Title: Solid Ground – Part 2 – Call For Help
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.
___________________________________________
RING RING RING
Cordelia put down the magazine she was reading and reached for the phone on her desk.
“Angel Investigations, we help the hopeless.”
“Hello?” a hesitant voice asked.
“Hi, this is Cordelia, how can I help you?”
“C-Cordelia? This is Tara, Xander’s friend.”
Cordy sat up straighter in her chair, she knew of Tara from her weekly phone calls with Xander. In the
back of her mind, she registered the interesting fact that Tara had introduced herself as ‘Xander’s
Friend” not ‘Willow’s Girlfriend” or ‘Willow’s Ex-Girlfriend’.
“Tara, I know who you are honey, Xander talks about you all the time. What’s wrong?” Cordelia asked
when Tara gave a muffled sob at Xander’s name.
“X-Xander’s in the hospital,” Tara said simply.
Cordy froze, so did Angel, who had been pretending not to listen to the conversation from across the
room with his vamp-hearing.
“What happened Tara?” Cordy asked, trying to stay calm.
“H-he was…..attacked,” Tara said, not quite able to say the ‘r’ word.
“Is he okay?” Cordy asked, not glancing up as Angel came to stand next to her. Even from across the
room, he had heard the hesitation at the word ‘attacked’.
“Ph-physically? He’s bruised and scraped all over and he had to have s-stitches where he was t-torn…
Mentally? He’s not doing well. I’m not doing well,” Tara admitted.
“What do you need me to do?” Cordy asked without hesitation. Angel nodded in agreement.
There was a pause on the other end of the line. They heard Tara take a deep breath before she spoke
again.
“Xander’s going to need time to heal. I don’t think he can d-do that h-here, in Sunnydale. We both need
to get away. I was hoping we c-could come down there?” Tara said softly.
Cordy spared Angel a glare, daring him to contradict her next words, “Of course you can come here, in
fact we’ll come get you.”
Angel raised his hands and brows, backing away slightly. He didn’t contradict her, in fact he nodded
emphatically.
“Y-you don’t have to do that. I-I can…” Tara began before Angel grabbed the phone and interrupted
her.
“Tara, this is Angel. We are going to come get you. We’ll leave as soon as we can and be in Sunnydale
in a few hours. You’ll need help packing. Xander might need help to get around that you might not be
able provide. Plus, you sound like you need some support; don’t you think Xander would want us to be
there for you?” Angel said.
Tara took a deep breath.
“What about the sun?”
“My car has tinted windows and the hospital has an underground entrance,” Angel replied.
“O-okay. I’ll see you guys in a few hours,” Tara said quietly.
“I’ll give you back to Cordy….” Angel began.
“Angel?” Tara said before he handed the phone over.
“Yes?”
“Buffy, Willow and Dawn don’t know anything about this, and you aren’t going to tell them,” Tara said
firmly.
Angel paused, Tara’s tone left no room for argument, but he also knew that there had to be a very good
reason as to why the others weren’t aware of what was going on.
“Angel, did you hear me?” Tara asked.
“Yes, Tara, I understand. We will try and stay under the radar when we get there. If you say the girls
aren’t to know, then they won’t be hearing about this from us.” Angel replied.
“Th-thank you Angel. This is… complicated. I’ll try to explain some when you get here,” Tara said, the
meekness sneaking back into her voice.
Angel handed the phone to Cordelia.
“Tara?”
“Yes Cordelia.”
“It shouldn’t take us too long to get ready, so we should be there in no time…Xander, is he….?
“I-I don’t know. I’ve never seen him like this, so…..broken,” Tara said sadly. After a few moments of
silence on Cordy’s part, she said softly, “We’ll help him, just like he has always helped us.”
Cordelia smiled. “Yes, we will. I’ll let you get back to him now. We’ll see you in a few hours, okay?”
“See you then,” Tara said before she hung up the phone.
Cordelia slowly replaced the handset of the phone on its cradle, then stood and stepped into Angel’s
waiting arms and let her tears fall.
“Angel, what Tara said? Did that mean what I thought it meant?”
“I think so,” Angel said sadly, his heart breaking for the young man he had never gotten along with, but
had always respected.
“Oh God Angel, who could do that to him!?” Cordy sobbed.
Part 3
Back to Fiction Index
Reviews? Email Me