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Coming Full
Circle
Chapter 11
by Tami
Seeley barely had the door unlocked before Spike barged through it with an unconscious Drusilla followed by Angel carrying the protesting slayer. Spike carefully laid Drusilla out on the bed. Angel set his burden in a chair and used the excess length of the rope to tie her to it.
“Now, you’re going to sit here until I’m ready to deal with you, and if you don’t shut up, I’m going to gag you,” Angel threatened the girl and then said to himself, “Either that, or shoot you with Booth’s gun.”
“You can’t keep me as a prisoner, beast! Even if you do kill me, others will show up to take my place,” the girl said scornfully.
Spike rolled his eyes. “Heard it all before, slayer, it was more believable when there was only one of you at a time to hunt. Now, there are thousands of you and that line doesn’t seem quite as threatening as it once was.” He looked at Seeley and said casually, “It was more fun to hunt when you didn’t trip over a slayer every time you turned around.”
“Yeah, yeah, Slayer of Slayers,” Angel sighed. “Can we tell stories later after I’ve gotten your sister away from death’s door?”
Angel moved to the bed and nudged Spike out of the way. He took Drusilla’s ice-cold hand in his and tried his best to warm fingers and palm back up to room temperature. Then, he stood up and started to remove her clothes. The once-pristine, beautiful white dress was discolored and ripped. It didn’t hide much anymore.
“Burn it,” Angel demanded, tossing the tattered dress over his shoulder.
Angel’s attention was so intent on Drusilla, that he didn’t look up to see his companions’ reaction to what he was doing. He took his own shirt off and gently lifted her up. Then, he pulled the covers down on the bed, laid her back and slid into the bed beside her. Once he was comfortable, he pulled the covers up so that they were mostly around her and pressed her chapped lips to his neck.
Angel was hoping the familiar scent of her Sire would be enough to rouse her demon to feed. When nothing happened, he growled in aggravation. Whoever caused this, be it the slayer tied to the chair or someone else, he was going to torture them a good long while and see how they like the treatment they gave Drusilla. Angel gently moved her head away. Then, he cut into his own neck with a fingernail and placed her mouth over the wound.
“Come on, Drusilla. You have to drink, honey,” he crooned in her ear.
“She should be staked as should the rest of you,” Magda sneered. “When I get out of these ropes, I shall kill you all! Mr. Giles was right about you, you’re all heathens and murdering fiends!”
“Oh, that’s bloody wonderful! Giles has been filling her head with stories of us,” Spike said exasperated.
“I take offense to being called a murdering heathen!” Seeley commented indignantly.
“She didn’t call you a murdering heathen! Just a heathen and murdering fiend,” Spike corrected.
“I haven’t murdered anyone that I wasn’t ordered to by my government!” Seeley said defensively.
“Will one of you put a gag in her mouth,” Angel growled.
Spike used Drusilla’s destroyed dress and tied it around the slayer’s mouth.
Seeley sat on the bed and watched in stunned silence as all of this unfolded around him. He was in L.A. with Angel and Spike, had helped them get Drusilla back and been party to the kidnapping of a vampire slayer. Slayers were still human right? He’d been an accomplice to kidnapping a human girl who couldn’t be more than sixteen. Oh, God. What had his life turned into? Was this like the sex issue? Conventional rules didn’t pertain to them when it came to kidnapping a human slayer?
As if Spike read his mind, the vampire sat beside Seeley and tried to explain. “This is what I was talking about when I said that nothing comes between us and finding Drusilla, pet. The little slayer that could over there came between us and our goal. She’s still a danger to us until we get out of her why she did it.”
“I know, I just didn’t think you would stuff her in the trunk of the car, tie her to chairs and make her watch as you healed Dru,” Seeley said.
“It’s not that we’re making her watch. It’s that, now that she’s incapacitated . . . temporarily at least, our focus shifted to the next immediate problem,” Spike clarified. “Vampires and Slayers are made to kill each other. It’s the way of the game in the demon world. It’s different for us than the human world. I keep telling you that.”
“So, then how’d Buffy . . .?” Seeley started to say.
“Buffy was different. With peaches, they met way back when she first moved to Sunnydale. She was attracted to him and developed feelings for the poor sod before she knew he was a vampire. Even went so far as to invite him into her house before realizing what he was,” Spike explained.
“I can still kick your ass, Spike,” Angel said gruffly from the other bed when he heard Spike’s version of his doomed romance with Buffy.
Angel had been trying to coax Drusilla to feed. It wasn’t working. He would feel her lips brush against his skin and little licks, but nothing to substantiate her feeding pattern. Not that he was familiar with how she fed lately. It had been years since he’d been close enough to her to recognize her routine. God, maybe Spike was right? Maybe he was an awful Sire to them both. He spent so much time over the years making sure they all survived that he didn’t have time to be a proper Sire to either of them.
“I’m sorry; did you want to add any details?” Spike asked sardonically. “I thought I had a pretty accurate account going on here. Anyway, she thought Angel was different since he had a soul and fell in love with him. The poor girl couldn’t get it through her head that Angel and Angelus were one in the same.”
“I’m nothing like Angelus,” Angel said.
“Hello? Kidnapped slayer tied to a chair five feet away!” Spike said sarcastically. He went on, boasting, “Now, with me, she fell in love with me from the first moment we fought.”
“Excuse me?” Angel sneered, eying his childe skeptically.
“Had her all hot and bothered, I did,” Spike said with a smirk.
“You were trying to kill her!” Angel scoffed as he massaged Drusilla’s throat to get her to swallow.
“I had her hot for me. I could tell when we fought. Just because she was never hot for you when you sparred, don’t blame that on me,” Spike said casually.
“She was plenty hot for me. Don’t listen to him, Booth. There’s Spike’s one-sided fairy tale and then there’s the truth,” Angel said.
“One-sided?! I was with her longer than you were and I know arousal when I smell it,” Spike countered.
“If your sister wasn’t so sick, I’d get up and smack some sense into you, boy,” Angel threatened.
Just then, Drusilla mumbled something that was incoherent to Seeley. Angel tilted his head towards her and murmured a reply.
“I feel dirty,” Drusilla whispered back.
“Do you want a bath now, baby?” Angel asked softly.
Drusilla nodded against his shoulder and sucked a little on the blood that trickled from the closing wound in his neck. Seeley and Spike watched as Angel tossed the covers aside and sat up with Drusilla in his arms.
“We’re going to have a bath. Maybe she’ll be able to feed in there without the distraction of a frivolous argument,” Angel said, staring pointedly at Spike.
“What did I do?” Spike asked innocently.
“Make yourself useful and be sure our guest is secure and comfortable,” Angel suggested.
He picked Drusilla up and carried her into the darkened bathroom. When he turned on the ultra-bright fluorescent lights, Drusilla cried out and hid her face against his neck. They were immediate shut off. Angel set her down on the toilet lid and went to the door, sticking his head out.
“One of you want to come here?” he called out.
Since Spike was busy with the slayer, making sure she was securely tied up, Seeley got up and went to the bathroom. Angel stood in the doorway with a strained expression.
“What’s going on with her? Is she okay . . . I mean, not physically or . . .” Seeley let out an exasperated sigh, unsure what to say or do. “What was the scream about?”
“She’s been in that dark factory for so long that the bathroom light was too much. I need someone to go to the store, a Neiman Marcus, whatever and get her some clothes. It’s nearly sunrise, so Spike can’t go. No matter how much he wants to resemble a human torch,” Angel said. Then, he thought about it. “Well, not so much a human torch as – anyway, can you . . .?”
Seeley scrunched up his face at that idea. “Normally, I wouldn’t buy dresses for a woman. They tend to get really uptight about that sort of thing. If you get the wrong size and color, it could be a disaster.”
“Drusilla’s pretty simple to buy for. Spike usually does it, but as I said Spike vs. Sun doesn’t go well,” Angel chuckled. “Just get her size off that dress he used to gag the Slayer.”
Seeley nodded and was about to leave when Angel’s voice stopped him. “Oh, and she likes either long nightgown dresses, or a blouse and long skirt.”
Seeley nodded again and walked away wondering where he was going to find that outfit. Angel returned to Drusilla. She lay back against the toilet tank with her eyes closed. Angel wasn’t happy about the arrangement. But, until he could get her into the tub, it would have to do. He shifted to his demon so that he could see more clearly in the dark and turned on the faucets to the tub. The sudden sound of splashing water startled her into an upright position and she nearly fell over, but Angel caught
her just in time.
“It’s okay, baby girl,” Angel reassured her, smoothing her tangled hair away from her face. “It’s just water for the bath. Wouldn’t that feel good, a nice hot bath?”
“Angel?”
Drusilla’s voice made it sound like a prayer. Like maybe she thought that she was dreaming or that he and Spike were an illusion. Angel crouched down in front of her. He took her hand in his and held it to his face.
“I’m right here, Dru. Spike’s here too, he’s in the next room. And Seeley’s here. Do you remember Seeley?” Angel asked, hoping his voice and the familiar names would ease her anxiety.
“Your human self,” Drusilla said in a faraway voice. She had snippets of images in her mind of a man who looked like Angel but wasn’t. It seemed surreal that Angel was in front of her, that she was touching him. Maybe she was still in that room and this was some awful dream the pixies teased her with.
“That’s right. He’s a human version of me. He helped us find you,” Angel said.
“I was lost?” Drusilla asked; her delicate brow furrowed in confusion.
“You’ve been missing for nearly five months as far as I can tell,” Angel told her. He let her go to add bubble bath to the water.
Drusilla looked at him strangely. She didn’t remember being lost. She remembered coming back to the States months ago and spending two blurry weeks with Angel and Spike. Seeley was there then. After that, she left and ended up in Brazil for a few months. The next thing she remembered was waking up in the dark, strapped to a bed and seeing psychedelic burning fish in her visions.
“Time to get into the bath, baby girl,” Angel’s voice broke through her thoughts.
He stood up, undressed and helped her into the bathtub. He closed the shower curtain to dim the glare of lights before he turned them on above the sink. Then, he shifted back to his human face, shut the bathroom door and climbed into the tub behind her, closing the curtain completely. That way she wouldn’t be bothered by the light and he could see what he was doing from the glow on the ceiling. Once he was settled, he pulled her back from where she was holding herself up by the edge of the tub until she lay back against him.
“Just relax,” Angel whispered.
He grabbed a wash cloth, lathered it in soap suds and proceeded to wash the dirt and grime off her body. Now that
she was fresh and clean, the gray color seemed to have dulled to a lighter shade and the chapped cracks in her skin from malnourishment didn’t look as harsh as before.
“Angel, I don’t remember being lost. I knew exactly where I was,” she whispered, the words coming out slowly.
“Where were you?” he asked as he washed her chest and stomach.
“I was in L.A. with you and Spike . . .” she trailed off.
“That was six months ago, Dru.” His low voice fanned her ear.
“Then, I was in Brazil. There was a small carnival there. The Ringmaster didn’t taste good.” Drusilla said, wrinkling her nose at the remembered taste.
Angel chuckled. “Circus people rarely have a good flavor.”
“The pixies took me to Guatemala. There was a fairy festival there. The last place I remember was Honduras. But, I don’t think I was there for very long before I woke up,” Drusilla said thoughtfully.
Angel was surprised that she said that much. It must be one of those rare times when she was actually coherent and not rambling on about pixies and devils. Okay, so there were a few references to pixies, but not too bad.
“Turn around, sweetheart,” Angel said softly.
When she complied and lay against him, he wrapped his arms around her. Angel wasn’t thinking about the fact that she was still as beautiful as the day he turned her, and that her complexion would be beautiful again once she was healed. Or that she was naked and laying between his legs . . . in a very warm and relaxing bubble bath. No matter what his growing erection was telling him.
“Do you think you can feed now?”
Drusilla nodded against his chest and moved up to his neck. Angel groaned when she licked at his neck and shoulder, searching for a spot she liked. When she finally shifted and sank her fangs into him, he buried his hand in her hair and held her still. With his other hand, he washed her shoulders, neck and back. His soapy fingers trailed down to her ass. He told himself and his erection that it was strictly to bathe her. He had to get the scent and dirt of that place off of her . . . while ignoring his painfully hard cock which had sprung up in response to each pull of his blood.
Angel settled back and let his hand caress the small of her back while the other hand still held her in place. He closed his eyes and relaxed, allowing her to take what she needed. There was something comforting about this, even with Spike on the few occasions he let his boy feed from him. Sure, they were taking his blood, but there something erotic about having someone penetrating him this way without there being intercourse. And, the erection gained from such an experience was a plus.
Angel tuned out everything around him except the sound of Drusilla swallowing, nearly gulping his blood, and the feel of her skin as the water lapped against them. He hadn’t been this relaxed since before he found out she was missing. Spike was right. He had been a neglectful Sire and almost lost Drusilla because of it.
In the outer room, the door opened and Seeley came in with ten shopping bags. He kicked the door closed and dropped the bags on the bed. Spike’s eyes widened when he saw them.
“What’s that mate?”
“For Dru, there’s more out in the car,” Seeley said.
“Where’d you get all that? That isn’t just one outfit,” Spike looking over the multitude of shopping bags bearing the names of Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdales and some other ritzy store.
“Well, Angel said to buy her something . . . so, I bought her something,” Seeley shrugged.
“Things, pet. You bought her some things,” Spike said, stressing the correction.
“Yeah, well, I was looking at the clothes rack and then I tried to remember what I’ve seen her in . . . and out of . . . and pictured her in these,” Seeley said as he reached in the bag and held up a peasant skirt.
Spike reached into a bag and held up a corset, raising the scarred brow. “And you were expecting her to wear this for you?”
“I’ve never seen her in a bra, so I assumed,” Seeley shrugged.
Just then, Angel’s head popped out of the bathroom. “Did you get anything?”
“Oh, he got a whole bloody wardrobe,” Spike answered. “And then some.”
“Well, hand me something,” Angel growled.
“Here,” Seeley pulled out a dress and handed it through the partially open door.
There were rustling sounds coming from behind the door. Then, it opened to reveal Drusilla in a deep red ankle-length batwing dress, leaning heavily on Angel who was dressed only in black jeans. From the looks of things, he had managed to wash her hair as well and he was sporting a fresh bite mark on his neck. Angel helped her to the empty bed and looked over at the other bed littered with shopping bags.
“You bought all that?” Angel asked.
“And there’s more in the car,” Spike said mockingly.
Seeley went over to the bed with Drusilla and encouraged her to lie down. He curled up with her, offering his body heat as he combed his fingers leisurely through her wet hair. She shivered as she burrowed against his warm chest. With her taken care of, for the most part, Angel and Spike turned their attention to their hostage.
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