Categories: Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Real Life

Genres: Psychological, Dark

Pairings: Xander-Willow, Xander-Kendra

Notes: Yes it's a YAHF from yours truly. This popped into my head one day and refused to leave, as you can tell by the submission time. Now before anyone criticizes the 'OOCness' of my work, I've never actually seen the series. What I know comes from fanfiction and Wikipedia. My German is a bit rusty, so please forgive the translations as they might be a bit inaccurate. Ptherwise, enjoy!

Xander was mad. No, mad wasn't nearly enough to express the all-encompassing rage he felt, the burning pit of hate that scorched his soul as he watched. His mind was no longer fleshy tissue and chemicals, but a cold impeccable machine, a machine that tempered the towering white hot rage of his soul. It wasn't fair; not by a long shot.

It was Halloween. Normally he would be ecstatic about a night of cosplay and free candy, but this year was different. He had to babysit. Him! That damned Troll...I wonder how how many needles I could stick in him befo- no. No, there will be time for that later. Right now he had to focus on getting a costume.

The small shop that Xander was dragged into held a menagerie of costumes from the mundane (ghosts, pirates, devils, etc.) to the elaborate (many replica weapons, armor, and suits). It was at the back of the store, almost shrouded from the public view, where he found the perfect costume for retribution. A demonic grin slowly crept across the young man's face as he took the costume down from it's place on the rack. His eyes glittered in dark mirth as, unnoticed by the dark boy, a hand latched onto his shoulder.

Xander nearly belted the offender across the face, but stopped himself a second before it happened. His fist was nearly touching the face of a dark haired british man. The man in question only raised an eyebrow at the boy. "Is there something the matter, son?"

Xander quickly fell back into his 'Idiot' mask, a natural defense he invented many a year ago in order for others not to take him seriously s a threat. It had, like all things, it's ups and downs. "Ah, sorry man. I wouldn't advise sneaking up on anyone. Next time might not be so lucky."

Xander could practically see the sneer upon the man's face, though in reality he was smiling, as he said. "Ah, thank you lad, I'll endeavor to remember that. Now that costume you're holding... you know to whom it belonged, correct?"

"Oh yes, that's why I wanted to buy it. Think of it as a sort of retribution for...past conduct." A secret grin was shared by the two, knowing exactly what the words meant.

"Of course. Now, since I really don't want to get any bad press so early on in the business, I'll let you have the costume for free if you don't tell ANYONE where you got it, alright?"

The boy smirked at the man's offer. "Deal."

The walk to Buffy's house was... painful, to say the least. He was hounded throughout the neiborhood by friends and enemies alike as his shined black boots click upon the pavement. Many things were thrown at him, rocks, bottles, half-full cups of soda, even a brick. Luckily, none of this damaged his costume as he stood upon the relative safety of the porch at 1630 Revello Drive.

Straightening his already perfect uniform and adjusting the cap upon his head, he stood at attention before knocking on the door. Xander went over the lines of German he memorized in the few minutes he was able to before the door opened up, revealing Joyce Summers. A happy smile graced the woman's face as she saw his familiar face, albeit behind horn-rimmed glasses, before it decayed into a horrified gasp as she took in his uniform. She trembled on the threshold as Xander wet his lips with a quick swipe of his tongue. "Kann ich eingehen?" (May I come in?)

Joyce Summers was quite well aware of her daughter's situation, how could she not be? She never had a problem with her duties or the friends she hung out with, but this was to much.

There in the doorway, dressed in a pure black uniform with gleaming medals, colorful ribbons, silver shoulder-board ranks, and a scarlet armband was one Alexander Harris, or should she say Heinrich Himmler.

He caught her off-guard with the German, and for a moment she believe that Himmler had somehow returned from the grave and was here for her (as her grandfather was a Jew in the concentration camps) . She was near hyperventilating as Himmler raised a hand to her shoulder and squeezed lightly. "Das ist ganz richtig. Ich bin noch Xander." (It's alright, I'm still Xander.)

Joyce blinked rapidly before she noticed the silly grin of Himml- Xander's face.

Xander was very worried, he had never seen Buffy's mom so afraid before. 'Maybe this wasn't such a good idea.'

Joyce seemed to shake herself out of whatever funk she was in and calmly replied, "Eingegangen, Reichsführer." (Come in, Imperial Leader)

Xander, playing along, nodded and calmly walked into the Summer's living room, removing his cap as he walked. Joyce walked past him and into the kitchen, intent on making herself something strog to stop her hands from shaking so badly.

A few moments later, in which Xander stood at near-attention with his cap in the crook of his left arm, Buffy descended the stairs in a Noblewoman's dress, swathed in colors of pink and purple. Remaining in character Xander didn't reply with his usual banter. Instead he inclined his head to the stunned brunette and spoke in a quiet but authoritative tone. "Ah, hallo Dame Buffy. Ein schöner Abend, ist es nicht?" (Ah, hello Lady Buffy. A lovely evening, is it not?)

Buffy panicked for two reasons. 1) There was a freaking NAZI in her house! 2)She didn't understand German so all she recognized was her name. Inwardly she cursed the costume she picked out as her mobility and movement was limited severely, or else the man below would have been bloody and near-death if she had her way. Noticing the very real-looking pistol holstered at the man's hip, she took a step back up the stairs in fright.

The man looked confused for a moment before what looked to be realization crossed his face. "Buffy, it's me."

Buffy's mind ground to a halt...She knew a NAZI? A NAZI knew her? Wait, that almost sounded like- "XANDER!?"

Xander smirked at Buffy's outraged face. The grin left, however, when she marched down the stairs and grabbed him by his uniform front and brought him down to her level. "You better have a good reason, no. NO reason justifies this, not even Halloween!"

The rage in Xander soul flared and momentarily overtook the cold rational of his brain. With a quick movement, he had the P08 Luger from the holster on his hip pointed directly at Buffy's chest, pointed up from her ribs. A murderous glare stopped Buffy cold. "I suggest, Frau, that you let go of me." (Woman)

Buffy's grip loosened and Xander pulled away from her, replacing the pistol and smoothing out his uniform, turning away from the girl as she stumbled over to the couch. Xander's brain immediately took control back from his soul and he turned to the scared-looking Slayer. "I'm sorry, Buffy. It brought up old memories...bad memories..."

The tension was broken by footsteps on the stairs, and a startled gasp. Turning to the stairwell, Xander saw Willow in a standard Ghost costume. Even though he could see the horrified look in her eyes, he couldn't help but remark. "Ganz ein netter 'Buhruf' haben Sie dort." (Quite a nice 'boo' you have there.)

Willow, seemingly trapped within her own screaming skull, merely dropped to her knees and started to sob. Xander, seeing this rushed up the stairs and embraced the crying girl, whispering comforting words in her ear. The surrealness of the moment could have qualified it as a dream, or perhaps a painting; a feared NAZI Leader embracing a crying Jewish girl. Almost poetic.

Buffy watched from downstairs, conflicted between her anger at Xander's costume and his upsetting Willow, and the fear from the wildness she saw in his eyes. It was almost as if- No, that'd be silly. People couldn't become their costumes, could they?

Willow's tears eventually ran out, clutching the comforting frame of her most feared and hated enemy. She looked up into Xander's eyes and almost flinched at the glasses that rested across the ridge of his nose. "Why, Xander? Why would you do this to me?"

Xander pitied his best friend. It wasn't a slight aimed at her, but she was one of the ones hurt by it. While it wasn't his original intention, she was still hurt by it. That made him feel awful. "I'm sorry Willow, I didn't mean anything against you; really I just wanted to get back at Snyder for making us babysit tonight." 'As well as for other things.' Xander added quietly in his mind.

"I- I don't know if I'll be able to forgive you Xander. You done some pretty dumb things before, but dressing up as the Slaughterer of My People? I... I'm going to need some time alone, I think." Willow didn't look at him as she said this, neither did she say anything as he and Buffy left to go gather their children for the night. In fact, she didn't leave the house. Joyce came up and helped her down to the kitchen where she took off the ghost costume and the two proceeded to have hot cocoa in silence.

"Ah, Jude! Sollten Sie nicht in einem meiner Lager sein? Auschwitz, vielleicht." (Ah, Jew! Should you not be in one of my camps? Auschwitz, maybe.) Xander tried to restrain himself, he really did, but seeing the Troll staring openmouthed at him, in what looked surprisingly like fear; he honestly couldn't resist. Luckily for him, Snyder couldn't understand German. Unluckily for him, that didn't seem to matter to the jewish principle.

"Expelled. That's it; I've had enough. You. Xander Harris are hereby expelled from this institution for life. If you are ever seen upon this campus again I'll call the police and have you thrown in jail and sued so fast, your dirt-bag parents won't know what hit them."

Xander couldn't say he was all that surprised, this was exactly the kind of reaction he was hoping for. Well, as long as he was getting expelled. "Well then, Troll, there have been a few things I would have liked to say to you, but perhaps we better take this into your office?"

Snyder didn't know whether it was the costume or the enormous amount of confidence that suddenly welled up within the boy, but he found himself following the boy into his office. As soon as the door closed a tortured stream of expletives followed ranging over many different languages that expressed opinions over the man's heritage, species, sexual preference, habits, mannerisms, job qualifications, impossibilities of the anatomies, various illegal acts which cannot be mentioned here, etc. that could be heard well outside the school yard. The parents who had escorted their children there had their jaws hanging open, staring at where the two had headed off to as their children immediately began questioning them over the meaning of different words and phrases they didn't understand.

Buffy herself had ushered her band of kids out the door as soon as Xander's tirade began.

Xander walked down the main street of the town, occasionally dodging a thrown rock or beer bottle. He was used to it by now, and it came as good practice for Vamp hunting.

'Well, now that I've been expelled, what'll I do now? Besides Buffy and the gang, there's really nothing for me here. My deadbeat parents can't do anything for me. I could always enlist, but I want to keep that as a last resort. Hmm, get a job, go to another school; hell, I could just as easily leave this hell hole behind.' Xander subconsciously noticed that he started to heat up at that last thought. 'Leave? Now there's an idea. Sure I have friends here, but this is just getting...too far out of my league.' He started to heat up more. Pulling at his collar, Xander went farther down that road. 'I mean, what can I do, a normal human? No magic, no special powers, nothing...well, an insane hyena spirit, but that's not saying much compared to the others.' Said hyena spirit started to growl as Xander heated up even more. It was almost to the point of being unbearable. 'Maybe I should leave, get out while I still have my skin. There's always San A-'

A sea of power washed over Alexander Lavelle Harris. It swept him away and cradled him as another consciousness drifted into his mind.

The hyena immediately leapt at the new person, intent on ripping out its throat for daring to invade it's territory. The hyena seemingly stopped in mid-pounce within the swirling grey of Xander's mindscape. The hyena did not whimper or while, like many other creatures would in the presence of a greater predator, but it merely stood still and watched as predator 'walked' forward to confront the animal and the boy.

"Wer sind Sie? Was tue ich hier? Sprechen Sie!" (Who are you? What am I doing here? Speak!) Heinrich Himmler was not pleased, not at all. He was just in a meeting with the Fuhrer himself, only to be whisked away somehow to this...place! This did not bode well for anyone, especially not this boy if he didn't answer quickly.

The hyena paced between the two as sort of a dividing line. Xander, on the other hand, simply stared back at the man. While he never took German as a language, he could understand the man perfectly as if it were his native language. Licking his lips, he tested out a theory. "Ich bin Alexander Harris, und ich habe keine Idee, was Sie hier weil Himmler sind." (I am Alexander Harris, and I have no idea what you are here for Himmler.) Xander blinked, he didn't know he could do that. "Unmöglich." (Impossible.)

Heinrich's eyes narrowed dangerously. "Was ist unmöglich, und wie kennen Sie mich?" (What is impossible, and how do you know me?)

Xander gave a mirthless chuckle as he stared the man directly in the eye. "Ich kenne Sie, weil Sie, Heinrich Himmler berühmt sind. Sie starben vor zweiundfünfzig Jahren." (I know you because you, Heinrich Himmler are famous. You died fifty two years ago.)

Heinrich's mind stopped in mid-scheme. Fifty two- that would make this...1997. "Unmöglich." (Impossible.)

"Genau." (Exactly)

Heinrich's mind shot into high speed. So many questions! Think of the possibilities if he could get back to his own time with this knowledge! Did they win the war? Were they succesful in eliminting the Jews? Were the Aryans the dominant race? Where did- "Wie starb ich?" (How did I die?)

Xander looked down at the shiny toes of his boots. He had done an in-depth report about the man before him, one of the reasons he wanted the costume originally. "Sie wurden durch nahen Flensburg der Verbündeten angehalten. Sie begingen siucide, bevor sie Sie befragen konnten. Ihre letzten Wörter waren: ich bin Heinrich Himmler!" (You were arrested by the allies near Flensburg. You committed suicide, before they could question you. Your last words were: I am Heinrich Himmler!)

"...Gewannen wir?" (Did we win?)

"No, Davon wurde schlechter für Ihre Leute." (No, it became worse for your people.)

There was a silence between them as each was absorbed within their own thoughts. Xander warred with himself, weighing the positives and negatives of what his next words might bring. "Wenn Heinrich könnte... Sie kommen mit mir? Sieh die Welt, ist als das jetzt?" (If Heinrich could... want to come with me? See the world, is as now?)

Xander strode forward to the pacing hyena and thrust his hand forward, waiting to see if Heinrich would do the same. The hyena, Bloodclaw (the leader of his former pack), stopped next to his host and sat patiently by him, awaiting the third's response.

Heinrich stared at the boy through his horn-rimmed glasses, trying to measure the boy's sincerity. On one hand, his future was mapped out. They would lose, and lose everything. On the other, over fifty years had passed. What would the world be like now? Would he want any part of it?

The three stood there for what seemed an eternity before Heinrich straightened himself and his uniform and strode over to the two others. He stopped in front of them, and with a quick pat on the head for Bloodclaw, he took Xander's hand and shook it firmly. With a small leap, Bloodclaw touched his paw to the clasped hands as a white light enveloped them. With absolute silence, the three forms melded into one.

Outside in the real world, Xander didn't miss a step as he kept on walking down the street that was now littered with demons, ghosts, pirates, and ninjas. Just as the three were separate, they were now all together one.

They were Heinrich Alexander Bloodclaw, and they weren't going to take shit from anyone anymore. First objective, find Buffy and Willow. Second objective, kill Snyder...