tamingthemuse | Her Saving Grace, 20/25, Spike/Fred, R

Title: Her Saving Grace
Rating: R
Pairing: Spike/Fred, mentions slight Fred/Wesley
Spoilers: Angel S5
Chapter: Twenty of Twenty-Five
Prompt: #43 - Narcissus for

tamingthemuse
Warnings: Character death (not the permanent variety)
Summary: An accident one night changes Fred's entire world. Shunned by the people who should care the most, she turns to the one person who does care, and finds something beyond friendship.
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Seriously. Not even my mind these days.

Previous Parts Here

Word count: 2312

Pretty by

garnettrees

Chapter 20: Meet and Greet

Fred blinked. “You're Xander? Buffy's friend?”

Xander blinked. “You've heard of me?”

“Well, mostly from Angel, but Spike's mentioned you a few times as well,” she said, stepping towards him.

“Wait a minute: are you Fred?” he asked. “Buffy told me about you over the phone, but it's nice to meet you in person,” he said, reaching out to shake her hand. His grip was solid and sure, but not too strong that it made you uncomfortable. Fred would find it hard to believe that anything Xander did made someone uncomfortable. Well, unless he wanted to make them feel that way, which he could, but she didn't see why he would, and she needed to focus on the here and now again, not babble inwardly.

“FRED!”

Fred turned to see Spike hurrying down the street. “Thank hell,” he said, barreling into her and clutching her close. “Are you all right?”

“I'm fine,” she said, giving him a smile before she frowned. “Aren't you supposed to be helping Angel?”

“I would be, if I hadn't called Buffy and found out that you'd never made it to her apartment,” he said, glaring at her. “I don't need the heart attack, thank you very much, and never mind how impossible the heart attack would be, I'd have had it anyways.”

“I'm sorry,” she said, nuzzling her head under his chin. If Spike babbled, she knew he was worried. “I love you, you know.”

He sighed, leaning his forehead over to rest it on the top of her head. “I love you too, pet.”

“Despite your overwhelming desire to kill me right now?”

“It's being quelled, and don't expect to get me to let you out of my sight for the next week.”

“Fair enough.”

“She actually handled herself pretty well,” Xander piped in. “I only stepped in when I figured they were making complete jerks of themselves, and I really cannot stand it when they do that. You should know that.”

Spike glanced up and stared. “Harris?”

“Xander!”

A blonde blur flew past Fred and tackled Xander. “OOF!” he yelled, stumbling backwards. Buffy ignored his complaining and simply held onto him, smiling.

Then she pulled away, confused. “Where are the others?”

“He's your backup?” Spike asked.

“He wasn't supposed to be, actually,” Buffy confessed, turning back to Xander. “I thought you were too busy, and you were sending the girls.”

“Hey, I'm never too busy when it comes to you,” he said, giving her that crooked smile. “The Hellmouth started acting up in Cleveland, so I left the girls to handle that and came out here instead. I figured I was worth a couple of them at least.”

“You're worth a dozen of them,” Buffy assured him. “I'm glad you came out here instead of the Slayers.”

They shared a smile, before they turned to the couple who was waiting. “It's actually good to see you again, Spike,” Xander said after a moment. “I can't believe I'm saying it, but I missed your sarcasm. Faith's doesn't even come close.”

“'Course it doesn't,” Spike replied. “She's a bloody bird.”

“And she's not British, which loses points instantaneously considering she doesn't have the colorful vocabulary, as just exampled by you,” Xander said immediately.

Slowly Spike's lips quirked into a grin. “I've missed you too, Harris.”

“Please,” Xander said, extending his hand with a matching grin. “It's Xander.”

They talked all the way back to the apartment, and more than once Fred found a look of surprise and awe on Spike's face. She made a mental note to ask why later and continued her conversation with Buffy and Xander. Xander was as sharp as he was funny, and she found herself giggling for the first time in days.

“Now this is a nice place to be,” Xander said as they opened the apartment door. “Very nice indeed. This had to have cost you guys a small fortune. Believe me; I've worked construction around this area. Costs of living are high.”

“It was, but it was worth it,” Spike said, closing the door behind them. “Not too high up, not too low down; fair distance from Wolfram and Hart, but not enough that it takes forever...it's a good spot.”

“And the kitchen's well stocked,” Buffy announced, grinning at Spike and heading for the aforementioned place. “Lots of chocolate. And the phone works miracles when dialing pizza.”

“Most phones are miraculous like that, Buff,” Xander said, giving her a fond grin. “But if you know the magic number around here, then we're even better off. What is the magic number, Spike?” he asked, turning to the blonde. “I'll dial and set up an order, since I figure we need to have an honest to goodness research and talk night.”

Spike blinked again, then told him the number. Now Fred was really curious as to what was going on. “Can you help me with something?” she asked, heading for the bathroom.

Out of habit, she glanced in the mirror, only to see nothing. She gave the mirror a look and tried to imagine what her hair would look like, tucking away the stray strands she knew would be hanging out. “If you're wonderin' about the hair, luv, it's just fine,” Spike said, sounding amused as he closed the door behind them.

“I'm not Narcissus or anything by a long stretch, but...I wouldn't mind being able to see myself every now and then,” she admitted. “I'm a girl; it's what we do.”

“Bet Willow could cook somethin' up for us,” he said. “Magicked mirror ought to do the trick. I wouldn't mind knowing what my own hair looks like.”

“Bright,” Fred answered immediately, and she giggled when he gave her a look. “But in all seriousness, I didn't call you in here to help with my hair. What's up with Xander? You've been...surprised the entire time he's been here. I know you weren't expecting to see him, but...”

Spike sighed. “He and I didn't get along very well back in Sunnyhell,” he replied quietly. “Just a lot of bad memories between us. We had a sort of brothers in arms thing for the last few months before it all fell down around us, but before that...it'd be safe to say that we hated each other's guts. So I'm a little surprised, to say the least, that he's actually talkin' to me like he is.”

Fred's face softened, before she stepped forward and reached a hand up to cup his cheek. “People can change,” she said just as quietly. “Maybe he realized what a good man you were when he thought you were gone. Maybe he's taking the chance now to get to know that good man that I know you are. He looks like a smart guy, which means he had to have realized it.”

He leaned into her touch, and she saw the look of awe again, but this time, it was aimed at her. “I don't know what I did to deserve you,” he whispered.

What was a girl supposed to say to that? “I love you,” she replied, and hoped that everything she felt could come out of that simple phrase. That she didn't know how she'd been so lucky to have stumbled on his doorstep a few short weeks before. That she didn't understand why he believed everyone hated him, when no one could help but adore him. How he was her everything, and she needed him just as much as he needed her.

“I know,” he said, pulling her close, and she knew he'd heard it all. “I love you, too.”

A knock at the door made Spike groan and her giggle again. “Yes?” she called.

“Unless you guys are doing unmentionable things, could I possibly have the bathroom?” Buffy asked, her voice muffled from the door. “Still human here.”

Spike reached back and opened the door to a red-cheeked Buffy. “We were just dealing with my hair,” Fred said, glancing again at the mirror. She couldn't help the pout at not seeing herself, and felt Spike's chuckle before she heard it.

“Willow can magic something,” Buffy told her. “That's no problem.”

Spike led Fred out of the room, before Buffy darted inside, slamming the door shut. “What type of things do you like on your pizza?” Xander called, phone in hand. “I know Spike's usual, unless that's changed, and I have no clue whatsoever what you might want, Fred.”

“Spicy,” she answered immediately. “They have a spicy pepperoni that's delicious.”

“I'm with her,” Spike said. “It's good, Har-Xander,” he corrected at the last minute.

Xander grinned. “Spicy pepperoni it is. Think I'll put some on the other pizza, too, because that does sound good.”

Fred glanced up at Spike, taking his hand and squeezing it. He returned the glance and squeezed back, before stepping forward to talk to Xander.

Fred took a seat on the sofa and watched and smiled. A lot.

“Like you need more Pepsi.”

“Of course we do! My mouth feels all dry from not enough Pepsi to wash the pizza down with,” Fred told him matter of factly. She narrowly avoided stepping in a small hole in the sidewalk, then quickly darted ahead two steps to make up for it.

Spike rolled his eyes but gave her an affectionate grin. “We needed other things as well; I'm sure Xander and Buffy can house-sit fairly well.”

“You mean if they don't do something unmentionable, like she thought we were doing,” Fred said with a wicked grin, before laughing at the thought and hurrying forward. What was she on? What was her demon on?

Oh yeah. The sense of finally getting things together and being okay. That's what it was. Her demon felt secure, and the returning feeling was one of giddiness.

She glanced back at Spike, only to find his jaw dropped. “Why the hell would you say that?” he asked, blinking in shock. “They're....?”

Fred stopped and looked just as shocked as he did. “You haven't noticed? Spike, Xander's the guy Buffy was talking about. Didn't you see the way she ran for him when she saw him? The fond smile he gave her at the apartment? The glances between them over pizza?”

Spike blinked again. And again. Fred stepped back towards him, taking his hand and leading him along the sidewalk. “You'll get used to it,” she promised him. “They're not that bad a couple.”

“No, it's just...different, is all,” he said, still sounding shocked. “Not bad different, just different.”

Fred grinned. “You'll get used to it,” she said again, then frowned, before whipping her head around. She thought she'd heard something from the alley in front of them.

Then Spike shouted, and she turned in time to find something long and hard coming down on her. It hit her on the top of her skull and she fell, black spots crowding out the rest of her vision. She could barely make out Spike fighting something as her vision blacked out further. She felt something grab her arms, but found that she couldn't struggle at all. Spike moved further away, before she blacked out completely.

When she came to, it was to a room that was a dark blood red surrounding her. She pushed herself up from the cold tile floor, wincing at her head. “Ow,” she mumbled, reaching up to touch it. She could feel dried blood, but since her vision wasn't shorting out and moving didn't hurt too much, she ignored it for the bigger question of where she was.

It was only then she noticed the figure at the other end of the room, and she was beginning to wish her vision was gone, so she didn't have to really see him. A gnarled old red demon stood in front of her on an IV machine. He looked almost like a corpse that had started to decay and had turned dark red instead, and his yellow eyes haunted her. “Who are you?” she asked, pushing herself to her knees in an attempt to stand.

The demon looked amused at best. “I don't understand how they thought you were a threat,” he said, raising his eyebrow at her. His voice sounded raspy and rough, as if he wasn't used to talking. “You're nothing but a little girl.”

“Where's Spike?” she demanded, slowly standing. Things got a little dizzy for a moment, but she pushed it away. She had more pressing matters right now.

The demon simply smiled. “My name is Cyvus Vail. I'm a member of the Black Thorn.”

Her eyes widened as she glanced around the room for an exit. The only one she could see were two big wooden doors, and she could hear the heartbeats of two guards beyond it. The heartbeats were off, though. Demons, then.

She turned back to Vail, who was still smiling. “You look famished,” he said. “Would you like some blood?”

“Where's Spike?” she asked again. “What did you do to him?”

A deep chuckle was her only answer. “My last offer for blood,” he asked, his hand grasping the metal pole that held the IV bags. “Yes, or no?”

“No,” she responded hollowly. She wasn't drinking anything that came from him.

And she wasn't going to be able to drink anything unless she knew Spike was all right. Her demon was howling now, setting all her nerves on edge, and her own heart seemed to flutter in her chest in fear.

“You can't say I didn't offer,” Vail told her, before fading out. She watched as he disappeared completely, leaving her in the plush but empty room. Her prison room.

She lowered herself to the floor, pulling her knees to her and resting her aching head on them. There was really nothing else she could do right now.

Besides worry about Spike.

< --- >

MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! *is evol and proud of it*

*ducks and dodges the tomatoes*

~Nebula

Her Saving Grace, 20/25, Spike/Fred, R

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