Like a Thing Unto Iron

by neoolong

YAHF. Xander touches the heart of the dragon, and is changed forever. You didn’t think the Slayer was the only legacy power did you?

11. Chapter Ten: Afternoon Tea with Oolong

Chapter 10: Afternoon Tea with Oolong

Author's Note: I suppose I should mention that there will be spoilers for the Immortal Iron Fist, kinda late I know (I will refer to some things in my comments for reviews on my account page). And, though some stuff can be found out by just reading ahead, just go with it. Thanks for all the feedback, it's a definite help.

Orson stared at the green figurine. It had been rotten luck, although he was glad that the Thunderer had been the one sent to find him. A thousand terror priests combing the country for him did not fill his heart with glee.

"What are you going to do?" Xander asked, looking at the jade dragon as well.

"I'll have to talk to him," Orson said, taking another pull from his beer. He slammed it down suddenly, glaring at Xander. "This is why I didn't want you leaving town."

"Yeah, well," Xander said, not being able to come up with an acceptable defense. "It just didn't work out the way I wanted it to. Still don't actually know about the others though."

"I expect you'll do something smarter this time?" The Old Iron Fist asked, still unhappy with what had happened in Fremont. He had been angry at first, but he really had no one to blame but himself. The Thunderer had been sent to find him, not the boy. It had been his sins that been passed to the kid. And Xander didn't deserve his wrath.

Xander shrugged, looking up at the clock that had been tacked to the wall of the warehouse. "Don't know. Anyway, I guess I should get to school."

"Buffy any better?" Orson asked idly, drinking again. He drained the bottle.

Xander stood up, picking up his book bag. "Naw. Flu got her bad, she actually had to go to the hospital. She should be okay though in a couple of days."

"Good," Orson said, getting up. He walked over to the area he had turned into a kitchen and tossed the empty into the trash. While he still thought that the Slayer was rather annoying in her extremely teenage way, she was still one of Xander's friends.

"How's your evil girlfriend?" Xander quipped. The presence of Wolfram and Hart on the Hellmouth did not please him, and the only consolation was that she was operating with less than total information. At least she wasn't here for the Slayers.

"Still evil," Orson answered. He had been rather disappointed that Xander had not utilized his opportunity in Fremont, but was not surprised. The boy just wasn't the type. "And satisfied. Get to class, kid."

xxx

Davos walked through the large training room, watching as a number of men and a few women sparred. They were all extremely skilled, though he was not that impressed with them. Their martial arts were limited, and he knew that they were chosen more for their loyalty than martial abilities. The forces of HYDRA were not as they had been in its early days. Especially so since he was only working with an offshoot of the organization. At this point, he might have been better off just hiring members of the Hand to do what he needed. But, he would not have been able to see the quality of the fighters, as he could now. Better to know how incompetent they were than to be surprised by it. Besides, the Hand tended to be less than professional when it came to power that they could use.

The forces of HYDRA would have to do at any rate. Though he longed to test himself in single combat against the Iron Fist, he could not allow himself to be impaired in any way for the Tournament. And though he would be the one to strike the killing blow, he would utilize the HYDRA thugs to soften him up for him. He would prove his superiority.

Sunnydale beckoned, and the men, whatever their level of preparedness, would have to do.

xxx

Giles put down the phone, staring at it for a few moments before standing up. It had certainly been unexpected, and if he was honest to himself, a rather large coincidence. Hearing someone enter the library, the Watcher stepped out of his private office to see who it was.

It was just Xander, an increasing presence there. Despite his other obligations, the boy had taken to doing his homework in there until he went over to Orson's for training. Presumably, he went home after that. It was rather odd that Xander could be spending an increasing large amount of time away from home without his parents making any noise about it.

"How are you doing?" The librarian asked, as Xander sat down at the main table.

Xander looked up at him, shrugging. "Same old. What's up?"

"Kendra will be here later to help me with some research," Giles said, taking a seat.

Xander frowned, there hadn't been much activity on the Hellmouth lately. Which was good with Buffy currently out of action. "Something rising?"

"Uh no, no," Giles said reassuringly. "I've been writing a paper on, uh, demonic species demographics on the Hellmouth."

"For school?" Xander remarked.

"Uh, the Watchers' Council does have an academic division. We publish papers which are actually widely used in ethno-demonological studies," Giles explained, again wondering how much of the Council's structure he should be revealing to the boy. Especially in light of the last phone call and Xander's missing presence over the weekend. "I also received a phone call last night. From Nancy Mayfield."

"Who?" Xander asked with no hesitation.

Giles continued to look at the boy, trying to gauge his expression. It was rather difficult with how reserved the boy could get. He honestly couldn't tell if Xander was hiding something. "A Watcher here in California. Up north, actually."

"She also helping you with your paper, Giles?" Xander asked, though he knew that the phone call was definitely not about that.

"Uh, no. She's actually one of the Watchers in charge of a potential," Giles explained, looking him in the eye. "Apparently, her potential has requested to meet with Buffy and Kendra. To meet the active Slayers and to see the Hellmouth."

"Hunh, imagine that," Xander said, taking out one of his textbooks. "You going to do it?"

"Yes, once Buffy is out of the hospital," Giles said, still looking at the boy. He seemed so innocent taking out his books and supplies. But, he couldn't help but get the feeling that he wasn't telling Xander anything he didn't already know. "What did you do last weekend?"

"I was in the desert," Xander said, looking up at the Watcher. It was getting increasingly easy to lie. "Orson wanted me to do this whole lone meditation thing. Crane kicks and all. Why?"

"Okay," Giles said, leaning forward. He didn't believe a word of it, despite how innocent Xander looked. "Now what did you really do?"

Xander chuckled, shaking his head. "What do you mean?"

"You start asking about the potentials, and suddenly there is a potential asking to meet the Slayers?" Giles asked, the coincidence striking when said aloud. "I'm not an idiot, Xander."

Xander looked him in the eye, knowing that evasion and stalling wouldn't work. Even if he kept to the cover story, Giles would figure it out eventually. And, that would not be good for their relationship. "I looked up where the money you were getting came from. For supplies, rent, and stuff. Then I checked out what that company was also supplying money to. Fremont was the closest one."

"And you did this how exactly?" Giles asked, rather disheartened that the boy had gone behind his back on this. Although, in truth, he couldn't blame him. His hands were tied, and Xander had never been one to always listen to authority. He did what his heart told him, which was one of the reasons why Buffy was still alive today.

"Uh, Ms. Calendar?" Xander said carefully. The Watcher would have found out eventually, given that he didn't have the skills to do it, and Willow would be easily cleared.

"Xander, you barely know this woman," Giles said, exasperated. "And you're involving her in the Council's activities?"

The Iron Fist glared at the Watcher. "Hey, she's a part of this fight, right? And you did date her before, right?"

The last part of that twisted in his gut.

Giles shook his head. "Why would you do this?"

"You're a good man, Giles," Xander said, sighing. "But, I knew that you had too much loyalty to the Council to tell me anything. So I just did it myself. It's not my fault you guys have such lousy security measures in place. Which is probably something you should look at now, actually."

The Watcher couldn't get too annoyed at Xander, as much as he may have wanted to. Xander had done it for honorable reasons, and had not forced him to have to choose sides. Still, that Xander was increasingly willing to act unilaterally, likely a side effect of his training and time with Orson, was alarming. If Xander was capable of conducting such an operation on his own to such an extent, there was no telling what the boy would be capable of later.

"So you already talked to them?" Giles asked, accepting that he couldn't really do anything to the boy. Xander would not listen to him if he tried to lecture him, he had learned that lesson when his past with Eyghon had come to light. He was no longer the authority figure to be listened to and obeyed without question. If he ever had been to the seventeen year old boy.

"Yeah," Xander said, shrugging. "That's what I was really doing over the weekend. Buffy and the rest don't know, so you probably shouldn't tell them unless you have to. I don't imagine you want Buffy and Kendra to start asking questions about the other potentials."

"I suppose not," Giles admitted, accepting that Xander was right about how he should deal with the current situation. Which was surprising in that the boy was coming up with increasingly correct responses to situations. The effects of Halloween went much further than he had originally thought it would.

The two of them turned to face the entrance of the library as the doors swung open and Kendra walked inside.

Giles looked back at Xander. "This isn't over."

Xander nodded. "I don't suppose it is."

xxx

Orson continued to stare at the jade figurine, debating what he should do. He couldn't wait forever, and sooner or later K'un L'un would come for him now that they knew that he was still alive. If it wasn't the Thunderer, it would be someone else.

Picking the statue up, the Iron Fist grasped it in his palm, focusing his chi and making it glow with his power. His fist glowed green as the jade emitted its charge, sending an interdimensional signal to its twin. He set the dragon down after a few moments, watching is it maintained its glow for a few seconds before slowly fading away.

Now all he had to do was wait for the hammer to come down. Orson stood up and went to the refrigerator to get a drink. Lei Kung the Thunderer would come in his own time.

Which, it turned out, didn't take very long. A green cloud heralded the arrival of the war master of K'un L'un.

Orson turned slowly, closing the refrigerator door before he could get anything. He felt nervous having to face his old mentor and friend after so much time. Decades had passed since he had last seen Lei Kung, and he had no idea what the result would be.

"Orson," Lei Kung said, a tight thin smile on his face as he faced his former student.

"Lei Kung, Master," Orson said, turning to face him fully. He bowed. "It's been a long time."

"Yes," the Thunderer replied, struck by how old his student had gotten. He still remembered training the man when he was but a boy. It was the nature of being immortal though. Everyone else got older while he stayed the same.

He looked around the building he was standing in. Hardly befitting the presence of an Iron Fist. The mundane realm had its wonders, but this was not one of them. It was a wonder why the man had stayed here so long, hiding in its cracks. "The August Personage in Jade has ordered your presence at the Tournament. He sent me to prepare you."

Orson rose and shook his head. "I can't fight. Xander, he is going to take my place. He is my student, and the Iron Fist now."

The Thunderer frowned, troubled by Orson's actions. "You have the opportunity to fight and redeem yourself. And you would pass on this burden to a boy? As skilled as he could possibly be, he has not learned the full ways of K'un L'un. This fight would mean his certain death. Do you value his life so little?"

"You don't understand," Orson said, turning away. "I took the life of the Immortal Weapon of Kun-Zi. I can't go back. I can't. And I have been training the boy. He's good."

Lei Kung looked at the man's back. Though the Iron Fists could keep themselves fit and healthy for decades, he could see that the years had weighed heavily on Orson's soul. "Yu-Ti may require victory, but there is no dishonor in an honest defeat. As inexperienced as he may be. How good is he?"

Orson turned to look at his former master. He sighed, hesitant to admit the truth to himself or anyone else. "Not good enough."

"Then why put him through so much effort," the Thunderer questioned. The boy had promise. He had leapt to the defense of some girl that he did not even know against an unknown foe. Such actions befit the title of the Iron Fist. Of course, it would mean little if he died so young. "If he is not ready for such a task…"

"He's not good enough, yet," Orson said grimly. He had considered changing his original plan once Xander had told him that the Thunderer was the one looking for him. To take Xander's place in the Tournament. But, there were other issues involved. "There's still enough time to train him. To train him not to die."

He wondered if that was just foolish hope though.

"Why is that so important?" Lei Kung asked, wondering why he was going through so much trouble. Orson Randall had never been a coward, and he doubted that the decades would have made him one now. "Why must it be him?"

"I have my reasons," Orson answered somewhat mysteriously. Nobody knew the exact truth, and he wouldn't reveal it. Not even to Lei Kung the Thunderer. Not even to his mentor. The true reasons for the deaths of the Iron Fist had been kept secret; he had to believe it was for a reason. "Trust me. For both my sake and the boy's, it is better this way."

He knew that if he had to fight, he would assuredly die. As hard as combat could be on Earth, against the Immortal Weapons he would stand no chance. And that would leave the boy alone to face the coming threat. Xander may have little chance of surviving the contest, but he had even less of one in the face of Chi'Lin. The gods did not favor them when they dealt the Iron Fists this hand.

Lei Kung sighed, he could tell that Orson was doing what he perceived to be the best course of action. He had no idea if that would end up being true, but no amount of talk would change things. The boy, man, had always been stubborn. "If that is your decision, both of your decisions, then I will stay here and train with the boy. He deserves the best chance possible. The honor of K'un L'un demands it."

"Thank you, Master," Orson said, bowing low again. He was glad that he would not be dragged back to K'un L'un. Though he deserved some justice for the death of an Immortal Weapon, in addition to his other sins, he knew that the best path to redemption was to help the current Iron Fist. That was the only honor he had left to him.

"There is one other matter," Lei Kung stated, moving back into his official role of war master. "The boy has told me about how he came upon his powers. That is something that needs to be addressed."

Orson shook his head. "Don't worry. That imbalance has been rectified. The Iron Fist cannot be stolen again by chaos magic. The secrets of the Iron Fist are protected."

"Very well, Orson." Lei Kung nodded, satisfied. He turned around to take in the large room. At the very least it seemed like the old Iron Fist had set it up to include a training area. He would train the boy hard. They both would. "Tell me about this place."

"Well, you're standing on the mouth of Hell apparently," Orson said lightly. He looked the Thunderer up and down, the uniform of the war master barely having changed in the decades since they had last met. "And, you're going to need a change of clothes if you want to go outside."

xxx

"It's called Der Kinderstod," Xander said into the phone. Evidently demonic rumblings were afoot at the hospital, smack dap where Buffy was supposed to be recuperating from the flu. It was a hell of a coincidence. Which hopefully would work out in their favor since it would mean that fewer kids would die.

"Where's Giles," Buffy said from her hospital room. She had been feeling like crap for a while, even worse now that a bunch of kids and their doctor had died. She had to do something, even in her current state. It was too bad that Xander hadn't been able to just zap her to a full cure. Evidently, sickness wasn't something it was able to do so well. Stupid powers.

"Looking up stuff," Xander replied, shifting the phone to his other ear. "We found some info though. Mostly history, but it might help."

"Maybe you should just put Giles on," Buffy said, somewhat skeptically.

"Hey," Xander said sharply, somewhat offended. While he had taken more to the martial aspects of the demon hunting, he still helped with the research. Even if it was usually Willow and Giles that did it. "Just listen."

"Fine." Buffy sighed, straightening up in her bed.

"Right, where was I?" Xander looked down at his book, finger sliding over the page to the part he wanted. "The highlights. The name means 'child death.' He feeds off of children by sucking the life out of him. They look like they died because they were sick."

"So it did kill Tina," Buffy muttered, mostly to herself.

"Right," Xander said, still looking at the page. "The children's ward would be easy pickings for this thing. He probably didn't appreciate Backer curing the kids."

"Because he was taking away the Kinderstod's food," Buffy frowned, saddened that the doctor had died because he had been healing his patients.

"Yeah," Xander said, looking up. Giles had come back with another book and was indicating that they should switch positions. "Hold on, Giles has got something."

"Buffy?" Giles said, settling down into Xander's old seat. "I found out how the Kinderstod feeds."

"Well, don't leave me in suspense," the Slayer said, after a moment.

"Uh, the Kinderstod gorges by sitting atop his prey, pinning it down," Giles paraphrased from the test he was reading while simultaneously translating the German in his head. "Then he slowly draws out the life. It must be horrifying for the victim."

Buffy said nothing, staring off into space and remembering another time she had been in a hospital. Her cousin had been the patient that time. She had screamed in terror, asking for help as she had been attacked by some invisible foe. Buffy hadn't been able to do anything at the time, but she'd be damned if she didn't do something now.

Shaking it off, Buffy spoke into the phone, "thanks Giles. Does it saying anything about how to find it and kill it?"

Giles flipped the page, reading further. It was mostly history and information on the Kinderstod's geographical range. Less important now though. "Uh, no. I'll keep looking."

He turned to face Xander and Kendra, still speaking into the phone. "I will, uh, be sending Xander and Kendra to the hospital to start searching. I'll keep looking and call back if I find something."

Xander nodded, tapping Kendra on the arm, to indicate that they should get going.

"Thanks," Buffy said, glad that they would be taking action soon. Hopefully nobody else would have to die. "And Giles?"

"Yes, Buffy?" The Watcher was still looking at his book.

Buffy narrowed her eyes, wanting to get her hands on the monster herself. "Hurry."

xxx

Ms. Calendar walked into the warehouse, looking for Orson. Xander had taken off with the other Slayer to go back up Buffy with the latest demonic threat. Which worked out for her, since she wanted to have a word with the man without Xander being around.

What she didn't expect was that Orson wasn't alone. A large man was there with him, and from the look of his stature, he was probably the same figure that had found Xander in Fremont. She only hoped that he wouldn't become an enemy.

"Orson," the gypsy called out. "We need to talk."

The Iron Fist looked over at the woman, knowing what she wanted to discuss from the annoyed expression on her face. He turned to face Lei Kung, who had changed into something that would help him blend in. Of course, with the Thunderer's size, he would still stick out in a crowd. "Lei Kung, it's probably best I talk to her alone."

"Very well," Lei Kung said, walking forward. He nodded at the woman as he passed her, stepping outside and taking a walk around the warehouse district.

Orson waited until the Thunderer had left before pulling a chair out from the table. He walked around the table and took a seat on the opposite side. He waited until she had taken a seat before speaking, "What's on your mind?"

"I think you know," Jenny said, settling in. She crossed her arms over her chest, still annoyed at the man. "You gave Xander a gun."

The Iron Fist shrugged. "Yeah, he needed to protect himself, and you, without using the Iron Fist. Which I suppose was a moot point. But, what's your point?"

"You're turning him into a killer," Ms. Calendar accused.

"He's already a killer," Orson shot back. While he put up with her for Xander's sake, he wouldn't just stand back while she threw out wild statements. Especially ones that might influence the boy into less than what he needed to be. "Kid's killed a lot of demons by now."

Jenny knew what else, or rather who else, Xander had killed. "That's not the same thing."

"Honey," Orson said, thinking that the woman just didn't get it. "It actually is. He needs to learn this. It's the only way that he's going to survive. Maybe I do push him hard, but it's only because he can take it. He's a warrior."

"Maybe so," Jenny said, slightly agreeing with what the older Iron Fist was saying. "But, there's only so much he can take. As strong as he is, even he has his tipping point."

"I realize that," Orson said, sighing. As hard as he had become, some of it by necessity, he did remember his days with his old friends. He remember that it used to be sort of fun. Times changed though. "But, it's got to be this way. If he can survive the Tournament, then it'll mean that he has the skills he needs to continue in this fight that he took upon himself. The skills to survive. He needs these skills if he's going to stick around to help people. You certainly weren't complaining when you were using him for your own purposes."

The gypsy shook her head, glaring at the man. "That's not the same thing."

"Wrong," Orson said, leaning forward. "You want him tough. You want him smart. You want him strong. This is the only way to make him like that. You like him. You like him because he's devoted so much of himself to you, and he's actually useful enough for that to mean something. And now you come back and complain about how much he's changing?"

"He shouldn't have to," Jenny replied, knowing that Orson had a point. Her guilt built as she recognized that she had been using Xander for her own ends, even if they were noble. And while she hadn't played with his feelings, they had been at least part of the reason why he had helped her with her concerns. That and his general caring nature.

"No, he shouldn't," Orson said, somewhat guiltily. It was his mask that the boy had and does put on. He had his own hand in how the boy had wound up as he had. For good or for worse, he did bear some amount of responsibility. "But, you should be proud. The kid's not doing half bad."

"He's not a kid," Jenny said sadly. For a seventeen year old, he had certainly developed far more and far faster than he should ever have had to.

"No, I guess he isn't," Orson agreed. Although at his age, most of the people there were kids to him. Even the woman before him. "You should do something about it."

"What?" Jenny asked, looking over at the man in confusion.

"How you feel about him?" Orson explained, knowing the truth. As obvious as Xander was, she was just about as obvious. "You should do something about it."

"I don't know what you're talking about." Jenny shook her head, trying to deny it.

Orson chuckled, scoffing at the unconvincing denial. "Please, you're in love with him. Or halfway thereabouts. And he loves you. It's kind of annoying actually."

"He's seventeen," Jenny said, though her denials were wavering. She knew that Xander hadn't told anybody that she had kissed him. Even without ordering him not to, Xander would never be open with something like that. "And, I'm his teacher."

Orson laughed. "At my age, you're pretty much the same as him."

The laugh didn't last for long. He looked at her seriously. The boy could be an idiot at times, considering the other girls that he had in his life. But, Xander had feelings for only one, and since the kid would probably get killed, he should at least be able to win once in his life. "He deserves to be happy. And, for whatever reason, you make him that."

Jenny couldn't find a response to that.

xxx

"So another potential," Buffy said, sitting on her bed. Her friends were there with her, though at a discrete distance away. She was better, but didn't want to risk getting them sick. "That's…that's…I don't know. What's she like."

Xander shrugged, looking at the television, even if he wasn't paying particular attention to it. It wasn't like he could tell her what Vi was like, not without blowing what he had actually been doing. "Giles didn't say much. What were you like before you were a Slayer?"

Buffy thought about it. She couldn't imagine meeting another her before being a Slayer. It would be like having to hang around with a less bitchy and more stylish Cordelia. "That would be weird."

"I wonder why she wants to visit now?" Willow said, sipping the last of her juice.

Before Xander could say anything, or decide not to, Buffy's mother walked into the bedroom carrying a sandwich and a glass of juice.

She sat on the bed next to her daughter, handing her the plate and setting the drink onto the nightstand next to the bed. "Here you go, honey. Peanut butter and jelly, without the crust, just the way you like it."

Buffy accepted the sandwich, taking a bite. "And the juice?"

"Two parts orange, one part grapefruit," Mrs. Summers said, standing up. "I measured it exactly."

"That's my drink." Buffy said, smiling. She looked down at the sandwich. "Oh, Mom?"

"Mm hmm?" Mrs. Summers looked back her daughter.

"I wanted crunchy peanut butter," Buffy said, holding up the plate. "And extra jelly."

Joyce smiled down at her, taking the plate. "Anything to help my daughter get well."

"Oh, and while you're up, could I get a refill?" Willow held up her empty glass. "It's just, I'm so comfortable."

Mrs. Summer walked over to the foot of the bed and took the empty glass as well.

"Thanks," the redhead said, letting go off the glass.

"Oh, oh, oh," Xander inserted urgently, raising his empty chip bag before she could leave. "And another bag of cheesy chips."

Joyce raised her eyebrows at him. "You ate the last one."

"No, there's another bag hidden behind the raisins," Xander said, shaking his head. He considered for a moment before standing up. It was rude to simply just ask for stuff like that. "You know, let me help you. I can get it when we're down there."

He walked with Mrs. Summers out into the hall and down to the kitchen.

xxx

As the two walked out, Buffy leaned over, moving towards the foot of the bed. She looked down at Kendra. "So, what about you and Xander?"

Kendra looked up at the other Slayer in shock. "I…I don't know what you mean."

"C'mon," Willow said, smiling encouragingly. "We know you like him."

Kendra looked down at her lap, extremely embarrassed. She did have growing feelings for the boy. Though she had thought them an expression of her Slayer senses picking up the oddness of the boy, it had turned out to be something else altogether. Something she had not been prepared for. "I guess I do. But, I don't know what to say to him. It was never covered in my studios."

"That's not usually something covered by the Watchers, Kendra," Buffy said, letting out a small giggle. "We'll help you."

Willow nodded in support.

xxx

Xander reached into the cupboard, pushing aside the raisins. The last bag of Cheesy Chips was finally within his grasp. He pulled it out and opened the bag up, popping one in his mouth, as he nudged the cupboard door shut with his head. "I knew there was another bag."

He turned around and leaned next to the counter. "Trying to Bogart the chips? What's that all about Mrs. Summers?"

Joyce smiled at the boy's antics as she remade Buffy's sandwich. It was good to have her home. Having her daughter sick enough to go to the hospital had been very scary.

"You want me to do that?" Xander said, walking over to the cutting board that Buffy's mom was standing in front of.

"That's okay," Xander," Joyce said, as she spread crunchy peanut butter on the sandwich. "So what's new with you?"

The boy shrugged, popping another chip into his mouth. It wasn't like he could tell her the truth. Not many people believed in magic after all. Hell, most people thought that the report about a green monster rampaging around New York City a month or so ago had been a hoax. It had probably been a demon, and people just didn't want to face the truth, instead accepting the story that it had been a gas leak that had caused hallucinations before exploding. "Nothing really."

"What, no girls in your life?" Joyce said, teasing slightly. She had been glad that Buffy and Angel had broken up, though she couldn't tell her daughter that. While Angel hadn't revealed himself to be a bad guy per se, she thought the age difference was extreme. Mother's intuition just picked up a bad vibe from the now second year community college student.

Xander thought about it, munching on another chip. He shrugged again. "Not exactly."

"Oh?" Joyce asked. She had always thought him to be a rather nice boy, if a bit goofy. Definitely preferable to Angel, and the shallow guys that Buffy had dated back in Los Angeles.

"Oh, there's someone," Xander said. It was always easy to talk to Buffy's mom, though he had to be careful not to reveal anything specific.

Mrs. Summers went to the refrigerator, having finished the sandwich. She refilled Willow's glass and set it next to the plate. She looked at him, waiting for the boy to continue.

"But, she doesn't feel the same way?" Joyce suggested, closing the refrigerator door.

Xander shook his head, smiling, a touch of sadness upon it. The irony of the situation killed him. "No, that's not the problem."

He looked down at the food that Mrs. Summers had prepared. The conversation was getting uncomfortable. "I'll bring this up to them. Thanks."

Joyce watched Xander walk out of the kitchen juggling the food and drink, a pensive expression on her face.

xxx

"I'm going to Los Angeles for a while," Orson said as he packed his bags. He idly tossed a rubberbanded roll of cash onto the table. It should hold the kid over a while, at least until he got back. "Lei Kung is going to be training you while I'm out."

"Wolfram and Hart," Xander said, taking a seat on the couch. He watched as the older Iron Fist packed. It wasn't just clothes, but tools and weapons as well. The man wasn't there on just a social call, even if he was there to see Lilah officially. "What's the deal?"

"They're going to want to see me fight," Orson said, looking over his shoulder. "And there's some stuff I need to check on."

"Stuff? Like what?" Xander asked, turning back to the Book of the Iron Fist. He'd taken to reading it when he could fit the time in, having to be at Orson's warehouse to read it. With Orson going to be gone, it was going to be staying with him, or locked up in the warehouse safe. At least the large one, there was still Orson's personal safe which he still didn't know the contents of. "How long are you going to be gone?"

"I want to see what they have on the other Capital Cities." Orson zipped up his bag. He slung it over his shoulder and turned to face his student. "The Thunderer can help you with what's going on currently, but there's probably a lot of stuff that he might not know. Wolfram and Hart can help with that. I shouldn't be gone for more than a couple of weeks. Hopefully less."

"Even if they're the bad guys?" Xander asked, pushing the book aside.

Orson smiled at him. "Especially if they're the bad guys. Look, I got to go. It's a two hour drive and I want to avoid traffic."

"Wait," Xander said. "I thought you said the Iron Fist could be found if we left the Hellmouth."

Orson shook his head. "No, you could be found. I've been hiding out for a while until you turned up. Besides, K'un L'un already knows that I'm still kicking. Which means that the other Capital Cities know as well by now."

"Okay. If you're sure that you have to go," Xander said, watching as Orson headed for the door. He still wasn't totally comfortable with it, but the look on Orson's face told him that he wouldn't win an argument. There was no point to even trying to argue the point. "Stay safe."

He turned back to his book. There was a lot of interesting stuff in there. Not only about the history of the Iron Fists, but new techniques for him to learn.

"Don't be an idiot when I'm gone," Orson called over his shoulder as he opened the door. "Oh, and you should talk to Jenny."

He was out before Xander could respond.

xxx

Orson scanned the lobby of Wolfram and Hart, feeling rather underdressed considering the power suits that were on display around him. It didn't make him feel uncomfortable though, he knew what he was here for. But the place kind of sickened him. He had walked into many a den of iniquity, filled with some of the worst scum imaginable. This was different though. The evils he had faced had been from the greedy and the selfish. Those that cared only about their own wanton lusts and desires. A few were psychopaths that were like sick dogs that needed to be put down.

This was different. Intelligent men and women who could have made comfortable livings elsewhere, but instead chose to walk an evil path. They weren't there to simply elevate their own existences, instead they believed in evil. They reveled in it, and in the end that was all they really cared about. Pure, unremitting Evil.

Lilah was the same. He knew that, though he could not deny that there was something compelling about her. It was too bad that she worked here. In another life, she may have been someone he could have cared about.

He saw the lawyer in his thoughts walk down from the staircase that was at the far end of the lobby. She looked as good as ever, dressed in a restrained yet stylish pantsuit. He waited until she approached; somewhat surprised when she kissed him lightly on the cheek. Evidently, his seduction was part of the corporate directive if she was doing it here.

And, here he thought he was just that charming.

"Lilah," Orson said, smiling as genuinely as he could. "How are you?"

"Good," Lilah answered, linking an arm through his. She walked him forward, toward the elevators. "The bosses are rather anxious to see you in action. We should get started."

Orson allowed himself to be led, looking over at the others in the law firm. She turned back to Lilah. "After that, we should look at your archives. If you want me to win the Tournament, then I'll need to know what I'm facing. You do have information on that right?"

"Of course," Lilah assured him as they entered the elevator. She pushed the right button for the floor they needed, and waited for the door to close.

xxx

"Hey," Xander said, as Jenny opened the door to her apartment. It had been a few days since Orson had left, having taken the time to actually think about what had happened between them in Fremont. While nothing had shown on the surface when they had been together afterwards, he felt an increasing level of discomfort. He was just glad that nobody else seemed to pick up on it.

Jenny smiled at him, though they could both tell that there was some reservation behind it. "Xander."

She stood back and let him come inside, closing and locking the door behind him. She watched as he made himself comfortable on her couch, his constant presence there making it more of a matter of their close relationship than a lack of manners. Which kind of depressed her.

She went over and sat next to him, though it was a little farther than she used to.

Xander noticed it though, feeling disappointed. "We need to talk about Fremont."

"Xander…," Jenny started, not knowing where she could go with it. Orson had been right. She had fallen for the young man. And while she had kissed him on an impulse, and it was something she had truly enjoyed, it had also been wrong. Not because of the official nature of their relationship, student/teacher, child/adult, but because it played into his desires. And messing around with those, no matter how she felt about him, was selfishly cruel.

"It's…it's just that it's hope right," Xander continued, turning to look at her. He hadn't prepared himself well for this at all. It wasn't like he had had much practice at it. "I mean, that you might eventually like me."

"It was a mistake," Jenny said at last, looking him in the eye.

He could tell she was hurting, and he wanted to make it go away. Ironic since he was the cause of the pain. He could also tell that she wasn't telling the truth. "No, it wasn't."

The gypsy sighed, shaking her head. He was getting a little too observant, especially of her feelings. "No, it wasn't."

"So I was thinking, I'm seventeen, next year is senior year," Xander rambled, explaining his thought process. "I figure, after I graduate it's not really a problem. But, if I don't take computer next year, you're not really my teacher anymore. Technically."

She had to smile at his optimism.

"I mean, I wouldn't want you to have to wait a year or anything, but I figure, it'd be fine by then. At the latest," Xander said hopefully. His mind wandered to what other responsibilities he had until then. "I mean, after the Tournament and everything."

If he survived that, Jenny thought. "No. Xander, you should just drop it. You should be after someone your own age. I mean-"

"Kendra likes me," Xander blurted out, not exactly wanting her to go down that line of thinking. "And, she's great. Strong, smart, loyal, hot, kinda shy though. But, she ain't you. And that's sort of the whole problem for me. Because, that's sort of exactly what one would think I'd be going for. And yet, it's just not there."

Jenny knew that he had always been blunt. Although it usually wasn't about how he necessarily felt himself. Still, his admissions were rather striking, if a bit clichéd. Then again, despite whatever else may have been going on, he was still a seventeen year old high school junior. And his experiences with love and women were limited. At his age, it always felt like the end of the world.

She found herself unwilling to speak, unsure just what she could possibly tell him to get him to end his foolish quest. Although, a part of her knew that it would be fairly futile. She couldn't tell him that it was explicitly unwelcome, despite the awkwardness it caused, because it wasn't. And without it being hurtful in a way that she wasn't willing to put up with, he wouldn't back down.

Orson's words echoed in her mind. Xander did deserve to be happy. And here she was making it worse, despite having feelings for him. It made her want to quit her job, though she knew that he would never want her to do that just for him.

"I gotta go," Xander said abruptly, standing up. He hadn't come over to Jenny's apartment with a real game plan on what he was planning on saying. Even to him now, he knew that it had all come out dumb. He didn't know what he had expected, considering that he knew that he was nowhere near smooth enough to somehow convince his teacher to think that a relationship with him now would be remotely possible or desirable, no matter how she may feel. He had come over without thinking through the consequences. Like he usually did. And like usually happened, things hadn't turned out so well. "Vi is supposed to be coming soon. I'm supposed to, well, meet up with Giles to talk through how we're going to handle the thing. With the Iron Fist and all that. Anyway, I don't know why I even came over. I just, I guess it means that it's real, and that you actually somehow have some type of feelings for me. Which is, yay for me, and all, but I just wanted you to know that things are still okay between us. With everything that's going on, I just want things to still be good and not all awkward. I just want things to be good between us."

"It'll be fine," Jenny said, standing up and closing on Xander. She hugged him, pulling him tight, though she made sure that he knew that it could only be platonic. Though she knew in her heart that it would likely make things worse for him. He would pretend that nothing was wrong, and he would be less awkward, but he would still be consciously aware of the distance between them now. "And, Xander, it won't be now. But…"

She knew that it was leading him on, but for the life of her, she didn't want him to stop. Though she knew that one way or another, the status quo could not be maintained. It would change, and change sooner rather than later. And, she had no idea which way it would go.

Xander looked at her after she had let go. "Right. So, I'm going to be going now."

He smiled at her, trying to hide the pain in his eyes. He didn't succeed.

xxx

Orson kept looking through the book, ignoring the odd woman that worked in Files and Records. He was currently sitting on the concrete floor, his back against a filing cabinet. He knew that she was watching him, and making sure that he didn't do anything he shouldn't. Well, at least in their determination of what was acceptable.

Lilah had mentioned that the woman was supposed to be Files and Records. A mystical interactive guide to the information that they had on hand. It was supposed to make the whole project a lot easier. Only, it turned out that their translations sucked and he had to do it by hand himself.

So far, his days of research had not borne much fruit. While there was some information on the Seven Cities that he had not previously known, it was mostly history. And there was nothing available for roughly the last fifty years. Probably related to what had happened when he had made his escape from K'un L'un. The Cities had locked down; even tighter than normal.

In between searches, or when he could make it a digression, the Iron Fist also looked for information on ancient Chinese mythology. But, that had not given him anything really helpful either. Chi'Lin had appeared in some of the legends in their records, but the details had been annoyingly scant. And though he was getting the idea that there was something larger than what the few details hinted at, he could still not put it together.

He wondered if that in itself was a clue.

The archives were huge, it would take a lot of time to try to find something that might be helpful. And that was only the files and records section. There were other more magical texts that fell under another's purview. He hadn't even started on those yet.

Orson couldn't just cut and run. No, he'd have to stay, at least for a while. The demonstrations had gone smoothly, being able to take out what they threw in front of him. Helping Xander train had definitely helped.

He only hoped that Xander was doing okay.

xxx

Xander watched as Vi talked with the Slayers. She was certainly rather enthusiastic about the whole thing. Which hadn't been his initial impression of the girl when he had first started talking to her. Whatever the cause of the change, probably relating to Lei Kung's sudden appearance, she was a lot more taken with the whole Slayer thing than he had thought.

While it was good that Vi had turned out okay, he couldn't help but wonder at the other potentials. He supposed that the others in America shouldn't be too badly off, depending on area. There were systems in place to keep things from getting too bad for kids. Things were safer for the potentials in the United States.

Xander frowned at the thought, idly rubbing at his lower back. Things weren't necessarily safer for the potentials in the United States after all.

However, if Kendra was representative of how Watchers raised potentials in other countries, and Vi was how they were raised in the US, then there might be something to the whole theory. Of course, all the speculation made him wonder what he would do to Sam Zabuto if he ever met him. Likely nothing, considering how loyal Kendra was to him. Still, as far advanced as her development was, he couldn't help but feel that Zabuto deserved to get his ass kicked.

Xander was shaken out of his reverie as Vi came and sat next to him, the redhead having to pull up a chair next to Giles' desk. He looked over at her as she settled down. "What's up?"

"I was wondering," Vi said, smiling at him. She had only been in town a couple of days, the experience being rather shocking. Nancy homeschooled her up north, so they didn't have to go back anytime soon. Of course, it meant that her Watcher had brought all of the work down with her.

"Yeah?" Xander asked, noticing that Kendra was frowning at the young potential. He didn't think that it was because the Slayer didn't like the younger girl, since Vi seemed to be able to get along with anyone. It was just rather odd, maybe related to their differences in being raised by Watchers.

"I didn't get to see you fight yet," Vi said, glancing over at the Slayers. "I mean, I've been on patrol with them, but I haven't really seen you. I mean, they said that you patrol, right?"

Xander nodded. The Slayers patrolled in rotating shifts now, though they often went out together on the weekends. Which were big victim taking nights, according to Willow's statistical analysis. Which seemed to be just a bunch of dots on a graph.

He tended to lone wolf it most of the time, hooking up with the pair of Slayers if something particularly nasty was supposed to be around. That hadn't been the case in terms of anything physical lately. Just some fishman thing that had been the result of the swim coach. There was some ghost thing a while back, but Giles had managed to do some exorcism thing that had cleared it up. No need for him to hit anything. "Yeah, but I usually just go by myself."

With the more advanced techniques in his arsenal, he had taken to ensuring that the Slayers didn't see him use them. He needed the practice on live targets, but if Kendra and Buffy saw him do anything particularly outrageous, they would likely report to Giles. And if that happened, he knew that the day would come when the Watcher's loyalty to the Council outweighed his loyalty to him. He just hoped that it would be a long time till he had to actually test that.

"Well, could you show me?" the potential asked, a little nervously. While she had gotten a lot more confident, at least according to her Watcher, she still felt nervous around Xander. "Please?"

Xander looked at her, noticing how hopeful she looked. He wanted to say no, but the expression on her face made him falter. So much time around girls that knew how to tug on his strings was not helping. It was something Orson had constantly criticized him about. "Not on patrol."

His heart kind of broke a little as he saw her head sink, looking sad. "Wait, what I mean is, I'll take you somewhere and show you some stuff. Not on patrol though."

Vi nodded, looking up at him, happy. "Thanks."

Xander smiled back at the potential. She really did have a nice smile. He really was a soft touch; Orson would probably have kicked his ass if he had been there to see it. "But, your Watcher can't come."

Which was necessary, though he only hoped that Vi's Watcher didn't think that he was being all weird and wanted to get Vi alone for untoward reasons. She was fourteen, although that was still light years better than the difference between him and Ms. Calendar.

"Okay," Vi said, agreeing to the stipulation easily.

Xander nodded, noting how happy she looked about the whole thing. Vi had definitely taken to the whole Slayer thing well. Which was rather ironic, since if he could have it his way, Kendra and Buffy would be Slayers for a very very long time.

xxx

"What is this place?" Vi asked, turning around to take in all of the warehouse. It had been fixed up for the most part, with Orson dropping a good amount of money on fixing the place up. Security systems and locks kept the place private. And he had added a kitchen and other living facilities on the bottom floor. The biggest areas were for work though. A decent spread of equipment for working out; dojo setup mostly, though with some K'un L'un touches. The upstairs had unused storerooms and an office, with rooms being refurnished as needed.

Orson stayed there, making it enough of a home to prevent vampires from coming in uninvited. Though for Xander, it had become something of a second home as well.

"Friend's place," Xander answered, dropping his bookbag on a couch. He had made sure that he had shoved anything incriminating out of sight before letting the teenage girl in there. Vi and her Watcher would keep his secret for now, although they only knew part of it. It was getting hard to remember who knew what secrets about him.

But, the more he revealed, the more would likely get back to the Council. Nancy may not have been as much of a tightwad as Giles was, or used to be, but he knew that she would tell the Council if anything extremely powerful fighting demons kept popping up. The Thunderer was pushing it already.

Besides, the Council probably didn't like the competition. It was a minor boon that he hadn't had to actually use the power of the Iron Fist in front of them.

Vi dropped her bag with his and followed him deeper into the warehouse.

"Have the girls been here before?" Vi said, wandering over to the practice area, thinking that it looked a little odd. There were mats stacked against the wall, but they didn't look like they had been used for a while. There were standard practice dummies and training weapons, but it all seemed off in comparison to the stuff she used. It took her a while to figure it out.

She turned as Xander walked to the pile of mats and started to pull them out, lining them up in a large square in the center of the warehouse. "When's the last time you used those?"

Xander stopped and looked down at the thick blue practice mats he was laying down. "Not for a long time."

He walked around the edge, kicking them together to ensure that they were tight. He didn't want for Vi to fall and get hurt if she fell between them.

"But you practice here?" Vi took off the sweatshirt that she had been wearing. Beneath it she was wearing a t-shirt, something that would allow her to stay cool. But she would have to change her pants into something that would let her retain her flexibility.

Xander shrugged. "Pretty much. I used to do it with Giles, and then I found a place in the woods. Now my Master has me do it here."

"Your Master?" Vi echoed, watching as Xander undid his buttondown t-shirt. He tossed it onto a chair in the kitchen. He had a white v-neck t-shirt underneath, the tip of his dragon peeking out from the top of it. She remembered how it had looked when he had showed it to the giant in Fremont. She rather wished she could see it again a little more up close, having to struggle to keep from blushing at the thought.

"Yeah," Xander replied, turning around. "We both train here."

"On the concrete?" Vi said, tapping a foot against the mats. She couldn't imagine practicing on the hard floor. Even with the limited enhancements that came with being a potential, she wouldn't have wanted to go through the pain of falling on concrete a bunch of times. And the training dummies were all hard wood; no padding. And there were no blunted edge training weapons.

It was kind of scary.

"Yeah," Xander said, suppressing a grimace. Orson had claimed that it built pain endurance and toughness. He though it was an exercise in sadism, but he had to admit, it had paid off. The months of work had nearly made his whole body like unto a thing of iron. "Don't worry, I'm not going to make you do it. I won't hurt ya."

"I know," Vi said, smiling sweetly. She looked around again. "Is there somewhere I can change?"

Xander nodded. "Yeah, there's a bathroom upstairs. On the right."

xxx

"So, tell me about Violet," Giles said, handing a cup of tea over to his fellow Watcher. It was something of a learning experience for him, having never worked with a Potential before. Buffy had been his first, though she had been a Slayer when assigned. And, without her being Watcher raised he had not been prepared for it. As it was, even though Buffy had had a previous Watcher, it had done little to blunt her independent and often rebellious ways.

Nancy blew on the dark tea lightly, taking in its floral aroma. She took a sip of it, savoring its slight bitterness and sweet aftertaste. "She's a sweet girl. I've been raising her pretty much since she's been born. She learns quickly, and she's strong."

Though she had always been proud of her, she had never been more proud of Vi's strength than when she had stood up against the masked man that had confronted them in the park. Despite her lack of actual Slayer abilities, she had never backed down.

"And, and her family?" Giles asked, taking a sip of tea for himself. It was the first time in a while that he had had another English person as a visitor. He had gone all out, laying out a platter with an assortment of Afternoon Tea snacks.

"She's an orphan actually," The other watcher said, leaning over to the coffee table and picking up one of the cucumber sandwiches that Giles had prepared. They were her favorite. "The Council was able to identify her early, so we, I, was lucky in that regard."

Giles nodded, though he wondered how prevalent such stories were. He didn't have the exact figures, but given the traditional methods that the Council used to identify Slayers, it didn't seem likely that they were all found as infants. Buffy, after all, had not been found until she was in her teens. "Xander admitted visiting you. Was there a specific reason that Vi wanted to meet with the Slayers?"

"Well, he told her about them," Nancy answered, taking a bit of the sandwich. "And she started to wonder. She hasn't even seen a real vampire, and well, she got curious. I suppose I've been rather over protective, and since I've been homeschooling her, she hasn't had the chance to be with too many girls close to her own age."

Nancy thought about where Vi was. While she very much doubted that Giles would have let Xander take her without trusting him, she did worry. That was her privilege as a mother, even if it wasn't biological in nature.

"She's perfectly safe," Giles said, noting the look on her face. He imagined that he had that same look himself at times, when he was sitting at home or researching something and Buffy and Kendra were out patrolling.

Nancy smiled briefly, slightly embarrassed to have been caught. "So, tell me about the girls. I imagine it must be quite the challenge having to be Watcher for not one, but two Slayers."

"Uh, yes, but we've managed to work out a schedule. I dare say it's much easier in some ways, since they have a lot more free time now." Giles nodded, taking another sip of tea. "Especially with Xander helping out. And with Willow and Oz contributing with research, it's actually not proven to be as much of a challenge as I thought it would be when I was originally assigned to Sunnydale. Although, they're still teenage girls."

She did not know what she would if Vi was called. While it was a bit morbid to think of her potential being called, considering what it would entail for the two young women that she had recently met, she couldn't help but wonder how things would change. Giles had created a small network of trusted, albeit unconventional, allies to support the Slayer and the Watcher functions. And while she had had her initial concerns, they appeared to have the situation well in hand. Although, she did notice that not a lot of what Giles had to be doing had been reported to the Watchers' Council. As a field Watcher to a potential, she received all the reports, even if they had been abridged by the Council leaders.

"So, the Council heads never informed me as to why there are two Slayers," Nancy asked. It had been something of a shock to receive the memo informing her of the potential change in status. And, even more of a shock when she learned that the previous Slayer was still alive.

"Ah, right," Giles said, setting down his teacup on the coffee table. He turned back to his fellow Watcher, wondering exactly how to explain the topic. "Well, Buffy drowned, and was later revived. As it turns out, that was enough to activate another potential. Something that was completely unprecedented. I was surprised to learn of Kendra's existence actually, until Xander and another of our group brought up the possibility."

"Drowned?" Nancy echoed, intrigued. She would have to review the files again. The activity on the Hellmouth bore careful study. "Who revived her?"

"That was actually Xander as well," Giles replied. The boy always was getting involved, even when told not to. The Watcher had stopped doing that, considering how things usually turned out with Xander's presence. As aggravating as the boy and his maverick ways could be at times, he was definitely an asset. "He does a lot here actually."

Nancy nodded, somewhat surprised. It seemed that the boy was full of many surprises. Ones that had been extremely glossed over in Giles' reports.

xxx

Xander arched his back, moving his head back to dodge a kick sent his way by Vi. He blocked the follow up punch, and caught her wrist easily. Dropping down, he swept low, sending a relatively slow kick into her legs. Well, relatively slow to him.

It was more of a demonstration than a fight, or even a sparring match, after all.

Vi fell onto the ground, the mats cushioning her fall. She grunted lightly as she impacted, slightly annoyed that he had so easily blocked her moves. Then again, she hadn't been surprised, given that he had already demonstrated some special abilities of his own. He had just been rather tight lipped about everything that that entailed.

"C'mon," Xander said, moving over to the fallen girl and extending a hand. He pulled her up, impressed by her tenacity. Despite the constant technical defeats, she hadn't been willing to quit. The Slayers and Potentials were nothing if not strong.

"How do you do that?" Vi asked, wanting to learn more about his specific fighting style than just practicing with him. It was a lot different than anything that she had ever seen before. Different than even what the Slayers were doing.

"Uh, put my hand down, and pull up when you hold onto it?" Xander responded, knowing that wasn't what she meant.

Vi rolled her eyes lightly, adjusting her clothes. "I mean your stance and style. How do you do it? It isn't something I've seen before."

"Ah," Xander stalled. Orson had always been adamant about maintaining secrecy when it came to the ways of the Iron Fist. But, that emphasis had always been on the more esoteric abilities related to the power that he was now connected to than with his specific fighting style. Of course, he also couldn't exactly say no to his friends, which Vi was fast becoming.

The Iron Fist sighed, breathing out lightly. Orson wasn't going to like it, but he would deal with that when it the man came back. "Okay, stand facing me, but turn your hips. You want to keep them bent slightly."

Xander watched as she did what she was told. He moved around behind her. "Okay, raise your hands."

Vi did as he asked, trying to get into the same position that Xander had taken.

He walked towards her, helping to move her hands into place, his hand running under her arms. "That's good, keep balanced. You don't want to simply plant yourself though."

It was slightly distracting to her to feel his breath tickle her neck, his hands running slightly rough against the bare skin of her arms. And while he was sweaty and smelled a little, it wasn't bad, just kind of earthy.

She looked back over her shoulder, intensely aware of how close he was standing to her. She kind of liked it, even though she had to struggle to concentrate. "Like this?"

Xander moved his hands to her shoulders, pressing down slightly to check her center of balance. She was picking it up well. "That's great."

He walked around to face her, slipping into a fighting stance of his own. "Ok. Now try to kick me, pivoting off your left foot."

It was the basics, but he wanted to get her comfortable with the stance first. While the basic techniques of K'un L'un were not necessarily revolutionary, and many of its concepts were used in Earth martial arts systems, the more advanced techniques that were secret and more powerful all built on that common framework.

Vi did as she was told, keeping her balance as she kicked out. He blocked it with his left forearm, letting her drop the leg down towards the floor, the potential keeping her balance the whole way through. She could tell that it was oddly hard though, and if she had done it at full speed, she would probably have hurt her leg more than his arm.

He kept at it for a half hour or so, building up in difficulty level as she got more comfortable with what she was doing. He had to hand it to her, she was definitely a quick learner.

"So did you ever show Buffy or Kendra this?" Vi asked, wiping her forehead with the back of her hand. She had been going faster and faster, and getting sweatier and sweatier. And while she had a great deal of stamina, Xander had been going strong for just as long. And he wasn't even breathing hard yet. He was an intriguing mystery. In all of her studies she had never heard of super powered demon hunters. Well, not male ones in any case.

Xander shrugged and shook his head. "Actually, no."

"Why not?" Vi asked, wondering why the Slayers hadn't incorporated anything from Xander's style into their own repertoire. While some of it was pretty much the same, there were a number of things that she definitely wanted to try with Nancy when she got back home.

"Honestly," Xander said, brow furrowing as he thought about it. "They never asked."

"Oh," Vi said, rather surprised at the answer. She had learned a lot about what being a Slayer meant from Buffy and Kendra too. And although they hadn't tried sparring that much, she had been taken out on patrol. It had been quite a patrol too, and while there were only a couple of vampires that they found, it had allowed her to see them in action.

The Watchers' chronicles did not do it justice.

"What did they tell you?" Xander asked. He hadn't been part of Vi's interactions with Buffy and Kendra. He wanted to give them space, letting the Slayers and the potential Slayer interact on their own terms. It didn't mean he wasn't curious though.

Vi shrugged. "Just some stuff about what was happening on the Hellmouth. And some of the things that you've faced. Like the Judge?"

"Ah right, the Judge." Xander remembered that night well. His leg had healed up since then, but he remembered not being able to access his powers as easily for some time after. According to Orson, using the power of the dragon at full took a lot out of them. It was not an experience that he wanted to repeat any time soon. "That's not one of the common type of things we see here. Vampires are more our thing. And, the occasional demon, though they aren't usually as powerful as that. And ghosts and stuff. Witches sometimes. What else?"

"Just some stuff about fighting, I guess," Vi said, watching as Xander wiped his forehead with the edge of his shirt. She got the bottom of the curled tail of his tattoo, which pointed nicely at his well defined abdominal muscles. "About power and training and stuff. I think Buffy's a little intimidated by you. Jealous."

"Really?" Xander said, frowning. He had known that Buffy had redoubled her efforts, and while they weren't training together anymore, he thought that that had helped with their friendship. Of course, it could have just been avoiding the problem. They hadn't really talked about it after he had gotten hurt. And then Buffy had been sick, and they'd just avoided the whole thing.

"Yeah," Vi continued, finding the boy easier and easier to talk to. She wasn't nearly so nervous anymore, although when he got close, it changed. "I mean, she wants to get stronger now. Kendra and her are both pushing themselves to be as strong as you. Stronger. They're Slayers."

He kept frowning. It was properly more of that alpha female stuff. He'd probably have to talk to Giles about that, but he wondered at what line it would start being a bad thing. He had changed a lot both from the spell as well as the training that he had received from Orson. Power wasn't the thing, it had never really been. What made the Iron Fist so meaningful was never about being powerful or being the best fighter in the room.

It had always been about doing the right thing. Standing up to injustice and being willing to stand against unimaginable odds, simply because that was what honor demanded. He had always done that. When he had gone after Jesse, he had had no powers, no special weapons or skills. He had done it because Jesse had been his friend, and he needed help. That had all that had been needed.

"Xander?" Vi said hesitantly, noticing that he was lost in thought.

He turned to her, shaking off his reverie. "They've always been strong. Stronger than me. They bore this struggle alone after all. One girl in all the world, even if it's two now. And you've been training all your life for your place in it. I've just been lucky."

That wasn't the half of it though. For everything given, there was something taken. Luck turned both ways.

xxx

"I've been thinking about how Vi's trip has been to the Hellmouth," Nancy said, wiping her mouth with a cloth napkin. The teapot had been drained some time ago, and all the snacks eaten. It had been quite a delight to be able to pick Giles' brain. The man was an experienced Field Watcher with active Slayers under his belt. He was a font of knowledge on the subject, and there was much advice that he had given her on Slayers and their behavior. He was, after all, the only Watcher that had been able to work with two Slayers at the same time, being able to compare and contrast how they developed. "I was thinking that it might be good to have the other potentials rotate through Sunnydale. That would give them experience with the enemy, so to speak, as well as gain some practical knowledge of the active Slayers and how they operate. It would be of invaluable help to the potentials."

"Yes, that would be," Giles said, impressed by the thought. Although, given Buffy's rather unique personality, he wondered how well the Council would view the advice once feedback started getting back to the heads of the organization. Of course, Kendra would be there as well, as a sort of balance. "Although, there are issues with-"

"Xander," Nancy said, not even needing him to finish the sentence. "I noticed that you make little mention of his abilities. Beyond some moderate martial arts skills. Which I assume is understating matters significantly."

"Ah, yes," Giles said, rather embarrassed at having been found out so easily. Of course, Xander had helped in that regard, when he had displayed his power in front of the two. "He had requested that his powers be kept secret when he was first developing them."

"And now," Nancy asked.

Giles struggled for words. "Um, he did talk to me about it, but all he said was that he wanted his privacy and that he hoped I would respect his wishes."

"So you didn't tell Travers," the other Watcher concluded, noting the loyalty that Giles had for his allies. Something that she didn't always pick up from the other Watchers she was on contact with.

Giles nodded. "No."

"Why not?" Nancy asked, genuinely wondering why the experienced Watcher would keep quiet about something that would be of clear interest to the Council. Despite whatever reservations she may have with some of their operational directives, she was still loyal to them. The Council was the support for the one warrior they had in the fight against the darkness.

Giles looked at her, able to tell that she didn't quite understand. "Because he asked me not to."

xxx

"I almost died," Xander went on, opening the refrigerator and pulling out two bottles of water. He unscrewed the caps and gave one to Vi before taking a sip of his own. "When we first came up against the Judge, it almost killed me."

"What happened," Vi asked, hopping up onto a counter that had been placed against a wall of the warehouse.

"We were there to do some recon, but it had been assembled," Xander explained, thinking back to that night. It had been the first time he had ever pushed himself to his max. "We ended up having to fight the thing. It's got this whole burning touch thing as well as being super strong. I ended up trying to hold it back."

"Why?" the potential asked. "Why didn't you just run?"

Xander shrugged, standing in front of her. "Some of our people had taken a couple of hits. I was delaying him so they could get away. Didn't work out so well for me."

Vi said nothing, waiting for him to go on in his own time.

"Got me by the throat," Xander said, remembering what had happened. "I did manage to get it off of me, but I ended up being blasted through a wall. Hit my head. Screwed up my leg. I'm told I had a concussion too, but I don't remember everything that happened after I got hit."

"Then what happened?" Vi said, her eyes wide with concern. The Slayers had made it seem so easy, the couple of vampires nothing but easy targets.

"We ended up just getting some rocket launchers and blowing it up once we figured out where it would be," Xander said. He looked her in the eye. "That's my point. I tried going toe to toe with big Blue and it nearly killed me. The only reason we won was because we went after it with another tactic."

"This is strong." He took one of her hands, shaping it into a fist. "This is good, but it'll get you killed if that's all you rely on."

Xander dropped it, touching his index finger lightly against her forehead. "This is better. Improvisation. Innovation. Intelligence. This will save your life."

Before Vi could respond, Xander turned, watching as the door to the warehouse opened. He recognized it as the only other person in the town right now that had a key, Lei Kung, the Thunderer. It was still odd seeing the man in civilian garb, his bald head a marked difference than most people in town.

Lei Kung walked in, immediately noticing the presence of the young girl that Xander was talking to. And touching, apparently.

Xander turned back to the potential. "Wait here, I should talk to this guy."

He walked over to where Lei Kung stood, noticing a disapproving expression on his face. He wasn't sure if the lack of intimidation created by not wearing his uniform made up for the intimidation of seeing exactly what the Thunderer was feeling on his face. "How's it going?"

"Were you teaching her?" Lei Kung said, ignoring the question. He stared at Xander, knowing that Orson had impressed upon him the need for secrecy.

"Just the basics. Nothing from…well, nothing from the Iron Fist specifically," Xander said, looking up at the large man with a calm expression. As far as he was concerned, he had not been doing anything wrong. Well, maybe just a little bit wrong. "What's wrong with that?"

"The secrets of K'un L'un are for K'un L'un only," Lei Kung said, struggling to keep his voice quiet. "Outsiders are not to be permitted to learn such things. Especially women."

"You taught Orson." Xander frowned, disliking where the conversation was going. "And, she's not just some girl."

"Orson was born and raised in K'un L'un. He is a citizen, as was his father before him. Race is not an issue there," the Thunderer proclaimed, looming over the boy. "However, it is forbidden to teach the martial arts to a woman. It is the law. It is our way."

"Your way? Your way." Xander looked up at him, anger on his face. He pointed a finger at the Thunderer's chest, emphasizing his point. "Not. Mine. We aren't in K'un L'un, and I'm not a citizen. You can't tell me what to do with what I know."

"So, you would defy me?" the Thunderer said, voice growling.

Xander continued to look up at him, swallowing his fear of being broken in two. He only hoped that he at least sounded brave. "If that's what it takes."

Lei Kung scoffed at the new Iron Fist, turning away. He started heading for the stairs, turning his head as he left, noticing Xander's stunned expression. "We shall see."

The Thunderer continued on, making his way up the stairs to the room that he had been turning into a bedroom and meditation chamber. When he was out of sight, he allowed himself the luxury of a small smile. Perhaps there was hope for the boy yet.

xxx

Giles stood up, picking up the platter and small plates that they had used. It had been hours, and his legs were sore. It had been a good talk however, and he had learned much. And in talking about not only his charges, but Xander, he had also learned a great deal about them as well.

One girl in all the world. The game had changed forever. Xander's interference with destiny was having all sorts of consequences. And for the life of him, he couldn't say that it was a bad thing.

Nancy stood up as well, picking up their teacups. "I should-"

The phone rang, interrupting her words. Giles glanced over at the phone, and decided to put down the china that he was holding. Walking over afterwards, he managed to get it on the third ring.

"Hello," Giles said into the headset.

xxx

Davos held the file in his hands. Though open, he was not reading the report that it contained. Instead, he looked out the window, watching as they flew through the night sky. He was heading towards Sunnydale by way of Los Angeles.

HYDRA had arranged things, managing to at least get that right. Xao was not completely incompetent it would seem. A warehouse had been arranged for them. It was all that was required, the remainder of their supplies on the plane with them.

Sunnydale. The Iron Fist was in Sunnydale and though it was filled with all sorts of creatures and demons, he would root out his nemesis and destroy him. Upon entering the Tournament, he would be seen as one who had already beaten an Immortal Weapon, earning honor for his new City. It should have been him. He should have been the one to face the dragon. And he would show K'un L'un how wrong they were to deny him that chance.

The legion of HYDRA soldiers, the best of the organization, had come with him, doffing their distinguishing uniforms for something a little more covert. But, they would soon change into what they really were. And once in Sunnydale, HYDRA would spread its many heads and root out the Iron Fist wherever he may be hiding.

And then the real fun would begin.

xxx

Doug Perren watched over the restoration process as one of the Sunnydale Museum's technicians worked on cleaning their latest acquisition. He barely noticed the presence of the man and woman that walked up to him, before one of them tapped him on the shoulder.

"Dr. Perren?" Giles asked, waiting for the man to turn around.

Doug looked at the suited and bespectacled man, being somewhat what he expected. Early forties, and with an academic air to him, Rupert Giles looked every much the authority on obscure relics that he was purported to be. The younger and prettier woman beside him was a mystery. "You must be Rupert Giles."

"Ah yes," Giles said, shaking the man's hand. He stepped aside to let him greet Nancy as well. "This is Nancy, she's ah, well she's also quite knowledgeable."

"Well, the more the merrier, " Doug said, shaking the woman's hand. "I'm Doug."

"Please sure to meet you," the Watcher replied, smiling politely as he shook her hand.

"Well, let me show you what I called about," Dr. Perren said, as he led them to a large roughly rectangular shaped rock. He pointed out some cuneiform script that had been uncovered by the cleaning process.

Giles looked carefully at it, leaning in. He made sure not to touch it, though made careful note of the runes. "Have you carbon dated it yet?"

"The results'll be back in a couple of days," Dr. Perren said, inspecting the rock as well. "I'll go out on a limb and say old."

"Um, yes, it certainly is." Giles turned and moved over to a desk, picking up a jar and a small scraper. "It predates any settlements I've read about."

He walked back to the rock, looking at the doctor before he started. "May I?"

"Yeah sure," Doug replied moving in to get a better look. The woman that Giles had come with did the same.

Giles scrapped at a corner, finding a groove. Scrapping further, it seemed to be rather deep. He turned back to the PhD. "I assume you haven't tried to open it?"

"Open it?" Doug said, leaning in to see what had been uncovered.

Nancy stood back watching, frowning. The Hellmouth. Mysterious script on a presumably full container of some sort. The discovery did not strike her as good news.

xxx

Spike rubbed his forehead, sick and tired of having to stay hidden. The boy had taken on the Judge and a number of demons and won. Not only that, but the damned Slayers were out in force, taking out vampires as soon as they appeared. He had to keep hidden, never venturing out, in order to keep the Slayers and their friends from finding him. He had had to resort to sending out his minions to bring him back victims and blood. It was like being a damn invalid.

The Hellmouth had gotten too damn crowded for its own good. He looked over at one of the few minions that he had left. It was Dalton. Of all the incompetent and weak minions that could have survived, Dalton had. It was positively infuriating to have him still exist when Drusilla was nothing more than dust scattered by the wind.

"Uh, Spike?" Dalton said, looking up in time to see his employer glaring at him. Even now, after some time had passed, the bleached blonde vampire had not let go of his anger. His lust for vengeance. It had simply grown, being fueled by having to stay confined to the small crypt that they had managed to appropriate in one of Sunnydale's twelve cemeteries.

"What is it?" Spike snarled, yellow eyes glowing.

The other vampire held up a newspaper. "There's an article about an obelisk being unearthed. It's supposed to be ancient."

"So?" Spike said, annoyed. He wanted nothing more than to hurt something.

Dalton looked at the article, getting increasingly more nervous. "Well, I think it could be a reliquary. It has writing on it. It's in Tuwarik. Proto- Tuwarik actually."

"Get to the point, you moron," Spike growled.

"Right, uh, well, reliquaries using a demonic language would have been used to hold demonic relics," Dalton said, though it was rather obvious. He hurried on, not wanting to get hit again. "This one might hold something you could use against the Slayer."

Spike looked at the other vampire, a smile growing on his face for the first time in a while. This was the best news he had heard in days. A chance to get even with the Slayer and this new demon hunter, the Iron Fist. Which may or may not have been one of Buffy's school yard chums.

And if it didn't work out, he could always leave and find another way. That was one of the benefits of being a vampire. He had all the time in the world.