CHAPTER TEN

"He's back," Dawn said excitedly as she jumped up from the table in the lab. She ran out the door before anyone could stop her.

"She's acting president," Giles replied. "She really shouldn't be wandering around alone."

"I'll go," Angel said as he stood. "I've got nothing on this right now anyhow." Dawn was already crossing the lobby when Angel reached the top of the stairs. "Hey," he called. "You need to stay inside."

"There is security everywhere," she replied. "I'm fine."

"Giles wants you protected," he said. "And so do I."

"Do you always do what everyone tells you?" she asked mockingly.

"Please," he pleaded, changing his approach.

"That's not fair," she replied.

"He'll be here in a minute," he stated. "We'll talk why we wait."

"Really?" she questioned with a strange look. "I don't think we've ever talked."

"Maybe you're right," he replied. "I'm sorry about that."

"So what do we talk about?" she questioned.

"Are you and Gunn serious?" he asked.

She immediately blushed deeply. "I…uh…," she stumbled with her words. Her expression changed. "Seriously? That's how you want our first talk to start?"

"I should have known about you two," he replied with embarrassment. "I didn't. Not until recently. But, I am told you are very good together."

"This is bordering on creepy," Dawn said with a grimace.

"I'm sorry," he stated. "I'm saying this wrong. He never says a bad word about the work anymore. He smiles. He's pleasant. And it's all a lie. Gunn feels an obligation to me. So he stays at a place that he despises."

"You want to fire him?" Dawn asked.

"No," Angel replied. "I want to release him. If you and he are serious, maybe Xander could find room here for him. That's why I asked my question. I don't want to push you two into something if that's not where you're at."

"I would love it if he came here to work," she said. "We've talked about it. But, he won't leave you."

"He will," Angel replied. "I promise."

"You're wrong if you think all he feels is obligation," she stated. "He considers you his best friend. Wesley was. Then he wasn't. Then he was again. But he's gone. And I don't think Charles has had many friends in his life. I would hate to take him away from his closest."

"His coming to work here doesn't mean we won't be friends," Angel stated as the front doors opened. Xander and Rolph stepped inside.

"OH MY GOD!" Dawn said as she looked at Xander.

"Ohhhh," Angel said.

Xander had lost thirty pounds since she saw him last. His hair was jet black and gray. She moved towards him apprehensively wanting to hug him but afraid she may break him. "Your eye," she finally said. "It's back."

"Faith fixed me," he replied weakly.

"She….?" Dawn started to question and looked to Rolph. "You found her?" Rolph shook his head quickly. As Xander's eyes began to fill with tears, the floor began to shake. Dawn and Angel looked around as the huge, ornate chandelier above them began to sway.

"Xander," Rolph said as he stepped in front of him. "Calm down." Xander looked into Rolph's eyes blankly. "Dawn is happy to see you. Take a breath." Angel and Dawn exchanged a fearful look. The shaking slowed.

"Xander," Dawn screeched before moving to him and wrapping her arms around him.

"I didn't save her," he whispered. The ground shook again.

"We will," she replied. The shaking stopped. "Xander. Your hair. Your skin. You look so weak."

"I'm stronger than I look," he said softly.

"You're scaring me," she stated.

"I would never hurt you," he said as he pushed her back.

"I know that," she replied. "I mean I'm scared For you. Your power. It's hurting you."

"It's the only way I can save her," he replied.

"No," Dawn said softly. "You can save her by letting us all help. The way we always do. There's nothing we can't beat, when we're together." She smiled wide. He joined her.

"Xander," Angel said with an extended hand. "Good to see you."

Xander took it and shook. "Didn't expect they'd call you in," he stated.

"We didn't," Dawn replied. "He showed up first. Lorne had a vision."

"About Faith?" Xander questioned.

"About the world," Dawn said. Angel nodded.

"So this Is about something more," Xander stated. "Someone was controlling the vampire. That much I knew. And Otto."

"Otto?" Angel asked.

"The German I met," Xander replied. "He had to leave, quickly."

"Xander," Angel said with concern, "I understand what it feels like to have power. Real power. But, he was a human."

"He was evil," Xander responded plainly. "I smelled it the second I sat down. He was cruel. And his eyes advertised that murder was something he was very familiar with. And he knew about Faith."

"So you killed him?" Dawn asked angrily.

"He deserved it," Xander replied without emotion.

Suddenly, Dawn's hand flew fast and hard and slapped Xander's face loudly snapping his head to the side. "STOP IT!" she yelled.

Angel and Rolph both moved fast to protect her. Xander tilted his head from side to side before lifting it and looking towards Dawn. But his eyes never left the floor. "Calm down," Rolph warned as he reached for his taser.

"I'm sorry, Dawn," Xander said before turning away from everyone and walking towards the staircase. He slowly climbed the stairs.

"XANDER!" Dawn yelled. "I'm sorry. This isn't you." He kept climbing. "I'm sorry."

"I love you, Dawnie," Xander's voice drifted down.

"Dawn," Rolph said softly but emphatically. "Don't ever do that again."

"I wasn't trying to hurt him," she replied ashamedly.

"I don't care about that," Rolph said. "He has powers now. And he isn't fully in control of them. He didn't mean to kill that man. That I know. He got mad and something happened. He can't even admit it to himself."

"What happened to him over there?" Dawn asked fearfully.

"I should probably go," Angel said as he backed away.

"No," Dawn said. "Stay. Please."

"This is a conversation that should only happen once," Rolph replied. "I was deciding whether it should happen at all. But, you all deserve to know the extent of what he can do."

"Why?" Angel asked.

"Because, until he can control it," Rolph replied, "you may all be in danger."

i*****

"That's not possible," Willow replied. "And that's coming from someone that skinned a man alive once." Kennedy grimaced and rubbed Willow's back softly.

"Who was with him?" Buffy said suspiciously. She was the only one to pick up on the third person narrative Rolph had just made. "It wasn't you. All the Slayers and their teams are accounted for. So who took this magical mystery tour?" Everyone was now staring at Rolph.

"I cannot say," Rolph replied.

"Because you don't know or because it's classified?" Dawn questioned.

"Nothing that involves the Council or the President is classified from the Board," Giles stated pointedly.

"This is not my secret to tell," Rolph replied. "I answer to the president."

"You ultimately answer to the board," Giles responded quickly.

"Stop it," Dawn said. "If he has a secret, there's a reason."

"Like this little trip to Germany?" Spike questioned. "What would happen if their government declares the attack on their palace a terrorist act, one that involved the president of the Council?"

"They won't," Buffy replied quickly.

"If wishes were horses…," Spike replied.

"Then we'd have a stable," Dawn said pointedly.

"He is not incorrect," Giles stated. "He jeopardized this institution."

"HE BUILT THIS INSTITUTION!" Dawn shouted angrily.

"Dawnie," Xander said from the doorway.

"Oh my….," Kennedy said.

"GOD!" Buffy said as she looked at the frail man in the doorway.

"Magic has a price," Willow said. "You can't….." She couldn't continue as tears started to drip from her eyes.

"Giles is right," Xander stated. "I risked everything to save my …..friend. I put you, all of you, at risk. I can't be president anymore."

"No one is suggesting that," Giles replied.

"If you're not, then you're stupid," Xander said spitefully.

"XANDER!" Buffy shouted.

"I did not realize just how much you have had to handle alone for all these years," Giles stated with embarrassment.

"I wasn't alone," Xander replied.

"This is your Council," Buffy said emphatically.

"I love you, Buffy," Xander said, "but it shouldn't be if I'm putting you at risk."

"The German government isn't going to claim anything," Angel said confidently. "They took an American citizen. They can't exactly explain a supernatural explosion or a hidden basement with ancient cells. They will let this go."

"Will you?" Buffy asked Xander directly.

"As much as I'd like to say the Germans did this," he replied, "it wasn't them. It was a him. And an ancient. And a demon. And who knows what else."

"You are the president," Giles said emphatically. "I just need to know that you are you."

"I'm more than me," Xander replied. "I don't know what that means. Do you?"

"There's a prophecy," Dawn said.

"Isn't there always," Xander said deflated.

"You can control this," Dawn said. "I have NEVER known a stronger man than you." Gunn looked down.

"I just want her back," Xander said with tear filled eyes. Buffy looked down. Angel noticed.

"You should sit," Angel said. "You really don't look well."

"You should see the doc," Dawn stated.

"Already done," Xander said. "Lost some weight. Need some hair dye. Slight fever. But intact. More or less."

"What's the less?" Buffy asked.

"Few broken ribs from the explosion," he said.

"The one you caused?" Spike questioned sarcastically.

"And a pretty bad burn," he added as he held out his hand, revealing a large bandage covering his right hand.

"Your hand wasn't bandaged a second ago," Dawn said confusedly.

"Glamour?" Willow asked. "Xander. You need to stop for a while."

"Why would you hide that?" Dawn questioned.

"How bad?" Gunn asked.

"Reconstructive surgery bad," Xander replied.

"The pain must be incredible," Angel said sadly.

"Are you blocking the pain?" Willow asked.

"As much as I can," Xander replied.

"How did you burn…..?" Kennedy started to ask.

"You Literally made the sun in your palm," Dawn stated.

"Suns are hot," he replied.

"Oh Xander," Dawn said sadly as tears filled her eyes and a lump formed in her throat.

"Alright," Giles stated, "you need to get to hospital, now."

"Later," Xander replied. "What prophecy?"

"Someone is going to use your new powers to destroy everything," Buffy replied, "possibly."

"Vague?" he asked.

"Vague," she replied nodding.

"Do we know who is going to do this?" Xander asked.

"Someone powerful," Willow replied.

"A GUY called you?" he asked.

"Yes"' Buffy replied.

"Why did he call you?" Xander questioned.

"To tell us how to find you," Giles replied.

"We have No idea who he is," Buffy added.

"But he knows about all of us," Angel added. "And I think he's ancient."

"How do you know?" Buffy asked.

"Because he controlled Astansia," Angel stated.

"I have been looking into that name," Giles stated.

"And?" Xander asked.

"She is the oldest vampire in the Council's records," Giles replied. "In fact, she predates the Council. They estimate that she was created around one thousand b.c."

"She told me she was here before Jesus," Xander stated. "That's why holy water, stakes, crosses would have no effect on her."

"Is that true?" Giles asked with disbelief.

"I only know the rumors," Angel replied. "She was ancient. She was ….different."

"Different how?" Dawn asked.

"She was not a soulless killing machine," Spike said.

"I know something I can't know," Xander stated.

"You seem to know a lot of things you can't know," Kennedy commented.

"I know vampires are actually just another species of demon," Xander stated.

"No," Giles replied, "they are not."

"We're not," Spike added quickly.

"In the beginning you were," Xander replied softly. "And just like so many other demons, you do certain terrible things and could only be harmed in certain ways."

"How do you know this?" Dawn asked apprehensively.

"She entered my mind just before…," he replied. "I think part of it stayed there."

Dawn and Buffy both grimaced sadly. "Is it possible that religion fused with the actual physiology of the vampire?" Willow questioned.

"She didjn't know," Xander replied. "But she thought maybe."

"Xander!" Dawn shouted suddenly. "You're bleeding." She jumped up and hurried to the back.

Xander ran his hand under his nose. It came back red. "Has that been happening?" Buffy asked with concern.

"It's nothing," he replied.

"That is not nothing," Giles said. "I need you to listen carefully to me." Dawn returned and handed him a box of Kleenex. "Stop using magic. Stop looking into whatever she left in your mind."

Xander wiped his nose. "Are you still tracking magic?" Xander asked ignoring Giles who took off his glasses and rubbed them with frustration.

"You need to listen to him," Dawn said. Buffy and many others nodded.

"I was, until your dot took over," Willow replied.

"Try again," Xander replied. "Whoever used Astansia must have a lot of power. And Faith is still out there. You need to skrye for her."

"I have been," Willow said, "from the beginning. Nothing shows up. That's why I switched to tracking magic."

"She was right there," Xander said sadly. "If I had been faster….."

"You were fast," Buffy stated. "You flew through walls and floors. No one could have foreseen that. And yet, they still moved her before you got there. How?"

"They didn't march a prisoner out the front door," he said with understanding.

"They got out the same way you did," Willow stated.

"Can you get into the traffic cameras around Berlin?" Xander asked.

"Absolutely not," Giles said angrily. "We are not calling any more attention to ourselves. Not today."

"Where's my computer, Dawnie?" Xander questioned.

"In your office," she replied. "I'll go get it."

"Thanks," he responded. Dawn hurried from the room.

"You are NOT using magicks to hack into a foreign government's system," Giles stated angrily.

"Even If the magic could help with that," Xander replied. "I don't have the skill set.

"What are you going to do?" Gunn questioned.

"Talk to the Slayers," he replied. "And get their eyes out there."

"We sounded the red alert," Buffy stated, "sent everyone into safe mode in case they were targets too."

"That was smart," Xander replied. "Thank you. But, I think they're safe. Well, as safe as we ever are."

"What's the plan?" Angel asked.

"You guys in full on research mode?" Xander questioned.

"Yeah," Willow replied.

"We brought in about twenty of the closest Slayers," Buffy added. She looked at Kennedy and Spike. "We're running training."

"Dawnie's got it handled," he replied as he stood with a groan.

"Where are you going?" Buffy asked.

"The office," he replied. "I've been on vacation for a few days. I have some things to catch up." Willow and Buffy exchanged a wary glance.

"You need to rest," Willow stated.

"You need a doctor," Giles added.

"I need Faith safe," he replied.

"Are we just going to skip over this?" Kennedy asked. No one spoke. "How were you healed? Your eye is back. We heard you were in critical condition in a hospital in Italy."

"Did you do it?" Willow asked.

"I wouldn't know how," Xander replied. "It was Faith. She came to me. She told me she could help me. And I woke up."

"She physically came to your hospital room?" Buffy questioned.

"No," he replied. "She was in my head."

"You hallucinated," Angel stated.

Xander shook his head. "She was really there," he stated plainly. "I don't know how. I don't know why. But she did it… for me." He swallowed hard and his eyes filled with tears. The table began to shake slightly.

Dawn reentered the lab with Xander's computer in her hands. She felt the shaking. She quickly moved to him and set her hands on his shoulders. She turned him to her. "Shhh," she said quietly. "It will be okay. Take a deep breath." Everyone looked around at each other. The shaking subsided.

Giles' eyes were wide. Buffy connected with his eyes and shook her head quickly. He didn't speak. "I have one obvious question," Spike said. Angel elbowed him lightly in the ribs. "Not about Mr. Shaky's apparent emotional meltdown."

Dawn quickly moved her hands from his shoulders to the sides of his face. "It's just Spike being Spike," she said as she angrily looked past him to Spike.

"What's your question?" Xander asked.

"Be smart," Angel said under his breath.

Xander nodded thankfully to Dawn before turning away and opening his computer. He began typing. "Speak," he said.

Buffy took a deep breath as Spike opened his mouth. Angel visibly moved a few feet away from him. "Someone wanted to activate this massive power," Spike stated. "How did they know it was you? How did they know Faith would be the trigger? She could have so easily died many times over the years. So could you. I mean, honestly. I thought you'd be dead five minutes after the first time I met you. This prophecy has been on the book for millennia."

"I hate to say it," Willow replied, "but those are actually some very good questions. I've been a super powered witch here and there. I never saw that in you."

"Neither did I?" Xander replied. "I'm completely unremarkable."

"NO, YOU ARE NOT!" Dawn said emphatically.

"I love you, Dawnie," he said. "But I'm not special. Or, I wasn't special."

"I should have seen it," Buffy stated with embarrassment. "From day one, you were there. You've always been there. For me. For Dawn. For everyone. You reformed a murderer."

"She did that on her own." Xander replied.

"How do you know I'm talking about Faith?" Buffy asked as she looked to Willow. "You stopped her. Giles couldn't. I couldn't."

"I didn't use magic," Xander said. "She was my friend. I just talked."

"I should have seen it too," Willow stated, parroting Buffy's statement. "You've always been the one."

"Buffy is here because you forced me down to go below and find the Master," Angel added with disbelief. Buffy looked over with surprise. "Xander didn't just resuscitate you that night. It was his plan. I knew it was hopeless. He forced me, literally." Buffy looked from Angel to Xander with surprise.

Dawn gently set her hand on his back with care and love. "I wasn't going to let my new friend die," Xander said with embarrassment.

"Do you know why I wanted you to be the president of this new Council?" Giles asked.

"Everyone else had other things," Xander replied, "and you felt bad for what I lost."

Giles removed his glasses again, but, this time, not in frustration. "I should have told you years ago," he said. "I wanted you to be the president because I knew you would hate the job. I knew you would finally walk away."

"You didn't want me around anymore?" Xander asked sadly.

"I wanted you out of this life," Giles stated. "I wanted you alive. This was never your calling. You are not a Slayer. You are not a witch or a Watcher or a demon or a vampire. You are just a remarkable young man that needed to find a life, a safe life that you could live without this."

"That worked well," Spike commented.

"You built something I could not have even imagined," Giles said with such pride and honest love that it made Willow and Buffy stop breathing. "You are not just a President. You are the Council. The Council as it should have always been."

"And the Slayers are yours," Kennedy added. "I tried to train them as well as I could. But you are the strength, the power, the goodness in all of them. It's why they love you. And not even a little bit in a bad way."

"This suddenly feels like a wake," Dawn said. Xander hugged her quickly.

"I understand why they knew what you are," Angel said.

"What am I?" Xander asked fearfully.

"The king," Angel replied plainly as he looked to Spike who nodded unhappily. "You're the one that saves the world."

"Again," Willow added.