Someone came up with a Xander dressing as Gene Simmons of KISS Halloween Story a while back, and knowing how popular KISS had seemed in Japan in the past, I'd thought I'd lightly parallel somebody's "Xander gets training in Japan" challenge in the XanderZone, I'd outlined a few pieces wherein Xander's father was Gene Simmons and took him to Japan for training. So when a recent 'Gene as Dad' story came out, I dusted this off and decided to churn out a few episodes. I hope the two story writers particularly like it, as well as the rest of you.
September 1997, The Night Just Before School Starts.
Xander and Willow had just come from the ice cream parlor, and were starting to discuss the young man's meeting his father and spending time outside of Sunnydale when a vampire lunged at them. Unlike his normal self, the teen reaches into his jacket and leaps in front of Willow. The vampire snarls and charges, Xander waves his hand forward, throwing the ice cream cone into the face of the onrushing vampire to distract it. The vampire growls as he moves to avoid the unknown object, and is about to collide into the annoying teen, noticing a pain in the chest as his shoulder hits…and as he turns to dust.
Xander falls back to the ground, wincing at the dust, and feeling a little sore from the encounter. Willow lunges at him herself, and to both their surprises grabs his face and kisses him deeply. Xander stands there stunned but not breaking away as she finally blushes deeply and stops, pulling away.
"You're welcome, Wills…" Xander replies, "And while I'm not sure about this, I'm going to have to think about it before I have a response."
"As long as you don't respond to her like you did that vamp, she'll probably be okay," a female voice joked from behind them. They turned to see Buffy standing there in mild shock at both things she'd just viewed, "Hey guys, miss me?" They were about to reply when they looked across the street to see four men a little older than Giles get out of a black sedan and tear into three men pushing around a young couple. Buffy tensed and was about to race across the street when the foreheads morphed and the three turned into vampires, but Xander placed a hand on her shoulder.
"Wait, Buff," he told her without concern, "They know what they're doing." She looked across and saw pairs of black evil-looking swords appear from under the coats of the four, one with several silver Star of David symbols along the blade as they sliced professionally into the four bloodsuckers from behind. One bladesman took a glancing blow, but the others stabbed and dusted their opponents. The young couple fled, the tall frizzy-haired swordsman back-slicing the head off the remaining vampire.
"Paul, I told you after that Polgara nicked you earlier, to watch your left," the man told his companion, then smiled over at the three teenagers. He reached down and picked up a rather large duffle as 'Paul' nodded and waved him off. He walked across the street as the others got back into the car, waving and receiving an answering wave from Xander. He casually strolled, no sign of the blades secreted in his coat discernible.
"Hey X," the man addressed Xander, "You left your bag in the car when we left the apartment."
"Hey, thanks, Dad," the boy smiled, taking it from him and shaking hands, "Oh, uhm, guys, this is my dad, Gene. Dad, this is Willow and Buffy." The girls shook hands, Gene smiling at Willow and winking, then turned to Buffy, looking her over astutely.
"What?" Buffy asked uncertainly.
"Nothing, Buffy," the man responded a little sadly, "It's just the last Slayer the guys and I met was twenty years ago in New York. It's how we expanded our gig to include the demon-hunting thing."
"You do this all the time?" she asked confused, "I thought you were a telemarketing manager or something?"
"That's Tony Harris," Xander interjected with only slight venom showing, "This is my real dad, Gene Simmons from New York. He's…in the entertainment business."
"Oh? I'm sorry," she replied in confusion, as the man's companions honked the horn, "Really? What do you call it?"
"Among ourselves we just call it Knights in Slaying Service," the man chuckled as he left, "Call me soon son."
"Soon."
Xander had walked into the Bronze early that next evening, planning to meet the girls when he was noticed by a small group near the stage looking over at him as he bought a coke at the bar.
"Excuse me," a young man addressed him, "I think you were there when those guys saved us from, those, uh, muggers?" Xander nodded non-commitally, "Well we'd like to thank them, though I managed to goof up my hand so I can't play tonight." He showed a wrapped wrist.
"Um, the one guy was my dad," Xander offered, "And I'll pass on your thanks next time he's in town. I know a little guitar, if it's not too crazy, I might help you out."
"Really? What do you usually play?" a girl asked as the rest of the group came over.
"Well…I can play the simpler KISS ballads, and some slow classic country music, it's what I was taught."
"Well, we have an hour before the crowd is supposed to get here, so why don't we give it a try?"
Willow watched in amazement, staring at the stage, Angel in a dark corner also surprised to see the young man who'd usually come across as something of a klutz, when Buffy walked in. He met her at the table.
"What's up guys?" the blonde girl asked, "You both look like…I don't know." Willow smiled and pointed at the stage, where Xander was playing with Cibo Matto.
"Wow," Buffy blinked, "Is Xander up there playing in a band people have heard of?" Willow nodded, and Angel cleared his throat. Buffy noted the look and sighed. Spotting Xander, she headed out onto the dance floor, waved at him until he smiled back, then began to dance in front of him. Xander thought it was very sexy, but from the stage and having to concentrate on what he was playing, he looked over to the table where Willow and Angel were. Knowing the vampire's superior vision, he raised his eyebrows and cocked his head at Buffy in confusion, and as she kept dancing, he glared at Angel and then jerked his head at Buffy. Willow said something to the vampire, who looked mortified and left. As the song wound down, Buffy got close to the stage, and shouted as she writhed, not noticing the vampire had left.
"Xander? Have I ever thanked you for saving my life!" she asked him barely above the din, "Don't you wish I would?" She walked away as he finished the song. He exchanged looks with Willow and the band, then started on the next number.
The next morning had Xander scrambling to complete homework while in class; he'd promised his dad that in exchange for help with the rent on his one-bedroom apartment and emancipation from Tony Harris, he'd keep his grades up. He'd walked Willow home and neither of them could figure out what the deal was with her and Angel: Xander was happy enough that maybe the couple was on the 'outs' but didn't know why he was the recipient of that weird little dance routine of hers. He'd not managed to link up with either of his friends, and had actually pinned down a few teachers for help immediately after school in order to get ahead of the assignments. As he entered the Library, a rock comes crashing through a window.
"Whoa!" he exclaims as Buffy catches the rock in her hands. It has a note wrapped around it and kept in place with a bracelet.
"This is Cordelia's," Buffy says as she removes the note, "'Come to the Bronze before it opens, or we make her a meal.'"
"What do we do?" Willow asks as Xander heads toward the weapons locker to grab his trench coat.
"I go to the Bronze and save the day, again," Buffy answers, starting to leave.
"I don't like this," Xander says, "There's something obvious about this we're missing."
"I agree," Giles nods.
"Yeah?" Buffy responds, turning back for a moment, "Well, you guys aren't going."
"What do you mean?" Willow asks.
"I can't do it anymore," Buffy sighs roughly, "I can't look after the three of you guys while I'm fighting."
"Mr. Giles, I'm currently enrolled at Master Lee's," Xander addressed the Librarian formally, "And I've spent the summer months learning the basics of team demon-hunting. But as I do not intend to step back from this, would you mind starting Willow and myself in basic Watcher styles of combat, and perhaps help me with my Latin?"
"Ur, um, certainly, Xander," Giles replied, somewhat confused, but appreciative at the manner of request.
"Um, thank you," Willow told the Watcher, smiling a small smile at Xander, "But Buffy, what about the rest of the note?"
"What rest of the note?" Buffy replied, diverted from complaining about Giles' agreement to further include the two friends.
"The part that says, 'P.S. This is a trap'?" Willow responded.
"You'll be playing straight into their hands," Giles asserts, removing his glasses, "Perhaps—"
"I can handle this," Buffy cuts him off, grabbing her coat and bag, "This is my fight."
Buffy comes rushing back into the library half an hour later, stopping short when she sees that the place is a shambles. The center table is atop a barely conscious Xander, just recovering and trying to free himself.
"Xander!" Buffy shouts, racing to him as Angel enters the room with the bound female vampire they'd captured at the Bronze, "What happened?"
"Vampires," he spat between gasps, "The ones you could handle yourself. We normals needing protection managed to get five of them before they won."
"Where are the others?"
"I don't know," he angrily replied as he drew out two nasty-looking blades that looked like the ones his father had wielded, "I don't know what your problem is, what your issues are. But as of now, I officially don't care. If you'd worked with us for five seconds, you coulda stopped this."
"We, we just have to think," Buffy responds ashamedly as she turns away, "Where would they have taken them?"
"If they hurt Willow, Buffy," Xander told her coldly, "I'll kill you."
She turns back to him and looks at him seriously, Angel interposing himself and the vampire in his hands between the young man and the slayer.
"Stay out of this, Dead Boy," Xander stared into the eyes of the ensouled vampire, "I forced you to help me save her in the Master's Lair, but you're just another vampire to me. Get in the way and I'll dust you way faster than I dusted the demon with my brother's face." The female vampire's eyes widened as it noticed the famed Angelus flinch.
"Why did they take them and not you?" Buffy asked, trying to avoid an even worse situation. Xander stared at the female vampire and started to smile as he slightly moved the points of his blades.
"Giles said the ritual was, um...They needed people who were close to the Master. Physically close. When he, uh...died. Giles, Willow, Cordelia..."
"Ms. Calendar," Buffy added.
"Odds are they've got a complete set by now," Xander remarked, "And I have an idea of how to find out where." He pushed the blades into the thighs of the female vampire, the religious symbols on the flat of the sword blades lingering inside to further the pain and prevent healing. Buffy and Angel began to look queasy as well as shocked. The female vampire told them where to find the sacrifices and seemed almost relieved when Xander walked out of the Library with a gym bag in hand, and the Slayer drove a stake into the unbeating heart.
The three would-be rescuers stared at the situation, Xander having surprised the two vampires at the door but twisting his off-hand wrist in the process.
"You two get the others out of here," Buffy sighed, "And I'll kill the vampires." Xander looked at his wrist and grimaced, knowing what little technique he had relied on both weapons being in motion. He looked over at Angel and nodded agreement.
Absalom and four minions getting ready for the ceremony look on in disbelief as the Slayer races over to engage them, dusting one of the minions immediately. He notices Angel and Xander making to release the human captives.
"The sacrifices!" he roars, "Stop them!"
A vampire responds to Absalom's command and runs to the ladder to the
platform. Xander waits at the top of the ladder as Angel releases the others. A couple direct stabs into the vampire's head finally causes it to fall to the ground mindlessly, as Buffy continues her fight.
"Are you alright?" Giles asks Jenny, "Where's Buffy?"
"Yeah, I'm okay," the computer teacher replied, "And she seems to be really getting into the fight with the leader down there." Buffy kicks Absalom, who's shown up with a large sledgehammer and charges her as she's finished off the minions with parts of a torch. Buffy calmly impales Absalom, side-stepping and slamming the wood into his back, dusting him anti-climactically. The sledgehammer falls to the floor with a loud clang.
"Hey Buff!" Xander calls out, causing her to look around, then up at the recovering group. He points at the sledgehammer, then the Master's skeleton. Buffy smiles, bends down and picks up the sledgehammer, then gleefully swings the hammer back then crushes the Master's skull, shattering it to pieces, striking repeatedly until not much more than dust remains. She stops and bursts into tears, dropping the sledgehammer to the
floor. Xander looks at Angel in disgust and jerks a thumb down at the trembling slayer. A moment later she's crying into his shoulder. Angel
gently holds on to her as she cries.
"Sheesh," Xander hisses as with his arm around Willow the group departs, "Even I'm not that clueless."