Musical Wars
Chapter 7 -- Settling In
Xander looked at the vamp who only a night before had been threatened within an inch of his unlife if he ever came near Xander again. Now Spike calmly guided him toward the waiting figure.
“Xander, meet Q; Q, meet my pet who if you put one fang on I’ll pull every tooth out of your head before I dust ya.”
“Yes, master,” the red-haired vampire replied, his head tucked down as he looked out the side of his eye.
“Q? Like in Star Trek?” Xander looked the thin body, the hesitant movements, and lowered head and couldn’t imagine a being more unlike Q.
“Naw, me new master, he call me dat.” Xander turned to Spike and repeated his question.
“Q?”
“Oi, looks like a Q-tip, don’t he: all thin and fuzzy headed.”
“Geez, offensive much?” He turned to the vampire even while he stayed close to Spike. “What’s your name?”
“Ajani,” answered the vamp in a soft voice, head still bent.
“Close enough. Not like it matters,” Spike shrugged, and he felt the arm start encouraging him down the street, away from their lair. He could see the red-haired vampire following behind at a safe distance. Without another word, Spike guided them to an old warehouse with a side door lying on the cracked concrete. When they walked in, Xander had to squint to see in the dim light filtering in through the dusty windows.
“Pet, pull up your vision,” Spike said, and he looked over at the vampire in undisguised exasperation.
"Yeah, like that's gonna help," he snorted, and suddenly he felt himself lifted and thrown back against the wall of the warehouse with enough force to drive the air from his lungs.
"Do as you're soddin' told and use your true vision," Spike snarled in full-game face with an arm trapping Xander to the wall. He froze, shocked into silence by the unexpected tension in Spike's body. He could feel the shifting inside his thoughts, and he listened when he felt an invisible presence council him to look down, to submit. He dropped his eyes and suddenly the warehouse was bathed in a soft reddish-brown light. Glancing up at Spike without fully lifting his eyes, he watched as Spike fell back into human face.
"That's it, pet," Spike nodded encouragingly and stepped back, and he realized that no lights had come on; he had switched into his glowy-eyed man persona. Okay, still need a better name for that, he mused as he watched Spike walk over to Ajani.
"Fight well enough against minions, but they're soddin' stupid little beasts. Ya have to learn to fight somethin' with a little more intelligence. So, ground rules." He had only half listened to Spike lecturing Ajani, fascinated with the amount of detail he could see in the dim light. A growl brought his attention back to Spike immediately. "Ground rules," Spike repeated with a sharp glare.
"Pet, you can do your best to dust Ajani. If he's too slow to protect himself when you've only had one day of trainin' with me, he deserves to die." Xander looked at the other vamp in alarm. Yes, he hunted vampires. Yes, he had staked vampires. No, he really wasn't okay with killing a vampire he had been introduced to. Besides, Spike couldn't possibly mean for him to fight another vampire. He wasn't the fighter; he was the sidekick.
"Q, you can hit my pet, hurt him if he's careless, knock him on his arse if he lets ya. Ya cannot kill him, cripple him, seriously injure him, or bite him. If ya break even one a those, you'll beg me for death before ya actually turn to dust and I walk through your remains like the piece of nothin' ya are." Ajani only dipped his head in acceptance of the rules, but Xander couldn't help gasping at the threat, all too aware that Spike would carry through without a bit of hesitation.
"So soddin' have at it," Spike said as he stepped back. Xander took one look at Ajani before the vampire leapt for him, both hands held as if to grab him by the neck. Xander grabbed the vamp's right arm and shoved it to the side so that he would have a clear shot for his elbow to drive into Ajani's side. He completed the move, but then lost his balance, sending him to one knee. He heard Ajani scramble on the concrete floor, and he pulled the knife from his boot as he turned to face the vampire's second attack.
This time Ajani moved in more slowly, circling like a predator scenting wounded prey, which actually wasn't far off reality, Xander thought to himself as he turned to keep Ajani in sight without showing the pain he felt in his left knee where he had hit the concrete just a little too hard. Without a sound, Ajani darted forward and tried for a punch, and Xander stepped to the side and back a half step so that Ajani had to reach farther than he expected. In a flash, Xander brought the knife down and cut through the exposed flesh. The scent of blood awakened his own demon even more, and he could feel a tingling hunger that left him both desiring just a taste of the blood and nauseated at the thought. Ajani hissed some unfamiliar word--context suggested a curse--before beginning to circle again.
Xander thought he might hold his own until Ajani began a series of fast, light strikes on right side, which increasingly pushed him back on his left leg. He heard himself snarl as Ajani forced him to pull back onto his injured knee for the fourth time. This time he spun around and kicked viciously at the vampire's legs. He didn't move fast enough, and while he was still off-balance, Ajani drove forward and slammed him to the ground. Xander felt his head hit the concrete, the unfamiliar vampire pinning him down, and he growled his frustration as an uncontrollable rage grew in his chest. With a roar, he threw Ajani back and jumped for him without any thought for strategy or defense, knife forgotten on the floor. Ajani instantly slipped into game face and grabbed at him even as he grabbed for the vampire's throat.
"Stop It," roared a voice that instantly left Xander crouching on the ground, still feeling an overwhelming urge to kill Ajani who had retreated, but also feeling an even more overwhelming urge to stop and wait.
"Pet, ya need to calm down," Spike said, and he felt fingers run through his hair until his thoughts had cleared enough for him to regain control of his limbs. He looked up and saw Spike holding out his knife. He took it and carefully slid it back into its sheath as he stretched out his legs and sat on the floor. "Let that leg heal a bit; I'll take it from here," Spike ordered, and Xander could feel a cold tingle in his knee even as Spike gestured for Ajani to follow him a few feet away where they had room to spar.
It made Xander feel a little better to watch the two vampires spar. From the sidelines, he could see Ajani's speed and grace, which made him feel better about getting his ass kicked. He also felt better after seeing Ajani get slammed to the ground more often than he could count. Every time the vampire simply got up without complaint and returned to attack Spike. Long after Xander's knee felt better and his butt had started going to sleep, Spike called an end to the session.
Spike came over and squatted in front of him, fingers going over the knee before standing again and holding out a hand to help him up. Xander accepted the assistance and stood leaning against Spike even though he didn't need the support.
"Both of ya are goin' to have to control the anger; you let yourself get angry durin' a fight, and you'll find yourself dead. But ya both did well today." Xander felt the familiar warmth that Spike's compliments always brought, but he almost smiled at Ajani's reaction. The vampire's back suddenly straightened, and he looked directly at Spike for a moment before dropping his head again.
"'Dank ya, massah," he whispered joyfully. Xander almost laughed at how alike the two vampires could be. Each had an accent that became nearly indecipherable when emotional.
"Where ya from, Ajani?" He could feel Spike tense at the question, obviously unhappy, but he didn't say anything so Xander ignored the signs. Ajani looked first at him and then at Spike before answering.
"Naw Orlins," he said.
"Born in California, myself. Going to be nineteen in a couple of days, but I'm guessing you're a little older."
"1887," Ajani answered the unasked question and then returned his gaze to the floor.
"Oi, time for us to get to our lairs before the sun gets us," Spike commented and all three left the warehouse.
"Tomorrow, same time," Spike ordered, and then Xander felt himself firmly guided away while Ajani stood by warehouse, unmoving.
"Tomorrow for what?" Xander asked as they hurried down the street. He couldn't see any morning light, but from the way Spike rushed, he suspected they were out later than normal.
"Tryin' to give him what 'e needs to be a master. Didn't know he was that old, but I knew he's old enough to be a master if has someone to teach him how to control himself."
"If you're trying to help him, why did you keep tearing him down because I have to tell you that, from experience, that's not a pleasant experience," Xander pointed out as he remembered Gabi with her various insults and Pamee with her forays into public humiliation.
"Vamps aren't the same. If I went up to 'im and said that I thought he's strong enough to hold the city, he'd ignore me; his demon's got no reason to respect me."
"But if you dominate his demon, prove that you're stronger and wiser and *then* tell him to take charge, he'll listen," Xander guessed as they reached the outer gate to the truck yard.
"Somethin' like that. He's got to learn to fight back, stand up for himself and demand respect or he'll never survive. To do that, he has to stand up against a strong enough master to feel strong himself." Spike dug in his duster pockets for the key as Xander watched the edges of the buildings start to glow with the first warnings of daylight. Once the door opened, Xander hurried down the stairs, waiting until Spike finished locking up and came down the stairs.
"Course pet, there's a good chance he's goin' to get himself killed before claimin' any territory. Don't get too attached to him," Spike suggested as the leather duster flew to the chair. "Goin' to get more sheets." Spike hit the play button as he walked through the hallway door and disappeared. Xander had settled himself into the chair, enjoying the smell of Spike and leather when the first strains of "Sixteen Tons" started coming out of the stereo.
Xander was happily singing along, "St. Peter don'cha call me, cause I can't go; I owe my soul to the company store" when Spike appeared, a look of absolute horror on his face.
"Bloody hell, no," Spike entreated as he tossed sheets on the bed and went to the stereo.
"What? It's political commentary, about the workers during the great depression who got exploited by industry," he said, proud of himself for keeping a straight face. Spike opened one CD case after another, uttering a string of curses that he hadn't heard since Spike and Angel had tried to talk in the back of Thopis. He didn't even know most of the words that Spike muttered in his general direction.
"Where the hell is my bloody music 'cause if you damage one a those CD's, you're goin' be tied to that bed for a month." Spike confronted him with narrowed eyes, but Spike didn't go to turn off the CD, even when the track changed to "King of the Road," and Spike visibly flinched. Xander simply shrugged and waved a hand in the general direction of the room.
"I'm sure they're somewhere."
"Bleedin' git," Spike looked around the room for a minute before disappearing into the hallway again. Xander tried not to laugh at the sound of curses and the sound of rough ceramic dragging as Spike must have checked toilet tanks. Spike finally reappeared at the hallway door, his eyes flashing gold.
“Get your arse in the bath and clean up; ya smell of sweat,” Spike snarled, but Xander couldn’t resist laughing a little as he darted past, listening to Spike still cursing. Luckily, he had enough tip money in his pocket to replace all the CD’s even if he came back to find all his country music in shiny little jagged pieces. Worth it, he snickered to himself.
By the time Spike joined him in the bath, sliding into the hot water and settling between his legs, the vampire had settled into annoyed mutters.
“Daft git,” Spike grumbled, but Xander picked up a washcloth and reached around to start cleaning the vampire’s chest and arms, causing the vampire to lean back and sigh in pleasure.
“Duck your head under,” he suggested, and Spike immediate bent down to get his hair wet. When the blond head reappeared, with the spikes now damp and sagging, Xander grabbed some shampoo and started running his fingers through the soggy spines, rubbing until the hard locks dissolved and the hair turned soft and silky. With a single whispered word, he got Spike to dunk his head again, and then he worked in the conditioner, his hands sliding over the now slick curls while Spike simply lay in his arms spineless and sighing.
“Bloody hell, Dru never did that,” he finally moaned with a graceful stretch.
“That a yes vote on the hair washing?” Xander asked with a small chuckle; he couldn’t believe that he could make the ancient creature so happy with such a small act.
“Hell yes.” Without warning, Spike twisted around to face him, nose to nose. Xander held his breath as he watched Spike slowly sink, a leer on his face. A moment after Spike disappeared under the water, Xander felt the suction on his cock, and his hand flew to the side of the tub where he clung like a man about to fall off a cliff. His knuckles turned white and he gasped with pleasure as a tongue played with the underside of his cock, leaving him gasping and desperate to buck, but unwilling to hurt Spike like that. Instead, he fought every muscle and nerve and instinct in his body to remain still as Spike swallowed his entire cock, working his throat muscles until Xander literally screamed. All too soon, Xander felt his own balls draw up as he started coming. He threw his head back onto the edge of the tub and lay there, still twitching and wheezing when Spike reappeared with a lascivious grin.
"Hmm, like some help there?" Xander asked as he reached for Spike's cock, but Spike intercepted his hand, pulling it so that Xander would instead embrace the vampire as Spike leaned in for a deep kiss.
"Too late," Spike whispered. "You're just so bloody perfect I finished off with you," Spike admitted as he stood, showing a near-flaccid cock. While Spike went about drying himself, Xander ducked his head under the water to hide the smell of tears that he knew Spike could scent so easily. Grabbing the shampoo, he drained the water even as he washed his own hair. He knew that he hadn't been exactly spectacular last time, but he had never expected Spike to reject him like that. Spike would rather give himself a hand job than let Xander try again. He rubbed the shampoo over his face to hide the tears he tried to hold back. Of course, Spike had certainly enjoyed their earlier activities, so maybe that's what Spike needed from him; he could do that. Hell, he enjoyed that, but he couldn’t deny the aching pain that Spike didn’t want any more than that from him. He'd do anything to make Spike happy just to keep the vampire around for a bit longer.
Xander finished rinsing under one of the shower heads, grabbed a towel to dry off, and then tossed his towel into the corner as usual before grabbing the robe Spike had started leaving at the edge of the shower room. He looked at the robe and realized how many habits the vampire must have changed to have him there; obviously Spike liked something about him, and maybe that could be enough for him. If he was never anything more than a pet for Spike to use, then Spike would still stay with him, and anything that kept Spike in his life was acceptable.
Wrapping himself in the warm terrycloth, he wandered into the main room to see how many CD pieces he had to pick up. The bed looked the same, rumpled sheets on the bed with the clean sheets in a pile on the edge. His country music cases lay in the corner undisturbed, Pasty Cline balanced on top of C.W. McCall. A pile of dirty clothes guarded one corner and not a CD shard to be seen. Xander narrowed his eyes. For a moment he stood there, confused, but then he realized what Spike had done. He felt a small smile sneak onto his face as he looked around the room. So, the vampire wanted to play, huh?
“Soddin’ hell,” said a voice behind him. “Need to turn a minion or two.”
“Whoa, what??” he yelped, playful mood gone.
“Look at this place, need someone to clean,” Spike said casually as he walked over and dropped into the chair naked as the day he was born, his head moving to the sound of a punk singer screaming indecipherable lyrics.
“Not a reason to kill someone,” he quickly pointed out, but Spike simply gave him a confused look.
“Not goin’ to kill them, just turn ‘em.”
“Oh boy, sometimes I just need to remind myself you really are a demon,” he answered, still slightly shaken at the thought of Spike killing someone just so he didn’t have to do housework.
“You kept the place clean by yourself, so let’s assume the extra mess is my fault. Simple solution: I’ll clean up after myself.” He looked at Spike’s incredulous expression and he couldn’t help but think of his mother. And his mother had been right to doubt his promises because no matter how much he promised, he usually did forget to actually do any actual house work. But then again, his mother had never threatened to kill anyone if he didn’t do housework, unless you counted a few idle threats to kill him, so he had a whole new level of motivation.
“You?” Spike said in a skeptical voice that again reminded him of his mother, but considering what they had just done in the bath, he took that comparison and repressed it in the darkest corner of his mind.
“Yes, me,” he answered with some frustration. Geez, it was usually polite to actually wait until someone broke his word before sounding so cynical. “Unlock the doors where you keep the cleaning stuff, and I’ll do my share.”
“Pet,” Spike said softly, “those doors have been unlocked since I got ya back from Cassidy.”
“Oh.” Xander looked at the hallway door behind him for a moment before curiosity overcame him and he just had to go see.
The first door on the left swung open to reveal shelves, tons of shelves. Looking closer, he realized the shelves at the back had old ration boxes, dusty army blankets, and forgotten tins of lord knows what. The shelves at the front had torn open bundles of black jeans, stacks of soft shirts that tilted wildly, piles of sheets still in their plastic containers scattered across boxes of rations, and silk shirts hung from the corners of the shelves, obviously Spike’s version of a closet. The only thing he could think was how many new places he now had to search for his CD’s.
He walked along the shelves, pushing ration boxes onto the floor as he cleared space to stack shirts and jeans and sheets and towels neatly on the shelves, each item on its own shelf; his mother would be proud. In reality, he just wanted to find his CD’s. Once he had straightened the front shelves, he walked around the back shelves, running his hand behind boxes, trying to find the missing disks. When he finally gave up the search, he left, rubbing his running nose which protested the dust even as he went to the second room.
Opening this door, he stopped in the doorway, utterly shocked. A row of antique washers and dryers sat next to a brand new set, still sitting in the middle of the room unattached to anything. That didn’t shock him. The mountains of towels, old sheets, and dirty clothes shocked him.
“Holy dirty laundry, batman.” Xander heard the door open behind him.
“Took ya long enough,” Spike leaned against the door jam with a smirk on his face.
“Yeah, yeah. Do you have some sort of dirty clothes fetish I don’t know about?” he asked looking around in dismay.
“Never thought a that—might be worth a try, luv.” Spike’s arm suddenly lifted him and dropped him in the middle of the sheets and towels before the vampire sprawled over him.
“I’m never going to find my CD’s, am I?” he asked in despair as Spike laughed.
“Oi, not the one who went and started this.”
“And why do you have all this damn laundry? It must have taken years to get his much.”
“Only ‘bout six months.”
“And what exactly are you planning on doing with it all?”
“Dump it in the sewers. Can always steal more, can’t I, pet.”
“To steal your word, ‘Oi.’”
“Nothin’ wrong with that, pet.”
“Yeah, for an amoral demon, probably not high on the list of evil sins. For an ordinary mortals, stealing’s one of those things that you try to avoid.” He watched Spike’s features turn from amusement to a seriousness he didn’t normally see.
“Bleedin’ hell, sometimes I just need to remind myself you really are a human,” Spike said in imitation of his own earlier words, and he felt slim cool fingers brush over his forehead.
“Any chance of hooking up the washer and dryer? I’m willing to actually do the wash, and I can’t believe I actually just said that…I must be possessed.” Spike laughed.
“Yeah, I was plannin’ on turning a minion and having them do the cleanin’ but then I decided to keep a lower profile ‘til I’d found Cassidy. I don’t do soddin’ laundry myself, but if ya don’t want any minions around, I’ll get rid of some a this old stuff so ya don’t have so much to wash and then connect the machines.”
“Before you start dumping this stuff, just answer one question.”
“Anythin’ pet.”
“Are my CD’s in here?” He turned his best pleading look to Spike, but the vampire simply laughed and got up.
“I’m evil, pet. Not likely to tell the truth, am I?” Xander sighed in frustration and lay his head back down on the pile under him.
“I’m never going to find Patsy,” he groused as Spike left the room, still chuckling. By the time he had decided to give up on finding the CD’s in the pile, Spike had fallen asleep on the bed, sprawled on his stomach with his arms and legs thrown across the length of the bed. He looked around the main room for a moment before starting to straighten up. He pushed the empty country music CD cases into a single pile and stacked them on the shelf under the stereo. He picked up the dirty laundry and folded it, putting it in a corner to wait until Spike hooked up the washer and dryer. He noticed that Spike had changed the sheets, tossing the dirty ones into a corner. Since the storeroom had no shortage of sheets, he took the bundle and tossed it on the mountain Spike had promised to throw away.
Giving up, he crawled into bed, feeling Spike quickly shift to curl up around him.