Chapter 5: The Longest Word
He was sleeping. Drusilla cradled him as she would a child. Before it all, before Angelus and his games, before the visions, she had dreamed of this. Dreamed of having a husband and children, babies to suckle and nurture and bring up.
Drusilla had, above all things, been a good girl.
Then had come the visions, frightening glimpses of the future that had marked her as evil. She hadn’t understood, had believed that God was punishing her for some unknown sin, and yet no amount of praying or fasting or confessing had caused them to go away.
Looking back, Drusilla could see the past with clear eyes. Her visions had not been evil. No, she had seen true evil, and it wore the face of an angel.
Drusilla glanced down at Spike, feeling a pang of true remorse. William had been such an innocent-as pure in his own way as she herself had been. Yet she and Angel had been unable to completely irradicate the sweetness of William. Her boy had always loved with such a passion, as he still did, though he didn’t know it yet.
She glanced up at the door, waiting. Angel would be coming soon, and though Drusilla felt the clawing sense of fear at her heart, she sensed that the demon was held tightly in check by the soul.
Drusilla wasn’t certain that it would make a difference.
She could not stay here. It would not be right, and would only serve as a distraction for Spike. Dru could see his path stretched out before him; he would be a Champion, as he was always meant to be.
It would be her penance-to leave him when she would like nothing better than to stay. Spike would try to convince her to come with him, of course. He’d plead and tell her that they could find happiness elsewhere, and that was true enough, but it wouldn’t be right.
And Drusilla was intent upon doing what was right. Even if the fear threatened her mind again. She frowned. “Fee fi fo fum, I smell the blood of an Englishman.”
Spike stirred in her arms, his eyes blinking open slowly. “Dru?” He muttered. “Bloody hell, you shouldn’t have let me sleep.”
“You needed it,” Drusilla replied. “You’ve been busy taking care of me.”
“I don’t mind, luv,” he replied, sitting up slowly. “Feel like a pansy, fallin’ asleep on you like that, though.”
Dru touched his cheek. “Angel is coming.”
Spike shook his head. “Doesn’t matter, pet. He won’t find us here.”
“He’s coming,” she repeated. “And he’s not happy with you.”
Spike smirked. “Peaches never is.” There was a pause, and Spike saw something in her face that worried him. “Dru? What’s wrong?”
“I’m leaving, my Spike,” she said softly. When he opened his mouth to protest, Dru silenced him with gentle fingers. “I must.”
Spike shook his head. “We could leave, Dru. I’d take care of you. We’ll go to South America again, or Mexico.” The vampire knew he’d already lost the battle, even through his protests. Dru knew her own mind-even when she’d been crazy-and he could tell that she was set on leaving. It felt as though she was ripping out his heart all over again. “You’re not goin’ with Angel!”
Drusilla shook her head quickly. “No, not with Angel. I cannot bear to look at him just now.” Her eyes bore into his, and Spike didn’t think she looked quite sane. “You must stay, Spike. It’s important.”
“Nothin’s more important than you are, pet!”
“That’s not true,” she replied. “Listen. There are two things you must know.”
“Dru-“
“We don’t have much time,” she told him. “Now shush.” Spike shut his mouth. “The Slayer’s mum is ill. You must help her see it. She won’t listen to me.”
Spike frowned. “Not like she’d listen to me, either,” he muttered.
“Try,” Drusilla said, a touch of wry humor in her tone. For a moment the madness receded again, and she was merely a woman speaking to a rather exasperating man. “The second thing is the Slayer’s sister.”
“Slayer doesn’t have a sister,” Spike objected.
Drusilla shrugged. “Not yet, but she’s the Key to the whole thing. You have to protect her, Spike, just like you protected Mummy.”
“Dammit, Dru,” Spike said, grabbing her by the shoulders. “You don’t have to go! Or I’ll go with you. ‘s ’bout time I left Sunnyhell anyway.”
Drusilla shook her head, in a panic. “No, you mustn’t. You mustn’t leave. I won’t have more blood on my hands, Spike. I won’t!”
“I’ll stay,” Spike promised, pulling her close. “If it’s that soddin’ important, I’ll stay. But ‘m doin’ it for you, not the bloody Slayer.”
Her head shot up. “They’re here.”
And then the door flew open.
~~~~~
It was chaos for the first few moments. At the first sight of Angel, Drusilla lost much of her hard-won equilibrium. She started doing that squealing thing she did when she got upset, when Spike was the only one who could calm her down.
Of course, Spike couldn’t do anything of the sort with Angel doing his best to snap his head off with his bare hands. “Angel!” Buffy called, trying to pull him off Spike. “Stop it! Drusilla is fine-except for the screeching, which I think is your fault.”
With the Slayer’s help, Spike managed to kick Angel off him with a well-placed boot. Angel huffed, doubling over in pain. Buffy winced in sympathy, remembering another time when she’d used the same tactic. Of course, remembering Angelus squelched much of her sympathy.
“Nice to see you too, Peaches,” Spike growled, pushing past the others to get to Drusilla, whom he pulled into his arms. “Ssh, luv. It’s alright.”
Drusilla buried her head in Spike’s chest so she wouldn’t have to look at the vampire. Although she did remember that this was Angel, and not Angelus-and although she understood the difference-the very sight of him tore at her mind. Everything he had done to her came rushing back, and she could suddenly see the bodies of her loved ones laid out before her.
“Make him leave, Slayer,” Spike growled. “He’s upsettin’ Dru.”
Angel strained forward, recovered from Spike’s kick, fighting against Buffy’s hold. “You’re going to turn her!”
“And be like you?” Spike asked incredulously-nevermind that it had been his plan. “She was nearly sane before you came in like the bloody Stormtroopers. Chip might stop me from hurtin’ humans, but it won’t keep me from kickin’ your ass.”
Spike made no move towards the bigger vampire, however, having his hands full trying to placate Drusilla. “Angel, outside,” Buffy ordered, before things could get anymore heated than they already were. “You’re obviously upsetting her.”
“I’m not!” Angel protested.
Drusilla started shouting, “Snake in the grass! Snake in the grass!”
Angel froze, remembering that she had said the exact same thing as he and Darla had sex amidst the bodies of dead nuns, right in front of the tormented girl. Right before Angel turned her. “If you hurt her-” he threatened Spike.
“What, like you did?” Spike snarked back. “Get lost, Peaches. Dru’s mine now. I think she’s made that clear enough.”
When Angel finally left the room, Drusilla calmed down slightly. At least she wasn’t making quite as much noise, and Buffy breathed a sigh of relief. “Oh, boy, that was fun,” she muttered.
“I had things under control,” Spike said angrily. “Why’d you have to call the Great Poof in?”
“Drusilla was brought back by an evil law firm,” Cordelia said, tyring to reconcile the Spike standing in front of her with the Spike who had tortured Angel with hot pokers. It wasn’t working too well. “Angel thought they might come after her.”
“And of course with you lot runnin’ down here that’s not a dead-giveaway as to where she’s at,” Spike said sarcastically. “How you ever managed to save the world is beyond me,” he muttered.
Wesley and Giles both issued twin sighs. “I agree that it was not a good idea for Angel to come rushing in here, Spike,” Giles said, not believing he was agreeing with the vampire. “However, I don’t think it’s wise for Drusilla to remain in Sunnydale. Should the lawyers come after her, you will not be able to protect her. They are human.”
Spike scowled. “Bloody hell, do you think I don’t know that?” His grip around Drusilla tightened. “She can’t go back with Angel. I won’t let him drive her batty again.” He ran a tender hand through her hair. “She was doin’ so well.”
“It wouldn’t be Angel she’d return with, Spike,” Wesley said. “I, uh, already offered Angel the use of my flat. Just for Drusilla,” he added. “Angel has never been there, so he does not have an invitation.”
Panic flared in Spike’s eyes. He knew he was fighting a losing battle. Spike knew that Drusilla-once Angel left and she was okay again-would insist that she leave for whatever damnfool reason. It was a done deal.
He’d never been one for giving up, though.
“Why does she have to go at all?” he demanded. “She could stay here. I can take care of her!”
Buffy looked over at Giles, communicating with only her eyes. Her Watcher, knowing her as he did, nodded, pulling Wesley and Cordelia out of the hotel room, and closing the door behind him. “Spike, you know that’s not possible.”
Spike stared down at the woman in his arms. “She’s mine!” The protest sounded weak even to his own ears, and the vampire knew that he’d lost. He released Drusilla, sitting her down on the bed and pulling Buffy to one side. The ex-vampire seemed to be completely unaware of her surroundings, having retreated into herself. “Bein’ with Angel will kill her,” he hissed. “You saw her when he came in. Dru was perfectly fine before.”
“I know, Spike,” Buffy said, deciding to take his word for it. “But she can’t stay here. You can’t take care of her now. You can’t give her what she needs.”
Spike snarled wordlessly. “Who says I can’t?” he finally managed. “I took care of her for a hundred bloody years. After the Great Poof left us!” He started pacing. “Dru wept for weeks, wantin’ to know where ‘Daddy’ was at. Well, if he had such a wonderful soul, why didn’t he stay? Why didn’t he help her?”
“I don’t know, Spike,” Buffy replied, her tone almost gentle. She could see how worked up the vampire was and had a funny feeling that it was mostly because he knew he’d have to give Drusilla up. “What if the lawyers do come after her?”
“I dunno,” he said helplessly, the fight draining out of him. “I’d protect her.”
“How, Spike?” Buffy asked, her tone still gentle. “With your dust?”
“If I had to!” he shot back.
Buffy took a step closer to him. “She can’t stay here.”
“Do you think I don’t know that?” Spike demanded. “Do you really think-” He turned his back on the Slayer, facing Drusilla, murmuring under his breath. “She was goin’ to love me again.”
The Slayer did have some idea of how Spike was planning on accomplishing that goal, but she couldn’t find it in her heart to hate him for it. If she put herself in his shoes-and yes, Buffy did know how weird that sounded, even in her own head-she’d probably have done the same thing.
Why he didn’t turn her was the big question.
“Why didn’t you turn her, Spike?”
“She’s an innocent,” Spike said, as though the answer was obvious. “Just look at her, Slayer. How could I hurt her when she’s like this? Dru didn’t want to be a vamp again. Made me promise-” Spike broke off, not wanting to tell the Slayer what Drusilla had made him promise.
And, of course, now that he’d promised, Spike would see it through. He always kept his promise to his girl.
“Drusilla can stay at our house for a couple days until we can take her to L.A.,” Buffy said. “Wes and the rest of them will take care of her. They know things about this law firm that we don’t.”
Spike turned to face her. “Look after her, Buffy.”
He was gone in the next moment, although Buffy could hear him threatening Wesley with death and/or dismemberment if anything happened to Drusilla while under his care.
Giles came through the door just after Spike left. “Buffy? Is everything okay?”
“Drusilla’s going to stay at my house for a couple days,” Buffy said. “Mom and I can look after her until we can get her to L.A.”
Giles had a surprised expression on his face. “And Spike?”
“He agreed,” Buffy replied evenly. “I don’t think it’s a good idea for Angel to travel with Drusilla, though, and it would be better to give her some time to calm down.”
Wesley, who had entered the hotel room behind Giles, sighed, realizing that he was in for a few days-or more-of baby-sitting. “I can come back with Angel’s car,” he offered. “By that time we should have a better idea of how Wolfram & Hart are reacting to her escape anyway.”
“I think that’s an excellent idea,” Giles agreed. “Are you certain you can handle her?”
Wesley shrugged. “I suppose we shall soon see, won’t we?”
~~~~~
Angel stayed in his slumped position against the outside wall of the hotel, even after Spike came storming out. The younger vampire had spared a venemous look for his grandsire before disappearing into the shadows.
Wesley and Giles had gone inside, and while Angel wanted to follow, he had a feeling that Buffy would only kick him out again. Especially if Drusilla started up her screeching. Angel had forgotten how irritating Dru could be once she got going.
“She was scared of me,” he muttered to Cordelia who had stayed loyally by his side.
Cordy rolled her eyes, long used to His Broodiness. “Well, duh, Angel. You killed her entire family and then used mind games to torture her until she went insane. You do the math.”
“She wanted Spike!” Angel said, sounding very put-out. “Spike’s much more evil than I am.”
Cordelia eyed him, wondering if she should say what she was thinking. It wasn’t often that she exercised her tact, but it did exist. Finally deciding that there was no point in holding back, she pointed out, “He might be more evil than Angel, but I don’t think Spike could compete with Angelus.”
Angel growled a little in the back of his throat. “But Angelus is gone.”
“And you still wear his face, Angel, whether you like it or not,” Cordelia replied, although not without compassion. “Drusilla sees you and she’s seeing her worst nightmare.” She patted his shoulder comfortingly. “Maybe it’ll get better.”
“I don’t see how,” Angel muttered. “Not if she starts screaming at the sight of me.”
The young woman couldn’t help but agree, but she decided it would be better just to keep her mouth shut on this one. She stifled a sigh. Cordelia had the feeling that they were going to be putting up with an extra-gloomy Angel for the next few days.
Or weeks.