Disclaimer update: Buckaroo Bonzai and the Hong Kong Cavaliers don't actually appear in this story but Xander seems to know them, though their appearance on the West Coast when they're an East Coast phenomena is currently unexplained. (Not sure who owns the Buckaroo Bonzai IP - the movie was written by Earl Mac Rauch, directed/produced by W.D. Richter and distributed by Fox and MGM (dvd). But it's not me.)
Author's Note: I very rarely give Xander as much time in my stories as he gets here. But I needed a neutral adult for Buffy to interact with, so he might be acting more mature than he was for most of canon. Sorry.
Word Count: 2,536 (3 of ?)

Posted for the International Day of Femslash (today, July 18th)

Buffy sat on the stacked paving stones at the edge of the construction site, waiting for Xander to take his break, ignoring the attention of the dozen construction workers scattered around the site. If they wanted to be rude and stare at her cute outfit, she would just pretend they weren't there, something she'd gotten a lot of practice doing in the month since she'd started dropping in on him for lunch.

She was slightly dismayed that she'd gotten used to the crude remarks from his crew. It had taken all of her restraint the first week not to pound the more vocal ones into the ground but she hadn't wanted to make any trouble for Xander. He hadn't said anything, though he'd suggested more than once that they meet somewhere else for lunch, but she refused to be driven away.

"Hey Buff, how goes the nightlife?" Xander asked, leaning against the pile and dropping his lunch onto the stones to her right.

"Still post apocalypse light," she said, grabbing the bottle of water he was holding out.

"Any ideas yet?" he asked, handing her half of his huge sandwich.

"Maybe," she mumbled around a mouthful of roast beef.

"Outside talent?" he asked.

Buffy nodded. "You still keep in contact with that Buck guy don't you?" she asked.

"Buckaroo Banzai?"

"That's the one," Buffy said, smiling as she remembered some of the tales he'd told her when he'd finally admitted he'd spent half the summer after high school as a roadie for an obscure NJ bar band that was really the front for a roving troubleshooter and his gang of geniuses. "Any chance you could ask him to look up some info for me?"

"Something you can't ask Giles?" Xander asked, brushing crumbs off of his shirt.

Buffy frowned. "No, but there's no reason to involve him or the Council right now. I'd ask Willow but..."

"Yeah, she's still having technology issues," he said. "The coven won't let her near anything more complicated than a rotary phone yet."

"But she's getting better, right?" Buffy asked. She hadn't talked with Willow since Giles had dragged her off to that coven in England but Xander called her at least once a week.

"She has her good days," Xander said, shaking his head. "A few more every week. So what do you want me to find out for you?"

"There was this woman in Restfield last night," Buffy told him. "She said she'd detected energy from something called the Dark Kingdom back in May and was looking for the source."

"Dark Kingdom? Doesn't sound familiar," Xander said, frowning. "Did she mean the Hellmouth?"

"Possible but I don't think so. That's heavy mystical stuff. She had some kind of computer so it's probably a science-y kind of energy."

"There's that temple Willow found," Xander muttered, taking a drink. "Or maybe Warren did something?"

"She said something about detecting it from Tokyo," Buffy said. "Warren was small time. He didn't have that kind of reach. He was just a catalyst for Willow's meltdown."

"I don't think Willow sees it quite that way," Xander said, giving her a stern look.

"No, she doesn't. But the misogynist psycho killed Tara so she has the right to be a bit biased," she said, suppressing a sigh.

"Weren't you shot also?" Xander asked. "That contributed to the Willow chaos."

"I get hurt all the time, Xander, but I usually get better," Buffy said. "Willow's used to that. But Tara was a non-combat person, like Dawn and Anya. She shouldn't have gotten hurt."

"Non-combatant," Xander corrected her.

"Enough with the depressing thoughts," she added, taking a deep breath. "What were we talking about? Oh yeah, our mysterious Sunnydale visitor."

"Did she give you her name?"

"Sailor something," Buffy said.

"Sailor V?"

"Who?" Buffy stared at him, the name not ringing any bells.

"She was spotted fighting crime in London a few years ago," he said. "Schoolgirl-ish costume. Minor super powers."

"Never heard of her," Buffy told him, though she thought the schoolgirl costume sounded vaguely familiar.

"It was before you moved to Sunnydale," Xander added with a shrug. "There was even a video game based on her."

"Mine was dressed like she fell out of a comic book," Buffy said. "How'd you hear about this Sailor V?"

"Jesse had this thing for magical girls," he said. "She was like a real one."

"What's a 'magical girl'?" Buffy asked, suspecting from his nervous look that Jessie hadn't been the only one with a thing.

"It's an anime thing."

"They're in those Japanese cartoons?" Buffy asked. "Like those weird Dragonball Z characters?"

"Yup. Except they're cute girls in really short skirts, with magical powers, fighting monsters," Xander said. "Not strange aliens with kung-fu super powers."

"There's a word for guys who like that sort of thing," Buffy said, smirking at him. "What does Anya think about your secret vice?"

"She doesn't know. I met a real magical girl or two. Haven't looked back," he said with a wink.

"Good save," Buffy told him with a laugh. "Mercury," she added.

"Mercury what?"

"Sailor Mercury," Buffy said. "That's what she said her name was."

"Huh, I wonder if they're related."

"Do you have a good picture of this Sailor V?" Buffy asked hopefully.

"You can Google her," Xander said.

"Do you need a computer for that?" Buffy winced at his expression.

"You need to get your own computer," Xander told her. "How'd you get through school without one?"

"That was a Willow thing," Buffy said. "I used hers or one in one of the computer labs on campus. I didn't need my own."

"Didn't Willow set Dawn up with a laptop for school last year?" he asked.

"Yes, but she took it with her for the summer so she could e-mail all her friends while she was gone," Buffy said.

Xander sighed. "Giles has an excuse," he said. "He grew up using an abacus and slide rule."

"I know," Buffy said sheepishly, unwilling to admit that she was still just barely making ends meet. "But..."

"No buts, young lady," he said, wagging a finger at her and speaking in a pseudo-Giles accent. "Not all weapons are sharp and pointy. Information is power."

"Sir, Yes, Sir," Buffy said, hopping down and giving him an exaggerated salute.

"Smart ass," Xander grumbled, grabbing their trash.

"You know you love me," Buffy told him with a grin, avoiding a half hearted swipe.

"You have your moments," he said. "I have to get back to work and don't you have to work this afternoon?"

"Took the afternoon off," Buffy told him. "Investigating other potential job options. Preferably not in the food service industry."

"There's a name for people who pretend to read want ads at the beach," Xander said.

"How'd you know I was going to the beach?" Buffy asked.

"Ancient Harris secret," he said with a grin, waving at her.

"Huh?" Buffy said, looking down. Shorts? Check. Sandals? Check. T-shirt? Double check. There was no way he could have known her plans from what she was wearing over her favorite bikini, she thought.

He just shook his head. "Why don't you come over tonight? I'll ask Anya over. She doesn't have Willow's magic touch but she knows a few tricks."

"Okay," Buffy said, giving him a quick hug. "Thanks. And don't forget to call your Buckaroo friend," she reminded him.

"What's in it for me?" Xander asked.

"A hug?" Buffy said, tilting her head to the side.

"Two hugs and you've got yourself a deal," he said.

"Two? You used to promise me the moon just for one," she said with a pout.

"I've built up an immunity," he said, tossing their garbage into a nearby trash can. "So, tonight?" he asked as she turned to leave.

"Tonight," she agreed, giving him a wave as she left. Humming to herself, she skipped down the sidewalk for a minute before settling down into a more sedate stroll in the direction of home to pick up her bag before hitting the beach.

She looked like she was born swimming, Buffy thought, watching her doctor from the other night as she swam out to the furthest raft and back in the calm ocean water. Wondering how many laps she'd completed, she dropped her towel onto a bare patch of sand near an unoccupied chair and umbrella.

Looking around, Buffy was mildly surprised. The beach was unusually crowded for Sunnydale. They were mostly college students, splashing in the water, playing games in the sand. Native 'dale residents treated the beach with the same caution as the local cemeteries and back alleys, traveling in small, quiet groups, not loud boisterous masses. Spotting one of her neighbors further down the beach, Buffy gave them a restrained wave before proceeding to make herself comfortable for the afternoon.

Smoothing out her towel, Buffy pulled off her t-shirt, stopping to shake out her hair before sliding off her shorts to reveal the rest of her bikini. With restraint born of long exposure to the creepy voyeurism of male beach goers, she ignore the attention this operation generated and adjusted her top. Reaching into her bag she grabbed her favorite sun screen, a special concoction of magical and natural ingredients that had been a gift from Tara on her last birthday.

Starting with her face and neck, and twisting acrobatically to reach her back, she worked her way down to her feet, rubbing in the sandalwood scented lotion until it seemed to disappear into her skin, leaving it soft but not sticky. One of the things she liked about it was that it didn't leave her skin with that porn magazine glow that seemed to be a big selling point of most sun screen. It was invisible but extremely affective until she washed it off with soap.

Lowering herself down onto her towel, Buffy reached into her beach bag and pulled out the local want ads. She was really hoping the sand and the sea air would inspire her job search.

She'd gone through the paper twice without finding anything that she could or was willing to do, though she'd found several ads that seemed suspiciously like demon traps she'd check out later. Feeling a slight, damp breeze, Buffy looked up to see the doctor standing next to the umbrella, drying herself off. She tried not to stare at the unexpectedly trim, athletic figure of the woman in her one piece swimsuit.

Clearing her throat, Buffy gave her a faint, beach neighbor appropriate smile. "Hi, Doctor Mizuno," she said, keeping her voice low. "Haven't seen you here before."

"Good afternoon, Buffy-san," She said, peering intently at Buffy, her eyebrows going up as she glanced at her, obviously searching for something. "You did not return to have your stitches removed."

"Oops?" Buffy blushed. She'd forgotten about the stitches. She'd taken them out herself the night before when the itching had gotten unbearable. The only visible signs of the injury were already fading into her tan. "Coffee"?

"I beg your pardon?"

"Let me buy you coffee some time to make up for it," Buffy said.

"Call me Ami," she said. "And you may."

"Ami?" Buffy repeated, before realizing she'd said yes.

"Doctors are allowed to have first names," she said, giving Buffy a faint smile.

"Tomorrow? After you get done with work?"

"I work the late shift this month," Ami told her regretfully. "I do not finish until 8AM."

"Breakfast then?" Buffy asked, hoping from Ami's bemused look that she wasn't sounding too pushy. She couldn't explain it rationally but there was something extremely likable about the recently arrived doctor that had her wanting to get to know her better. "Or coffee with breakfast?"

"Coffee would be wonderful," Ami said, giving her a faint smile before sitting down in her beach chair.

"Good. I'll meet you outside the hospital in the morning," Buffy told her.

The door was jerked open before Buffy had a chance to finish knocking.

"Is she here?" Anya asked excitedly.

"Is who here?" Buffy asked, looking over Anya's shoulder at Xander, hoping he would explain.

"The Moon Princess," Anya said, resisting as Xander pulled her back into the apartment so Buffy could enter.

"The who princess?" Buffy asked, closing the door behind her.

"Xander said you met one of her Senshi last night," Anya said. "You did!" she said, wriggling loose from his arms and giving him a glare when he tried to stop her.

"I said she met someone who called themselves Sailor Mercury," Xander said. "Nothing about some princess."

"Yup," Buffy agreed, slightly bemused. "No princess."

"Yes!" Anya said, jumping up and down for a minute before plopping down on the couch. "One of the Sailor Senshi."

"Huh?"

"They guard the Moon Princess," Anya said. "Do you think she'll come to the Magic Box for the grand reopening?"

"Sailor Mercury?"

"No, the Princess," Anya said, giving them both an exasperated look.

"What can you tell me about Sailor Mercury?" Buffy asked, grabbing a chair from the kitchen table.

"It was all before my time," Anya said. "All I know is what I've heard."

"And...?" Buffy prompted.

"There used to be people on other planets," Anya told them. "Each planet had a ruler but the Queen of the Moon ruled all of them. Except maybe Earth?" Anya shrugged. "Anyway, something happened and they were all destroyed."

"If they were all destroyed; who's the Princess and Sailor Mercury?" Buffy asked.

"There are rumors," Anya said, "that the old Queen could do magic. Before she died, she did a spell so that her daughter and her protectors were reincarnated. They're supposed to be living in Tokyo."

"Any idea why one of them would be in Sunnydale?"

"No," Anya said. "When you talk with her again..."

"Why would I?" Buffy asked.

"Because you're the Sunnydale Welcoming Committee and someone needs to show the Princess how to get to the Magic Box?"

"I'm sure Buffy can ask her the next time she sees her," Xander said, giving Buffy his 'please, please, play along' puppy dog look.

"There's a tourist office in the town hall for that kind of thing." Buffy said, ignoring his expression, and shaking her head at Anya's one track mind. "Xander, did you have a chance to ask your friend about Sailor Mercury? Maybe he knows something different?"

"I passed the word," Xander told her. "It'll probably take a couple days for someone to get back to us."

"Great. Thanks. Let me know when you hear from him," Buffy said as she stood up. "I'll let you guys get back to whatever you were doing."

"Don't forget!" Anya said before Buffy could close the door behind herself. "The Grand Opening is next week."

"Right," Buffy muttered to herself. "On top of everything else, I'm supposed to arrange public appearances for reincarnated royalty? At least the brain rot from living with her again hasn't started to affect Xander yet." She had better things to worry about, like - what does a slayer slash poorly paid food service worker wear to morning coffee with the new doctor in town she wanted to become friends with.