Mbwa Mwitu

Chapter Summary: Xander and Spike welcome Tara and Oz into their home. Xander and Oz talk. A decision is made.


.Chapter Two.


"So..." Xander glanced over at Oz. Behind him, Spike and Tara followed. For a brief second he wondered how all four of them would find room in his apartment, but the thought was immediately pushed away. Oz needed a place to stay. Tara need the support of the pack. It was as simple as that. "What have you been up to?"

"Tibet." Was Oz's reply. It was spoken in the sort of tone that explained everything, even when the words didn't.

"Right, the whole control thing." Xander nodded, pulling out a set of keys to unlock his door. "How'd that work out for you?"

"Almost figured it out, but..." Oz trailed off a moment, before continuing. "It's all about keeping your emotions in check."

"And we all know you're such a hot head." Xander teased, pushing the door open to allow everyone entrance. Oz's lips twitched into a mild smile before stepping inside. "I'm afraid we don't have that much room. The sofa pulls out into a bed, but... Well, I don't know how you guys feel about sharing beds."

"I can sleep on the floor." Tara spoke up.

"Like hell you will." Spike said. "You're the girl around here, unless you count bits of hyena-boy over there-" Xander mock-growled at him. "-So you'll be getting a bed."

"Yes, Daddy." Tara's soft voice teased, shocking Xander and Spike into silence.

"I think we're having a bad influence on her, love." Spike finally whispered. The vampire had a glint in his eye that said he was very satisfied by this factor. He slipped his arm around Tara's waist and pulled her toward the sofa. "Come along, Tara, let's destroy that bloody brilliant mind with television."

Soon the sounds of Passions drifted through the apartment, all thanks to the DVD set that Xander had bought for Spike. For a brief second he regretted the purchase. The sounds of Spike cursing at the television during all hours of the night often times kept him up. But his mate was happy, and that's what mattered.

Shooting Spike and Tara a smile, Xander made his way to the glass door leading to the porch. In the light of the half-moon he could see Oz sitting on the ground, legs in the lotus position. At first glance a person would think he was meditating, but Xander knew better. The tension in the werewolf's back was obvious. Quietly, Xander slipped out onto the porch and shut the door behind him. He stood a moment, completely silent, before being shocked by Oz speaking.

"Complicated." Oz said, opening his eyes. "Sometimes I wonder if controlling the wolf is too complicated."

"Does it work?" Xander asked, sitting down next to him. "Controlling it, I mean."

"The monks said I had too much anger inside." Oz replied. "That I need to get control of that anger, but... The anger is the wolf."

"Animals don't liked to be caged." Xander commented. There was a pause, before Oz looked over at him.

"What happened?" Xander didn't have to ask him what he meant. Just as Xander could recognize some primal being within Oz, no doubt the werewolf could do the same with him.

"Hyena." Xander stated. "She was stuck inside me for... God, it feels like forever. Stuff happened and now she's out. I don't keep her locked up anymore, and she's not like she once was. There is no anger."

"Sometimes I want to unlock the cage." Oz admitted, with a sardonic smile. "But it doesn't work that way."

"Doesn't it?" Xander asked.

"I could hurt people." Was Oz's reply. The werewolf looked down at his dirty Vans, before leaning forward to pick a piece of encrusted dirt off the sole. Sighing, Oz tossed the clump of dirt away, before brushing off it's remains from his black-painted nails. "I don't... After what happened with Veruca, I spent a lot of time thinking."

"Hmm... Because you don't do that enough." Xander commented. Oz shot him a look and Xander gave him a smile. "Sorry. I'm all primal and... Hyena-ish, but I still say some pretty silly things sometimes."

"You wouldn't be Xander if you didn't." Oz told him with a smile.

"So, thinking." Xander prompted. Behind them he could hear Tara giggling. Unable to control himself, a grin flittered across his face.

"Hmm." Oz glanced over his shoulder and at the living room within, before turning to look at the sky. The partial light of the moon caused his face to look almost blue. "Veruca was all pain and... Destruction. I don't want to become that."

"Whose to say you will?" Xander asked. "I mean, think about it for a moment. That Veruca chick tried to kill Willow. She told me what happened that night. You showed up and instead of helping Veruca attack Willow, like the wolf-bitch would have wanted you to do, you killed Veruca. That's the difference, Oz. Veruca was jaded. She thought she was following the wolf's corruption, but she wasn't. All that deceit and anger wasn't the wolf, it was her. She just used the wolf to her advantage."

"Then what about me." Oz said. It was hardly a question, more like a statement that a teacher put on an exam to throw you off course. Xander was never very good at tests, and therefore chose to take it as a question.

"Animals are nothing like humans." Xander informed him. "They don't get jealous or feel the need to hurt someone else just because, well, because they can. Animals are pure instinct. Love, hate, happiness. It's all instinct. But hate, with no reason? That's not an animal. That's a human. Animals hate because someone or something threatens the pack. Or threatens a mate. Not because someone gets in your way, or because someone else got that raise at work."

"You think the anger within me isn't the wolf." Oz summarized, glancing at him.

"No, it's the wolf. But it's not blind anger." Xander said, his eyes locking with Oz's. "You don't need to control it, Oz. You just need to make it happy."

Later, when Oz expressed the desire to remain outside and Tara had fallen asleep on the sofa, Xander pulled Spike towards their room, swallowing the vampire's questions with his mouth. Not one to give up a chance for a little fun, Spike quickly shut up and set about undressing them. They tumbled onto the bed, naked. Their bodies were already slicked with sweat from their desperate activity, their gasps echoing through the room. A soft purr, gravel-like and yet erotic, emitted from Xander's throat as their cocks rubbed against one another.

It was like a dance that Xander always felt the desire to participate in. The feel of Spike's body against his. The small whimpers that escaped Spike's throat when Xander licked his neck. The way Spike cursed under his breath when Xander entered him. It was the same, nearly every time, but like an ageless dance he always desired it. Sure, they mixed it up on occasion, but the hyena wasn't one for kink. The hyena was content and happy just to have Spike there, wantonly arching his back during orgasm.

Afterwards, they lay in bed holding one another. Spike's blue eyes remained alert and wide-awake, as they usually did when the sun was hiding. Xander's were half closed, but his mind was dancing with thoughts and suggestions, some as boring as 'Did I leave the oven on?' but most were enjoyable. With a needless sigh, Spike rested his head against his mate's.

"What's with the pup?" Spike asked, his voice sounding loud in the quiet night.

"Apparently a complication as come up." Xander muttered, his voice sounding on the verge of sleep. For a moment, he thanked whatever god that was out there that it was the weekend. As much as he enjoyed construction work, it took a lot out of him. "He's tired of bouncing between the wolf and himself."

"Then fix it." Spike looked up at him with a smirk. "You got all happy with your hyena, didn't you?"

"But that was different-" Xander started.

"Not really, pet." Spike interrupted. "You'd be the best one out there to teach him to unlock the wolf's cage. Get Tara to help you. It would get her mind off of the whole problem with Red. Let her do some of that fancy aura work of hers."

"It's not that simple." Xander said. "Tara can read our auras because she knows us. She doesn't really know Oz."

"She'll get to know him." Spike replied, simply.

"You're not going to let this go until I do it, are you?" Xander asked with a defeated sigh.

"Like you would deny the pup, anyway." Spike snorted.

"I could!" Xander insisted. Spike stared at him a moment, before snickering. Growling, Xander rolled them until he had the vampire pinned underneath him. Leaning closer to Spike's laughing face, Xander allowed a slow grin to develop on his own. "Tsk. Tsk. You should learn to respect the Alpha."

"Alpha, my arse." Spike replied, the tip of his tongue sticking out between his teeth. Xander could feel Spike's fingers trailing down his side and fought back a giggle from the ticklish sensation.

"Well, I suppose your arse could be considered Alpha." Xander mused. "It appears to be the center of this relationship."

"And I thought you liked me for my wonderful mind." Spike pouted.

"Nope." Xander slipped a hand down to squeeze Spike's buttocks. Spike squirmed underneath him. "It's all about the ass."

"Oh, bugger off." Spike ordered. Like a snake, he slithered out from underneath Xander and off of the bed. Xander fell onto his side and watched as his mate pulled on a pair of jeans.

"Where are you going?" Xander asked, suddenly fighting a yawn.

"Need a smoke, pet." Spike replied. He sent Xander a smile. "Get some sleep."

Spike couldn't help but smirk when he heard Xander grumble something about having to sleep without his mate by his side. Humming some cryptic sounding tune to himself, Spike slipped out of the bedroom and down the hall to the living room. Even in the darkness, his eyesight allowed him to see everything as though it were day. Tara was still curled up on the sofa, one arm dangling off.

Spike, along with Xander, couldn't help but feel a connection to the blonde witch. With a soft smile, he quickly grabbed a blanket from the hall closet. There was something about Tara that simply gave off rolls of some sort of feeling that Spike usually only associated with Xander. The demon side of him identified it with that of a clan, that of a pack. None the less, whatever this connection between them was, it left him with a constant desire to keep her save.

And she would be safe, no matter what. That vow made, Spike carefully covered her with the blanket before heading toward the porch's glass door.

Oz still sat on the ground, arms wrapped around his knees. Spike couldn’t help but wonder if he had moved once in the past couple of hours. Surely his legs were cramping? The thought was pushed away. Xander, in the last few months, had been known to handle things that most humans wouldn't be able to withstand, but a vampire like Spike could and sometimes enjoyed. Perhaps, the ability sit, cramped up and small, was pure animal.

Spike slipped through the door, closing it softly so he wouldn't wake Tara. His cigarette dangled from his mouth as he lit it. Oz didn't move. Taking in a deep drag of the sweet and yet harsh nicotine, Spike finally spoke. "It's going to get cold."

"Yes. It does that." Oz replied, his voice sounding in desperate need of water.

"You should come inside." Spike said in offering.

"That girl... Tara?" Oz's green eyes slowly slid up to look at Spike. "She smells like Willow."

"Hmm, for now." Spike agreed. He eyed the werewolf a moment, before leaning against the wood railing and watching the smoke drift upwards from the tip of his cigarette. "They broke up. Tonight... Well, yesterday. Hasn't had time to take a shower, to get rid of the scent."

Oz merely nodded.

"Xander..." Spike paused a moment, searching for a way to phrase his words. "Xander's going to help you."

"Help me." Oz repeated.

"Yeah. With the wolf." Spike raised an eyebrow. "He knows how to work with stuff like that, you know. He's a lot smarter than some believe."

"I know."

"He'll help." Spike nodded to himself. "If you want it, that is."

"I think..." Oz paused long enough to let go of his legs and stretch them out. His knees popped in protest. With a sigh, he looked back up at Spike. "I think I would like that."