Title:  Uncommon Distractions
Author:  Kay
Email:  kaygrr@hotmail.com
Feedback:  Please?  Because watching a grown girl cry is just pathetic.
Website:  ssfdu.tripod.com/kay/journal.htm (love for Sandy) Archive:  Just
let me know, eh? Fandom:  Buffy Pairing:  (Xander/Graham) + (Xander/Spike)
= Xander/Graham/Spike Rating:  PG-13 Disclaimer:  Mine?  What? *These*? 
No, they're Mutant Enemy's.  They just followed me home and wouldn't leave
until I played with them. Spoilers:  The last season of Buffy.  The
incident with Glory, and the ep "The Body".  (Look at me, trying to be
vague).  And that ugly rumor about Spike and a certain blond slayer? 
Never happened. Summery:  Graham and Riley are called back to Sunnydale
when the area destabilizes.  When they return, they discover there are new
factors in lives of the Scooby Gang, especially in Xander and Spike's.

Part 15/?

Spike strained against the arms that held him immobile, but he held his
full strength in check.  He didn't want to get free, not right then.  He'd
heard the soldiers threaten the Cynon with his violence and he was willing
to play along.  He was willing to do whatever it took to find Xander.

He'd woken up to find Xander already gone.  A note on the kitchen counter
had told him that the dark-haired man was out running errands and that
he'd be back soon.  Spike had debated what to do while waiting; watch the
telly, read a magazine, prank call the Slayer?  He had decided that none
of them suited his mood.  He'd wanted to wake up and talk to Xander, make
sure the other man wasn't too torn up about what had happened the night
before.  He knew Xander was going to take it to heart, knew that the boy
was going to feel the rejection and the loss of Graham more than he
should.  Behind the laughing eyes, Xander hid a soul that felt too much,
too deeply.  He'd wanted to hold Xander and make sure that he was all
right, to tell him he was loved and to get those dark eyes to smile for
him once more.

If he couldn't be near Xander, then he could at least immerse himself in
the other man's presence.  He'd probably never be able to live it down if
anyone caught him at it, but he didn't care.  He wanted to be with Xander
and this was the next best thing.  He had pushed open the closed door to
Xander's bedroom, intending to spend time in the place that smelled and
felt the most like the mortal.  It was there that he'd found the letter
with his name on it, waiting for him on the bed.

//Spike-

No matter how I write this, I know I'm going to end up pissing you off. 
I'm just going to beg you to read this all the way through before you do
anything, all right?

The first thing I have to tell you is thank you.  Thank you for keeping me
alive these past few weeks.  I would have been dead a dozen times over
without you there by my side.  Thank you for watching out for me in other,
smaller ways.  If I hadn't had you to talk to, I probably would have ended
up going out of my mind.  You helped me to hold it together.  You were a
friend when I needed one most.

The past few days have been something out of a secret dream for me.  Thank
you for giving me the chance to live it.  You let me feel things I never
thought I'd ever be able to, made me feel better and closer to love than I
ever have before...and that's as mushy as I'll get.  I'll spare you any
more sloppy feelings.

This is the hard part, the part that's going to piss you off.  If you've
found this letter, then I guess I didn't come back and there's a good
chance that I'm dead.  I have no right, but I need to ask a final favor of
you.  I need you to make sure that if I've been turned, that you make sure
that I don't rise again.  None of the others could handle having to stake
me.  You're the only one I can trust.  Please, Spike.

Xander//

Spike had dropped the letter and run to his room, pulling on his sun-cloak
as he'd left the apartment.  He didn't even know if he'd shut the door
behind himself and he couldn't bring himself to care.  Xander was out
there performing some noble, bullshit sacrifice and Spike wasn't going to
let it happen.  He'd gone straight to the one being that would know where
Xander had gone.  The Cynon.

The Cynon, who was currently cringing against the wall, stared at him with
healthy amount of fear.

"Where is Xander?"  Spike demanded.  "What did you send him up against?"

The blue-skinned demon straightened a little.  "I didn't send him
anywhere.  I merely gave him the information he desired.  What he did with
that information can hardly be construed as any fault of mine."

"I'll construe it any way I damn well please."  Spike lunged forward a bit
for effect.  "Start talking or start dying."

"He came to me and I told him what he wanted to know.  There are new
vampires hiding in the Serenity Acres cemetery, a clan of Blorten demons
moving through town on their southern migration path, and a few demons
hiding out in the woods near the abandoned south cabin."

"What demons are out in the woods?" asked Graham.

"A small group of Kladdersh."

Spike hissed.  That explained it.  Kladdersh demons were notoriously
nasty, even aside from their interest in vampires as snack food.  Xander
had gone after them alone to protect him.  Of all the stupid, suicidal,
whiteknight gestures...  "If anything's happened to him, I'm going to hunt
you down and make your dying last a month."

"Even if you find him in time, you may not save him."  The Cynon looked
from Spike to Graham and then back again.  "I tasted his emotions.  He is
torn by the feelings inside himself, convinced that the love he feels is
wrong, that it can only hurt him and the two of you.  He didn't leave here
dreading death.  He was looking forward to it."

"Motherfucker."  Graham released Spike and took a step forward.  "I should
kill you now."  No matter what the blue-eyed man might have tried to make
Xander believe, he still loved him.  It was there in the fear and the rage
that filled his voice and gaze.

"I didn't do that to him," the Cynon said.  "The credit belongs to you,
you and the situation and Xander's own delicious fears.  If you don't
realize that, you will gain nothing by saving him.  He'll just find
another way to escape, another way to die."

Spike glared at the Cynon.  He understood what the demon was saying, but
all that had to wait until Xander was safe.  "Pray to whatever it is that
you serve that Xander is still alive."  He shook Riley off and stalked out
of the crypt.  Behind him, he could hear Riley talking to Graham,
persuading the other man to follow.  When the two soldiers made it
outside, Spike was waiting for them.

He moved forward until he was right in Graham's face, staring up at the
taller man.  "You don't like me.  Fine.  I don't like you.  Right now, all
that means shit."

Graham nodded.  "Let's go get Xander."

Spike raised an eyebrow approvingly.  "Then let's get to your vehicle.  I
know where the cabin is."

Graham drove with barely controlled desperation at speeds that almost made
Spike nervous.  The same need that drove Graham was also pounding through
the vampire and the insane pace that Graham had set didn't seem to be
nearly fast enough.  The knowledge that Xander could be dying as they sped
to reach him made him wish that the cheesy legends about vampires being
able to fly were true.  When they finally got within a mile of the cabin,
Spike was out of the vehicle before it stopped moving.  Graham and Riley
took a moment to finish gearing up with weapons and then they were behind
him.

Spike held up his hand and listened to the wind.  "The Kladdersh are in
the woods.  I can hear them moving.  They don't like to be up during the
day, so something must have drawn them out of the cabin."

"Xander?" Graham asked.

"I can't hear him out here.  The Kladdersh are upset.  I don't know what
they're saying, but they sound pissed.  I think Xander pushed them out of
the cabin somehow and that they're planning to take it back."  He stared
off into the woods.  The Kladdersh were angry and they wouldn't welcome a
pair of humans into their territory.  He, on the other hand, would be
welcome.  Snacks were always welcome.

"We go hard, we go fast, and we get to the cabin."  Graham's voice was
firm. 
  "Then we get Xander the hell out of there."

Spike grinned savagely as he took in the blood-thirsty determination on
the soldier's face.  "Let's go."

Luck was with them:  the Kladdersh were so focused on muttering about
whatever had happened at the cabin that they didn't even notice the three
men moving through the woods.  Spike made sure they stayed well away from
the Kladdersh.  He didn't fancy ending up an appetizer before he got the
chance to shake Xander's teeth loose for coming up with a plan like this.

Once they reached the clearing that surrounded the ramshackle cabin, Spike
broke into a run, knowing that Riley and Graham would be right behind him.
 He lunged through the door, the sound of Xander's rapid heartbeat filling
his ears.  "Xander!  Where the hell are you?"

"Spike?"  Xander voice, weary and surprised, drifted down from the upper
floor.

Graham was closer to the staircase, so he was the first one up the stairs.
 Spike followed him closely, managing to push past Riley.  He and Graham
ran to the first room on the right of the hall.

Xander stood in the middle of the room, frowning.  "What the hell are you
guys doing here?"  His face was streaked with dust and sweat and he swayed
a little as he stared at them.  Discarded weapons surrounded him and an
empty duffel bag was tossed into a far corner.

"What the hell are we doing?" Spike parroted back, tearing off his 
protective sun cloak.  "You're the one on the suicide mission, pet."

"How did...I don't know what you're talking about."  Xander looked out the
window.  "Listen, there are Kladdersh out there, Spike.  I can handle
this.  You'd better just get out of here.  Riley, Gr-graham, this isn't
your fight. 
  You shouldn't be here."

"You can handle this?"  Graham shook his head.  "Xander, there are demons
out in the woods working themselves up to come back here and take their
house back.  You're not going to be able to beat that."

"They're coming back?"  Xander didn't look dismayed by that; instead, a
little more life appeared in his eyes and he stood up straighter.  "Then
you definitely need to get out of here.  I've got this under control. 
I've got a plan."

Spike shook his head.  Whatever plan Xander had wasn't going to happen. 
It no doubt ended with the demons being taken care of, but without Xander
walking away.  It was obvious:  from the resigned slump to his shoulders
to the way Xander refused to meet anyone's gaze, it was clear that Xander
had given up.  "It won't wash, luv.  We're not leaving you behind.  You're
coming with us."

Xander did look at Spike then.  A bitter smile twisted his lips.  "I'm not
going anywhere.  And you have -" he checked his watch "-two minutes to get
out of here."

"Why two minutes?" Riley asked.

Spike felt a frisson of real fear.  He'd heard stories about Xander, knew
that the other man was willing to do what ever it took to protect his
friends.  He could be as ruthless as an alpha protecting his pack.  In the
past, he'd relied on pilfered napalm and..."Explosives."

"Those, too," Xander agreed.  "The two minutes is actually how long I
think you have before the Kladdersh decide to rush the house and you'll
either be killed by them or trapped in here.  Being trapped would be bad
because the explosives are set to go off in four minutes."  He looked back
at his watch. 
  "Three minutes now.  I'd suggest running."

"Not without you," Graham said.

"This really isn't any of your business.  Spike, don't forget to take that
cloak with you."  He swallowed hard and looked at his watch.  "One minute
till they come back."

Spike met Graham's gaze.  He read exactly what he wanted to see in the
soldier's eyes.  "Right then," he said quietly.  He bent down to pick up
his cloak and pulled it on.  "Are you sure you can handle this, luv?" he
asked as he settled it into place.

"You need to get out of here," Xander insisted.  "And I'm going to be
fine." 
  His voice broke.

Spike nodded once, then lunged forward and grabbed Xander, tossing the
taller man up over his shoulder and running for the door.  Xander cried
out a protest and began to struggle immediately, but Spike just tightened
his hold on him and continued to run down the stairs, Riley and Graham's
footsteps a heavy echo just behind him.  As he cleared the front door, he
saw that the Kladdersh demons were finally staging an effort to retake the
house.  He turned quickly.  "Give me some cover fire and then follow me
out the back!" he ordered.  This could work.  If the Kladdersh followed
them into the house...

Graham and Riley please him by understanding exactly what he was thinking.
 A brief burst of gunfire behind him told him that the Kladdersh would be
delayed, and then he was out the back door and down the rickety stairs. 
Xander fought to get free of his hold, but Spike ignored the warning
twinges from the chip and just held him tighter, refusing to let him go. 
He heard the two humans get out of the house and then he was running,
trying to outpace whatever explosives Xander had rigged.

They almost made it.

A terrific concussion of sound and force knocked Spike to his knees.  Time
seemed to slow down as he attempted to react.  He tried to gentle Xander's
fall, but the dark-haired man still slammed into the ground hard.  Spike
tried to cover Xander's body with his own, but Xander was writhing like a
man possessed, yelling about shrapnel.  Spike understood there would be
shrapnel - that's why he wanted to make sure Xander was protected.  Xander
pulled one of his arms free and smashed his elbow into Spike's face.  The
pain caused Spike to flinch and that was all the opportunity Xander
needed.  He squirmed free...

...only to roll on top of Spike and pin the vampire to the ground.  Spike
realized dimly that Xander wasn't trying to get away.  It took a few
moments more for full understanding to penetrate the pain in his head: 
Xander was shielding *him*.  Before Spike could react, debris began to
rain down on them:  parts of the cabin and parts of the Kladdersh fell
indiscriminately from the sky.  After a few seconds it was over.

Spike pushed Xander off to the side.  "What the hell did you think you
were doing?" he demanded, adjusting his hood to better shield his face.

Xander didn't answer.  His eyes were closed and he made no moved to get
up.

"Xan?"  Spike touched his throat gently, searching for a heartbeat.  It
was there, slow and regular.

"How is he?" Graham demanded, kneeling on the other side of Xander. 
Kladdersh innards stained one side of his pants and splinters of wood were
caught in his hair.

Splinters.  Xander had been trying to protect him from the wood.  "The
bloody noble bastard's out cold."  He gently pushed up Xander's shirt,
hissing a little as the sight of the bruising.  "He probably got hurt
getting into the house."

"Add that to the blast and no wonder he's out.  He might have even gotten
knocked over the head by some debris."  Graham reached out and brushed
some dust from Xander's hair.  "He needs to be taken care of."

"I'll take him back to his place.  I can watch him there."  Spike readied
himself for a fight.  Either Graham was going to want to take the boy to a
hospital or he was going to try to take Xander home himself.  He had to
realize how big a mistake he'd made in letting Xander go.

"I'm coming with you."

Spike blinked.  "To Xander's?"

"Yeah.  Ri, can you go back to base and cover for me there?"

Riley nodded.  "Are you sure?"

"I need to do this.  I'll be in contact soon."  Graham pulled a few more
splinters out of Xander's hair, then scooped the unconscious man into his
arms.

"I can take him," Spike protested, but not very hard.  There was something
in the way that Graham was looking at him, something in his gaze that
looked like acceptance and maybe even anticipation.

"I got him.  Just make sure nothing eats us on the way back to the car."

With Riley taking point and Spike bringing up the rear, they left the
smoking remains of the cabin and headed for the SUV.  Even as he cast an
admiring glance at the wreckage - the dark-eyed man knew how to place
explosives - Spike knew that things were nowhere near over yet.  Xander's
attempt at suicide by combat had to be dealt with, as did his relationship
with Spike and that with Graham.  They couldn't let things go or walk away
any longer.  Beyond that, there was that new look in Graham's eyes to deal
with.

Spike had a suspicion that things were about to get very interesting.


Title:  Uncommon Distractions
Author:  Kay
Email:  kaygrr@hotmail.com
Feedback:  Please?  Because watching a grown girl cry is just pathetic.
Website:  ssfdu.tripod.com/kay/journal.htm (love for Sandy) Archive:  Just
let me know, eh? Fandom:  Buffy Pairing:  (Xander/Graham) + (Xander/Spike)
= Xander/Graham/Spike Rating:  PG-13 Disclaimer:  Mine?  What? *These*? 
No, they're Mutant Enemy's.  They just followed me home and wouldn't leave
until I played with them. Spoilers:  The last season of Buffy.  The
incident with Glory, and the ep "The Body".  (Look at me, trying to be
vague).  And that ugly rumor about Spike and a certain blond slayer? 
Never happened. Summery:  Graham and Riley are called back to Sunnydale
when the area destabilizes.  When they return, they discover there are new
factors in lives of the Scooby Gang, especially in Xander and Spike's.

Part 15/?

Spike strained against the arms that held him immobile, but he held his
full strength in check.  He didn't want to get free, not right then.  He'd
heard the soldiers threaten the Cynon with his violence and he was willing
to play along.  He was willing to do whatever it took to find Xander.

He'd woken up to find Xander already gone.  A note on the kitchen counter
had told him that the dark-haired man was out running errands and that
he'd be back soon.  Spike had debated what to do while waiting; watch the
telly, read a magazine, prank call the Slayer?  He had decided that none
of them suited his mood.  He'd wanted to wake up and talk to Xander, make
sure the other man wasn't too torn up about what had happened the night
before.  He knew Xander was going to take it to heart, knew that the boy
was going to feel the rejection and the loss of Graham more than he
should.  Behind the laughing eyes, Xander hid a soul that felt too much,
too deeply.  He'd wanted to hold Xander and make sure that he was all
right, to tell him he was loved and to get those dark eyes to smile for
him once more.

If he couldn't be near Xander, then he could at least immerse himself in
the other man's presence.  He'd probably never be able to live it down if
anyone caught him at it, but he didn't care.  He wanted to be with Xander
and this was the next best thing.  He had pushed open the closed door to
Xander's bedroom, intending to spend time in the place that smelled and
felt the most like the mortal.  It was there that he'd found the letter
with his name on it, waiting for him on the bed.

//Spike-

No matter how I write this, I know I'm going to end up pissing you off. 
I'm just going to beg you to read this all the way through before you do
anything, all right?

The first thing I have to tell you is thank you.  Thank you for keeping me
alive these past few weeks.  I would have been dead a dozen times over
without you there by my side.  Thank you for watching out for me in other,
smaller ways.  If I hadn't had you to talk to, I probably would have ended
up going out of my mind.  You helped me to hold it together.  You were a
friend when I needed one most.

The past few days have been something out of a secret dream for me.  Thank
you for giving me the chance to live it.  You let me feel things I never
thought I'd ever be able to, made me feel better and closer to love than I
ever have before...and that's as mushy as I'll get.  I'll spare you any
more sloppy feelings.

This is the hard part, the part that's going to piss you off.  If you've
found this letter, then I guess I didn't come back and there's a good
chance that I'm dead.  I have no right, but I need to ask a final favor of
you.  I need you to make sure that if I've been turned, that you make sure
that I don't rise again.  None of the others could handle having to stake
me.  You're the only one I can trust.  Please, Spike.

Xander//

Spike had dropped the letter and run to his room, pulling on his sun-cloak
as he'd left the apartment.  He didn't even know if he'd shut the door
behind himself and he couldn't bring himself to care.  Xander was out
there performing some noble, bullshit sacrifice and Spike wasn't going to
let it happen.  He'd gone straight to the one being that would know where
Xander had gone.  The Cynon.

The Cynon, who was currently cringing against the wall, stared at him with
healthy amount of fear.

"Where is Xander?"  Spike demanded.  "What did you send him up against?"

The blue-skinned demon straightened a little.  "I didn't send him
anywhere.  I merely gave him the information he desired.  What he did with
that information can hardly be construed as any fault of mine."

"I'll construe it any way I damn well please."  Spike lunged forward a bit
for effect.  "Start talking or start dying."

"He came to me and I told him what he wanted to know.  There are new
vampires hiding in the Serenity Acres cemetery, a clan of Blorten demons
moving through town on their southern migration path, and a few demons
hiding out in the woods near the abandoned south cabin."

"What demons are out in the woods?" asked Graham.

"A small group of Kladdersh."

Spike hissed.  That explained it.  Kladdersh demons were notoriously
nasty, even aside from their interest in vampires as snack food.  Xander
had gone after them alone to protect him.  Of all the stupid, suicidal,
whiteknight gestures...  "If anything's happened to him, I'm going to hunt
you down and make your dying last a month."

"Even if you find him in time, you may not save him."  The Cynon looked
from Spike to Graham and then back again.  "I tasted his emotions.  He is
torn by the feelings inside himself, convinced that the love he feels is
wrong, that it can only hurt him and the two of you.  He didn't leave here
dreading death.  He was looking forward to it."

"Motherfucker."  Graham released Spike and took a step forward.  "I should
kill you now."  No matter what the blue-eyed man might have tried to make
Xander believe, he still loved him.  It was there in the fear and the rage
that filled his voice and gaze.

"I didn't do that to him," the Cynon said.  "The credit belongs to you,
you and the situation and Xander's own delicious fears.  If you don't
realize that, you will gain nothing by saving him.  He'll just find
another way to escape, another way to die."

Spike glared at the Cynon.  He understood what the demon was saying, but
all that had to wait until Xander was safe.  "Pray to whatever it is that
you serve that Xander is still alive."  He shook Riley off and stalked out
of the crypt.  Behind him, he could hear Riley talking to Graham,
persuading the other man to follow.  When the two soldiers made it
outside, Spike was waiting for them.

He moved forward until he was right in Graham's face, staring up at the
taller man.  "You don't like me.  Fine.  I don't like you.  Right now, all
that means shit."

Graham nodded.  "Let's go get Xander."

Spike raised an eyebrow approvingly.  "Then let's get to your vehicle.  I
know where the cabin is."

Graham drove with barely controlled desperation at speeds that almost made
Spike nervous.  The same need that drove Graham was also pounding through
the vampire and the insane pace that Graham had set didn't seem to be
nearly fast enough.  The knowledge that Xander could be dying as they sped
to reach him made him wish that the cheesy legends about vampires being
able to fly were true.  When they finally got within a mile of the cabin,
Spike was out of the vehicle before it stopped moving.  Graham and Riley
took a moment to finish gearing up with weapons and then they were behind
him.

Spike held up his hand and listened to the wind.  "The Kladdersh are in
the woods.  I can hear them moving.  They don't like to be up during the
day, so something must have drawn them out of the cabin."

"Xander?" Graham asked.

"I can't hear him out here.  The Kladdersh are upset.  I don't know what
they're saying, but they sound pissed.  I think Xander pushed them out of
the cabin somehow and that they're planning to take it back."  He stared
off into the woods.  The Kladdersh were angry and they wouldn't welcome a
pair of humans into their territory.  He, on the other hand, would be
welcome.  Snacks were always welcome.

"We go hard, we go fast, and we get to the cabin."  Graham's voice was
firm. 
  "Then we get Xander the hell out of there."

Spike grinned savagely as he took in the blood-thirsty determination on
the soldier's face.  "Let's go."

Luck was with them:  the Kladdersh were so focused on muttering about
whatever had happened at the cabin that they didn't even notice the three
men moving through the woods.  Spike made sure they stayed well away from
the Kladdersh.  He didn't fancy ending up an appetizer before he got the
chance to shake Xander's teeth loose for coming up with a plan like this.

Once they reached the clearing that surrounded the ramshackle cabin, Spike
broke into a run, knowing that Riley and Graham would be right behind him.
 He lunged through the door, the sound of Xander's rapid heartbeat filling
his ears.  "Xander!  Where the hell are you?"

"Spike?"  Xander voice, weary and surprised, drifted down from the upper
floor.

Graham was closer to the staircase, so he was the first one up the stairs.
 Spike followed him closely, managing to push past Riley.  He and Graham
ran to the first room on the right of the hall.

Xander stood in the middle of the room, frowning.  "What the hell are you
guys doing here?"  His face was streaked with dust and sweat and he swayed
a little as he stared at them.  Discarded weapons surrounded him and an
empty duffel bag was tossed into a far corner.

"What the hell are we doing?" Spike parroted back, tearing off his 
protective sun cloak.  "You're the one on the suicide mission, pet."

"How did...I don't know what you're talking about."  Xander looked out the
window.  "Listen, there are Kladdersh out there, Spike.  I can handle
this.  You'd better just get out of here.  Riley, Gr-graham, this isn't
your fight. 
  You shouldn't be here."

"You can handle this?"  Graham shook his head.  "Xander, there are demons
out in the woods working themselves up to come back here and take their
house back.  You're not going to be able to beat that."

"They're coming back?"  Xander didn't look dismayed by that; instead, a
little more life appeared in his eyes and he stood up straighter.  "Then
you definitely need to get out of here.  I've got this under control. 
I've got a plan."

Spike shook his head.  Whatever plan Xander had wasn't going to happen. 
It no doubt ended with the demons being taken care of, but without Xander
walking away.  It was obvious:  from the resigned slump to his shoulders
to the way Xander refused to meet anyone's gaze, it was clear that Xander
had given up.  "It won't wash, luv.  We're not leaving you behind.  You're
coming with us."

Xander did look at Spike then.  A bitter smile twisted his lips.  "I'm not
going anywhere.  And you have -" he checked his watch "-two minutes to get
out of here."

"Why two minutes?" Riley asked.

Spike felt a frisson of real fear.  He'd heard stories about Xander, knew
that the other man was willing to do what ever it took to protect his
friends.  He could be as ruthless as an alpha protecting his pack.  In the
past, he'd relied on pilfered napalm and..."Explosives."

"Those, too," Xander agreed.  "The two minutes is actually how long I
think you have before the Kladdersh decide to rush the house and you'll
either be killed by them or trapped in here.  Being trapped would be bad
because the explosives are set to go off in four minutes."  He looked back
at his watch. 
  "Three minutes now.  I'd suggest running."

"Not without you," Graham said.

"This really isn't any of your business.  Spike, don't forget to take that
cloak with you."  He swallowed hard and looked at his watch.  "One minute
till they come back."

Spike met Graham's gaze.  He read exactly what he wanted to see in the
soldier's eyes.  "Right then," he said quietly.  He bent down to pick up
his cloak and pulled it on.  "Are you sure you can handle this, luv?" he
asked as he settled it into place.

"You need to get out of here," Xander insisted.  "And I'm going to be
fine." 
  His voice broke.

Spike nodded once, then lunged forward and grabbed Xander, tossing the
taller man up over his shoulder and running for the door.  Xander cried
out a protest and began to struggle immediately, but Spike just tightened
his hold on him and continued to run down the stairs, Riley and Graham's
footsteps a heavy echo just behind him.  As he cleared the front door, he
saw that the Kladdersh demons were finally staging an effort to retake the
house.  He turned quickly.  "Give me some cover fire and then follow me
out the back!" he ordered.  This could work.  If the Kladdersh followed
them into the house...

Graham and Riley please him by understanding exactly what he was thinking.
 A brief burst of gunfire behind him told him that the Kladdersh would be
delayed, and then he was out the back door and down the rickety stairs. 
Xander fought to get free of his hold, but Spike ignored the warning
twinges from the chip and just held him tighter, refusing to let him go. 
He heard the two humans get out of the house and then he was running,
trying to outpace whatever explosives Xander had rigged.

They almost made it.

A terrific concussion of sound and force knocked Spike to his knees.  Time
seemed to slow down as he attempted to react.  He tried to gentle Xander's
fall, but the dark-haired man still slammed into the ground hard.  Spike
tried to cover Xander's body with his own, but Xander was writhing like a
man possessed, yelling about shrapnel.  Spike understood there would be
shrapnel - that's why he wanted to make sure Xander was protected.  Xander
pulled one of his arms free and smashed his elbow into Spike's face.  The
pain caused Spike to flinch and that was all the opportunity Xander
needed.  He squirmed free...

...only to roll on top of Spike and pin the vampire to the ground.  Spike
realized dimly that Xander wasn't trying to get away.  It took a few
moments more for full understanding to penetrate the pain in his head: 
Xander was shielding *him*.  Before Spike could react, debris began to
rain down on them:  parts of the cabin and parts of the Kladdersh fell
indiscriminately from the sky.  After a few seconds it was over.

Spike pushed Xander off to the side.  "What the hell did you think you
were doing?" he demanded, adjusting his hood to better shield his face.

Xander didn't answer.  His eyes were closed and he made no moved to get
up.

"Xan?"  Spike touched his throat gently, searching for a heartbeat.  It
was there, slow and regular.

"How is he?" Graham demanded, kneeling on the other side of Xander. 
Kladdersh innards stained one side of his pants and splinters of wood were
caught in his hair.

Splinters.  Xander had been trying to protect him from the wood.  "The
bloody noble bastard's out cold."  He gently pushed up Xander's shirt,
hissing a little as the sight of the bruising.  "He probably got hurt
getting into the house."

"Add that to the blast and no wonder he's out.  He might have even gotten
knocked over the head by some debris."  Graham reached out and brushed
some dust from Xander's hair.  "He needs to be taken care of."

"I'll take him back to his place.  I can watch him there."  Spike readied
himself for a fight.  Either Graham was going to want to take the boy to a
hospital or he was going to try to take Xander home himself.  He had to
realize how big a mistake he'd made in letting Xander go.

"I'm coming with you."

Spike blinked.  "To Xander's?"

"Yeah.  Ri, can you go back to base and cover for me there?"

Riley nodded.  "Are you sure?"

"I need to do this.  I'll be in contact soon."  Graham pulled a few more
splinters out of Xander's hair, then scooped the unconscious man into his
arms.

"I can take him," Spike protested, but not very hard.  There was something
in the way that Graham was looking at him, something in his gaze that
looked like acceptance and maybe even anticipation.

"I got him.  Just make sure nothing eats us on the way back to the car."

With Riley taking point and Spike bringing up the rear, they left the
smoking remains of the cabin and headed for the SUV.  Even as he cast an
admiring glance at the wreckage - the dark-eyed man knew how to place
explosives - Spike knew that things were nowhere near over yet.  Xander's
attempt at suicide by combat had to be dealt with, as did his relationship
with Spike and that with Graham.  They couldn't let things go or walk away
any longer.  Beyond that, there was that new look in Graham's eyes to deal
with.

Spike had a suspicion that things were about to get very interesting.

*****