Title: Like Old Times

Author: Appomattoxco

Summary: You wanted a plot? No one told me! Why wasn't I informed? Oh yeah, Giles calls in Angel to help make Spike talk. Sort of an AU circa Something Blue.

Rating: It's me so most of the good stuff happens when no one's looking. Sorry.

"You want my help," Angel said, taking a step closer to Giles and unconsciously trying to use his size to crowd and intimidate him without physically touching the watcher. "I do it my way. Leave me alone with him and don't disturb us, for three hours, no matter what." Angel was left to wonder how he could have failed to remember that Giles always met his gaze without flinching and that they were very close to the same height.

Giles knew that his defense of the chained vampire might cause the Hellmouth to open any second. Angel coming into his home displaying this kind of attitude however took away a decade or two of his own maturity. "This is my home. Spike may be more of a prisoner than a guest but he is helpless at the moment. I can not condone abuse." Giles wasn't the only one who regressed around Angel; Spike's similar reaction could be why the blond had been even more of a piss-ant than usual. In spite of what his research revealed, Giles began to rethink things. "This may not have been as good an idea as I believed."

"You're the one that wants this information about the commandoes so badly. I can just turn around and go home but no one knows Spike like I do and I can get him to talk. Don't worry, I won't bruise him; he was my pet before you got him, remember?" Angel gave him a hard look. If Giles was going to go around making assumptions about what kind of power he had over Spike as his sire, Angel was not above playing it up.

At this Giles stepped aside and said, "I'm increasingly glad you are living in Los Angeles."

The door to Giles' bathroom stuck a little so Angel gave it a tiny shove. He wasn't showboating, not really. Dramatic entrances were good right? Strange: the little voice in his head used to sound like Buffy, not Cordy. Alright, focus, Angel. "Hello, Spike. Seems like old times, you in chains in a bathtub. This is going to be fun."

"Couldn't resist the pain of looking up your 'one true love', Angel?" Spike smirked at Angel and tried to look as confident and self-assured as he could in his position.

"You're not even an old friend, Spike." Angel completely missed Spike's involuntary eep at that. He was too busy looking at Spike. "I came here because Buffy asked me to. She and Giles thought you would be more willing to talk to me for some reason." Angel noticed that in spite of being underfed Spike was still more beautiful than any man had a right to be. Being chained didn't seem to dampen his spirit any- but then his Will was use to chains. Angel didn't plan to torture him. Spike responded better to other methods.

"I was talking about that other blonde you know, the one that's in the other room. I think you must think of me as a very close friend after all." Spike tried to shift a little to improve Angel's view a bit. "It does seem like old times; me tied up, you looming over me. Are you going to give us a kiss, or are you afraid you might lose that soul of yours?" Maybe if Peaches got happy enough, he'd get him out of here and help eat the gits who had done this to him.

"In your dreams, boy. I doubt very much you can make me that happy. We can get pretty close to perfect though. Remember that Valentines Day in1885?

Spike licked his lips then said, "Remember it fondly. I still have a soft spot for chocolate because of that day."

"Chocolate does taste pretty good." Angel agreed, wondering why Spike could taste food, as he began to undress.

"You can admit that and you can't admit your love and devotion to me? I'm crushed." Spike looked decidedly uncrushed. He looked cockier than he had a right to be but maybe that was because he could see that Angel was starting to get hard before they even touched.

"I'll admit to this, Spike; I depend on you to remain one of the constants of the universe. The sun goes down every night and William will always be a pain in my backside"

Spike thought, if I stay on the pigs blood I'll have to be careful- Angel's bulked up a bit." Your arse used to be one of your best features. Besides, aggravating people is about all I can do these days. I hate to admit it but I'm more toothless than the old man downstairs." Even as he said this, he knew Rupert Giles was far from toothless. "What did old Rupert read in his dusty books to make him think you could get me to talk anyway?"

"Whatever's in those Watcher's diaries it isn't the truth…Probably some nonsense about you being compelled to obey me because I'm your sire. They don't want the truth, they couldn't handle the truth."

Spike laughed a little and Angel looked puzzled. "Don't you ever get out to a movie, Angel? You spent all that time with this tribe of misfits and you still need remedial pop culture classes? It's a sad thing."

"Why are you talking so much?"

"That's the whole point of you being here isn't it? Because- 'you have ways of making me talk'." Spike did a very bad German accent.

"We'll get to that part later. Right now I think I could use a bath. I feel a little grimy after the trip here from L.A. and speaking of that, they keep you chained to a tub and don't let you use it? I'm shocked at that, especially considering how concerned Giles is for your welfare. Should I be jealous?"

 "No," Spike said. "Don't think I'm his type. It could be Giles just doesn't know what to do with me when I'm chained up."

Angel smiled. "I do."

***

When Buffy and Giles came back, they found the apartment looking as if there'd been a party or a fight. Maybe both. Most alarming to Giles was the wet floor. What on earth had the two vampires done?

Angel met them looking very worn out. He took an impressive wad of cash from his wallet and handed it to Giles. "This should be enough money to cover the repairs." Then he added a couple more bills. "Take this too. Buy Will some chocolate." Angel was hearing Cordy giving him orders again. "The good stuff, okay? Godiva."

"But Angel, what did Spike say? What about the commandoes?" Buffy called after him. She was confused, Angel knew Willow was broken up badly over Oz leaving, but why would he want Giles to buy her chocolate?