See Chapter One for disclaimer and details. Hello, and welcome. Not much to say today except thanks to everyone who's been reading and reviewing, please keep it up! And now on with the story...
Chapter Seven: Unexpected News
A Place Where Nothing Need Be What It Seems
A Time Meaningless To Mortal Minds
Xander awoke to find himself lying in a ditch somewhere, before he slowly got up and looked around.
The temperature was warm and the air fairly dry; it vaguely reminded Harris of his brief visit to North Africa, when he'd been chasing Drusilla all over the world. Not far away he could smell rice and corn, and the subdued aroma of coffee. ( Where the hell am I? )
"Togo. Or as it's officially known, the Togolese Republic."
Xander whirled around, seeing a blonde woman dressed in white standing behind him. "Who the hell are you?"
The woman didn't say anything for a moment, as she shut her eyes and breathed deeply. "Oh, my. I'd almost forgotten that smell, you know – it's called La Pate, or akume according to the natives around here. When I was scouting demon clans in this part of Africa six years ago, I was surprised to discover just how much they loved that particular food."
Xander cocked his head to one side. "You scouted demon clans?"
"In another life, yes." The woman looked at her companion askance. "I can tell you're not really comfortable here..."
The scene suddenly shimmered, morphing into something completely different. Xander suddenly found himself standing on a beach, alongside an atoll channel. It was a tropical island paradise, with untouched sand and the deep blue waters of the Pacific Ocean visible not far away. ( What the hell-? )
"Kiribati. This was my favorite place in the whole world when I was an ethno-demonologist – well, maybe apart from Uzbekistan," the mysterious blonde subsequently told Xander as she materialized close by his left shoulder.
"All right, lady, let's cut the tourist-y crap," Xander said angrily, clenching his fists and moving into a combat stance. "Who are you, and what is all this? And what do you want with me?"
"You don't remember me, do you?" the blonde asked somewhat sadly. "Well, I suppose that's not surprising. It was over three years ago, after all, and you only saw me for a few moments. Plus, you had your mind on other matters, once you got out of that Chicago jail."
Xander stared at her in a far more guarded way now. "All right, let's try old-fashioned good manners. Hi, my name is Xander Harris. And you are?"
"Harriet Doyle," the blonde replied with another sad look. "But everyone calls me Harry. I'm – sorry, I WAS – Angel's seer, his connection to the Powers That Be."
"You were Dead Boy's seer. Right. What happened? You finally came to your senses and quit the job?" Xander asked facetiously, trying and failing to recall this woman from when he'd been staking out the Hyperion Hotel.
"No, I died just a few minutes ago – when an evil ancient demon which had been reborn into the world murdered me," Harry informed Xander sadly, her white dress suddenly drenched with blood for about three seconds.
Xander stepped back immediately. "You're dead. Okay. So why are you talkin' to me? I quit the habit of talking to dead people after that nutsack Drusilla ended up dust."
Again, the scenery around them shattered and altered into something from nineteenth century London. Xander quickly recognized the old church he now found himself standing in – Dru had led him here one time, saying that this was where her 'Daddy' had found her in 1860. It had been just one episode amongst many, from when the young man had been in seemingly-endless pursuit of his undead quarry.
"You've forgotten what Drusilla said that day, haven't you?" Harry said to Xander sharply. "The day Ms. Burkle saved your life, eighteen months ago. Think back. What did that insane vampire say to you? Try to remember! It's vitally important."
"Really," Xander said distrustfully. "On account of I can't help wondering, why do you care? And why should I just take your word for anything?"
"Because, in a sense, it was your actions that led to my death at Illyria's hands."
That name was vaguely familiar, but Xander didn't have a chance to wonder where he'd heard it from as Harry went on, "During the night of your high school Prom dance – you defied both fate and prophecy, the same way you did when you brought Buffy Summers back from the dead. And as a consequence, you created new destinies for just about everyone you knew back then. If not for you, I would have been alive and kicking in South America right now – and your old girlfriend Cordelia Chase would be dead in my place."
Xander froze at hearing that, but again Harry didn't give him a chance to say anything as she went on, "But that doesn't matter right now. What does matter is that that tree calling itself the Oracle..."
The female ghost gently lifted up Xander's right hand, where the wooden splinter was again glowing with that aquamarine-colored light. "...didn't lie to you. It's a servant of evil, yes, but not a liar – and your presence is definitely needed upon the Hellmouth. Now, please, try to remember. I can't force you to recall what Drusilla said that day – but please, believe me when I say you must force yourself to do so," Harry finished up, staring directly into Xander's chocolate-brown eyes as he focused back on her.
Frowning, Xander stared at his ghostly female acquaintance. The blonde SEEMED sincere, not to mention kind of desperate, so eventually Harris decided to go with his instincts and do as she asked.
"Drusilla said..." Xander trailed off, trying to remember the exact words the crazy vampiress had used when she'd briefly gone precog on him. "She mentioned something about how manners get you a long way in life, as well as in death. As well as something about the places I'll go, the things I'll see...the future, the past, old friends long gone..."
"Exactly," Harry sighed in relief, grabbing Xander's right hand more tightly and a white light briefly encompassing the appendage. "Remember all those things, Xander Harris. Remember them for after Illyria comes to the Hellmouth – because if you fail to stop that Old One, she really will conquer and destroy all the worlds everywhere."
At that moment, Xander finally remembered where he'd heard Illyria's name from – before his entire world dissolved into white light, and he knew nothing more.
The Magic Box, Sunnydale
March 11th, 2004
Xander blinked, finding himself flat on his back – but a second later he was up on his feet, looking around in wary suspicion.
Harris did not recognize Buffy's training area in the back room of the magic shop, for the simple reason that he had never been here before. As quickly as possible, the young man scanned his environment – noting a couple of human bodies on the mats at the other end of the room, a man and a woman from the clothing.
Had Xander looked closer he would have recognized his old high school buddy, Oz, if not Tara Maclay – but instincts derived from living in a demon dimension made Harris decide to get out of this place right now, until he knew more about where he was and what was going on after that freaky dream he'd just had.
A door leading somewhere else was on the other side of the room, near the two unconscious people. A window leading outside into the daylight was right next to him, however. Deciding the shorter route of egress would be more preferable Xander quickly climbed up, opened the window and let himself out into the alley behind the Magic Box.
After he jumped down onto the ground Xander started coughing madly, as the airborne pollution of southern California attacked lungs that had gotten used to the pristine air of Pylea. ( Sweet mamalooshin, where am I? Wherever it is it smells FOUL, like... )
The sound of a car horn blaring madly from not far away quickly brought things into focus for the interdimensional traveller. ( ...like the good ol' U.S. of A. Terrific! )
Finally getting his coughing under control, Xander forced himself to straighten up and proceed to the mouth of the alley. It took less than a second for him to recognize Sunnydale's Main Street and the rest of the old home town, as Harris began walking along Maple Court. Unfortunately, he also started receiving strange looks from his fellow pedestrians, regarding the crude Pylean garments he was wearing.
( Shit. I must stand out like a frickin' sore thumb, dressed like this, ) Xander cursed, once the young man had realized the situation and he started to hurry. ( And that sort of attention's the last thing I damn well need! I gotta go underground... )
"Hey! You over there, hold it! I got some questions to ask you..." a uniformed member of the Sunnydale Police Department suddenly shouted, spotting the strangely dressed human male and quickly deciding to drag him off the streets, as part of his job of trying to contain and cover up the Hellmouth weirdness in this town.
Xander spotted the Sunnydale cop shouting at him, and a number of memories flashed through his mind. Chief among them were Detective Stein and Patrice trying to kill him; as well as the Chicago P.D. arresting him for arson. The 'fight or flight' response was automatic and since he was currently unarmed, Harris started running down the street, uncaring of how loudly the policeman was yelling at him to cease and desist.
Not far away on Main Street, Cordelia again slammed her palm down on the car horn, infuriated at being stuck in traffic like this. ( What's the matter with those people? Can't they get a damn move on? I have places to be, things to do- )
The buxom brunette was subsequently amazed when a dark-haired young man – someone who was WAY too thin for her taste, and whose clothing statement was far too ugly for Cordy to tolerate – jumped up and swiftly slid across the hood of her Beemer. In the half-second before her outrage over the damage to her car would have made the Chase woman explode with blind anger, her hazel eyes slid up to catch a glimpse of the offending cretin's face...
( Oh my God! XANDER! ) Cordelia's mind shrieked in recognition of her former boyfriend, forcing her tongue to go still and slack; a miraculous thing indeed, here and now.
Rubbernecking madly, Cordy tried to catch a glimpse of Harris as he ran with amazing speed – for someone who looked that scrawny to her eyes, anyway – before the young woman performed an illegal U-turn and set off down the street, back the way she'd come.
For his part Xander ducked and weaved through the crowd of pedestrians, bowling over a few unfortunates who either couldn't or wouldn't get out of his way in time. There was no opportunity to be subtle, after all, what with that cop hot on his trail.
Even though he'd been away for five years, Harris still remembered Sunnydale's layout well enough to be able to head for the demon-friendly section of town, a place that would probably better suit his current needs. And once he was sure he'd ditched his pursuer, Harris came to a halt not far from Willy's Bar, huffing and puffing and trying to get his breath back.
A red BMW quickly screeched to a halt beside him, and the passenger door was flung open. "GET IN!" a vaguely familiar female voice shouted.
In a heartbeat, Xander recognized Cordelia's features. Without hesitation, he climbed into the car as the Chase woman roared off even before the door was fully closed.
"GET DOWN! You think I want anyone to see the weirdo riding in my car?" Cordelia hissed at her passenger, as Xander obliged by ducking down and getting an eyeful of those tanned, waxed, and simply incredible legs. Once upon a time, he'd known them well...
"Just stay down until I say it's safe to come up," Cordelia grumbled, deciding to skip her appointment at the beauty parlor for today and heading back to the Chase mansion. She still found it virtually impossible to believe that Xander – someone she had given up for dead, by now – was back, alive and kicking.
But then she had never been one to live in denial after her eyes had been opened to the real truth of this world, and Cordelia suddenly had a million questions she wanted to ask her ex-boyfriend.
4 Parkview Crescent, Sunnydale
A while later
Cordelia used the remote control to open the gates leading to the manor's driveway, and as soon as the BMW had disappeared from public view, she said to Xander, "All right, you can get up now. Nobody can see you here!"
Slowly, as if he didn't trust her reassurances, Xander got up to gaze at his surroundings. Feeling a bit stiff from how long he'd been crouching at such a painful and unnatural angle, Harris said, "You brought me here? I thought you didn't live at your parents' place anymore; the IRS evicted you way back when. So what's the situation?"
"Wha – THAT'S what you want to talk about? Xander, I don't believe this! Where the hell have you been for the last five years?" Cordelia shouted, her emotions quickly slipping out of control.
"Lots of different places," Xander answered quickly, looking around in concern. "Who else lives here now?"
"It's just me and my maid, Lupe, even though she has the day off – hey, wait a minute, DON'T change the subject!" Cordelia fumed. "Damn it, Xander – all this time I thought you must have been killed, or worse, and now I find out you just totally disappeared back then! You couldn't even be bothered to say goodbye to me? What the hell was all that about, doofus?"
"Hey, I tried calling you that night," Xander replied, even though his eyes were still roaming the estate looking for possible dangers. "But you weren't home and there was no machine, so I had to hang up and run for it."
"Run for it? Why? Damn it, Xander, what have you been DOING since high school-?"
"CORDELIA!" Xander suddenly shouted harshly, startling the beauty queen as he looked her right in the eye. "I want you to listen to me very carefully; I didn't come here to answer all your stupid questions, okay? I got into your car because I needed a place to lay low until sunset, before I go see Giles at his place. So can I stay here until then without the third degree, and also borrow some clothes off of you? And just so it's clear, if you say no, then I'm gonna leave straightaway – and odds are you'll never see me again. So what's it gonna be?"
Cordelia gaped at her former boyfriend, unable to believe he actually had the audacity to talk to her like that. A shrewd judge of character, Cordy could nonetheless tell that he wasn't kidding – Xander would leave, and without a second thought, if she gave him the wrong answer. So swallowing her ire, the Chase woman surrendered to the big jerk's demands and just tried to make the best of the situation.
"Alright, fine, you can stay – no questions asked. At least for now," Cordelia grumbled, throwing up her hands in disgust as both she and Xander got out of the car. "Look, why don't you get rid of the chamois look and go take a shower, while I find something suitable for you to wear? And then – my God, mister, but when was the last time you had a decent meal? You look like skin and bones, almost! Whatever it is you've been eating lately..."
"Actually, I ate a roasted demon lizard just yesterday," Xander informed her as Cordelia unlocked the front door on the mansion.
( Roasted demon lizard? Is he serious? Oh. My. Lord. What the hell have I just gotten myself into? ) Cordy shuddered, as she closed the door behind them.
Sunnydale High School, Sunnydale
The same time
It was the end of the school day, and Dawn was sitting on the railing of the stairs leading down to the street. Buffy had told her she was going to be delayed today with the staff meeting, as was Giles, so she should wait outside for Angel to pick her up and take her home. To pass the time the human incarnation of the Key was re-reading her favorite book, Cassandra: Tales of a Cheerleading Demon Slayer.
The book had been in print now for about six months, and it had achieved some fairly good reviews. The publishers were still waiting to see just how well the first novel would sell before giving Cordy any advance money to write the sequel, which was tentatively titled Alexis: Hunting The Wild Vampire; but according to Cordelia's mini-website at www dot randomhouse dot com – she wasn't exactly famous as an author yet – the next novel was already a much-anticipated work-in-progress.
( It's too bad how I can't tell Kit or Carlos that I'm actually a character in this book, ) Dawn briefly smirked as she turned to that section of the text where 'Donna' was arguing with her sister 'Babs' over how she was going to marry 'Adrian' one day; the character who was based on the one and only Alexander Harris. ( I mean it's kinda funny reading how, back then, I practically worshipped the ground Xander walked on! Or at least that's the way Cordy saw it, anyway. )
Dawn then focused on one of her favorite chapters in the book, and began to read.
Alexis, the devilishly handsome vampire with a soul, stared at the smoking, blasted ruins of the mall as Cassandra began to attack the few remaining shell-shocked demons and soulless undead.
To be honest, Alexis still didn't get it. How had that acid-tongued slip of a girl done this? None of her predecessors had ever come up with the idea of using explosives, of all things, against the enemy. But then Cassandra wasn't exactly a traditional Demon Slayer...
Alexis thought back to their first meeting; how the girl had initially been attracted to him, almost from the first moment their eyes had met in that demon-infested nightclub. But then, oh, how quickly that attraction had turned to revulsion once Cassandra had discovered that he too was a demon.
One cursed with a human soul, yes, but still a creature of the night. One of the things she was destined to Slay.
It had pained him to witness Cassandra's rejection after she'd figured out what he was; Alexis had to admit, the brunette vixen had definitely caught his eye. Had he been the man he was four hundred years ago, most likely Alexis would have asked her father for Cassandra's hand in marriage by now. But alas, he hadn't been human for over three centuries, and besides; the Demon Slayer was a product of the modern world, a female teenager who refused to let any man dominate her or give her orders in any way.
Tsk. These modern girls...
So Alexis had been forced to skulk in the shadows, and help however he could through intermediaries – namely Cassandra's friends; Adrian, Wendy, and Barbara (or Babs, as the blonde girl insisted on calling herself for some reason that Alexis was sure he would never understand).
"Donna!" Alexis yelled, catching sight of the little girl who had become separated from her sister in the aftermath of the explosions. He quickly leapt into action, delivering a punishing right hook to the soulless demon looking to drain her dry, before yanking the child aside. "Come on!"
"Alexis?" the dark-haired pre-teen mumbled, still dazed by the recent explosions within the mall.
"Adrian!" the vampire barked at the Demon Slayer's male friend, who quickly took Donna off his hands and delivered her to Babs – thus allowing Alexis to start fighting at the Slayer's side.
"Donna!" Babs hugged her little sister in sheer relief. The female teen then looked at her male friend. "You found her?"
"No, Alexis did," Adrian replied distractedly, looking out onto the scene of battle. He was worried about Cassandra's safety, and it showed, but all he said was, "Man, I'm glad that that vampire's on our side!"
"Me too," said Wendy, her eyes wide as she took in the vicious conflict.
"Same here..." Babs then thought to herself with a heartfelt romantic sigh, 'Ooh, that hunk would be sooo worthy of me...'
The blonde cheerleader, who was currently dating a musician named David, apparently didn't seem to have any problem with the concept of being unfaithful to her boyfriend...
"Hey, Dawn, you ready to go?"
Briefly disoriented, Miss Summers lowered the book and said, "Yeah, Alexis – I mean, Angel! I definitely meant to say 'Angel'. Sorry, I was just reading..."
"The one book which Buffy absolutely hates?" the former vampire smirked, before his expression turned serious. "Come on, Dawn; you must have read that thing at least a dozen times by now. Why? Why does it fascinate you so much?"
"Maybe it's 'cause it reminds me of when my mom was still alive," Dawn answered honestly, as they headed for Angel's black convertible. "And you have to admit, Cordelia's got quite an imagination! When I first bought the novel, y'know, I was expecting something like...well, Cordy sorta just copying what Buffy did in the past using a fake name of her own. But it's not like that; the book is all about her describing how different it all could have been! Like you never losing your soul, back when you were a vampire..."
Angel didn't say anything as he and Buffy's sister quickly left the Sunnydale High campus; those memories were still too painful for him to contemplate for very long. The events surrounding Buffy's seventeenth birthday – damn it, what SHOULD have been an expression of true love in its purest form, had become a nightmare of death and destruction after Angelus had initiated his four-month rampage against Sunnydale's citizens.
"Hey, where are we going?" Dawn suddenly asked, as the Plymouth went past Hadley Street. "This isn't the way home..."
"I know. We're just going to stop off at the Magic Box for a bit first," Angel said apologetically.
"Why? You think buying Buffy something from there will help her get over that lovers' quarrel you two had at breakfast this morning?" Dawn asked with a pointed look. Off Angel's astonished expression, she added, "Oh, please, I may be tardy – but I'm not deaf! Seriously, Angel, what's up?"
Angel stared at his girlfriend's kid sister, before reminding himself that Dawn wasn't exactly much of a kid anymore. ( She's practically the same age Buffy was when we slept together for the first time... ) "Dawn – did Xander ever tell you how he managed to stay part of the group for three years, what with the way he used to get knocked down by the bad guys practically all the time?"
Dawn frowned and shook her head. "No, not really. But hey, I noticed how Xander always used to deflect attention from himself with all those jokes he used to make! And Buffy was a totally different person then; she hated being the Slayer, she just wanted a normal life – so she was willing to accept anybody's help during high school. But nowadays..."
"It's completely different, I know. Believe me, I've seen how Buffy does her best to make sure you stay out of anything even remotely...uh, Hellmouth-y," Angel briefly grimaced over his choice of wording, and how his vocabulary was becoming more 'Californian' the longer he was human.
"Tell me about it," Dawn said grouchily, even though she knew her big sister was just trying to look out for her as best as she could. "Why the interest about Xander, Angel?"
"Well, it's just that lately...I've been wondering where I fit in," the man confessed. "I mean, that job I had teaching History at UC Sunnydale didn't last long; everything associated with academia either bored me to tears, or else drove me insane – having to deal with those university bureaucrats and their delusions of power, it was just..."
"Sounds just like dealing with the teachers at Sunnydale High," Dawn wisecracked, but then she blushed as Angel sent her a Look. "Sorry. So I guess what you're trying to say is, you've discovered how a normal life isn't exactly all it's cracked up to be? What, does that mean...you're gonna break up with Buffy or something?"
"NO! No, Dawn, please don't think that," Angel said hastily in order to reassure her. "I love your sister; I always have, and always will. In fact, I'm planning to ask Buffy to marry me..."
"YOU ARE?" Dawn squealed excitedly, turning to face the man sitting next to her.
"Well, I didn't want to rush things too much. We haven't been together for all that long yet," Angel explained. "But yeah, I'm planning to propose once I get my own life fully straightened out. Just keep that under your hat for now, though, okay? Don't spoil the surprise or anything, that's all I ask."
"Oh, totally! You can trust me, lips totally zipped here," Dawn drew her fingers across her mouth to illustrate her point. But on the inside, the adolescent female was still bubbling with excitement. ( My God, a wedding! Hopefully, there's gonna be lots of cute eligible boys there. Willow's gonna be chief bridesmaid, of course, but I'm sure Tara and I will still have lots to do as bridesmaids in our own right. Giles is, like, certain to walk Buffy down the aisle, just like when she and Spike got engaged that one time, and – wait, who's gonna be Angel's best man? It's not like he has a lot of guy friends around here – maybe he'll ask that Wesley person from LA... )
"We're here," Angel said as he guided his car to a stop outside the Magic Box. The ex-vampire then started to look concerned as he and Dawn got out and walked to the occult store's front door. Angel subsequently said, "It's a bit early for the shop to be closed, isn't it?"
Frowning at the CLOSED sign and testing the door handle, Dawn got out her key; the one which she had kept from when she'd worked at the Magic Box last summer. She quickly let herself in as Angel followed the Key inside the store, before he called out, "Tara? Are you here?"
"Something's wrong. Today's money is still in the cash register," Dawn announced after checking the machine. She knew that Tara never left her earnings just sitting around unguarded; something like that was just tempting fate concerning thieves of either the mundane or supernatural variety. "I'll check the back room, you check the basement!"
"Be careful," Angel cautioned her before he quickly went downstairs.
Dawn hurried into Buffy's training area. Straightaway, she discovered Willow's girlfriend and her ex-boyfriend flat on their backs, almost side by side on one of the mats – and still completely out cold.
Even though she knew that both Tara and Oz preferred their significant other to be of the female persuasion, Dawn could not help wondering, ( Holy shit! Are those two sleeping together, or what? )
TBC...
