Solid Ground - Part 7 - Picture
Title: Solid Ground - Part 7 - Picture
Author: Xanfan
Rating: NC-17
Pairing: eventually, X/A
Summary: SLASH - Xander is assaulted by his secret boyfriend and needs to get out of Sunnydale to heal. He and Tara go to L.A. to recover from their screwed up lives.
Spoilers: Up through most of season six of BtVS, goes AU at end of Entropy. Through season 4 of Angel, Okay, just pretty much anything from all seasons of both shows is fair game.
Warnings: SLASH M/M, violence, description of non-con.
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
A/N: Anya broke up with Xander after “Once More with Feeling” He began another relationship not long after that. Buffy never told Tara why she wanted to know if she ‘came back wrong’, so Tara doesn’t know about her and Spike. Tara doesn’t die, because she isn’t there to get back together with Willow. This takes place right after Xander & Buffy see Anya and Spike on video, courtesy of spy cams.
___________________________________________
Tara and Angel stood together outside of Xander’s apartment. Neither made a move to open the door for a long moment. They looked at each other and smiled a little sheepishly before Tara took out her key and opened the door like she had done only hours before.
Tara stepped inside and invited Angel into Xander’s apartment.
She walked slowly through the apartment, trying to remember when this place had been a refuge of safety and friendship, when she had come here for movie nights and comfort. Now it just felt like the place where she had found her shattered best friend.
Angel’s senses were immediately assaulted when he entered Xander’s home. First came the smell of recent blood, which caused him to growl a little. Then he was overcome with the smell of Xander and Spike, together and separate, not just sex odors, but everyday scents. The smell of chocolate and wood that was Xander. The smell of leather and blood that was Spike.
They had both spent a lot of time in this place, together.
Tara passed Xander’s bathroom with a wince and headed for his bedroom. She found a suitcase in his closet and headed over to his dresser. As she reached to open the first drawer, her eyes caught on one of the photos he had proudly displayed there.
It was a picture that Tara had taken when she had been playing with the new digital camera Xander had gotten her for her birthday. They had discovered that since digital cameras didn’t use mirrors, Spike would show up on the pictures taken with them. Neither Spike nor Xander had been aware that the picture was being taken. In it, Spike was laughing at something Xander had said and Xander was smiling at Spike with a look of love and devotion.
Tara backed away from the dresser until her legs hit the bed and she automatically sat down. She struggled to hold back the sobs that threatened to come forth.
Angel had been looking around the living room when he heard Tara’s heart rate increase; he rushed into the bedroom to see what had upset her. He saw her sitting on the bed staring at a picture on Xander’s dresser. He walked towards it and picked it up. Had his heart been beating, it would have stopped in his chest at the sight before him.
When Tara had told him Spike and Xander had been involved, he hadn’t really grasped what that meant. It wasn’t just about sex, at least not for Xander. The boy in this picture was obviously in love. And Angel’s childe looked affectionately amused and… happy.
“H-how could he do it?” Tara asked, coming up behind him.
Angel gave her a questioning look.
“H-how could he hurt Xander like that? How could anyone hurt Xander like that? He’s the b-best man I know, the first man I ever really t-trusted. He l-loves… loved Spike completely, no hesitation or doubt. How could Spike…w-why would he…?”
Angel opened his arms, and tried not to show his slight surprised when the shy girl quickly moved towards him and allowed him to gather her up and comfort her.
“I don’t know what Spike was thinking, or if he even was thinking at all. He was always impulsive and hasty, but even for him, this is out of character. Now that Spike has taken off, we may never know what was going through his head. I can only guarantee that if Spike doesn’t regret it now, he will when I find him,” Angel vowed.
“It’s not just the r-r-rape I don’t understand, it’s the whole situation. Xander was so in l-love and I didn’t h-have the heart to t-tell him that I didn’t think Spike was as ‘involved’ as he was. I sh-should have said something, done something. I knew it wouldn’t end well, I just never thought that this would happen,” Tara said tearfully.
Angel rubbed comforting circles on the young witch’s back. “Shh, little one, you couldn’t have known, and do you think Xander or Spike would have listened to you if you did try to say something? Two more stubborn beings, I have never met. Human or demon.”
“H-he was so broken, A-angel. S-sitting there in the shower, looking so lost and…sh-shattered. How is he g-gonna…?”
“Remember who we’re talking about here. Xander always survives, it’s what he does. I’ve never really admitted this to anyone, but I’ve always believed him to be one of the strongest people I’ve ever known. I admired him from the beginning. Was jealous even,” Angel admitted.
Tara smiled a little. “R-really? You w-were jealous?”
Angel smiled back and nodded. “Really. He was brave and fiercely loyal. I’m not sure if I was jealous because he got to be with Buffy in the sunshine or because Buffy got to be the object of his devotion…. I didn’t mean it like that, you little minx. All my life and unlife, I’d never had a friend like that. Never really had a friend. Can’t help but admit that I wanted to know what that was like.”
Tara giggled when Angel admitted to being jealous, but she didn’t blame him. When she had first met Willow’s friends, she had been more than a little envious of the obvious love and devotion Xander showed the people he cared about. No one had ever cared about her like that, except for her mother, who was long gone. The first time she had realized that Xander considered her one of his own, she had been shocked and flattered.
“H-he’s going to b-be okay, right?” Tara asked hesitantly.
“He has you and Cordelia Chase utterly devoted to his well being, he has no choice but to be okay,” Angel said, his gently teasing underscored by complete conviction.
“A-and you,” Tara said softly.
“What?” Angel asked.
“H-he has y-you, too. D-devoted to his recovery,” Tara pointed out.
Angel smiled a little bashfully. “That he does, that he does.”
They smiled at each other and set about deciding what things of Xander’s to take, both silently culling his wardrobe of the most hideous pieces by unspoken agreement.
Previous Chapters
Author: Xanfan
Rating: NC-17
Pairing: eventually, X/A
Summary: SLASH - Xander is assaulted by his secret boyfriend and needs to get out of Sunnydale to heal. He and Tara go to L.A. to recover from their screwed up lives.
Spoilers: Up through most of season six of BtVS, goes AU at end of Entropy. Through season 4 of Angel, Okay, just pretty much anything from all seasons of both shows is fair game.
Warnings: SLASH M/M, violence, description of non-con.
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.
A/N: Anya broke up with Xander after “Once More with Feeling” He began another relationship not long after that. Buffy never told Tara why she wanted to know if she ‘came back wrong’, so Tara doesn’t know about her and Spike. Tara doesn’t die, because she isn’t there to get back together with Willow. This takes place right after Xander & Buffy see Anya and Spike on video, courtesy of spy cams.
___________________________________________
Tara and Angel stood together outside of Xander’s apartment. Neither made a move to open the door for a long moment. They looked at each other and smiled a little sheepishly before Tara took out her key and opened the door like she had done only hours before.
Tara stepped inside and invited Angel into Xander’s apartment.
She walked slowly through the apartment, trying to remember when this place had been a refuge of safety and friendship, when she had come here for movie nights and comfort. Now it just felt like the place where she had found her shattered best friend.
Angel’s senses were immediately assaulted when he entered Xander’s home. First came the smell of recent blood, which caused him to growl a little. Then he was overcome with the smell of Xander and Spike, together and separate, not just sex odors, but everyday scents. The smell of chocolate and wood that was Xander. The smell of leather and blood that was Spike.
They had both spent a lot of time in this place, together.
Tara passed Xander’s bathroom with a wince and headed for his bedroom. She found a suitcase in his closet and headed over to his dresser. As she reached to open the first drawer, her eyes caught on one of the photos he had proudly displayed there.
It was a picture that Tara had taken when she had been playing with the new digital camera Xander had gotten her for her birthday. They had discovered that since digital cameras didn’t use mirrors, Spike would show up on the pictures taken with them. Neither Spike nor Xander had been aware that the picture was being taken. In it, Spike was laughing at something Xander had said and Xander was smiling at Spike with a look of love and devotion.
Tara backed away from the dresser until her legs hit the bed and she automatically sat down. She struggled to hold back the sobs that threatened to come forth.
Angel had been looking around the living room when he heard Tara’s heart rate increase; he rushed into the bedroom to see what had upset her. He saw her sitting on the bed staring at a picture on Xander’s dresser. He walked towards it and picked it up. Had his heart been beating, it would have stopped in his chest at the sight before him.
When Tara had told him Spike and Xander had been involved, he hadn’t really grasped what that meant. It wasn’t just about sex, at least not for Xander. The boy in this picture was obviously in love. And Angel’s childe looked affectionately amused and… happy.
“H-how could he do it?” Tara asked, coming up behind him.
Angel gave her a questioning look.
“H-how could he hurt Xander like that? How could anyone hurt Xander like that? He’s the b-best man I know, the first man I ever really t-trusted. He l-loves… loved Spike completely, no hesitation or doubt. How could Spike…w-why would he…?”
Angel opened his arms, and tried not to show his slight surprised when the shy girl quickly moved towards him and allowed him to gather her up and comfort her.
“I don’t know what Spike was thinking, or if he even was thinking at all. He was always impulsive and hasty, but even for him, this is out of character. Now that Spike has taken off, we may never know what was going through his head. I can only guarantee that if Spike doesn’t regret it now, he will when I find him,” Angel vowed.
“It’s not just the r-r-rape I don’t understand, it’s the whole situation. Xander was so in l-love and I didn’t h-have the heart to t-tell him that I didn’t think Spike was as ‘involved’ as he was. I sh-should have said something, done something. I knew it wouldn’t end well, I just never thought that this would happen,” Tara said tearfully.
Angel rubbed comforting circles on the young witch’s back. “Shh, little one, you couldn’t have known, and do you think Xander or Spike would have listened to you if you did try to say something? Two more stubborn beings, I have never met. Human or demon.”
“H-he was so broken, A-angel. S-sitting there in the shower, looking so lost and…sh-shattered. How is he g-gonna…?”
“Remember who we’re talking about here. Xander always survives, it’s what he does. I’ve never really admitted this to anyone, but I’ve always believed him to be one of the strongest people I’ve ever known. I admired him from the beginning. Was jealous even,” Angel admitted.
Tara smiled a little. “R-really? You w-were jealous?”
Angel smiled back and nodded. “Really. He was brave and fiercely loyal. I’m not sure if I was jealous because he got to be with Buffy in the sunshine or because Buffy got to be the object of his devotion…. I didn’t mean it like that, you little minx. All my life and unlife, I’d never had a friend like that. Never really had a friend. Can’t help but admit that I wanted to know what that was like.”
Tara giggled when Angel admitted to being jealous, but she didn’t blame him. When she had first met Willow’s friends, she had been more than a little envious of the obvious love and devotion Xander showed the people he cared about. No one had ever cared about her like that, except for her mother, who was long gone. The first time she had realized that Xander considered her one of his own, she had been shocked and flattered.
“H-he’s going to b-be okay, right?” Tara asked hesitantly.
“He has you and Cordelia Chase utterly devoted to his well being, he has no choice but to be okay,” Angel said, his gently teasing underscored by complete conviction.
“A-and you,” Tara said softly.
“What?” Angel asked.
“H-he has y-you, too. D-devoted to his recovery,” Tara pointed out.
Angel smiled a little bashfully. “That he does, that he does.”
They smiled at each other and set about deciding what things of Xander’s to take, both silently culling his wardrobe of the most hideous pieces by unspoken agreement.
Previous Chapters