SOLD!

TITLE: SOLD!
AUTHOR: WillJ
EMAIL: wmj166@yahoo.com
WEB SITE: N/A
CHALLENGE: The Auction Challenge
RATING: Eventual NC-17
DISCLAIMER: I make any claim to, nor hold any license to the original characters to this story. These characters are used for the sake and sole purpose of entertainment only. No profit shall be, nor will be gained from the writing found hereafter; nor shall any personal credit be taken as to the character designs, personalities or concepts stemming from the original characters used. All situations in the story below, unless otherwise stated, should not, in any way, have any bearing on the creator’s original work.
FEEDBACK: Don't make me beg for feedback.though I will if I have to!
DISTRIBUTION: List Archives
SPOILERS: Season 5 of of Buffy the Vampire Slayer
SUMMARY: Xander accidentally gets caught up in a Charity Auction
BETA'D BY: LOAFERSGLORYBOSS (aka James)


Chapter 1


Xander nervously adjusted his tie in the mirror, for what it seemed like the hundredth time, wondering what had possess him to get involved in another one of Anya’s crazy money making schemes for the Magic Box.

Oh yeah right...Buffy and Willow, curse his weak nature. He could have easily have resisted Anya’s, and even Willow and Buffy’s pleas, but not the dreaded puppy dog eyes that all three turned on him. If it hadn't been for the three of them begging for him to do this auction for ‘the children’ he mimicked Buffy’s voice nastily, you wouldna have caught him in a monkey suit for all the money in the world and especially as the one of the ‘Pet’s being auctioned off. He snorted disgustedly. Whatever happened to these things being called a Bachelor Auction, huh? Sure it was kinda old-fashioned but hell, it stood for something: single men all over the world getting lucky and a damn good meal!

He eyed himself in the mirror….heyyyyy, he did look kinda good in this outfit though and he practiced his best, sexiest look in the mirror. Heheheheh, you da man! he snickered, winking and pointing a finger at his mirrored self. Slowly his eyes turned serious and his face grave in the mirror.

He frowned, looking down at the floor in the room reserved for the Pets, barely aware of the other single men milling behind him.

This stalemate with him, Anya and Buffy had gone on long enough and it was time for some serious talking to be done. Determined to talk to Buffy and Anya, he decided to practice what he was gonna say first.

And striking a pose in the mirror, he silently went over his speech...

“Look Anya, I know I broke your heart when I called off the wedding like that,” he would start off saying, “But that don't mean you have to do the nasty with Spike, I mean what the hell were you thinking?!”

“I know Xander and you're absolutely right,” imaginary Anya whispered brokenly as he stood looking sternly down at her contritely bowed head before turning to Buffy.

“And you, Buffy, you slept with Spike, of all people! Couldn't ya find a nice safe, human murderer to sleep with, say like Jeffrey Donner or even Ted Bundy,” he was stern as imaginary Buffy lowered her head, remorsefully.

“I know, Xander. I don't know what came over me. But without your superior manly counsel to guide me, I was lost….lost in my despair,” Buffy lifted her head, eyes awash with tears as she gazed at his towering figure of masculinity.

“How can we make things up to you,” both Anya and Buffy cried passionately, throwing themselves at his feet and gazing up at him with adoring eyes.

“What a fool I've been all these years,” Buffy cried, looking at him with dewy eyes. “All this time I've been searching for the perfect man, the best lover and you've been right here before me.”

“Take me now, Xander,” Buffy screamed, ripping off her shirt.

“No! Take me,” Anya screamed, ripping off her clothes.

“He's mine, you hussy,” naked Buffy yelled pulling at naked Anya’s hair, their bodies suddenly glistening with oil.

“No, he's mine,” Anya cried passionately and shoved at Buffy as they fell to the floor writhing slowly in their fight for his affection.

“No, he's mine,” shouted a naked Willow as she entered the fight.

“No, mine,” cried a naked Tara, shoving at the naked Buffy.

A naked Dawn tried to jump in, but he frowned with carefully averted eyes and she disappeared with a little squeak, No jailbait allowed!

“Ladies, ladies,” Xander said suavely to the writhing pile of female flesh, “There's enough of the Xan-man for all you lovely lades.”

He frowned in puzzlement as they ignored him, passionate moans rising from the writhing females.

“Ladies, ah..it's not that I don't mind the show, but..uhm….Buffy…Anya…hello, I'm over here. Remember me, the one you were fighting over….,” he trailed off as they ignored him.

He sighed forlornly, dammit even in my fantasies, I can't win! And he stared into the mirror with a lost look in his eyes, hardly aware of the whispering going on behind him.

“I heard that he's never been to a Fiestea before,” said a rather effeminate looking male to another.

“I heard that it was a female human that brought him in,” tittered the other to his friend.

“Boy, will he be in for a surprise, if this is his first auction,” snickered another.

“I think he's cute,” sighed another looking at Xander.

“You think everyone is cute,” snorted another in disgust.

“I just hope that DeVo doesn't show up,” said another worriedly.

And there was a sudden silence in the room before they all shuddered in dread.

Damn Anya anyway, why the hell couldn't she have stayed or somebody stayed with him? It was their big idea for me to be here, the least someone could have done was stay with me, Xander’s thought indignantly.

Meanwhile back at the Summers’ residence, Buffy, Willow and Tara were getting ready for the auction.

“You think this looks okay with this skirt,” Buffy said running into Willow and Tara’s bedroom.

“Oh, you're looking particularly hot,” Willow teased, laughing at the red flush climbing Buffy’s face. “Any particular reason?” She raised and lowered her eyebrows lasciviously.

“Oh, shut up,” Buffy grumbled with a smile. “Since we're going to that auction, I thought I would just buy me a mannnnn,” she said with a lofty smile that she struggled to maintain in the face of Willow and Tara’s shrieks of laughter.

Dawn stopped in open doorway with an angry look in her eyes, “Well, I don't think it was fair for all of you to gang up on Xander. He really didn't want to do this but all four of you ‘persuaded’ him that this was a good idea. I hope he gets bought by someone really nice and he leaves all of you,” she yelled spitefully at the suddenly paling faces.

“I'm going over to Janice and spend the weekend with her,” she said huffily at their guilty faces. With a toss of her head, she left the three women and they heard the door slam shut.

“Despite the teen angst, she's right,” Buffy sighed glumly, “We did push Xander into this. I just wanted to do something nice for him, to get that accusing look off his face once he found out that I had slept with Spike.”

Willow sat heavily on the bed, “Yeah and I just wanted him to meet someone new so he wouldn't have that miserable look in his eyes anymore. Ever since he called the wedding off and saw Anya doing the nasty with Spike, he’s been so lost and lonely. Maybe I should have talked to him more or something.”

“Lets face it, we really suck at being his friends,” Buffy muttered disgustedly.

Tara looked at the two downcast faces, “Then why don't you buy him? That will go a long way to showing him that you care and are sorry for hiding the truth about Spike from you.”

Buffy and Willow perked up immediately before they sagged in defeat, “I only got about $200,so if he cost more than that I'm in deep shit.”

“Yeah, and I only have about $500 myself,” Willow grumbled.

“Maybe Anya will help you and if not I have some money saved up for a rainy day and it looks like it's really coming down outside,” Tara said gently, thinking Willow will just never know about that emerald teardrop necklace she was going to buy her.

Buffy smiled at the gentle blonde,” Thanks Tara, but let me talk to Anya first. Maybe she's feeling as guilty as we are and will want to help.” She cocked her head to the side, “Well speak of the devil, or in her case, former vengeance demon.”

They rushed downstairs and explained how they felt, that they had pushed Xander into doing something he really didn't want and they wanted to buy him at the auction.

Anya listened with an unusually thoughtful look on her face, “I know and it's something that's been worrying me all day. Do you know that I almost gave a customer an extra quarter with his change,” she asked indignantly.

She looked around the blank faces and sighed, why do I even bother, they’re idiots and will never learn the value of money.

“Anyway, I came over here early to ask you the same. I have about $1,000 cash to buy him,” Anya said looking at their slowly brightening faces.

“Wohooo,” Buffy yelled, “I got $200, Wills got $500 and with your $1,000 I think we'll have enough.”

Anya looked gladden, “I heard that the men don't usually get bought for more than, maybe, $1,000 so, I’ll get to keep most of my money,” she smiled happily.

“What did I say,” she asked bewilderedly, looking from one grim face to the other.

Buffy just sighed and shook her head, tactless thy name is Anya.

She glanced at the clock 5:30 pm and shrieked at the time, “We have to finish getting dressed, the auction starts at 7 pm.”

With equal cries of alarm, Tara, Willow rushed upstairs after Buffy, telling Anya to watch TV or something.

Fifteen minutes later, the door opened and Spike stalked in.

And both he and Anya froze at the sight of each other.

“Anya,” Spike gave her a cautious nod, no telling what the crazy bint might decide to do.

“Spike,” Anya coldly greeted him. You evil, scum sucking bastard, she finished calling him silently.

There was an uncomfortable silence between them before Spike, his head tilting listening to the excited voices coming from upstairs.

“Going somewhere,” he asked, gesturing casually at her rather dressy outfit.

“Yes we are,” Anya looked at him haughtily. Despite not wanting anything to do with him after their tryst, it hurt that he kept avoiding her like she had some sort of disease.

“We're going to an auction and we are going to buy men to use for our sexual pleasure,” she announced in a superior tone, her nose in the air. Take that, you evil Avoiding-Me-Like-The-Plague bastard.

Spike looked at her thoughtful, “Iz that right…an auction, eh? The only auction I heard about is the Fiestea Auction.”

Anya froze,uh oh! “What did you just say,” she demanded stalking towards him.

“The Fiestea Auction, you know, the one held every five years for demons,” he said impatiently, his ears tuned to Buffy’s excited voice so he was startled at Anya’s shout.

“BUFFY!”

After a lot of yelling and screaming, they settled down to plan. Anya was still stammering that she thought the ‘e’ in Fiestea was a typo and holding an ice pack to the puffy eye that Willow gave her.

Buffy, of course, wanted to go with a fine time-honored tradition: swinging and killing every demon in sight.

“Afterall, it’s been working for hundreds of years,” she said looking modestly away.

Spike and Anya exchanged glances, before Anya gently explained the situation and what would happen if she did that, leaving Buffy white faced and shaken.

“Do we have enough money then to buy Xander,” Willow asked Spike anxiously. If anything happened to Xander she would never forgive herself.

Spike looked down and away from her hopeful eyes, “Pet, the minimum bid starts at $100,000,” he said gently.

“Where are we gonna get that kinda money,” Willow cried, her eyes growing dangerously black.

“Red, calm down! You go in there blasting magic and they'll show you what real magic is for,” Spike said sharply.

“Now, you silly bints have done enough, so shut the hell up and let me bloody well think,” he said irritably, jumping up and pacing angrily. Well aware that three pairs of eyes watched his every move anxiously. Feels kinda nice to have the silly girls shuttin’ up for once, a flicker of amusement on his carefully averted face.

Now who has that kind of money stashed…he came to an abrupt halt in his pacing.

Sparing a quick glance at Buffy’s suddenly hopeful face he turned his back as he dialed a well familiar number.

“Yeah, it's me, Spike. Put Peaches on the phone willya luv…….yes now you daft bint, put the bloody wanker on the phone……don’t give me none o’your lip! Now put my bloody Sire on the bleeding phone, woman!” He roared.

Behind his back the girls’ exchanged dismayed looks. Angel would never willingly help them rescue Xander. The long-standing hatred between the two was now reaching almost legendary proportions.

Cordy gave the phone one brief glare before banging the receiver repeatedly on her desk, wishing it was Spike’s head in her hands.

“ANGEL!” she screamed into the phone, smiling nastily at the lurid curses spewing at the other end. Gotcha! she smirked.

“Cordy, is there a reason why you won't use the intercom,” Angel asked wearily from his office doorway.

“Did you hear me,” and at Angel's hesitant nod, “Then what the hell do I need an intercom for,” she questioned with a raised brow.

Wesley came out of his office, saying quietly to Angel, “I suggest you give up and save yourself the added aggravation of banging your head against the wall, trust me on this.”

Angel glanced at him, so that’s what that banging noise was, he had often wondered.

He turned back to Cordy, “What is it? “ Please let it be a solo case, he desperately needed to get away from the office for a while and have some fun.

“It's your idiot childe Spike,” Cordy smiled maliciously at the phone. She couldn't wait for Angel to pick up the phone and rip Spike a new asshole. And I will not listen on the other extension, she thought virtuously, watching as the flashing light went solid. Must…resist…
blinking….light……must….resist….blinking…..light, she chanted silently, watching the hypnotic alluring red light, her hand trembling on the receiver.

“Spike, what the hell do you want,” Angel growled into the phone.

Spike was livid! “That stupid Beauty Queen dropout, didya see what she did? Didya? I gonna pay a couple of demons to rip out the daft bitch’s tongue, you just wait,” he yelled, his face shifting to demon form.

Angel held the phone from his ear as Spike's ranting went on, “Spike! Spike! SPIKE!” he roared into the phone and there was abrupt silence at the other end. Wesley poked his head around the door, looking at him worriedly and Angel waved him away.

“What. Do. You. Want,” he said through gritted teeth.

“Uhm, Sire it's the boy,” Spike said a little hesitantly. Angel was the only one with the kind of cash that could pull this off.

“Boy? Oh, you mean Xander,” Angel sighed, “What's he done now?”

“The boy's up for auction at the Fiestea tonight,” Spike said in a rush.

There was silence from at the other end.

“Peaches?…….uhm, Angel?……Sire,” Spike said as the silence continued at the other end.

“I'm sorry, for a minute I thought you just said that Xander was being auctioned at the Fiestea,” Angel said with extreme politeness.

“I did,” and Spike held the phone from his ear at the roar of laughter from Angel.

“Okay, so now tell me why you’re calling me,” Angel asked after getting his laughter under control, “And how did that foolish boy get himself mixed up in the Fiestea.” He could just imagine the look of wide eyed panic on Xander’s face and for a brief moment felt a stab of pity for the mortal, before he shook it off.

“Apparently,” Spike glared at the girls, “the ex-demon bint thought the sign said Fiesta. The other silly girls convince the pup that it was a good idea, you know, like get out and meet some new people,” Spike said sarcastically looking at the guilty faces of Anya, Willow and Buffy. He heard a sigh from the other end.

“Again, what do you want from me then, money to buy Xander,” Angel asked running a hand over his face.

“You'll give us the money?” Spike was startled, he thought it would take longer to convince Peaches.

“Sure, I’ll give you the money. I'll be there as soon as I can,” Angel said, wearily hanging up the phone. Only Xander could manage to get himself in such predicaments.

He stood up and stretched before casually sauntering out of his office, heading for the kitchen to get something to eat.

Cordy looked up as he left his office, “So what was all the laughter about,” she wanted to know.

Wesley came out of his office, curious also.

Angel started chuckling again, “Oh, somehow Xander managed to get himself involved in the Fiestea auction as a Pet,” he said continuing down the hall to the kitchen.

Wesley froze in alarm and made several choking sounds, causing Cordy to look at him with concern.

“Wes, Wes you okay,” she asked urgently, darting around her desk to his side.

“Yes, but I can't believe Angel's rather cavalier attitude to the danger that young Mr. Harris has somehow placed himself in,” Wesley said hoarsely, his eyes wide in alarm.

Cordy looked at him, starting to feel a little twitchy at the look on Wes’ face.

“It's just an auction, right? Like the Bachelor auctions they have all the time, right?” Her voice got progressively louder.

“No, the Fiestea auction is strictly for demons and no humans are ever allowed except those being auctioned off,” Wesley said grimly and jumped at Cordy’s shout.

“Angel, you better get your dead ass in the car and fetch Xander, NOW!”

Angel, in the kitchen was just about to take a sip when Cordy yelled. He jumped and blood splashed down his new black pants.

“Did you hear me, Angel?!” Cordy demanded, appearing in the doorway. Her expression was one of total fury.

“Yes, Cordy, I heard you--I think all of L.A. heard you,” Angel said dryly, trying to mop up the spilled blood.

“Then what are you still doing here? Get your ass in the car and save Xander,” Cordy insisted.

“I'm only going to Sunnydale to give Spike the money and that's all,” Angel said calmly. “As long as I get there before the auction ends Xander’ll be fine.”

Just then Wesley appeared in the doorway, a troubled look on his face.

“Angel, that was Spike. He said to tell you DeVo is in town for the auction,” Wesley swallowed hard, he had heard tales about DeVo and his unnatural appetite for young human males…..especially ones with dark hair.

Angel went instantly still, only the gold burning in his eyes gave testimony to his true emotions.

Then he became a blur of speed as he raced up the stairs to his room and sprinted back down to his car.

Cordy and Wes mouths dropped open in shock.

Cordy brushed back her hair that was disturbed by Angel's rush. While they were used to Angel doing a lot of incredible things, they never realized that he could literally move that fast!

They heard the front desk phone ring and rushed to answer it, before Cordy won the brief tussle and shouted ‘Hello’ into the phone, Wesley rubbing lightly at his sore ribs as he shamelessly eavesdropped.

Cordy listened intently before hanging up and rapidly dialing another number, holding up a hand sharply as Wes tried to find out who had called.

“Buffy? Yeah, it's Cordy, put Spike on the phone willya…….Spike, Angel's on his way and said for you to call him on his cell,” she gave him the number making sure that he had it right before hanging up and sitting down wearily, looking up at Wes’ worried face.

All they could do now was pray and hope that whatever Angel and Spike did worked.

Angel fumbled for his cellphone one-handed when it rang.

"Spike? Look, this is how we're gonna play this. We go in separately and hopefully bid against each other for Xander. As long as you remember to glare menacingly at me, I think DeVo may be happy to let me buy Xander. After all, you’re the one he blames for all his troubles," Angel gave a brief unamused laugh.

Spike gave a look at the suddenly hopeful faces, "Yeah, we'll do it your way. We just gotta make sure DeVo don't suspect anything until we get Xander off the grounds of the Fiestea."

"It can work if we just keep, Buffy and Willow out of this. You know how they feel about humans attending," Angel said, giving a swift look at his speedometer, hmm, I think we can go a bit faster than 80, and the car leaped forward with an angry growl.

"So, which one of us gets to keep the boy," Spike said in a very quiet voice, turning his back on the girls' watchful faces.

"Well, if the plan doesn't work, I can take him back with me for a while," Angel sighed, brooding on how even in Sunnydale, Xander could annoy him.

"You know what a badass DeVo thinks he is, he'll still try to come after Xander especially if you have him. He might just think twice about coming after me," Angel continued, his eyes flashing gold. "You just make sure you don’t buy anything there. Are we in agreement on this," he demanded.

"Sure, it's your play," Spike said curtly. He wasn't gonna have a problem glaring at the poof, he was already getting tired of Angel's sanctimonious attitude, just by talking on the phone with him! "I'll see you at the Fiestea, alright?" and he hung up the phone after Angel agreed.

"Okay, here's the plan, me and the poofer gonna bid on the bo...on Xander competitively, like….and one of us will get the whelp," he neatly avoided telling them that Angel would take Xander back with him for safekeeping if he thought there was any danger.

If Xander remained in Sunnydale, DeVo would probably figure out a way to snatch the boy and by the time him and the White Hats figured out where the boy was, Xander would probably be in lil'l Xander pieces. 'Course that wasn't to say that Angel wouldn’t hurt the boy either if Xander annoyed him too much, he smirked.

"Okay, let me get my things and we can leave," Buffy said taking a step and halting at Spike's iron hold on her arm.

"Whoa there missy! There's no 'we' in this…..just me and Peaches is gonna get the boy," Spike snapped out. "No human's are allowed and if you try to sneak in you'll wind up on the auction block, Slayer or not," he ended curtly, glaring at them.

S'all their fault the stupid boy got himself in this mess. Now HE’S gotta go play pretendlike with the poof. He glared angrily at Buffy, satisfied as she dropped her eyes guiltily. The things I do for love, he thought looking at Buffy.

"But can we....," Willow started to say.

"NO means fuckin' ‘NO’!" Spike said rudely before storming out of the house and letting the door slam behind him.

Buffy looked at the closed door and hearing the motorcycle roar off, her face firmed in determination.

"Willow, grab your things, we're going anyway," she said angrily.

"Buffy, while I am at times astounded by your sheer inability to see reason but this time HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND?!" Anya screamed.

"You have absolutely no clue about the Fiestea and you'll wind up getting everyone killed, including Xander. Either wait here for Xander or go by yourself!" With that she stormed out of the house, slamming the door behind her.

"Buffy, I agree with Anya. We really should just wait here until Spike returns with Xander," Willow said uneasily.

"I wasn't planning of going in, I was just gonna wait out in the parking lot. I won't be IN the place, d’uh," Buffy asked in exasperation. She couldn't wait for them to return with Xander, it just wasn't in her nature to patiently sit while others did the work for her. Besides, she thought with a little guilty pleasure, Angel was going to be there.

Willow's eyes had narrowed, easily reading the look in Buffy's eyes, "You just want to see Angel," she gasped angrily.

"I do NOT!" Buffy yelled, "I just want to make sure that Xander's okay, is all."

Willow simply glared at her, "I'll go, but Buffy Summers if you do anything to endanger Xander I'll kick your ass!"

Buffy looked at one of her oldest friends, she knew Willow was dead serious, "Willow, I'm NOT, I repeat NOT going there to hurt Xander or to ogle Angel. I just want to make sure he's okay and be back up if they need it, okay," she said gently, like Willow could really hurt her anyhow, she snorted silently to herself.

Willow didn't bother to reply to her, instead asking Tara if she wanted to go. Relieved when Tara shook her head, she and Buffy left for the Fiestea.


Boy, was this stuff good, Xander thought peering at his glass. Whatever they put in this, they need to bottle it…they'll make a fortune.

He was vaguely aware of his fellow bachelors whispering behind his back, but they were good guys, he thought stoutly. Even though some of them looked a little swishy they were still good guys, he thought emotionally, the best damn bunch of guys in the world. Maybe some sweet little old woman would buy them cause they reminded ‘em of their precious little girls, and he giggled helplessly, toppling over on the couch.

"...just how much did you give him," was the fierce whisper.

"...I only gave him enough to relax him," was the angry whispered retort.

"....well, did you check to make sure he had something to eat then," was the somewhat mollified reply.

"...of course I did! I stood right there and watched him eat," came the indignant whisper.

The seven men straighten up and looked at the giggling young man, "What the hell are we going to do," one of them moaned softly.

"We didn't give him much, so all we have to do is make sure that he doesn't go out until he at least a little bit more sober," said another one, watching Xander doubtfully.

"Yeah, he's a cutie and I would like to see him go to somebody that'll treat him nice," said a gentle looking blond, drifting over to the inebriated Xander and stroking his head gently.

The door opened smoothly and all the men straightened to attention, presenting their most alluring smiles at the guard. He was the one they had to convince to change the order of presenting them. And by the time they were finished with him, he was ready to do anything for them, except let them go of course. Letting a Pet escape really wouldn't look good on his tombstone.

Spike found the Fiestea grounds easily. Well, well, well it seems as if they are providing parking this time, he thought driving between the pillars marking the entrance.

The event always appearing in some out of the way place on the outskirts of a town, with human guards on the outside guarding the place to avoid suspicion from the general population.

Spike sauntered casually into the Fiestea hall, he knew he looked his best…black, skintight jeans, a blue silk T-shirt that clung tightly to his frame. He was, now how do the kiddies put it…..FOINE!

And a smirk crossed his face as he heard the whispered comments trailing in his wake....

...who is that....

...is he an owner....

…those marvelous cheekbones, those pouty lips….

...my god, I wouldn't mind being a Pet if I could be owned by him...


With lazy, arrogance in his every move, he paraded around the ballroom. Reveling in this rare opportunity to simply cut loose and simply be, without those silly kids around. Teasing his new found admirers to a state of secret frenzied lust, subtly showing all his dominance, he was the favorite Childe of Angelus and was a Master Vampire in his own right.

His body posture roaring ‘I am Spike, of the line Aurielius; I fear neither man nor demon’ while secretly checking the guards' locations, the exits, the magical defenses any thing that would hinder them, well him actually, from getting away in a hurry.

He grabbed a brochure from a table, a wineglass of blood from a passing waiter and settled into a chair. He made sure his face showed absolutely no expression as he found himself gazing at a picture of Xander Harris and the price! Silently whistling at the starting bid they placed on the boy.

Calmly, he crossed his long legs as a silver chime rang through the room and various demons and demi-humans found seats. A flicker of movement to his left caught his eye and he looked over, making sure his expression revealed nothing but boredom. Fuckin' a, DeVo's here! Peaches better hurry his ass up and get here. With that, Spike settled in for the long wait, his face a cold mask of indifference.


Angel drove immediately to the mansion. Despite Buffy telling him to stay out of Sunnydale, he came back every now and then, just to keep an eye on things. He snorted, like he was really gonna listen to her. Striding into the bedroom and throwing off his clothes along the way. He knew there would be only one thing that everyone at the Fiestea respected, one thing that DeVo respected: Power and Sex.

It was a game that Angelus had played at for centuries....but one that he, as Angel had perfected with the cementing of his soul over the last seven months. This was a side of him that he kept carefully hidden from Cordy, Gunn and Wesley. He had no doubt that if Cordy saw him like this she would be very, very sorry as she swept his ashes into a coffee cup fearing the return of Angelus. He just needed to ease them into accepting the new him. The very much improved him.

He dragged a large trunk out of the closet and opened it, inspecting the contents thoroughly and a dark seductive smile crossed his face...yesssss those will do nicely.

First he removed a pair of soft black leather pants, that fitted like a second skin. He pulled them on, making sure that the bulge in front showed to the best obvious advantage. Next came the mid-calf leather black boots with a slight heel. Now, the thin white silk shirt, fastened only with a bloodred ruby at the neck holding it closed, and with slightly billowing, tightly cuffed sleeves.

With a careful sweep of a comb through his hair, he knew he was almost ready.

And removing a long leather duster from the closet, he slid it on.....

....now he was ready.


Spike didn't allow his uneasiness to show on any part of his face or body. He continued to sip idly at the blood in his wineglass, exchanging casual greeting with demons and demi-humans. Not once did he let on that he knew DeVo was trying to burn a hole in his face with a cold glare.

Only by a faint imperceptive flicker of his icy blue eyes did his excitement show as they finally brought the boy out.

He had a feeling that a little something extra was put in that drink they gave him. He felt like he had way too many beers, Xander thought

Peeking out at the crowd a time or two, Xander kept feeling that there was something really strange about the crowd. What it was, he couldn't quite put his finger on it but that 'something' was making his spider sense tingle, he giggled softly….I'm Spiderman.

He could vaguely make out some of what the auctioneer was saying but the man spoke so fast that it was nearly impossible. He smiled when he heard the gentle blond guy was sold for $300 bucks. Go dude! he gave a mental cheer, blinking as a man came up to collect the little dude. Must be the woman's brother or something, he shrugged. He took a couple of deep breaths, trying to calm himself.

Finally it was his turn to strut for the ladies and I know that there'll be plenty of ‘em wanting some of this Xandergoodness, he thought with a little chuckle.

Xander sauntered out from behind the curtain just like he saw the others do. Pouting because he couldn’t wiggle his hips like they did.

Half the crowd let out a breathy moan at the sight of his pouty lips.

He was slowly coming down off his high from whatever was in that drink they gave him.

Standing on the stage, his eyes half-shut from the glare he tried to imagine what type of woman was gonna buy him. Maybe she'll be a supermodel, he thought hopefully then a slow smile crossed his face at the thought of a supermodel here in Sunnydale. Yeah like that'll ever happen.

Spike looked at Xander on the stage. Whoa, didn't know the boy could clean up so good, feeling a hungry stirring in his pants. His eyes narrowed as he took in the slumberous look in the pup’s eyes and then the slow, Fuck-me smile that crossed the boy's face.

He slid a look at DeVo and saw the voracious look of hungry desire on the vampire's face. Shit! He saw the bastard raise a hand and the bidding began racing like wildfire.

"$150," came the first bid and Xander's eyes widen at how high they started bidding on him. Wohoo, maybe I'll beat out that other dude that got 'bought' for $790.

"$175."

“$200."

"200, doihear220yestothegentlebeingohIhave250tothegentlandnowIhave300," the auctioneer cried out cheerfully. He nodded at a raised paddle, and began his spiel, "andIhave300can
Iget320yesindeedtothegentlandIhave350canIget360forthisyoungfinespecimenohyessir380
andtoyousiryes390canIget...."

Xander tuned the man's voice out, he could barely understand him anyhow. Maybe a blonde will buy me, no wait maybe a fiery redhead..grrr, and he practiced his sexiest smile to his fantasy woman.

The bidding immediately jumped to $450.

Maybe she'll be shy, hey I can be shy too and he modestly lowered his eyes giving a shy peek under his lids.

The bidding jumped to $650 and stalled, with no one wanting to go higher than DeVo.

What was wrong with the damn boy, Spike was aghast. Did he want to get bought is that why he was acting like....like a very practiced something, but very well practiced.

He had had enough, time to remind them these simpering fools of the line of Aurielius.

"$800," he raised his voice slightly above the crowd, shocking the crowd as they turned to look at him. He gave them all a cold, arrogant look. He was the favorite Childe of Angelus and he feared nothing.


Xander lifted his head puzzledly, hey that sounded like Spike, wonder if the girls were here and he tried to look beyond the lights of the stage.

Spike saw the evil look DeVo gave him and returned the look with his nastiest smirk.

And the bidding kept creeping higher and higher, until at last Spike stopped bidding, his eyes widening in shock. He saw Angel leaning against the wall beyond DeVo. What the hell happened to Peaches? He regarded the Fuck-me outfit that Angel was….Aw crikey! Tensing, he feared the return of Angelus.

DeVo gave Spike a triumphant look as the auctioneer was calling 'going once, going twice…'

$1.5," called a cool voice behind him and he whirled in shock.

"You," he breathe at the sight of Angel.

"In the flesh," and Angel gave him a cool, mocking glance, then looked across the room allowing let a flash of hatred to cross his face at the sight of Spike. He ignored the guard helping Xander from the stage. He knew that it was just taking Xander to the holding room with the other ‘Pets’ that were purchased.


DeVo took a half second to decide what to do, before yielding the right to the boy to Angelus or whatever he was calling himself now. No matter he still won, at least Spike didn't get the boy and he smirked at the rage on Spike's face at the sight of his sire.


"SOLD!" the auctioneer cried out.

And the crowd went wild.

This had been the most fun they had had in centuries, there was no way the Fiestea would be able to top this show.

DeVo eyed the seductive picture Angelus made leaning against the wall. He had heard rumors floating around that Angelus had been cursed with a soul and was now calling himself Angel. He licked his lips as he ran his eyes over the painted on leather pants, lingering on the prominent bulge in the front before drifting up to the open white shirt. His body stirring hungrily to life.

Afterall, it was Angelus that started his addiction with dark hair males.

He had thought to top Angelus ages ago, considering that he was the older by at least a hundred years, yet that stupid blockhead ignored his every challenge, refusing to confront him. Finally he decided to simply take Spike thinking Angelus was weak. To his surprise and shock it was he that had been thrown to the floor….his body bucking under Angelus’. Dominated.

He was the one writhing in a mix of pleasure pain, screaming again and again as Angelus brought him to his peak and backed off. By the time Angelus was through with him, he was a writhing creature beggin’ to be fucked again. Kissing his boots, anything to get Angelus to fuck him.

And then Angelus began pounding on him with his fists, cracking ribs, his jaw, his leg until he was one mass of pain. It had taken him a little over a year to recover. Of course, he had to kill all his childer and minions that had watched the show but what the hell, he could always make himself some more.

He still hadn’t learned his lesson and he went after the last remaining witness to his humiliation: Spike. He had heard the two were fighting like cats and dogs and he was sure Angelus wouldn’t mind him killing Spike. Afterall, he would be saving Angelus the trouble of doing it himself.

And the son-of-a-demonbitch wasn’t even grateful, he thought indignantly. You try to do someone a favor and what did they do….they spit in your eye or in Angelus case, they string you up and shove hot pokers in for days before letting you crawl away.

That was NOT how you showed your appreciation, a young girl or boy were acceptable forms of silently showing your thanks for taking care of a difficult problem childe. Why, back when I was turned, we had PROPER vampires then, ones that knew how to show gratitude but this younger generation….he shook his head sorrowfully. He blamed the Sires.

Every time he encountered Angelus, the other would find a way to utterly dominate him, making him the bottomboy. No matter how he tried to fight Angelus, his cravings for the other, he always wound up doing whatever Angelus told him to do no matter how shameful or ridiculous it was.

Angelus was definitely in his black book, underlined. Twice. And highlighted.

He eyed Angel speculatively, but now this…this creature had a soul making him less than a vampire. Eyeing the erotic vision with a sneer, perhaps now he would get his chance to dominate the great Angelus. Of course it may not really be Angelus but hell, nobody would have to know but him, Spike and Angel. And he would take care of Spike…later seeing that there was no Angelus to protect the little twit.

Angel carefully kept his composure as he watched the indecision play across DeVo’ face. He really wanted to laugh remembering some of the things Angelus made DeVo perform for his viewing pleasure. He saw by the narrowing of DeVo’s eyes that the fool was going actually going to try to dominate him in front of everyone.

The patrons were watching the display eagerly. Some, adopting human customs, had sent out for popcorn, hoping the show wasn’t over before their minions returned. Hastily, they rearranged their seats to the best advantage with some patrons standing on chairs in the back.

And a couple of enterprising demons started taking bets.

DeVo strolled with haughty pride to a stop in front of Angel, standing with cold arrogance before the other. Supreme self-confidence, literally oozing from him.

The crowd started whispering and money changed hands, the odds had shifted in DeVo’s favor.

A sneer on his lips as he started from Angel’s feet, trailing his eyes contemptuously up the leather clad legs, the bared chest and finally meeting Angel’s eyes….his very amused eyes! And maybe now was NOT the time to start trying to dominate Angel, he thought uneasily.

“I hear you have a soul now,” he threw out.

The crowd oooohed at that remark and the odds increased in DeVo’s favor.

“Well, so did Hitler and Jack the Ripper,” Angel said calmly, his eyes intent on Spike.

“Aaaaaah,” the crowd sighed and the betting changed in favor of Angel.

As he brushed past DeVo, a little angel made him murmur to DeVo, “Do you still have that lovely blue dress and shoes from last time we met,” and glided closer to Spike.

His lips twitched at the way DeVo’s mouth dropped open in shock. The vampire looked like he might do the impossible and spontaneously turn into dust.


DeVo closed his eyes in shame…how in the hell did that fuckin’ bastard know that he still wore the dress?

Angel and Spike faced off and the crowd caught their breaths at the beauty of the two. One cool and sensuous, but with a dangerous fire lurking just below the surface….the other, hot and simmering with passion. They could just imagine the two locked in a tangle of arms, legs, grasping hands and not just fighting either. The women licked their lips and the men adjusted themselves discretely. The tension between the males was almost a visible, stroking over the crowd.

Angel could see the amusement glittering in Spike’s eyes and wanted to laugh himself. It seemed like old times.

“The boy belongs to me,” Spike growled and tried not to laugh at his cheesy line.

“I outbid you, so he belongs to me,” Angel said smoothly, gliding forward until he was a breath away from Spike. He fought desperately to stop himself from laughing at the overly dramatic way Spike was talking.

Stop trying to make me laugh, Spike wanted to scream at Angel, as it was he could hardly control himself, “How much will you take for him,” he snarled, his lip lifting before he could control it.

Angel’s lips twitched in return, “What will you give me,” he purred, circling Spike.

Oh, so Peaches thought he could be more dramatic than me, “I’ll give you anything, but I want the boy!” Ha! Top that you bloody twit, Spike thought in triumphant.

“You want the boy,” Angel purred, coming back around Spike. He had just thought of a great line.

“I want the boy,” Spike growled, what the hell was the guv’nor was thinking, he didn’t like the look in his eyes.

“Do you really want the boy?” Angel looked at him with no expression, his eyes hooded.

“Yes, I want the boy!” Spike shouted, was Peaches goin’ deaf or something?

Angel allowed a cold smirk to slip across his face, “You can’t handle the boy,” and his laughter to be heard throughout the hall.

And the crowd roared their approval at his stinging answer. This was well worth the $10,000 entrance fee they paid.

Spike stood there, a stunned look on his face, when did the poof start watching the telly?

The crowd booed loudly as two demon guards trotted up, one on either side of the duo.

With an air of self-importance, one sneered, “We don’t allow no fighting among the owners, sir,” his lip curling in condescension as he regarding Angel’s clothes.

Angel’s eyes flickered to the right at his guard and Spike gave an imperceptible nod of his head….

“Whatever,” Angel said and punched his guard at the same time Spike punched his.

And the crowd cheered enthusiatically as the two vampires leaped at each other.

Angel threw a solid right hook at Spike’s jaw, just narrowly missing him. Spike threw himself at Angel and they crashed to the floor.

“Hey, where did you get those pants?” he whispered as he wrapped his hands around Angel’s throat.

Angel flipped them over in a stunning display of strength, “I’ll give you the name later,” he whispered and punched Spike in the ribs, lifting him off of him.

They ignored the hooting from the crowd.

Whirling to his feet, he paused and leaped at Spike, lifting him over his head and slamming him down on the floor.

“Hey, you just tore my shirt,” Spike gritted out as Angel straddled him and began to layer blows around his head.

“Sorry, I’ll buy you a new one,” Angel whispered, “Hey, is that silk?”

Spike bucked hard under Angel’s body, sending Angel flying through the air to crash into the wall. He jumped up and closed in, “Yeah and you better.”

Angel braced his back against the wall and in a lightening movement, drew his feet up and kicked Spike in the stomach.

Several guards ran through the crowd to stop the fight. One rather, delicate looking female demon plunged her hand into one of the human guards’ chest and pulled out his heart, seating herself and enjoying her tasty fresh treat. Watching and cheering on her favorite, or which ever happened to be showing the most skin.

A frail, elderly demon stuck out his cane tripping a couple of guards unable to stop in time, wheezing with laughter at the sight of their tangled arms and legs. Heheheh, this is the most fun I've had in centuries.

Angel and Spike closed in and continued to pound on each other, each blow calculated to avoid any lasting effect. Various slashes appeared on their torso, carefully staged to appear much worse than they really were. They had to make this look good for their admiring screaming audience.

“Enough,” cried a deep powerful voice, causing the crowd to restlessly mutter…..‘Spoilsport’ being the least offensive of the epitaphs yelled at him.

Cort, the ½ owner of the Fiestea ignored the grumbling of the crowd as he stalked to the battling duo with his partner, D’na pacing him with cool elegance.

“What is the meaning of this unseemly behavior? You know the rules, OWNERS are not allowed to fight on the premises,” he snapped, absolutely enraged. He didn’t care if they were the most beau…ti..ful, his mind stumbled to a halt as the two vampires turned and simply LOOKED at him. Down boy, down! He ordered his libido sternly, you already got a couple of pets waiting eagerly at home for you. But these wouldn’t be pets, came the sly thought. He shivered in response.

“Did you say Owners,” Angel purred as he strolled closer to the papipitating proprietor, his eyes gleaming.

“Y…ye..yes,” Cort stammered before recovering himself, “Owners. It clearly states that any fighting between Owners on the premises may result in their purchase Pet, or Pets, as the case may be, may be declared null and void and returned to the block. And the Owners will forfeit 15% of the purchase price, payable strictly to me,” he said smugly, he had thought up that one 50 years ago after a couple of owners had nearly torn down his place.

“Owners,” Angel murmured again, a slight smile on his face.

The crowd began whispering among themselves, nudging each other in the ribs, having caught on to what Angel intended to do.

“Yes, Owners! O.W.N.E.R.S. Owners,” Cort said rudely, backing away quickly at the sudden glitter in the vampires eyes, he could recall Angelus’ reputation with extraordinary ease.

D’na slanted a cool look at his partner, “Cort what the vampire is implying is that HE is an owner, however the other has not made a purchase. So, your rule is void.

Angel smiled at the chagrin on the demon’s face.

Shit! A quarter of a million dollars down the drain, Cort moaned. He was definitely going to modify the rules to make it NO FIGHTING ON THE PREMISES, SUBJECT TO 15% FINES or something.

DeVo’s eyes were beginning to narrow in suspicion, there was something about that fight that just seemed…off for some reason, but he would figure it out. And if Spike and Angel were trying to pull one over on him, his lips lifted in a twisted parody of a smile, well he had something planned. He just needed to make sure of things before they left the grounds of the Fiestea.

“Take your pet and get the hell away from here,” Cort snapped and turned away angrily, stomping through the crowd.

Angel regarded D’na with cool eyes and lifted a brow to the demon. D’na merely presented his usual remote face, but with cold amusement glinting in his eyes before turning away and gliding after Cort.

He knew that had it been D’na confronting him, it may have been a different story. D’na was way smarter that Cort could ever hope to be and it had taken him years to understand their crazy partnership. Finally realizing D’na just didn’t give a damn about the Fiestea, it was all just one big fuckin' game to him.


Angel turned away and went to ‘claim’ his Pet with an inward sigh. Please just let nothing go wrong, I really don't want Xander in L.A. There's no telling what he'll do, probably find a way to piss off the N'daks demon clan, Angel grumbled to himself, then we'll all die and won't that just make Xander’s day.

After transferring the money, Angel strolled to the area where they were going to bring Xander out, calmly ignoring the admiring eyes. He only responded once when his ass was pinched, whirling around his face shifting in gameface, ready to tear the fucker's head off. Smirking at the squeal of alarm, before the little demon ran away. And with a cool glare at the suddenly downturned eyes, he turned away, feeling their eyes immediately snapped back up and lock onto him.

Angel's eyes widen as they brought Xander out of the holding room, what in the hell..

He had a hard time struggling to compose his face as the guards desperately tried to control the boy's weaving and staggering body. First he would stagger to the left, hesitate and sway back as the guards jumped to catch him.

Blinking, wide innocent eyes as the guards slammed into each other and he would be off lurching in another direction as the guards scrambled to keep up with his reeling figure, knowing that they didn't dare mar his body by grabbing at him too roughly. The best that they could do was corral his body between theirs, but the boy was like water, slipping easily away from them. Why in the name of Seven Hells did they have to pick this pet to escort out? He was sitting so quietly among the chattering other little pets, they thought it would be a real easy job. Get the pet, take him outside and presto! They were done. They got paid by the number that they escorted to their new owners and this was their first one!

One of Xander’s guards glared angrily as another pair of guards smugly escorted their third pet out to his new owner. S'not fair...I hate those friggin’ bastards!

Another guard whimpered in distressed, if the pet got hurt while still on the Fiestea grounds they were so much dead meat. Just one tiny little bruise, one little scrap knee and they wouldn’t even have time to phone home.


Spike started snickering as he watched the spectacle as the increasingly desperate guards tried time and time again to corner the reeling figure of the boy, all without touching him. They almost looked like they were trying to dance with him, but didn't know the moves.

He abruptly stiffen as Xander caught sight of him and a blinding smile lit the boy's face...oh buggerit, he groaned, as the boy made his weaving way over to him, thankfully intercepted by Angel with a firm grip on the boy's arm.


"Spike, Spike, Spikie the Spike," Xander chanted, weaving from side to side. He frowned absently, trying to remember what he wanted to say to...um Spike.

DeVo had trailed them outside, watching. His eyes narrowed as he saw the imperceptible stiffening of Angel's shoulders and hurriedly he gestured a servant over, whispering to him to fetch D'na immediately, he knew he couldn't rely on that idiot Cort to enforce the laws of the Fiestea.


And with carefully feigned nonchalance he made his way over to the weaving figure of the Pet and Angel, who regarded him with cool eyes. Oh no, you don't, Angel, I think I finally figured out your little plan, he chortled.


Angel stiffened slightly at the gleam in DeVo's eyes as he held on to Xander's reeling figure easily. Shit! He looked narrowly at Xander, seeing the dilated eyes...what the hell did they give the boy 'cause I know liquor is not allowed to Pets.

DeVo eyes glittered, he saw D'Na coming up slightly behind Angel, "So, that's a mighty fine Pet you got there," gesturing to the weaving figure.

Angel merely raised a brow, wondering what the hell was DeVo planning. But not by a flicker did he betrayed his uneasiness.

Spike eyes had narrowed, what silly game was the git trying to pull?


DeVo saw D'na was in position and he raised his voice slightly, "So, is the Pet a gift to someone or do you plan to keep him for yourself?" And affected extreme disinterest, glancing around at the milling crowd of patron and Pets. Excellent, the more the merrier, he chortled silently almost rubbing his hands in glee. But he didn't ‘cause he was in public and that would be bad. One must obey Rule #4580 of Evil....'Never gloat in public, it ruins the whole effect and plan'.


Angel pulled Xander a little closer as the boy seem ready to tip over and as he opened his mouth, Xander spoke....loudly.

"Hey Spike, is Buffy here, cause I really wanna go home now, I don't feel so well, and I don't wanna have Deadboy driving me," Xander complained rubbing at his stomach and giving what he thought was the evil-eye-of-death to Angel.


Spike groaned as hundreds of eyes turned first on him, then Angel and then finally at the cross-eyed boy.


"Buffy," DeVo murmured...loudly. "That wouldn't happen to be the Vampire Slayer would it?" Revenge! He crowed silently, sternly controlling his body's inclination to do a victory dance.

The crowd started muttering at that.


Xander wobbly leaned forward, peering at the man, and only Angel's desperate catch prevented him from tumbling to the ground. He straightened hurriedly with a gasp that nearly overbalanced him, as the man's eyes flashed gold.

"Ah ha! I knew it," he cried out triumphantly, "I knew something was wrong with you besides your evil beady little eyes. You're a vampire!" He crowed and looking around, "Oooooh and there's bunches and bunches of demons here. Just you wait until Buf..umpf," and his mouth was quickly covered by Angel's hand.


"Please, do release the Pet's mouth, I am most interested in hearing what he has to say," came a cool voice behind Angel, and he quickly whirled around easily shifting Xander in his hold.

Gah! Xander felt his head begin to spin with that quick movement. What the hell was wrong with him?!

"Correct me if I'm wrong, but isn't the Pet mine to do with as I please and what I please is to keep my hand over his mouth," Angel replied calmly, his eyes cool as he gazed at D'na.

D'na remained silent for several minutes thinking and DeVo jumped in furiously, "They know the fucking Slayer," he yelled. "I say, the Pet should be returned to the block and these two staked....immediately!" Glancing around trying to gather support, but unfortunately too many of the demons remembered the fight in the hall.

And many of them recalled just what Angelus could do when he got mildly upset and while they weren't exactly certain, they kinda thought that actually TRYING to kill him would make him more than a tad upset.

Weak idiots, DeVo sneered at them before turning around and jumping back in alarm at the cold expression in D'na's eyes.

"Did I indicate, in some way currently unknown to me, that I require your help," D'na asked frostily. "Beside, Angelus or Angel is quite correct, since he purchased the Pet it is his to do as he please."

"But...but..but, it's a trick, I tell you. He bought the Pet under false pretenses," DeVo stammered out.

D'na arched an icy brow, before turning to Angel who immediately tensed, "Angelus or Angel did you buy the Pet under false pretenses?" he demanded.

"Yeah, like he's gonna admit the truth," DeVo grumbled.

"If I hear one more word, one sound from your mouth, I will save him the trouble and stake you myself," D'na hissed at him, his eyes glittering with cold fire.

DeVo swallowed and nodded.


Spike walked up to DeVo, regarding him thoughtfully for a half-second before firmly kicking him in the balls.

PAIN!

Concentrated, intense agony flared through DeVo and he dropped to his knees clutching at his afflicted groin. His eyes watering in anguish, he opened his mouth to scream and saw D'na's cold eyes resting on him, a stake tapping meaningfully in his hand.

And he simply curled into a ball of agony, trying not to make a sound.

Satisfied DeVo would not be disturbing his conversation, D'na turned back to Angel, "Angelus or Angel did you purchase this Pet under false pretenses?" he again demanded.

"No, I did not," Angel replied strongly, he desperately wanted to wash his hand off since Xander kept licking at his palm.

"And you did purchased this Pet for your exclusive use and no one else's is that correct?" D'na again demanded, tapping the stake in his hand. He really liked watching others squirm, he had a feeling that DeVo was telling the truth and he had figured out a way to foil any little plan Angel and Spike were making.

"My use only," Angel could feel himself getting angry, why was D'na asking all of these stupid questions? He just wanted to dump Xander on Buffy and get the hell out of Sunnydale.

D'na head tilted, perhaps he had been mistaken....he caught a glimpse of the parking lot and his eyes narrowed, a low growl came from his throat. If there was nothing he hated more, it was pushy humans!

Angel heard D'na growl, looked in the same direction and nearly snarled as well....dammit what the fuck are they doing here.

"My last question and final question, do you plan on Claiming your Pet for your exclusive use," D'na inquired frostily slipping that question in.

"I do," Angel said absently he was going to give Buffy a piece of his mind as soon as soon he handed Xand.....wait a minute, his eyes narrowed as he reviewed what he had just said. His eyes flashed to the first smile he had ever seen on D'na face and a cold shiver went down his spine or maybe it was a hot shiver, but it was definitely a shiver.

"And by the Laws of the Fiestea, I invoke your Claim to one Xander Harris," D'na spoke solemnly, his lips twitching at the horror that briefly flickered across Angel's face.

"What exactly does that mean," Angel said suspiciously, his body tensing despite himself.

"It means that you will have three days to begin Claiming him before I arrive or you forfeit both your lives," and with that D'na started to walked away.

"Hold up a minute," Angel said, trying not to sound desperate. He felt the boy swaying in his grasp and removed his hand, quickly sliding an arm around Xander's waist and pulling the boy closer. He shivered involuntarily as the boy buried his hot face in his neck.

Xander heard voices around him and sorta figured they were talking about him but keeping himself from spewing his guts all over himself and Deadboy was kinda requiring all sorts of attention. Oooooh, he whimpered before feeling blessed coolness on his hot face.

"What if I don't want to keep him," he heard Deadboy say to somebody and he pulled his head up with a gasp, looking at Deadboy.

"You don't want me," he heard himself say piteously and felt tears on the brink of falling from his eyes. He frantically begged, oh please oh please oh please don’t let me cry, not in front of Deadboy.

For some reason, it just felt like that was the last straw and it hurt like hell that even Deadboy didn't want him around. And somewhere in the back of his addled mind he knew that being around Deadboy was....like ewwww. But right now, Deadboy just another person in a long line of people that didn’t want him around….and it just hurt.

"Well, I don't like you anyway! You're just a big, poofy head meanie. I'm gonna sit right here and wait for Buffy and Willow," and to his horror he felt tears start rolling down his face. Aw geeze, not tears?! Cruelly he added, “And your hair is ugly!”

Angel felt Xander's wiggle out of his grasp and sink to the ground tears spilling from his eyes. Oh shit!

He looked down at the boy in horror before swiftly crouching down, whispering frantically for Xander to get up, they had to get off the grounds...now.

Xander stubbornly shook his head and turned away. Nah uhn, he wasn't going nowhere with Deadboy! And he stuck his tongue out at Angel, tears still dripping from his eyes.

D'na looked curiously at the antics between the Pet and Angel with wondering eyes, this is proving to be very interesting.

Suddenly a three huge female demon swept out of the crowd and began attackng Angel with oversize bags, "Look at you, you made the poor little Pet cry, you evil wicked vampire!" and Xander was absolutely delighted!

His tears drying and forgotten, a wobbly smile appeared on his face at the muffled 'Ow's!' 'Stop it' 'Now cut that out' ‘Not the hair’ coming from Angel trying to dodge the furiously swinging bags of the demoness’.

"Hit 'em again! He's a bad vampire, he doesn’t deserve to be dead," he spitefully cheered the nice demons on. He turned his attention to Spike who had crouched down next to him.

"Pet, you've got to pull yourself together. We've got to get out of here, quick," Spike softly urgently. "Yes, I know Peaches is a silly wanker, but you have to get up," he urged desperately, snickering slightly as a demoness walloped Angel again, messing up his hair. Serves him right, he thought self-righteously, that’s what he gets for being such a sodding wanker.

He glanced down and was taken aback at the squinty look the boy was giving him. Uh oh, he thought.

“Hit him too, he slept with my fiancee,” Xander yelled pointing wrathfully at Spike who fell backwards in alarm. “I cried for days,” he whined pathetically, turning huge tragic eyes on the female demons, “And he slept with the Slayer and so did Angel, too,” he added with sly, inebriated cunning. Chortling to himself at the fear that flashed in Spike’s eyes, he had to cover his mouth over his giggles.

At that, there were horrified gasps from the three flailing demons, before two of them descended on Spike like the wrath of Satan.

“You….you….human!,” shouted one of the females, whaling on Spike who was trying desperately to scramble away.

“ ’Ere now, ain’t no call to get nasty,” Spike protested, ducking under the barrage of blows, “Watch the face, ya great si…,” oh crap! With a vast inhalation of sheer indignation, the females really began pounding on him.

DeVo, recovering from the blow to his privates slowly stood, “See what did I tell you? They’ve sided with the enemy,” he yelled triumphantly still hunched over. Smirking as the demons beat on both Angel and Spike

“DeVo,” D’na said quietly, tapping his stake in his hand.

“What,” DeVo snapped, oh hit him again, he cheered silently, to the enraged demoness'. Abruptly, his eyes grew wide with horror and he squeaked.

“What did I tell you about talking,” D’na asked and shoved his stake into DeVo’s chest.

Angel took this opportunity with everyone distracted to grab Xander, throw the boy over his shoulder and flee.

It took the crowd of demons a couple of minutes to realize that it wasn’t just Spike that was also yelling and with howls of fury they charged after the fleeing Angelus, each demon being especially careful not to get to far ahead of the crowd, no one wanted to be the one in front if Angelus should turn around.

Feeling no guilt at leaving Spike behind because at a time like this, he thought grimly, it’s every demon for himself as he raced to his car. Putting on a burst of speed, he reached his car a mere 12 feet from the howling mob, and tossing the screaming boy into the car he jumped in as well. Hastily starting the car, he peeled out of the parking lot, punching a couple of over-enthusiastic demons who hadn’t realized that they were now in FRONT of the crowd.

And hauling the screaming, yelling boy back down into the car as the car roared off.

Xander was in a state of total panic. Adrenaline was helping to kick some of the effect of the drugs he had been given. He had finally gotten a glimpse of what Deadboy had on and his eyes immediately sent a message to his spinal column, pressing the button clearly labeled Primal Terror: Run Away Fast.

Angelus! And screaming, he fought desperately to escape. He didn't want to die, and where the hell was Buffy?! If he got for real killed by Angelus, he was so gonna make her life hell!

"BUFFY!" he kept screaming, beating at the iron arm pressing him back into the seat.


D’na watched as the Fiestea degenerated into a brawling mob, cold amusement glinting in his eyes. Oh, I do love my job, he thought with a smirk and walked away. I wonder if Angel has figured out what I’ve done to him by invoking his Claim on the Pet, he mused. No matter, I’ll simply call him to let him know that he simply can’t get rid of his Pet without paying the price.

And a slow, evil laugh bubbled from him before he started coughing and choking. Now I remember why I don’t like to laugh, he thought before sweeping back into the Fiestea hall.


Buffy and Willow waited just inside the entrance of the gate of the Fiestea. Admiring the luxurious cars parked around them in between worrying about Xander. They had a clear view of the second entrance to the Fiestea and Buffy thought she saw Xander, Spike and Angel but she decided that it couldn’t be them especially since she saw a couple of huge demons beating on one of the figures, then start beating on the other, while the third was just sitting on the ground.

“What’s taking them so freakin’ long,” Buffy groused as she paced anxiously back and forth. “They should have been out a long time ago, we saw a whole bunch of,” she hesitated before continuing doubtfully, “People leaving already…..and where the hell is all that noise coming from? “ She whirled around looking for the source.

Willow stood up on her car’s hood gingerly. Looking at the entrance she could see a dark figure running diagonally across the parking lot, “They sound like their having a fight up there,” she reported, “and it looks like there’s a mob after somebody.” She hopped down and looked at Buffy, both thinking the same thing. They scrambled hastily into the car.

Willow gripped the steering wheel in a white-knuckled grip already nervous enough at being here. She could hear a car approaching rapidly and she didn’t dare try to take off, fearing a collision.

And the car zoomed past them. Screaming.

Buffy and Willow sat thoughtfully in the car, “Uhm, Buffy, did that look like Xander to you,” Willow asked calmly, staring straight ahead.

“Yep,” Buffy replied without turning her head.

“Screaming?”

“Uh huh.”

“Screaming your name?”

"Yep."

There was silence in the car as the roaring mob got closer.

“Maybe it was my imagination, but did that look like Angelus driving,” Buffy said in a calm voice of one who didn't want to start screaming.

“Well, I really didn’t want to mention it considering that the last time he showed up he was all "I'm gonna destroy the world' and stuff. But hey, maybe he’s changed…people do it all the time,” Willow said brightly.

“True,” was Buffy’s thoughtful reply, “But he’s a demon and not a ‘people'.”

“Well, I was hoping that you would kinda overlook that part,” Willow said glumly, and they screamed as the passenger back door was wrenched open and a figure dived in.

“Drive, you daft bint,” Spike yelled, glancing frantically over his shoulder. Livid bruises covered his face.

Startled, Willow‘s foot came down heavily on the gas throwing Spike violently backwards in the rearseat.

Willow screamed as the car shot forward, almost clipping a demon that had foolishly raced ahead of the mob. Still screaming she jerked the car to the left, tossing a groaning Spike painfully into the door window.

Buffy screamed, seeing a car door open and a very fat demon leveraged its ponderous bulk heavily from its car.

And it, glancing up at the sound of screams, moved surprisingly fast as it dived back into its car just inches before Willow's fishtailing car ripped the door off.

"Sorry," she yelled out the window to the demon and then screamed, jerking the car to the right just missing another demon, slamming Spike headfirst into the other door.

Grimly, her lips pressed in a thin line of determination, she fought for mastery of the dangerously out-of-control car.

“Will you stop screaming Buffy, you’re making me nervous,” Willow finally yelled, trying to gain traction on the slippery gravel as the car was heading straight for one of the twin thick pillars guarding the entrance with demons dived frantically out of her way.

One demon in particular performed an awesome display of athleticism, dazzling considering that it looked as if it would take a heavy-duty crane to lift it about two inches off the ground.

Buffy had her feet pressed firmly on the floor and a deathgrip on the dashboard, her eyes wide as the pillar loomed closer.

“I’m not screaming,” she shouted over the high pitched scream, and releasing her deathgrip, she reached back and punched Spike in the nose.

Blessed silence filled the car as Willow finally brought it under her white-knuckled control, just narrowly missing the pillar as they raced away, leaving a clearly shaken mob in the distance.


Xander kept screaming, frantically beating at Angelus trying to get free.

"Xander, it me! XANDER IT'S ME!" Angel roared over the sound of the engine as they speed down the highway. He didn't dare remove his arm, fearing that the boy would try to jump out of the car. And at the speed he was going, that would not be the best idea. He knew the boy was terrified, he could feel Xander’s racing heartbeat.

Xander continued to beat helplessly at Angelus' arm. "Ha, you can't fool me, Angelus," he shouted, "I know evil and you're evil. You're wearing leather and you were acting all smooth and...and smoothlike EVIL. This is kidnapping, I'm tellin' you."

Angel rolled his eyes, "Look you idiot, you were in serious trouble at the Fiestea and I got you out, I would think you would show a little gratitude." He was seriously pissed off! And after all the trouble he went through to save the stupid boy.

"Ha, now I know you're Angelus, cause Angel would never rescue me," Xander said triumphantly, "You only want to take me someplace and torture me," he added trying to pry Angelus' arm from his chest.

"Xander," Angel said with strained patience, "I will say this for the last time. I AM ANGEL and if you say one more word, so help me I will smack you."

Xander gave up his futile attempts to remove Angelus' arm. Oooooh, am so gonna haunt Buffy when I'm dead, he thought wrathfully, crossing his arms over Angel's arm with a huff of annoyance. Once I'm dead, she'll definitely be sorry she didn't rescue me. I'll haunt them all. He glared angrily at Angelus' profile before staring determinedly ahead in chilly silence. Coldly resolve not to open his mouth, not even when Angelus ripped him open with a dull knife, or branded him with a hot poker, or..or stuck long pointy things in him....nope, not one sound was gonna pass his lips, not even a squeak, not even a scream of pain....

"So, where are you taking me," he asked casually as if being kidnapped was an every day occurance for him.

Angel glanced at him curiously, before looking away, "Well the plan was originally that once I 'bought' you, I would drop you back at Buffy's and get back to L.A. before sunrise.” He paused before asking, “If I let you go, do you promise not to try to jump out of the car.”

"Nope," Xander replied calmly, "Because you're evil and I don't make promises to evil demons."

Angel groaned, "Xander, I told you I'm not Angelus."

"And I don't believe you," Xander said equably. "You just want me to lower my guard so that when you get me to some isolated place and start torturing me with dull rusty knives, hot pokers and other sharp pointy things so it’ll be much more funner to you knowing you tricked me."

Angel blinked, "Okay, I see that you've given this some thought. So what will it take to convince you that I'm not Angelus," he asked politely, his lips twitching.

"I donno," Xander admitted, he was starting to feel sleepy from the aftereffects of the drug and couldn't help but yawn, "I just know it would take something awfully big to make me believe you're Angel." His words coming out a little garbled as he yawned again, his lids dropping before he forced them back up.

Angel glanced at Xander and saw the way the boy fought desperately against sleep. "Why don't you close your eyes for a bit, it'll be a while before we get to L.A." he said softly and smiled at the refusal he could see in the boy's sleepy eyes.

"No, gotta stay awake," Xander mumbled, his head nodding before he jerked his head up looking at Angel in fear.

Angel saw the look flash on the boy's face and knew why he was resisting going to sleep, "Tell you what, how about I promise to wake you up before I kill you," he suggested with a tiny smile.

"Promise," Xander asked in a sleepy voice as his eyes closed and his head nodded into his chest as he tumbled gently into sleep.

"I promise," Angel said softly, removing his arm and feeling Xander's warm weight fall against his shoulder, fast asleep. He lifted his arm and pulled the boy closer to him, settling him more comfortable against his chest and frowning as he felt the unnatural heat rising from Xander.

And the car suddenly surged forward with an angry growl as he speed down the highway.