Disclaimer: I do not own Buffy/Angel.

Author's note: yes I know. Another blasted story. Can't help it when this happens but this idea sprang from looking at the Dante's Inferno game. Certain ideas I can go along with. But others I'm leaving out. Also, I originally had this set for one original fandom, but I'm going with a fandom that really got me started in fanfiction. Of course i mean Buffy. In this case, instead of trying to make the current canon of the show be more sensible. I'm going to make a new sensible story. I looked back at a few episodes and it reminded me how much potential BTVS had to be a true powerhouse show instead of something that more people find...not as appealing (by which i mean the show has its fans but outside of them, people wouldn't enjoy it much). That said, our resident Zeppo will take a different role and BUffy won't be the same, but in a better way.

If you're reading this right now, then you're in for some pretty crazy stuff. My story is the kind of thing that most people would be locked up in an asylum for unless you think it's just a fantasy novel (boy do a lot of those suck). But unless you've had an actual angel come to you in person or in your dreams, or maybe even learned you were given holy powers, it wouldn't sound so crazy. After a while, my friends found it almost impossible to believe it. Of course, when you live on top of a gateway leading to imprisoned demons, it makes it hard to want to believe in miracles.

Before I get too ahead of myself, I'm going to tell you who I am. My name is Alexander Lavelle Harris. I am the Black Saint. I've walked through the darkness that surrounds the world. Though I've been fearful, my faith has never led me to falter. I've seen dark things from vampires and werewolves to true demons that want to come back. Dealing with this stuff would change most people in the worst ways. But He helped me keep my sanity. There's a reason why not everyone gets even the briefest glimpse of the supernatural. It drives people to things that make them forget why most people don't see it. Then there's my friends. It started with some girls, a few guys, and a few adults who weren't too scared to help us. But that wouldn't start for a while. This is how my story started.

It was the summer of 1996 when my life started going in a downward spiral. My parents, Anthony and Jessica Harris, were good parents at first. But after Dad lost his job, he drowned himself in alcohol. Every now and then, Mom would try to get him out of his funks, but she'd get a black eye and I'd get beaten like a horse. One day, my so-called father went too far. He found himself in a drunken rage and came at me and my mother. We did what we could to defend ourselves until my mom pulled out a gun and shot him. When she realized what she did, she took her own life right in front of my eyes.

After that, I was taken in by a friend named Jonathan Levinson. My other friends, Willow Rosenburg and Jesse McNally, were pretty shocked when they found out. They did what they could to help but I didn't want it. How do you help someone who's been beaten and watched the people who gave you life die in front of your eyes?

Still, the Levinson's did what they could to help. But they weren't always at home. You can imagine my surprise when this strange lady and man show up at the school gym when I'm alone with an interesting offer.

"Alexander Lavelle Harris?" said the woman who call me. I turned around and found a beautiful woman with light brown hair down to her shoulders. She wore a black business suit and a a white blouse underneath. She had an ample chest and curves to match and bad ideas came to mind. The man on the other hand was tall and older than her by many years. He had glasses and he looked like a stiff.

"Who's asking?"

She took a step forward and said, "My name is Amelia Tanner. My associate here is Rupert Giles. I'm here to tell you that you're going to be adopted after the...traumatic circumstances."

I nearly rolled my eyes at that statement. My home, Sunnydale, California, is a small town. It's so small that almost everyone knows literally everyone. My parents were the talk of the town and it was pretty clear how the more well off families spoke so low of us because of my dad, even though they knew nothing of what my mother and I went through. When my parents died, everyone was talking about it and they all spoke in hushed whispers whenever I came near. Even the popular kids at school laughed at my circumstances because they didn't know what really happened.

"What's the catch?" Say what you will, but this sounded too good to be true. No one cared before and yet here this lady was selling me a pipe dream.

"You can keep your family name if you wish. You have no obligation to consider me a parent though I will do everything in my power to care for you like a mother. And most importantly, your needs and wants shall be taken care of financially. The only thing I wish for you to do is to improve your academic performance."

She couldn't have been serious! Who gives someone a deal like that?! It was almost too good to be true. "That's it? How can I just trust you?"

"I don't expect you would right off the bat. If you want to know more, meet me tonight at this address," she said as she handed me a card. It had her name, a phone number, and an address I didn't recognize. I shrugged and figured there was nothing left to lose.

Later that night, I walked down the street towards the address that Amelia gave me. I passed by one of the many cemeteries that Sunnydale had. With all the death the town experienced, it made DC look Mayberry. While I was close to completely passing the place, I saw a guy in this dark trench coat standing on one of the walls of the graveyard.

"Hey kid. Where ya headed?" he asked.

"None of your damn business," I said walking past him. I could hear his footsteps as he began tailing me. I started walking faster but I swore I could practically feel him speeding up.

I took off in a run to see if I could lose him. I turned my head to see if I lost him when I saw the craziest thing in my life till that point. This guy didn't just jump, but he leapt into the air like Superman leaping a tall building. When he landed in front of me, I had to practically skid to a stop, but he still caught me by the arms. He opened his mouth like he was going to bite me and I saw his teeth. Well, teeth weren't the right word for them. They were fangs. I knew right away that this thing was a vampire.

Before I knew it, the guy suddenly shriveled like he had aged and then he fell apart. I looked up to see Amelia with a silver stake and what looked like a large, silver cross. I thought the light from the moon was playing tricks on me, until I focused on the religious icon. It was freaking glowing!

"You alright tough guy?" she said as she offered me a hand. I took it and it was like she had more strength than someone her size. I was in decent shape, thanks to the assholes in school. But she was the daintiest woman I've seen outside of girls at school. But she hauled me up like I was a little kid.

"Vampires? They're a thing?!" I said to her. She simply looked at me and said, "I can't explain here. Follow me."

Crawford Street Mansion

I followed her into the old mansion. Everyone knew that the place had been abandoned for some reason or other that people speculated on. But the reasons didn't matter. The minute I stepped inside, it was like I felt a strange calm. I wasn't sad about mom and dad, I didn't feel scared about what just happened, and I just...didn't want to leave.

"You seeme to like the place," Amelia said. I faced her and noticed the smile on her face. It was the same smile my parents would give before everything went wrong. I don't know why but I could tell that she wasn't looking to lie to me.

"What did you do to the place? It doesn't feel anything like the rest of Sunnydale."

"I've been sent here to help on a mission."

"A mission? You're a spy?"

"In a way," she said as she moved over to a nearby bookshelf. She took one and tossed it to me. I looked at the cover and saw that it was a copy of the Bible. I looked up at her in confusion.

"This town is beacon for all of the dark things left behind by the dark entities who thought that they could take over the earth. But they've been trying to maintain a foothold since they can't interfere the way they want. They sired abominations who hav edone their best to free them. That vampire is just one of many creatures who have been trying to bring back at least one of them."

I stared at her for a second. I remember going to church from time to time. I knew what she was talking about. What i couldn't understand was why she came to me.

"What do you want me to do about it?" i asked her.

"You may be someone who can help. I can't pretend to know what will happen. But Giles and I were sent here for a reason. He will oversee your instruction and I will oversee your combat training."

The thought of combat training sounded odd for me. I didn't think I'd have anything to be scared of besides the normal teenage stuff along with growing old and alone. But then after what happened that night, I figured things would only get weirder. And sure enough they did.

For four months up until the new year of 1997, Giles taught me the scripture of the Bible and its importance to my mission and Amelia had me training like a beast. The first weird thing I learned was just how much fighting was involved for these guys. Swordplay, guns, and every brutal hand-to-hand technique you could imagine were taught to me. Then came something I never thought I'd hear. They taught me how to deal with magic and spellcasters. I thought it was a joke until someone with power reared her ugly head. Yeah, I know, a woman as a witch, but what made it worse was that it was my friend Amy's mother.

Somehow Catherine Madison had taken over her daughter. I was worried it was a body swap like the comic books I read. But it turned out to be her mother simply using her power to manipulate her daughter by controlling her mind. She could see everything Amy saw, and feel what Amy felt. The saddest part was the woman wanted to relive her glory days as one of the best cheerleaders after she split from her husband. I can understand wanting to hold on to good things but doing what she did was just...evil.

Amy was still around but her dad was being protective. But it was nice to have my old friend back. But that also brought up another thing that worried me. I hadn't spoken to my friends very much since I began this whole thing. I wanted to tell them so badly but Giles and Amelia said no one would believe it, even if they didn't forbid me from it. I tried to broach the subject with them in a hypothetical sense but they just brushed it off.

And by the time February arrived...more of classmates started disappearing.

In February of 1997, a new girl had moved to town just as we had learned of the death of a guy not much older than us. Her name was Buffy Summers. She was a sort of short blond with beautiful green eyes. The girl was a knockout. I literally ran into her in the hallway at school. I didn't like too many girls at school since they were.,,well, some were vapid and shallow, some were introverted, and the rest didn't interest me. Buffy stood out in a way I couldn't understand until I saw a silver stake fall out of her bag.

She acted kind of funny when I handed it to her, so I had to take a "peak". It was something that I had developed working with Giles and Amelia. In understanding my mission and my newfound faith, I became...awakened to things I didn't see before. So when I took a good look at Buffy, I was shocked. The girl was human but she had a dark power surrounding her. It was like something was surrounding her but not consuming her. I went to the library to tell them what I found out. Sure enough, I learned more than I bargained for.

"A vampire slayer? You're joking."

"No Alexander, we are quite serious in what she is. My infiltration of the Watcher's Council confirmed that one Elizabeth Anne "Buffy" Summers was coming to this very town at some point. Incidentally, I'm to be the one to train her."

"I don't understand. Why is she here if we are? We've already taken on vamps, lycans, witches, and those weird half-breeds. Why would she be here?" I asked them.

"People like us have had a rather extensive and somewhat sordid history with the Watchers. As an organization, they have as many resources as we do. But they don't get along well with others because they like to think they're the end-all, be-all of the defense against supernatural evils. And their track record with their girls is far from stellar." Amelia had gained an angry look on her face.

"Their girls?"

"Yes," Giles said. "Every recorded vampire slayer that the Watchers assisted have all been young women who found themselves to have been gifted with extraordinary strength and enhanced human traits. But every girl who received the power has died in battle."

That made my blood boil. "What did the council do?"

Amelia looked to Giles and I knew the answer didn't sit well with them either. Amelia spoke up, "They provide assistance, but most watchers who trained a slayer didn't actively fight alongside her. There were only some watchers who were brave enough to fight by the side of the slayer they were sent to help. But the council has long held the policy of slayers fighting alone."

That was all I needed to there were any brave Watchers who put their life on the line, then they had my respect. Giles having to infiltrate and learn what he did was risky. But he was out there fighting as much as Amelia and I were.

"Has anyone tried standing up to them?" I couldn't help but to ask. Hearing about what these guys did reminded me of how my dad treated me and my mom. I was proof that no kid should ever lose their childhood.

"The Vatican has tried as well as other groups. But the Watchers have ties to the government in London. So we can only move in secrecy."

I wanted to hit something. But instead I simply walked away. I could tell that Amelia had followed after me. "Alexander! What's wrong? I know what we told you was troublesome but what has you so troubled?"

I couldn't look at her when I thought about what I was going to say next. "Being powerless is the worst feeling in the world."

Before I could say anything else, Amelia had wrapped her arms around me. After my parents' death, the first few months being with new people were rough. I thought that they couldn't understand what it must be like. And they didn't, but it didn't stop them from being there for me when it felt like my friends couldn't do it.

We stayed that way for a few moments when I felt it. It was the same feeling I felt when I met her that morning. Buffy was in the library. I edged closer to the shelves in the stacks and I heard them talking. It sounded like Buffy didn't want any part of slaying. I started wondering how this girl didn't jump at the thought of having power and taking out vamps and demons. But then I remembered something. There was a story about a high school in Los Angeles that had been set on fire. A few kids had died as well as a older guy that not many people knew.

I out two and two together and understood why Buffy didn't want to keep fighting. She felt scared and alone and she had her mom and sister from the conversation we were getting. Giles wanted her to understand that she didn't have to fight alone. He was smooth, but us teenagers aren't the most reasonable people. We heard them leave not long after their argument started and we left the library ourselves.

"That's definitely a first. A slayer who doesn't want to fight, and has something to hold on to," Amelia said.

"I'm guessing these slayers have usually been girls who have nothing to live for?"

Amelia nodded. "Amelia...maybe it wouldn't be a bad thing to bring her in and show her there are others. From what you told me, there's only so much each unit of us can do. She can't do this all by herself."

I could tell Amelia thought about what I said. But she wasn't entirely sure. "We can't make such a big move just yet. If she's really against slaying as she claims, then she won't be patrolling. She'll try to acclimate to her new home. And for teenagers that means..."

"The Bronze. You want me to meet her again?"

"Yes. Until we know for sure that she's not under the Watchers' influence, find out what you can."

I nodded and left the library. This was going to be the first serious mission I've had since Giles and Amelia took me in. I was going to have to play this carefully. I could only hope that I didn't screw up. But then...things with the supernatural always get complicated.

Author's note: So this was more exposition than I normally do. But I wanted to make the story pretty clear about what Xander's role would be. The powers he's going to display will be displayed a bit more over the course of the story. I don't intend on this being an epic superhero type story. Just a story of supernatural adventures and maybe a lesson or two about faith and hope. As I've stated before, I am Christian. But I'm not looking to force anyone to convert, just learn something from my stories. I hope you all enjoyed this opening chapter.