Prologue
Rupert Giles sat at his office rereading a letter dropped off an hour prior. The events of two weeks ago had wounded his soul, and he was not doing well. The deaths of the two slayers and their friends and family were sudden, due to the actions of a single minded arrogant prick who thought himself to be a watcher. With a simple phone call, Wesley Windham-Price had caused the deaths of eight people, three of which were children. The ponce hadn't even cared who was killed as a result. Now, in his hand, Rupert held a written statement that contained all the warning the Watcher's Council would ever get.
Picking up his phone, he called the one person he knew would be able to deliver the message to the leaders of the Council itself. "Hello, Father. I know I haven't kept in touch in years, however, there is an issue that needs to be taken care of."
"..."
"Yes. I am well aware I no longer work for the Council. I was asked to pass a message along. I assume you will be able to relay it to rest of the leadership."
"..."
"The message is not addressed to any person, so I would think the message was meant for the Council as a whole. You may want to write it down. It is as follows:
'I leave this as a declaration of intent, so no one will be confused. Number One: Sic vis pacem, para bellum. Latin. Soldiers throughout the last two millennia have used it as a prayer. Sic vis pacem, para bellum. If you want peace, prepare for war. Number Two: Xander Harris is dead. He died with his family. The family you ordered killed. Willow Rosenberg, best friend and the sister I wished I had. Buffy Summers, Slayer and Hero and the woman I loved. Joyce Summers, who was more of a mother to me than my own and loved me like a son. Faith Lehane, Slayer who just needed a little help to get back on the right path. Number Three: In certain extreme situations, the law is inadequate. In order to shame its inadequacy it is necessary to act outside the law. To pursue … natural justice. This is not vengeance. Revenge is not a valid motive, it is an emotional response. No, not vengeance. Punishment. For the Watchers Council's willful murder of the innocent. For the Watchers Council's failure to protect humanity from the Watcher Council's own selfish interests. The Watchers Council will receive its punishment.' The missive is unsigned."
"..."
"No, it was delivered by courier. I am not sure Alexander Harris wrote it, as I did go to his funeral. If it is from him, I would say you may have a serious problem on your hands. One last item. I will be ceasing all contact with the Watcher's Council, and have no intention of returning to England. My citizenship papers arrived yesterday, and as of now, I hold dual citizenship. Good-bye, Father."
Hanging up the phone, Rupert laid the letter on top of his desk.
Chapter One (Occurs in S03E15 'Consequences' the morning after Wesley calls the Council about Faith killing Allen Finch)
The bright sunny morning was entirely too uplifting for Xander Harris, as he left his home headed for school. Memories of the previous night kept him from his normal exuberant mood. Considering it had begun with the Deputy Mayor's death, due to being mistaken for a vampire during a brawl, it was not an unusual day in Sunnydale. When your High School paper has an obituary page every week, it would take more than one person dying to really ruin his mood. The memories of later that evening and night were the ones haunting him.
Spending part of the night with Faith had been interesting and exciting. Losing his virginity had been quite fun. The manner in which he and Faith had connected was scarily enjoyable. It was the aftermath which resembled a car crash. Faith's philosophy of 'get some, get gone' left Xander's boxer clad form standing outside at night in vampire territory. Thankfully luck had been with him till he was safe in his own bedroom in the basement at home. That was what had Xander's mood firmly in the darker venue. It never worked that way in the stories he read in Penthouse Letters, mind you he did have to give some consideration to the source of those stories. Xander knew he had to do some deep thought on this before he would be comfortable with himself.
So focused on his thoughts, he barely paid attention in his classes throughout the day. Being one of the social outcasts, this hardly registered to the other students. He proceeded on autopilot, with only his interactions with his two best friends Willow and Buffy providing interruptions. It was near the end of the day's classes when his thoughts prompted an answer he could deal with. As the final bell rang, he walked over to Willow, who shared the class.
"Wills, I'll meet you lovely ladies in the library later. I have a couple things I need to take care of."
"Does this have to do with you being down all day?" The redhead asked.
"Yeah. Something that happened last night has been bugging me. Nothing apocalypsish, I promise." He answered.
"Want me to come with you? I could help."
"I appreciate the support. It would be great if you could help, but this is something I have to do on my own." Xander hugged his best friend as he spoke. "It may take me a bit, so do you want me to bring donuts or pizza when I get back?"
"Probably should bring pizza. Buffy skipped lunch today and she said she would be patrolling till late."
"Ok. So double the usual order. I should be in the library in an hour or two." Xander turned to leave. "Later Wills."
Leaving the school at a brisk walk, he made his way through town. His destination, Sunnydale Arms, was a only a hotel by the most lenient of definitions. Between scarce repairs, and even less cleaning, it was amazing the place had stayed in business. Xander doubted any maids had worked there during his lifetime, and the maintenance was at least a decade past due. Bare cinder block, missing wallpaper, and worn carpets were the least of the problems this place had. If you counted roaches and rats they outnumbered the human occupants at least twenty to one. After dark, vampires saw it as an easy location to find meals.
Approaching Faith's room, Xander slowed as he thought about what he would say to her. He just hoped she wouldn't laugh at him for saying what was on his mind. Summoning his courage, he knocked on the door, and froze. The door creaked as it opened slowly from the minimal force of his hand.
"Faith? You here?" Xander called through the gap created by the partially open door. "Faith?"
Xander realized something was not right when he glanced at the door frame where the latch plate was bent inwards. Instincts from his soldier memories kicked in, which also brought a rush of adrenaline. Quickly he stepped to the side of the door and placed his back against the wall. Pulling a stake out of his pants pocket he used his free hand to slowly push the door all the way open. Easing forward, he peaked around the door frame into the room, which was only illuminated by the afternoon sunlight entering through the now open doorway. The dim room seemed to be in order, well, as much order as Faith had kept it. Comparing it to what memory he had of the previous night, almost everything was in the same places. The only exceptions were the empty twelve pack of beer bottles on the table, and the shiny piece of wire sticking out from under the door.
After checking the wire to make sure it was not attached to a bomb or anything dangerous, he slowly pulled it out from under the door. It looked strange, a little over six inches of bare wire with a dart on one end. There was red on the end of the dart. His eyes narrowed as his pulse accelerated. This was not good. Slipping the wire and dart into his pocket, he moved soundlessly into the room.
As his eyes adjusted, more detail was apparent. The carpet had several spots that looked like drying blood, which meant it was fairly fresh. Following the trail with his eyes only, it led to the only other door in the room. With his free hand, he opened the curtains that had been keeping most of the room in dim shadow. The flood of sunlight from the window made the spots of blood on the carpet more visible, as well as verified there were no vampires using the room to hide till sundown. Making sure to avoid the semi-fresh blood on the carpet, Xander made his way to the other door. As he approached, he noticed the door was not completely closed. He could see the light in the bathroom had been left on. Using the toe of his boot, he nudged the door open. Once glance at it's contents sent Xander's brain into shock. He barely made it outside the hotel room before he fell to his knees, and began emptying his stomach of what little it contained.
Three hours later, Xander was still in shock as he entered the library. It was nearly sunset, far later than he had told Willow he would be. The others in the library saw his entrance, with Buffy being the first to address him.
"Thought you were bringing pizza, I am starving. Please tell me you didn't forget." The blonde began. "I was planning on patrolling till after midnight tonight."
When Xander didn't respond, Buffy looked at him again. She saw his pale complexion and damp shirt. Willow also noticed something wrong.
"Xander?" Willow asked. "Are you ok? Is something wrong? Did you get mugged getting the pizza? Did they get the order wrong? Were they closed for some reason? Did vamps eat Mrmph..." her questions were interrupted by Buffy's hand covering her mouth, muffling what Willow was saying.
"Xander? Sit down." Buffy calmly said as she ended the babble fest from the redhead.
Xander didn't acknowledge he had heard either of the two girls other than to shamble to a chair at the table his two friends sat at. His eyes never focused on anything in front of him as he made his way, and as he sat down, Xander missed the chair sending him to the floor with a loud thump. Jumping to her feet, Buffy quickly knelt next to him. That was when she noticed the pungent odor coming from Xander.
"He smells like vomit." Buffy said, looking up to Willow and to Giles who had come out of his office at the noise. Sliding an arm under Xander's shoulder, she lifted him and placed him into the chair he had originally tried to sit in. "Ewww. His shirt is wet, and now mine is. I hope I can get the smell out."
Giles cleared his throat. "It seems he may be in shock. Willow, would you please get him a cup or two of water. Buffy, see if you can find some paper towels or something for him to wipe his face with. I have a spare bottle of mouthwash in my office. Give him a few minutes to gather his thoughts you two can ask him what happened. Assaulting him with inquiries before he is ready will only make the situation worse."
As the girls quickly left to gather the items requested, Rupert Giles went into his office to retrieve a bottle and shot glass. Upon returning, he placed the shot glass in front of Xander and poured half a shot from the bottle of Lamb's Navy Rum. Returning the bottle to his office, he stooped to pick up the waste basket from next to his desk. The girls had not yet returned, but Giles knew they would be back momentarily. After setting the waste basket next to Xander's chair, he knelt down next to the boy and spoke in a soft voice.
"Alexander, I do not know what happened to put you in this state, but you need to come out of it." Picking up the shot glass, he used his other hand to move Xander's right hand up to it. "Drink this. It will help you, and also get rid of the bad taste in your mouth."
For a moment, Giles wondered if Xander had even heard what had been said since his entrance to the library. After a few seconds, Xander's hand moved, taking a shaky grip on the shot glass. There it paused for a moment before continuing upward. It took only a few seconds for the potent alcohol to take effect. Xander's reaction would have been humorous in most other circumstances, however, as the teen shivered and began coughing.
"What the hell was that?" Xander exclaimed.
"That was a proper British rum. I cannot stand the swill they call rum here in the colonies." The older man replied. "It was the fastest way to get you to respond. You seem to be in a bit of shock, and I was concerned for you, Alexander."
"Definitely got my attention." Xander replied as the two girls returned with their supplies. "Hey girls."
Willow nearly dropped the four cups of water she was carrying as she attempted to rush to her best friend's side. "Xanderareyouokyoudidn'tsayanythingwhenyoucameinandwewereworriedaboutyouandyousmelllikeyouthrewupand...mrmph." Buffy's hand once again ended the babble.
"She has water and I brought some paper towels and wet wipes if you want to clean up a little. Think your shirt is totaled though." Buffy added.
"Thanks. I am still way wierded out. Can you give me a few minutes to clean up?" Xander asked.
"I think we can do that, Alexander. Use my office if you need. I have several spare undershirts in the bag next to the door." Giles replied.
Nodding, Xander stood, taking the wipes and paper towels to Giles's office. A few minutes later, he returned to the library table feeling much cleaner and a bit less smelly. Seeing the cups of water at the open seat, he sat and downed two of them.
"Faith is dead." Xander stated. When no one spoke in reply, he continued. "I went over to talk to Faith at her hotel. I figured out something was wrong when I knocked on the door and it opened on its own. I checked the front of the room out, and found this."
Xander pulled out the piece of wire attached to the dart he had recovered from Faith's hotel room. Holding it by the end of the wire, he set it down on the table in front of him. "There is blood on it, fairly fresh too. I also found more blood, small spots of it leading from next to the front door to the bathroom door. I used my foot to open the bathroom door and found her in a bathtub full of blood and water. Both her wrists and throat were cut open."
Xander paused a moment, then lurched for the wastebasket next to his chair. After emptying the almost non-existent contents of his stomach, he used a paper towel to wipe his mouth. "I called the cops, for all the help they are. I came straight here once the cops let me leave. It took them all of two minutes to rule it a suicide, and that was before anyone even stepped into the room. They weren't even trying to investigate. Every other department in the country would see what I saw and call it murder. Whoever did it took the knife with them, and left that piece of wire behind."
As Xander finished, silence filled the library. He reached for the other two water cups and drank them fairly quickly while watching the three others at the table. He watched as Willow stared at him, with her mouth open slightly, her already pale skin now ghostly white. Buffy sat with her eyes closed, her jaw clinched shut, and her hands in tight fists as she tensed up. Giles had removed his glasses, but instead of his normal polishing of the lenses when he was at a loss for words, he rubbed his temples with his free hand.
The first to speak was Giles. "I believe you are correct, Alexander. From what you have said, it is apparent that suicide is not what occurred. I have heard of something similar having happened in Spain over a decade ago, however, I will need to make phone calls before I can confirm my suspicions."
"What kind of demon did it, Giles. It needs to be put down. I want it dead." Buffy said in a flat tone.
"Buffy, if this is what I think, it was not a demon. I will not know more until after I call some of my contacts. Since the Council terminated my employment, I do not have as many sources of information as I once did. If this is what I think it is, then it is not something you can kill." Giles replied. "Buffy, I will not ask you to stay home tonight, however, I would suggest you be careful. I know your anger needs an outlet, so perhaps Willie's would be a place for you to start tonight. His usual customers in what he calls a bar may have some information on who may have ended Faith's life. I can drive Willow and Alexander home."
Almost before he could finish talking, Buffy had MOVED. His intellect could not describe fluid her progression across the room to the weapons cage and then out the door. Glancing over, he saw several stakes and a bastard sword missing from their places. Sighing he stood.
"Gather your things. It is already after sundown, and I would like to be home before too many of the dangers have come out to hunt." Looking at the two teens still seated at the table, he saw Willow still staring at Alexander, while the target of her focus toyed with the empty paper cup in his hand. He watched as the buy stood and walked around to his redheaded friend and gave her a hug.
"Come on, Wills. Time to go home. Your parents should be home from their trip. Spend some time with them before they leave for the next lecture tour." Xander said softly as he helped Willow to her feet. "Lead the way, G-man."
Rupert Giles shook his head. "Will you ever stop calling me that abhorrent name."
For the first time seen today, Xander smirked. "The day after the world ends."
