Title: Inside Down, Upside Out

Author: Becka

Chapter 3: Making New Enemies

o

Sighing, Xander flopped onto his bed and stared forlornly at the ceiling. When he'd gotten back from Diagon Alley, Giles had been both shocked and thrilled to find that Xander had gotten all of the magical ingredients. He'd stared at the bags that Xander had found for him and at the three thousand dollars Xander hadn't spent, and he'd _demanded_ to know where Xander had gotten everything so cheap.

The dark-haired man had shrugged it off, saying that he'd run into a group of Neo-Wiccans who'd been kind enough to show him where all the shops were, and because they'd introduced Xander to all the shopkeepers, he'd gotten a good discount. Thankfully, Giles had bought it.

It had been a week since that day, and he hadn't been able to sneak off again because Willow kept trying all sorts of spells on him, to no effect. He much preferred the spells he was learning from the books he'd bought; at least _those_ spells didn't involve him drinking some of the foulest mixtures his redheaded friend could come up with, and he didn't doubt for a moment that some nasty ingredients he'd brought back were in them.

On the upside, when he retired to his room at night and read his books and practiced the spells, he truly felt at peace. He was learning, and the wand he'd bought felt at home in his hand.

The next day, though, he was more than relieved when Giles told him he could take a break from everything and spend the day exploring London. He'd jumped on the opportunity, thanked Giles, and had been out of the room before the Watcher even had time to blink.

With a quick stop off in his own room, he tossed his spare Galleons, Sickles, and Knuts into a backpack, along with his robe and his wand. When he was a safe distance from the house, he pulled the robe on and ran to catch the next bus to London. Forty-five minutes later, he found himself inside the Leaky Cauldron, scanning the crowd for Severus Snape.

Sighing, he ordered himself a butterbeer, a drink that the bartender had recommended to him, and groaned. After all, what were the chances that Snape would be here? He had no idea of the other man's habits, and perhaps their meeting in Diagon Alley had just been a fluke.

Hesitantly, he reached out with his mind's eye. He could find Snape, but there would be a balance to pay. He didn't quite know why, but he decided it was worth it.

Slowly he became aware of two men talking in the corner. He studied them - the first man was a giant, even by Hellmouth standards, and the second was just as imposing; his crooked nose looked like it had been broken several times. Careful not to reveal himself, he strained to hear their conversation.

"... s'only fair, Moody. Professor Dumbledore can' act directly. Y'know _that_." The giant slipped a little flask out of his pocket and took a sip.

Moody stole the flask and took a long sip. "I do know it, Hagrid. But _you_ know _me_. I don't like just... waiting like this. All these Death Eaters around, y'know. If only the Ministry would pull an inspection! All they'd need to do is pull their sleeve back and reveal the Dark Mark and that would be proof enough for _anyone_."

He sighed and took another sip from the flask, "How long are you here for, anyway?"

"Supposed ter meet Severus in 'bout, oh, quarter of an hour I'd say."

Xander's ears perked a little. He gave a tiny push with his mind.

Moody promptly asked, "Where you meetin' him again?"

The look Hagrid gave his friend said he clearly thought Moody had had too much to drink. "Diagon Alley, near Gringotts. I tol' yeh that!"

Having heard what he wanted, Xander slipped out of his seat and headed for the back entrance.

o

It wasn't hard for Xander to locate Snape. In fact, there was a small crowd gathering around both Severus and a blonde-haired man who Xander had never seen before. The blonde seemed to be threatening Snape, and Xander's eye strayed to the man's wand.

This was the balance, then. He nodded, understanding and accepting at the same time. He had caused this - he would deal with it.

The dark-haired man quickly assessed the situation, trying to decide what to do. An idea struck him and he grinned to himself. He stumbled forward, arms failing, and knocked into the blonde-haired man clumsily.

There was a poignant pause as Xander hauled himself up, picking up the two broken pieces of the man's wand. He flushed, rubbing the back of his head, and he held the wand out. "Oh, hey," he said, "I'm really sorry about that. I didn't mean to break your... um... stick?"

Lucius Malfoy stared at the _boy_ in front of him, his anger visible. /How _dare_ he?/

Xander took Lucius' hand, placing the broken wand in his palm. He _felt_ the power emanating from the man's wrist, saw a ghostly black cord that led from the mark off, and realized that this must be the Dark Mark he'd heard Hagrid and Moody discussing. He hesitated, and his fingers gently caressed the sleeve covering the mark. Leaning in close so that only Lucius would hear him, he whispered, "I _am_ sorry about that. But if you care to fight, I suggest you set a time and a place that isn't so public, because I doubt you'll like the results." With that, he reached out with his mind and gently tugged the line of power.

Lucius gasped, pulling away and cradling his hand. He stared at Xander with a mixture of awe and fear, and without a word, he turned on his heel and retreated. His men followed.

Smiling, Xander turned back and saw Severus giving him a funny look.

"What did you do?" Snape asked suspiciously

Xander grinned and laughed, a truly wicked thought coming to his mind. "I asked him how much he'd pay for a blowjob." He proceeded to turn his most wanton, sultry expression on the older man, who blushed furiously and looked away.

Behind him, he head Hagrid grawf and wheeze, "'I didn't mean ter break yer stick!' Blimey, priceless!" The giant was laughing so hard that tears streamed down his face. "Oh, I've got ter tell Professor Dumbledore about that. Priceless!"

He turned his gaze on Xander and said, "I'm sure he'd want ter meet'cha. If yeh don' mind, he'll prolly send a letter to yeh by owl invitin' yeh to visit our Hogwarts. I'm Hagrid, by the way. Groundskeeper there."

"I'd like that _very_ much, Hagrid. Thank you."

With a nod, Hagrid turned and walked away. Snape stayed behind for a moment, still studying Xander, and finally said, "Oh, Alexander?"

"Yeah, Mr. Snape?"

"At least a hundred Galleons."

Xander blinked at Snape's tight smile. He then remembered what he'd told Snape he'd said to the blonde man and laughed. He stared into the other man's surprised eyes and teased, "Make it two hundred and you have yourself a deal."

Without missing a beat, Snape leaned over and whispered softly in his ear. Then he turned to follow Hagrid, leaving a startled Xander behind. The dark-haired man shook his head. /Naw,/ he thought to himself, /That couldn't be right./

Because what Snape had whispered to him had sounded a lot like, "Two hundred it is. I'll be seeing you at Hogwarts, Alexander."

o