Chapter 31 - Glasgow, 10 July 2004
It's been days, and nothing's happened. I feel like I'm
going stir-crazy. Most of the time's been spent in the cramped Council office,
searching through books, or online. The one good thing about Giles turning up
like he did is the fact that we've now got a couple of wireless laptops up
there in addition to the desktop that Gus had. We're scouring the Council
archives from here, collating information from London
and elsewhere, trying to find some link, some hint that will enable us to find
the other Slayers.
The most startling bit of news is the presence of Angel in London.
He and Giles were both in Cleveland
when they heard about my kidnap and subsequent escape, and it seems that Giles
took the opportunity to bury the years of animosity he's borne Angel and offer
him a job - temporarily at least. That's why he's in London.
For now, he's responsible for Philip since he's had more experience with the
Senior Partners than anyone else there. I don't know what Giles' eventual plan
will be, but I can't see Angel wanting to move away from LA permanently. It is
'his town' after all.
Giles did imply that Angel was shocked to find that Spike
was not only alive but currently in the same city as I was. I’ve actually been
half expecting him to call and berate me or something … I don’t know. He knew
that there wasn’t going to be anything other than friendship between us, but
the news that Spike’s back on the scene is probably going to unsettle him.
Anyway, Giles giving Angel a job? My first reaction when I
heard the news was absolute incredulity. I mean, after the hard time he's given
Spike, to just go and offer Angel a job like that? I know, he offered Spike a
job too, but it had strings attached, and I don’t think Angel’s has. It seems
so unfair. Of course, the reason for the unfairness was quickly pointed out.
Angel's human; Spike isn't. Giles still sees things in a much more black and
white way than I do, and, while he's been civil to Spike since his conversation
with Moira, that's all he's been. He's been distant from me, though, but that's
probably for the best. He's going to have to be a damn sight more than civil to
Spike before I'm happy with him.
Spike? What do I say about him? That hug downstairs, with
Dawn was … warm. It was almost like coming home in the days when I’d hear Mom’s
voice coming from the kitchen, calling out to me. We’ve spent a lot of the last
couple of days together, but, apart from feeling more comfortable with him than
I can ever remember, it’s been all about the work. Everyone’s been involved,
including Dawn, although Moira seems to be working on her own rather than as
part of the group. I don’t even know if Giles knows what she’s up to. She’s
been great in other ways, too, taking Dawn out most days to do something other
than research. Dawn’s become really fond of her, and I know she’ll miss her
badly when we go back home.
I check my watch, noting that it's mid-morning, and I
haven't seen Spike yet today. He's been well enough these past couple of days
that he's been in the office doing his fair share of the research. I don't
remember him being this involved before, but then, there's a lot about him I
didn't notice, or at least, interpreted in the worst possible light.
When he comes in, Giles is on the phone, and Gus and I are
knee deep in some faxed documents that have recently arrived from someone in Tunisia.
Ok, I haven’t exactly been giving it my full attention, what with thinking over
the past few days, but it’s not exactly riveting. I don't pretend to understand much of it,
even though there's an English translation. It's all about portal opening, and
it's pretty specialised.
"Gus, do you understand any of this?" I ask as
Spike comes to look over my shoulder.
"What? It's in English. It's not a very elegant
translation, but it's adequate."
"No, I mean the English. All this opening portals stuff
seems to be extremely complicated."
"It is. You've got to have a great deal of power, and
the concentration involved in opening a portal to a particular dimension is
beyond all but the most focussed minds. I can't say I've ever tried it,
although I have heard that incantations to one or two minor demons can be
successful."
Giles puts the phone down, but he's obviously heard the
exchange.
"You're right, Buffy. Opening portals isn't something
to be played with. If you don't know what you're doing, it can all go horribly
wrong, and using demons to do it for you is playing with fire."
There’s been something niggling at me all along here, but
for the first time, it crystallises, and I voice my feeling.
"Ok. But you said Philip wasn't the sharpest knife in
the drawer."
"Not the words I used, but yes, I wouldn't say he's
among the brightest Watchers on the payroll."
"Then how did he do it? How did he open the portal to let
the Fyarls take me through? ow HOr
did someone else open it?"
"I don't know," he says thoughtfully. "I had
assumed that the portal was opened from the other end, but now that I consider
it, that would be extremely expensive from an energy point of view. If the
Fyarls had been later than expected, …"
"There wasn't anybody there,” Spike chips in. “If it
wasn't done from the other end, then it had to be him. And if he was, …” He
claps a hand on my shoulder. “How was he doing it?"
"I don’t see that it matters," Giles bristles.
"What is the relevance of his ability to open a portal to one particular
dimension when our current business is finding the locations of the missing
Slayers?"
"Maybe nothing," I agree. "But it's a missing
piece. We're getting nowhere with any of this." I lift the pile of paper
in front of me and let it fall back to the desk to make my point. "There's
got to be a better way."
Giles sighs wearily. To be honest, I don't know where his
hotel is, but I don't think he's using it for much more than an occasional
change of clothes. He's here when I come up in the morning, and still here when
I go back downstairs to sleep. "You're right,” he concedes with a barely
stifled yawn. “It's worth finding out. I'll call Angel and get him to ask Philip."
"Will that compromise him?" Gus seems concerned.
"No more than necessary. Using his Wolfram and Hart
experience, Angel is using some psychics to remain in contact with Philip.
They're also hidden from the Senior Partners, but they’re just a call away from
Angel. Of course, if Philip doesn't feel like co-operating, we can always
threaten to send someone around to his door."
He lifts the phone beside him and starts to dial.
Spike's been behind me during that exchange, and I can feel
that he's excited about something, but somehow, I don't think it's got anything
to do with Philip.
"What's up?" I ask, turning towards him. All sign
of injury is gone. There's not even any visible bruising, and he's back to
standing on his toes as if he's ready to pounce at any moment.
"Feel like some exercise?"
Now, there are many possible interpretations of that
question, and some of them sound much more inviting than others.
"What do you have in mind?" I ask, warily.
"Well, I've been offered this job. Shouldn't take too
long. I could probably do it on my own, but it'd be better with back up."
"Job? What sort of job?"
"Pack of Fyarls. They've moved into some Bloxar
territory. You'd even get to do some sightseeing, since it's out by Loch
Lomond."
"How many?"
"Don't know for sure, so we'd have to do some snooping
first. Packs of those don't tend to be too big, though. I reckon it's because
they don't get on with anyone too well - even their own kind."
"You up to it?"
"Yeah. Wouldn't have suggested it if I didn't think so.
Last thing I want is for you to show me up." His grin is back to the way I
remember it – cocky and sure of himself.
"Don't you think there's something more important going
on here?" Giles sounds irritable as he puts the phone down again.
"Because we're just making such progress with all this
research."
I smile at Spike's tone, because it's measured to cause
maximum irritation.
"Spike's right. We're not getting anywhere here, and if
I don't get a chance to flex my muscles soon, I'm going to start breaking
furniture. Seriously, a Slayer with nothing to slay is a cranky Slayer."
"And if you get hurt?"
"I spent years going out every night, risking my life
every time. Why is this different?"
"Because you used to go out to protect people. And now,
when we've got Slayers in need of rescue, you're thinking about risking your
life to save some demons."
"Spike, Bloxar demons. What're they like?"
"Harmless unless you're an insect or a fish."
"That true, Giles?"
"I don't think I'm familiar with the species. I've
heard the name, but there's not much known about them."
"That's probably because they aren't a threat to
humans," Spike surmises. “Probably don’t even register on the Council’s
radar. Might even get some information. Fyarls moving in like that - there
might be a connection to Morag."
I glance at Giles, but he's looking resigned. I suspect
there’ll be no chance to get him back to anything like normal until we’ve
rescued all the Slayers.
"So, when do you want to do it?" I turn back to
Spike.
"Thought we'd drive up there this afternoon, have a bit
of a look around. We'll have to park the car and take off into the hills for a
bit, but we can’t do that until it’s getting dark. Be a good idea to wear some
sensible shoes. The directions I asked for arrived in the post this morning,
and they look pretty clear. In the dark, they probably won't see us coming
anyway. Should work out fine."
"I'll have to change."
"You look fine to me, well, apart from the shoes."
"And if I put on what you call 'sensible shoes' then
I'll need shorter pants than these. And it'd be better if they weren't jeans if
we're going marching about a damp hillside. Once they get wet, they flap around
your ankles and it's all icky. I'm sure I've got something that'll dry out
quicker, but I'll have to make sure it's clean."
"Because you couldn't possibly slay in dirty trousers,
now could you?
I grin at him. I enjoy the banter, and it's actually better
when it's done good-naturedly than when it was full of dislike.
I run downstairs, pausing in the kitchen to make sure it's
ok with Moira for me to leave Dawn. I explain what we're doing, and she smiles.
"About time you got to do something together. Probably
the best sort of thing too, given your history."
"You wouldn't be match-making?" I tease.
"If it's taken you this long to work that out, I'm
going to have to be much more blatant about it."
"Does Spike know?"
"Spike? I don't honestly know. He knows I wanted him to
contact you all along of course, but whether he realises the full extent of my
ambition? I doubt it. His expectations for himself are so low that I don’t
think he can imagine someone else wanting something for him."
"And what if we don't want it?"
"Well, if you don't, then it won't happen. I just want
to make sure that it can happen if you do want it."
I turn to go into the bedroom, but on a whim, I turn back to
where she's standing at the worktop, apparently cutting vegetables. Her hands
are still, and she's got her head cocked to one side.
"You're listening to what's happening upstairs, aren't
you?"
"Of course I am. How else can I find out what's
happening? I mean, you tell me some things, but I won't know if I can help if I
don't know everything, now will I?"
I smile at that, and get a surprisingly mischievous grin in
return.
Spike takes a roundabout route to get where we're going,
around lochs and up hills and down dales. The day is dry, but as it gets later,
it becomes more overcast. He stops at a hotel overlooking Loch Ard where we can
both get out of the car without dodging sunshine, and we share a lovely meal at
a table overlooking the loch. Dusk is approaching when Spike finally pulls the
car into a car park on a road above Loch Lomond. Even in
the failing light, everything's so green, and the water below is still and
shimmering in the remaining sunlight. Instead of hurrying me along, Spike lets
me drink it in for a few minutes before consulting his map.
"Is this where the monster lives?" I ask. It all
seems so open and bright. It's hard to imagine a monster as part of this.
"No, Pet. That's Loch Ness you're thinking of. That'd
be why she's called Nessie. Loch Ness is a way north of here - too far to go
today. I've never been myself, but we could go and take a look when this is all
over, if you'd like."
"I would," I agree, and I really mean it. This
afternoon's been a real treat. Just being out and about with him, chatting,
listening to what's happened to him since Sunnydale, has been so special. I
turn to look at him, and the temptation to grab him and kiss him is so
overwhelming that I force myself to get out of the car instead. The sun's very
low already, and between that and the cloud cover, Spike should be ok.
Apparently without considering the sunlight, Spike gets out
the other side. I suppose he's been a vampire long enough that he's a pretty
good judge of light levels, but it makes me shiver just thinking about the
risk.
We walk for about a mile, most of it uphill, before we reach
a point that's well-sheltered by low, brushy bushes and overlooking a small
valley. We crouch down, and Spike scans the distance.
"See over there," he says at last. "On the
left, where the hill rises steeply?"
I look where he's pointing. There's a hole in the ground and
part of the grassy bank.
"That's the lair the Bloxars used to use. They've been
forced to move to another one about a mile away. The entrance you see
apparently takes you into a steep incline that leads to a cave system. Go far
enough, and there's access to the loch."
"What do you think?" I ask. "Should we just
go up to them, taunt them a bit and see what they do, or did you have another
plan?"
"I'd like to watch for a bit. I'd have expected to see
some sign of life - they're not exactly known for hiding, are Fyarls. They’re
not especially anxious for humans to spot them, but this time of day, there’re
probably not many people about."
We stay still and quiet but Spike, rather disconcertingly,
starts sniffing the air.
"What is it?"
"That smell," he answers. "Just got it there,
when the wind changed direction. Putrid. There's something dead over there."
With that, he's off at a fast pace, and I'm running in his
wake. He goes straight for the entrance, and disappears inside. When I catch
up, he's looking at the body of a Fyarl demon. At least, I think it's one body,
but it might be more. Whatever it is, it's been ripped to pieces.
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