Disclaimer: See chapter 1 (Spoiler, I own nothing in this story)

Thursday, July 27th, The Bronze, 7:15pm

"...Happy Birthday Dear Xand-Er, Happy Birthday To You"

The poorly sung but very enthusiastic birthday strain trailed out into applause and Xander blowing out the candles for his ridiculously large cake. Faith had used some of the Slayer Vault money from their bounties to rent the Bronze for the evening and to buy a gigantic, 3 foot tall chocolate cake, with enough candles to almost constitute a fire hazard. Xander was only able to blow out about half before he pulled out his wand and cast a charm to put out fire. It took 2 castings to put them all out, more than he would like, but better than last month. With Xander's wild magic almost under control, he should be able to get his own, official, non-tutorial wand within a month.

Without it blowing up.

Hopefully.

His Rackilus Spurturus infestation, though, was another story. That was as bad as ever.

There were only a dozen close friends in attendance, which was perfect for Xander. Faith, Joyce, and Willow had chosen the list with care, having learned from Buffy's 'Welcome Back' zombie fiasco last year to have parties on an appropriate scale. Plus, everyone in attendance knew of Xander's magical and Force abilities, so he was able to do some party tricks like blowing out the candles with magic or levitating his presents over to him with the Force.

Everyone started enjoying their slice (or slices, depending on who it was) of cake, and chatting away with each other about what they had been up to and what their plans were for the end of summer. Xander listened in, partially with his own skill built up over the many years of being a social outcast and partially with the force, with a smile on his face. Inside, he was already missing all the things he would need to leave behind shortly.

No one except for Giles knew at the end of August Xander would be leaving Sunnydale for parts unknown. The medical doctors found a few places that he could reside in order to get rid of his parasites, some of them even hospitable, so he needed to get there as soon as reasonable. His first stop, though, would be to stop by England and attend the reading of his father's will, along with some other tasks the goblins alluded to needing done as head of his house. The goblins and some of his tutors were helping him understand what all that entailed.

Most of it was over his head and he suspected it would take weeks, if not months, of careful explanation of the fine print before he finally understood even half of it. And even longer before he could start charting a new course for his 'family' legacy. But with Giles's help in translating 'Goblin banking' and 'inheritance' jargon, he felt reasonably secure in the fact he could, and more importantly would, be able to do it.

"Happy Birthday, my boy. I am proud to have known you these last few years. You have accomplished so much, much more than any of us have truly given you credit for, at least out loud. I want you know that your deeds have been recorded in my official journals, at least the parts dealing with Slaying." Giles extended his hand towards Xander's, and they shook as equals.

Giles marveled at the growth his young charge, now colleague, had made over the summer. It truly was a mark against the educational system at how little motivation they provided this young man, though to be fair high school taught neither magic nor the Force. Giles glanced around before continuing. While what he had found out wasn't a secret, per say, he would prefer that others didn't know about it, particularly Wesley.

"I did want to let you know how my afternoon call to the council went. Evidently, my father and all the other members of the council had no idea what I was talking about. They were positive that there was no secret Wizarding world, that they would look through their archives when they got a chance, but no one remembered anything about them."

"Didn't they tell you that same thing last time?" Xander was confused. Ever since Giles first talked with his father about the Goblins, he has been calling the council for more information about the so called secret wizarding world. Lately, though, the responses he had gotten had been odd and repetitive. And alarmingly consistent across the board.

"Yes, almost word for word. It appears that someone didn't want them to continue their investigations, so they erased their memory. I just don't know who. Luckily they sent me a few journals hinting that this Wizarding world exists but nothing concrete, so hopefully seeing those will jog their memories. They didn't even remember sending me the records." Giles shook his head.

Xander began to wonder what kind of people they would be dealing with that went to such lengths to hide themselves from the world, even other magical communities not within their circle. So far discussions with his mother on this subject had left him more confused and wary than enthusiastic. What was he getting himself into?

"It appears that our journey next month will be two-fold for me, Xander. I will need to spend some time with the council sorting this out. I will make sure you are taken care of first, but I am not sure how long I will be able to stay with you while we are in England." Giles shook his head sadly at the thought of leaving Xander to his own devices in his home country. He wasn't sure who would come off worse, his charge or his countrymen.

"No worries, the goblins have introduced me to a couple of people that have been telling me how British Wizarding culture works. Evidently, it is still stuck in the Victorian Era, so it shouldn't be too hard to navigate. From what they tell me, all I have to do is act like a pompous jerk and they will be falling all over themselves to impress me. Good thing I have Wesley and Cordelia to model my Black persona after. After years of dealing with Cordelia, I know how to act aloof."

"That's just because I am better than everyone else here," Cordelia interrupted. With a dismissing nod, which Giles took to mean Cordelia was dismissing him from the conversation, the Watcher congratulated Xander on surviving another year of life on the Hellmouth, and sought other company.

"Xander, I wanted to thank you for what you did for me. I never would have been able to afford college without you." Xander could count on one hand the number of times Cordelia thanked him without some sort of insult attached.

"I didn't do anything…" Xander attempted to deny that generosity.

"You came into a whole lot of money when you started your magical training. I get an anonymous full ride scholarship from the university I was applying for, as well as an acceptance letter from the department that had rejected me 3 months previously. I know what throwing money around does to people, and the dean was someone who had lots of money thrown at her. It was you, and thank you." She gave him a quick kiss on the cheek, then looked him straight in the eyes.

"You are still a doofus, but you are a good man. If you need anything, let me know." With that, she was back mingling with the crowd, leaving Xander temporarily alone. Xander pondered on that, and something in the Force said that he would be taking up that offer. He wasn't sure if he would should be terrified or mortified at that foreknowledge, those seemed to be the most appropriate options.

With a sigh, Xander put his smile back in place and began to mingle again. It was nearly 11 when things started to wind down. Faith and Buffy had just gotten back from a quick patrol an hour ago, and as expected the cake did not survive their post-slaying munchies.

"Thank you everyone for coming out to my birthday party. With everything that has happened this last summer, I've had time to reflect on my life so far. You all are the best friends and mentors that I could ever hope for. We all have people who have passed on, taken from us without cause, but we are still here, doing what we can to make this part of the world a better place. So, go us." Xander started the applause, which quickly spread as they subconsciously congratulated themselves on surviving this long. After a few moments, it quieted down so Xander could finish his birthday speech, a tradition amongst the Scoobies.

"With Mayor Faith." A low growl escaped both slayers before they could catch it, it was a sore point for the two, but Xander still found it hilarious. "...Mayor Faith's leadership of Sunnydale, this place is the safest it has been since it was founded. Deaths are down, and the Mages of the town are getting actual training." There was more applause, this time from the former Sunnydale High students.

"Due to some issues with my inheritance, I am sad to say that I will need to leave Sunnydale for a while. Even though I will be gone, though, I have left strict instructions at the doughnut shop about delivery, so never fear for your munchies, they will arrive when you need them." The shock from his future departure was mitigated by chuckles at his bad joke, just as he planned. He didn't want this to be a sad occasion.

"I'll be headed first to England, but I will try to write or call every day wherever I go, and if you need me I will be on the first flight back. I shouldn't be in England too long, so I should be back before you all miss me." He knew that he would not be able to visit much at all once he found a positive magic place to get rid of his parasites, but he could feel the sadness coming from his friends, and wanted to ease it with a small lie. Especially for Willow.

"Thank you for tonight, it has been the best night in a long time, and not just because I got out of doing homework." There was a ripple of laughter, since everyone present knew Xander's studying habits since starting the magic tutoring. While he complained and whined constantly about it, they all saw how much effort he actually put into it while verbally decrying it. They knew he just wanted to keep up his slacker persona, which they indulged him.

"So, here is to saving the world for another year." With that, the birthday boy and his guests raised their beverages in salute, and toasted to their continued success.

Afterwards, Xander was swarmed with questions from everyone, wanted to know where he was going, when he was leaving, when he would come back, what would happen with the tutoring (only Willow was asking that), and so forth. He answered as much as he could (without giving away some secrets like his magical parasites), and it soon turned into a "We'll miss you" party for the next hour. The look in his friend's eyes promised that he would be getting another party before he left at the end of August, which he relented. Not like he had much of a choice.

Oz's van, the designated delivery vehicle for late night outings, dropped Xander off last as his apartment he had gotten as soon as he could. He still had not confronted his parents about their not being his real parents, but he had that on the list of things to do before leaving. He wanted to yell and scream about them keeping this huge secret from him, but he found that he just didn't have the energy to hate them for not telling him the truth. Getting his own apartment for the summer had been cathartic for his relationship with them.

Also on that list of things to do was to get Joyce to see a doctor. Ever since he started sleeping at the Summer's house when using the holocron (better results since he was more comfortable there, and Joyce made some amazing breakfast which he needed after a night of training with the Force), he had been getting a disquieting feeling from the Force that the Summer Matron was in need of medical attention. At first he thought it was just in his mind, his need to create situations where he could be the hero (a constant worry for him since first learning about what the Force could do), but as these months passed by, he realized it was actually the Force speaking to him. He planned on making everyone get a full medical checkup before he left, with scans and bloodwork and everything that should catch whatever he was sensing.

He would cover the bill, but Giles would take credit for it (explaining the Council wanting to change how they treat their workers, and this was the first step), like Giles took credit for the salary and stipends all of the Scoobies now got for their help protecting the world from vampires and demons. One of the first things he set up with the Goblins was Trust accounts, college scholarships, and health insurance for everyone. While the goblins advised him against making large purchases, these types of investments (plus the Summer mortgage and loan payments) were common and hidden enough that it would not cause any attention to come his way.

Finishing up in his small bathroom, Xander entered the sole bedroom and walked over to his desk, where he pulled out the box containing the tools and materials to create his own lightsaber. For the past week, his mother had been instructing him in the art and method of crafting his own personal weapon. He had completed three already, but none of them felt right to him. They worked, they just didn't sync with him. He started deconstructing his latest attempt. He knew he was missing some aspect, something that would let him truly bond with his lightsaber, as opposed to merely using it, but he was uncertain what that would be. Xander was determined to continue trying until he got it correct, however long it took.

A knock on his door interrupted his thoughts, and he carefully put away the tools and empty lightsaber cylinder before answering the door. Faith, clothed only in trench coat and high heels, stepped over the threshold without an invitation. She had a sultry smile on her face and a smoldering look in her eyes.

"Happy Birthday" was all she said as the coat fell to the ground, and Xander knew that his lightsaber construction would be put on hold until tomorrow, possibly in the afternoon.

Wednesday, May 31st, Tonks Home, 11:02 AM

Andromeda Tonks (formerly of the House Black), was not a happy woman. This was not an unusual emotion for her when dealing with the politics of the House Black, having been officially kicked out of the family when she married Ted. She was given the choice, but she loved him, and wanted to be with him. Of course, no one else alive knew of the hidden exception clause within the Black Family Rules, so she was stuck being excluded from everything related to the family she had growing up. Even knowing how her life is now, she would have made the same choices over again. She loved her wonderful and kind husband, and was so proud of everything her amazing daughter accomplished.

Now she was being told that she would be visited by the Head of the Black house. After decades of silence, they finally deemed her important enough to receive a visit. She was tempted to dirty up the house more for the visit, but she knew that she couldn't stand that for too long, and the letter gave no date for the visit. That she was invited to the reading of her late cousin's will was a sad point, she had liked Regulus well enough growing up, he just fell in with a bad crowd when he got to Hogwarts. Even when he was a Death Eater, he never came around to harass her like other so called 'blood traitors' were harassed.

It wasn't too long after the first letter from Gringotts that she received another anger-inducing letter, this time from her younger sister, Narcissa. She didn't need to even open it to know what it said. They had exchanged letters every couple of years, but they had been cold and formal. They could not do more, due to the fact that they were not members of the same family any more. They were both Slytherins, so both knew that there were opportunities to be had with a visit from the Head of the Black house. She wasn't even sure who that was, anymore, but she suspected her sister did.

When they were still at Hogwarts, Narcissa and she collaborated in their political maneuvers because their skills complemented each other. Andromeda was able to plan out strategies and discover hidden leverage that could be used. Narcissa excelled at improvising when plans went awry and thinking on her feet. Andromeda was a master at long term plans, but no one could match Narcissa in the short term. They had been an unstoppable force, but since her marriage they had not worked on the same project nor talked in the same circles.

The news from the goblins had created a detente between them, though. If the Head of Black was back in play, there will be a shift in political power. Andromeda had no doubts that her sister wanted to plot out courses of action to handle the Head visits. It would no doubt be to benefit Draco, a most disrespectful boy if her sources were any indication. But disrespectful or not, he was family, of sorts. The question that was important was what she wanted out of the situation. Pick an end result, and figure out how to get what she wanted. That simple method had served her for her entire life, and would do so now.

She would not be allowed back into the family, the Black laws prohibited that, and she was not sure she wanted back in. However, there might be a way to get her husband and daughter some protections reserved for members of an Ancient house, like Black. With the increased hostilities these last few years against muggleborns and those not considered 'pureblood', that would be a good goal to achieve. An even better goal, though, would be the political neutering of her brother-in-law's pureblood supremacy movement. Too much to hope for actual neutering, but she could settle for them losing their sway within the ministry. For that, she would step up her game and enter the fray.

She supposed the first step would be to actually read her sister's letter and find out what information she had, then contact her spies in the Ministry, Hogwarts, and overseas. She had her goal, she was going to get her knowledge, and only then would she plan her path. These things took time to set up, and with luck she would have enough to finalize her moves to fundamentally change the wizarding society. With her sister's help, they would both get what they want, even if her sister didn't realize what her end goal would be until it was too late.