Go the Whole Wide World
Author: enigmaticblue
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: The standard "I don't own them, please don't sue" should suffice, don't you think?
Archive: If you've got my stuff already, otherwise just ask.
Summary: Wesley finds himself with business in
A/N: spikes_lady asked for Spike and Wesley bonding with possible Spuffy. I hope this suits.
Chapter 1: Strange
Bedfellows
"I find it easy to
portray a businessman. Being bland, rather cruel and incompetent comes
naturally to me." ~John Cleese
"Here you go."
Wesley accepted the cup of coffee from Dawn gratefully. "Thank you. How is your sister?"
"The counterspell is working," she
replied, sinking down next to him on the couch. "
Wesley frowned. "I don't like the sound of that."
"You're telling me," Dawn muttered. "I'm just glad we caught it before things got any worse."
"How is Spike?"
"Worried." Dawn smiled. "I think they're going to be okay, though."
Wesley was relieved to hear it. He couldn't help feeling a
bit jealous, however. Spike had obviously found a place for himself in
He couldn't help but remember Fred's eyes when she'd realized why he'd shot his father. It hadn't been because his friends were being threatened, but that it was because of her. He'd known in that moment that he couldn't hope for more than friendship from her.
"Wes?" Dawn caught his eye. "Are you okay?"
"Of course." Wesley managed a smile. "I was just thinking."
"It looked like it hurt," she teased.
Wesley's smile grew. The last few days had proven interesting, not least because of the people he'd found himself spending time with. He had certainly never thought that he might enjoy Spike's company, or Dawn's.
"Just remembering," he explained.
Dawn made a face. "Yeah, that can suck sometimes." She looked over at him, concerned. "You're not going to go back to the law firm, are you?"
Wesley was a little taken aback. "Dawn, I—"
"Because I know that Giles has talked to you about coming back to the Council, now that he knows you're not evil," Dawn forged on. "I think you should. We need all the Watchers we can get until we get new ones trained."
"Angel needs me," he said gently.
Dawn raised an eyebrow. "Does he? Do you really want to go back?"
Wesley wasn't sure how to respond, mostly because he wasn't sure that he did want to go back. The only thing holding him to Wolfram & Hart was a sense of duty, and that might not be enough anymore. Not when he had also begun to feel a sense of duty to the Council as well.
Before he could frame a reply, there was a knock on Buffy's
door, and
"What's that?" Wesley asked, rising from the couch, trying to keep his weight off his left leg.
"The Immortal has disappeared," she replied. "And those
cyborgs you were chasing? Well, they've turned up at the Council headquarters
in
Ten days before
Wesley tried to focus on what Gunn was saying about the problems he'd encountered in his department, but his mind kept wandering to the small stack of photographs in the folder in front of him. He was waiting for the right moment to bring his request to Angel's attention.
Of course, if Angel refused to let him go, Wesley would find his own way. He had a feeling that this was important.
"Wes? What about you?" Angel asked.
Wesley cleared his throat. "I received a communication about
several artifacts discovered in the
"Where did you get this?" Angel's tone was a little more suspicious than Wesley would have expected.
"The photos were attached to a file regarding a recent
Wolfram & Hart acquisition," Wesley explained. "The
Angel passed the folder back to Wesley. "I hope you told them that they can find their own resources."
"No, of course not," Wesley replied patiently. "This is important, Angel. Those cyborgs were interested in controlling you. It would behoove us to discover why."
"Wes has a point," Gunn said, unexpectedly backing him up. "They went to a lot of trouble to get to you."
Angel's expression was sour. "They went to a lot of trouble to get to Wesley, too," he pointed out.
"It wasn't personal," Wesley objected. "They wanted to use me to get to you, possibly because they believed that I was the weakest link, and they had access to information about me that they did not have on the others." He leaned forward, trying to get his point across. "If they do have access to information through the Watcher's Council, it might be best to bring this to Giles' attention."
"No." Angel stood. "We haven't had any more trouble from
these cyborgs, whoever they are. Let the
Wesley exchanged a look with Gunn and Fred. "What was that about?" Gunn asked.
Fred shook her head. "No clue. He seems a little jumpy about the cyborgs, though."
Wesley didn't respond. He had his own suspicions about why Angel would be so unwilling to allow him to pursue this line of research. Ever since the vampire Angel had sired decades before had tried to kill them all, the head of Wolfram & Hart had been colder, more distant.
Perhaps it had been the loss of Cordelia, the knowledge that not even the resources at Wolfram & Hart had been able to save her. Or perhaps it was simply the fact that a piece of Angel's past had come to haunt him yet again.
There were plenty of days when Wesley struggled to remember why it was he'd come to work at the law firm. Certainly, he'd been offered resources he'd never even dreamt of, but he didn't think he would have accepted the offer if Angel hadn't.
And now—and now Wesley was beginning to wonder if they were doing any good at all.
"Did I miss the meeting?" Spike asked, ambling through the doors. "Thought it'd still be going."
"Angel walked out early," Gunn replied.
Spike raised an eyebrow. "Something get under his skin? An' I missed it?" he asked, pouting slightly.
Wesley rose. "I'll see you all later."
He headed down the hallway towards Angel's office. This situation was intensely personal, of course, no matter what he'd said to Angel. The cyborgs had entirely too much information on him, and the thing impersonating his father had forced him to reveal his feelings to Fred. Things had been awkward before, but she hadn't even been able to look at him lately.
"Goin' to face down the beast?" Spike asked, showing up at his elbow.
Wesley glared at the vampire. "I am going to have a conversation with Angel, one I don't remember inviting you to participate in."
"Oooh," Spike said, miming a strike to the heart. "You're breakin' my heart here, Watcher. I was under the impression that we were friends."
Wesley stopped, hoping that Spike would get the message that he didn't want company. "Do you mind?"
"Don't mind a bit," Spike said cheerfully, obviously intent on doing whatever the bloody hell he pleased.
Wesley didn't have the time or the patience to deal with the vampire's antics. "Fine." When he reached Angel's door, he entered without knocking, Spike acting as his shadow.
"Wes, we already talked about this," Angel said, not even
glancing up from his paperwork.
"No, we haven't," Wesley was quick to point out. "You made a declaration and walked out of the room. There was no discussion."
Angel shook his head. "This is from the
Wesley held in a sigh. "Because I've already made certain that the photos weren't tampered with. Even if it is some sort of set-up, that would indicate that Wolfram and Hart or the senior partners are somehow responsible for the cyborgs."
Angel held out his hand. "Fine. Let me see those photos again."
Wesley handed him the folder, wondering if he would end up pursuing this on his own.
Angel stared at the photos once again. "Alright, Wes. If you think this is something you need to do, go ahead and go. But you're taking Spike with you."
"What?" Spike asked, straightening from where he'd been lounging against the doorframe, likely waiting for the perfect opportunity to give Angel a hard time. "Now wait a minute—"
"I hardly need Spike's company," Wesley said at the same time. "I am quite capable of taking care of myself."
"You can take Spike for back up," Angel repeated. "That way, you'll get him out of my hair, and I don't have to worry about him getting hurt like the last time you had a mission."
Wesley felt that barb; he knew that it was a veiled reference to the fact that Fred had been hurt while with him.
Even though Wesley didn't know how to reply, Spike didn't have a problem reiterating his protests. "What if I don't want to go?" he demanded. "Did you think of that?"
"You're here on my sufferance, Spike," Angel growled. "And I need a break."
"But—" Spike frowned, then shrugged. "On second thought, never mind. I'm on board."
Wesley had no idea what had caused him to change his mind, because
he'd been hoping that Spike would insist on staying in
"You either take Spike, or you don't go, Wes," Angel insisted. "Take your pick."
For a moment, Wesley was seriously tempted to choose neither and go on his own. That would prove rather expensive, however, and if he could make the trip at the law firm's expense, Wesley preferred to do it that way.
"Very well," he sighed. "I'd like to leave as soon as possible."
"I can go whenever," Spike said. "I travel light."
Wesley ignored the vampire. "I will need to call ahead and let them know I'm coming, and we'd best ensure that we arrive while it's dark."
"I'll arrange it," Angel said, looking back down at the papers in front of him, making it clear that their discussion was over.
Wesley rose to leave, somehow unsurprised when Spike
followed him out of the office. "You goin'
to
"That's where the discs are located," Wesley replied. "Did you have another stop in mind?"
Spike shrugged. "Nothin' in particular, although you might want to think about requestin' a trip to the location where they found them in the first place."
Wesley nodded. It was a good suggestion, and one he would
consider once he'd sifted through the information that the
Spike wouldn't quite meet his eyes. "Just thought it might
be nice to get out of
Wesley didn't believe that that was his only reason, but he wasn't going to pry. Spike's motivations were a mystery, and likely irrelevant.
~~~~~
Spike hadn't been terribly happy about being volunteered for an assignment with the ex-Watcher. Although Wesley had gone up in his estimation after unloading a clip into his father—or what he'd thought was his father—Spike still thought of the man as a priggish dandy.
There was no way that Angel had considered the fact that
Buffy would also be in
That wouldn't hurt anything, right?
The truth was that Spike was beginning to feel just a little bit guilty for not calling Buffy. He had his reasons, of course. Mostly he hadn't wanted to risk rejection again. He knew that she was going to be brassed off that he hadn't let her know that he was alive, and that she would likely be hurt. Spike knew that he would have been hurt had their positions been reversed.
The more time went by, the harder it was to pick up the
phone, though, and this gave him the perfect opportunity. He'd get to
Not killing the prat he was accompanying would be a challenge.
Spike met Wesley on the private runway that the law firm kept, noting that the man was carrying only a duffle bag. He got points for traveling lightly, although Spike's luggage consisted of what was in his pockets.
"What? No going away party?" Spike asked, sarcasm dripping.
Wesley shrugged. "The others are busy. Let's go."
The problem with Wesley was that he wasn't nearly as much fun to needle as Angel was. The other vampire could be counted on to get upset and possibly blow up at some point. Wesley retreated into silence and cold glares, which wasn't nearly as entertaining.
And, when you considered that they had a very long flight with only each other for company, needling Wesley would not be a wise decision on his part.
"You been able to decipher any of those markings yet?" Spike asked.
Wesley looked surprised at his civil question, but answered anyway. "No. I'm afraid that the pictures tell only half the story."
"An' the other half?"
"It is to be hoped that we find it in
Spike raised an eyebrow. "You want to get to the bottom of this pretty badly," he observed.
"They know quite a bit about us, and we know next to nothing about them." Wesley pulled out a heavy book. "I'd like to even the playing field."
With that, he retreated into his reading. Spike was tempted to knock the book out of his hands, or something equally childish, just to see what kind of reaction he would get, but he refrained.
He might not care most of the time, but there were occasions when Spike recognized the value of being tactful.
Spike might need to enlist Wesley's help in contacting Buffy, so it was probably a good idea not to anger him too much.
He leaned his head back against the seat and closed his
eyes, hoping that by the time he woke up, they would be in
~~~~~
"We're here, Spike."
Wesley had been pleasantly surprised when Spike hadn't annoyed him for the duration of the flight. He hadn't had much hope that pulling out a book would prevent the vampire from talking to him, but it had. For that, and for the realization that it might be good to have someone to watch his back, Wesley could appreciate Spike's presence.
The vampire's eyes opened, and he fixed Wesley with a sleepy stare. "Huh?"
"We're in
Spike rose and stretched, graceful as a cat. "Right. We goin'
straight to the
"My contact is meeting me at the hotel tomorrow morning," Wesley replied.
"What? You're not goin' straight to work?"
"I've been working." Wesley refused to allow himself to be needled. "Unlike you, I didn't sleep the entire flight."
"And unlike you, I'm not along for the research," Spike shot back. "I'm here as muscle."
Wesley reminded himself that arguing Spike was a bad idea; he'd seen what had happened when Angel was drawn into a tussle. "Then you can entertain yourself until tomorrow morning. I really don't care."
Spike didn't look too happy with that suggestion, but he didn't argue, and that was all Wesley cared about at the moment. He was exhausted, and all he really wanted to do was to get to the hotel and sleep.
As Lucio had promised, there was a black sedan waiting for
the two of them when they stepped out onto the tarmac. The sun had just set,
and the air had a bite to it that had not been present in
This was a business trip, however, not a vacation. He didn't have time to stop and appreciate the outdoors for much more than a second or two.
"I will take you to your hotel, and will be at your disposal for the duration of your stay," the driver promised in Italian, introducing himself as Marco.
"Do you speak Italian?" Wesley asked Spike as they got into the back of the car. Mostly, he was concerned about leaving Spike on his own, and whether the vampire would need a translator.
Spike shrugged. "Some. Probably enough to get by."
Wesley gave a relieved sigh. "So if I leave you to your own devices, I can rely on you not to get into trouble?"
The vampire glared at him. "Thought my job was to keep you out of trouble."
Wesley smiled thinly. "Do you remember what happened the last time you took one of Angel's vehicles?"
Spike shrugged. "That was an accident."
Wesley sighed. "We're to meet our contact tomorrow morning, Spike. Can you stay out of trouble until then?"
"Of course."
Their driver pulled up in front of the hotel, and Wesley got out, watching as Marco handed his bag to the bellhop. He approached the front desk and greeted the manager in Italian. "Wesley Wyndam-Pryce, and my associate," he said.
Next to him, Spike muttered, "'m not your bloody associate."
Wesley ignored him. "There should be two rooms."
"Your firm requested a suite, Signore," the clerk replied.
Wesley sighed. "Very well." It meant that he would have less privacy than he preferred, but that they would be close. Should things go badly, that might prove to be an asset.
He did wish that he was spending time with someone other than Spike, however.
~~~~~
Spike stayed long enough to make sure that Wesley was asleep before heading out. He didn't have a plan; he only knew that he didn't want to be cooped up in the hotel room all night, as well as all the next day.
If he'd known where Buffy was staying, Spike might have
tried to catch a glimpse of her, but he hadn't managed to find that information
after breaking into Angel's files. He could have just asked before leaving for
Spike grinned to himself. He wondered how long it would take Angel to remember that fact.
The night closed in around him, and he felt a sense of freedom. He had no idea how Angel could bear to give this up—an affinity for darkness was part of being a vampire. Saving people made them Champions. Closed up in his office, Angel had lost touch with those facts.
Spike caught a glimpse of a girl who appeared to be tracking something. He had that tingle that told him a Slayer was near, and he turned to follow her.
Moving as soundlessly as possible, Spike trailed her, staying far enough away so that she wouldn't sense his presence. He was curious as to what Buffy and the others were doing with all those Slayers they had unleashed onto the world. Spike had already experienced the consequences with Dana, and he didn't think that she was unique among the new girls.
He knew better than anyone that this was a mad world that held as much pain as wonder.
The girl was good. She tracked the vampire and then staked it with an efficiency of movement that he couldn't help but admire. Spike had every intention of slipping away into the shadows before she could spot him, and then the girl turned, and he could see her face clearly for the first time.
Spike recognized her immediately. He couldn't recall her name, but she'd been one of the girls he'd helped Buffy train back in Sunnydale. From the widening of her eyes he knew that she'd not only seen him, but recognized him.
He retreated quickly, ducking down a side street and hoping she wouldn't pursue him. Even if she didn't, though, it was likely that she'd spread the word that he'd been seen. Or that someone looking a lot like him had.
"Bloody hell," Spike muttered, beginning to wonder if he
shouldn't take preemptive action. If he tried, he could probably find Buffy, let her know he was in
Well, he would have that much more explaining to do.
There was nothing Spike could do about it right then, though, not unless he wanted to try and track the Slayer back to her home base. Spike had tried that with Dana, and he had no intention of risking his hands or other body parts again, not without being fully prepared.
~~~~~
Buffy held up a hand. "Slowly, Julie. What did you see?"
The younger Slayer was visiting
While Buffy liked Julie quite a bit, the girl was a little excitable sometimes, and she'd been speaking too quickly for Buffy to understand.
Julie took a deep breath. "I saw Spike tonight."
Buffy blinked, then counted to ten. Slowly. She was just barely past the sharpest edges of her grief, but that kind of hoax still hurt. "That's not funny," she said evenly.
Julie looked hurt. "Buffy, I wouldn't make that kind of thing up! I found the vampire, tracked him down, and then dusted him. I could feel someone following me, but I figured I'd take care of it after I took down the one I was hunting."
Buffy nodded for her to continue. "Okay."
"I turned around, and he was standing there, watching me," Julie insisted. When Buffy started to shake her head in denial, she pressed on. "He still had the bleached hair, the leather duster, everything! I think he recognized me, too, because he turned and ran off as soon as he knew I'd seen him."
Buffy's mind whirled with the possibilities. What if Julie was right, and the man she'd seen was Spike? Was there something preventing him from coming to her, or could he not find her?
Was there anything too crazy to explain the fact that Spike was back from the dead, and yet not at her door? The Spike she remembered would have come to her immediately, would have at least let her know that he was around.
Unless he'd changed, or something had changed him. Unless he wasn't the Spike she'd known.
Or, if he hadn't believed her...
Buffy shook her head impatiently, bringing her focus back to
the moment. "Okay. Tomorrow, I'll let the others know that we've got a new
target. If it is Spike, I need to know what he's doing in
Julie looked a little apprehensive. "We're going to hunt him?"
Buffy shook her head. "No. This is information gathering only. Let's just figure out why he's in town. We'll figure out the rest from there."
Buffy watched as Julie left, heading downstairs to the apartment on the lower floor where the other Slayers lived. Giles was trying to figure out a better set up, which would probably involve a place out in the countryside, but Buffy liked city life.
Not that she had any intention of training Slayers forever.
Giles had promised that she could take a break soon, but Julie and two other Slayers
had needed a mentor, and he didn't have enough Watchers or older Slayers take
care of them. Faith already had her share of girls in
Most of the current Watchers had either been retired or still at the Academy or out in the field when the Council building had been destroyed. Some of the older ones were really creaky, and the school-age set was younger than many of the Slayers they were supposed to be training.
That left Buffy and those few Slayers who had fought the First Evil, who had the necessary experience, to train the rest. She couldn't help but laugh at that. While the fight in the Hellmouth had certainly been intense, Spike had done a lot of the hard work for them.
And she couldn't help but think that a Slayer wasn't truly experienced unless she'd died at least once.
As long as Dawn was still in high school, though, Buffy had to be in one place, so it made sense for her to take a few girls under her wing. Putting them in a different apartment preserved both her sanity and her patience, and with only three, Buffy had no problem getting to know them.
"Buffy?" Dawn came out of her room. "What are you still doing up? Did you even go to bed?"
Buffy glanced at the clock, surprised when she realized that it was morning. Julie had come in late, and her thoughts had absorbed her completely, so that she hadn't even noticed the hours creeping by.
"No. We were tracking that vampire last night, and I was waiting for Julie to get back," Buffy explained, wondering whether she should mention the other part of the Slayer's report. Knowing Julie and the others, though, Dawn would hear about it sooner rather than later. "She said she saw Spike."
"That's impossible," Dawn said flatly. "He's dust."
"That's what I said," Buffy replied, "but Julie insisted. Spike did help train her, so it's not like she's never seen him before. We're going looking tomorrow night." She grimaced. "Actually, it's going to be tonight, as soon as the sun goes down."
Dawn stared at the floor. "Yeah. Okay. I should get ready for school."
Buffy was at a loss. Dawn refused to talk about the vampire, or her relationship with him. She knew that the way things ended had left Dawn with a lot of regrets. Buffy couldn't help but wonder if she'd contributed to that by not being honest with Dawn from the beginning.
She sighed. It was too late now. If there was anything the last few months had taught her, it was that regret didn't do her any good. It was better to simply move on as best as she could.
And she'd been trying. Buffy thought about Antonio. They had only been out a couple of times, but he was certainly sweet and attentive. She had been hesitating to embark on a real relationship with him, and now she knew that she would have to wait, at least until she was certain that Julie hadn't seen Spike.
Because if Spike was still around...
Buffy didn't think she could move on, if that was the case.