Betad by Carol and dawnofme


Banner by dawnofme


Disclaimer: the characters do not belong to me - they are used purely for fun and not fiancial gain






Chapter Thirty-Eight


Making Friends


As they all settled around the kitchen table, Matt looked at the faces of the people that held the key to his future. Willow, a witch – God, he could still barely could get his head around stuff like this – still had red marks on her face from the weird contraption that had just been removed. He looked at the man, Xander. He’d been fiercely protective of Willow when the other guy, (Giles? Rupert?) had been in the room, but they didn’t look like they were together. And then there was Dawn; he smiled as he looked at her. She was so pretty, with her big expressive eyes and shiny long dark hair.


He hadn’t really seen any girls since he’d joined The Initiative six months ago. With the exception of Maggie Walsh, the entire staff had been male and apart from when on patrol, the troops weren’t allowed out of the building. Only the higher-level officers could act normally. For the rank and file no leave was given. Dawn noticed him looking at her and smiled at him. His heart skipped a beat.


“So, Matt, what’s your story?” asked Dawn.


“Um, nothing special really,” muttered Matt.


“Where are you from?” asked Willow kindly, seeing the boy looking uncomfortable.


“I was raised in Marshall, Missouri,” replied Matt.


“Any brothers or sisters?” asked Xander.


“Erm, no.” said Matt. He took a deep breath and decided to tell them the truth. The vampire sleeping in the next room had saved his life – twice, so he owed them that. He just hated people’s reaction to it. “I never knew my parents. I was just abandoned in a doorway when I was a few hours old. I was brought up by foster parents.”


“Oh,” said Dawn. “That’s so sad. Didn’t your new parents have any other children either?”


“No, I wasn’t adopted,” corrected Matt, “I was fostered out to various couples. The longest I was with any family was two years. I think I would have stayed there for longer but Rachel died in a car crash and Tom had to let me go. That was when I was eight. They were good people.” He glanced at them, wincing at the pity in their eyes. He didn’t want pity. He’d had it better than some. Okay, he’d had it worse than some, too.


“It wasn’t so bad, I mean I wasn’t abused,” said Matt, quickly adding “in any way. But when I left school, I didn’t really have many options so I joined the army. That’s when things got worse for me.”


“How did you come to be at The Initiative?” asked Xander. “Did you volunteer?”


“God, no!” said Matt sharply. “Sorry, it’s just that I don’t think anyone would ever volunteer to go to that place. In fact, until you actually arrive there, you don’t know that it exists.”


“How can that be?” asked Dawn, rising from her seat to heat some soup for them to have.


“I don’t know how they’ve managed it, but I had never heard of it nor knew anyone who had,” continued Matt. “I was just asked if I wanted to take part in a special operation. I’d only just finished initial training. I was flattered I suppose, and I was stupid enough to say yes.”


“How did they select you?” asked Willow.


“That’s easy,” said Matt grimly. “No next of kin. I’d guess that half of the soldiers are like me – no one to make a noise if we disappear.”


“Oh, my God,” gasped Dawn. “Thank goodness you’re out now.”


“Yeah,” said Matt with a smile. “Who would’ve thought I’d be helped out of there by a vampire?”


“Takes a bit of getting used to,” said Xander. “But don’t think they’re all like Spike. They usually wouldn’t think twice about eating you.”


“Forget my story; what’s his? He told me he was Number Seventeen. He was a legend in there…er...for lasting so long.” He stopped, realising how awful it sounded.


Xander told him how Spike had been captured and had escaped, but not before the pain chip had been implanted. How he’d sort of joined forces with them since he could only attack demons, and of how he’d developed feelings for Buffy. How she hadn’t been able to cope with her growing love for him and so had panicked and ended it. His recapture and subsequent torture for more than a year at the hands of the Professor had shocked them all.


“The state the guy was in when we got him out was terrible,” Xander said. “And trust me; I’ve never been Captain Peroxide’s biggest fan.”


“Captain Peroxide?” asked Matt, puzzled.


Willow chuckled. “That’s kind of an out of date nickname now. Spike used to bleach his hair white blond.”


“Okay,” thought Matt. “This is seriously weird – a vampire bleaching his hair?"


Although he’d come to realise that vampires were a breed apart from the other demons; that they could function in human society - albeit at night. He’d never really thought of them doing anything like that. A blood sucking, super-powered killing machine, sitting with a peroxide solution on his hair? Matt started to chuckle. Once he’d started his nerves made him unable to stop and soon, he was laughing uncontrollably. Xander, Dawn and Willow just stared at him. He leant over the table, resting his head on his folded arms, trying to stifle his laughter. Eventually, with a snort, he managed to stop. He wiped his eyes and looked at the others’ blank faces.


“Uh, sorry,” he said, sobering. “Great, now they think I’m a lunatic.”


Dawn put a mug of soup in front of him. He risked a look at her, and when their eyes met she smiled at him.


“’S okay, Matt,” she said to reassure him. He’d had a very strange day and different people reacted to the stress in different ways. They’d all been there at some point.


“No, it’s not,” replied Matt. “I mean the guy saved me – twice – and I shouldn’t laugh at him.” He felt ashamed.


“Matt, you weren’t laughing at him as such,” said Xander. “God knows I’ve laughed at him enough, so it’d be no problem if you were. But you’re just letting some of your tension out, that’s all.”


“This soup tastes like ambrosia,” said Willow, successfully changing the topic of conversation.


“I bet it does. I don’t know how you managed so long,” said Dawn, watching her friend holding the mug in her fists. “You’ve got to get those things off your hands and feet, Willow. I hate seeing you like that.”


“I will, just as soon as I have another mug of soup,” replied Willow, pushing her now empty mug across the table to Dawn.


Dawn got up and refilled her mug and also two more.


“Xander, will you take these down to Buffy and Giles please?” she asked.


Xander was about to tell her to do it herself when he caught the look in her eye – she didn’t want to see her sister chained up.


“Okay, Dawnie.” He got up and took them down into the basement.


“Er, so how long are they going to be kept down there?” asked Matt. “Is that…er…Giles always like that?”


“No, he’s normally very calm and very normal,” said Willow. “When I’ve removed these things from me, I can do the spell to rid them of the Lorac Bugs that Maggie implanted in them to control them. They’ll have to be chained up for twenty four hours after that and then they’ll be back to normal.”


“Oh right,” he said weakly. “More spells. Is this really real or am I dreaming?”


Dawn sat down next to him and shyly put her hand over his own, which was resting on the table.


“It’ll be okay, Matt. You’ll be safe with us,” she said, “unless you want to move on?”


He looked into her eyes and knew he was lost. “No, I’m not going anywhere if I can help it.” Without thinking he leaned forward and kissed her gently on her lips, before becoming aware of Willow’s amused gaze. He blushed and pulled away.


“Good,” muttered Dawn, a touch breathlessly. “Staying is good.”


Ooooooo


“What’s going on up there?” snapped Buffy as soon as she saw Xander.


“Hello, Buffy, nice to see you too,” he replied sarcastically.


“I’m sorry, Xander, it’s just driving me crazy sitting here doing nothing.” She glared at Giles. “I’m not fond of the company I’m being forced to keep.”


Giles flinched at her words and turned even further away from her. Xander could see his shoulders shaking slightly and knew he was weeping, but he could feel no compassion for the man who had done them all such damage. Hell, he even wanted to hit him for attacking Spike. Xander put a mug on the floor near Giles.


“Soup,” he said bluntly, before sitting down near Buffy and passing her a mug.


“Thanks, Xander,” said Buffy.


“I think we may have a bit of a situation brewing,” said Xander gravely.


“God, what now?” said Buffy, tensing up.


Xander’s face relaxed into a smile. “I think Dawn and Matt are pretty taken with each other.”


“Matt?”


“He’s the young soldier that helped Spike to get out,” Xander told her. “I can’t be totally sure since I’m a guy, but I think he’s cute.”


Buffy smiled. “Cute, huh?”


“Yeah, and a bit of a hero for helping Spike – you know how fond of Spike Dawn is.”


“I’d better take a look at this Matt,” said Buffy. “Unlock me.”


Xander shook his head. “You know I can’t do that, Buff. Not yet. I’ll deny this if you repeat it but to tell you the truth, I’d hate for you to kill Spike, okay?”


Buffy closed her eyes and nodded, knowing Xander was right. “Spike,” she whispered. “How is he?”


Xander looked away from her. “He’s not in great shape, Buffy, but I’m sure he’ll be all right in time. We’re feeding him well and he’s sleeping at the moment.”


Although the Lorac Bug was still there, Maggie’s hysterical demands it had emitted were fading, enabling Buffy to feel for the pain Spike was suffering. Knowing that she’d caused it.


“He needs my blood again, Xander,” she said, eyes opening wide as she realised she’d actually managed to say it without the Bug stepping in and preventing her.


“I thought we’d had this conversation already, Buffy. He’s not going to chew on you again,” replied Xander.


Buffy rolled her eyes impatiently. “Bring a sharp knife, a mug and a bandage down to me. I can soon provide him with some without his teeth getting anywhere near me.” As Xander hesitated she added, “Please, Xander, I’ve got to do this. I hurt him, now I’ve got to make him well again.”


Xander nodded and went to get the items they needed for the blood letting.


Ooooooo


“Spike?” Xander shook the vampire’s shoulder.


“Huh?” Spike half opened his eyes. “Just a bit longer, mate. Ole, Spike needs a bit more sleep, ‘kay?” he mumbled.


“I think ole Spike needs to drink this then go back to sleep,” said Xander, waving the mug of blood under Spike’s nose.


The effect was galvanistic. Spike went from being bleary to fully alert in a microsecond - sitting bolt upright and staring at Xander with amber tinted eyes.


“That’s…” he started then stopped when a shaft of pain hit his leg as it protested at the sudden movement.



“Yeah,” replied Xander, answering the unspoken question. He held out the mug to Spike.


Spike’s hand shook as he took it from Xander. His mouth literally watered at the thought of the Slayer blood it held. His Slayer’s blood. His features involuntarily vamped up. His mind was full of the images of when he’d taken the blood directly from her; the remembered sensations tingled throughout his body. He moaned softly, shifting his position, hoping Xander hadn’t noticed how tight his jeans had suddenly become. To drink of your lover was the ultimate sexual act for a vampire – even if it was only from a mug.


“Um…I’ll leave you to it. We’re all going to get some sleep now,” said Xander uncomfortably, as he disappeared out of the room.


“Oh hell,” thought Spike. “He had noticed. Can’t help it, can I – vampire, yeah?”


He slowly sipped the blood, savouring every drop, and thankful that it hadn’t been diluted with any other.


“Buffy,” he whispered as sleep reclaimed him.


To be continued…