"But I have to get to class!" came the sound of a teenage girl who was using the only excuse she could think of to get away from the prison warden glare of Principal Snyder.
The troll just shrugged and forced the clipboard and pen into the young woman's hands without restraint.
"Snyder must be in charge of the volunteer safety program for Halloween this year." Willow said as she felt some pity for the poor teen that had strayed a little too close to Snyder.
"Note his interesting take on the volunteer concept." Xander commented in an attempt to emulate his usual smart ass self.
It had been awhile since his parents' funeral and it had been a busy time to say the least. Just as he had predicted foster care came around two days later and informed him that since he was not old enough to live by himself. For a moment he had thought that his worst fears would come true and he would be taken away from Sunnydale to live somewhere else. It was then that Mrs. Summers did something he would always remember and be grateful to her for no matter what. Upon hearing that he might be forced to move away to live with some other family Joyce stepped right on up and said that she would be glad to have him become a part of her family. He and Buffy were absolutely floored by this as it seemed to come out of nowhere but as the seconds ticked by Joyce stood there and made no attempt to take back her words. A second later, after Buffy's brain had rebooted, she backed up her mother and said that she'd be glad to have a 'little brother' as she put it. He had pointed out that he was technically taller than her but she said that whether a family member got the 'big' or 'little' title attached to them depended on how long they were with the family. Therefore since he'd essentially be part of the family for less than a year that, according to her warped logic made him the little brother. Once the rest of them finished laughing at the logic and Buffy reigned in her temper at their reactions the people from foster care said that while they would have to do some checking to make sure everything was what it should be they didn't see any problem with making Mrs. Summers' wish a reality.
That had been about a week ago or so and the fact that they had yet to hear anything from them was beginning to make him worry a little. After all as far as he knew Mrs. Joyce wasn't the sort of person who would raise flags for the foster care people like other potential parents might if they had lifestyles that violated the acceptable parameters the foster group abided by. Other than that though he couldn't think of a single reason why they would be taking so long to grant Mrs. Summers' request. Needless to say the waiting was distracting him and making it harder to be his former jovial self. Not that waiting for the foster group's response was the only thing dampening his mood but it was definitely one of the most prominent.
Fortunately though the only one of the entire group that seemed to even notice that something was different about him was his best bud Willow. She hadn't approached him about it yet but whether that was because she wasn't quite sure if she was interpreting his emotions right or if she was simply waiting for the right opportunity he wasn't sure. Hopefully though by the time she decided to do anything about it Joyce would have a response from the foster group in her hand and it would be good news. He knew that if anything could brighten his mood and dispel the cloud of gloom that he had been dealing with ever since the student exchange thing it would be to become a part of a real family.
"What's the deal?" Buffy asked as she looked to see the girl concede to Snyder's intimidation.
"Oh, a bunch of little kids need people to take them trick-or-treating. Sign up and get your own pack of sugar-hyped little runts for the night." Xander replied as they reached Willow's locker.
"Yikes. I'll stick to vampires." Buffy said with a grimace as she imagined having to maintain control of a group of kids that would gradually become more hyped up with sugar as the day wore on.
Xander just nodded in agreement both just to avoid speaking and because he was sure that having to deal with a number of sugar crazy kids would not be a picnic. Unfortunately at that precise moment fate seemed to think that they needed empirical evidence to support their beliefs since a moment later Snyder's hand clamped down on Buffy's shoulder and spun her around.
"Miss Summers. Just the juvenile delinquent I've been looking for." Snyder said with his permanent scowl firmly on his face.
"Principal Snyder!" Buffy said in surprise as she tried to reign in her desire to deck the man for manhandling her.
"Halloween must be a big night for you. Tossing eggs, keying cars, bobbing for apples, one pathetic cry for help after another." Snyder said derisively as he pulled her over to the chaperon sign up table, "Well, not this year, missy."
Both he and Willow followed their friend to provide emotional support as well as excuses for the Slayer if she failed to squeeze her way out of Snyder's clutches on her own.
"Gosh, I'd love to sign up, but I recently developed carpal tunnel syndrome, and can tragically no longer hold a flashlight." Buffy said in a voice that was probably meant to be honesty with just a hint of sarcasm but wound up being sarcasm with just a hint of honesty.
All Snyder did was hold up a clipboard and pen before saying "The program starts at four, the children have to be back at six."
This was obviously Snyderise for 'I do not care if you are blind and in a wheelchair. You will be doing this' and judging by the look on his face he wasn't going to go easy on Buffy if she refused. So with great reluctance and a desire for revenge in her eyes the Chosen One, the Slayer, signed her name on the clipboard. Willow was getting a kick out of the sight of one of her strongest friends bowing down to someone not much taller than herself. He too was slightly amused but that came to a halt when Snyder grabbed two more clipboards from the table and shoved them into his and Willow's hands. For a moment both of them contemplated trying to come up with some kind of excuse to get out of it but a stern look from Snyder and loyalty to their friend won out and they signed their names on the dotted line.
Once their proverbial death warrants were sighed the Scooby gang moved on and traveled to the student lounge in an attempt to vent their displeasure without Snyder overhearing them.
"I can't believe this. We have to get dressed up and the whole deal?" Xander said with no little anger at being shanghaied by someone that looked like a Ferengi from Star Trek.
"Snyder said costumes were mandatory." Willow replied grimly though not as much as her two friends as she always tried to look on the bright side of things.
"Great. I was gonna stay in and veg. The one night a year things are supposed to be quiet for me." Buffy said with exasperation as she seemed determined to vent her frustration rather than look towards the proverbial silver lining.
"Halloween quiet? Oh, I figured it'd be a big old vamp scare-apalooza." Xander said with some surprise given what he thought vampires were like up until then.
"Not according to Giles. He swears that tomorrow night is, like, dead for the undead." Buffy said as they all plopped down on one of the lounge couches, "They stay in."
"Those wacky vampires! That's why I love 'em! They just keep you guessing!" Xander remarked with some amusement before standing up, "I'm going to get a soda. You guys want one?"
Both of them shook their heads in the negative so with a shrug he went over to the soda machine and started plunking in quarters.
Just as he was about to choose which brand he wanted a meaty hand came down on his shoulder and spun him around to find Larry the Jock standing in front of him.
"Hey, Lar. You're lookin' Cro-Mag as usual. What can I do you for?" Xander said not wanting to get the muscle bound brute mad.
"You and Buffy, you're just friends, right?" Larry asked before giving a quick glance in the Slayer's direction.
"I like to think of it less as a friendship and more as a solid foundation for future bliss." Xander replied as he had a bad feeling he knew the real reason behind the jock's question.
"So, she, she's not your girlfriend?" Larry asked as a bit of something was in his eyes.
"Alas, no." Xander replied truthfully while silently accepting the likelihood that the possibility of that kind of relationship with Buffy was pretty much dead and dust.
Walking around him Larry got himself into a better position to scope Buffy out before asking "Do you think she'd go out with me?"
Deciding to shut the jock down right now Xander replied "Well, Lar, that's a tough question to... No. Not a chance."
Turning around with a bit of anger in his voice Larry asked "Why not? I heard some guys say she was fast."
This remark hit Xander to the core as the thought of some guys spreading rumors that Buffy was a 'woman of loose virtue' as they might say in one of Giles' old books. It also made him want to set the record straight with at least Larry and hope that the cave jock would spread the word among his cronies.
"I hope you mean like the wind." Xander replied in a voice that most friends knew was code for 'think again or else'.
"Yeah, you know what I mean." Larry said clearly stating that not only did he believe the rumors but also that Xander believed them as well.
"That's my friend that you're talkin' about!" Xander said with hostility as all traces of his usual carefree demeanor left him.
"Oh, yeah? Well, what're you gonna do about it?" Larry said with a tone that told the Zeppo he ranked Xander's threat level somewhere below a slug's threat level.
That's it! First he insults my friend and then he treats me like I'm a piece of dirt! Xander thought with anger as he made the decision right then and there to start changing the way people looked at him.
It was then that he heard an inner voice that he hadn't felt within him since the night of the exchange student costume dance. Despite the suddenness of its reappearance and the fact that he hadn't 'heard' from it in so long he did not startle him as it should have when it spoke to him. It almost felt like it belonged there and it told him a way he could make a definite impression on the jock as well as hopefully scare him away from Buffy. Mentally grinning at the directions he was being given he decided to put the plan into action.
"I'm gonna do what any man would do about it:" Xander replied as he grabbed Larry's right arm and before the jock could do anything he twisted it behind the jock's back and held it there, "Kick your ass and make it look easy."
Deciding to emphasize just how well he had Larry neutralized he threw all his weight into slamming the football player into the soda machine. Naturally the jock tried to power his way out of the hold but brute strength was useless against this move since it made it impossible to get the necessary leverage. Therefore as long as he kept an eye out for Larry's left arm he had the jock right where he wanted him so it was time to impart a few words of wisdom to the ape-man.
"Okay here's the scoop Larry so listen up! I could care less what you jocks say about the rest of the girls here but if I hear you insult my buds again I'll make sure you never use this arm ever again." Xander said in a tone that he had only used once before and he hoped he'd never have to use again, "Now get out of my sight!"
With those words he pulled the jock away from the soda machine, aimed Larry at the hallways and pushed him in that direction before letting go. The football player stumbled forward before getting better footing but when he looked back at the Zeppo Xander could tell that his opinion of the 'geek Harris' had undergone some serious revisions. Rubbing his sore arm the jock walked as quickly as he could away from the student lounge without making it look like he was running away from a school weakling. Satisfied that his message had been sent and that Buffy wouldn't have to worry about that moron sniffing after her he turned back to the soda machine to see if he could still select something. Much to his surprise though when he looked down he saw that a selection had already been made when he had slammed Larry into the machine. Picking it up though he found out that it was diet soda and almost put it back but instead decided to just hand it off to Buffy or Willow since girls were more concerned with watching their weight than most guys.
When he made it back to the couch though both of his buds were looking at him as though he had just kissed Snyder. Once he got over the whole 'yuck' factor that image produced in him he realized that Xander Harris the class clown and slacker wasn't the sort of person to stand up to Larry the Bully like that. Get beat up by Larry, yes. Beat Larry up, no. So seeing him humiliate Larry like that was probably strange to them even after all the things they had see fighting the darkness on the Hellmouth. Now he had to either distract them with a bit of humor or come clean about the little voice inside his head.
Hmmm. Let's see. Make with the funnies and lie? Tell the truth and be labeled a crazy person? Xander thought to himself as he sat back down on the couch, Gee, tough choice!
"Um Xander? How did you do that?" Willow asked a little timidly as she was no doubt wondering what odd out of character behavior he'd exhibit next.
"Yeah, since when are you Mr. Tough Guy?" Buffy asked in a surprised and concerned voice.
It stung a little bit that Buffy thought him completely incapable of defending himself but he restrained himself with the knowledge that the shock of seeing him manhandle Larry had probably knocked her tact filter offline.
"Hey I've been watching you beat some undead butt for over a year now Buffster!" Xander replied with a strained lopsided smile, "Some of it must have rubbed off on me. Besides you know Larry's all talk."
This seemed to satisfy them as it was perfectly plausible that after seeing Buffy fight vampires and various demons that the average teenage guy might be able to pick up a few moves to use against a dimwitted jock. Deciding to seal away their doubt with a gesture of good will he passed the can of soda to Buffy.
"Oooh, diet!" she said happily as she pooped it open and took a sip.
Satisfied that Buffy wouldn't be giving him any more suspicious looks anytime soon he decided he'd better get out of there soon unless he wanted to give his bestest bud Willow time to grill him even harder.
"Well I think I'll go see if the cafeteria has anything halfway edible today." Xander said as he got to his feet and grabbed his bag, "I'll see you guys later at that new costume shop downtown, alright?"
Both nodded though Willow did a little more slowly with her concerned and inquisitive eyes so without delay he beat feet away from them as casually as he could.
Two Blocks from "Ethan's", Two and a Half Hours LaterWell here's hoping I can avoid the whole twenty questions routine. Xander thought to himself as he approached the new costume shop.
He could see down the sidewalk that Buffy and Willow were waiting outside for him with the former tapping her foot in obvious impatience. Obviously she was in a rush to pick out her outfit and given that she wasn't exactly enthusiastic about escorting a bunch of kids around town there was only one thing that could make her eager to pick out a costume. Even now after he had pretty much given up hope that he and Buffy would ever get together as boyfriend and girlfriend he could not understand what it was about that animated corpse Angel that Buffy liked. The man brooded, he used way too much hair gel and he was by his own admission way too old for her since he was almost two hundred years old. Yet despite that Buffy, the Slayer of Vampires, liked him and was willing to toss aside her 'kill all demons' mandate because of that. Well there was the pesky fact that he supposedly had a soul somewhere in that dead body but personally he didn't see that as sufficient reason to let him hang around them. So Deadboy was on a path to redemption or whatever! So what! He should still have will power enough to keep himself from dragging Buffy into a relationship that's just going to end bad anyways. Still, for the moment, his friendship with Buffy and Willow mattered more to him than giving the 'vampire with a soul' what he deserved.
"What took you so long?" Buffy asked with impatience in her voice that matched the impatience in her posture.
"Had to take some cash out of my savings account." He replied as if completely oblivious to his friend's impatience.
Taken slightly aback by his nonchalant response to her impatient tone of voice it didn't take Buffy long to shake off her ill mood and focus on what they came to this store for in the first place. With no further words to be spoken the Scooby gang entered the store and beheld a place filled with every type of costume and costume accessory they could think of. All the classics were there like a Dracula vampire as well as the wart nosed witch costumes. There were even a few costumes that looked like they were based on characters from the movies or television shows. He even thought he saw a few examples of cosplay costumes near the rear of the store as well. A Duo Maxwell costume, an Alucard costume and surprisingly enough a pretty decent Kurenai ninja outfit as well. All in all it was a pretty great selection and while he might not have a lot of money to splurge on an outfit thanks to his parents' deaths he did have quite a bit more than he used to have. Still given his limited monetary means at present he should probably purchase efficiently here and not fly too far off the handle when choosing his costume.
"So what now?" Willow asked as she gazed about the room, "Do we stick together to look for our costumes or split up?"
"Better to split up. We don't have a lot of time before we have to be at the school to pick up our group of bra—I mean kids." Buffy said quickly changing what she was going to call the children they'd be chaperoning tonight into something a little nicer.
"Okay. Back here in twenty minutes?" Willow asked looking back and forth between him and Buffy.
A nod in the affirmative from both the Slayer and the Zeppo settled it and so they split apart going to whatever section of the story caught their interest. For him it turned out to be the cosplay section since not many people knew what cosplay was in first place and because he had watched a few Anime shows on his own in the past. Not that he would tell any of his friends than even under pain of Twinkie deprivation of course. Still it would be better than what he had planned on doing for Halloween back at the beginning of the school year. Back then he had known that even if he scrimped and saved ever nickel, quarter and dime he could get his hands on without getting a beating from Tony the best he'd be able to manage would be a toy gun and some used clothes from an Army surplus store. He'd go as a generic soldier, a lieutenant if he remembered the rank insignia on the outfit he had eyed at the army surplus store correctly, and try to be satisfied with that. Now though he had some actual cash on his side so he could do a little better than a plastic kid's toy and some used duds.
Still leaves the question of 'what to get' doesn't it? He thought to himself as he continued to look about the section of costumes for something that might suit him for tonight.
He completely ignored the costumes that had to do with demon characters like Alucard and InuYasha since the former represented a species he hated and the latter reminded him a little too much of the nightmare that started his recent string of problems. Moving along he spotted an outfit that belong to Duo Maxwell from Gundam Wing but the braided hair that the pilot fussed over in the series would also cause him problems if any of the school bullies spotted him. Despite the fact that many notable movie and TV stars were considered cool and had such tails of hair lying down the center of their backs on him it would make him look even odder than usual. Next there was a male ninja outfit from the Naruto series but there was nothing distinctive about it that helped him narrow it down to a specific character. He put a big 'uh-uh' in front of that outfit because it strayed too close to the whole 'soldier' look he was hoping to do better than Halloween night. It wasn't until he came upon an outfit with a long old style trench coat, bandana and fedora that he thought he might have finally found what he was looking for. Examining the tied to one of the buttons on the jacket he found that it was a costume based on a preliminary outfit to be used in the making of a Van Hellsing movie. Further info written on the tag said that this specific outfit was eliminated from consideration because it did not allow the actor sufficient freedom of movement.
Well it's not like I'll be helping Buffy fight any vampires tonight and I'm sure that G-Man would have warned us if there was an apocalypse on the way. Xander thought to himself as he turned over the tag to look at the price attached to the costume.
"Can I help you with something young man?" asked a male British voice behind him with a voice that sounded like the person was tired of appearing so cheerful.
Unfortunately for Xander despite the lack of hostility in the man's voice it still caused him to jerk around causing him to take the tag attached to the costume with him. Now most people would expect that the plastic wiring tying the tag to the costume would snap with such a sharp jerking movement. Sadly most people would be wrong since the manager had apparently not skimped on the quality of the wiring because where the tag went so did the button it was tied to as well as the coat itself. This lead to a chain reaction ending with the entire costume as well as the dummy that was clothed with it to tip over and fall to the ground. For a moment both Xander and the man who was presumably the owner of the shop merely looked at the false man lying face down on the floor of the store. Then they both looked at each other and the Zeppo was worried for a moment that he'd wind up paying for more than just the costume before he left the store. However the man then did something that Xander did not expect by bursting into a jolly laugh that seemed genuine in nature.
Once the man calmed down some he said "I'm sorry if I startled you young sir. I'm afraid that I cannot prevent myself from doing so to just about everyone no matter how hard I try."
Recovering his wits Xander did his best to set the wooden man wearing the costume back upright before saying "No problem. So how much for this costume?"
"Normally I would charge at least fifty dollars for a costume like that as I acquired it straight from a Hollywood studio and because it is the only one of its kind." The costume shop Manager said as he went over to examine the outfit for damage, "However for you I think I can give a discount and mark it down to about thirty five dollars and fifty cents. How does that sound?"
The drop of nearly fifteen dollars in price had Xander suspicious as it did not exactly feel right that someone who had just opened for business would do anything to decrease profits.
"Fine except that it sounds little weird that you'd hand me such a good deal so soon after opening the place." Xander said in the hope that the man would give him a satisfactory reason for doing so.
"Perhaps but I find that if I give people goods deals now on the one night of the year when costumes are so important then they will remember my store all the more." The Manager stated like a true businessman, "If the memory of this place becomes as strong as I expect it will people will forget overpriced places like Party Town and come here instead."
That seems logical. Xander thought to himself as he considered the store manager's words.
It was true that the prices at Party Town were quite steep and given the limited selection it had if word got around that a store with reasonable prices and a wider selection was around then business here would definitely pick up. It would definitely make up for any money the place lost by giving discounts to certain customers and might just manage to put Party Town out of business. With his suspicion suitably dispelled he decided that he'd better get a move on if he wanted to meet up with the guys back where they split up.
"Alright then. I'll take it." Xander said while jerking his head slightly in the direction of the Van Hellsing costume.
"Very well young man. Just let me take it in back so I can take it off this dummy and pack it all up for you." The Store manager said as he grabbed the wooden man wearing the costume by the waist and lifted it off the ground, "There are a few other accessories that go with the costume but I've kept them in back just to make sure no child hurt themselves with them by accident. It will just take me a few minutes."
"No problem. I'll just wait by the cash register." Xander said with a nod and his patented lopsided grin.
"See you there then." The Store Manager said as he began to navigate through the crowd of costume shoppers to a curtained off back room.
Back Room, "Ethan's", One Minute LaterTime to make the switch. Ethan thought to himself once he was certain that the curtain blocking off the back room was firmly in place.
When he had started setting up the shop he had toyed with the idea of just putting his employer's one costume out on display in the hopes that the young man marked to wear it would choose it on his own. However that plan got tossed because there was always the chance that someone else would choose it and that could not be permitted. His employer had been quite blunt that if his chosen target did not receive this particular outfit he would have a painful death to look forward to the next day. The next plan for doing his job was what he was doing right now: wait until the boy chose his costume himself, make up some excuse for taking where the young man couldn't see it and then switch it with the box he had received at the estate. He would have to remain here for a few minutes in order to make it believable that he was gathering costume accessories as well as packing the costume the young American wanted. After all if he merely went in one minute with a costume and came out less than thirty seconds later with a box than it would only arouse the young man's suspicions. Besides he wouldn't be spending the time just standing in the back room waiting for the right amount of time to expire. Instead he would be putting the final touches on the enchantment that the chosen costume would require in order to fulfill its task later tonight. Most of the foundation for the spell had already been completed and it would only take about five minutes for him to complete the last part of the enchantment. Placing the box on a long table and putting the necessary magical ingredients for the final part of the enchantment he was almost ready to begin when a whim of chaos struck him and made him pause before he could pick up the first vial.
My employer was rather vague about the specific details of the spell aside from the fact that one specific American teenager should get one specific costume. Ethan thought to himself as he rode the tide of chaos building in strength inside of him, I wonder if my employer would get angry if I improved the spell a bit. It would not change the overall effect of course but it might indeed make things a little more interesting tonight.
For awhile a war was waged within him between his fear of what might happen if he angered his employer and the heights of chaos that might be reached if he tweaked the spell a little for this one costume. It was in moments like these that Ethan Rayne, Chaos Mage, was truly a servant of that particular brand of magic because one never truly knew what choice he would make until it was actually made. True unpredictability, the chaos of indecision, was what truly made him dangerous and while instincts like self-preservation might curb his chaotic tendencies it did not lessen the threat he posed to his enemies. So in a situation like this even he was unsure of which path he would choose until it actually clicked in his mind and all other possibilities disappeared. It might have seemed to the outside observer that only a few seconds passed but on the inside of the Brit it was more like hours. In the end though it was the man's own selfish desire for amusement in the service of chaos that won out over the warnings of his employer and so his choice was made.
Moving away from the table that held both the chosen costume and the ingredients for the final portion of the spell he went over to a large chest that was the one thing he took with him wherever he went on his travels. Anything else he might need for his ventures were easily obtainable at any number of occult and magic stores that served the true practitioners of magic rather than the vapid pathetic wannabes. The chest on the other hand contained talismans, artifacts, ingredients and books that were extremely hard to come by and in some cases one of a kind. They were things he had acquired over the years whether is was fairly using money or less than fairly like taking off with the item while two power house magic users killed each other. Some were even acquired by defeating the previous owner in a duel of magicks and while some were worth the pain he went through some he got rid of as soon as something better came along. It was from this collection of oddities and prizes that he decided that he would choose his addition to the costume spell he had been asked to cast tonight.
Now what to choose, what to choose? Ethan asked himself as his eyes surveyed what was available to him.
The young man was likely going to get into quite a few fights given the costume he would be wearing which meant strain on the body as well as the mind. Add to that the variety of creatures and beings that would be made real tonight and the chances of the young man surviving as only that which the costume was supposed to represent were slim. The boy needed an edge, something grand, that would make up for any shortcomings the original chosen costume possessed. Yet at the same time it would need to be subtle so in the event he learned later that tinkering with the original plan was something that his employer would take badly he could easily come up with an excuse for if he had to. After all if it was something subtle he could explain it away as 'an unforeseen side effect of the Hellmouth' or something equally plausible. It took him a few moments but eventually his eyes hit on something he had acquired during his time in China. One of his more rare items and one that he was reluctant to part with but with a shrug of his shoulders he decided that 'there was no time like the present' as the Americans often said and took it out of the chest.
Better get moving or else the young man I must give this costume to might decide to take his business elsewhere. Ethan thought as he began casting the final spells of the costume enchantment on the costume for which this very special night was centered around.
The Cash Register, "Ethan's", Two Minutes Later"Took you long enough." Xander said with some irritation as the store manager finally arrived at the cash register with his boxed costume.
"Sorry. There were a few bits and pieces that were harder to locate than I had thought." The Store Manager said as he began to enter the reduced price of the outfit into the cash register, "Still I think you will find it well worth the wait when you put it on and look at yourself in the mirror."
Handing over the money he had brought with him for the outfit he picked up the box and for a moment was surprised at the weight. He had taken a good look at the Van Hellsing outfit before the Owner had startled him and seemed odd that with the addition of a few accessories that it could be made this much heavier.
"Just what did you put in here? It feels heavier than it looked on the dummy." Xander asked as he picked up the bag containing the boxed costume.
"A collapsible crossbow that can be hooked onto the belt, a whip that can be tied to the belt on the side opposite the crossbow and some metal crosses." The Store Owner replied with his trademark 'happy businessman' smile on his face, "After all Professor Van Hellsing was something of a legend in hunting down demons and vampires. It just wouldn't do to have you go out tonight 'unarmed' so to speak."
"Makes sense." Xander said as he thought of how much additional weight a crossbow, a whip and some crosses would make when added to the weight of the outfit itself, "Thanks for the outfit anyway!"
"Oh it was my pleasure to aid you in acquiring an outfit you liked." The Store Owner said never losing his smile.
Pausing for a moment as he thought he sensed something more to the smile than what was on the surface Xander looked at the owner and considered the possibility that the man was up to something. After all just because the vamps were going to be staying in tonight didn't mean that the Hellmouthy phenomenon would take the night off as well. Black magic, ghosts and supernatural activity in general might very well start a scar-a-palooza like he had thought the vampires would given that so many potential victims would be on the street tonight. Was this guy setting everything up to try something?
Nah! I'm just letting my Sunnydale paranoia run away with me. Xander thought to himself as he resumed his walk back to where he'd meet up with Buffy & Willow.
It didn't take long to find them and he arrived just in time to catch the tail end of a conversation Buffy was having with Willow.
"Don't underestimate yourself. You've got it in you." Buffy said encouragingly although from the look on the redhead's face it wasn't having much effect.
"Hey, Xander!" Willow exclaimed happily as she was no doubt glad for a way out of the uncomfortable conversation Buffy had been having with her, "What'd you get?"
"Oh just a little something I managed to get at discount." Xander replied as he lifted up the bag a bit to show them what he had gotten, "But you'll have to wait until we head out for the school to see it."
For a moment it looked like Buffy and Willow both were going to pester him until he told them what he'd be dressing up as but then all of a sudden something caught the Slayer's eye and the attention of both young women was diverted elsewhere. Without saying another word Buffy walked over to another section of the shop and it was only after a few moments of looking to see where she was going that he discovered what had captivated her attention so much. It was a red dress that looked like it was at least a century out of date as well as something entirely too frilly for his liking. However given how much it clashed with what the Slayer usually wore and liked he didn't need to be as smart as Willow to know who she wanted to wear it for.
"Earth to Buffy! What's it about this bulky outfit that has you so zoned out?" Xander asked in an attempted to knock her out of her vacant stare stance.
"I'm sorry, it's just... Look at this." Buffy replied without taking her eyes off of the dress even once.
"It's amazing." Willow said in appreciation for something that seemed like it belonged on a queen or a princess.
It irritated him a little that Willow was reinforcing Buffy's feelings for Angel by encouraging the Slayer in this sad attempt to gain the corpse's favor. Didn't Willow realize that a relationship between a vampire and a Slayer was doomed to failure from the beginning? Didn't she realize that this would only cause her first female friend terrible pain? It would be better to simply cut the developing relationship right then and there making it a clean break. He wouldn't mind as much if Deadboy stuck around to help out whenever something apocalyptic went down but any touchy feely emotions between the vamp and the Slayer could not be allowed. Contrary to what the others might think if they heard these thoughts he was no longer jealous of the dead head in terms of a rival for Buffy's affections. After what she had done at the beginning of the school year at the Bronze, using him to make Angel jealous, he doubted that there'd ever be anything besides friendship between them again. That didn't mean however that he would ever stop giving Deadboy trouble or that any future boyfriends would be spared the 'shovel and lecture' treatment. In any case though he decided he wouldn't stand here and watch her gush over her latest course of action in wooing that walking mass of dead flesh and bones.
"Yeah well I think I'll head back now and start getting ready for the whole Halloween chaperoning thing." Xander said as he half turned towards the front door of the shop, "From the way the owner of this place described my costume it'll probably take me longer than you guys to get ready."
"Yeah … okay. See ya." Buffy said almost distractedly as she only glanced at him for a moment before returning to the dress she had come to like so much.
"You sure?" Willow asked with some concern in her eyes.
"Yeah. See you back at Buffy's place." Xander replied and without another word began to make his way though the crowd to the front door entrance/exit of the costume shop.
Summers Home, Thirty Minutes Later, Xander's Temporary Room
Alright! Time to get all dressed up so when Buffy and Willow get here all I'll have to do is wait for them to get ready. Xander thought to himself as he placed the box down on his bed.
It was still a little weird for him to call this small bed that Mrs. Summers had gotten for him 'his bed' consider that he had staying here for less than two weeks. Still if everything went alright with the foster people concerning Joyce's desire to take him in he would have all the time in the world to get used to the idea. A warm feeling filled him up every time he thought about the idea of becoming a part of a truly loving family. It would be a welcome change from what he had been forced to endure with Tony and Jessica Harris. Who knew what the future would have in store for him if he became a part of the Summers family? It would be such a drastic change from what he was used to that he honestly didn't know where things would go from here. Oh the basics like graduating from high school and getting a job were there but that was only because that was the course that almost every teenage American took. Aside from those two basic choices he really didn't know what he would do with his life or what he would choose to become.
One way or another it ought to be interesting! Xander thought with some amusement as he opened up the box so he could get dressed in the Van Hellsing costume.
However when the lid of the box was moved out of the way to the point where he could see the contents all the warm feelings he had been experiencing turned ice cold as items from his most terrible nightmare became a reality. Inside the box was not the Van Hellsing costume he had chosen and thought he had purchased at the costume shop at all. Inside the box sat a gray hakama, a pale gi, blue haori, black leather hand-guards, a pair of sandals, brown tabi, a light-red-almost-completely-orange long-haired wig and a small plastic container with no label on it. Seeing these items his mind instantly flashed back to the nightmare he had experienced the night after the field trip to the museum at the start of the whole student exchange thing. More than anything else the image of the last man he fought before waking up, the man with the glowing golden eyes, came up most often. For a long while he stood frozen to the spot, unable to think or do anything, staring at what had been the stuff of dreams for him until he opened the costume box. It seemed beyond belief that something that had haunted his thoughts off an on for the last few weeks would suddenly appear in front of him as tangible and real as he was. It was when he thought of his dreams becoming reality that his might flashed back to the weight of the box when he had picked it up from the 'Ethan's' store manager. Taking in the contents of the box that he could see he knew that there was no way that the items he saw now could account for all of that weight.
Unless… he thought to himself as a possibility blinked into existence in his mind that only stayed a possibility for a moment before his mind was certain it was the answer.
Slowly and carefully, his need to find out if he was right being the only thing preventing him from walking out the door immediately, he steadily removed each item from the box until bit by bit his suspicions were confirmed. At first all that he could say for certain was that there were two oval shaped rods in the box made out of smooth pieces of wood painted black. Then a little later he found out that one was actually a little bit shorter than the other one was. It wasn't until the last item, resting at the very top of the box, was removed that the two items were revealed to him as clear as day. However with his suspicions revealed as fact so solidly the chill in his blood only grew colder as his eyes took in every detail of the two objects. Having seen almost identical ones at the museum exhibit weeks earlier he knew that the longer one was a katana and the shorter one was a wakizashi. Both weapons appeared to be in perfect condition with not a single sign of wear and tear on either of the sheaths nor the handle grips or the pommels. If he had to make a judgment call he might say that these swords had been freshly made no more than a few months ago and had been laid aside specifically to go with this costume.
Of course that's just plain crazy talk… Xander thought to himself before remembering something important, …unless of course you live on a Hellmouth in which case 'crazy' is pretty much a given for everyone to one degree or another.
With that fact being a reality he recalled his earlier suspicions concerning the store manager and wondered if perhaps he might be associated with the men he had killed after the costume dance so long ago. After all who else would arrange for him to get an outfit like this as well as weapons similar to the one he used to kill over five people. Did that mean that they planned to attack him sometime tonight and made sure he got this costume as some kind of message? If they did plan to attack him the question became when and using what method of attack. Would they attack him while he was chaperoning the children around for trick or treating? Or would they wait until afterwards and catch him on the way back to the Summers' home? Would they attack him using the same weapons as they had used to cut down that Japanese family or would they splurge and use modern guns and explosives? Shaking his head in frustration he knew that there was no use fretting over something he couldn't possibly predict. He knew next to nothing about the group he had fought with the night of the exchange program costume dance aside from their skill with weapons a century out of date and their lack of anything resembling basic human morality. Without more information all he would do by worrying like this was get emotionally worked up and spread some anxiety to Buffy and the others when they eventually picked up that something was wrong with him.
However that still left him with the conundrum of what to do with the costume that the owner of "Ethan's" has slipped him in place of the Van Hellsing outfit he had thought he had purchased. Should he wear it go about his business like nothing was the matter or should he toss it in the trash like his more emotional half was yelling at him to do. No. If he did that the people responsible for getting it into his hands might get miffed that he didn't play along with their game and use a somewhat blunt method to tell him they were not to be defied. For all he knew if he didn't wear the outfit like they wanted they might manipulate Snyder into casting him in a school play centered around eighteenth century Japan with a 'realistic' sword fighting scene thrown in for fun. It would probably be a lot worse than that but his mind just wasn't up to overheating itself trying to anticipate just how bloody ruthless the bad guys would be to him to make sure he got their message. With a sigh of resignation he decided that he might as well play along for now. If it did turn out that they intended to ambush him tonight while he was chaperoning the kids he'd at least be armed and if Lady Luck wasn't still mad at him he just might be able to win the fight without any casualties on either side.
On the plus side at least he knew how to put the outfit on this time around since he remembered just about everything Ken'ichi had said to him when he had tried to get the spare costume the exchange student had given him on. There were a few extra articles of clothing and such that had not been a part of his costume dance outfit but he found that once he got the hang of the items he did know how to put on it was easier to figure out the rest. In all it took him about ten minutes to put on the main articles of clothing leaving only a few odds and ends to put on as well as the two weapons he intended to save until last. Picking up the leather armguards he placed the first on his right forearm and after pinning the item in the right position by pressing his forearm against the edge of the box he strapped it in place. Once the same was achieved with the other arm he took the loops at the front end of each guard and slid the middle fingers of the arms they were strapped to through said loops. Testing the feel of the armguards to see how comfortable they'd be on him he was surprised to find out that there was no discomfort coming from them at all. If he didn't know better he might almost say that they actually felt familiar, comforting, on his forearms. Kind of like putting on a pair of gloves that felt exactly like another pair you once wore a few years earlier.
Next came the light-red-almost-orange haired wig and that was a bit harder to figure out as the first few times he tried it on it felt like it would fall off. It wasn't until he noticed the small metal clip on things along the inner edge of the wig that he realized what was supposed to hold the mess of hair in place. It proved to be about as easy as trying to button up a shirt one handed to lock all the clip-on things onto a secure clump of hair but eventually the wig was secure enough that it would take a pretty strong yank to get it off his head. It was a spur of the moment decision though that caused him to take one of his old black belts, snip off an inch or two of it off including the buckle and then use the piece to tie the long mess of hair into a half-assed ponytail that sat high on his head. It wasn't anything crazy like standing straight up vertically in the air but rather it was arranged that if someone were to draw a straight line the pony tail would line up perfectly with the middle of his nose. It was roughly in the same spot that Ken'ichi had tried to put that topknot thing with his hair when the exchange student had gone to the dance dressed up as a traditional samurai. This way at least he might not get confused quite so much for a girl since only buff or rich or buff rich guys grew their hair this long and had said long hair done up in a cool looking ponytail a la Duncan MacLeod of Highlander fame. Add to that the fact that Halloween was the one night of the entire year when you could dress like a complete ass-clown and not be ridiculed for it the next day.
Then he came to the third last part of the outfit that he would have to put on which was the mysterious plastic case that was roughly the size of a harmonica but was rounded into half-circles at either end. The only reason he could think of for the item to be in a plastic case rather than just packed in the box like the clothes and armguards was that this piece of his outfit needed to be kept clean. With his curious nature getting the better of him he picked up the plastic container and gently opened it up. It was with some surprise and a little interest that he found two contact lenses inside soaking in lubricating solution or something. He himself had never seen contact lenses in person as no one he knew had eye trouble but he had seen enough commercials for them on TV that he knew both what they were for and roughly how to put them on. Carefully picking one up he saw that it was tinted a violet-purplish color which he imagined was meant to make his irises appear to be that color when he put them on. Looking at the contact from various angles he was surprised to find that when light was prevented from hitting it and it was in darkness or shadow it somehow managed to change color going from violet to a golden amber color. An odd little feature for the contact lenses to have but one that made one fact perfectly clear for him above all else. Whoever the manager of "Ethan's" was working for they knew about his nightmare somehow and knew enough to have this costume prepared for him. How this was possible he didn't know but he suspected that either they had a precognitive person with them or were responsible for him having it in the first place. The idea that somehow someone was able to enter his mind and induce such realistic nightmares in him scared him badly. After all if they were capable of a nightmare like that who knew if they could make such dreams even more vivid and realistic than his nightmare had been for him.
Something tells me when those samurai rejects finally stop playing around and come right at me I won't like what they have to say. Xander thought to himself as he walked over to a mirror hanging on one of the walls in his room and carefully began putting the contact lenses in.
After a few hit and miss tries, as well as some choice words for the people who invented the contact lenses, he finally got both of them in and positioned so that it looked like his eyes were naturally a violet-purplish color. Looking in the mirror he had to think that he looked a little too like the Anime characters he had seen on TV given the combination of hair and eye colors. After all human eyes in this reality came in a limited number of colors: green, blue, brown and hazel. Only unnatural things and demons had eyes of a color not of these four. Still when one went out for Halloween the ordinary or commonplace wasn't something you had to take into consideration when choosing a costume.
With almost all the contents of the box now on him all that was left was the katana and the wakizashi both of which still lay where he had first seen them in the box. As he reached for the katana a bout of unease and anxiety came over him as a question popped up in his mind. Were these weapons as sharp as the katana he used to kill those men the night of the costume dance or were they dull like movie props or display pieces? After all even the most realistic looking movie prop or most detailed accessory for a costume generally had a dull edge. It was a common sense precaution since no actor could be given enough training time during the course of a movie being made to be considered skilled enough in a sword's use to allow them to use a real one. No movie producer or actor would ever want to risk their careers by using real weapons since the risk that the person would cut themselves up by 'accident' would be fairly high. The same way of thinking could be applied to the people who rented or bought realistic looking costumes for Halloween. No owner of the store where the costume was displayed would want to risk getting sued and the costume wearer would hardly want to risk hurting themselves by accident. While he was still unsure of whether or not the store manager and the team of ten bandits were connected he had a feeling that he would find both blades sharp and ready for use. Picking up the katana he brought it up before his eyes and with one hand on the handle and the other on the sheath he pulled the sword out exposing the blade for him to see. With a feeling of light dread his hunch was now confirmed since the blade did indeed appear to be razor sharp with the edge so thin that he almost couldn't see it. Pulling it completely from its sheath he held the katana straight up and watched the light play off of the blade.
Time to do the field test to make sure my eyes aren't playing tricks on me. He thought to himself as he dropped the sheath and gripped the katana's handle with both his hands.
After looking about the room for a suitable target that he could effectively excuse as an accident to Mrs. Summers later he finally settled on an old wooden coat rack that had been left behind from when the room had been used for storage. If either Buffy or Joyce asked later what had happened to it he could claim he had been swinging the fake, blunt, swords around and broke the rack in two. It was perfectly feasible when taking his goofy personae into account and the fact that neither of them would even think it possible for him to do anything on purpose with a weapon. Holding the sword more like a baseball bat rather than a weapon he pulled it back and with a homerun swing he managed to slice through the wooden 'neck' of the coat rack. It wasn't one of those perfectly clean cuts like you might see in so many movies where someone uses a sword to cut through a metal pipe like a hot knife through butter. Nevertheless the blade had indeed managed to cut through the wood rather than simply breaking it in two like you might expect if he had taken an actual baseball bat to the coat rack.
If they're both this sharp and capable of that kind of damage in the hands of someone like me then there's no way they could be just props. Xander thought to himself as he picked up the sheath and slid the blade back inside, Whoever 'convinced' the owner of Ethan's to give me this obviously believed I'd be needing real weapons tonight rather than fake replicas.
Just then a knock at his bedroom door shattered his concentration and he quickly decided to leave any further speculation as to what the true purpose behind the costume switch was until later when he got back from chaperoning.
"Xander? You decent?" came Buffy's inquisitive voice through the door.
"Depends. If you asking about my grades I'm afraid not." Xander replied in his usual goofy way, "But if your asking whether or not I'm dressed or not then yeah."
Buffy giggled a bit at his humor as the door opened but when she took in what he was wearing and the two swords visible the humor vanished only to be replaced by wariness. No doubt she was flashing back to when he had stumbled home carrying the little boy Shinta covered in blood and badly hurt. Not only did she probably perceive that night as a failure on her part to protect one of her friends but also as something that he should be discouraged from repeating in the future.
"Look Buffy I know what you're thinking. You think that this is the last costume I should have chosen given what happened the last time I wore an outfit like this." Xander said before the Slayer could get a word in, "The way I see it though is I can either run away from that night or I can step right up, stare it the face and then spit in its face. Face it or hide from it. Personally I'm sick of running."
He knew that what he was saying was a load of bullshit since he wanted nothing more than to forget that night ever happened. Taking that entire day and night into account the only good thing that happened was that steamy kiss with Megumi at the Bronze. However he knew that if he didn't come up with a feasible reason quickly for his choice in costume Buffy was going to get inquisitive and more than a little demanding. She would ask where he got the costume and as soon as he told her what happened she would insist that they go back to the shop for some answers. That wasn't a good course of action though because not only would it anger those parties that had the shop owner arrange for him to get the costume but it would also get them all in trouble with Snyder. So until he had a better grip on the situation and the gang had some time to do something about it without that impotent Nazi giving them trouble for their effort he would play it cool and try to keep his friends' minds on the better things in life.
"So you guys almost ready?" he asked as slid both the katana and the wakizashi under his belt and arranged them as the manager of the Meiji exhibit had shown him.
"N-no, not yet. We just got back so it'll take us a few minutes to get ready." Buffy replied as she shook her head free of the memories the clothes he wore and weapons he possessed invoked in her.
"Are we talkin' a few minutes normal time or are we talkin' a few minutes teenage girl time?" Xander asked rhetorically with false seriousness, "'Cause if we're talkin' teenage girl time those kids are going to have grandkids by the time we get there."
"Real minutes you goof!" Buffy replied with a barely suppressed laugh as she punched him lightly in the right shoulder, "Head downstairs and wait okay?"
Nodding in acceptance of her answer to his half serious inquiry about how long it would take for her and Willow to be ready he leisurely walked out of his room and down the stairs. The sun was beginning to set outside turning the skies from sea blue to a fiery orange and for a moment he was reminded of another dusk just like this and what had happened to him then. He sincerely hoped that things turned out differently because not only did the last evening like this end with many innocent people dead but he almost joined them if not for a swell of good luck on his part. However luck like that rarely came to a person twice and so he hoped that if trouble did stir tonight that Buffy would be close enough so that the Slayer could save the day rather than him.
"Xander? Is that you?" came a familiar matronly voice from behind him.
Turning around he saw Joyce Summers all dressed up like a professional businesswoman with a snow-white business suit that looked like it had been tailored specifically to fit her and her alone. Add to that fact that she had gotten a new hair-doo causing her hair to flow completely straight down either side of her head ending just above her shoulders and he would have to say that whoever she was doing business with her tonight would cave under the icy look the clothes and hair gave the woman. In any case though it was definitely a change from the 'conservative mother and businesswoman' look she usually wore with the curly hair and standard middle class clothes. With this outfit she looked like a C.E.O of a major multi-national company or the queen of some small country somewhere. Personally he liked the new look and hoped that she stuck with it because it definitely worked for her in his opinion.
"Yeah it's me Mrs. Summers." Xander replied as he tried to look casual in his costume even though that would be pretty hard given that he had only once before worn something like this.
He could tell from the look on her face that Joyce was having the same thoughts as Buffy concerning his choice in costume but just as he was about to give her the same spiel as the Buffster when something in the older Summers' eyes stopped him. It was a look that seemed to convey to him that she would not pry into the matter and that if he felt it was okay to wear that particular costume she was okay with it. With that potential situation defused before it could get out of hand both of them relaxed a bit more.
"Well I must say that you look quite honorable in that outfit." Joyce said with a motherly grin.
"Thanks and may I say that you look quite sophisticated as well as capable of running a worldwide business empire." Xander said complimenting the older woman on her choice of attire for this evening.
"Thanks. I'm having a small Halloween party over at the gallery with a few noteworthy artists." Joyce said as looked at the watch on her right wrist to double-check the time, "If they like what they see tonight I might just get a serious windfall of business."
"Well I'm sure Buffy will like that." Xander replied with a grin at the puzzled look on the woman's face, "After all more money coming in means a bigger allowance for her which means more clothes and mocha lattes."
Joyce smiled and giggled a bit at before saying "I'm sure she will until I tell her that the extra money will be going into her college fund and not her pocket."
Now it was Xander who had to chuckle a bit at the image that sprang to the front of his mind featuring Buffy and her reaction to her mother putting extra money where she couldn't get to it instead of simply handing it right to her.
"Well you have a nice night Xander." Joyce said as she picked up her purse from a table near the front door, "I have to get to the gallery early to make sure that Sophie has everything set up correctly for the party tonight."
"Okay. See you later Mrs. S." Xander said as she walked out the door and it closed behind her.
Now what to do to kill time until Buffy and Willow finally decide what color eye shadow goes with which color lipstick. Xander thought to himself as he idly perused the things he could see from the bottom of the stairs.
First he began to catalogue all the things he could see that Tony would have either destroyed or hocked in one of his drunken stupors and then he tried to figure out where in the living room Buffy most likely preferred to sit when she was there. Not the most interesting way to pass the time but it was preferable to trying to deduce who his unknown enemies were and what they wanted. Too much time dwelling on them caused the fear, the fear led to snappiness and the snappiness led to both Buffy and Willow grilling him until he spilled the beans. As much as he would like to bring the others in on this he knew that whatever he had gotten himself into was likely outside the range of the Slayer's mandate and would be too much for the novice wicca to handle. Add to that the fact that if the others began to actively search for or confront these unknown enemies they might earn a spot near the top of the 'to be killed' list and he would not allow that to happen. So long as he was their only target the others were safe and he would do anything to keep it that way.
It was about twenty-five minutes to four in the afternoon before he heard footsteps coming towards the steps and when he looked to see who it was he was forced to re-evaluate his opinion of all things of the non-clingy form fitting variety.
"Buffy! Lady of Buffdom, Duchess of Buffonia, I am in awe! I completely renounce spandex!" he exclaimed as she really did look like royalty in the dress.
"Thank you, kind sir." Buffy responded with a bad curtsie before turning to look at the top of the stairs, "But wait till you see..."
Looking to where Buff was indicating he wondered what had the Slayer so cheerful and almost had to laugh as all the pieces finally came into view. Based on the last bit of the conversation he had managed to overhear at the costume shop and Buffy's behavior now he guess that the blonde had tried to get Willow to dress up as something distinctly not-Willowy. However after years of friendship and numerous Halloweens he knew exactly what his best friend would dress up as and how slim the chances were that the redhead would ever go as anything else.
"Hi." Willow said from the top of the stairs covered from head to toe in a ghost costume with the word 'Boo!' written across the front.
"...Casper." Buffy says finishing her earlier statement although this half of that statement had the unmistakable tone of disappointment.
"Hey, Will! That's a fine boo you got there." Xander said trying to minimize the effect Buffy's disappointment would have on the redhead by putting forth a sincere compliment.
Unfortunately his positive compliment had the unforeseeable side-effect of directing his best but since pre-school's attention directly at him and that resulted in a near identical look to the one that Buffy had on her face when she first beheld his costume. Internally groaning at having to reassure yet another person that he was alright and didn't want the 'are you sure' lecture he decided to say nothing and just head for the door. Hopefully Willow would get the hint and not start her interrogation until after they were done chaperoning the kids. At least by then he might have some chocolate of his own to keep him calm while they gave him the third degree.
Yet another thing to thank my mysterious enemies for! He thought to himself as he heard both Willow and Buffy calling for him to wait up, Spoiling the one night of the year centered when I can drown myself in the sugary goodness that was trick or treat candy! We are talkin' some serious payback when I get my hands on them!
Sunnydale High School, Hallway Leading to the Student Lounge, 4:05p.m"Well, well, well! What do we have here?" said Principal Snyder as he spotted the three of them coming down the hall at a brisk jog, "A trio of latecomers who apparently don't know how to tell time."
"Sorry we got—" Willow tried to say in an effort to explain why they were late but was immediately cut off by a 'glare' and 'pointy finger' combo from Snyder.
"I don't care! I have half a mind to just sign you all up for detentions for being so late." Snyder said with his 'prison warden' voice before a distinctly unpleasant smile blossomed on his face, "Unfortunately I still have three groups of children that are without chaperons so I'll let you go this once. Now come with me so I can assign you your group."
Xander looked to Willow and Buffy asking them with his eyes whether or not it would be worth it for all three of them to turn tail and run. Sadly both of them shook their heads in the negative and looked resigned to whatever fate Snyder had in store for them. Not one to abandon his friends to the torturous punishments of Herr Snyder he plodded along with them determined that he would share in the misery that the Principal had in store for them.
As the turned the corner there was a large collection of about fifteen kids and while his math told him that meant they would likely be divided into groups of five apiece their appearances made him reign in his optimism. They were all obviously from families in the lower middle class bracket and with the exception of four of them the rest had very homemade costumes that had been very hastily put together. The ones that had the store bought costumes were only slightly better off because thanks to the devoted booze hounds his deceased parents had been he recognized the cheap brand costumes they wore right away. What explained Snyder's good mood though was the look that each and every one of the children had in their eyes and on their faces. It was the look born of learning the cold hard realities of life early and accepting them because no one told them otherwise. In essence it looked like Snyder had left the bottom of the barrel, the troublemakers, for the Scooby gang to take out trick or treating. No doubt he was hoping for either Willow, Buffy or himself to lose their cool and do something to the kids that would warrant expulsion. After all kids like these either reacted very well or very poorly to authority figures of any kind and what was a chaperon but an authority figure. That meant lots of attitude from some of them and the rest would probably act like scared mice half the time cringing whenever spoken to no matter how gentle the voice used. In short all three of the Scoobies would be walking one helluva tightrope for the next two hours trying to both be a dutiful chaperon to these kids and not do anything to give Snyder an excuse to exercise his authority as principal of Sunnydale High School.
Looks like things just got a little more interesting. Xander thought to himself as Snyder called out the names of the kids that would be in his group.
Once Snyder had finished with him and gone over to give Willow her brats – er kids – he decided to try and get off on the right foot with these kids by giving them a few words of wisdom from his past as a successful trick or treater.
"Okay, on sleazing extra candy: tears are key. Tears will normally get you the double-bagger. You can also try the old 'you missed me' routine, but it's risky. Only go there for chocolate. Understood?" Xander asked once he finished outlining the basics that he had learned over many October thirty-firsts.
In response to his inquiry about whether or not all five of his little tots understood him most nodded with half-assed enthusiasm but one kid dressed up like a pirate raised his hand.
"Yes, do you have a question me hearty?" Xander asked in his best pirate voice in the hopes of curbing any bad behavior from the kid.
"Why did you dress like a girl? Are you gay?" the kid asked in a tone that said 'I might piss you off but touch one hair on my head and I will sue' bluntly and with no room for misinterpretation.
Oooohhhh yeah! That Brit owner of the store is going to have some serious explaining to do when this night is over! Xander thought to himself as refrained from rolling his eyes at the question, Him and the people that hired him to switch my perfectly good macho Van Hellsing costume for this!
Back Room, Ethan's Costume Shop, 5:00p.m"The stage is set, all the actors are ready and on stage, so there is only one thing left to do." Ethan said to himself as he knelt before the bust of Janus and prepared to activate the spell he had been commissioned to cast.
He had already gone through the rites to gain Lord Janus' attention earlier in the day after he had closed the shop but now it was time to actually put things in motion. One might say that the earlier rites that he performed were the equivalent to him telling the God of Chaos he had five minutes before the curtain went up. Now, at this precise moment, was the time to grab hold of the correct rope and pull the curtains apart so that the show could begin and his objective to be completed. His employer hadn't specified just how long the spell had to last only that one specific costume must be worn by one specific young American lad no matter what when the magic began. With no set time limit in place the chaos mage resolved that he would do his best to ensure that the spell lasted at least until midnight if not sunrise. That would give him plenty of time to enjoy the chaos wrought by such a diverse collection of heroes, villains and creatures rampaging about the streets tonight.
"Janus, evoco vestram animam. Exaudi meam causam. Carpe noctem pro consilio vestro. Veni, appare et nobis monstra quod est infinita potestas." Ethan chanted as he began to speak the words that would unleash a storm of chaos upon the streets of Sunnydale, "Persona se corpum et sanguium commutandum est. Vestra sancta praesentia concrescet viscera. Janus! Sume noctem!"
With the speaking of the final words the chaos mage felt a wellspring of magical power flow through his body and into the bust of Janus in front of him. With the influx of power the eerie emerald glow that had been present in the stone edifice brightened considerably almost to the point where all other sources of light were unnecessary to light up the room.
"Showtime!" Rayne said with glee and a little fatigue as he felt the invisible pulses of chaos magic ripple outwards from the bust to ensnare all those wearing costumes bearing the mark of Janus.
Leaving 1428 Elm Street, Sunnydale, Ten Seconds Later"So what did the nice young lady give you guys?" Xander asked as his troupe of lower middle class kids returned from their latest request for either a trick or a treat.
"A chocolate bar and a bag of chips!" replied one of the kids who had been so timid when they started out but had opened up a bit under the ol' Xander charm.
"Yeah! Nancy was real nice!" said another with a small smile albeit somewhat dampened by the scars in the little girl's mind.
"Yeah you can always count on nice things from her." Xander said in agreement even if he thought that the young woman in her early twenties was hiding something, "Let's hit a couple more houses alright? We only have a few more minutes before we have to head back to the school."
"Ahhhhhhh! Do we have to?" asked all five kids in chorus as if they had been practicing for this precise moment for a week.
"Sorry guys! As much as I'd like to take you around all night that balding midget Snyder will be vewy, vewy cross with the both of us if we're not back on time." Xander replied mixing in a little Elmer Fudd to try and make up for the fact that he was about to take them back to lives that were likely not much better than the one he had with Tony and Jessica Harris.
Sadly the five children nodded in acceptance before rushing off to the next house on Elm Street in an attempt to distract themselves with the possibility of getting even more sugary treats to gorge on. Seeing them go he remembered what some of his own Halloweens had been like and how fortunate he had been to have either Jesse or Willow's house to escape to for a time before sneaking home. He wondered if any of these children had someplace to go to in order to escape the troubles at home and be normal happy children even if it was only for a short while.
Look on the bright side Harris! At least your mysterious bad guys haven't shown up yet. Xander thought as he kept half his attention on the kids and the other half on his surroundings, With a little luck you'll have the kids back to Snyder and have some good fun with the gang before those samurai rejects show up to ruin things.
Sadly the young Harris lad should have known that by thinking such things you were practically daring the forces of bad luck and chaos to try and mess things up. This was proven to be true when not more than two seconds later an unseen force slammed into him from behind knocking him to his knees. A maelstrom of images, sounds and smells engulfed his mind and muscles throughout his body received memories not their own. Under such an onslaught his body struggled to cope with the strain it was putting him under with both his mouth and his nose taking in as much oxygen as they could and trying to keep vital systems from freezing up out of sheer shock. If he had the time and the strength of mind to look around he could see that other costumed citizens of Sunnydale were going through the same thing as he was to one degree or another. However he could perceive none of this because if his senses weren't on overload from the sudden influx of information they were most certainly desensitized to any new input coming in. For a time it seemed as though his head would explode and moments before the predicted implosion Xander Harris' world faded into tranquil darkness of unconsciousness. However no one around him would know of this for his body did not fall to the ground limp and lifeless as one would expect once a person's mind lost consciousness. Instead it merely remained there on its knees, motionless, except for the steady breathing accompanying the rise and fall of his chest. Eventually though whatever force that had attacked it and caused it to suffer such a shock to its systems had faded and it was able to muster enough strength to rise to its feet. However it was only when the form raised its head enough for an observer to see his eyes that they realized it was no longer the kind and goofy sole male founding member of the Scooby gang in control of the body. No, it most certainly was not, for the eyes of violet looked out at the scene before it with an icy coldness that not even the depths of space could hope to match. For this one night an entirely new mind was in control of Xander Harris' body and it would make sure that none who survived its wrath would ever forget his face.
It would be remembered as the night when a demon from the past walked the Earth once more.
A demon called Hitokiri Battousai.