That afternoon the gang promised to meet at Ethan's Costume Shop. It was brand new So they thought the prices would be more reasonable then at the more exclusive Party Town. Xander had another reason he wanted to meet later; he wanted to test a few of his powers in the rooftops. So he assigned himself a little mission tail Cordy Chase without her knowing he was there. He jumped from roof to roof following her car as it streaked through the downtown core. She had bunch of cordettes in the car with her and they chatted excitedly among themselves never noticing Xander several stories above them.
Finally convinced of his speed and agility, Xander dropped down in an alleyway across from Party Town and headed toward the door when he felt a tingling sensation. He leapt clear of the doorway as two thieves rushed out carrying guns. They dashed across the street toward the alleyway he had just come from. He went after them. They had to be stopped before they hurt anyone.
He moved faster then he ever had before, He swept up a wall but it was too far to jump across the street. He stretched out his arm and the web thing on the back of his hand shot out a web-line across the street. He swung after them. Halfway through the swing Xander Harris vowed that he would find a way to do this at least once a day because web-swinging was the single coolest thing in the world. He waited until he was over the thugs and then dropped from a great height landing on one, his weight crashed the man to the ground. His partner swung around bringing the shot gun in his hand to bare. Xander moved instinctively, snatching the gun from him and swinging it around to hit him across the face with it. The thief flipped through the air landing on the ground groaning. "Oops didn't mean to hit you quite that hard."
He used his webbing to tie up the thugs. The book he had read had hinted that webbing broke down on its own after a time. He hoped his was the same way.
He grabbed the bag they had been carrying and took it across the street. Two uniform caps were standing outside the store with a stressed out looking owner. The Cordettes, Cordillia among them, were also standing around. Apparently, the closing of the shop for the police investigation was preventing them from buying their Halloween finery. Xander held up the bag. The police were skeptical at first but the fact the bad guys where just on the next block convinced them to drop the whole thing and just arresting the thieves.
"So did you see what happened, Mr. Harris."
"I was taking a short cut. I heard these guys crying out and when I came around the corner there was this guy in a dark costume. He tosses me the bag and tells me that it belongs to the shop across the street.
"And you never got a good look at him"
"He was moving way too fast and I was kind of freaked at see the guys all tied up like that."
"Well thanks for retrieving the evidence." The officer turned the owner of Party Town. "If you can give the security tape Sir, we will make sure the guys who did this get what's coming to them."
After the cops departed. The girls fanned out all over he store with Cordillia eyeing some leopard skin bodysuit looking thing
"Thanks for bringing back my bag kid, consider Party Town on the house for you tonight. "
Xander looked at Cordy "Ah thanks sir But I didn't do it for the reward.
"But there must be something I can do to pay you back "
Xander watched as Cordy walked out of earshot. "Look I appreciate the gesture but if I walk out of here with anything from this store you can bet those girls won't spend half what they would otherwise, I'm not the most popular guy in my school. "
"Ah if the loser is shopping at the same store as the cool kids blah, blah, blah"
"That's about the size of it "
"Well here then, you can do me another favour. I have some stock mistakenly delivered here instead of the new guy. Why don't you take it over there for me I'll give you fifty bucks for the job."
"How do you know that I'm going to do it"
"You just returned a bag of money tossed at your feet, I'm thinking you have more integrity then to weasel out on me."
Xander grinned and grabbed the package off the counter and left.
Cordy was still looking after him when he turned the corner and disappeared.
"This isn't for me," said the man called Ethan
"But the guy"
"He was clearly mistaken. See the marking on the tag there. It shows that this was overstock he had too many of these and let it go, normally he would clearance price it. Maybe he likes you "
"Maybe "
"Can I get back to my paying customers." The English man asked pointedly.
"Yeah sure," Xander said and let him go. The Girls had shown up shortly after he did. Buffy had immediately fallen in love with an elaborate gown. Xander suspected that the outfit was for Angel's benefit. Its look would be similar to what women had worn two hundred years ago when Angel had been human.
Buffy was trying to talk Willow into wearing a hot little number with a short skirt. Willow was reluctant wanting to go with her somewhat traditional ghost costume.
"Willow, the point of Halloween is its come as you aren't it is a chance for a girl to get all wild and crazy with no repercussions. "
"But it's, so not me "
"That's the point Hun, even Xander is getting into the spirit of the thing. What have you got?"
Xander panicked and snatched up a set of army fatigues. "Solider-Boy, you know, be all that you can be."
"Neat." Buffy smiled "See Xander totally understands the come as you aren't part of Halloween."
"Won't it be cold I should wear something, more…you know, more."
"Nah, it will be fine."
"It will?"
"Well yeah, and if not you could put a body stocking on underneath like Xander's doing. That's what that other thing it right."
Xander nodded. I'll just go to the front an pay for these I'll see you guys outside."
The girls finished the shopping and departed only Xander noticed that Willow slipped Ethan a few bucks and departed with the Ghost costume tucked away where Buffy couldn't see it.
That night everything went according to plan for everyone. The kids met Buffy, Willow and Xander on time. They started escorting them around town. Spike and Dru had been planning a quiet night but when Dru had a vision of chaos running rampant, Spike changed his plans.
In the back room of his costume shop, Ethan Rayne uttered choice entreaties to Janus to unleash a torrent of magic across the town in a second; everyone who had bought costumes from Ethan changed.
Willow quickly realized she was now no more then a real spirit, which meant that Buffy, was an actual noblewoman. From the fearful screaming she was cutting loose with this was obviously one of those shy retiring helpless types you saw in the old movies.
She looked at Xander in his costume, looking around bewildered at the goings on. "Listen to me you aren't a real soldier." She said desperately
"Of course I'm not a real…" Willow was a ghost. Buffy was a Noblewoman if he did not act possessed by his costume Willow would know there was something different about him. " Don't know what you are talking about Ma'am but there are enemies in the area and they need to be dealt with."
Willows face fell, but she decided to use him to get Buffy moving. He helped get Buffy back to the Summers house. They ran into Angel on the way and he helped a lot. When they arrived at Buffy's place Willow left to find Giles. Xander was looking for a moment when he could stop pretending to be a soldier and actually do something when they were attacked.
Demons rounded up by Spike and Drusillia were looking for the Slayer with murder on their minds. Angel vamped out to try to defeat them. The simpering noblewoman that used to be Buffy saw the monstrous looking man who had been defending the home and ran screaming into the night.
Xander chased after her vaulting over fences and cars. A pirate that looked very much like Larry confronted him. The pirate growled and lashed out at him with a lethal looking sword. He leapt aside then looked at the big gash in the army fatigues. "Oh well, not much of a joiner anyway." He kicked Larry upward then used his webbing to restrain Larry leaving him hanging from a lamppost.
"Wow Larry twice in one day. Your luck is almost as bad as mine." Then he tossed the rest of the army-boy costume. The outfit the Party Town guy had passed him had come with a mask he pulled it on and looked at his reflection in a nearby mirror. "Wow, I look like I should be riding a Pride Parade float." Then he looked at his well-defined muscles. Sometime in the last 24 hours he had developed pecs and abs "Actually that's not a bad plan."
Taking to the skies over Sunnydale, he web-swung from building to building looking for Buffy and stopping any attacking demons when he could. Finally arriving at a warehouse, he saw Buffy. Cordillia and Angel beset by Spike, Dru, and their hastily assembled army. Crashing through the skylight, he landed in the middle of the room. Guided by his new reflexes and senses he took on every demon in the room tying up some, sending others crashing into doors and walls and just plain outclassing the rest.
"Who the hell are you." Spike swore.
"Scary Spider-man wants to cause trouble." Drusillia whined "Wants to ruin our fun."
"I always saw myself as a friendly neighborhood type." Spider-man punched Spike and sent him smashing him into several crates. Hope that didn't hurt too much Neighbor."
Spike leapt to his feet and charged the wall-crawler. They traded blows, Spike realized that Spidey was playing with him. He was effortlessly avoiding the vampire's punches before catching Spike's fist and twirling him in the air before slamming him into the ground.
His spider-sense flared and he looked around to see Drusillia holding Cordillia. Her fingers poised to rip Cordy's pretty throat open. "Nasty Spider-man should leave my Spiky alone or Pretty Kitty will be crying."
Spider-man picked Spike up and hurled him one-handed toward Dru and Cordy. Cordillia's cheerleading reflexes kicked in like Xander had hoped and she dropped to the ground. The body of Spike crashed into Dru sending them both sprawling to the ground. "Bowling for Dimwits, my favorite." Spider-man snidely remarked.
"You saved me" Cordillia gushed, then hit him "you saved me by throwing some guy at my head."
She looked around. "Where is Xander, Xander must still be out there."
"Kid in the fatigues, thought he was GI-Joe? I left him guarding a bunch of kids by the library. When all of this is over he'll probably wander home on his own."
Across town, Giles sniffed out the location of Ethan. He "persuaded" the chaos mage to surrender the means to lift the spell. Giles smashed a bust of the two-faced god Janus and the magic powering the spell vanished. A wave of magic swept over the town.
Buffy suddenly restored to her normal Slaying self chased off Spike and Dru. Spike and Drusillia fled the warehouse. Spike was cursing angered that he had missed his shot at killing the Slayer because of the interference of that spider-man. Spider-man himself slipped out the back and headed back to Buffy's house.
Buffy and Willow headed home where they found Xander tired and remorseful at having missed the real action. Willow raved about him for most of the night and even Cordy seemed entranced by the debut of the ever-amazing Spider-man. Only Buffy seemed put out by the appearance of this masked vigilante.
As for Xander He spent the rest of the night making a few small changes to the costume when the dawn came, he tried it on again. The suit now boasted a webbed demi-cape and the mask now concealed his entire head.
"All right Sunnydale you've got a new champion to deal with from here on out. Whenever and wherever there's trouble, you'll find your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man."
