Fiction Baby Doll- Chapter Seventeen

Title: Baby Doll
Author Restive Nature
Disclaimers: I do not own any of the characters from Buffy the Vampire Slayer or Angel the Series. They belong to the almighty Joss and I just play with them for my own amusement before putting them away neatly.
Spoilers: Buffy Season Three "Amends"
Summary: A teenage girl with mysterious ties to Angel helps him with his Christmas Amends.

Chapter Seventeen
Surprise

Angel recalled something then that finally made sense. It had angered Angelus at the time. Dru had wanted to go out that evening, but Dylan kept distracting her. And of course Dru didn’t want Angelus to go until she was ready. He’d felt his patience growing thin until he’d finally picked a fight with Spike. Dru had come up from the basement from her last visit with Dylan and that’s when she’d had a vision. He released the girl and shifted back to look at her. She swiftly dried her tears, sensing that he was ready to talk again.

"You tried to keep us from going out that night?" he realized. She nodded.

"I kept hoping that Dru would decide to stay home and ask you to as well," she explained. "Hopefully long enough to give Ms. Calendar time to get somewhere safe. But obviously it didn’t work out."

"No," he agreed. "I was losing patience with both of you and about ready to go out myself. Then Dru had a vision."

"Really? I didn’t know that."

"She knew someone was trying to reverse my curse," he explained haltingly. "So we left to discover who it was and stop them."

*****

Dylan lay on her bed, distractedly running her hand through the puppy’s fur. She was trying to think up a plausible excuse to keep the Vampires home. But nothing was coming to mind. If she came right out and said that she didn’t’ want him to kill Ms. Calendar, he’d probably go right out and do so to prove he was under no one’s control. He was a Master Vampire, which meant he gave the orders, not took them. And Spike and Dru were right in line after him. As much as Dylan could relax around them, she could not forget their basic nature. She really didn’t think they’d let her stand in the way of a kill.

So as she continued to play with the dog, smiling indulgently as he licked and chewed at her fingers, she never noticed Dru’s anguished moans from upstairs. But she certainly noticed when Dru flew into her room. "Time for puppy to take a walk," she announced grandly. She snapped her fingers and the dog obediently jumped from the bed. He sat patiently at her feet, staring up at her. Dylan sat up, her mouth going dry.

"Uh Dru, why don’t Spike and I take him out?" she offered quickly. "You know, it’s been a while. And Spike really doesn’t get out enough. You know, a little fresh air would do him good. He’s been smoking so much. I’d bet he’d enjoy-!"

"Hush now," Dru interrupted. "Nonsense! You stay and keep my Spike company. He’s a tired boy tonight." Before Dylan could protest, Dru had unlocked her foot from her chain, frowning when she realized that someone had already unchained her from the wall. But she shrugged it off. The girl was still here. It didn’t matter. With a smile, she scooped up the dog under her arm and left the room. "Be a good girl," floated back to Dylan. Dylan squeezed her eyes shut, hoping to keep the tears from falling. But it was no use. Events had been set in motion. Things she was powerless to stop.

She stayed in her room for a long while after. But the call of nature finally forced her out of her stupor. She gathered her things and headed to the bathroom. After dealing with that, she decided to try and do something to take her mind off what was happening. But this evening, her paints, her books, nothing held her interest long. So finally, she decided to do her wash. She hunted around until she found the little detergent she rationed for herself. She gathered the small pile of clothes and the bottle and headed upstairs again.

Spike found her there, scrubbing furiously at the soiled garments. "There you are," he smiled. But it faltered a little when she didn’t respond. He watched her for a moment, noting how quickly she was blinking to keep back the tears in her eyes. He pondered a moment. "What’s wrong pet? Is this about that dog?" She shook her head and continued to scrub. "What is it then?"

"It’s nothing Spike," she snapped at him, then instantly regretted it. She slowed her motions, then finally stopped, turning to apologize. But he held his hand up.
"Something’s obviously bothering you if you forget yourself enough to yell at a vicious killer," he teased. Yet there was truth to his words. It didn’t really bother him. He was just amazed that she’d lasted as long as she had without a major tantrum or outburst. Of course it was just his luck to be on the receiving end of it. But she’d been patient with him, listening to his rants and rage over his inability to walk. He found that he actually did feel like reciprocating the favor.

"I’m sorry," she sighed. She put the shirt she’d just finished into her rinse water and swirled it around. "I just didn’t sleep well," she offered. Which was true.

"Bad dreams?" he asked softly, noting the wince she gave. She nodded reluctantly. "Well, you know what I’ve learned?" She looked at him curiously.
"There’s two things that help bad dreams."

"What’s that?" she asked in spite of herself.

"A good shag," he leered outrageously at her. She giggled softly. "Or a good cup of hot chocolate. How about it ducks? I managed to score another few boxes." She sobered up again and shrugged one shoulder. He cocked his head at her. "That bad, huh? Not even fixable by chocolate."

"Not tonight," she whispered. But inside, she was wondering if maybe talking over cocoa would help. But as she glanced at the bleached blonde Vampire, she knew it wouldn’t matter. He had to know what Dru and her Sire were up to. And obviously was condoning it. He had no choice but to. Dylan knew well enough that Spike wasn’t in charge anymore. And that irritated him to no end. The minions were quick enough to obey his orders, but it wasn’t to him that they looked for guidance. She chanced one more look at him. He looked… disappointed. She carefully reconsidered. Maybe Spike needed to talk as well.
"Well, okay," she relented. "But I need to hang these to dry first." With a grin Spike nodded. It turned to a saucy grin, he pointed out the underwear already hung on her makeshift clothesline.

"Dru’s got good taste, hmm?" he grinned. Dylan followed his finger and blushed quickly. He was looking at one of her matched sets in blue tones that matched her eyes.

"Dru didn’t pick those out," she mumbled, then instantly regretted it. She ducked her head as she heard his deep, throaty chuckle.

"I stand corrected then," he teased again. He seemed to delight in seeing what shade of red he could get her to before she’d eventually run away from him. "You’ve got good taste. Liking the silky feel of good lacy-!"

"Spike!" she shrieked, mortified. He laughed and turned himself around.

"I’ll just go get the hot chocolate started then," he offered.

"Don’t you dare be picturing me in that!" she yelled after him.

"Course not, ducks," he called back, his tone letting her know that that was exactly what he was doing. She groaned and buried her face in her hands, then blinked when she realized that she’d just gotten soap in her hair. She growled softly, then dipped her hands in the cooling rinse water. She brought her hands to her face and tried to cool her burning features. Finally breathing normally, she dried her hands and face on the ratty old towel and quickly hung the remainder of her clothes.

She hurried to Spike’s room on the main floor and found him already waiting with the cocoa. He shifted to make room on his bed for her and she joined him. He handed her the steaming mug, and without pause, launched into some of the fashions that he’d seen over the years. Dylan knew that he was trying to take her mind off of what was bothering her. She appreciated it immensely. She listened to him for a while, and finally began to get into the flow of conversation.

Eventually they ran out of steam, and hot chocolate. Hearing the return of the other Vampires reminded Dylan sharply of what she’d been trying to forget all evening and with a quiet smile of thanks to Spike, she removed herself from his room. He followed after her more slowly, watching her return to the bathroom to retrieve her now dry wash. He kept an eye on her until she disappeared down to her room. He knew there was still something wrong, but she hadn’t shared. He hadn’t pushed either, knowing through long experience that sometimes women didn’t like to share. Sometimes they liked to hoard their little miseries until such a time that they could explode them all over the unsuspecting males in their lives.
Dylan hurried as quickly down the steps as she could without endangering herself. She really didn’t want to see anyone. She didn’t want to know if they’d accomplished what they’d set out to do. SO she busied herself with folding and putting her laundry into the backpack that she still had. It was large enough to hold everything, ever since Dru had absconded with her diary. The sounds of an argument drew her attention, but she paid it no mind. It was a common thing to hear the yelling between the two male Vampires.

The dog came running down the steps again, jumping up to her bed. She let him, as the poor little thing seemed to be scared of the raised voices. Dylan tried to calm him down and wished that they’d hurry up and have this out. And her wish was granted. The yelling stopped. Dylan relaxed against her bed, letting her eyes drift shut. She wasn’t tired yet, just needed to compose herself. She really dreaded seeing Dru and possibly having her fears that Ms. Calendar hadn’t survived this night come true. But she knew she would eventually. It would be harder to face him, as he was the one that did it, if her dream was correct. And she was sure now that it had been. She needed time to prepare herself. She could allow no weakness to show through. She thought a few minutes about going now and getting it over with, but she rejected that course of action. They’d think it strange if she willingly approached him. She did her best to stay away from him. He’d figure out something was wrong and perhaps mistaking it for a prophecy, give her no rest. Better to let things happen normally.

She did drift off into a little nap. It was the acrid scent of smoke in the air that woke her. That and the yelling. She shot up, disoriented. Why was there fire? The candles around the factory were carefully tended. No Vampire would risk setting his or her lair on fire. The yelling continued. But she could only hear him. She didn’t hear Spike or Drusilla. Perhaps they were gone already. Or worse. Without second thought, Dylan hopped off the bed. The factory would be a death trap in a matter of moments, if it weren’t already. She thanked whatever powers that she’d already packed all her clothes. She snagged the bag from the foot of the bed, scolding herself for worrying about her clothes when she needed to get out now. But her hands worked independently of her brain. At the table by the door, she reached for the digital camera Dru had given her. She wondered why she grabbed it even as she settled the wrist strap appropriately. The dog was yipping, she realized belatedly, adding to the noise around her. Dylan yanked the door open and the puppy fled. Dylan recognized the pure terror in the animal and realized that a similar panic was engulfing her. Smoke had filtered downstairs and she could only be glad that heat tended to go up. But there was no escape for her except up. She’d have to brave the blaze.

She heard the dog growling at the foot of the stairs. She felt like growling herself. A small part of her mind, the one that was rational even in the most desperate moments, noted that she was definitely panicking and beginning to an animalistic stage to combat the stress. It didn’t make her feel better to understand that, but she did and that was all there was to it. Without thought, she scooped up the dog, realizing that it wasn’t barking, because for some strange reason, it had retrieved Miss Edith. Perhaps he was looking for Dru to rescue. She was his Mistress after all. . Animals were completely capable of bravery too. She saw it on television all the time. They even dedicated shows to it. With a mental sigh, Dylan ran up the stairs and into the inferno.

After she got out, she was amazed that she’d been able to navigate the maze of smoke and reach the back door out to the alleyway. She set the dog on the ground and he let loose the doll. Dylan picked it up with a sigh. The dog looked up expectantly at her. "I don’t know where she is, boy," she shook her head. Great, now she was talking to the dog like he’d understand her. She heard the sirens of the fire truck as it raced towards the latest call. It would be a few minutes yet. And then it struck her. She was free. There were no chains holding her back. She took a deep breath and searched the shadows, but saw nothing but the darkened form of the walls and emptiness beyond that. The dog barked, trying to get her attention. The loyal little thing wanted to get away from the fire, but was trying to remind her as well. "All right boy," she giggled. "Let’s go home." She bent over to pat him once, and that was her fatal mistake.

The back door slammed open again, and there he stood, Vampire face in the open, eyes blazing. He raised an eyebrow and took in her backpack slung over her shoulder, the camera on her wrist and Miss Edith in her arms. He glanced down at the dog, now growling menacingly at him. "Waited for me, huh," he taunted. "I’m touched, truly," he sneered. He grabbed her arm. "Let’s go."

And so Dylan marched along helplessly, silently cursing herself for taking so long. She should have left the clothes. Not worried about the camera, or the doll. She should have kept going the moment she made it through the door. How stupid was she? She said nothing to him as he followed after Spike and Dru’s scent. Obviously the pair had some idea of where to go. They had a contingency plan, as most Vampires did, if their lair was compromised. Dylan didn’t know what it was, and neither did he, if his frequent stops to scent out changes in direction were any indication. But, they found the others before dawn. And the little puppy stayed with them the whole way.

*****

"So if you’d been just a little faster, you would have escaped," Angel ruminated.

"Isn’t it strange how things work out?" Dylan laughed. "I actually did have a number of chances to escape, but my stupid brain thought too much and messed it up."

"It’s too bad that you didn’t go a little wild and just rely on your instincts," Angel noted. "Then you might have reacted more quickly."

"Yeah, but you notice that the other wild thing with us came back too?" she smiled, remembering the puppy. No matter how many times Angelus had snarled at the dog to go away, the little thing had determinedly stuck with them.

"I think he was protecting you," Angel smiled fondly.

"Was I still in danger?"

"Very much so."

*****

"Well, look what the cat dragged in," Angel snarled as he stomped into the crypt that the others had staked out as a temporary lair. He pulled Dylan forward and pushed her towards Dru. "Found your Doll for you baby." He swaggered a little. As much as he didn’t care for the kid, he wasn’t above using his timely finding of her to elevate himself in Dru’s eyes. If it had been just him, he’d have left her to burn. As it was, he really only took her along to prevent her from finding Buffy and her Watcher and possibly spilling secrets she had no right to.

With a strangled exclamation, Dru rushed forward and wrapped her arms around the girl. Dylan’s eyes widened at the strength of the embrace, and sputtered a little until the Vampiress let her go. "Oh my girl, I was so worried about you," she cried. She pulled back and looked the girl over, making sure that no harm had befallen her. Then she caught sight of her other doll. "Oh, Miss Edith!" She turned to the other male Vampire. "Look Spike, our girl saved Miss Edith." Spike smirked, then shook his head. He’d kind of been hoping that Dylan had made it out. But it seemed that that was not in the cards. "Isn’t she such a brave girl!" she crooned. A little bark caught her attention and she looked down to see her puppy trying to climb her leg, looking for his fair share of attention. "And my doggy! Oh my dear!" She was so happy that she was choking up.

Spike rolled his eyes, then caught sight of the fuming Angelus. The bloke looked ready to explode. And Spike understood immediately. He’d nabbed Dylan and dragged her along, looking to be the big man, as always. But Dru hadn’t even looked at him, instead turning all her worry and concern to the girl. Spike was sure that Angelus hadn’t even rescued the girl. Probably caught her before she went too far and brought her along, hoping to get back in their good graces for leading the Watcher to their lair in the first place. And upsetting the man enough to attack in such a manner. Well now, it was an interesting night. Very interesting indeed.

*****

"I didn’t…" Dylan began. "I had no idea that Buffy and Mr. Giles were nearby."

"That’s the whole reason I took you with me," he shrugged. "I’m sorry." She smiled sadly.

"Bleh," she grimaced. "What’s to be sorry for when it all worked out for me in the end?"

"I know," he agreed softly. "It’s a word that means a lot in your mind and heart, but not very much to anyone else. But I am all the same."

"I know you are," Dylan smiled at him. "And I am too."




Chapter Eighteen