TITLE: BUFFY'S TURN 17\?
AUTHOR: RICK
E-MAIL: amulet@my-dejanews.com
SUMMARY: Lest everyone forgets. This fic has Buffy going off the deep end with Spike and Faith in the beginning. Xander doesn't give up on her. He saves her so to speak, nothing new there. Buffy falls in love with him, big time. He doesn't know it of course, partly because he and the Scooby gang are involved in extra-curricular activities. They are about to come up against an evil that dwarfs the usual hell mouth variety, where the bad guys all wear white hats too.
Chapter: 17-Who's Good And Who's Bad?
Buffy stares at Kathleen as they ride to the cabin.
"You're a member of Xander's network right?"
"He and Oz are friends, yes?"
"Did you sleep with Oz too?"
"Slayer, Xander and I shared an intimate relationship."
"Shared, as in the past?"
"Yea, until I found out who was deep in his heart."
After a few minutes of silence. "Does that make you feel better?"
"Yes it does, thank you."
When Buffy sees Xander she embraces him very tightly. Xander only relaxes in her arms for a minute. As soon as Oz is well enough to move they head back to the magic shop. Giles, Tara and Willow are waiting. Xander goes right to Giles.
"The cylinder was empty wasn't it, Giles?"
"Yes it was and we have more bad news. We went to see Ethan, we found him dead."
"Shit, they're covering their tracks. He was definitely the one who set us up, right?"
"That is his specialty
"What now, Giles?"
"Xander, if they killed him it means they're very serious."
"Which means they'll take down everybody around us."
"Xander, I don't think they want the rest of us, just your network."
Xander looks at Oz. They both know Giles is speaking the truth. And, what Giles did not say is that they are putting the rest in danger by staying around them. Buffy picks it up, too.
"Oh no, you're not leaving Xander!"
"Buffy..."
"Listen, Xander, I just went through hell. I thought...I thought you were dead, Xander."
"Buffy, I want you to stay out of this. This is with me and Oz."
"You're crazy if you think I'm staying out of this, Xander."
"For Christ's sake, Buffy, we don't even know who is in on it."
"Whoever it is, Xander, they made a real big mistake. They fucked around with the man I love."
Xander is in a bit of shock. But, he cannot think about what Buffy just said. Like their kiss it is just too much to process right now. Xander is not going to endanger the Slayer no matter how much she wants to be a part of this.
Oz looks at Xander. "I'll meet you in the Van, Xander, make it quick!"
But, when Oz goes to the van he sees that he has his own problems with leaving. Willow is sitting in the shotgun seat. He gets in. The redhead looks at him.
"Weren't you even going to say goodbye, Oz?"
"Willow, go back to Tara. I'm not involving you in this."
"Oh, deja vu, another problem I can't help you with, huh?"
"Stop being sarcastic, Will, it doesn't look good on you."
"I love you, Oz."
"Okay, and when this is over we can talk about it."
"Won't work, Oz, I know this business remember, I'm not Buffy. If they want you they'll get you and you know it."
"Yes, Willow, and you also know that you and Tara and Giles are out of it right now. I'm not going to bring you into it. I love you too, Willow. I never stopped. It was never about that."
They engage in a very deep kiss, speaking to the fact that it might be the last one they ever share.
"Oz, please come back to me...please."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Xander takes Buffy into another room. "Buffy, I'm not going to put you in danger like this"
"Don't be ridiculous, Xander, this is me, Buffy the vampire slayer, Ms.always in danger herself."
"Yea, but not like this."
"I'm coming Xander!"
"Damn you, Buffy, please...just give me two days to figure this out, two days then I'll let you in on it?"
"Xander, if you don't come back I'm going to look for you till I find you. We're going to do this together."
"Okay, Buffy." They hug. As Xander goes to pull away Buffy gently fondles his face with her hand. Xander kisses it as it brushes past his lips. Buffy does not like the look in Xander's eyes.
"Xander, do you believe that I love you?"
"Buffy, you can't, okay!"
"What does that mean, Xander?"
"For all your experience with darkness and evil you are still naive, and innocent, Buffy."
"Xander, you don't get it do you? I love you. For years you took care of me and loved me and helped me. Whatever is going on with this I am in it because you are in it."
"I don't want you in it, Buffy."
"As you once said to me, Xander, is that an option in this town?"
"Yea it is, Buffy, you're sill clean. The people after us don't go poof in the night when you stake them. These people are the white hats."
Xander walks to the van. He opens the door. Willow is still there.
"Come on, Will, get out. Don't make this harder than it already is."
Willow reluctantly gets up. She gives Xander a hug. They take off in the van. Buffy joins Willow as they watch the van disappear.
"Willow, Xander said he would get in touch in two days."
"Yea, Buffy, if they live that long. Buffy, I'm very afraid."
They exchange a very worried hug.
```````````````````````````````````````
Mr. Spencer waits impatiently for his visitor. When the man shows he wastes little time getting to the point.
"Okay, we're going to have to employ a more direct approach."
"Should we just hunt them down sir?"
"No, these two are really beginning to get me pissed off. We're going to get them to kill each other. We are going to get the slayer to hunt them, with the help of her ex heart throb. I want you to meet someone. He will be your contact."
Mr. Spencer talks into his intercom. "Ms. Ronson, send in Mr. Giles."
When the door opens Mr. Spencer's visitor is very surprised.
"Ah...the Watcher? I don't understand. I thought he..."
Mr. Spencer interrupts him. "Mr. White, meet the new Rupert Giles."
```````````````````````````````````````````````
Giles curses himself as he drives to his apartment. Once again he has gotten his adopted American family into much trouble. It was bad enough when they were helping Buffy. But now Xander and Oz and the rest are in more trouble than ever. He never thought Xander and Oz would get to be so good. What he should have thought about was that they would be perceived as a real threat to the establishment. Their overall goodness is what makes them most dangerous. Conscience and scruples make a person very hard to control. Everybody in this business is paranoid, especially the top brass. They know what they are capable of doing themselves. They project that level of dirtiness onto everyone else.
Giles feels like Oz and, especially Xander, are family. Along with Willow and Tara they have worked together very closely. With Buffy back in the fold they have a very close-knit group. And Giles is most grateful to Xander for not wanting her mixed up with their extracurricular activities.
If anything happens to any of them the watcher will never forgive himself.
Giles is too lost in thought to see the three men waiting for him as he approaches his house. He still is able to throw one of them off his back. He front kicks another. The third, however, comes down on his head with the butt end of a revolver. He manages to kick him on the way down.
Although groggy from the hit Giles is still not going to go down easy. He karate chops one of the men across the throat. Two other men join the battle, one of whom shoots him in the knee. Even down on one leg he won't give up. A punch to the groin sends one of the men to the ground in agony. But another slam to the head with a rifle butt puts Giles down with a thud. The men talk as they load him into a van.
"Goddamn, he wasn't supposed to be this rough!"
"Did he kill, Charlie?"
"Yea, and I don't think George will ever enjoy another woman."
"We should have just killed the son of a bitch!"
"We do what we're told."
``````````````````````````````````````````
Joyce Summers goes about her business even though she worries constantly about her daughter. So she knows Buffy is the slayer. Big deal, she still doesn't know what her daughter goes through day after day. On this day she has an appointment at the gallery. A knock comes to her door. Joyce answers. A middle-aged man with a suitcase greets her.
"Can I help you?""
"Two masked men attack her from the side. They grab her, bringing her to the couch in the living room. One of them slaps her across the face with a gun barrel. Her bloodied lip leaves a stain on the couch. The other man talks to the one who hit her.
"Damn it, Xander, you didn't have to hit her!"
The masked gunman looks at a now terrified Joyce. He speaks to her in a muffled voice.
"You're going to tell Buffy that she should stay out of this."
Joyce talks to him. "Are you really Xander? My daughter actually loves you, Xander, what are you doing?"
"Shut up, Bitch!" He smacks her across the face again with the gun. The other man approaches her with a handkerchief. It has something on it to knock her out. The two men then wrap her in a blanket and load her into a van. A note is left. All three leave.
Buffy is very worried about Xander. She is going to stay at the magic shop with Tara and Giles until this thing plays itself out. She has to stop at her Mom's house to pick up a few things. When she comes to the house the door is not fully closed. She walks in cautiously. The first thing she sees is a turned over table and lamp in the living room. She calls her mother's name repeatedly. Then she spots the bloodstains on the couch...and the note. It reads.
"Buffy, you don't understand. You have to stay out of this. I will not harm your mother but do not try to interfere with anything. I will contact you at the magic shop."
"Xander!"
She drops the note. Her heart breaks. "It can't possibly be Xander...can it? And he is not going to hurt her, what the hell is the blood then?"
She immediately phones Giles. He tells her to come to the magic shop at once. Willow and Tara are already there back in the training room. Tara looks at Willow.
"Willow, is there something different about Giles?"
"Not that I noticed Tara, why?"
"Well, first of all he said he was going to his house. Then he just comes back with no explanation."
"You know, Giles, Tara, he's always preoccupied. Besides, this is really getting to him."
"Willow...ah...are you and I...you know?"
The redhead fondles her lover's cheek. "Tara, you have been so patient and understanding with me. My love for Oz is so intense right now because of the danger."
Tara comforts her. "I know, Will. I'm trying to give you the space..."
"Tara, you have been perfect. I'm just so sorry..."
"Willow, you told me about Oz from the very beginning. It's okay, honey."
Any further discussion is interrupted by the sound of Buffy storming into the magic shop.
The cloned Giles didn't tell them about Joyce.
"Giles...my mother, there's blood all over the couch. And this note."
"Buffy, your mother is gone?"
"Yea, Will, and it looks like...Xander kidnapped her."
"What, that's ridiculous, Buffy!"
"I know...but, read the letter, Will."
After the two witches read the letter Willow has a very bad thing to report. She does it in tears.
"Buffy, that is...that's Xander's...that's his handwriting."
The cloned Giles has something to add. "Buffy, you have to listen to this. It's on the answering machine."
He turns it on "Buffy, this is me, your Mom. Honey, they attacked me. Sweety, it was...it was your Xander."
"Nooo!!"
Buffy collapses in tears. Willow and Tara go to her. The cloned Giles leaves the room. He has to keep his interaction with them to a minimum. He locks his office door then goes to the phone. He dials a number.
"Hello, Angel investigations."
"Cordelia, its Giles, can I speak to Angel?"
The cloned Giles tells him the whole story. The vampire agrees to come to Sunnydale with Cordelia. He will stay until this is resolved. Meanwhile Buffy and Willow cry to each other.
"Willow, how is this possible?"
"I don't know Buffy, but...but this business...it is so evil."
"No, Willow, I can't believe it's really him. It must be some kind of trick."
"Buffy, maybe the note...maybe. But, your mom. She knows Xander."
"Oh, Willow, I love him so much. This has to be some kind of nightmare I'm going to wake up from."
"I wish it were, Buffy."
Tara watches as the two girls cry to each other. Something is weird here. She can be a little less emotional when it comes to Xander. When she first came everyone told her about Willow and Xander having an affair but one of the first things she saw was that Xander was totally in love with Buffy. So much so that this scenario seems almost impossible. Even though Xander doesn't want Buffy involved she can't imagine him doing this.
Buffy dries her tears. "Willow, if Xander did this...that means he is somehow involved with something he didn't want me to discover."
Willow can only close her eyes and sob. It is one thing for Xander to be close to the dark side with their employers but not with the Scooby gang. This is one thing Willow is not prepared to deal with.
Buffy continues through tears. "Willow, I've got to say these things. My mother..."
"I know Buffy, I know."
"Xander was so concerned that I not get involved. I thought it was because he didn't want me to get dirty."
Tara approaches Buffy. "Buffy, I wouldn't give up on Xander just yet."
This gets The Slayer very upset.
"Give up on him, Tara? I love him remember? Don't tell me what to feel or think about Xander. He and I have been together since the beginning. Nobody has to tell me he's a good man or that he loves me with all his heart and soul. He..."
She breaks down. "Tara, you...you heard my mother."
```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````
AUTHOR: RICK
E-MAIL: amulet@my-dejanews.com
SUMMARY: Lest everyone forgets. This fic has Buffy going off the deep end with Spike and Faith in the beginning. Xander doesn't give up on her. He saves her so to speak, nothing new there. Buffy falls in love with him, big time. He doesn't know it of course, partly because he and the Scooby gang are involved in extra-curricular activities. They are about to come up against an evil that dwarfs the usual hell mouth variety, where the bad guys all wear white hats too.
Chapter: 17-Who's Good And Who's Bad?
Buffy stares at Kathleen as they ride to the cabin.
"You're a member of Xander's network right?"
"He and Oz are friends, yes?"
"Did you sleep with Oz too?"
"Slayer, Xander and I shared an intimate relationship."
"Shared, as in the past?"
"Yea, until I found out who was deep in his heart."
After a few minutes of silence. "Does that make you feel better?"
"Yes it does, thank you."
When Buffy sees Xander she embraces him very tightly. Xander only relaxes in her arms for a minute. As soon as Oz is well enough to move they head back to the magic shop. Giles, Tara and Willow are waiting. Xander goes right to Giles.
"The cylinder was empty wasn't it, Giles?"
"Yes it was and we have more bad news. We went to see Ethan, we found him dead."
"Shit, they're covering their tracks. He was definitely the one who set us up, right?"
"That is his specialty
"What now, Giles?"
"Xander, if they killed him it means they're very serious."
"Which means they'll take down everybody around us."
"Xander, I don't think they want the rest of us, just your network."
Xander looks at Oz. They both know Giles is speaking the truth. And, what Giles did not say is that they are putting the rest in danger by staying around them. Buffy picks it up, too.
"Oh no, you're not leaving Xander!"
"Buffy..."
"Listen, Xander, I just went through hell. I thought...I thought you were dead, Xander."
"Buffy, I want you to stay out of this. This is with me and Oz."
"You're crazy if you think I'm staying out of this, Xander."
"For Christ's sake, Buffy, we don't even know who is in on it."
"Whoever it is, Xander, they made a real big mistake. They fucked around with the man I love."
Xander is in a bit of shock. But, he cannot think about what Buffy just said. Like their kiss it is just too much to process right now. Xander is not going to endanger the Slayer no matter how much she wants to be a part of this.
Oz looks at Xander. "I'll meet you in the Van, Xander, make it quick!"
But, when Oz goes to the van he sees that he has his own problems with leaving. Willow is sitting in the shotgun seat. He gets in. The redhead looks at him.
"Weren't you even going to say goodbye, Oz?"
"Willow, go back to Tara. I'm not involving you in this."
"Oh, deja vu, another problem I can't help you with, huh?"
"Stop being sarcastic, Will, it doesn't look good on you."
"I love you, Oz."
"Okay, and when this is over we can talk about it."
"Won't work, Oz, I know this business remember, I'm not Buffy. If they want you they'll get you and you know it."
"Yes, Willow, and you also know that you and Tara and Giles are out of it right now. I'm not going to bring you into it. I love you too, Willow. I never stopped. It was never about that."
They engage in a very deep kiss, speaking to the fact that it might be the last one they ever share.
"Oz, please come back to me...please."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Xander takes Buffy into another room. "Buffy, I'm not going to put you in danger like this"
"Don't be ridiculous, Xander, this is me, Buffy the vampire slayer, Ms.always in danger herself."
"Yea, but not like this."
"I'm coming Xander!"
"Damn you, Buffy, please...just give me two days to figure this out, two days then I'll let you in on it?"
"Xander, if you don't come back I'm going to look for you till I find you. We're going to do this together."
"Okay, Buffy." They hug. As Xander goes to pull away Buffy gently fondles his face with her hand. Xander kisses it as it brushes past his lips. Buffy does not like the look in Xander's eyes.
"Xander, do you believe that I love you?"
"Buffy, you can't, okay!"
"What does that mean, Xander?"
"For all your experience with darkness and evil you are still naive, and innocent, Buffy."
"Xander, you don't get it do you? I love you. For years you took care of me and loved me and helped me. Whatever is going on with this I am in it because you are in it."
"I don't want you in it, Buffy."
"As you once said to me, Xander, is that an option in this town?"
"Yea it is, Buffy, you're sill clean. The people after us don't go poof in the night when you stake them. These people are the white hats."
Xander walks to the van. He opens the door. Willow is still there.
"Come on, Will, get out. Don't make this harder than it already is."
Willow reluctantly gets up. She gives Xander a hug. They take off in the van. Buffy joins Willow as they watch the van disappear.
"Willow, Xander said he would get in touch in two days."
"Yea, Buffy, if they live that long. Buffy, I'm very afraid."
They exchange a very worried hug.
```````````````````````````````````````
Mr. Spencer waits impatiently for his visitor. When the man shows he wastes little time getting to the point.
"Okay, we're going to have to employ a more direct approach."
"Should we just hunt them down sir?"
"No, these two are really beginning to get me pissed off. We're going to get them to kill each other. We are going to get the slayer to hunt them, with the help of her ex heart throb. I want you to meet someone. He will be your contact."
Mr. Spencer talks into his intercom. "Ms. Ronson, send in Mr. Giles."
When the door opens Mr. Spencer's visitor is very surprised.
"Ah...the Watcher? I don't understand. I thought he..."
Mr. Spencer interrupts him. "Mr. White, meet the new Rupert Giles."
```````````````````````````````````````````````
Giles curses himself as he drives to his apartment. Once again he has gotten his adopted American family into much trouble. It was bad enough when they were helping Buffy. But now Xander and Oz and the rest are in more trouble than ever. He never thought Xander and Oz would get to be so good. What he should have thought about was that they would be perceived as a real threat to the establishment. Their overall goodness is what makes them most dangerous. Conscience and scruples make a person very hard to control. Everybody in this business is paranoid, especially the top brass. They know what they are capable of doing themselves. They project that level of dirtiness onto everyone else.
Giles feels like Oz and, especially Xander, are family. Along with Willow and Tara they have worked together very closely. With Buffy back in the fold they have a very close-knit group. And Giles is most grateful to Xander for not wanting her mixed up with their extracurricular activities.
If anything happens to any of them the watcher will never forgive himself.
Giles is too lost in thought to see the three men waiting for him as he approaches his house. He still is able to throw one of them off his back. He front kicks another. The third, however, comes down on his head with the butt end of a revolver. He manages to kick him on the way down.
Although groggy from the hit Giles is still not going to go down easy. He karate chops one of the men across the throat. Two other men join the battle, one of whom shoots him in the knee. Even down on one leg he won't give up. A punch to the groin sends one of the men to the ground in agony. But another slam to the head with a rifle butt puts Giles down with a thud. The men talk as they load him into a van.
"Goddamn, he wasn't supposed to be this rough!"
"Did he kill, Charlie?"
"Yea, and I don't think George will ever enjoy another woman."
"We should have just killed the son of a bitch!"
"We do what we're told."
``````````````````````````````````````````
Joyce Summers goes about her business even though she worries constantly about her daughter. So she knows Buffy is the slayer. Big deal, she still doesn't know what her daughter goes through day after day. On this day she has an appointment at the gallery. A knock comes to her door. Joyce answers. A middle-aged man with a suitcase greets her.
"Can I help you?""
"Two masked men attack her from the side. They grab her, bringing her to the couch in the living room. One of them slaps her across the face with a gun barrel. Her bloodied lip leaves a stain on the couch. The other man talks to the one who hit her.
"Damn it, Xander, you didn't have to hit her!"
The masked gunman looks at a now terrified Joyce. He speaks to her in a muffled voice.
"You're going to tell Buffy that she should stay out of this."
Joyce talks to him. "Are you really Xander? My daughter actually loves you, Xander, what are you doing?"
"Shut up, Bitch!" He smacks her across the face again with the gun. The other man approaches her with a handkerchief. It has something on it to knock her out. The two men then wrap her in a blanket and load her into a van. A note is left. All three leave.
Buffy is very worried about Xander. She is going to stay at the magic shop with Tara and Giles until this thing plays itself out. She has to stop at her Mom's house to pick up a few things. When she comes to the house the door is not fully closed. She walks in cautiously. The first thing she sees is a turned over table and lamp in the living room. She calls her mother's name repeatedly. Then she spots the bloodstains on the couch...and the note. It reads.
"Buffy, you don't understand. You have to stay out of this. I will not harm your mother but do not try to interfere with anything. I will contact you at the magic shop."
"Xander!"
She drops the note. Her heart breaks. "It can't possibly be Xander...can it? And he is not going to hurt her, what the hell is the blood then?"
She immediately phones Giles. He tells her to come to the magic shop at once. Willow and Tara are already there back in the training room. Tara looks at Willow.
"Willow, is there something different about Giles?"
"Not that I noticed Tara, why?"
"Well, first of all he said he was going to his house. Then he just comes back with no explanation."
"You know, Giles, Tara, he's always preoccupied. Besides, this is really getting to him."
"Willow...ah...are you and I...you know?"
The redhead fondles her lover's cheek. "Tara, you have been so patient and understanding with me. My love for Oz is so intense right now because of the danger."
Tara comforts her. "I know, Will. I'm trying to give you the space..."
"Tara, you have been perfect. I'm just so sorry..."
"Willow, you told me about Oz from the very beginning. It's okay, honey."
Any further discussion is interrupted by the sound of Buffy storming into the magic shop.
The cloned Giles didn't tell them about Joyce.
"Giles...my mother, there's blood all over the couch. And this note."
"Buffy, your mother is gone?"
"Yea, Will, and it looks like...Xander kidnapped her."
"What, that's ridiculous, Buffy!"
"I know...but, read the letter, Will."
After the two witches read the letter Willow has a very bad thing to report. She does it in tears.
"Buffy, that is...that's Xander's...that's his handwriting."
The cloned Giles has something to add. "Buffy, you have to listen to this. It's on the answering machine."
He turns it on "Buffy, this is me, your Mom. Honey, they attacked me. Sweety, it was...it was your Xander."
"Nooo!!"
Buffy collapses in tears. Willow and Tara go to her. The cloned Giles leaves the room. He has to keep his interaction with them to a minimum. He locks his office door then goes to the phone. He dials a number.
"Hello, Angel investigations."
"Cordelia, its Giles, can I speak to Angel?"
The cloned Giles tells him the whole story. The vampire agrees to come to Sunnydale with Cordelia. He will stay until this is resolved. Meanwhile Buffy and Willow cry to each other.
"Willow, how is this possible?"
"I don't know Buffy, but...but this business...it is so evil."
"No, Willow, I can't believe it's really him. It must be some kind of trick."
"Buffy, maybe the note...maybe. But, your mom. She knows Xander."
"Oh, Willow, I love him so much. This has to be some kind of nightmare I'm going to wake up from."
"I wish it were, Buffy."
Tara watches as the two girls cry to each other. Something is weird here. She can be a little less emotional when it comes to Xander. When she first came everyone told her about Willow and Xander having an affair but one of the first things she saw was that Xander was totally in love with Buffy. So much so that this scenario seems almost impossible. Even though Xander doesn't want Buffy involved she can't imagine him doing this.
Buffy dries her tears. "Willow, if Xander did this...that means he is somehow involved with something he didn't want me to discover."
Willow can only close her eyes and sob. It is one thing for Xander to be close to the dark side with their employers but not with the Scooby gang. This is one thing Willow is not prepared to deal with.
Buffy continues through tears. "Willow, I've got to say these things. My mother..."
"I know Buffy, I know."
"Xander was so concerned that I not get involved. I thought it was because he didn't want me to get dirty."
Tara approaches Buffy. "Buffy, I wouldn't give up on Xander just yet."
This gets The Slayer very upset.
"Give up on him, Tara? I love him remember? Don't tell me what to feel or think about Xander. He and I have been together since the beginning. Nobody has to tell me he's a good man or that he loves me with all his heart and soul. He..."
She breaks down. "Tara, you...you heard my mother."
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