Broken, Part Eight
Apr. 30th, 2006 07:08 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
girlpireTitle: Broken, Part Eight: Orbs of Day
Author: girlpire
Rating: I'm calling it NC17.
Pairing: Fred/Angelus
Disclaimer: This story is based on the "Angel" and "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" series, with which I am not affiliated in any way. Joss Whedon is my master, etc.
Distribution: Please no. kthnxbye. :)
Summary: Fred deals with the consequences of her decision to release Angelus from his cage.
Warnings: Well, it's kind of dark. There's some hitting and other sorts of abuse. I mean, it's Angelus, right?
Author's Notes: This WIP takes place during season four of "Angel" and season seven of "Buffy." All art, awards, and previous chapters can be found in this post.
wonderful story art by the mods of![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-community.gif)
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*
With zealous step he climbs the upland lawn,
And bows in homage to the rising dawn;
Imbibes with eagle eye the golden ray,
And watches, as it moves, the orb of day.
-Erasmus Darwin
*
Fred chewed slowly. She was sitting cross-legged on the bed with the sheet pulled up high and clamped beneath her arms to cover her nakedness, a styrofoam bowl of cereal balanced in her lap. Her ass was still throbbing and sore from the spanking, and she shifted uncomfortably, wincing at the pain that shot through her backside with the movement.
On the opposite bed, the blond boy, who was no doubt in worse condition than she was, sat slowly eating his cereal as well, the spoon occasionally missing his mouth as he stared wide-eyed at Angelus. He looked very pale. His hair was mussed, and he had fang marks in his neck. Fred couldn't tell how well they were healing because of the crust of dried blood surrounding them. He needed a shower. Badly.
Angelus sat at the desk sipping a cup of hotel coffee. The smell of it reminded Fred of slow mornings at the Hyperion, when she and Wesley would sit browsing through Angel's collection of old books while Cordy flipped through a magazine and Charles alternately polished weapons and practiced swishing them through the air. Angel was usually still asleep then. Right now, he was staring silently back at the boy with a calculating look on his face. Some cereal slipped off of the boy's spoon into his lap.
"You're supposed to eat it, not wear it," Angelus said irritably. Fred wondered if he were still angry with her. She was still angry with him and it was confusing, hating him and at the same time wanting desperately to crawl into his lap and bury her face in his neck.
"Sorry," the boy apologized, quickly grabbing a napkin to clean up the mess. More of his cereal sloshed out onto the bed.
Fred watched him. Poor kid. She knew he must be nervous, having been nearly killed by a monster and then waking up a couple of days later locked in the same monster's closet, then hearing the sounds of a beating while lying hungry on the floor and wondering what was going to happen to him. Then, oddly enough, being let out of the closet and offered a bowl of Total.
According to Angelus, Total was the least expensive cereal that had a significant amount of the nutrients appropriate for a person who had lost a lot of blood. That, along with disposable bowls and silverware, had been in the other bag Angelus brought home from the store. Fred thought the boy looked as though he'd prefer Cocoa Puffs, but he sat there eating the bland flakes anyway. That's what you do when a vampire shoves a bowl of cereal into your hands and says, "Eat this or die slowly."
"What's your name?" Fred quietly asked the boy.
He glanced up at her as though he'd forgotten she was there. "Andrew," he said.
"Wells?" asked Angelus.
The boy nodded, still dabbing at the bedspread with his napkin.
Angelus turned to Fred with a smirk. "I was right," he said. "Tucker's brother."
"I don't know Tucker," she said.
The boy looked up at her, surprised. "He sent the hellhounds to the prom," he explained, as if that would mean something to her.
"She wasn't here for prom," Angelus told him.
"Oh." There was a pause, and then the boy added a little smugly, "I summoned flying monkeys to the school play." Neither Angelus nor Fred said anything. "It... wasn't as scary as this," he confessed after a moment.
"Why would you do something like that?" Fred asked.
"I used to be an arch villain," the boy said, accidentally tipping his cereal again. "Don't worry, though, I'm completely reformed." Fred watched him mop up the spilled milk.
"I can assure you, we weren't worried," Angelus said dryly.
"So, um, are you going to eat me?" Andrew asked. "Have seconds, I mean." He scratched at his neck. "I bet I don't taste very good, so I wouldn't blame you if you didn't. And, FYI, I would make a horrible ritual sacrifice. I would scream and... and wiggle..."
"I haven't decided what I'll do with you yet," Angelus said, glancing over the boy with an appraising eye.
The boy swallowed. "Why me?" he asked. "Why did you... you know, pick me?"
Fred remembered asking Angelus the same question. "You smelled like a girl," she told him.
"Ah." He nodded. "I use coconut facial scrub from Bath and Body Works. It does wonders for your skin." Off Angelus' look, he added, "Don't judge me."
"It wasn't your facial scrub," Angelus informed him. "You smell like the witch, Willow Rosenburg."
"So that's who's been using my shampoo," said Andrew. "When you live with a bunch of girls, you can never really tell which one is using what products... but they all smell really good, so I haven't said anything --"
"You smell like her because she used magic on you at some point," Angelus interrupted. "The magicks leave a mark, change your signature scent. And you live with her?"
"Well, we both live with Buffy. I didn't know that, about spell smells." He lifted the front of his shirt to his face and sniffed, then wrinkled his nose. "Would you say it's kind of tomatoey, or is that because I made spaghetti wearing this outfit?"
"You live with the Slayer?" Angelus demanded.
"Yeah. She's like, my best friend. I mean, since my best friend... died..." The boy suddenly got quiet.
"So it's you, the Slayer, the witch, and a bunch of girls? All living together?" prodded Angelus. "Who are the girls?"
"Um, I don't really think I should be talking about it..." the boy said uncertainly. "I mean, you're evil, right? You probably have some kind of nefarious plan, and you're just pumping me for information before you go all Darth Maul on my ass."
Angelus tilted his head. "I don't know you that well, but I'd say that's probably the most astute observation you've ever made."
Andrew blanched visibly. "Well... whatever you're planning, it won't work," he said, inching backwards on the bed a little. "I'm not telling you anything. And Buffy will save me."
"Of course she will," Angelus replied. "She'll save you just the way she did when I bit you the other night. Because she's your best friend and all."
The boy swallowed. "Well, she'll send someone, then. She'll send... Xander. Xander will rescue me!"
Fred had only seen Angel giggle once before. She and Cordelia had cornered him, determined to find out whether or not he were ticklish. As it turns out, he was, though the two girls came very close to losing their jobs that day. So a giggling Angelus wasn't exactly unprecedented, but it was certainly unexpected.
"Xander?" he chortled. "Xander's going to save you?" He turned a broad grin to Fred. "You'd really have to know this guy to get how funny that is." Then he turned back to the boy and added, "What ever will I do? How can I possibly stand up to the mighty Xander?"
The vampire jumped up suddenly and began pacing. "Gosh, we'll have to go into hiding!" he exclaimed. "Quick, Fred, pack our things! Xander's coming to get us!" He threw her another highly amused glance, immediately feigning horror when he took in her appearance. "And for God's sake, woman, put on some clothes! What if the great and powerful Xander shows up and finds you naked?"
Fred blinked. "Wha...?" she started.
"And you!" Angelus suddenly pointed at Andrew, who shrank back against the headboard of the bed. "I can see I was too hasty when I decided to keep you. I had no idea what type of danger I was getting myself into." Then he sighed heavily, as if he had just come to an extremely difficult decision. "Very well, you may go," he said, gesturing to the door. "I can't risk having Xander show up here looking for you."
After a short silence, Andrew, without taking his eyes off the vampire, whispered to Fred out of the corner of his mouth, "Is he being serious?"
Fred also continued to stare at Angelus. "I can't tell," she whispered back.
"I'm perfectly serious," Angelus informed them. "Go on, out with you." He gestured toward the door again.
Andrew slowly set down his bowl and slid toward the edge of the bed, still watching Angelus. He got to his feet a little shakily and took a step towards the door. The vampire regarded the boy calmly, making no move to stop him. Fred glanced back and forth between the two.
"Well, it was nice meeting you," the boy said with a nervous smile. "I guess I'll just be going, then." He backed a few more steps toward the door, then suddenly turned and ran for it, throwing it open wide and pulling it closed behind him with a slam.
As soon as the door shut, Angelus chuckled, shaking his head.
"You're really just letting him go?" Fred asked.
"Sure," the vampire said, going to the now unoccupied bed and picking up the styrofoam bowl to throw away. He dropped it in the trash and sat down on the edge of the bed, careful to avoid the damp spot where the cereal had spilled. "It's not like he'll get far anyway."
Fred wasn't sure she wanted to know, but couldn't help asking, "Why?"
"Vampires," he replied easily. "Three of them, in the parking lot. I saw them on my way back. They're probably still hanging around here somewhere." Fred blinked at him. "That's what we do," he explained. "We lurk."
"So you're not letting him go. You're just... just giving him away. To those vampires. To eat." Fred's stomach squirmed inside her. She suddenly felt sick. Poor kid.
"Don't tell me you feel sorry for that guy. You didn't think he was annoying?" Angelus looked at her as though she were crazy.
"Well, sure, I mean... okay he was, but is that really a reason to have him, you know, killed?"
He blinked at her. "Uh, yes?"
Fred looked away. She was starting to feel like she might vomit.
"I'm a vampire," Angelus reminded her. "To me, humans don't need a reason to die. They need a reason for me to let them live."
She didn't say anything. Somewhere beyond her shock at the idea of a boy she sort of knew bleeding to death in a hotel parking lot, a little part of her wondered what reason Angelus had for not killing her as well.
"Do you realize how much it would inconvenience me to keep another human?" Angelus went on. "Especially a male. They eat more, you know."
Yes, Fred thought bitterly. How inconvenient for a person to need to eat.
"It's useful to know more about the witch's living arrangements, but I really don't think he had anything else to contribute. Not anything worth the effort of interrogation, anyway. Although, I haven't had a chance to deliver a really good torture session lately," the vampire mused. He glanced at Fred's forgotten cereal bowl. "There's more cereal if you want some before we go out," he said.
Fred swallowed thickly and set the bowl far away from her on the bed. "I'm not hungry," she said quietly.
Angelus frowned at her. "I did have something kind of fun planned," he said, "but if you're going to sulk, maybe we should just skip it."
Fred didn't look at him.
"You know, guilt trips don't work on the soulless," Angelus pointed out after a moment. Another moment later, he made a sound like a frustrated sigh. "What reason could I possibly have for keeping the boy alive?" he wanted to know.
Fred thought. Just that the boy didn't deserve to die wouldn't be a good enough reason for Angelus to keep him alive. In fact, she couldn't think of any reason that he would accept. The only response she could come up with at all was, "Because I wanted you to." Her eyes finally met his, and she saw his jaw clench.
"Well," he said icily, "you know how much that means to me."
*
Angelus lay on his back on one of the beds, his feet still resting on the floor and his hands behind his head as he waited for Fred to get dressed. He seemed sullen to her, almost as though he were brooding, which was odd to Fred, since she'd always considered brooding a very Angel thing to do and hadn't expected Angelus to partake in such an activity. She moved slowly, her backside aching as she pulled on her skirt. When she turned around, she thought she saw him watching her, but his eyes quickly shifted away, and he continued to lie there, silent and looking irritable. She didn't anticipate having much fun tonight, whatever he had planned.
She pulled on her tank top and then stooped to fasten her sandals. When she stood back up, he was sitting up and looking at her again.
"You should wear my coat," he said gruffly. "It's cold."
Right, she thought. Wouldn't want to inconvenience you by getting sick. She said nothing though, only slipped into the long black coat when he came over and held it out for her. He settled the coat over her shoulders and slipped his hands beneath her hair, pulling it free so that it flowed over the collar and down her back. The back of her neck tingled where his knuckles brushed against her skin.
Angelus let his fingers slide through her long locks once, then walked over to the closet and took down a bag from the top shelf. Fred could hear things clinking inside it. She recognized the bag from their shopping trip the night before, but she still didn't know what it contained.
Without another glance at her, Angelus took the bag to the door and went outside, leaving it open for her to follow him. She trailed after, shutting the door behind herself and slipping her hands inside the coat pockets, hugging it close to her skimpily clad body. Her fingers closed around something soft in the right pocket. She paused just outside their hotel room and pulled it out.
It was Angelus' handkerchief. She wouldn't have found it odd that he had his handkerchief in his coat pocket, except that this one had dark spots of blood dried on it. Hers. He'd used it to catch the blood from her cheek when she'd cut herself by accident, and then later he'd used it to wipe away her tears. She'd figured the bloodstains had ruined it, that he would just throw it away, but here it was. Maybe he just hadn't thought about it again. But then, he hadn't been wearing his coat last night, and now it was in his coat pocket. He had to have moved it, so why hadn't he thrown it out?
"Fred."
She glanced up. Angelus was standing several feet away with his arms crossed. She shoved the hanky back in the pocket of the coat and started walking again. He turned and also began to walk.
Fred thought that maybe this time they would use the car, but Angelus headed off in a different direction again tonight. She followed him through the parking lot, keeping an eye out for Andrew's body. She didn't see any sign of him or the other vampires that had been around, but she quickened her pace to catch up to Angelus anyway. If she were going to die via demon teeth, they would be his.
Just as she caught up, Angelus stopped walking and turned his head to the left. Fred watched him glare into the shadows beside the hotel for a moment before he emitted a low growl and reached for her hand, sliding his cool fingers in between hers and squeezing tight. She gritted her teeth to keep from wincing at his grip as he crushed her hand in his. She could see nothing in the shadows Angelus was growling at. He seemed to relax fractionally after a moment, then started walking again, pulling her along by the hand.
"What was that?" she asked.
He looked at her briefly, then looked away again. "Just one of the vamps from earlier."
He seemed... twitchy. Fred thought it strange that he would give more than a passing thought to just any old vampire, but she didn't say anything. If he were lying, it was his business. He didn't let go of her hand, though.
They continued walking, going the opposite direction from where they'd gone the night before, and she was relieved that they probably wouldn't be stopping at the Fishtank. As they walked, she looked around at the other people who were out, some of them also holding hands. It occurred to her that anyone seeing them together would just assume they were a normal couple, out for an evening stroll, or going for ice cream, or something. She peered closely at a nearby man and woman. How many of these people were also vampires?
Fred decided that being on a Hellmouth was pretty creepy, if you let yourself think about it for very long.
She felt the tension suddenly leave Angelus' arm as he relaxed his grip on her. He held her hand loosely in his, giving her a quick glance and then looking forward again. "I could use a drink," he said quietly. Fred's stomach sank a little bit. "Not blood," Angelus clarified. "Whiskey." He glanced at her again. "How about you?"
"I could drink something," Fred confirmed.
"Good." He smiled briefly. "Tonight we'll celebrate."
"Celebrate what?" asked Fred.
"You'll see."
After another block or so, they approached a bar. It was a seedy little place with a flickering neon sign and bars on the windows. It was nearly empty inside; apart from the bartender, there were only three other people around, all sitting far away from each other, staring forlornly into their dirty glasses while a country singer wailed on an old jukebox.
"Well, this is depressing," Fred murmured as they stepped inside onto the concrete floor.
"We're not staying," Angelus told her. He dropped her hand and walked up to the bar, conversing quickly with the bartender, who looked rather surprised to see him. Fred saw Angelus exchange a few bills for a bottle of whiskey, which the bartender had to dig out from under the counter. The transaction made both men smile. They spoke for a moment more, then shook hands, and Angelus took the bottle and came back to Fred. "Let's go," he said.
Angelus now carried the bottle and his bag from the magic shops, so he didn't take Fred's hand again as they left. She tried not to be disappointed. They began to walk again, heading further away from the middle of town and more towards the neighborhoods and schools.
"What's your favorite sport, Fred?" Angelus asked her out of nowhere.
She blinked, startled. "I don't really follow sports," she told him. "But I guess I like football. And basketball."
He nodded thoughtfully. They turned down a smaller street.
"How do you feel about baseball?" he asked her.
She had no idea where this conversation was heading. "It's okay, I guess."
"You ever been to a pro baseball game?"
"No," she said.
"Me either. For some reason, they're all scheduled for sunny afternoons. Not really fair, is it?"
Fred didn't say anything. They turned down another street and continued on.
"That's why I like hockey," Angelus continued. "Mostly night games. Usually indoors, too. But you still have a bunch of guys hitting little things with big sticks."
"Oh," said Fred. "So the big sticks make it fun?"
Angelus smirked. "Everything's more interesting when you have a weapon."
Fred was considering this when they came to a large field with a fence around it. Angelus stepped off the sidewalk, cutting across the grass toward the fence, and Fred followed. There weren't many streetlights around here, but the moon was fairly bright, and even from this far away, she could make out two sets of bleachers on the other side of the field and a mound of dirt at its center.
When they got to the fence, Angelus didn't even pause. He leapt lightly over it, then turned to watch Fred. She stopped.
"Come on," he said.
The fence came up to her chest. She took hold of the cold metal bar running across the top of it, stuck the toe of her sandal in one of the links, and stepped up to the bar, then dropped down to her feet on the other side. She dusted her hands off against each other.
"You've done that before," Angelus commented.
"Not in these shoes." Fred could feel the damp grass poking at her toes through the sandals.
He looked down at her feet and nodded. "We'll get you something else. And some warmer clothes. I'm tired of my coat smelling like you." Then he turned and kept walking.
The field was obviously a baseball diamond, although Fred could see that the bases weren't in place. The grass was overgrown and the whole place looked generally unkempt, but then it was the off season. In a few months, there would be teenage boys on the field and parents and little kids eating boiled peanuts in the bleachers. She followed Angelus across the outfield to the dugout on the first base line. He sat on the wooden bench and indicated with a nod that she should sit next to him.
She sat and watched as he opened the bottle of whiskey and held it under his nose, breathing deeply. He smiled. "That's the stuff," he murmured. He tilted the bottle up to his mouth and took a large swallow, then sighed pleasantly. He held it out to Fred.
Fred took it tentatively and looked at the label. Judging from the place Angelus had gotten it, she didn't expect it to be very good quality. She had never heard of the brand before.
"Just try it," Angelus said. "I knew Collin before I moved to L.A. He gets this stuff special, straight from Ireland. None better."
What the hell, Fred thought. She tilted the bottle up and took a deep swallow of the golden liquid. It tasted spicy and kind of burned her throat. She started coughing. Angelus took the bottle away.
"Good, eh?" He took another drink from the bottle, then licked his lips.
She nodded. Her eyes watered a bit. He passed her the bottle again and she took another sip, then passed it back, feeling the warmth of the alcohol traveling to her fingers and toes.
Angelus drank more and then tapped the name on the label. "I met this guy once," he said. "The man knew his whiskey." He took another swallow. Then he stared at the name for a moment. "He died nearly two hundred years ago." He suddenly turned to Fred. "Do I seem that old to you?" he asked.
She shook her head.
"I don't feel that old," he said, handing her the bottle. She drank, passed it back. They sat quietly for a moment, and he drank some more.
Fred stared out of the dugout and over the baseball field. The moonlight glinted off the damp grass, making the whole park look white. She could see the path of their footsteps, where the grass was its regular green color. When she exhaled, her breath hung in the air in front of her face, and she watched the stillness of the park through it. She accepted the bottle from Angelus and took another couple of sips, afterwards passing it back.
Fred wasn't much of a drinker. The last time she'd actually gotten drunk was in college, sitting in the back of Matthew Partney's pickup truck at a bonfire in the field out behind the old Dairy Queen in Lubbock, Texas. She wondered what Matt was doing right this very second.
Angelus looked out over the field as well. The grass sparkled. Fred realized sadly that he wouldn't be able to see the effect of the field through a cloud of breath, and she wanted to breathe in front of his face so he could see it, but she didn't. That she wanted to breathe in front of a vampire's face alerted her to the fact that she was becoming intoxicated. That was fast. Came from being so thin, damn it. And she'd eaten very little.
"I think I'm getting drunk," Fred murmured.
"You're not getting drunk," Angelus said. He handed her the bottle again.
"Yes I am," Fred said, taking another swallow. She handed it back.
"Maybe you are," Angelus conceded. He drank some more. A lot more. He continued to stare out across the field. "You know, that's really pretty," he said, gesturing at it. "With the moon and the grass."
"I think it's pretty," Fred agreed, taking the bottle again.
Angelus watched her drink. "It's the... what do you call it? Dew. It's the dew on the grass."
Fred nodded. "It's the dew."
"That only happens at night," Angelus informed her, taking the bottle back.
"I know," said Fred. "I'm a scientist. I study things like dew."
"My point is," said Angelus, "there are some things that are only beautiful at night. People don't think about that."
"I think about it," she said.
"No you don't."
Fred thought about it. "You're right, I don't really."
Angelus nodded. "People should think about that." He took another large swallow and continued, "Daytime is overrated. The sun. All that. It's overrated."
Fred thought about it some more.
"They go around scheduling everything according to sunlight," he said, "and they miss out on the dew. That's what I'm saying." He handed her the bottle. "You know?"
Fred nodded. She took a very small sip. There wasn't much left.
"And the moon," Angelus added. He took the bottle from her and held it up, looking at the moon distorted through the glass. "I mean, who would really want to be human?" he asked the bottle. "You miss so many things."
"But don't you miss things too?" Fred asked.
"No!" said Angelus. "That's what I'm saying. I've been human, and I've been me, and I think humans miss more. They just don't know it because they haven't been... you know, me."
"Angel has been you," Fred pointed out. "And he misses the sun."
"No, he doesn't." Angelus drank the last of the whiskey. "I don't." He dropped the bottle on the ground and then turned to Fred, leaning close. "That's what we're celebrating," he whispered. Then he smiled really big, and it was such a rare sight that Fred couldn't help smiling back at him, although she really didn't understand what he meant.
"Come on," Angelus said, standing. He picked up his bag and looked around briefly, then found an old wooden bat lying beneath the bench. He stooped to grab it and then left the dugout, heading to the place where home plate would have been. Fred stumbled along after him, feeling lightheaded, trying not to trip all over the long coat she was wearing.
He stopped in more or less the correct place and reached into the bag, pulling out a glass ball. Then he dropped the bag at his feet, another glass ball rolling out. He hefted the bat onto his shoulder. "Watch this!" he called to Fred, who had sat down on the grass several feet away to keep from falling. As she watched, Angelus threw the ball high up into the air. When it came back down, he hit it hard with the baseball bat, shattering the glass into lots of tiny pieces.
"Holy shit, did you see that?" he called to her excitedly. He shook his head, a few glittery shards falling out of his hair. He laughed.
"I saw it," Fred called.
Angelus picked up another glass ball and did the same thing, only this time he took a quick step back as the glass shattered, so the pieces wouldn't fall on him.
Fred clapped her hands. Angelus smiled and took a bow in her direction. She giggled. He grinned and got another glass ball from the bag.
"What are those things?" she asked.
Angelus threw the ball up into the air. "Paperweights!" he called, smashing it with the bat. The tiny explosion of glass with the moonlight shining off of it looked like a firework in the dark.
"They sure are purdy," Fred said.
Angelus smashed another one. "You want to try?" he asked her. She nodded, and he held out a hand for her to come forward. She got to her feet a little unsteadily and walked toward him. He handed her the bat. "Think you can hit it?" She nodded again.
Angelus threw the ball up in the air and stepped back. They both watched it fall back down. It hit the dirt and rolled a little bit.
"You need to swing the bat," Angelus said.
"Right, sorry," she giggled.
He threw the ball up again and stepped back. Fred immediately swung the bat in a wide arc, the momentum carrying her all the way around in a circle. She stumbled a little, and the ball landed at her feet. She looked at it.
"Too early," Angelus said, laughing. "You'd never make it in the big leagues."
"I told you, I'm a little bit intoxi... drunk," Fred said.
"I can see that. Want to try again?" Fred nodded, and he retrieved the glass ball. "I'll tell you when to swing, alright?" She nodded again, and he threw the ball up, stepping back. It began to fall back down. She watched it. "Now!" said Angelus.
Fred closed her eyes and swung the bat as hard as she could. The impact jarred her shoulder. When she opened them again, Angelus was looking down the third base line. He jogged down that way and picked something up, then brought it back. He held it out for her to see.
The solid glass ball had a large crack running through the middle, leading up from the point of impact. Several smaller cracks branched off through the glass, but it still held together.
"Didn't hit it hard enough," he said.
Fred thought it looked like a white tree inside of a bubble. It was very pretty. "Can I keep it?"
"Sure," he said, dropping it in her hand. "Won't work now anyway."
Fred caught it. It was a lot heavier than she expected. "You mean it won't weight paper now?" she asked.
Angelus smiled. "That's right, Fred," he told her. "Never again."
*
Interlude: Not the Same
Author: girlpire
Rating: I'm calling it NC17.
Pairing: Fred/Angelus
Disclaimer: This story is based on the "Angel" and "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" series, with which I am not affiliated in any way. Joss Whedon is my master, etc.
Distribution: Please no. kthnxbye. :)
Summary: Fred deals with the consequences of her decision to release Angelus from his cage.
Warnings: Well, it's kind of dark. There's some hitting and other sorts of abuse. I mean, it's Angelus, right?
Author's Notes: This WIP takes place during season four of "Angel" and season seven of "Buffy." All art, awards, and previous chapters can be found in this post.
wonderful story art by the mods of
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And bows in homage to the rising dawn;
Imbibes with eagle eye the golden ray,
And watches, as it moves, the orb of day.
-Erasmus Darwin
*
Fred chewed slowly. She was sitting cross-legged on the bed with the sheet pulled up high and clamped beneath her arms to cover her nakedness, a styrofoam bowl of cereal balanced in her lap. Her ass was still throbbing and sore from the spanking, and she shifted uncomfortably, wincing at the pain that shot through her backside with the movement.
On the opposite bed, the blond boy, who was no doubt in worse condition than she was, sat slowly eating his cereal as well, the spoon occasionally missing his mouth as he stared wide-eyed at Angelus. He looked very pale. His hair was mussed, and he had fang marks in his neck. Fred couldn't tell how well they were healing because of the crust of dried blood surrounding them. He needed a shower. Badly.
Angelus sat at the desk sipping a cup of hotel coffee. The smell of it reminded Fred of slow mornings at the Hyperion, when she and Wesley would sit browsing through Angel's collection of old books while Cordy flipped through a magazine and Charles alternately polished weapons and practiced swishing them through the air. Angel was usually still asleep then. Right now, he was staring silently back at the boy with a calculating look on his face. Some cereal slipped off of the boy's spoon into his lap.
"You're supposed to eat it, not wear it," Angelus said irritably. Fred wondered if he were still angry with her. She was still angry with him and it was confusing, hating him and at the same time wanting desperately to crawl into his lap and bury her face in his neck.
"Sorry," the boy apologized, quickly grabbing a napkin to clean up the mess. More of his cereal sloshed out onto the bed.
Fred watched him. Poor kid. She knew he must be nervous, having been nearly killed by a monster and then waking up a couple of days later locked in the same monster's closet, then hearing the sounds of a beating while lying hungry on the floor and wondering what was going to happen to him. Then, oddly enough, being let out of the closet and offered a bowl of Total.
According to Angelus, Total was the least expensive cereal that had a significant amount of the nutrients appropriate for a person who had lost a lot of blood. That, along with disposable bowls and silverware, had been in the other bag Angelus brought home from the store. Fred thought the boy looked as though he'd prefer Cocoa Puffs, but he sat there eating the bland flakes anyway. That's what you do when a vampire shoves a bowl of cereal into your hands and says, "Eat this or die slowly."
"What's your name?" Fred quietly asked the boy.
He glanced up at her as though he'd forgotten she was there. "Andrew," he said.
"Wells?" asked Angelus.
The boy nodded, still dabbing at the bedspread with his napkin.
Angelus turned to Fred with a smirk. "I was right," he said. "Tucker's brother."
"I don't know Tucker," she said.
The boy looked up at her, surprised. "He sent the hellhounds to the prom," he explained, as if that would mean something to her.
"She wasn't here for prom," Angelus told him.
"Oh." There was a pause, and then the boy added a little smugly, "I summoned flying monkeys to the school play." Neither Angelus nor Fred said anything. "It... wasn't as scary as this," he confessed after a moment.
"Why would you do something like that?" Fred asked.
"I used to be an arch villain," the boy said, accidentally tipping his cereal again. "Don't worry, though, I'm completely reformed." Fred watched him mop up the spilled milk.
"I can assure you, we weren't worried," Angelus said dryly.
"So, um, are you going to eat me?" Andrew asked. "Have seconds, I mean." He scratched at his neck. "I bet I don't taste very good, so I wouldn't blame you if you didn't. And, FYI, I would make a horrible ritual sacrifice. I would scream and... and wiggle..."
"I haven't decided what I'll do with you yet," Angelus said, glancing over the boy with an appraising eye.
The boy swallowed. "Why me?" he asked. "Why did you... you know, pick me?"
Fred remembered asking Angelus the same question. "You smelled like a girl," she told him.
"Ah." He nodded. "I use coconut facial scrub from Bath and Body Works. It does wonders for your skin." Off Angelus' look, he added, "Don't judge me."
"It wasn't your facial scrub," Angelus informed him. "You smell like the witch, Willow Rosenburg."
"So that's who's been using my shampoo," said Andrew. "When you live with a bunch of girls, you can never really tell which one is using what products... but they all smell really good, so I haven't said anything --"
"You smell like her because she used magic on you at some point," Angelus interrupted. "The magicks leave a mark, change your signature scent. And you live with her?"
"Well, we both live with Buffy. I didn't know that, about spell smells." He lifted the front of his shirt to his face and sniffed, then wrinkled his nose. "Would you say it's kind of tomatoey, or is that because I made spaghetti wearing this outfit?"
"You live with the Slayer?" Angelus demanded.
"Yeah. She's like, my best friend. I mean, since my best friend... died..." The boy suddenly got quiet.
"So it's you, the Slayer, the witch, and a bunch of girls? All living together?" prodded Angelus. "Who are the girls?"
"Um, I don't really think I should be talking about it..." the boy said uncertainly. "I mean, you're evil, right? You probably have some kind of nefarious plan, and you're just pumping me for information before you go all Darth Maul on my ass."
Angelus tilted his head. "I don't know you that well, but I'd say that's probably the most astute observation you've ever made."
Andrew blanched visibly. "Well... whatever you're planning, it won't work," he said, inching backwards on the bed a little. "I'm not telling you anything. And Buffy will save me."
"Of course she will," Angelus replied. "She'll save you just the way she did when I bit you the other night. Because she's your best friend and all."
The boy swallowed. "Well, she'll send someone, then. She'll send... Xander. Xander will rescue me!"
Fred had only seen Angel giggle once before. She and Cordelia had cornered him, determined to find out whether or not he were ticklish. As it turns out, he was, though the two girls came very close to losing their jobs that day. So a giggling Angelus wasn't exactly unprecedented, but it was certainly unexpected.
"Xander?" he chortled. "Xander's going to save you?" He turned a broad grin to Fred. "You'd really have to know this guy to get how funny that is." Then he turned back to the boy and added, "What ever will I do? How can I possibly stand up to the mighty Xander?"
The vampire jumped up suddenly and began pacing. "Gosh, we'll have to go into hiding!" he exclaimed. "Quick, Fred, pack our things! Xander's coming to get us!" He threw her another highly amused glance, immediately feigning horror when he took in her appearance. "And for God's sake, woman, put on some clothes! What if the great and powerful Xander shows up and finds you naked?"
Fred blinked. "Wha...?" she started.
"And you!" Angelus suddenly pointed at Andrew, who shrank back against the headboard of the bed. "I can see I was too hasty when I decided to keep you. I had no idea what type of danger I was getting myself into." Then he sighed heavily, as if he had just come to an extremely difficult decision. "Very well, you may go," he said, gesturing to the door. "I can't risk having Xander show up here looking for you."
After a short silence, Andrew, without taking his eyes off the vampire, whispered to Fred out of the corner of his mouth, "Is he being serious?"
Fred also continued to stare at Angelus. "I can't tell," she whispered back.
"I'm perfectly serious," Angelus informed them. "Go on, out with you." He gestured toward the door again.
Andrew slowly set down his bowl and slid toward the edge of the bed, still watching Angelus. He got to his feet a little shakily and took a step towards the door. The vampire regarded the boy calmly, making no move to stop him. Fred glanced back and forth between the two.
"Well, it was nice meeting you," the boy said with a nervous smile. "I guess I'll just be going, then." He backed a few more steps toward the door, then suddenly turned and ran for it, throwing it open wide and pulling it closed behind him with a slam.
As soon as the door shut, Angelus chuckled, shaking his head.
"You're really just letting him go?" Fred asked.
"Sure," the vampire said, going to the now unoccupied bed and picking up the styrofoam bowl to throw away. He dropped it in the trash and sat down on the edge of the bed, careful to avoid the damp spot where the cereal had spilled. "It's not like he'll get far anyway."
Fred wasn't sure she wanted to know, but couldn't help asking, "Why?"
"Vampires," he replied easily. "Three of them, in the parking lot. I saw them on my way back. They're probably still hanging around here somewhere." Fred blinked at him. "That's what we do," he explained. "We lurk."
"So you're not letting him go. You're just... just giving him away. To those vampires. To eat." Fred's stomach squirmed inside her. She suddenly felt sick. Poor kid.
"Don't tell me you feel sorry for that guy. You didn't think he was annoying?" Angelus looked at her as though she were crazy.
"Well, sure, I mean... okay he was, but is that really a reason to have him, you know, killed?"
He blinked at her. "Uh, yes?"
Fred looked away. She was starting to feel like she might vomit.
"I'm a vampire," Angelus reminded her. "To me, humans don't need a reason to die. They need a reason for me to let them live."
She didn't say anything. Somewhere beyond her shock at the idea of a boy she sort of knew bleeding to death in a hotel parking lot, a little part of her wondered what reason Angelus had for not killing her as well.
"Do you realize how much it would inconvenience me to keep another human?" Angelus went on. "Especially a male. They eat more, you know."
Yes, Fred thought bitterly. How inconvenient for a person to need to eat.
"It's useful to know more about the witch's living arrangements, but I really don't think he had anything else to contribute. Not anything worth the effort of interrogation, anyway. Although, I haven't had a chance to deliver a really good torture session lately," the vampire mused. He glanced at Fred's forgotten cereal bowl. "There's more cereal if you want some before we go out," he said.
Fred swallowed thickly and set the bowl far away from her on the bed. "I'm not hungry," she said quietly.
Angelus frowned at her. "I did have something kind of fun planned," he said, "but if you're going to sulk, maybe we should just skip it."
Fred didn't look at him.
"You know, guilt trips don't work on the soulless," Angelus pointed out after a moment. Another moment later, he made a sound like a frustrated sigh. "What reason could I possibly have for keeping the boy alive?" he wanted to know.
Fred thought. Just that the boy didn't deserve to die wouldn't be a good enough reason for Angelus to keep him alive. In fact, she couldn't think of any reason that he would accept. The only response she could come up with at all was, "Because I wanted you to." Her eyes finally met his, and she saw his jaw clench.
"Well," he said icily, "you know how much that means to me."
*
Angelus lay on his back on one of the beds, his feet still resting on the floor and his hands behind his head as he waited for Fred to get dressed. He seemed sullen to her, almost as though he were brooding, which was odd to Fred, since she'd always considered brooding a very Angel thing to do and hadn't expected Angelus to partake in such an activity. She moved slowly, her backside aching as she pulled on her skirt. When she turned around, she thought she saw him watching her, but his eyes quickly shifted away, and he continued to lie there, silent and looking irritable. She didn't anticipate having much fun tonight, whatever he had planned.
She pulled on her tank top and then stooped to fasten her sandals. When she stood back up, he was sitting up and looking at her again.
"You should wear my coat," he said gruffly. "It's cold."
Right, she thought. Wouldn't want to inconvenience you by getting sick. She said nothing though, only slipped into the long black coat when he came over and held it out for her. He settled the coat over her shoulders and slipped his hands beneath her hair, pulling it free so that it flowed over the collar and down her back. The back of her neck tingled where his knuckles brushed against her skin.
Angelus let his fingers slide through her long locks once, then walked over to the closet and took down a bag from the top shelf. Fred could hear things clinking inside it. She recognized the bag from their shopping trip the night before, but she still didn't know what it contained.
Without another glance at her, Angelus took the bag to the door and went outside, leaving it open for her to follow him. She trailed after, shutting the door behind herself and slipping her hands inside the coat pockets, hugging it close to her skimpily clad body. Her fingers closed around something soft in the right pocket. She paused just outside their hotel room and pulled it out.
It was Angelus' handkerchief. She wouldn't have found it odd that he had his handkerchief in his coat pocket, except that this one had dark spots of blood dried on it. Hers. He'd used it to catch the blood from her cheek when she'd cut herself by accident, and then later he'd used it to wipe away her tears. She'd figured the bloodstains had ruined it, that he would just throw it away, but here it was. Maybe he just hadn't thought about it again. But then, he hadn't been wearing his coat last night, and now it was in his coat pocket. He had to have moved it, so why hadn't he thrown it out?
"Fred."
She glanced up. Angelus was standing several feet away with his arms crossed. She shoved the hanky back in the pocket of the coat and started walking again. He turned and also began to walk.
Fred thought that maybe this time they would use the car, but Angelus headed off in a different direction again tonight. She followed him through the parking lot, keeping an eye out for Andrew's body. She didn't see any sign of him or the other vampires that had been around, but she quickened her pace to catch up to Angelus anyway. If she were going to die via demon teeth, they would be his.
Just as she caught up, Angelus stopped walking and turned his head to the left. Fred watched him glare into the shadows beside the hotel for a moment before he emitted a low growl and reached for her hand, sliding his cool fingers in between hers and squeezing tight. She gritted her teeth to keep from wincing at his grip as he crushed her hand in his. She could see nothing in the shadows Angelus was growling at. He seemed to relax fractionally after a moment, then started walking again, pulling her along by the hand.
"What was that?" she asked.
He looked at her briefly, then looked away again. "Just one of the vamps from earlier."
He seemed... twitchy. Fred thought it strange that he would give more than a passing thought to just any old vampire, but she didn't say anything. If he were lying, it was his business. He didn't let go of her hand, though.
They continued walking, going the opposite direction from where they'd gone the night before, and she was relieved that they probably wouldn't be stopping at the Fishtank. As they walked, she looked around at the other people who were out, some of them also holding hands. It occurred to her that anyone seeing them together would just assume they were a normal couple, out for an evening stroll, or going for ice cream, or something. She peered closely at a nearby man and woman. How many of these people were also vampires?
Fred decided that being on a Hellmouth was pretty creepy, if you let yourself think about it for very long.
She felt the tension suddenly leave Angelus' arm as he relaxed his grip on her. He held her hand loosely in his, giving her a quick glance and then looking forward again. "I could use a drink," he said quietly. Fred's stomach sank a little bit. "Not blood," Angelus clarified. "Whiskey." He glanced at her again. "How about you?"
"I could drink something," Fred confirmed.
"Good." He smiled briefly. "Tonight we'll celebrate."
"Celebrate what?" asked Fred.
"You'll see."
After another block or so, they approached a bar. It was a seedy little place with a flickering neon sign and bars on the windows. It was nearly empty inside; apart from the bartender, there were only three other people around, all sitting far away from each other, staring forlornly into their dirty glasses while a country singer wailed on an old jukebox.
"Well, this is depressing," Fred murmured as they stepped inside onto the concrete floor.
"We're not staying," Angelus told her. He dropped her hand and walked up to the bar, conversing quickly with the bartender, who looked rather surprised to see him. Fred saw Angelus exchange a few bills for a bottle of whiskey, which the bartender had to dig out from under the counter. The transaction made both men smile. They spoke for a moment more, then shook hands, and Angelus took the bottle and came back to Fred. "Let's go," he said.
Angelus now carried the bottle and his bag from the magic shops, so he didn't take Fred's hand again as they left. She tried not to be disappointed. They began to walk again, heading further away from the middle of town and more towards the neighborhoods and schools.
"What's your favorite sport, Fred?" Angelus asked her out of nowhere.
She blinked, startled. "I don't really follow sports," she told him. "But I guess I like football. And basketball."
He nodded thoughtfully. They turned down a smaller street.
"How do you feel about baseball?" he asked her.
She had no idea where this conversation was heading. "It's okay, I guess."
"You ever been to a pro baseball game?"
"No," she said.
"Me either. For some reason, they're all scheduled for sunny afternoons. Not really fair, is it?"
Fred didn't say anything. They turned down another street and continued on.
"That's why I like hockey," Angelus continued. "Mostly night games. Usually indoors, too. But you still have a bunch of guys hitting little things with big sticks."
"Oh," said Fred. "So the big sticks make it fun?"
Angelus smirked. "Everything's more interesting when you have a weapon."
Fred was considering this when they came to a large field with a fence around it. Angelus stepped off the sidewalk, cutting across the grass toward the fence, and Fred followed. There weren't many streetlights around here, but the moon was fairly bright, and even from this far away, she could make out two sets of bleachers on the other side of the field and a mound of dirt at its center.
When they got to the fence, Angelus didn't even pause. He leapt lightly over it, then turned to watch Fred. She stopped.
"Come on," he said.
The fence came up to her chest. She took hold of the cold metal bar running across the top of it, stuck the toe of her sandal in one of the links, and stepped up to the bar, then dropped down to her feet on the other side. She dusted her hands off against each other.
"You've done that before," Angelus commented.
"Not in these shoes." Fred could feel the damp grass poking at her toes through the sandals.
He looked down at her feet and nodded. "We'll get you something else. And some warmer clothes. I'm tired of my coat smelling like you." Then he turned and kept walking.
The field was obviously a baseball diamond, although Fred could see that the bases weren't in place. The grass was overgrown and the whole place looked generally unkempt, but then it was the off season. In a few months, there would be teenage boys on the field and parents and little kids eating boiled peanuts in the bleachers. She followed Angelus across the outfield to the dugout on the first base line. He sat on the wooden bench and indicated with a nod that she should sit next to him.
She sat and watched as he opened the bottle of whiskey and held it under his nose, breathing deeply. He smiled. "That's the stuff," he murmured. He tilted the bottle up to his mouth and took a large swallow, then sighed pleasantly. He held it out to Fred.
Fred took it tentatively and looked at the label. Judging from the place Angelus had gotten it, she didn't expect it to be very good quality. She had never heard of the brand before.
"Just try it," Angelus said. "I knew Collin before I moved to L.A. He gets this stuff special, straight from Ireland. None better."
What the hell, Fred thought. She tilted the bottle up and took a deep swallow of the golden liquid. It tasted spicy and kind of burned her throat. She started coughing. Angelus took the bottle away.
"Good, eh?" He took another drink from the bottle, then licked his lips.
She nodded. Her eyes watered a bit. He passed her the bottle again and she took another sip, then passed it back, feeling the warmth of the alcohol traveling to her fingers and toes.
Angelus drank more and then tapped the name on the label. "I met this guy once," he said. "The man knew his whiskey." He took another swallow. Then he stared at the name for a moment. "He died nearly two hundred years ago." He suddenly turned to Fred. "Do I seem that old to you?" he asked.
She shook her head.
"I don't feel that old," he said, handing her the bottle. She drank, passed it back. They sat quietly for a moment, and he drank some more.
Fred stared out of the dugout and over the baseball field. The moonlight glinted off the damp grass, making the whole park look white. She could see the path of their footsteps, where the grass was its regular green color. When she exhaled, her breath hung in the air in front of her face, and she watched the stillness of the park through it. She accepted the bottle from Angelus and took another couple of sips, afterwards passing it back.
Fred wasn't much of a drinker. The last time she'd actually gotten drunk was in college, sitting in the back of Matthew Partney's pickup truck at a bonfire in the field out behind the old Dairy Queen in Lubbock, Texas. She wondered what Matt was doing right this very second.
Angelus looked out over the field as well. The grass sparkled. Fred realized sadly that he wouldn't be able to see the effect of the field through a cloud of breath, and she wanted to breathe in front of his face so he could see it, but she didn't. That she wanted to breathe in front of a vampire's face alerted her to the fact that she was becoming intoxicated. That was fast. Came from being so thin, damn it. And she'd eaten very little.
"I think I'm getting drunk," Fred murmured.
"You're not getting drunk," Angelus said. He handed her the bottle again.
"Yes I am," Fred said, taking another swallow. She handed it back.
"Maybe you are," Angelus conceded. He drank some more. A lot more. He continued to stare out across the field. "You know, that's really pretty," he said, gesturing at it. "With the moon and the grass."
"I think it's pretty," Fred agreed, taking the bottle again.
Angelus watched her drink. "It's the... what do you call it? Dew. It's the dew on the grass."
Fred nodded. "It's the dew."
"That only happens at night," Angelus informed her, taking the bottle back.
"I know," said Fred. "I'm a scientist. I study things like dew."
"My point is," said Angelus, "there are some things that are only beautiful at night. People don't think about that."
"I think about it," she said.
"No you don't."
Fred thought about it. "You're right, I don't really."
Angelus nodded. "People should think about that." He took another large swallow and continued, "Daytime is overrated. The sun. All that. It's overrated."
Fred thought about it some more.
"They go around scheduling everything according to sunlight," he said, "and they miss out on the dew. That's what I'm saying." He handed her the bottle. "You know?"
Fred nodded. She took a very small sip. There wasn't much left.
"And the moon," Angelus added. He took the bottle from her and held it up, looking at the moon distorted through the glass. "I mean, who would really want to be human?" he asked the bottle. "You miss so many things."
"But don't you miss things too?" Fred asked.
"No!" said Angelus. "That's what I'm saying. I've been human, and I've been me, and I think humans miss more. They just don't know it because they haven't been... you know, me."
"Angel has been you," Fred pointed out. "And he misses the sun."
"No, he doesn't." Angelus drank the last of the whiskey. "I don't." He dropped the bottle on the ground and then turned to Fred, leaning close. "That's what we're celebrating," he whispered. Then he smiled really big, and it was such a rare sight that Fred couldn't help smiling back at him, although she really didn't understand what he meant.
"Come on," Angelus said, standing. He picked up his bag and looked around briefly, then found an old wooden bat lying beneath the bench. He stooped to grab it and then left the dugout, heading to the place where home plate would have been. Fred stumbled along after him, feeling lightheaded, trying not to trip all over the long coat she was wearing.
He stopped in more or less the correct place and reached into the bag, pulling out a glass ball. Then he dropped the bag at his feet, another glass ball rolling out. He hefted the bat onto his shoulder. "Watch this!" he called to Fred, who had sat down on the grass several feet away to keep from falling. As she watched, Angelus threw the ball high up into the air. When it came back down, he hit it hard with the baseball bat, shattering the glass into lots of tiny pieces.
"Holy shit, did you see that?" he called to her excitedly. He shook his head, a few glittery shards falling out of his hair. He laughed.
"I saw it," Fred called.
Angelus picked up another glass ball and did the same thing, only this time he took a quick step back as the glass shattered, so the pieces wouldn't fall on him.
Fred clapped her hands. Angelus smiled and took a bow in her direction. She giggled. He grinned and got another glass ball from the bag.
"What are those things?" she asked.
Angelus threw the ball up into the air. "Paperweights!" he called, smashing it with the bat. The tiny explosion of glass with the moonlight shining off of it looked like a firework in the dark.
"They sure are purdy," Fred said.
Angelus smashed another one. "You want to try?" he asked her. She nodded, and he held out a hand for her to come forward. She got to her feet a little unsteadily and walked toward him. He handed her the bat. "Think you can hit it?" She nodded again.
Angelus threw the ball up in the air and stepped back. They both watched it fall back down. It hit the dirt and rolled a little bit.
"You need to swing the bat," Angelus said.
"Right, sorry," she giggled.
He threw the ball up again and stepped back. Fred immediately swung the bat in a wide arc, the momentum carrying her all the way around in a circle. She stumbled a little, and the ball landed at her feet. She looked at it.
"Too early," Angelus said, laughing. "You'd never make it in the big leagues."
"I told you, I'm a little bit intoxi... drunk," Fred said.
"I can see that. Want to try again?" Fred nodded, and he retrieved the glass ball. "I'll tell you when to swing, alright?" She nodded again, and he threw the ball up, stepping back. It began to fall back down. She watched it. "Now!" said Angelus.
Fred closed her eyes and swung the bat as hard as she could. The impact jarred her shoulder. When she opened them again, Angelus was looking down the third base line. He jogged down that way and picked something up, then brought it back. He held it out for her to see.
The solid glass ball had a large crack running through the middle, leading up from the point of impact. Several smaller cracks branched off through the glass, but it still held together.
"Didn't hit it hard enough," he said.
Fred thought it looked like a white tree inside of a bubble. It was very pretty. "Can I keep it?"
"Sure," he said, dropping it in her hand. "Won't work now anyway."
Fred caught it. It was a lot heavier than she expected. "You mean it won't weight paper now?" she asked.
Angelus smiled. "That's right, Fred," he told her. "Never again."
*
Interlude: Not the Same
![[identity profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/openid.png){kind=small}
no subject
Date: 2006-04-30 11:48 pm (UTC)Great update. I love the tension between Fred and Angelus. I was surprised that Andrew didn't say that Spike would save him -- then remembered that Spike had attacked him at that point in S7 BtVS.
no subject
Date: 2006-05-01 12:00 am (UTC)i really ought to rewatch season seven of buffy before i write more of this story, to make sure i have the timeline right... i didn't actually remember that spike had attacked andrew by this point, but i didn't want angelus to know yet that spike had a soul. but the blond vampire will definitely be making an appearance later on. :)
no subject
Date: 2006-05-01 12:44 am (UTC)Andrew's appearance is wonderful and I loved the "astute observation" Andrew made.
I am left wondering if Angelus sensed Spike lurking around the hotel... ?
Really wonderful chapter. I so enjoy your Angelus. Thank you!
no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 01:23 am (UTC)and hee, it wasn't spike lurking around the hotel, but it definitely wasn't just a random old vampire either. all will be revealed in time! *rubs hands together evilly* spike will show up later, but there are still at least three chapters to go before he makes his debut.
*squishes angelus* :D
no subject
Date: 2006-05-01 12:53 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 01:24 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-01 04:10 am (UTC)Andrew was done perfectly. I also thought he might mention Spike, but I was glad he didn't.
So Spike's gonna show his pretty blond head, huh?
no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 01:30 am (UTC)i can guarantee spike's appearance in at least two chapters of this story, although i can't say for sure how long it will be before he shows up. i just couldn't set a story in spike's town without including him. :)
no subject
Date: 2006-05-01 05:21 am (UTC)Seeing a new chapter of this made my weekend.
no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 01:35 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-01 10:54 am (UTC)so was Angelus acting so "human". Although I'm sure he has his reasons, because you know, he's Angelus. my favorite lines from this chap both belong to him:
He suddenly turned to Fred. "Do I seem that old to you?" he asked. <snorts> vain bastard :)
"They go around scheduling everything according to sunlight," he said, "and they miss out on the dew. That's what I'm saying." He handed her the bottle. "You know?"
that tickled me pink for some reason.
also enjoyed his explanation of why he likes hockey. it had never occurred to me that Angelus might like it too :) big sticks, indeed.
looking forward to seeing why Angelus is keeping Fred around, how Spike will figure in, and if Angelus will ever regret letting Fred keep that cracked orb :)
no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 01:54 am (UTC)the conversation angelus and fred have while they're drinking sort of cracked me up when i wrote it. the whole thing about dew. hehe. i can't imagine angelus having a conversation like that while completely sober. i may have to write him drinking a few more times to get him to reveal his plan, because i'm having trouble getting him to tell fred what they're actually doing in sunny d.
looking forward to seeing why Angelus is keeping Fred around, how Spike will figure in, and if Angelus will ever regret letting Fred keep that cracked orb :)
these issues and more to be resolved in the next installment of Broken! :D okay, not really the next installment... but eventually everything will come out. *fingers crossed* :)
no subject
Date: 2006-05-01 11:47 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 01:56 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-01 03:56 pm (UTC)He'd be almost cuddly at times in this chapter if it wasn't clear what he was doing at the end there, which makes the whole thing incredibly sinister.
Wonderful chapter, as always, and well worth the wait.
no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 02:05 am (UTC)i'm glad you thought this! i agree that he was a lot less evil in this chapter than he has been, but even though it was more lighthearted, i still wanted it to be kind of creepy at the end after you've found out what he was doing. i love the idea that he would make a game out of destroying the orbs. i just know that he would enjoy it. :D
you shouldn't tell me my updates are worth the wait! that will make me not update very often. you should say, "we waited so long for THIS?" hehe
no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 09:04 am (UTC)Heh! I'll remember that next time.
LMAO
Date: 2006-05-02 12:50 am (UTC)Re: LMAO
Date: 2006-05-02 02:07 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 03:15 am (UTC)I do hope the fact that he let Fred keep that orb comes back to bite him in the ass, especially if he doen't bite her in the ass soon!
Also I'm now sitting on the edge of my seat, waiting for the moment Spike makes some sort of appearance. He will be making an appearance right? It's not nice to tease an old woman like me.
no subject
Date: 2006-05-02 04:06 am (UTC)yes, spike will show up at some point, as will the rest of the slayerettes. i could hardly set a story in sunnydale without including the scoobs, right? but he's not going to have a humongous part or anything... the main characters are still going to be fred and angelus, with everyone else pretty much being a side character.
the thing about angelus being smarter? cordy had that same theory in season four. (well, she said that anyway, to get angel to agree to have his soul removed.) i don't know if i agree with that though... i mean, it's true that angelus was always scheming and always had a plan and all while angel hardly ever schemed, but... doesn't that just make angelus more subversive and therefore evil? i mean i agree that angelus is smart, but just because angel is more straightforward with his plans doesn't mean he's not as smart as angelus is... it just means he's not sneaking around doing evil deeds. angel could scheme, though. he was all schemey at the end of season five. and in the season three of buffy episode "enemies," when he pretended like he was angelus again? that was schemey like whoa. i'm just saying. i love my schitzo vampire. :D
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Date: 2006-05-02 04:56 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2008-10-27 08:05 pm (UTC)I liked their baseball game.
What an innocent and inventive way to take out the orbs of thesulah
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Date: 2009-07-13 07:23 am (UTC)