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The More Things Change	By : slashtheboyz Category: AtS/BtVS Crossovers > Slash - Male/Male > Spike(William)/Xander > Spike(William)/Xander Views: 12377 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own BtVS or AtS. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 26
- 27
- 28
Author: slashtheboyz
Title: The More Things Change
Chapter: 27/?
Pairing: Spike/Xander
Rating: FRAO
Feedback: Most definitely: Email, comments, journal or YM: ID slashtheboyz
Concrit: Most definitely: Email, comments, journal or YM: ID slashtheboyz
Disclaimer: The characters belong to Joss and a bunch of lawyers. I only wish they belonged to me cause I'd make em do naughty things together forever. I'm just playing with them. No disrespect intended. No reflection on real persons or places intended. I'm not making any profit from this little fantasy. This story is strictly for entertainment. I freely acknowledge the rightful owners of the original characters and creation. This fiction and plot are mine.
Warnings/Squicks: Nothing major this chapter except maybe some language
Summary: Xander and Spike have a meeting, secrets and stuff are revealed, and deals are made ;D
Previous chapters: Here
Notes: This was a very hard chapter to get out for some reason, when I was working on it*Rolls eyes* I did a lot of reworking and snipping even before I sent it to mistress_tien.
Beta: The wonderful mistress_tien

Xander was puzzled by the exchange. He knew things were being said but he wasn’t sure exactly what and why. Spike was feeding the link with reassurance so Xander wasn’t worried, but he was puzzled. He felt Spike’s amusement at his bemusement leak into the link and glowered at him from under his lashes. He sent a mental picture of a hand spanking a bare ass and felt lust join the amusement.

“I’ll call ahead and let him know you’re on your way up so he can clear everybody out, here, give the barkeep this,” Spike held out a hand and the big blue demon dropped a token in his palm. Then he reached down and punched a button and another door on the opposite wall sprang open. This door had no handle on the side facing them.

“Ta Laramet”, Spike threw out casually, as he urged Xander toward the door.

“Uhhh, it was nice meeting you,” Xander said over his shoulder as Spike pushed him through the door, the big blue guy just nodded and Xander lost sight of him as the door closed with a click behind them.

The room Spike ushered him into was as tasteful as it could be for a demon bar. It was probably more tasteful than many human bars. A muted glow from recessed lights lit the room softly. The colors were somber, dark brown and burgundy leather upholstered the chairs at tables covered with patterned tablecloths. The largest table seated four. This wasn’t a cheap juke joint. There were a few customers sitting here and there, and a there was a small stage at the far end of the room. At the very back in a small alcove through another open doorway, were some well spaced privacy booths, the lighting there was much dimmer than in the main bar area.

There was a single singer on the stage accompanied by a small band, and a grand piano stood off to one side of the stage. The music sounded like a cross between jazz and blues, but it wasn’t like anything Xander had ever heard before. There was a one couple dancing on the small dance floor, swaying to the beat. Xander looked at them then looked again. They were a greenish blue color with tiny iridescent scales, they had two sets of legs and four sets of arms; and they were using two sets of arms to hold each other close while the other two sets were petting and caressing each other.

Spike urged him toward the bar as he continued to ogle the place trying his best not to look like a country cousin come to town. Spike’s amusement was still bubbling in the link. Xander mused about what he should do to his mate later, as they reached the bar. The barkeep turned and hurried to them still drying a just washed glass. “Haven’t seen you in a while; what can I get for you tonight, Spike?” he asked as he set the glass on the counter, threw the towel over a shoulder and leaned on the other side of the bar, looking expectantly at Spike.
“Ya know how it is Charlie, been keepin’ myself busy. Just give me the usual,” Spike replied easily.

Charlie turned away and went down the rows of bottles on the shelves behind the bar looking for what he wanted, when he was about halfway down the row he reached up and pulled down a full familiar black and white labeled square bottle. He picked up two shot glasses and another half glass on his way back to Spike, and put bottle and glasses down on the bar in front of him with a muted thump. “Can I get you anything else, Spike?” He asked looking at Xander.

“This’ll do us for now, Charlie.”

“Right, you want to run a tab, Spike, or pay as you go?” Charlie asked as he filled the half glasses with ice and returned them to the bar.

“I’ll pay for this now Charlie”, he dug in his pocket and produced the Council credit card with a smirk at Xander.

Charlie accepted the card without comment and went to the register, rang up the purchase, ran the card through, and returned with the slip for a signature. Spike signed with a flourish and spoke again as Charlie turned away with the slip. “Here Charlie,” and handed him the token. Charlie looked at Spike then at the token on his palm, rolling it around, before tossing it up and catching it again to slip it into a pocket, and nodded toward the door behind the bar. “You know the way, go on up.”

“Grab those glasses, Xander.” Spike caught the bottle up by the neck, snagged one of the half glasses, and headed around the bar. Xander gathered up the remaining half glass and the shot glasses, and followed close on Spike’s heels. Charlie met them at the end of the bar and held up the gate, Spike and Xander slipped through. Charlie closed it behind them and went back to the register. Xander glanced around as Spike opened the door behind the bar; no one seemed to be paying the slightest bit of attention.

The door opened onto a set of steep steps. They climbed to the first landing. There sitting in a chair blocking the stairs was another demon reading a book. He looked up and closed the book as they neared the landing. This demon had brown-scaled skin, a slightly darker color traced patterns across his face like tribal tattoos. His face was humanoid but he had much flatter broader nose. He calmly watched them climb the last few stairs with blood red eyes. When they got close enough, Xander could see his eyes had slit pupils, like a reptile. He was also armed. He had two full bandoliers complete with a set of throwing knives, stars, and gun holsters with guns, crisscrossing the T-shirt stretched tightly over a well-muscled chest and arms.

He nodded at Spike as he stepped onto the landing, and then shifted his gaze to examine Xander curiously. Xander had the feeling that this demon didn’t miss much of anything with his blood red eyes. Xander scented the air inconspicuously and the dry slightly musty scent of snake and male came to him. “Nicccce to ssssee you out and about again, Sssspike,” He commented with a soft sibilance, as he rose from the chair, placed it out of the way and moved aside so they could continue up the second flight of steps. “He’sss exssspecting you, go on up; you know how he getsss.”
Spike nodded sharply, and paused for a moment. “How’s the missus, Sssshersssa?”

The demon blinked at Spike and hissed with what, Xander realized after a second, was laughter. “Sssshe’sss laying her firssst clutch of eggsss. How do you think?”

Spike laughed and thumped him on the shoulder with the hand that held the bottle. “It’ll get better. Congratulations. I’ll tip one up for ya.”

“Better I get a whole bottle for company and hide.” Sssshersssa said mournfully, “isss worssse than molting. And ssshe getsss cravingsssss in the middle of the day!”

Spike laughed sardonically as he as he put his foot on the lower step of the next flight of stairs. “I told ya about women, Sssshersssa. You got no room ta complain, warned ya when ya was courtin’ her didn’t I? Doesn’t matter what species they are. Females’re perverse creatures. They’ll get ya all tied up in knots and helpless. Then they’ll slap ya around, use ya up, and dump ya for something new.”

Sssshersssa’s soft voice followed them up the stairs in protest. “But I love her. It’s nicccce to sssee you around again Ssspike.”

“She’s got’cha right where she wants ya then.” Spike retorted with a snort, as he climbed the stairs with Xander following like a curious shadow.

They climbed up the second flight of stairs and came to the final landing and another door with yet another demon sitting outside it. This was a demon Spike didn’t seem to know. He nodded curtly at the demon, who jumped up hastily and opened the door. Then shut the door quietly behind them as they entered the room.

“Spike, my boy, what have you been up to? I wondered when you’d come to see me again!” A deep booming voice greeted them. Xander jumped and whirled around. And his eyes nearly fell out of his head. All he could do was gape in astonishment at the other most handsome face he’d ever seen, Spike was the first of course. He drew in a breath, scenting the air, and the musky male scent was not human, no matter how he appeared.

Incongruously the deep booming voice came from a male who was willowy and slim, almost effeminate. He wore an expensive black suit of some lustrous material with a subtle shine, and judging by the cut of it; custom tailored. His latte colored complexion was a smooth and creamy. Thick black waves, parted in the center, fell from a widow’s peak to each side of a severely sculpted face, and flowed in a shining curling mass past his shoulders. He had a wide mouth, with lush pink lips that promised all kinds of sensual delights.

He was seated in a comfortably cushioned executive style chair, upholstered in black leather, behind a massive desk made from some dark wood with a high shine; it dwarfed him and completely dominated the large room. Loose papers covered with top of the desk like a square shaped snow bank and several pens poked out of the piles here and there. An old-fashioned Rollo Card Index sat on a corner, a Palm Pilot and three different cell phones lay in a haphazard pile next to it. Two laptops were stacked on the opposite corner.

Five computers and as a many monitors were arrayed behind the pretty man on a smaller desk, it matched the larger one in color and design. What looked like battery packs sat beside each unit. A web cam and microphone sat in front of each CPU. The screens crawled with constantly changing information and IM pop up windows were visible on two of the screens. There were ten or so large DVD/CD racks standing in rows against the wall filled from top to bottom with what looked like data CDs and DVDs. They were made from the same dark rich wood as the two desks.

“Ahhh,” he said as he noticed Xander’s fascinated stare, “the wonders of the modern age, communication is so much easier these days with these techno wonders. One doesn’t even have to use a phone if they prefer not to,” he rumbled pleasantly. Xander filed another idea in the back of his brain for examination later.

“Spike, come, have a seat; both of you sit down, sit down. I know there is a lot of ground we have to catch up on. I haven’t seen you in a while.” There was a mild reproof in the statement. Spike nudged Xander across the expensive burgundy colored carpet toward one of the comfortable overstuffed chairs upholstered in burgundy leather, sitting on a patterned Berber rug before the broad desk. He threw himself into the other, with a genuine smile for the male behind the desk. Leaning forward to set the bottle and glass on the desk Spike replied with a casual shrug “Been busy, Ma’at.”

Ma’at frowned in concentration, and opened a drawer in the desk and dug around for a moment, finally bringing out three nice sized cork coasters; he leaned forward and handed them to Spike. Spike picked up his glassful of ice, set it on one of the coasters, and reached for the glass Xander still held, setting it on one of the coasters also. “Yes, I’ve heard, with the Slayer. And I understand you got a nice shiny new soul installed.” Ma’at raised one slim delicately arched eyebrow at Spike.

Spike actually looked abashed. “Yeah we all do some stupid things when it comes to love. N’ I’ve always been love’s bitch, ya know that.” He reached for the bottle of Jack Daniels and cracked the seal, then poured the dark amber liquid over the ice in the half glass, and poured an equal amount in Xander’s glass. He set the uncapped bottle down on the remaining coaster with a thud, picked up his glass and sprawled back in his chair comfortably.

Ma’at watched the activity with interest. “Indeed, we do,” he agreed with a wry twist of his lips. “And who is this pretty young demon you’ve brought with you, Spike?” He raised his nose and took a deep breath. “Ahhh, Aurelian. Family then, I hadn’t heard you sired any childer,” Ma’at commented with another quirk of an arched brow.

Spike tilted the glass in his hand watching as the liquid and ice shifted in the glass, and pursed his lips before responding. “He’s my childe, through and through, right enough, but I didn’t turn him. Angelus did.”

Ma’at all but fell out of his chair he sat forward so quickly. He stood gracefully and rounded the desk, and was in front of Xander so quickly that Xander recoiled in his chair with startlement. He gazed at Ma’at warily. Ma’at’s eyes were so dark that Xander couldn’t see a separate pupil, and they glittered at him covetously. Ma’at slowly extended a hand with long slim fingers, one of which was adorned with a large signet ring set with a deep red stone. The hand went to the earring in his right ear and fondled it gently making it sway and clink. He grunted with satisfaction and stepped back abruptly. “Stand up boy, and let me get a good look at you.” He commanded firmly.

Xander looked at Spike for direction. Spike chuckled gleefully. “Go ahead luv, he won’t eat you. You’re a surprise to ‘im is all.”

Xander got the impression Ma’at didn’t lose his composure all that often when Spike smirked and then smothered it by taking a stiff drink from his glass as he watched the pair of them; but he could feel the smugness rolling through the link. Ma’at huffed indignantly at Spike’s amusement, which just caused Spike’s grin to widen.

Cautiously rising from the chair Xander stepped closer to Spike and eyed Ma’at like a wary cat. Ma’at looked him up and down, and then circled him, taking in every detail of his appearance, humming to himself as he moved. Xander felt the hair on his nape stand up and growled in response. Spike stood and drew him against his hard body and rubbed his back with calming strokes, but Xander twisted trying to keep Ma’at in sight still growling; his claws dug into Spike’s duster like an agitated cat.

Ma’at curiosity satisfied finally stopped circling with a delighted laugh that sounded like distant thunder and vibrated in Xander’s bones. He raised an eyebrow at Xander. “Hush boy, I’m not going to have you for supper.” Taking in Spike’s delighted grin he commented with an acerbic. “Proud of yourself are you?” Spike couldn’t contain the snicker that escaped even though he tried mightily. Ma’at glared and huffed back around the desk and plopped back into his chair. Evidently, Ma’at didn’t usually plop, because Spike totally lost it and roared with laughter much to Ma’at’s irritation. “Oh stop that.” He rapped out and Xander winced as his eardrums vibrated.

Spike bravely tired to smother his laughter, but it escaped as snickers and snorts as he urged Xander back into his chair and handed him the glass of JD he’d poured for him earlier. Then he took his seat again. Xander relaxed, Spike wasn’t concerned about anything, in fact the emotions in the link were fond exasperation and pure wicked amusement.

Ma’at leaned elbows on the desk, and looked closely at Xander again, his black eyes glittering with intelligence and speculation, as he waited impatiently for Spike to stifle his snickers. “I take it that this is the boy that Angelus turned at a bar during the recent turmoil in Los Angeles?”

Spike sobered at that, his mouth tightened into a straight line and he gave a curt nod.

“How then did he become your childe? Is Angelus dust?”

Spike looked up eyes sparkling with gold. “Now there’s a tale. Boy woke less than twelve hours after Angelus took ‘im, Ma’at. Hunted him down rejected him by torturing ‘im a few hours, defanged him, shoved the soul up his arse again, forced the soul and demon to merge, dumped ‘im on his human pets, took ‘is car. He paused to look meaningfully at the earring and coat that Xander wore as trophies. “’n came lookin’ for me. He made it halfway back to dear ol’ Sunnyhell before he collapsed on the side of the road where I found ‘im, wanted me to Sire him, he did. He finished proudly.”

Ma’at caught Xander’s eyes, the black glittering orbs seemed to expand and fill the entire world, his awareness of everything else disappeared, and his world narrowed and shrank until those measuring eyes were all that existed. Xander fell into that gaze and it stripped him down to his very essence leaving him naked to Ma’at’s examination.

Ma’at plumbed the depths of him without mercy, bringing up memories, examining his motives and piercing to the very darkest corner of his mind. Xander was bewildered, and lost; drowning. Then as abruptly as Ma’at had captured him, he released him. As awareness of the world around him returned, Xander could hear a low keening sound and it dawned on him that he was the one making that sorrowful sound.

Spike was pushing love/sorry/mine/reassurance strongly through the link. Xander latched onto the link and held tight. There was also an undercurrent of worry and a protective ire aimed at Ma’at. Spike came to kneel beside Xander’s chair and grasped his chin gently to raise it and look into Xander’s eyes, “Xander, ya alright, luv?” He could feel through the link that Xander was fine, although still slightly bemused, but he needed the words.

“I’m okay, Spike,” Xander confirmed, he leaned down a bit unsteadily and kissed his Sire on one sharp cheekbone, Spike’s hand grasped the back of his head and held him there, pushing into the kiss. Xander nuzzled him, breathing in the familiar scent to steady his nerves.

Ma’at sat back with the expression of a cat that ate the canary. Spike frowned with displeasure and snarked over his shoulder. “Ya didn’t have to bloody well spring that on ‘im t’night. He’s had enough ta deal with t’day, n’ he’s a new fledge, less than two weeks old Ma’at. All this bleedin’ stress isn’t good for him. S’ reason we’re out t’night. Ta blow off some stress, not add to the pile.”

“Ma’at regarded Spike with an unfathomable expression. “He’ll be fine, Spike. He’s extremely strong, with almost indestructible loyalty and sense of purpose. His heart is pure; I’ve never seen a heart as pure as his is, in a demon, not even in a human. Not in my very long life. With you taking care of him, I have no doubt he’ll mature nicely without too much blackness blotting his essence. He’ll be a hell of a Master.”

Ma’at shook his head in consternation. “Angelus always was too overconfident. He had absolutely no idea what he was doing when he turned this boy. If those spells hadn’t been in place when he was turned…… Ma’at shuddered. “My suspicion is that some of the powers have been tinkering again, but they’re going to find that this boy is not going to cooperate in being used as their tool, like Angel. They don’t see the outcome of everything either; and this time they’ve caught themselves in their own snare, if they’re truly responsible. This boy isn’t blinded by words; he sees to the heart of things.”

Spike snorted. “You’ve no idea.”

Xander tired of them talking over him as if he was a piece of furniture finally had enough. “I am here you know. I don’t really like being discussed like a prize racehorse.” He muttered.

Ma’at laughed delightedly. “Of course you don’t. Pardon me for my rudeness young one.”

“This isn’t what we came here for anyway,” Xander snarked back.

“Ahhhh, now we’re getting to the meat of the matter. Why did you come to see me, if not to give me information that the whole demon community on both Continents has been turning over every stone to obtain?” There was no denying the smugness in Ma’at’s voice. He was now the sole owner of said information.

Spike released Xander with a last searching look, and probe through the link. Xander grinned crookedly down at him. Satisfied with Xander’s condition, he stroked Xander’s cheek gently. Then he stood gracefully, turned toward the desk, opened his duster, and unhooked the laptop. He plunked it down on the desk, “this is why we came,” he pushed it hard, and it slid across the desk toward Ma’at with a whishing sound. Spike stepped back, and sprawled out in his chair; he casually picked up his abandoned drink and quirked an eyebrow at Ma’at.

Ma’at sat up straight, caught the laptop, and turned it examining the outside. His slim fingers found the latches and popped the top open. He turned it on and began examining the data. His eyes flicked up at Spike then shifted to Xander. “This has got to be some sort of joke,” he protested. Xander and Spike shook their heads in tandem.

Ma’at’s eyes went back to the data on the screen like iron drawn to a lodestone. His eyes flicked back and forth gleaming with excitement as he read. His fingers touched keys slowly at first then he began to type faster and faster, until they were almost a blur, a smile broke out on his face. The smile widened into a grin that showed too many teeth to be comfortable for anyone watching. Then he started laughing uproariously.

Spike smirked across at Xander and pulled at his nose.

Ma’at’s laughter wound down but he still had a wide grin on his face when he reluctantly looked up from the screen. “Yes, I can certainly see why you’d bring this to me.” Avarice made his eyes shine like black marbles.

“Only one I’d trust with it. How much is it worth to us? I know that brain o’ yers has already been totting up the totals.”

Ma’at relaxed back in his chair and looked up to the ceiling for a moment, swinging his chair back and forth in short arcs, and humming to himself as his slim fingers tapped out a rhythm on the desk. Then he abruptly stopped and leaned forward. “Your cut would be sixty billion.”

Xander’s jaw dropped open, he gaped at the beautiful demon in disbelief, and grabbed his untouched glass from the desk and took a few big gulps of JD before he lowered his glass again.

Ma’at grinned at him like a shark. “This,” he stroked the laptop with possessive hand, “contains ALL the financial information for Wolfram & Hart, every single financial transaction they’re involved with all over this world and in other dimensions as well. With just this laptop, you have given me the ability to completely annihilate Wolfram & Hart without a single drop of bloodshed. Something I have desired to do since I was very young and just learning my trade.” He purred with satisfaction.

Spike coolly dug in his coat pocket for his fags, took one out of the pack, and tossed the half-full pack on the desk beside the bottle sitting there. Digging for his lighter he brought it out and opened it with the other hand and thumbed the striker, putting the flame to the tip of the fag and inhaling deeply when was lit. He blew out a cloud of smoke and his eyes narrowed as he tilted his head considering Ma’at through the haze.
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The More Things Change