying in front of him.

“Cordy, I am so sorry. I don’t know what to say…” Angel couldn’t stop that wave of guilt that hit him at the sit of her sitting there in a plain white bra and blue shorts with a large, angry red splotch on her chest that – in his mind – he had caused. Suddenly her state of undress hit him and, if he could have, he would gone red himself. The sight of her sitting there, in a slightly sprawled out fashion affected his body more then he cared to admit and he quickly turned away.

“Angel, don’t. It wasn’t your fault. Come back.” The plea in her voice set his demon into a wild frenzy. It slashed at the walls that his soul had erected around it and demanded to be let loose and take the girl. Never had Angel felt the need to release his demon so tempting. To let him out even just enough so that he gained the courage to take the girl.

He gritted his teeth and turned, meeting the girl’s eyes. “I’m sorry, goodnight Cordelia.”

Cordelia gasped at the unmasked lust in the dark vampire’s eyes and felt a bolt of heat snake down her stomach. At his sharp intake of breath she knew that he could sense her arousal. Her mind was racing. Ever since he had been with Buffy she had only seen Angel as at first an enemy and then a friend. Now what was he, the star of her naughty thoughts?

“Angel?”

He growled and grabbed her by the arms. He kissed her savagely and pressed his hardening member against her thigh. He broke away and trailed hard kisses across her jaw and down her neck. His left hand moved to roughly knead her breast while his other hand pulled her body tight against his own causing his erection to grind against her hip.

He moved to kiss her lips again and violently pushed her lips apart with his tongue. At her soft whimper of pain he jumped away up, off the bed and looked around him. His eyes were wide and his face seemed to be in a state halfway between his human and demon forms. The wildness in his eyes slowly melted away to be replaced with self-loathing and an extreme amount of guilt.

With a soft growl he turned and went into his room, slamming the door behind him. Moments later he reappeared, dressed and blank-faced. He silently opened the trap door to the sewer and dropped down into the inky blackness below. Slamming down the door with loud crack.

Cordelia watched all this soundlessly with a hand pressed to her bruised and swollen lips. Her mind just barely realizing what had just happened.

~Part: 3~

The silence crammed into the room in a way that people never could. There was nothing for either of the room’s inhabitants to say to each other. The underlying agitation that filled the room made the silence almost destructive. Dark blue and green bruises displayed in the shapes of fingers that brought forth questions that weren’t asked nor would they have been answered if articulated.

Time dragged on and tension grew. The hum of the computer as it was turned on, the clicking of the keyboard once the typing began, the crinkling of the newspaper as the strained, broken silence overcame curious wonder, and the sound of footfalls on linoleum. It was the normal morning routine.

Finally Doyle couldn’t take it any longer. “Are yah gunna tell me wha’s goin’ on then?” He kept his accented voice low as not to startle the girl. “I mean, wi’h the shapes of yer bruises… sometin’ had to’ve ‘appened.”

Pushing a stray strand of hair behind her ear, Cordelia watched the skinny, dark haired man from where she stood. She was trembling slightly and her face was tightly drawn. Her lack of makeup revealed dark shadows under both eyes caused, not by fists but loss of sleep, and the hollowness of her cheeks due to her deficiency of an appetite since moving out of her apartment. “It’s… it’s a long story.”

Doyle shrugged. “Don’t got much else ta do wha’ wi’h Angel not bein’ ‘round.”

Lost in her memories of the night before the girl didn’t notice the growing worry on Doyle’s face. He truly saw despised to see she in such a state.

The sound of the telephone ringing slowly drew the attention of the brunet and she picked it up. Her face was lined with what only could be described as dread as she stated, “Angel Investigation, we help the hopeless.”

Her pause only caused the tension in the room to thicken even more. “Can you describe the demon for me? … Yes, it sounds familiar, could you tell me more about it? …You’re dealing with a Vakh. …Nothing dangerous, we dealt with one not too long ago. …They usually stick to dark and dreary places. Do you have a cellar or basement? … Easily taken care of. If you leave offerings of Telhken grass - …Which we can provide you with if you come by some time today …And a bowl of sour milk out every night for about a week it should move on… Don’t worry they don’t make nests, they’re travelers. …Yours is most likely resting or pregnant those are the only two reasons they stop moving for more then a couple days… You’re welcome. I’ll see you when you come by. …Okay …Okay, bye.”

Cordelia sighed and hung up the phone. The click sounded more like bang of a shotgun and, even before she could remove her fingers from the receiver, it rang again. “Angel Inves – …Angel!”

Her body slumped slightly and she limply handed Doyle the phone before dropping bonelessly into her chair. Her face was blank but her eyes held a deep sorrow that the half demon didn’t dare speak to her about. “Angel, man, where are yah?”

~~~

Angel ran a hand through his hair and tucked his cell phone back into his jacket pocket still surprised that he had had the presence of mind to snatch it before storming out of the apartment. He wasn’t even sure if he could call it his anymore. He had gone completely out of his way to make sure that Cordelia would be comfortable while she was there and yet she still spent almost every waking moment looking for a way to get as far away from him as she could.

He couldn’t remember when his feelings for her had turned from friendship to what had happened less then twelve hours ago. Somewhere between the cocoa and tea. Mixed in with the daily rituals that they had regulated the use of the shower around. The accidental brushing of skin and playful teasing had, at some point, become serious.

Leaning against the wall he couldn’t help but contemplate the possibility of Cordelia and him hooking up. The fact that they were two complete opposites didn’t give him much trouble, what really bothered him was the fact that she was afraid of him.

That night, the only thing he had been able to sense in that room, after he had finally regained control of his demon, had been the fear. It had been rolling throughout the room and power of it had nearly thrown him off his feet. He knew that her fear would always be present as long as his curse was in place.

The sound of footsteps drew him away from his thoughts and a smile graced his lips at the sight of the dark haired man walking towards him. Across one shoulder he held and long broadsword and the other was a small pack. The look on his face spoke volumes as to how uncomfortable this arrangement really was.

The silence that the man greeted him with give Angel an idea of what was going on in the other man’s mind. Either Cordelia had spoken to him or he had come to his own conclusions. No matter how much Angel wanted to ignore the look on Doyle’s face he couldn’t. Mixed in with the happiness of finding him without a scratch there was also anger and confusion present on his face.

“Wha’ ‘appened?” the casual way in which Doyle spoke the words didn’t quite cover up his emotions. That obvious fact that he knew something had happened and it hadn’t been a good thing. “She’s covered in bruises.”

Without answering Angel took the offered items and made to leave the man behind. He could scent the slight fear that hovered around Doyle in a gloomy mist. “Go back to the office. If I’m not back in five hours come to the sewers just under the harbor. Bring Buffy with you.”

Doyle sensed the finality in the vampire’s words. He only had one more question. “Wha’ do I tell Cordy?”

Angel turned and faced him with eyes full of self-abhorrence and guilt. “If I don’t come back make sure she knows how I feel about her.”

With s slight incline of his head he acknowledged Angel’s answer. He sighed and made a motion towards the pack that rested on Angel’s shoulder. “The ingredients to a spell. It should ward off jus’ ‘bout anythin’ the Mooragh is likely to throw at yah. Since nothin’ you hit it wi’h magically will affect it me n’ Cordy came up wi’h this one. Cast it a good ways away from it an’ make sure yah don’t over do it – too much an’ it’ll be able ta feel yah comin’ no matter how hard yah try ta cover yer scent.”

A terse nod and a pained face met his words. Eyes locked and held for a moment before Angel finally spoke. “Take care of her for me.”

Doyle nodded and began walking back the way he had come from. He didn’t say goodbye; he didn’t say another word. Only time would tell if Angel made it out of this mess.

The disturbing vision that he had been blessed with not too long ago told him that whatever size this thing was it was a good fighter. Like most demons, it had most likely been taught to fight at a young age. In fighting it could be as deadly as a starving vampire or as calm and relaxed as an aged and wise vengeance demon.

Given Angel’s “champion” title, he had a good chance of making it through the fight but that didn’t mean he would come out unscathed. Even if he made it out at all, battered and bruise and broken as well would be his state of dress. Without given any time for rest he would then have to deal with a Master vampire that – according to Cordelia’s research – would be strong and well fed.

Mooraghs liked to play with their victims. They made vampires look like – well Angels next to them. They kept them fed and in good shape so that they could fight back and last as long as possible. With the amount of torture that the demon dished out, any strength that the victim had was soon to be gone in a matter of hours if they weren’t well fed. Since their victims more often then not, vampires their regenerative prowess made them easily cared for. A human once a week and they could last for years.

The thought of having to go to Sunnydale to convince Angel’s former lover to come and take care of the demon if Angel didn’t make it bothered him though. It wasn’t that he didn’t think Angel would be able to defeat this new evil; it was just that he had seen the power that this demon held. He knew what kind of chances that Angel had. If Angel didn’t make, it the probability of him being taken prisoner by the Mooragh wasn’t all that slim.

~Part: 4~

“Ah – CHOO!”

“Oh, yah, now I’ve really scared them. Watch out evil creatures of the night, the big bad ‘Ah-Choo’ is out to get you!”

The sound of dragging feet echoed down the long corridor. The magical tinge in the air drew out certain demons but none approached the obviously pissed vampire that was its source. The glow surrounding him almost appeared to act as a halo. They all knew who he was and the fact that now he looked like his namesake they didn’t want to bother him. Many knew what would befall them if they challenged this angelic champion.

“Ah – CHOOY!”

Angel glared into the darkness in the direction that the slight snicker had originated from. He knew that he wouldn’t seek out the pitiful excuse for a demon mostly because he really wasn’t up to being teased about his sneeze. Vampires didn’t sneeze. It came with the not having to breath deal but Angel had always been overly sensitive to the magics. He had never been able to not breath around it and when he did he sneezed. Since he was the one with a magic-blanket he would be sneezing for a while before his finally got used to it.

“AHHHHHHHH – CHOOOOOOOOOOOY!”

Angel shook his head and pushed forward his human mask. Having lost face notified him that there would be no more sneezes.

***

The endless tunnels of the sewers finally stopped and Angel found himself in what only could be described as a junction. Asides from the tunnel that he came from there were openings to four separate tunnels. The junction itself was a large chamber with nothing but open space.

The sound of heavy footsteps and gurgled breathing was the first thing that reached Angel’s senses. The rancid smell of burnt flesh hit him next. In an attempt to find the vampire that he knew would be there, Angel closed his eyes and stretched his senses out as far as they could go. At the very edge of his enhanced senses he heard soft whimpering and a slow heartbeat. The heartbeat confused him because he could also feel the power associated with the age of a vampire not far from it.

Two misty red eyes met him halfway through a large chamber. The smell of the demon reminded Angel of the battlefields during the First World War: the stench of dead flesh and some kind of mold. The demon itself wasn’t slimy just its mouth where row upon row of razor sharp teeth lay that made it impossible for the demon to close its mouth. It didn’t have much for bodily structure. It looked like a potato with feet and four arms though two of what looked like arms was tails.

Angel didn’t even bother to try and hide his presence. He kicked a stone and watched it fly and hit the demon square in the forehead. The way in didn’t bounce off like he had expected it have confused him vaguely but he didn’t let it show. There was little about demons that did after his two hundred plus years.

“Vampyr!” The single word was growled in thickly accented English. “Scum!”

The silence that followed was daunting. Angel let the anger that welled within Angelus soak into his soul and fuel him for the on coming fight. He didn’t dare allow his evil half come out to play but he did draw upon his power.

“Nothing more the scavenging rats – or… or cockroaches! You come, you hunt, you torture, you destroy, you eat, you fuck, and you leave to find more worthy prey! You never stop. A trail of blood follows you wherever you go! Creatures such as you give us respectable demons a bad name. Because of you, scavengers and less significant demons are viewed as evil no matter their food of choice. I have yet to meet a Vampyr that does not follow these uneventful agendas.” A roar that Angel guessed was supposed to be a laugh erupted from the Mooragh.

Angel shrugged and pushed foreword his demon visage. He tilted his head to one side and let forth a bored expression. “You speak of my kinds’ torture, yet you don’t hate the scavenger for living in the dump and stinking up everything that it touches? To torture is a part of our makeup. It’s what we were made to be. You can’t have a certain part of a demon and then turn it away because of another. Our blood and our minds are based in the kill, the torture, the sex, the blood… we can’t exist without those qualities. You must also see that there is family, structure, intellect and more that hold us together. We may act as a hierarchy but at least we have someone to answer to.

“I look at the Mooragh and all I see is a racist bastard who never had anyone to teach it that all demons act like they were taught to. The sharing of blood brought vampires forth and so, in blood, they live on. You torture because, to you, what we do is disrespectful? Or is that we cause demons like yourself to have a bad name? You bring that bad name upon yourself because of how you treat the vampires that you manage to contain. Vampires act on instinct as many creatures on Earth do. You say that you are ‘respectable’ and can rise above that little voice that we all have. If you are so smart – if you can control your demon, than why do you torture us because we can’t?”

The Mooragh watched him with now smoking red eyes. The anger surrounded it thicker then its smell. “You dare question me?”

Angel shrugged. “Why not? You are torturing another vampire. In my eyes, no demon, it doesn’t matter what it does or where it’s from, deserves your kind of torture. You feed it so that it isn’t starving but you only feed it just enough so that it can’t fight back. No vampire should have to go through that. Many vampires are trained to get off on the violence and the blood but this isn’t the kind of torture they were taught with. Vampires are taught that certain kinds of torture can bring pleasure but other kinds are meant only for pain.”

Suddenly a shock of blue and purple light flew in Angel’s direction. The light shimmered and connected with the vampire’s chest. A cloud of smoke gathered and the silence that followed seemed as if it were holding its breath.

“Is that the kind of pain that gives you pleasure Vampyr?” the Mooragh asked. In its mind it saw the question as rhetorical. It turned as if to leave.

A growl and then, “It kinda tingles.”

The Mooragh spun around and let out a fierce snarl. “What have you done!”

Angel grinned and sauntered around the edge of the chamber in a purely Angelus fashion. His broadsword lay across his shoulders and his face still managed to hold that bored look even though he was obviously amused by the demon’s comment. “You see, I happen to have some friends that are very good when it comes to the magics. I spoke with them and they said that you would probably try and use the stuff to take me out. Since, anything that I could throw at you magic-wise would do pretty much nothing they came up with a plan. They thought the best thing to do is do some magic on me. Now you have to fight my way because your magics have no effect on me.”

“I will break your spell!”

Angel let out a cold laugh. “How? By using your magic? I’ve already told you that any magic you try on me won’t work!”

The Mooragh seemed to consider this. After a moment its jaw dropped in a kind of wolfish grin and it said, “Then I guess we fight your way.”

~Part: 5~

Blue eyes shot open at the sounds that drifted to him from the main chamber. Little other then the sound of clashing claws and the snarling of two battling demons reached him. The stench of the sewer could not mask the smell of the vampire’s blood and the acid that acted as the Mooragh’s live giving liquid. Metal banging against concrete and the roar of a very pissed off vampire gave him the strength to move.

Blue eyes locked on to the form sitting against the wall not far from him. Forcing air into century dead lungs to imitate the human’s sigh he used what little strength that war cry had given him and stood over her. After a moment he realized that the human was a virgin and he sneered softly in the direction of the Mooragh. She had a gash across her brow and strand of drying blood trailed out of it. He forced back the urge to drop the girl and dragged his tongue across the liquid.

Blue eyes dilated, as he tasted his first bit of blood in weeks and virgin’s blood at that. The urge to tear open the girl’s neck and drink till she was dry was stronger then ever. In fact, the urge was so strong that he put her over his shoulder and tore into his own arm, causing beads of dark red blood to trail down his arm from multiple bites. His demon screamed in rage. The abomination of drinking his own cold, dead blood caused his demon to thrash wildly in an attempt to break free of its newly risen cage.

Blue eyes took in the sight of the two still fighting figures as he rounded the outside of the chamber. One was covered in blood not its own and the other was slouched and only on the defense. A grin touched his lips as he watched the fight as it slowly drew to a close. Not paying attention, his foot caught and he noticed the broadsword lay at his feet. The sound of his stumble alerted both demons and now he had two sets of eyes on him, one, bright amber the other misty, blood red. Without a second thought he placed the girl against the wall and grasped the weapon in his good left arm. His right arm hung limply at his side as he walked towards the Mooragh and the vampire.

Blue eyes turned golden as he raised the sword, handing it to the other vampire. With only a second’s hesitation, the vampire took the sword and braced himself as the Mooragh came towards him. At the last moment he drew the sword up and pushed it clean through the hidden third eye that lay beneath grease laden locks. He pushed the sword until the hilt rested against the demon’s forehead. He tilted his head to one side and took a step back. Glowing purple blood poured out of the wound and the Mooragh slumped to the ground.

Blue eyes met astonished brown before it all went black.

***

The crack of the trap door closing brought Cordelia out of her light snooze. She pushed her hair back and blinked her eyes to clear them as she looked at the clock. Doing her best to cover a yawn she stood nervously and walked into the kitchen to retrieve the first aid kit. As a second thought, she pulled out a bag of blood from the fridge and threw it into the microwave to heat it up.

When she turned her breath caught in her throat. Angel stood in the doorjamb. His shirt was in taters and his chest was covered in blood and dirt. Leaning against his side was a lean body covered in dirt and blood. With a groan he dumped the body into the closest chair and went to the microwave and pulled out the packet of blood. He, none too gently, threw the bag on the table.

Without a word he shoved two more bags into the microwave before grabbing the bag off the table and tearing into it. As soon as he finished the blood he just as quickly drained the next two then sat down across from the man. Growling softly, he tore out his wrist, pulled the man into his lap, and softly whispered, “Drink, Will.” Those two simple words stated he rested his wrist against the blond’s lips.

Cordelia watched not quite sure what was going on. As if in a haze she stood and brought out more blood but Angel wouldn’t take them. When the vampire in his lap finally stirred he stood and carried him to the couch. Without a word he turned and went to the shower. After a moment Cordelia heard the water running and gave herself a mental slap. She wouldn’t be caught just standing around when Angel came back out of the washroom.

Even though she could do little more then worry about Angel she could still help their “guest.” She pulled off his shoes and, after some struggling with the still only half-conscious man, managed to wrestle him out of his jacket before pulling the covers up. She came back with a mug of warm blood and, with the help of a straw, got him to drink some more.

The sound of the floorboards creaking told her that Angel was behind her but she didn’t move until the mug was empty. A single look told her that Angel wouldn’t bother her about the bandaging up of his wounds. It was obvious to him as well as her that he wouldn’t be able to clean himself up.

***

Replacing the phone on the hook Angel turned to Cordelia. The haggard look on his face did little to cover up the pain in his eyes. Doyle hadn’t answered his calls and the fact that the half-demon was one of Angel only friends caused the vampire to worry. Bpth he and Cordelia had thought he would have been waiting by the phone.

“Don’t worry. He’s probably out there having a drink. With his contacts he already knows that you’re back and unloving.” Sipping at some luke-warm coffee she finally wrestled up the nerve to ask the question that had been tugging at her since she had seen Angel in the kitchen. “Angel, what happened out there?”

The vampire sighed and ran a hand through his still slightly damp hair. He winced as the movement caused a wound to reopen. Cursing himself he drank deeply from his mug of blood. “I’m not sure.”

A sound of annoyance escaped the brunet’s throat and violently tugged at the edge of the tablecloth. “Angel, how can you not know what happened? You were there, weren’t you? Here, I’ll star for you. ‘Spike showed up about the time I …’”

Angel glared at her but spoke non-the-less. “I got to the Mooragh’s… chamber, I guess, and we started out with insulting each other. I knew that there was a vampire there but I didn’t recognize it to be Spike. It’s been a long time since we’ve run together and I have to be looking specifically for him to sense his presence. It took me by surprise when I did see him. He saved the girl that the Mooragh had captured to feed him.” Angel stood and leaned against the doorframe to watch the blond that lay in Cordelia’s bed. The pain that standing caused him didn’t go unnoticed by the brunet but she didn’t say anything. “He was starving and yet, she still lived.”

Cordelia frowned. Shaking her head, she took a sip from her coffee before saying, “He was starving? Shouldn’t he have been tearing out her throat or something? Not that, that’s a good thing for him to be doing but I highly doubt that he knew you were coming to kill the demon. Why starve just to be in your good graces?”

Throwing a look over his shoulder Angel walked out of the room. Cordelia followed him out of pure curiosity. Reaching the bedroom two steps behind him she shut the door and waited for him to face her.

“Spike would rather I ignore him,” Angel said, contempt coloring his words. “He was probably just passing through LA on his way to gloomier places. I probably would have never known he was in town had he not got himself in trouble. He hates me more then anything, the less I know about him the happier he is. He looks at me and sees nothing more then the Sire that disappeared in the night and never came back. I failed him and because of that he doesn’t want anything to do with me. Even so, had he been the Spike I know, he would have eaten the girl and taken the Mooragh out before he would sit back and wait for someone to come and get him. He isn’t type to wait for reinforcements.”

“Then why did he do it?” Cordelia demanded, sitting on the edge of Angel’s bed. Her mind was racing to try and fill in all the blanks. Nothing seemed to fit the way she saw it. “He hates you and being rescued isn’t on his list of ‘Things To Do Before I Get Staked.’”

Angel shrugged. “All we can do is wait for him to wake up.”

Cordelia looked into Angel’s eyes and saw more then worry in them for his ailing Childe. There was a sorrow in his eyes that spoke of something that had nothing to do with the vampire lying on the pull out couch in the living room. She could seen the apology in his eyes.

The brunet looked down at the ground, her toes suddenly becoming very interesting. “Angel, what happened yesterday wasn’t all your fault. That and the fact that the only thing you have to be sorry about was stopping. I didn’t want you to walk away. I didn’t want that night to end with you walking out the door.”

A look of confusion and then astonishment crossed Angel face. As what she said sunk in a small smile touched his lips. He walked over and sank down in front of her. Hesitating for only a moment his fingers touched her hair. “Well then… the next time I kiss you, I won’t stop when you whimper.”

Cordelia gasped softly at the look of lust in Angel’s eyes and leaned forward. A moan from the living room caused her to jump and she laughed nervously. A soft blush colored her cheeks and she broke away from his intense gaze. “You should… you should go and look in on him.”

With a nod and a light kiss Angel walked to the door. “Get some sleep Cordy,” he whispered before walking out. The pain from standing that she had noticed in the kitchen seemed to have disappeared.

~Part: 6~

An eye cracked open and more darkness came into Spike’s field of vision. He took a deep unneeded breath and the scent of his Sire crashed down on him, that and the smell of some kind of flowers. He couldn’t hold back the snicker that escaped from his lips. His amusement didn’t do anything to relieve the twisted nausea of his stomach. His dreams had been quite pleasant but for some reason reliving all those glorious memories of blood and pain caused that white-hot agony to travel across his forehead and then down his spine.

With a tortured moan he sat up fighting the urge to vomit. “The bloody pillock truly is a pouf!” he muttered softly as he ran a hand through his hair. He brought it away and grimaced at the dirt that covered his hand. His eyes sought out a certain item and when he saw his duster draped across a chair in reasonably good shape he sighed in relief. It was about as dirty as the floor of a sewer tunnel but that was fixable.

Standing, he yawned widely and stretched his arms above his head, cracking his back with the motion. Scowling at the soiled blankets he stripped the bed and dumped them on the floor outside bathroom. Intent on having a good, long, hot shower, he shifted through the closet in search for towels and something clean for him to wear until his clothing could be washed or burned and replaced.

It didn’t take long to find a towel but the search for something to wear wasn’t as fortunate. With a soft growl, he exited the washroom and decided to move his search to the rest of the apartment. Upon exiting the washroom he pulled his once black t-shirt over his head. He threw the shirt on top of the blankets and found a door at the end of the hallway. He opened it and found what could only be the laundry room.

Grinning, he swiped a pair of drawstring sweats off the dryer and stalked back to the shower. The hot water on his abused skin was probably the closest thing to heaven he would ever get and he didn’t care in the least. To finally be clean after over a month of scavenging and then two straight weeks in a sewer tunnel was better then eating fresh human blood at the moment.

He reluctantly turned the water off after all the hot water was gone and he had pretty much scrubbed to the bone. His skin still crawled and his hair still felt stringy but at least he didn’t smell bad. Stepping onto the bath mat he noticed the mirror above the sink. He shook his head and just patted himself dry before pulling up the sweats.

***

Cordelia placed the mug on the table and sat down after making herself some coffee. She had heard the water stop so she figured that whichever vamp was in there he would be hungry. She had the mug about half to her mouth when the gorgeous hunk of man that had obviously just walked out of the shower walked into the room.

Peroxide blond hair fell limply to hide the scare over his left eye and the sweats that he wore were barely holding onto his hips. The wide expanse of pale flesh that was revealed by his lack of shirt caused her jaw to drop but the way his sweats sat just so a few dark curls appeared had her drooling.

“See something you like, Pet?” The unmasked amusement in his voice caused her jaw to close with a snap. He chuckled before sitting down and drinking from the mug on the table without bothering to ask if it was Angel’s or not. With a growl he nearly spat the stuff back out. “Bloody ‘ell! Damn animal blood!” He wiped the small bit of blood that touched his chin. After a moment of consideration and a growl from his stomach he took another gulp. “Well, where’s Peaches anyways? I bet he’s just squirming in his bloody seat waitin’ to get sum answers outta me.”

Taking another sip of her coffee in an attempt to calm herself, Cordelia pointedly looked everywhere but at the blond in front of her. She couldn’t believe it; she was acting like a lovesick – no love was what she felt for Angel, with Spike it was completely a lust for something gorgeous and unattainable. Don’t forget homicidal and … gods that vampire is gorgeous. So here she was lusting after this vampire just like… well Buffy had lusted after Angel.

She couldn’t keep her eyes off of him and she didn’t know why. It was true that she’d never spoken to or with the vampire before but she had seen him and he had never caused something like this to happen to her before. Her mind racing, she didn’t hear what the blond was saying. Fighting back a blush she asked, “What was that?”

Spike smirked and took another gulp from his mug before answering her. He breathed deep and felt his grin grow. “How long have you and Peaches been shaggin’?”

“I don’t believe that is any of your business, Boy.” Angel growled from where he stood behind the younger vampire. His eyes glittered gold but his face remained in its human visage. When the blond turned to look him in the eye he growled softly and blue eyes looked down in an act of submission. “Cordy, go upstairs. I want to know where the hell Doyle is.”

He didn’t bother to make sure that she had left; he kept his eyes on his Childe. The sound of the elevator caused the dark vampire to walk over and sit next to the man. Without a word he took the mug of blood out of the blonde’s hands and finished it off. “What’s going on Spike? Had I left Cordelia alone with you the last time I saw you she would be thoroughly tortured and dead by now.”

A growl started in the back of Spike’s throat and the younger vampire pushed back his chair. Resting his elbows on his knees and his head in his hands he felt himself begin to tremble at the memory of those god awful white walls and humming doors. “It’s those bloody soldier gits. They caught me one night while I was stalking the Slayer and I thought that they were all working together, like one big happy ‘let’s kill all those vamps’ family. But when I was with Red… she said that they’d been trying to figure out who those soldier boys were. Well the bloody gits showed up and ruined our little get together. The Slayer was fighting them like she would any other demon. Turns out they aren’t working together.”

Angel frowned and tilted his head, trying to get a better look at Spike’s face. The obvious pain that his Childe was going through cut him deeper then any knife – or hot poker – could have. “What are you saying Spike?”

“I’m saying that Spike had a little trip to the vet and now he doesn’t chase the other puppies any more. I can’t even hit people.” The utter defeat hit him again and Spike slumped back into his chair, trying to fight back the tears this revelation caused him. He wouldn’t let his Sire see him cry but he had to look him in the eye when he said what was about to say. “I need a bloody place to stay. I’ll do what I can to earn my keep but I’ll have you know that I can’t hurt anything. I don’t know if that means just humans or demons too but I’ll do what I bloody can. You’re my Sire and I’m asking you to help me.”

Wide eyed, Angel leaned kneeled in front of his Childe. It had been a very long time since Spike had willing admitted that he – Angel or Angelus, they were both one in the same – was his Sire. He knew that the blond liked to tell the story of the night he had been turned but alter it just slightly; Drusilla instead of Angelus and tears instead of desire. He thought briefly of the high school when Spike had first come to Sunnydale but dismissed it just as quickly. It had been an act to go along with his own, an attempt to fool and be fooled.

“Yeah, I’m yer Sire,” he said gently, his Irish brogue slipping into the statement.

~Part: 7~

Cordelia stared at him wide eyed. Distantly she realized that the vampire was babbling trying to convince her about what he had suggested. She figured she hadn’t blinked yet so she better do that and next, she took a breath… not that it did any good. Those four measly little words were stuck and repeating themselves over and over and over and over and well…

“He’s staying with us?” she finally asked and tilted her head to the side briefly. Yeah, she was willing to admit that she was having a blond moment but all females are allowed to at one point or another. Considering the situation she figured she was allowed – more then allowed, expected.

Silence followed. Angel met her gaze and held it. “Yeah.”

The room felt like it was closing in on her and Cordelia plopped down into the over stuffed chair that Angel kept in his bedroom. She sighed and ran a hand through her long dark hair. “Isn’t he evil or something? Didn’t he recently try to kill you?”

A small grin touched the vampire’s lips. He crouched down in front of the girl and took her hands in his. At first he didn’t speak, he just looked into her eyes. “Yeah, he is evil and yeah he did try to kill me but something happened to him back in Sunnydale. I don’t know why yet but he went back there. Some ‘soldier boys’ captured him and they did something to him. They made it so he can’t kill or hit or do anything remotely evil anymore. That’s why he didn’t fight back while he was with the Mooragh.”

“So he can’t hurt anything?”

Angel shook his head slowly. “Don’t worry about it. He can stay out on the hide-a-bed and we can share my bed; it’s got room enough for at least three anyways.” He sighed and pulled the girl into his arms. “He’s my Childe, Cordy, I can’t turn him away. I couldn’t even if I had wanted to. Not now or ever.”

Cordelia plucked at a loose thread on Angel’s shirt. She cuddled into his chest and whispered, “So how long will we have to act like we’re lovers?”

Complete unprepared for the question, Angel looked into the girl’s eyes. He saw the uncertainty there but deeper then that he saw lust and maybe even love. Slowly, so as not to startle her, he brought his lips to hers. The kiss barely began before he pulled back and looked into her eyes again. “We can stop acting at any time.”

The desire that flared up in her eyes had him gasping and he moved to kiss her again. At first he kept the kisses short and almost chaste as he gauged just how much she wanted him. Silently, he stood and guided her to the bed, gently laying her down.

He met her with a soft kiss and finally he couldn’t take it anymore and let his tongue drag across her top lip and lightly bit her bottom lip while his left hand found one of her breasts. When his hand came into contact she gasped and his tongue shot foreword. With a moan, his tongue tangled with hers and passion flared up.

Desperate for more, Angel nudged her legs apart and rested his thigh between them. His hands began to pull at the buttons of her blouse but soon he gave up and tore his lips from hers. “How much do you like this blouse?” he asked in a husky voice.

A whimper and then, “Lot less then I like the feel of your hands on me.”

Angel growled, then the sound of buttons flying across the room and hitting the walls reached the brunet’s ears. He was greeted with pale skin and a silky black bra. With a feral grin he raised an eyebrow at the brunet before swooping down and capturing one of those silk covered mounds between his lips. He licked and sucked and hummed against her skin while his hands went to work at unhooking it at the back. Above him, Cordelia was reduced to whimpering and moaning.

Finally he pulled the brunet up and pulled off her shirt and bra in a single movement. Placing her back down, he just looked at her. When she let out a sound of frustration his lips again found her left breast. He rolled the nipple between his teeth while his hand crushed and fondled her right one. After a few minutes he switched and by the time he was finished he had her babbling uncontrollably.

Moving down he paid special attention to her navel. He licked and kissed and nibbled his way across her stomach distracting her with his mouth as his hands opened the button of her jeans and dragged down the zipper. As he slowly tugged off her jeans and panties he touched, kissed licked and nipped at every bit of skin that he uncovered.

By the time her had her completely nude she was a trembling mess begging him to touch her where she needed it most. Angel planned to but first he quickly undressed himself. He stood over her and looked at her quivering form and stroked himself a few times before kneeling between her knees and leaning toward her already wet opening.

Cordelia cried out when Angel first touched her clit. He didn’t really touch it; he just dragged his tongue along her weeping hole and up that sensitive bundle of nerves. She had never felt such strong sensation and then he thrust a finger into her without warning.

“Oh God, Angel!” she screamed and began to rock against his finger and tongue. Soon he had three fingers inside of her and she couldn’t stop babbling, begging him for the bliss that she knew was just out of her reach. He brought her to the edge again and again and when he finally let her fall over she saw stars.

Before she had a chance bathe in the sensations of it all he was inside her. He set up a strong and steady pace and before she knew it, she was at the edge again. She moaned and whimpered, encouraging him to go faster and faster. When she went over the edge again he was there with her howling her name as she moaned his.

They spent many minutes just holding each other until Angel slowly pulled out of her body and dragged the blanket to cover them as they spooned against one another. He felt the brunet sleeping in his arms and held her close to his body; unable to stop the purring that vibrated from deep within his chest. Just as he felt the urge to follow her into deep slumber, she stirred and stiffened.

He frowned and pulled back to look at her face. “Cordy?” he asked softly at the perplexity that covered her countenance. “Baby, what’s wrong?”

A sigh fell from her lips as if of its own accord and she made a move to leave. He kept his arms around her and held on tightly until she gave up. He fought the urge to growl and, instead, began kissing the back of her neck. “Tell me.”

“I guess I wasn’t all that good huh?”

The question felt like a slap in the face to Angel. He sat back a bit and looked at her with nothing short of horror marring his face. “What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

Silence fell and suddenly Angel clued in. He chuckled softly and pulled the brunet against him. “Your mad that I didn’t lose my soul, huh?” When she didn’t reply Angel knew he had hit the mark. “Cordy, the spell that Willow used to re-ensoul me didn’t have a clause. I had a nagging feeling about it shortly after I got the strength to think straight. Before I left Sunnydale, I spoke with Willow. I made her swear that she would never tell Buffy when I found out. I wanted Buffy to believe that there was no possible way for us to ever be together.”

Cordelia processed all this but she didn’t relax. “So, Buffy has to live without you and not love you and be happy having a family and yet you will drag me into the darkness?”

“Never.” Angel turned the brunet around so that they were facing. His finger touched her chin and she looked into his eyes. “I want Buffy to have a normal life, yes you’re right. I found a way for her to believe that we can’t be together but if I thought I could convince you to find someone who could give you what you needed – someone human – to live your life with I would.

“The reason why I wanted Buffy to think that we didn’t have a chance was mostly selfish reasons. I’m a vampire and she’s a Slayer. We are born enemies and nothing will change that. When I first met her my demon wanted little more then to tear her to pieces but soon my demon’s infatuation with her manifested itself in my soul in the form of lust. I know I said I loved her but I was confused. I never did. We could never really be together anyways. You couldn’t imagine how hard she tried to make me forget about my demon.

“She wanted the man, the body, but she didn’t want everything that came with it. She believed – and still does – that Angel and Angelus are two separate beings but that’s not how the world works. Angelus is what I’ve named my demon. The soul controls it. Let’s say that it acts as a leash. I – Angel, the demon with the soul and Angelus, the demon without the soul – am still one creature.

“I look in your eyes and I see something that I never saw in Buffy’s. You don’t mindlessly open a blind during the day or ask if I’ll take you out for a picnic or speak of a future that might never happen. You look at today and try to make the best of it – whether or not I want to do anything other then brood.”

Cordelia couldn’t help but giggle softly at the last part. She looked deep into Angel’s eyes and finally she came to a silent decision and relaxed against his chest. After a few minutes she said tenderly, “I love you Angel.”

“I love you too, Cordelia,” Angel whispered in her ear. For the first time in many a year Angel felt his demon calm and his soul loosen its hold without worrying about losing its power over it. The two were both satisfied and content. Even if only for a while, it felt good to find such peace.

~Part: 8~

Footsteps sounded on the floor above and Spike inhaled sharply. His enhanced vampiric senses picked up the smell of a half-breed. Without a thought, he put down the book he had been reading and made his way upstairs. He used the stairs instead of the elevator and found himself in a dark corner. He was on the opposite side of the room from a lanky, dark haired man.

He watched silently as the ‘breed shifted through some papers and tucked what looked like a flyer between the pages of the day’s paper. The ‘breed then moved over to the computer and tapped at the keys. By this time Spike had figured that this must be the ‘Doyle’ that Angel had been worrying about since the two of them had got back.

It had only been a couple of days but Spike didn’t know how the way things worked at AI. By the way that Angel had acted though, he assumed that Angel’s groupies were expected to hang around the office until he got back from saving the world – again. He wasn’t a complete idiot though. He knew that when stuck waiting to see if the world would end or go on you can’t just sit around. This ‘breed had a hyper-ness to him, made obvious by the way he shifted in his seat, that Spike could relate to all too well.

After a few silent minutes, he shifted again and sat with his feet on the seat of the chair while he sat on the desk. His comfortable posture stiffened and he scanned the room, passing by Spike then coming back past him again. The ‘breed tilted his head to the side. “You gunna stand in the shadows all day or are yah gunna show yerself?”

Spike chuckled and came over to the desk. He grinned at the look on the ‘breed’s face when he realized just who Spike was. “I was going to watch you for a bit, mate, but you aren’t human. Can feel my eyes, can’t you?”

Doyle nodded slowly as he moved to sit in the chair properly so that he could watch Spike. “How come ya haven’t killed me yet? I get the feeling that you’ve been here fer a while.”

Still chuckling, Spike pulled out a cigarette and lit it. He inhaled deeply and thoughtfully blew the smoke back out and in Doyle’s direction. He watched the ‘breed silently for a while before answering. “I would just luv to tear you to pieces, mate, but you see, Peaches really wouldn’t like it if I killed my workmates. Wouldn’t look all that good on my resume and all that.”

A brief look of shock crossed Doyle’s face before he smoothed it with a cool mask of uncaring. “So Angel knows yer ‘ere. Are ya sayin’ tha’ yer workin’ fer ‘im? ‘Cause if ya are then I may ‘ave ta disappear fer a while an’ get m’self spittin’ drunk. Th’ world prob’ly jes went ta Hell.”

Spike shook his head. “Mind if I join you, mate?”

They were both grinning like fools when Angel stepped out of the elevator. Neither of them looked his way but both of them knew he was there. Without turning, Spike snickered. He could feel the goofy grin that his Sire sported from where he sat across the room.

“Doyle. You’re here.” Angel stated as he walked over to the two of them. He raised an eyebrow at Spike but didn’t say a word to him. They shared a silent look before Angel turned back to the dark haired man. “Where have you been?”

An eyebrow rose and a grin touched the man’s lips. “Doin’ wha’ ya tol’ me ta do. I was house huntin’. Don’t cha remember? Ya said ta find Cordy a place before ya got back. I figured if I wasn’t ‘ere then technic’ly I wouldn’t know if ye were back or not.”

Angel frowned then glanced at Spike who was looking at him curiously. “Thanks Doyle. Why don’t you take the rest of the day off, okay?”

Sensing *something* was going on, Doyle walked out the door quietly. He stood outside it for a moment then walked away with a shrug. The life of a vampire was complicated; especially if said vampire had a soul but still kept in touch with his bloodthirsty, psychotic childer.

Shaking his head at the stupidity of his aged boss, Doyle made his way to the closest bar. He wasn’t quite sure what was going on between Angel and Spike or Angel and Cordy for that matter but he had a feeling that things were going to get confusing. That was just the way the Powers worked.

***

A choked laugh was what made Angel turn away from watching Doyle’s retreat. He just stared blankly at the peroxide blond for a moment before walking over and plucking the cigarette from between pale lips. “No smoking in the building,” he stated as he crushed the less then half smoked fag in an empty coffee cup.

“Bloody ‘ell! That was my last one!” Spike glared at his Sire. After a moment he backed down and once again leaned nonchalantly against the large desk. He was silent for all of thirty seconds before it got to him. “Well, are gunna tell me that I have to call her ‘mum’? ‘Cause if you do you can piss on it.”

Angel grinned. “You don’t have to call her anything but her name. You know that certain things haven’t happened yet.” His grin dimmed as he dwelled on that thought for a moment. Sadness touched his eyes but it was gone in seconds. “So, can I trust you to take care of Cordy in case anything ever happens?”

“Bloody ‘ell, Peaches, I just got here an’ yer askin’ me to take care of the little missuz?” Spike tensed and began pacing. “I can’t believe this! You haven’t even claimed her good and proper yet.” He was shaking with rage at that point.

Stepping in front of him, Angel grabbed the younger vampire’s shoulders. He looked deep into wizard’s blue eyes and saw what Spike wasn’t telling him. “Cordy will *never* replace you, Will. You have a place in my heart that no one can get to. You are my Childe, nothing can get closer to my heart then you.”

“What about Penn? And Dru?” Spike asked softly, lowering his gaze to the floor and pulling out of his Sire’s hold. He continued his pacing a safe distance from the larger man. His hands were still trembling but no longer from rage. “You always said – “

“Would you believe me if I said that all that was a lye?” Angel whispered. “Penn was a rouge, he didn’t want anything to do with the family. All he cared about was the kill. I could never convince him to stay with us for long. We were never close. Dru was something to amuse me. I was bored and I thought that eternal torment would keep me amused, at least for a little while.”

Spike stopped and looked at him. He blinked rapidly before he went back to his pacing. He ran a hand through his hair, musing it and causing it to stick out in wild angles. “You left us,” he stated, “you didn’t come back and when you finally did, you were different. I killed a Slayer and you wouldn’t even speak to me.”

“My soul… I wasn’t used to it yet. Spike, I’d only had it for a year or so, I didn’t know if I was supposed to laugh and hug you and congratulate you and fuck you until dawn or if I was supposed to stake myself for creating such a monster. The only thing that I knew was that I was proud of what you had done. Look at me, I’m over two hundred and forty years old minus the years I spent with a soul and I’m still older then you. I’ve only come against a single Slayer; first I fall in love with her and then she sends me to Hell. Think about it for a minute won’t you?”

A smirk graced Spike’s countenance and he chuckled softly. “Yeah, you must admit. I am better then you in that aspect.”

“You could kill her. The two of you locked in a room with no escape… Buffy would loose. There’s no doubt about it, Will, you are better then she is.” Angel sat down and rested his feet up on the desk. He rubbed his hands over his face and forced a sigh. “Buffy gains her strength from the people around her. She is nothing on her own.”

Spike stared at him. His jaw seemed to have hit the ground. “I can’t bloody believe that you admitted that. I have come against that Slayer too many times to count and every single bloody time I have her cornered she still whips my ass.”

“Every time you fought her, someone got in the way. I know you, Will. Dammit, I had you in my bed nearly every single night for two decades. You like to have your fights solo. Nothing matters but you and the one you’re up against. You don’t like interruptions.” Angel sighed again and rested his head on his hand. “You never were one to share a blood bath. It was all about you.”

Silence followed as both vampires remembered old times. Spike crossed the room before Angel knew what was happening and kneeled down in front of him. He laid his face on Angel’s left thigh as he had so many times after Angel had finally broken him to his charms.

Angel shifted and slid foreword slightly to allow Spike better access. He nodded at the look in Spike’s eyes and closed his own, trying to do nothing but bask in the attentions of his Childe.

“Angel, are you up here?” a very female and highly unwanted voice called from the elevator.

“Bloody effen ‘ell!” Spike muttered.

Spike was against the far wall sipping from a flask that he had pulled out of his duster and Angel was going over some papers when Cordelia rounded the corner. Angel looked up as she came over and smiled. “Sleep well?”

Cordelia nodded and looked cautiously at Spike who flashed an evil grin. She sighed and said, “Well, I better show you around the office. Angel tells me you’re working here now. I don’t see why you can’t help him – “

“Sorry pet, but Peaches doesn’t like to have me at his back in a fight. He trusts me better with the paperwork.” Spike stated as he followed the brunet over to the filing cabinet. “He likes the lone wolf thing he’s got going.”

“Not true… and you’re damned good with paperwork!” Angel muttered just loud enough for Spike hear him from across the room.

~Part: 9~

The voices from upstairs brought him out of a fitful sleep. Glad to be awake and away from what had once been beautiful memories, he sat up and leaned against the back of the couch. He ran both hands through his hair and growled softly at the pain in his knotted stomach. He was hungry but he knew he wouldn’t be able to force himself to swallow anything until the pain receded.

Yawning largely, he threw back his quilts and wandered to Angel’s large bookcase. It had been a little over two weeks since he had arrived at Angel’s place. Cordelia was finalizing everything before she could move into her new apartment, Doyle had had a vision and he had reorganized the office’s filing system – four times. It wasn’t that he was bored; it was that Cordelia had no idea how to file. He had spent the majority of his first week doing little more then explaining the merits of properly organized files.

Glaring at the books that seemed to mocking him, Spike pulled out an old demonology tomb. He flicked through a couple pages before he put it back. He muttered softly as he searched the shelves for something other then old, dusty tombs. With a sigh, he realized that Angel probably had all the more interesting books in his room.

He wondered into the kitchen and got himself something to eat before he went upstairs. The cheerleader was going on and on about her beautiful apartment to the ‘breed when Spike made his appearance. They both glanced at him then went back to whatever it was they had been doing.

“So… anything to do ‘round ‘ere yet?” Spike asked as he perched on the edge of Cordelia’s desk. He glanced over her shoulder at the computer screen and found her doing some demon research. “Well?”

Doyle rose and eyebrow at him and shared a look with Cordelia. “Spike, what are ya doin’ up? It’s barely one.”

Spike shrugged and moved over to the desk opposite Cordelia’s and plopped down. In front of him sat a stack of bills and files of previous clients that he had yet to go through. He stifled another yawn and leaned back with the top file in his hands. After only a few moments he glanced up to find both Cordelia and Doyle watching him with something akin to horror. “What’s wrong?”

The two of them shared a look before Cordelia spoke up. “You yawned. I thought it wasn’t possible for non-breathing demon types such as yourself to yawn. Did I miss something?”

Her comment was met with large, obviously fake yawn complete with full body stretch and sound. Spike couldn’t help but laugh at the two of them, standing there with their jaws hanging down to the floor. He sighed and put down his paperwork. “Breathing isn’t about necessity for vampires, it’s about habit. I may be old but I never learned to out grow it. It makes it easier to blend in with humans but it doesn’t mean that I go around running out of breath halfway through a fight.”

Doyle cleared his throat and stood. In a blatantly obvious way he changed the subject saying, “Well, might as well make the best of yer insomnia. Looks like I’m takin’ the princes out fer lunch, no-so-evil dead. Keep an eye out for me will ya?”

Spike nodded distractedly, already having gone back to his reading. When the door shut firmly behind the two of them – Cordelia chatting away about some thing or another and Doyle doing his best to look interested – he sat back in his chair with a relieved sigh. “Bloody humans,” he muttered softly.

He got through two of the files within the next fifteen minutes after which Angel appeared in front of him. He wasn’t caught off guard and he wasn’t in the least worried by the look on Angel’s face. “’Ello, mate. Have a nice sleep?”

Angel chuckled ruefully and ran a hand through his already rumpled hair. The fact that he had come upstairs without doing his hair told Spike that he had been dreaming – like Spike – of the ‘good old days.’ Not that there was anything good about having dreams that did little more then cause white hot agony to flow through him and knot up his stomach so that he would love to be able to go on without ever having to feed again.

“So where is everyone?” Angel asked softly, dropping into a chair across from Spike. He avoided looking Spike in the eye but made up for it by gently nudging his foot under the table. “Usually Doyle sticks around here during the day.”

“He decided to use me. Thought he’d take the cheerleader out fer lunch. Since I was up, he didn’t have to worry about no one being here to answer the phone and such,” Spike stated just as softly, nudging Angel back.

They shared a grin and suddenly Spike felt the world narrow down to nothing but him and his Sire. That was until someone cleared their throat just by the door. He turned and, with a soft smile on his lips greeted the girl that stood in the doorway. “’Ello. Welcome to Angel Investigation. ‘M Spike an’ this ‘ere is Angel. What’s up?”

Angel sighed and wandered out of the office, letting Spike take care of the details while he got changed. It seemed as though the Powers would do anything to keep them apart. With a wry grin and a slight shake of his head Angel went and got ready to face yet another baddie.

~Part: 10~

Spike took a long drag from his cigarette and looked at Angel out of the corner of his eye. Yeah, he hadn’t fought but he been there. He had watched as Angel had torn the evil stalker-zombie ex-boyfriend to pieces and had reluctantly held the girl while she had cried at the sight of it all. The fight had been short but gruesome. He hadn’t been able to contain his excitement at the sight of the blood and guts since it had been the first good fight he had seen since getting his strength back.

So here he was, leaning against a cool cement wall with a fag in one hand and a stake in the other. Angel had growled at him and told him that if he couldn’t control himself in front of the girl he should go out side and either calm down or stake himself. With a shrug he had left and now he was stuck in a state of confusion. By the time Angel had joined him he had calmed down enough to know that the stake in his hand would not be used to end his own existence.

On second thought he was considering to again. Angel was still excited from the fight. The zombie had done little in the way of putting up a fight so the dark vampire’s demon was still rambunctious. From the pheromones that Angel was giving off, Spike had a feeling that ‘Angelus’ wanted to do little more then fall into a sync that had begun over a century ago. Another words: his Sire was horny.

It was painfully obvious but Spike knew better then to say anything about it. If his Sire wanted him to give him a helping hand – or mouth for that matter – all he had to do was ask. There had been too many beatings for him to remember them all. And all of them had been because he had been trying to help the older vamp out.

“So… did the bint pay yah?” Spike asked casually. He flicked the butt of his cigarette away and handed the stake back to Angel. How was he supposed to know if the pain would show up while he was trying to put the stake through his heart? He wasn’t going to risk it.

A sideways glance and Angel smirked as he pocketed the stake. “Yeah, she gave the contents of her purse. I haven’t counted it yet. I think I’ll wait until we get back to the office. The element of – “

“It’s just measly twen’y buck, y’know,” Spike stated. “Nobody carries more then twen’y bucks on the streets of LA. Yer lucky if you get outta town having only lost yer wallet or purse twice.”

Angel chuckled. “Way to ruin the mood.”

“Don’t think so pet.” Spike’s eyes were purposely on the bulge in Angel’s pants. “You haven’t lost it yet.”

“Spike…”

“I know, I know. Yer with the cheerleader and don’t want to ruin your still fresh relationship. I’m not bloody stupid, you know.” Spike pushed away from the wall and made as if to walk to the car. Angel’s hand on his arm stopped him short.

They were both quiet as they considered what was going to happen next. It was painfully obvious that Angel was going to come out of this in complete brood mode but at the moment, he didn’t care. “Give a guy a hand?”

A wide smile graced Spike’s face and he stepped into Angel’s personal space. “How ‘bout more then a hand?” he asked with meaning.

Angel dragged them deep into the dark ally so that anyone wandering by wouldn’t see them quite so clearly. He leaned back against the wall and pushed Spike down to his knees.

To be in such a familiar position but only with his Sire’s ensouled counterpart caused Spike a moment of indecision. Yeah, he was willing to get the man off but what would Angel do after that? Angelus would yank down his drawers and continue to fuck his dry but he knew that Angelus wouldn’t be making an appearance tonight.

Taking a deep breath, Spike began with opening his Sire’s pants. Once he had Angel’s pants around his knees, Spike looked up at him in silent question. The second that Angel smiled, Spike dove in. His took his Sire’s erection whole and swallowed once before pulling back and licking the tip.

Above him Angel couldn’t hold back the whimper that was torn from his throat. Spike – no William – had been a very adept learner when it came to the art of pleasure. Angelus had been so very grateful at how well the fledge had learned. And now was no different. Spike used every trick in his book just to keep Angel at the edge.

By now Spike had his hands on Angel’s hips to keep him from bucking into his mouth. Oh, he could take Angel’s brutal thrusting but he wanted this to last. It had been so long since the last time he had touched his Sire and he had no idea what would happen after the older vamp got his rocks off.

He licked the underside of the vamp’s straining cock then teased the foreskin before gently sucking the head into his mouth. He swirled his tongue around then deep throated the vamp for only a second. He knew that with all this teasing that Angel wouldn’t last much longer. One long lick from base to tip and a hard suck on the head and Angel was shooting his load into Spike’s needy mouth. Spike looked up at Angel and watched as his Sire bellowed as he came.

Panting harshly, Angel looked down at Spike. “Swallow,” he rasped out.

Spike couldn’t help a grin as he swallowed then continued to lick his Sire clean. With a sigh, he pulled up Angel’s pants and stood back as the man buckled up. He turned to leave but found himself slammed against the wall and being kissed savagely.

When Angel managed to drag his lips away from Spike’s they were both panting for unneeded breath. Angel rested his forehead against Spike’s and just breathed in his Childe’s scent. “We aren’t finished yet,” he growled softly, rolling his hips and hissing as their cocks came into contact.

***

They managed to wait until they got downstairs before they started to rip each other’s clothes off. They were both in game face by the time that they made it to the bedroom and Angel broken Spike’s skin once or twice. He knew that the blond was holding back but he could understand why.

Once he had Spike naked he was starting to get a little impatient. Spike’s body was covered in nips, bites, bruises and almost bone deep claw marks but the blond had yet to break Angel’s skin once.

With a growl, Angel pulled back and looked into Spike’s eyes. After a moment, the blonde’s gaze dropped in submission. The silence that followed was eerie and strained. “Spike, what’s going on?”

Spike growled then sat up against the headboard. “What do you bloody think is going on? The soldier guys made it so I can do a bloody thing! …I’m sorry.” The last words were whispered almost low enough that Angel didn’t hear it.

Angel stared at Spike in wide-eyed amazement. “I’ll fuckin’ kill them all! No one, and I mean *no one*, messes with my family and gets away with it! I’ll fix you Wil. I promise you that.”

Their eyes met and soon they were trapped. Neither of them moved until a gasp sounded from the doorway. They snapped to and turned to see Cordelia standing there with tears in her eyes.

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