Disclaimer: Don't own or claim rights to BtVS, NCIS, or Highlander
A/N: Finally! I have been nibbling away at this just about the whole time, and finally got going a couple of days ago. I still won't be able to keep up with my original pace, but look forward to writing more from now on.
A/N 2: Thanks to everyone who has reviewed and recommended this story. Your support has been wonderful!
"Hey there, Xan. Looks like you're in a good mood," Steve said as he caught up.
Xander looked over at the other teen. Steve was one of the first friends he'd made at this new school, and a runner. Xander had started running after Halloween, and found that he liked it. Since starting at the school, he had started meeting up with Steve for morning runs. Steve had started pushing him to join the track team, but Xander was holding back. After all, not a jock.
"My Willow is here!" he boasted happily.
Steve looked around quickly, then turned back to Xander, quirking an eyebrow.
"Oh, not here here. She's here in DC, though. She's with her dad at the moment. Getting uniforms, books, whatever. I'm not sure if she has to do tests, or if they will let her just slot in based on how much better her grades are than mine,' he added, grinning.
"So when's genius girl starting?"
Xander couldn't stop grinning. "This week. Hopefully in the next couple of days. It's going to be great. I've missed my Willow-girl so much."
"No, really? I hadn't noticed," his friend protested.
Pouting, Xander reached out to slap Steve on the head, but the other teen ducked out of the way, chuckling. Then Steve reached out and slapped Xander on the arm. "Tag. You're it," he shouted, running off.
With a growl, Xander took off after his friend.
Ducky looked up as Gibbs entered the morgue. "Anything I can help you with, Jethro?"
The other man smiled. "I've brought my daughter down to meet you. I was just checking it was okay to bring her in. I don't really want her to see anything too much."
"Of course not," Ducky agreed. "Well, as you can see, it's pretty clear in here, so you can bring her in, or I can come out if you would prefer."
"No, I'll just go and get her." Moments later, Gibbs returned with his daughter. "Ducky, I'd like you to meet my daughter, Willow Rosenberg. Willow, this is Dr Donald Mallard, better known as Ducky."
"Willow," Ducky exclaimed, taking her offered hand, "such an unusual name. One often wonders which particular species the parents were considering when they chose that name, and what were the characteristics they decided were sufficiently pleasing," he mused. "I highly doubt they thought of the wood's efficacy in the creation of cricket bats, or the twig brooms that can be made from them, although perhaps the species' medical significance was important, as I understand they are doctors?"
"Um, I think they just thought it sounded pretty," she confessed. "I was born in California, after all."
"Oh, yes. Quite. Still -"
"Easy, Duck. Don't want to scare her away," Gibbs warned.
"Oh, no, it's fine" Willow reassured Ducky hurriedly. "You kind of remind me of Giles. Xander said something like that when we were talking about the people here. And it would be lovely to hear some of your stories. Xander said they were fascinating. But not right now. I think Gibbs wants me to meet Abby now."
"Ah, yes. Young Abigail. I believe you will quite enjoy meeting her. Alexander has also spoke to me about you, you should know. He has missed you quite dreadfully, poor boy. I believe he has been doing all of his homework out of sheer loneliness and boredom!"
Willow giggled at that. "Yeah, that's what he said. And that you and Abby have been helping him. Thanks so much for that."
"Oh, you're quite welcome. He has been doing very well with his schoolwork. I believe having interested teachers and other adults has done him the world of good."
"I always said he was smart," the girl agreed. "Now he has other people who agree with me."
"Well, you can have a conference about Xander's homework later," Gibbs decided. "Now on to Abby's lab."
Willow grinned as her father led her into the lab. Loud music filled the air, just like Xander said there would be, and the slender Goth scientist was perched on a stool, working on a computer, bobbing her head to the beat.
Gibbs stepped around into Abby's field of vision, causing her to jump up from her stool. "Gibbs. I don't have anything for you. You haven't given me anything to do today, so that's why I don't have anything to do for you. Why are you here? You haven't given me anything to check up, so that's why I don't have anything for you."
"Can't I just come down to see you?" Gibbs asked.
"No. You always have a reason. You are a very busy man, and you are always doing something. You don't just come down to chat. So why are you here?"
Gently, Gibbs took the woman by her shoulders and turned her to face his daughter. With a squeal, she dashed over to the redhead and hugged her. "You're here. Gibbs brought you here. Gibbs, you brought Willow to see me. When did you get in? You didn't tell me you were bringing Willow home. Willow, you didn't know you were coming to DC this week, did you? Why didn't you tell me you were coming here?"
Willow laughed. "I didn't know. Gibbs picked me up on Saturday. He flew in like Superman, and carried me off. He and Kate went in to talk to Mom, and there wasn't even any shouting or anything, and then he came out and we went around to Giles' place so that I could say goodbye to everyone, and then we flew home, and then Xander brought doughnuts and coffee around on Sunday morning and we spent all day catching up, and he said that you would show me Major Mass Spec, and all your computers, and where's Bert? I need to see Bert. Xander said I had to see him and give him a big hug, so where is he, Missy?" she finished, folding her arms, and revealing her 'Resolve Face'.
"Wait a minute," Gibbs protested. "Just when did you two get to be such buddies?"
"Oh, well, you know how Xander spent time at my place?" Abby asked.
"Yeah."
"Well, we kind of got talking about his friends back in Sunnydale, and the study group, and have you seen the books he reads? They're huge, and not at all in English, and he was looking up these creepy egg things, and then I let him call his friends, and we were all chatting, and then Willow and I got chatting, and we've been chatting every week since then, and IM'ing, and e-mailing, and now she's here!" Abby finished triumphantly.
"Uh huh. So you've already started corrupting my daughter, have you?"
"Oh, no. Actually, it's been very revealing, talking to Willow's friends. I know not to allow her any of my Caff-Pow, or to let Xander have much sugar, and I have been warned of the consequences of allowing them to have forbidden foods together."
"Oh, come on," Willow whined. "We're not that bad."
"Uh huh. I saw the look on Buffy's face when she mentioned that particular thing. Remember? We had just set up the computer so that we could video-conference and she had an suitably horrified look on her face when that came up. And Giles was looking very pale," Abby added solemnly.
Gibbs snorted. "They ate a box of doughnuts for breakfast on Sunday. I'm here to say that that will not be happening again, at least not anywhere I will be."
"So," Abby decided, "school. Spill."
"Well, you know that I'm going to the same school as Xander," Willow began. "It's a private school, complete with uniform." Abby and Willow both made a face at that thought. "Ms Black said that since my grades were so high, and Xander did so well in testing, that they are going to allow me to just slot straight in to the classes. So tomorrow I have to get my uniforms," again both of them made a face, "and pick up my books. And on Wednesday I start at school with Xander. I kind of feel guilty about missing two days of school, but Xander said I could have a look at his work for today and tomorrow, so that I know where I am, and he's going to look after me at school, which he's always done, well not for classes, but, you know, everything else, but now he's looking after me for schoolwork, too, which is uber weird and rather disturbing, and if I didn't know better, I would think it was a sign of the apocalypse, but we talked about it back in Sunnydale, and decided that it was only a sign if he not only did his homework, but got B's or A's and even got ahead on his homework, so things are looking fine so far," Willow finished confidently.
"Not much for the studying, huh?" Abby commiserated.
"He's never had any encouragement before. I was the only person who ever told him he could do anything, and I'm the girl he shared his crayons with in Kindergarten, so I sort of really don't count."
Abby nodded. "But he knows better, now, doesn't he?"
"Oh, yeah. Well, with Tony and Gibbs, and everyone else here encouraging him, and he said the teachers actually seem to like him at school, which, in itself, is enough of a reason for me to put up with the whole uniform thing, and the fact that he's been surviving AP classes which he didn't realise he was actually doing, but now he knows, and he's realised that he's not actually as dumb as Mr Harris told him he was, so he now has a reason to do well in school. I think he's actually even thinking of college, now," she added, smiling proudly.
"That is so cool! He's going to do languages, right? Maybe archaeology, or anthropology?"
"Yeah, I think so. Ideally, he would go to England, and study at Oxford, then maybe work with a group we know, but he doesn't thing they would go for that, as they can be really stuffy, and he wouldn't fit in. But there's other things he could do."
"Join the Marines," Abby suggested, with a smirking glance at Gibbs.
Willow rolled her eyes. "I can just see him doing that, too. It would be just like him to want to run off and save the world."
"Nothing wrong with that," Gibbs countered.
"There is when I'm stuck at home worrying about him," Willow grumped.
Gibbs wrapped an arm around Willow's shoulders and hugged her. "I'm sure he'll make the right decision about his future. Besides, he's not going anywhere for a year and a half. You have all that time to discuss his education with him."
Willow leaned into the hug. "Yeah. I just worry, sometimes."
Willow was leaning on Abby's counter-top when she was suddenly grabbed and spun around. Gasping, she smacked Xander on the arm. "What was that for, mister?" she demanded.
"Just happy to see you," he grinned.
The redhead rolled her eyes. "So lets take a look at your books. I want to see this homework you're allegedly doing."
Xander started pulling out books and setting them on the counter. "I even brought my notes from school so that you could see where we're up to. Of course, they're not up to Willow-notes level, but they are notes, and they actually make sense, or at least to me, so that's good. Did Gibbs say when you're starting at school? I've already told some people that you're coming, and they're really looking forward to meeting you. I've missed you in class, especially today. I could hardly concentrate because all I could think about was the fact that you were in DC and you'd be at school soon. When are you starting at school?"
Willow chuckled at hugged her friend. "I start Wednesday. I get my uniform tomorrow, and already have my books, and everything. I have my class schedule, and we're in just about all the same classes, except I think you're in a different sports class than mine. Same time, but different group."
"Cool," her friend grinned.
"So how're your sword lessons going?"
"Ugh. Slowly. He's got me doing basic exercises to strengthen my wrists and build my muscles, all that. And whacking me silly when I'm not standing right or holding the sword right, or whatever. You know," he added thoughtfully, "pain is a pretty good motivator. So you going to join me?"
She made a face. "I don't think so. I'd rather be, I don't know, back up or something like that. Maybe I could learn something, uh," she quickly looked around, "something, um, supportive. Like, you know, what Ms Calendar does."
Xander frowned as he thought about the computer teacher. "Well, you're already pretty good at... Oh, yeah. The other stuff. Well, so long as you find a good teacher, and go at it properly, that would probably be really useful. But, just like Mr Pierson has me doing with the sword, you need to learn the foundational stuff properly if you're going to last."
"You're giving me advice?" Willow asked, eyebrows raised. "You're giving me advice, more importantly, on how to learn?"
Xander blushed and shrugged. "The way we were learning things back in the 'Dale wasn't really that good. Giles just didn't have the time to teach us properly, and it was all rushed, and not good for any kind of longevity. I think that if you started learning, uh, that stuff back there, you would push ahead, and learn things that were far too heavy for you. Sure you could probably do them, but I think it would be like launching into a fight with a big sword and killing something, but you'd pay for it for the next few days. If, of course, you hadn't managed to slice of something important, or kill one of your friends in the meantime. So... Just take it slowly? Learn properly? For me?" her friend begged.
Willow chewed her lip for a moment, then nodded. "Actually I think I'll concentrate on what I can do for now. Maybe when we get to college I might look up someone to teach me."
"Great," Xander grinned. "So do you want to look at my homework with me?"
"Just so long as you're doing your own homework, mister. I know you can, so you're doing all of your own homework from now on. And getting solid B's, too," she added, Resolve Face firmly in place.
Xander rolled his eyes. "Yes, Mom," he sighed.
Willow and Xander were at her house, looking at Willow's laptop. They had set it up with a microphone and speakers, and were connecting with the group in Sunnydale. Xander grinned as the picture opened up to show their friends in the school library.
"Hey G-man, Mr Zabuto, girls, and, of course, Oz."
The slight guitarist nodded while Giles frowned. "How is it that Sam gets 'Mr Zabuto' while I get that infernal nickname?"
"Well, I don't really know him well enough to call him anything like that. Besides, 'Z-man' is a little derivative, don't you think?"
"Certainly," Sam inserted smoothly. "An insult to your own creativity, not to mention your much closer relationship with Rupert."
"Git," Xander heard Giles mutter to his colleague.
"So how goes it in Sunnyhell?" Xander asked cheerfully.
"Oh dear," Willow murmured when they saw everyone's expression change.
"That bad?" Xander asked nervously.
Giles glanced at Sam, then asked, "We have a phrase that I would like to pass by you two. Maybe you can think of something we haven't already thought of. 'No weapon forged can stop him.'"
"Um..." Xander thought. "Get an unforged weapon? Do we even forge weapons now?" he asked, turning to Willow. "I mean, they're made in big factories, not like swords being made by a smith. So you want a modern weapon."
"Yeah, but what?" Buffy asked.
Xander opened his mouth to speak, but thought better of it. He cleared his throat. "You remember what happened at Halloween?" he asked cautiously.
"Yeah, you turned into a -" Buffy began, but Xander waved hurriedly for her to be quiet. She frowned, but didn't say any more.
"Yeah, that. Um, well, I can think of some things that might be useful, but I really don't want to say anything, er, like this."
Oz tilted his head in thought, then nodded. He leaned over an whispered in Giles' ear, and Xander was pleased to see the older man's eyes widen in understanding.
"Er, yes, well, is there any way that we can discuss this more thoroughly?"
Xander sighed. "Really, I would only want to discuss this face to face. It's not something I want out there. I'll think of a way of discussing it, but in the meantime, try thinking about what I would be thinking of. You know, given how I was thinking that night."
"Yeah, but how are we going to get it?" Oz asked. "What I'm thinking of isn't exactly off the shelf."
"No. I know. Okay," he decided, "let me think about it."
"We are on a truncated timeline," Giles reminded him.
"Yeah, I get that. I'll work on it."
"Hey, Steve," Xander said as he approached his friend, "I need you to do something for me."
"Like what?"
"Like cover for me for a day or two."
"With who?"
"My brother and Willow's dad."
The runner looked away as he thought about it. "It'll cost you," he warned.
"Whatever. I need this."
"What are you doing?"
"I can't tell you. But it's not … bad. It's something that has to be done, and I'm pretty much the only person who can get it done. Hopefully I can go one day and be back the next, but I may need you to cover for me for two nights. And it's like tomorrow night," he added guiltily.
"Tomorrow night," Steve hissed, looking around. "Ever heard of giving notice?"
"Yeah, and this is about as much notice as I have, Steve, I swear. This has to happen. Can you help me?"
Steve ran his hand through his hair. "Yeah. Okay. But you owe me. Real big. Like 'join the track team' big."
"Oh man! Are you still on that kick?"
"Yeah. That's your payment."
"Fine. Whatever. Okay, I have a call to make. Oh, and you'll have to take my absence letter to the office for me. Hope to God they don't call my brother," Xander muttered.
"Giles, I need you to do something," Xander told the older man when he answered the phone.
"What do you need?"
"Tickets. I need to fly out there tomorrow, and back the following day. I'll get you your thing, but I can't hang around. Tony and Gibbs would both kill me if they found out what I'm going to do."
"Is this the only way?"
"I know the where, the what and the how, and I don't feel comfortable talking about it over the phone."
"Very well," Giles conceded. "Oz explained things to me, so I understand your reluctance to discuss matters. I will book the flights now, and I will try to minimise your time here. Have you considered how you're going to explain your absence?"
"Yeah. I've got someone covering for me. Paying for it, too, but that's something that will probably make Tony happy, and I can live with the price, so it's okay."
"What's the price, if you don't mind my asking?" the Librarian asked, concerned.
Xander sighed. "I have to join the track team."
Giles blinked. "That's it?"
"G-man," Xander warned, "it makes me a borderline jock. Not something I want to be. It's a big thing for me."
The older man smirked. "Yes, well, there are prices to be paid, and burdens to be carried. This is yours," Giles conceded.
"Yeah, yeah, laugh it up," Xander grunted, disgusted.
"Don't mind if I do."
