Title: Xander Harris: Year One (Chapter Seven)

Author: Randall Stone

Disclaimer: All characters are belong to someone else.

Summary: Some are born to destiny. Others make their own.

Notes:
Spoilers: S1-4

Continuity changes: Hopefully everything will be explained in the
text. One note- Veruca tragically stepped in front of a bus the
day before she was going to be turned into a werewolf, so Oz will
be hanging around.

We have now left the Season 4 continuity. Only events described
or referred to directly in this fic should be assumed to have
occurred.

Category: B/X, a little B/R early on
Rating: PG-14- nothing worse than what's on the show.


*****

THE NEXT DAY

"You wanted to see me, Finn?"

"Yes, sir." Riley walked into Schultz's office. "This is the video
tape from Hostile 17's escape."

"It's almost dinner time, Finn. I don't need to see that again."

"This is from before the violence. Look."

Riley cued up the video on the monitor that Schultz kept in the
corner of his office. An image came on the screen of Spike,
reaching into his pocket and removing a small piece of metal, which
he used to pick the lock.

"As you can see, he had the lockpick in his pocket. I know that
John Redman, the man on duty that night, wouldn't miss something
like that-"

"Riley, sometimes a man's first mistake can be his last."

"Yes, but here's the interesting part. I watched the video through
to see if he was keeping the pick somewhere else in his body."

Riley rewound the tape and started it forward again, frame-by-frame.
The image on the screen showed Spike sitting on his bed.

"If you'll watch, right- there! There's a jump between frames."

"What are you saying soldier?"

"I think there was somebody in there with him."

"That's impossible. The computer records show no visitors."

"What if both the computer and the video were tampered with? There
aren't that many people with that kind of access."

"There's only one. Riley, let me be clear about this. These are
very serious accusations you are making here. Professor Walsh, as
well as being a well-respected member of this team, has connections
above any level that you are cleared to be aware of."

"But the video, sir-"

"Finn, if you're going to make these kind of allegations, you better
have something more solid than a video glitch."

---

Xander studied the drawing that Giles was holding up.

"The latest in fall fascism. I like it. A bit full in the hips for
my taste, but-"

"We were hoping it would trigger some memory from your possession."
Giles interrupted.

Xander drew back, and looked around the room. Buffy and Willow were
seated on Giles' couch, across the room from Xander. Oz was sitting
between Xander and the girls as a sort of buffer zone.

"I don't remember anything from being possessed." Xander forced a
laugh. "You know that, Giles."

"I was referring to the possession from last Halloween."

"Oh, the soldier thing." Xander paused to recollect. "The only
thing I remember from that is how to spell my name out phonetically.
X-ray, alpha, umm, november, delta-"

"That's quite enough. It appears that this mystery will not be so
easily solved.

"Very well then, everybody be on the lookout for these commandos.
If you see them, note the location and leave the area. Please do
not engage them in combat." Giles directed a look at Buffy.

"Hey, I was very non-combatty last time."

"Very reassuring. Now, the other matter requiring some caution-"
Giles flipped the drawing of the commando over the back of the bad,
revealing the drawing behind it. The drawing was of a cloaked,
shadowy figure with glowing red eyes.

---

"Word among the hostiles is that this character," Schultz gestured
at the composite sketch, "has been terrorizing the local vampire
population for the last few weeks.

"Yes, Finn?"

"Is that really such a bad thing, sir? Just makes our job a little
easier, doesn't it?"

---

"I believe you made an observation last year about the problems we
face when the 'scary things get scared'.

"Now, this fellow is calling himself 'The Shadow'. I have not yet
identified the species of demon to which he belongs. However, Willy
was able to provide us with some information on his modus operandi.
Apparently- yes, Xander?"

"Can't Buffy just kick its ass?"

---

"Yes, Finn, our regular combat patrols should be more than adequate
to deal with this creature. However, the information in this
briefing should serve to minimize and hopefully prevent any
casualties that he could cause.

"Now, apparently he likes to isolate small groups or individual
vampires, taunting them. Once the vampires are sufficiently
rattled, he strikes from the shadows. There have been no reports of
vampires surviving a direct attack. Now, we don't have precise
numbers, but according to the information we were able to extract
from our latest captures, twenty to twenty five vampires have gone
missing over the last week that we are not responsible for.

"Yes, Agent Finn?"

"Sir, this might sound a little silly, but..."

---

"The what?"

"The comic books. C'mon guys, back me up here. Who knows what evil
lurks in the hearts of men?"

Surprisingly, it was Oz who responded.

"The Shadow knows!" Oz followed with some maniacal laughter. When
he finished, everybody in the room was staring at him. He shrugged.
"Good character."

"Yes, well." Giles looked unconvinced. "If he does resemble a
character in these books, that still-"

"C'mon, G-man. This has 'best research assignment ever' written all
over it."

Giles looked to Willow and Buffy for support.

"I wasn't going to say anything, but it did seem like the guy from
the movie," Willow volunteered. "Maybe whoever wrote the books was
inspired by meeting this guy."

"Or," Buffy suggested, "we could have a copycat on our hands."

"Very well," Giles sighed. "Xander, you and Oz can review these...
books. Buffy, you and Willow-"

---

"-will continue on your normal patrols, but exercise extreme caution
at all times. This creature is extremely stealthy. Understood?"

"Sir, yes sir!"

---

TWO WEEKS LATER

Xander groaned as he hauled himself out of bed, and glanced at the
clock. Three o'clock pm. His body had really been put through the
wringer in getting away from those government troops.

He thought back to the incident the night before while he tried to
work the kinks out of his ankle. He'd been fighting some vampires
on the college campus when- the campus! He had to warn Buffy! As
much as he and Buffy were at odds right now, he still didn't want
to see her get ambushed without any warning.

Xander picked up the phone and dialed Buffy and Willow's place. He
hung up when the answering machine picked up. He'd just have to
track her down in person.

Xander grabbed some clothes and headed out. He paused at the door
when a thought occurred to him. How was he going to explain knowing
this information to Buffy? He shrugged. He had the whole walk to
come up with something plausible. It wasn't like Buffy asked any
follow up questions about his life anyways.

---

Professor Walsh was in her office looking over her notes for her
next lecture when she was interrupted by a knock at the door.

"Yes?"

Xander opened the door and stepped inside.

"Professor Walsh?"

"Yes. Are you a student?"

"Not exactly. I'm here looking for a friend of mine. I think she's
in one of your classes. Her name is Buffy."

"Buffy?"

"Summers. Blonde, about so high." Xander held up his hand. "She
was very excited to be in your class."

"My students often are. Let me think... oh yes, she's in my
introductory lecture. Very bright young woman, but there's
something holding her back. I'd thought she was perhaps overly
attached to her friends..." Walsh looked at Xander. In his haste
to get out of his apartment, he had neither taken a shower nor
grabbed clean clothes.

"Don't worry, that's not it."

"Well, she isn't here right now, and I haven't seen her since
class. If I see her, I'll tell her that her friend dropped by."
Walsh went back to looking over her notes.

Xander took the hint and left the room. He'd keep looking. He
was bound to run in to Buffy eventually.

---

"Oof." The air was driven out of Buffy's lungs as the vampire in
front of her suddenly lunged forward and hit her in the stomach with
its shoulder.

The two of them fell to the ground in a tangle. Buffy quickly
brought her right hand around and staked the vampire, finding the
heart by instinct. She flipped to her feet as soon as the vampire's
body disintegrated.

"OK, I've got grass stains all over my new shirt. My night has
officially begun."

Apparently the vampires were all quipped out for tonight, as the
four of them silently arrayed themselves in a loose box around the
Slayer.

Deciding that the best defense was a good offense, Buffy charged the
vampire directly in front of her. She caught him off guard with a
forceful uppercut that physically threw the vampire back and off his
feet. Sensing an attack, she struck out with a side kick to the gut
of the charging vampire to her right. Simultaneously, she held her
stake out with her left hand, and the vampire on her left was
considerate enough to impale himself upon it.

Buffy's instincts were screaming at her about the vampire behind
her, and she spun around, expecting a surprise attack. She was
surprised to see the vampire on the ground unconscious. And walking
towards her, decked out in commando gear, was...

"Riley?"

Buffy was distracted by a growl from the remaining vampires. The
vampire that she had hit with the uppercut was regaining his feet,
and looking for blood.

Buffy easily dodged the vampire's flailing attacks, finally striking
out with her foot to break its kneecap. She ended the vampire's
pained scream by driving her stake through its heart.

Riley hung back from the fight. He knew that he couldn't go hand to
hand with vampires. He was trying to figure out how the heck Buffy
was holding her own.

The remaining vampire, seeing that the odds had turned against him,
tried to flee. A flying stake to the heart ended his flight.

Finished, Buffy turned to face Riley.

"Riley, you got some 'splainin' to do."

---

Xander was tired. Tired and hungry. Tired, hungry, and in pain.
He had been looking for Buffy for hours, and his ankle was really
starting to hurt.

He was currently walking down Sunnydale's main street. Buffy was
nowhere to be seen, and Xander was about ready to call it a night
when he spotted a familiar figure leaving the Espresso Pump.

Smiling to himself, Xander slipped into a nearby alleyway. He
slipped his ring- he thought of it as his girasol ring now- onto his
finger and sneaked back out of the alleyway. Keeping to the shadows,
he approached Professor Walsh from behind and tapped her on the
shoulder.

Walsh spun around and was confronted with an image from her
nightmares. She stared at him for a moment.

"Boo."

That snapped her out of her trance- letting out a scream, Walsh tore
off running down the road.

Xander laughed for a minute before slipping back down a deserted
alleyway and removing his ring. He felt better already.

*****

End part 7.

--Randy