Elderly Pets

Fic: Elderly Pets
http://www.livejournal.com/community/bloodclaim/989664.html#cutid1
Author: josie_h

Pairing: Spike/Xander
Rating: Mature Audiences (M/M sexual content! And themes)
***Warnings: D/s, Major character death, slavery***

It’s an AU!..... The Premise: A hundred and fifty years after the final battle with the Senior Partners… Demons rule the world. The luckier humans are pets…. Most are bred for food. Spike survived, and in the early days found Xander at an auction, purchased him and did what Spike does best…. Made the most of it.

Author’s Note: Don’t own the characters etc and bow down to their original creators Joss, et al., plus all the wonderful online writers who continue to give them life.


Part 14

Desmonde woke early and decided to check on Daniel. She was worried, he was looking so exhausted the previous evening and had been a tower of strength through this whole awful period, as had John, but John had Carlos. In fact they all had someone else but for Daniel, and though he had chosen that status and was happy with it, at times like these, he too needed support. She knocked quietly, but there was no one in Master’s rooms.

Wandering along the hall, she tapped gently on the door of Daniel’s suite and eased it open. In Daniel’s bed, wrapped in each other, were the twin brothers. The tangle of limbs was clearly for comfort not sex, and had obviously been developed over years of taking solace in each other. Simon spooned Adrian from the back and both men were facing the door. She was embarrassed to realize that she had been standing wide eyed for a little too long as Adrian opened his eyes and focused on her. She whispered “Oh, hey sorry, sorry! I was looking for Danny.” Adrian gave a small nod then paused and patted the patch of bed in front of him.

Desmonde wandered across and sat on the edge. Her brother took her hand, squeezed it gently, then kissed it. “Oh sweetie…” She stroked a stray grey lock from his forehead, “You OK after the last couple of days?” She kept stroking the soft skin near his hairline. Adrian locked eyes with hers, his was a haunted look but tinged with trust and love. “You take your time getting used to all this. I know Petros is going to help you, I overheard John and he talking.” Adrian looked puzzled so Desmonde continued, “He’s John and Carlos’ handler – he took your leads yesterday. He really is rather a lovely individual.” Adrian’s eyes brightened with a flicker of understanding and hope. He took his sister’s hand and touched the back of it to his forehead, then pushed it to his hairless chest. Neither brother had much body hair at all, and both were very slender compared to John and Daniel. The daughters had been informed that the loss of muscle mass and body hair were typical side effects of their castration though strangely it also prevented baldness.

She smiled warmly, “Come down to the nursery later… it’s the best spot in the house at the moment….” She squeezed his hand, “Hey…. I’d better go.” She kissed his forehead then returned downstairs, fairly certain that Daniel would be found in the party room of last night.

The wiccan sister tiptoed into the still rather messy room, noting the sleeping bodies with a rueful smile. Spike with his two little human heaters on the Pet chair, and Daniel curled in a ball on the narrow lounge near the fire. She was worried about both her relatives. Her brother looked cold, tense and tired even in his sleep. She touched him gently on the shoulder. He woke with a start. “Shhhh, hey… it’s just Desi…” He visibly relaxed. “Why don’t you go use our bed for a few hours, you look like you need the sleep! Neil is up with the twins already, and I’ll stay here in case the kids wake, door’s not locked.”

Daniel didn’t say a word, just nodded, sat up with an obvious effort and padded out of the room to find some much needed sleep in a soft bed.

Desmonde smiled as she noticed the little girl stirring merely enough that Master instinctively rubbed her back where his hand was resting and she settle again. The tiny female form now lay draped across his belly button area, face toward Master and thumb still firmly planted in her mouth. The little boy was still mostly in Master’s armpit but had also migrated a little higher and had twisted until he was hugging the vampire’s neck. Master woke slowly as the boy began to nuzzle and make small squeaks as he roused. “Hey my lovely, grandson of master vampire….” Master smiled as he registered the warmth and the small bodies and put a hand on each child, conveying his love as best he could with the simple touch. He then lifted the little fellow to sit beside him as a few high pitched whimpers and snuffles came from the tiny waking female.

Desmonde moved to kneel beside her Master’s chair. “Shall I take them for you Master?”

“No ‘s fine Pet. Cherubs kept me right cosy last night… least I can do is carry ‘em home… Daniel?..”

“….Is in Neil’s and my bed. He was exhausted poor love. He was concerned for you, so stayed the night on the lounge over there until I came in.”

“Daft bugger, ‘m not an invalid…” The woman gave Master such a motherly look of incredulity mixed with genuine concern that the vampire ceased his protestations and simply sat up, placed a little person each side of him before turning to make a seat out of each arm. He then carried his little sleeping partners back to the nursery facing forward and swinging their legs happily with each of Master’s strides. He lowered them to the ground, accepted a hug from each, then let them join the group of under fives for breakfast.


From around midday to late evening, Spike did what the Master of Aurelius was expected to do following the funeral day as guests and friends departed. He was engaging and charming to a fault as the grieving but staunchly proud Master of the Chateau. He thanked them all politely for their support and promised to be in touch when ‘things settled down’. If one of the Aurelian line accompanied a demon guest (their owner), the Master of Aurelius placed a cool hand on their shoulder, kissed their forehead, and whispered, ‘Family, always’.

As his friend the extraordinary Janni approached him to take his leave, Spike opened his arms and took him into a hug, and as the floppy arms reciprocated, said “There are no words….”

The crimson eyes twinkled with affection and concern, “Then don’t say any, ‘cause there are none needed. I’ll be in touch in the next couple of days. You take it easy OK?” Spike simply nodded. Janni was the last to leave.

As Master turned to go inside,his ears began to ring, the world spun and his knees gave out again. He was caught on the way down by John. Master leant against the solid, warm form for some time before he felt the vibrations through the chest rather than heard John talking to him.

“How long since you have eaten, Master?”

“You… yesterday… service.” Master was looking particularly pale, and had the blue tinge to his lips again.

“Let’s get you inside, fed and rested.”

………………

The daughters resumed their vigilant ‘minding’ of Master, but this time the roster was extended to include the twins and several of the granddaughters. A week or so later he had the pleasant distraction of the birth of Bethany’s twins. There were other babies due soon but these two were the first since Xander’s death … so, special.

Spike wandered down to the breeding pair’s room to congratulate them, only to be confronted with a frantic Nikki who dropped instantly to his knees and begged master to attend his partner. The placenta had not come away properly, she had been bleeding severely, and then it transpired had suffered a prolapse. Luckily, the stud’s wonderful nurse had identified the issues quickly and the obstetrician for humans was still on hand, so had performed the relevant surgery immediately.

It didn’t help Nikki however. Nothing had ever gone wrong before, and these were only Beth’s fifth and sixth children from her three pregnancies…. Admittedly the doctor had commented that the large size of the newborn twin girls, the stress leading up to delivery (regards the funeral), and the fact that she had produced triplets in her last pregnancy, all likely contributing factors to the immediate problem. Nevertheless, Nikki was terrified of losing the mother of his children and his best friend. The Master stepped up to his usual role as protector. He hugged the man close head to his chest – even kneeling, Nikki was three quarters his Master’s height.

Master slipped into the sick room. Bethany was propped up a little on pillows looking pale and drawn but peaceful in slumber. Her eyes fluttered open as Master entered the room. He smiled at her, said nothing but dropped his fangs without falling into game face, and tore his wrist open. She took two long drafts of the ambrosial fluid then fell asleep again. Spike licked his wound closed, kissed the pale forehead, then departed. Her partner was still kneeling by the door as Master exited the suite. “She’ll be fine Nikki…”

“Thank you Master… thank you!”

“Are the newborn’s well?”

“Oh yes Master… they are beautiful, Master.” Spike saw Nikki’s eyes fill with tears of fatherly pride.

“Blonde?”

“It would seem so master….” Nikki smiled and let one tear escape.

Spike pulled the man to his feet and they wandered down to the newborns nursery… normally the children were with their mothers in the first days, but with Bethany so poorly they were taken out for a few hours at a time to let her sleep.

……………….

Despite the distraction of Bethany and various little ones who seemed to have taken it upon themselves to bestow the ‘grandfather proportion’ of their attention and affection on Master, two months later still saw Master generally listless when at home, and increasingly less willing to eat, let alone communicate unless with youngsters, or when unavoidable.

At first the depth of his fugue went unnoticed as his political duties did not ease up, indeed there was virtually no respite in the ensuing six months as the climate became more volatile after the loss of his life partner and the public funeral service for the human Pet of an Alliance representative.

The press, already stunned by the age and devotion apparent in the beloved Pet of the Master Vampire, did not have to dig too deep to discover the deceased had possessed skills and attributes respected amongst the most elite of the demon world. This flew in the face of conservative arguments that humans were in no way worthy of the respect of demons. The fight in Abu Dhabi twenty five years earlier was reported for the first time and tributes flowed in from the clans in the former USA that had benefited directly from its fallout at the time.

The human rights debate was quite suddenly raging in the open, and Spike’s allies reveled in it. The leverage was wonderful as the press cited the Aurelian Stud as ‘one of the best examples’ of what was possible regards human breeding and training. Others in Spike’s circle played up the importance of harmonious relationships between handlers and humans, and handlers and masters (though some had come to practicing what they preached quite late!). The whole public fuss coincided with a World Forum on Slaving Practices. The forum was to particularly focus on regulations pertaining to food farms, selective breeding, transport and living circumstances; and the less savory public practices of flogging, execution, and public ‘servicing’ of Masters in food halls and areas where young demons might observe.

Xander had done in death what Spike and he had tried to do in life for the last twenty five years… He had shaken the very foundations of the slavers’ codes of practice and swung public opinion firmly toward the liberal thinkers and their reforms.

The Master was constantly in demand. Press interviews, feature stories, keynote speeches, travel and meetings, and all the while Daniel worried. Master had always been slim, now Daniel watched helplessly as his Master became positively gaunt. He made sure the bed was always warm; that there was always fresh body temperature blood on hand; that the bath was run without asking; that clothes were laundered and the coming day’s schedule understood. Yet night after night the vampire ignored the food and often even the pleasure of a bath, choosing instead to bury himself under a pile of blankets and curl up around a pillow apparently instantly asleep. But Master’s problem wasn’t sleeping it was waking.

………………………………

Spike knew he was there, so he reached into the shadows, always blue shadows of late, that was odd… why blue? And there he was … and he could feel him again, touch him, but it felt wrong and Spike was puzzled … his Xan was restored this time, young skin and taut muscles, but his eye still missing? And the white hair remained? Odd. Xander was grinning broadly but wouldn’t talk to Spike… His Xan always talked to him when they were by themselves. Spike called out to him but the beloved face simply smiled at him, not a sound, just sending love through that joyous look. His love’s hand caressed Spike’s cheek and he tried to get closer, to kiss the beautiful mouth but Xander kept drifting away… his legs becoming a swirl of cloud, and the eyes suddenly tinged with sadness… and then he was vapor… and then he was gone. Spike called and cried and called… but to no avail…

…………………………
Master woke on his side with a strangled cry and to the sensation of tears running across his nose to join those already falling to the pillow on the other side. Daniel was at his bedside gently rubbing his arm, a look of concern tinged with a measure of desperation firmly in place.

This was a mild one… twice in the last week, Master had woken in game face growling fiercely at some unseen assailant who was taking his Pet away. Daniel had backed off both times until consciousness and control returned, along with the usual haunted look and the tears. The dreams always seemed worse when they were away.

This time the Alliance was meeting in London to coincide with the Global forum. The dreams were worse, too many memories of Xander around every corner of the old city. Vampire and claimed life partner had spent almost fifteen years in and around the city during their early times.

Daniel and Master had only been gone for ten days but Daniel yearned for home. He spoke perfect English but preferred the lilt of spoken French, not to mention the company of his siblings and family, and the Chateau’s relaxed atmosphere. But above all, he really did not know how to help Master. He was coming to the same conclusion as Desmonde and Monique, they needed to find Master a reason to go on, beyond the frantic work pace he was currently maintaining and beyond the ‘global change’ agenda. Master needed family, they all knew that and were ready to give, but only when he was ready to accept.

By the end of the second week, all signatories to the Alliance (as well as four new regions yet to be admitted to the group) had ratified the new global standards and committed their regions to
adopting the changes within the next twenty four months. Penalties for non compliance were to include a boycott on trade and exclusion from the Alliance. Some concessions were made for the clans of the very northern regions where food sources other than human had all but dried up, but these would only mean an extra eighteen months to adopt all standards.

In every region there was an immediate ban on ‘battery farms’ and the use of hormones to accelerate growth in the feed humans. Free range farming would be tolerated but strictly monitored by the new Human Protection Committee established in every region, with a recommendation that the modified humans (now considered a true subspecies) be the only ones bred for food. Flesh farms were banned altogether (these had specialized in ‘harvesting’ living flesh, organs or body fluids from humans repeatedly until the individuals inevitably succumbed).

It was felt that a two year period was reasonable to phase out food farms as there was an ever increasing demand for the artificially produced products. Far cheaper and with more reliable quality, the factory produced tissue and synthetically manufactured fluids had grown exponentially in popularity over the past eight or nine years. The Alliance agreed to fund poorer regions to increase production in the factories to cover any shortfalls.

For Pet humans and working slaves, the Human Protection Committee also gave hope. Servicing Masters in public was banned. It was a demon equity issue, with a number of the committee pointing out that their own very different methods of attaining sexual pleasure did not allow public satisfaction, and that they found the preferred use of humans by some of their demon compatriots quite repugnant. Leads were to remain, but the laws regarding compulsory wearing of body chains were rescinded.

The greatest change came with the reinstating of the right to practice magic, with Wiccan’s and Warlocks assigned to a newly created ‘special category’ of human. All magical humans now had to be registered by their owners, but were able to practice if their Master obtained a license to do so. The debate had raged for three days straight, with the turning point coming as the success of Pets learning martial arts in order to defend their Masters was cited (Xander’s defense of his master at the Alliance meeting again mentioned as the catalyst).

Daniel and Master returned home exhausted but with a sense of victory. The next Alliance meeting was to occur in the former Beijing in five months’ time. He hoped it would give Master time to work through his grief properly and heal a little.

After seeing Master’s dreadful state upon his return, Megan and Kathryn made it their business to ensure he fed, employing any method they could think of to have him consume adequate amounts. They were both newly pregnant and free of newborns to care for, so if feeding took an hour or two twice a day it was still acceptable. Daniel was infinitely grateful to his sisters and Master’s physical condition improved.

Master still insisted on spending the first part of every evening under the favorite oak, even in the winter months when the chill wind threatened to freeze him in place, an undead statue paying tribute to his lost love. Daniel had a bench seat placed at the base facing the west keeping him in shadow should the sun come up before Master realized.

Spike now sat on the seat wrapped in a large sleeping bag, enjoying the warmth and taking in its familiar smell.

…………………
It was nearing year seventy eight of their time at the Chateau. Xander was becoming frail but they still decided to lie under their tree. They took supplies these days, a large warming mat for the ground and double sleeping bag stuffed with two layers of warmth – one duck down and the other wool. Monique had made the bag for them after seeing her father return from one of their ‘evenings at the tree’ looking decidedly blue and shivering.

They had been lying on their backs for over an hour, nude inside their warm bed, staring up through the bare branches at the full moon. They watched as the wintry breeze tugged the last brown leaf from its hold and whisked it away. Both caught in their own thoughts, they were happy just to lie together without saying anything. No words need be pass between them to enjoy each other’s company these days. They both knew calm, and felt cherished and loved… silence was always comfortable after so many years. Finally Xander had rolled onto his side and slid his hand down to Spike’s soft member, stroking it gently until he felt it tweak a little and begin to ‘pay attention’ to his ministrations.

“You needin’ somethin’ pet.”

“Uh huh… and figured I’d help myself… OK by you?”

Spike grinned at his partner, “Always luv… have at it… I’m all yours…” The wicked twinkle and slight smirk on Xander’s face upon hearing these words, were worthy of the vampire himself.
Xander’s head disappeared immediately, the hand was replaced by a hot mouth and an experienced tongue that not only pulled the erection to full strength with one pass, but had the attached body arching off the ground and groaning with instant need for more.

As the mouth continued, Spike pushed down under the covers also, turning to a diagonal and hauling his partner over the top of him accepting his partner’s still somewhat flaccid flesh into his own mouth and laving it to stiffness. Pleasure was drawn out by many years’ worth of intimate knowledge of the other partner’s preferences. Spike tickled along Xander’s perineum and breached the waiting entrance with one finger then two. Xander rolled Spike’s balls in his hand and tugged gently on the scrotum just enough to feel tension but not enough to hurt. Finally Spike released his mouth and whispered hoarsely… “C’mon luv, spin around and let me fix you up good and proper.. hey?”

Xander released his mouth and turned until he was head at the entrance to the sleeping bag again.

“On your side luv. Let me do this for you.” Xander heard the snick of a tube of lube as he rolled then felt himself breached and filled in one swift action.

They continued at a leisurely pace for almost three quarters of an hour… Spike gently caressing Xander’s hardness as he slid in and out ever so slowly…. Finally they both needed more and Spike sped them to completion.

The remainder of the evening was spent reading poetry, kissing, and talking. That night they talked of ‘after Xander’ at length for the first time… and Spike promised… he had promised to go on.
…………………

Deep in his memories, Master did not see the little girl approach. Aged seven or eight with pale skin, huge, dark chocolate eyes, and long black hair, she silently joined him on the seat amongst the shadows. She sat quietly for some time, but when not acknowledged, she finally spoke.

“Do you come here to talk to grandfather?”

Spike frowned at her and looked puzzled, obviously surprised to realize he was not alone. “Wha..?”

“You know, ‘cause the tree will hear and maybe pass the message on.”

Spike simply grunted in semi agreement, “Hhmmm.”

“You’re still sad aren’t you.” The little girl began to swing her legs. “Mother says it’s OK to be sad, but not forever.” She looked hard at Master then spoke again, “You can have my wish flower if you want. If you kiss it and make a wish, grandfather will hear… I’ve done it every Tuesday since he died.” She thrust a large blood red rose into his hand the thorns had been carefully removed.

Spike accepted the flower, held it thoughtfully for a moment, and stared at its dark perfection.

The little girl all but bounced in anticipation, “Well? Come on…. Kiss it!”

Spike obliged and stood to place it carefully under the tiny brass plaque marking Xander’s final resting place.

The little girl had spun to kneel on the seat and was looking carefully at her Master. “You know I’m Esther right?”

“Of course…. What are you doing wandering around in the dark all by yourself, niblet.”

“I like the dark…. and I just love the moon,” She stared up as if to illustrate the point. “It’s so pretty, besides I’ve got magic abilities, and I’m going to be a really powerful wiccan one day….”
She paused to stare hard at him, “I don’t have to breed if I don’t want to right?”

“Them’s the rules.”

Another calculating look, “But what if I don’t want to be a pet either?…. Could I stay on the property if I didn’t breed? You know, if I was like the protector or something.. If I help run things…. I’m good at running things…. and if my magic was strong… that is, if you…. If umm …. if….” She trailed off but noticed that Master looked somewhat bemused by her outburst. She plucked up her courage again and added, “Can I come out here with you again… you know… to sit? I promise I can be quiet if you want.”

Spike simply opened his arms that had been holding the cover tightly around his body in an invitation for the tiny wiccan to join him in the warmth. As the warm little body settled by his side and he wrapped the both in the soft covers, he suddenly felt a little less lonely.

It was the first night of many sitting with his extraordinary raven haired grandchild.