The Accident
Giles arrived at LAX, exhausted. He’d spent the last remaining time before his flight left trying to discover any new prophecies that might pertain to Angel. Then during the flight over, he’d tried to read up on any other pertaining information on the ensouled vampire and his Gypsy curse. He didn’t sleep at all, wondering what they had to face now. He’d managed to get through the rigorous security measures easier than some of the other passengers. But that was probably due to the fact that he hadn’t brought any of his weapons with him. Not in any recognizable form to the security team though. Holy water and crosses didn’t interest them much.
So, with tired steps, he made his way to a long line of cabs. He climbed into one and settled his bag full of books beside him as the cabby resignedly moved to put the suitcase in the trunk. The squat, florid faced man climbed into the front and dutifully turned for the address. It was a mundane existence, but paid enough to keep the lazy man from finding other work. Didn’t mean he had to enjoy it. Giles dutifully repeated the address for the Hyperion hotel and they were off.
Giles mind wandered again, back to Jenny and the curse. He barely watched the scenery of the freeway pass by as he was taken into LA proper. He’d seen it all too many times over the last few years. It was just another city that the former Watcher would pass through on his way to something more important. His Slayer. He never saw the events leading up to the crash that nearly ended his life.
Angel had gotten up earlier than usual, wanting to get his day started so that when Giles arrived, they could get to the bottom of this mysterious curse. He heard movement above him and knew that the rest of his gang was up and about, just waiting for him to make an appearance. So, once he was showered, dressed and fed, he made his way up from his basement apartment. He wasn’t surprised to see Buffy and Spike up as well. He knew that Buffy was eager to see her friend and mentor again. And he had the sneaking suspicion that even after the conversation that he and the blonde man had had the previous evening; Spike wasn’t going to let Buffy out of his sight while they were in LA.
"Any word yet?" he asked easily. Buffy glanced up at him from the cup of coffee that Cordelia had grudgingly provided and shook her head.
"Willow should be here soon with Kennedy," she explained. "And Giles flight should have landed. So he’ll be here soon too." The rest of the group stood, feeling awkward. Buffy hadn’t been sure what to tell them. After all, the subject of Angel’s curse was a painful one for all of them in some way or another. The look Buffy gave the vampire informed him that it was up to him to explain.
"So what’s going on man?" Gunn questioned softly, not wanting to upset his friend. Angel shrugged.
"Why don’t you guys come with me and I’ll explain," he decided, motioning them to his office. His group dutifully followed, leaving Buffy and Spike to sit in peace. Cordelia was the last in and shut the door firmly behind her. The reappearance of her former high school nemesis was a stumbling block to her plan, but she knew she’d have to deal with it later. She could tell that something big was going on.
Angel waited until everyone was seated before he began. "Last night, after we fought the demons, we discovered a new prophecy." He waited for that to sink in. The reactions were predictable. Interest flashed across their faces.
"Where did you find it?" Wesley asked. He knew that as usual, he’d probably be depended upon to research it. But the disclosure that Rupert Giles and Willow Rosenburg were also on their way gave credence to his belief that it was something major.
"Actually, that’s the strange thing," Angel grimaced. "It appeared on Max’s back. I don’t know how, or why, but it did."
"Oh, Angel, I kind of already know all this," Cordy interrupted him. "Max told me last night."
"She did?"
"Yeah," Cordy nodded. "She thinks it began to appear when you touched her at the banquet." She paused for a moment, wondering if she should explain or wait for her friend. But the knowledge wasn’t really that secretive. "She was trying to think why it would appear last night when you’ve touched before. But then she recalled that that was the first time you’ve had skin to skin contact." Angel looked at her pensively. He did recall the tingling in his fingers when he’d spread his hand across her lower back to guide her to the dance floor. Any other times they’d accidentally touched; clothes had been in the way.
"I think she might be right," Angel nodded. "When I was taking her to dance, I felt this tingling sensation and my hand was warm. She noticed that right away."
"Okay," Fred piped up. "We have the how, sort of, but now, why?"
Angel grimaced again and glanced up at Cordy, silently asking her. She nodded. "It’s a copy of Angel’s gypsy curse. But there’s more to it this time."
"Well, that doesn’t make any sense," Wes ground out thoughtfully. "I mean, you’re already cursed. Why would the curse show up again?"
"You said there was more to it this time?" Gunn asked in general, knowing that he had heard correctly the first time. "What if there’s another clause?"
Angel had been asking himself that as well. "If it is, then we don’t know what might set me off again. Maybe you should all go until we get this figured out."
Gunn shook his head. "No man. The more people you got working on this, the quicker we can take care of it." Angel started to protest, but Wes interrupted.
"He’s right," the British man agreed. "Besides, if this extra part is in the nature of your previous curse, then I think it would be something obscure like the clause. I don’t think that it would be something as mundane as you greeting somebody good morning." Angel smiled at that. He should have known that his friends would be determined to stick by him.
"All right," he finally agreed. "I guess we’ll be making this our priority right now?"
"We’d better," Fred grinned. "We have enough big nasties to fight without you joining the other side again." She said it teasingly, but a little guilt and pain shot through Angel anyway. The others stood to go prepare for the research they knew was coming their way. Cordy stayed behind for a moment to deliver a message.
"Max had to work today," she informed her friend, stressing the other girl’s name. "But she’ll be by as soon as she’s done."
"Okay, thanks," Angel smiled up at her. Cordy smiled back and slipped out the door, delighted to have seen the light return to the Vampire’s eyes at her mention of Max. Suddenly, she wasn’t as worried about Buffy as she’d been before.
After a quiet hour, Willow and Kennedy arrived. There were introductions of Willow’s girlfriend. Once the duo found out that Giles hadn’t arrived yet, they begged off the visiting. They’d had a long trip and were still tired. Buffy promised to get her friend when he arrived and Fred led the girls, to a room for their use.
The afternoon seemed to drag on. Angel could see that Buffy was starting to become concerned. They had been expecting Giles between two and three in the afternoon. It was now almost six. And it was very unlike Giles not to call and let them know if he was going to be late. And of course, the people who didn’t know Giles that well, were picking up on the apprehension of those that did know him. Willow and Kennedy had reappeared and were just as worried as everyone else.
Cordy was about to suggest calling the airline to see if the flight had made it through all right, when she noticed her roommate’s appearance. "Hey Max," she greeted quietly. Max made her way over, not noticing Angel watching her as she did.
"Hey Cordy," she smiled gently. "What’s going on?"
"Giles hasn’t arrived yet," Cordy chewed her lower lip, obviously worried. Max nodded, suddenly understanding. Cordy would have said more, but the phone rang. She pounced on it. "Giles! Is that you?"
"Oh, I guess I have the right place," a feminine voice answered. "Is this Mr. Giles residence?"
"No," Cordy squeaked, sudden fear taking hold. "What’s going on?" she demanded.
"I’m sorry miss," the voice spoke softly. "Mr. Giles has been in an accident. Is there any possibility that I could talk to his next of kin?" Cordelia’s hand came up to cover her mouth. Tears formed in her eyes at her assumption of what the woman was saying.
"I don’t think he has any," she choked out. She scanned the room before her eyes fell on Buffy. "Just a moment." She covered the mouthpiece and held the phone out to the blonde woman. "Giles has been in an accident. They want to speak to his next of kin. They all knew that a long time ago, he’d listed Buffy as his person with power of attorney in case anything happened to him on American soil. Buffy hurried forward and took the phone.
"This is Buffy Summers," she announced. "Is Giles all right?"
"Oh, Miss Summers," the voice was mildly surprised. The papers she’d found in the patient’s bag had listed her as the one to call. But there’d been no current address or number to call. All there had been was a disconnected number from the little town of Sunnydale that had fallen prey to the meteor disaster some months ago. "This is Nurse Miller at LA General emergency room. Mr. Giles was in a car accident this afternoon. He’s sustained some major injuries. The doctors have taken him to surgery. Is there any way, you can-!"
"I’ll be right there!" Buffy told the woman. She was relieved that Giles was still alive, but a controlled panic set in. She just didn’t know what she’d do if something happened to her mentor. She hung up the phone and turned to address the waiting throng. "Giles was in a car accident. He’s in surgery right now, but we need to get to the hospital. At her words, the group galvanized into action. They immediately decided that only the ones that should go where the ones closest to him. That meant Fred, Gunn and Kennedy would stay behind. Angel would have to wait a little longer until the sun had set, but he was determined to go as well. There was a moment when Max declared her intentions to go were protested.
"Look," the newcomer sighed "It may sound cold-blooded, but this man might have the answers to some of my problems. I want to make sure he lives to help me figure it out." Buffy would have protested but Cordy held her hand up.
"She can ride with me," the tall brunette decided.
They arrived quickly at the hospital and waited for Buffy to get information from the nurse at the information desk. Then they moved as one to the floor where surgery was located. Buffy again approached the desk only to discover that Giles was still in surgery. The nurse directed them to the waiting lounge and the group waited in silence until a doctor finally appeared. He conferred with the nurse for a moment, then approached the group.
"Buffy Summers?" he called. Buffy stood and made her way to him, Spike and Willow right beside her.
"I’m she," she said softly. "How is Giles?"
"Well, Miss Summers," the doctor began quietly, noticing how the trio was all supporting one another. "Mr. Giles sustained serious damage to his upper body. One of his ribs broke and punctured his lung. They managed to re-inflate it in the ER. But he also sustained damage to his liver and his spleen. We went in, repaired the damage to his liver and removed his spleen."
"Was that all?" the redhead before him asked. She could see the hesitation in the doctor’s eyes. He grimaced slightly before continuing.
"Well, Miss, unfortunately, there have been some thefts recently," he wasn’t sure how to explain. "While Mr. Giles’ blood type is not that abnormal, we are in short supply due to the thefts. We were able to make it through surgery, but his supply is severely depleted. We need to transfuse him as soon as possible to avoid further complications. We have more blood on the way from the blood bank of another hospital. Once that’s done, I expect Mr. Giles to make a full recovery."
Buffy sagged in relief against her lover. "Oh thank God," she whispered, tearing up again. Willow nodded and thanked the doctor and then discussed the possibility of needing samples from the group. The doctor thanked her and directed Willow to a nurse so that whomever wanted to donate blood could. Suddenly, Buffy’s eyes shot open as the other words the doctor had spoken impacted her. "Someone has been stealing blood?" She glanced up at Spike, both of them understanding what the doctor wasn’t aware of. Stealing blood deliveries was an easy meal for vampires. But before they could act, Angel arrived, his face stony. He’d heard what the doctor was saying as he made his way to the lounge.
"Buffy, I’m sorry," he shook his head. "They were waiting for it. I was outnumbered."
"What are you referring to young man?" the doctor asked, confused. Angel turned to address him.
"When I got here, some punks were stealing the blood delivery that I assume you were waiting for." The doctor began swearing under his breath. Then excused himself to make some phone calls to track down some more. No one noticed that Max had slipped silently from the room.
She snuck down the hallway, peering at charts until she found the one she was looking for. She hid herself as a nurse exited the room, then slid inside. She shut the door softly, then turned to get her first look at the man lying in the bed, pale and nearer to death than the others liked. She gasped as recognition flooded her. She crept closer to the bed to be sure. The face was no different than she last remembered it. She wanted to be sick that he was here now. But she had to remind herself that he wasn’t the same person. It was just another freaky coincidence. She steeled herself and addressed the unconscious man hooked up to the various machines beeping softly around them as they monitored his condition.
"Well, you old bastard," she grunted. "I did it once before, I guess I can do it again. But this time, you are definitely answering my questions." With a quick glance to the door, Max quickly found what she would need. Before anyone could interfere, she had slid the intravenous needle into his vein in his arm and a matching one into her own. She sat on the stool near the bed and laid her head beside the man’s arm as she watched her blood flowing, crimson, like wine, to a man she considered her enemy.
Daddy Dearest
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