By Dave.Mycock Dark Events
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Disclaimer: I do now own Buffy or any of the others characters in this story except for the ones I have created. Subject: Xander/Tara
I'd like to thank my beta Grossclout for all of his help with this story
Xander sat in the corner of the magic box avoiding everyone especially Willow, he didn't dare look into his friends eyes in fear she would see the truth. That he had fallen in love with her girlfriend, he still found it hard to believe his feelings for the young blond witch. But deep inside himself he kept asking himself if this was somehow related to Robert's love for Karan, Tara's ancestor. He noticed Faith watching him with a sly smile; she knew he could tell by the way she looked at him. 'Great' he thought that was he needed knowing the animosity between her and Willow she might use just to get under Willow's skin and that would lead to real trouble. 'As if we weren't in enough as it is' Xander thought with a shake of his head.
Faith watched Xander intently as he tried to avoid everyone in the magic box especially Red, she had an idea why. Xander had the hots for Tara, not that she could blame him Tara was pretty damn hot. She couldn't help but wonder how Red would react once she knew for sure that Xander was in love with Tara, and she had noticed Tara had blushed when Xander had almost slipped up thanks to B pushing him in her anger. Although she understood B was upset and angry, that was no reason to blame it on Xander, and then there was the fact that she was been affected by her own ancestor's distrust of Xander's ancestor. The memories she continued to have from Buffy's ancestor's life were quite confusing to her, which was no surprise as she was only having these thanks to Buffy dieing and Xander bringing her back.
Tara sat next to Willow but avoided looking at her; luckily Willow was too busy talking with Cordelia and Doyle after the latest bout of visions to question her about Xander's slip. As soon as she thought about Xander she felt warm and safe, she tried to shake it off but she couldn't; her feelings for him were becoming stronger and she couldn't fight them, she didn't want to fight them. She could almost feel Xander's own feelings, due to her special sense, and it made her dizzy with joy.
With a dazed look on her face, Buffy re-entered the magic box, followed by Jill and Rachel. Her anger was gone and was replaced with confusion and surprise. She walked past everyone without sparing them a glance, entered the back room and slammed the door shut.
"How did she take it?" asked Gunn.
"Not too well, she thought we were making it up at first, to protect Xander," Rachel explained.
"I'm not surprised really; her anger can be quite trying at times." Giles sighed as he removed his glasses and rubbed them with handkerchief.
"Yeah, well we don't have time for her anger Giles, we need her focused," Faith said walking over to them.
"I agree, Giles; someone has to talk to her, get her to put Riley's death aside for now," Spike agreed as he stood next to them.
"I'll do it," Angel sighed, not looking forward to the confrontation.
"Very well, go through the back door. In her state, she will have most likely forgotten to lock that as well," Giles told him.
The ensouled vampire nodded and walked out of the shop. Wesley quickly walked over with a worried look.
"Is something wrong, Wes?" Faith asked.
"Yes, where are Major Johnson and his men?" Wesley asked.
"I suppose they have gone on a little scouting mission again. Hopefully they know better than to get into a fight," Giles answered.
"We need some more help, Giles," Faith told him.
"I know, but where can we get it from?" Giles agreed.
"I know you may think I've gone insane for suggesting this, but why not hire the order of Teraka," Spike suggested.
"The order?!" Giles exclaimed in shock.
"Why not? They don't care who they work for, as long as they get paid," Spike told him. "They've killed demons, vampires, humans and countless others as long as they get a good sum of money for each job," Spike added.
"He's right, Giles. They could come in handy," Wesley said.
"Major Johnson may not like this, and neither with Buffy, but I suppose it's our best shot," Giles finally gave in. "Spike, do you have a way to contact them?" he asked.
"Yeah," the vampire told him.
"Giles nodded and indicated for him to follow. Faith went back to her seat just glimpsing Tara and Xander sharing a small glance before quickly looking away like guilty children.
Angel slowly opened the back door to the training area and noticed Buffy had her back to him witch made him feel quite relived, he enter trying not make any noise.
"What do you want Angel?" Buffy's cold voice asked.
"We need to talk, Buffy," he replied, standing a few feet behind her.
"Why?" she asked, her anger was back making Angel feel somewhat apprehensive.
"You're getting distracted, Buffy, and we don't have time for that," he told her simply.
Buffy spun around as fast as possible and tried to knock the vampire out cold, but he was ready and managed to grab her fist.
"See what I mean? Your anger is clouding your judgment," Angel told her calmly.
"My boyfriend is dead, you cold-hearted bastard, and it's Xander's fault and everyone is protecting him and making up lies," she hissed.
"Wrong, Buffy. You can try and blame this on Xander as much as you want, but deep down, you know better," Angel countered. "What Rachel and Jill told you is the truth and you have to accept it, and fast. We don't know when Valnon will attack. So far, we've been beaten each time and, if you stay distracted, you'll be dead as well," he added letting his own anger show.
"Damn you. Get out!" Buffy screamed at her ex-boyfriend.
"Fine, but get your head straight now, while we have time, or else someone may be forced to knock some sense into you," he told her before walking away, not catching Buffy's hard gaze locked onto his back.
Spike placed the phone back onto its holder with a smile as Giles and Wesley came toward him, both with questioning glances.
"Well?" Giles asked.
"They'll take the contract, they're sending us eleven of their warriors, it'll cost us $15000" dollars to be paid on completion of the job," Spike informed them.
"That's quite expensive," Wesley mused.
"When dealing with the order, you learn quickly that they always ask for a large sum," Spike responded.
"Do we have that much money?" Wesley asked as Angel re-entered the store.
"I'll contact the watchers council, and have them send us the money," Giles told them with a tired yawn.
"They'll be a bit hesitant to send that much money," Wesley said.
"Considering the circumstances, I think they will agree it is necessary," Giles stated.
"How long before these warriors arrive?" Wesley asked Spike as he lit a cigarette.
"They said twenty to twenty-five hours max; until then, it's just us," Spike answered.
"I don't suppose they said if they were sending just human warriors?" Angel asked as he joined them at the counter.
"I did ask for them to send just Human warriors; they said they'll do what they can," Spike replied.
Tara watched Xander's every move as he talked with Faith. It was obvious to her that she suspected something between her and Xander, especially after Xander's slip. She wondered if Xander was trying to get her to promise not say anything to Willow. She dreaded what would happen once Willow discovered she had feelings for Xander and vice versa. Buffy was already distracted because of her feelings, and they couldn't afford Willow been distracted as well; but she just didn't know how long she could keep herself under control. She wanted nothing more than to kiss Xander long and hard and never let go, and she could sense Xander was having just as much trouble staying away from her and not letting his feelings take over. She noticed Willow's gaze on her and quickly looked away from Xander, although with great effort, and focused instead on what Giles and the others were discussing, hoping her girlfriend didn't choose now to discuss what Xander's slip meant.
Oz had noticed Tara's gaze locked on Xander and he instantly knew something was happening between the two, especially since Xander had slipped up during Buffy's outburst. He looked to where Willow stood and hoped nothing bad came of what ever it was that was happening between Tara and Xander. He then focused on what Spike had set in motion. They had hired members of the order of Teraka and that, in itself, made him even more nervous. He wondered how Buffy would take it, once she had calmed down enough to focus. In all his time fighting along side Buffy and the others, this had to be the hardest fight they had been involved in.
Buffy finally opened the door and walked back into the main shop. Tara was sleep on the couch near the door next to Cordelia, who was also out cold. Angel and Spike were near the door keeping an eye out the window in case of trouble. Giles, Wesley, Doyle and Willow were near the table, going through some of the books Spike had brought. Xander was talking to Oz on the far side of the room. Upon seeing him, her anger flared, but she managed to hold it down. Faith and Gunn were talking with Major Johnson and his men, who had finally returned from their scouting mission. Jill and Rachel were sleeping in the chairs near the counter. She walked over to where Giles was and waited until he noticed she had come out of the training room.
"How are you Buffy?" Giles asked looking at her.
"I'm okay. So, what's new?" she asked hoping to avoid any conversation on Riley's death.
"We have been forced into a rather difficult situation; luckily Spike came up with a plan that will increase our numbers," Giles told her.
"What was it?" Buffy asked.
"We hired the order of Teraka," Giles said simply.
Buffy's mind seemed to close down for a few seconds and she stared at Giles as if he had three heads. "We what?" she asked, her voice rising in anger and disbelief.
"We hired 11 warriors from the order of Teraka," Giles told her.
"They're killers, they work for the bad guys," Buffy argued.
"No, they work for money; it doesn't matter who hires them as long as they get paid," Spike entered the conversation.
"And how are we going to pay them?" Buffy asked.
"The watchers council is sending us the money; it should be here in five hours. The warriors from the order should be here in twenty hours," Wesley answered before Giles could.
"Why didn't you tell me before going ahead with it?" she demanded.
"You weren't exactly in the listening mood B," Faith said walking over to them.
"I think I would have listened to that piece of information," Buffy said.
"I doubt it," Gunn said from where he now stood next to Spike and Angel.
"Since when do we take ideas of Spike anyway?" Buffy asked.
"Since now; we needed more help and that was the only way," Xander said stepping beside Faith.
"And who the hell put you in charge, murderer?" Buffy said staring coldly at him. Xander flinched.
"I am not in control here, Buff; Giles is," Xander shot back.
"No, I am," Buffy hissed.
"You are in no condition to lead a fight, Buffy," Willow said.
"Damn you all, I am not made of glass. I am leading this fight. I am the slayer," Buffy shouted to them all, waking Tara, Jill, Rachel and Cordelia.
"So am I, B," Faith challenged her sister slayer.
"Please Buffy, we don't want to argue with you; we want to help you. At the moment you are not in a decent state of mind to lead a fight," Giles rationalised.
Buffy spun and stalked back into the training room, slamming the door very hard and locking it. Angel stepped up toward the door with a frown.
"That's it. I warned her someone might be forced to make her see sense, and now someone will have to do it," Angel said angrily. He turned and exited the shop, knowing Buffy might have forgotten to lock the back door again.
Buffy spun as the back door opened and Angel walked into the room just like he had before. In her anger, she had forgotten to lock it again. Then again it was obvious Angel would have broken the door in half to get to her.
"What do you want?" she demanded.
"I warned you someone might have to knock some sense into you. You didn't listen and now someone will knock sense into you," he told her smashing his fist into her face knocking her backward and onto her butt. She got up and hissed as she dropped into a fighting stance. "What you need to do is release your anger, so lets do it," Angel said knowing this was going to be very painful for both of them, but it was the only way to make Buffy's anger dissipate.
Xander tried to focus his mind as Rachel had instructed him, but every time he closed his eyes, he saw an image of Tara. At first it was there for a few minutes, but now it was staying with him for longer periods. He wondered just how deep his feelings for the blonde witch would go, and once again if his ancestor influenced them. He shook his head and tried again, only to see an image of him and Tara lying on a bed holding each other closely, he was whispering something to her and she had the purest smile on her face. His eyes snapped open and quickly located Tara, only to have his eyes connect with her own as if pulled. She seemed to be staring right through him and yet he could feel her at the back of his mind. He tried to pull his eyes away from her, but he couldn't and he dropped deeper into her.
Faith sensed Xander's sudden movement and quickly looked to find him staring directly at Tara, who was also staring back at him. She noticed the way their eyes were fixed on each other as if nothing else existed. As she turned to talk to Giles, she noticed Willow had also noticed where her girlfriend was staring. She could instantly tell her anger and obviously jealously was beginning to win, and she guessed Red was about to explode.
Willow couldn't take it anymore. Since this whole affair started, she had felt like she was loosing Tara. But now, seeing her girlfriend staring openly at Xander, as if he was the only thing that mattered, broke her control and her anger seeped through. She marched toward them and halted between them. She watched as both slowly came out of their daze and met her eyes. Tara flinched at the look in them while Xander seemed to be on the verge of either laughing or crying. She knew Xander would realise what he had done before Tara could, as he had broken her heart once before.
"Willow?" Xander started but Willow was quicker and wheeled on him.
"Don't 'Willow' me, Xander. I see it in your eyes and hers. You're in love with each other," Willow accused them both. "Your slip earlier proved it," she added, her eyes dancing with fire.
Xander hung his head in shame at how he had hurt his friend again, but this time it had been beyond his control but somehow he couldn't get the words out. Tara however couldn't take the accusation in her girlfriend's voice and fled through the door before anyone could react.
Tara ran as fast as she could away from Willow's glare and her anger; away from Xander's love and her own feelings. She didn't notice the car following her until it pulled up in front of her and the door opened quickly and she was pulled into the back before she could even scream. She looked straight into the face of a vamp that just smiled evilly at her and then slammed his fist into face, knocking her unconscious.
Xander jerked up right as he felt the terror from Tara and the pain as someone or something hit her. Faith immediately noticed the look on his face and walked over to him. Willow paid no heed as Cordelia consoled her.
"What is it Xand?" she asked.
"Something has happened to Tara," he answered as another wave of pain shot through him.
"Do you know where she is?" Jill asked, her voice full of concern as she appeared next to them, with Rachel close behind.
"No, I think she's unconscious. Valnon wouldn't send his people after one of us," Xander answered.
"How do you know that?" Giles asked as he noticed the concern on Jill's face at what Xander had said.
"I don't, Robert did and I have his memories," Xander said, his eyes wide.
"You've finally accepted them fully," Rachel noted.
"Oh shit! We are so fucking dumb," Xander suddenly cried.
"Why what is it?" Wesley asked as he rushed over.
"We forgot about the damn artifacts the vamps were after. We were so busy learning about the prophecy and Valnon that we forgot they wanted to raise a damn dead vamp or demon," Xander said dead-eyed.
"Oh dear," Giles said, his own shock coming through.
"They did it to distract us, to split us up so we couldn't attack in force or to at least cause us to lose some of our people rescuing Tara," Wesley told them as he understood the strategy the demon had used to blindside them.
"This makes things even worse," Faith said with a shake of her head.
"We have to rescue her, or else we won't be able to defeat Valnon," Xander told them.
"We have to find them first. Spike, see if you can find out anything," Giles said turning to the blond vamp who quickly nodded and almost ran out of the door.
"Tara," Xander said fearfully before he collapsed as a shockwave of pain shot through him. Faith caught him before he could fall face first onto the floor
"Giles help," she said. Giles quickly took Xander's legs and help place him on the couch next to Fred and Gunn
"This is getting worse than possible," Doyle said with a cold grimace.
"What's happened?" Buffy's voice suddenly broke in. They all turned to see Buffy and Angel supporting each other and both were covered in bruises and both seemed to have a dislocated shoulder.
"Great," Giles cursed.
Xander's body convulsed for the fifth time since he collapsed. Faith, who was keeping watch over him, was beginning to suspect this was not a usual collapse and that someone had cast some sort of spell on him. She turned to where Buffy and Angel were recovering from their injuries and the only good thing seemed to be that Buffy was no longer concentrating on Riley's death. She placed her hand on Xander's forehead and quickly recoiled as if burned.
"Giles, something is wrong; he's burning up," she shouted to where the Watcher stood near the table.
"Burning up?" Giles said somewhat surprised.
"I think this is some sort of spell, Giles; another tactic to delay us," Faith told him. The watcher nodded and began looking through some of his books.
"Rachel is there anything you or Jill can do?" Faith asked.
"I'm afraid there is not much we can do. We may be able to tell you if it is a spell that's all," Rachel replied as she walked over to them.
"At least then we'll know," Faith shot back a little anger creeping through her.
"Okay Jill, get the supplies we'll need," Rachel nodded at her daughter who just went to complete her task.
"Willow, maybe you should try doing a locator spell to find where Tara is been held," Wesley suggested to the red-haired witch who was sitting next to Cordelia.
"I'll try," Willow said in a weak voice; her fear for her girlfriend and her friend overrunning her anger and jealously over what she had seen happen between them.
"Isn't it possible they'll keep her in the caves?" Fred asked.
"I doubt it. According to Xander before he collapsed, they used the artifacts to raise a dead demon or vampire to delay us or split us up, so it makes sense they'll keep her somewhere separate than where Valnon is hiding," Wesley answered her.
"This is making things ten times worse," Cordelia muttered.
"Yes, I'm afraid so. Spike, how long before the warriors from the order arrive?" Wesley agreed.
"Half an hour," Spike answered as he lit one of his smokes.
"Hopefully we'll have found a way to wake Xander and locate Tara before then," Wesley said with a shake of his head.
"Faith, I want you to hold Xander's hand while we perform this spell. Try and keep him still," Rachel told the dark slayer. Faith nodded, moving to Xander's other side to give Rachel and Jill space, and grasped Xander's hand.
"This may cause him some discomfort as usual when using a probe spell," Jill said she placed the items in front of them.
"A what spell?" Faith asked.
"A probe spell; it will allow us to probe Xander's subconscious and thus allow us to determine what is keeping him unconscious," Rachel explained.
"Okay," Faith nodded somewhat uncertain.
Tara tried to keep her eyes closed as she tried to use her link to Xander to call for help but all she could see was darkness and she could also feel pain. As she opened her eyes, she knew something had happened to him just as she had been taken. This meant things were even worse than they were before. She watched as the bald- headed vampire walked toward where she was chained to the wall. She hoped to keep the fear she was feeling off her face.
"So you are the sorcerer's mate. You have power, I can feel it," the vampire said with an evil smile.
"Who are you?" she asked hesitantly.
"I am called the Master. It would seem the old one had need of my services and has brought be back to life after the slayer killed me," the vampire answered his smile turning even more evil. She had forgotten about the artifacts the vampires she, Willow and Xander had encountered had been looking for when this whole mess started.
"I have been ordered to keep you alive and to wait until your mate comes and then kill you both," the vampire taunted her.
"You can't kill him, Valnon must face him," Tara hissed not knowing where the knowledge came from.
"It would seem the old one is not interested in facing the sorcerer again," the master told her stepping a little closer. "It would seem he wants to change the prophecy so that the sorcerer and his friends can not win under any circumstances," the master added. "However, he has made one mistake and that was resurrecting me," the master told her with a wide, evil grin.
"What do you mean?" Tara asked.
"I do not like being ordered around by anyone, not even a demon from hell," the master snarled. "I will make him pay for thinking he can command me," he added before turning and walking away, leaving Tara alone and miserable.
Rachel eyes opened slowly as she released the spell she had cast. Jill was supporting her as she tried to stand. Faith let go of Xander's hand and stood as well, looking at her expectedly.
"It is a spell and a dark one at that," she told them.
"I knew it," Faith hissed.
"Do you know who cast it?" Giles asked as he walked over to them.
"I would suspect it was Valnon, he had a vast knowledge of dark magic," Rachel answered.
"Is there a way we can counter it?" Buffy asked as she joined them.
"Yes, someone is going to have to go inside Xander's mind and help him fight whatever force is attacking him," Rachel told them.
"I'll go" Buffy said
"You can't, it must be someone he trusts and at the moment things between you are not to good, Willow can't either," Rachel told them.
"I'll do it," Faith said fiercely, surprising almost everyone in the room.
"Very well; Mr. Giles, we'll need a very powerful book called the Drakanal," Rachel said facing Giles.
"The demon book of magic?" Giles said shocked.
"Yes, do you have it?" she asked in reply.
"No, but it is in Sunnydale," Giles said.
"Where?" Rachel asked.
"It's in the same tomb the vampire raided to find that item they stole," he replied.
"Buffy, take Angel and Spike and get it now. Jill and I will get the supplies we already know we'll need," Rachel said facing the blonde slayer.
Buffy frowned somewhat at the commanding tone of the woman, but nodded anyway and walked out of the magic box, followed by the two vampires.
"Faith, I think you'd better try and meditate and prepare yourself; this isn't going to be easy," Rachel told the brunette. She nodded, took one more look at Xander's prone form and went into the training room.
Buffy walked into the tomb slowly, making sure no one, especially not any of Valnon's followers, was already inside. She hoped for Xander and Tara' sake that the book they wanted had not already been taken. Angel followed her in whilst Spike stayed outside to keep an eye out for anyone following them.
"So where do we start, in the guy's tomb or in one of these metal boxes they have in the wall?" Angel asked.
"I think the tomb has already been sacked," Buffy said pointing to the open tomb in the middle of the room. "I'd try the boxes," she added. Angel nodded and began using his enhanced strength to pull the boxes open as Buffy did the same on the other side of the tomb.
Tara looked around the cold, damp place where she was been held; it was he old factory where Spike had once held Willow and an unconscious Xander. Buffy and Angel had also had a fight with a few of Valnon's followers here as well at the beginning of this mess. The only good thing that happened was the fact that Valnon had chosen the wrong vampire to resurrect. The Master did not like being the one given orders, he wanted to be the one giving orders and so that would hopefully buy them some time, at least for her friends to put a stop to whatever had happened to Xander and cut of her link to him. The question was, could she stay alive long enough for Xander and her friends to rescue her. She once again tried to use her link to contact Xander although she knew it was hopeless as, for the minute, Xander was unreachable. She felt the darkness and the pain coming from it, but that was all. She feared for him more than she had for anyone else in her entire life and, if he did die, how would she deal with it. She loved him. She was sure of it. No matter how it came about, she was in love with Xander and wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. She felt heart begin to beat faster as she realized what it was she had just thought: She was in love with Xander. What about her feelings for Willow. She shook her head and tried to focus her thoughts, but all she could do was repeat the truth that was in her heart.
Buffy returned to the magic shop with Angel and Spike looking somewhat beat up, however Giles noted Buffy was carrying a large and heavy looking book, it also looked quite old.
"Did you get it?" Giles asked.
"Yeah, but on our way out we ran into a few of Valnon's demon's," Buffy replied, sitting down next to Willow.
"Give me the book quickly, Xander is weakening fast," Rachel said hurriedly. Buffy handed her the book and watched as she sat in front of where Xander lay along with Jill and began looking through the pages. Faith was just exiting the training room looking more relaxed and more at ease than Buffy ever remembered her looking. Faith took a seat on the other side of Xander and just closed her eyes once again, concentrating on what she was about to do.
"Giles, isn't this dangerous?" Buffy asked quietly.
"It can be, but it is the only way to wake Xander," Giles nodded in understanding of Buffy's question. "What Faith is doing takes considerable courage," Giles added, Buffy frowned at this but kept quiet.
"Okay, we have all the ingredients and the spell necessary to send Faith into Xander's mind," Rachel informed them.
"Okay, I want everyone to be quiet I don't want any mistakes made or we may loose both Xander and Faith," Giles told them all.
"Faith, are you ready?" Jill asked.
"Yeah, I'm five by five," Faith said, her voice unusually calm and collected. Her eyes, when they were open, were very intense and everyone had no doubt that she was very intent on saving Xander's life.
"Okay, take both of Xander's hands in yours and then lay your forehead against his," Rachel instructed her. Faith nodded and did as she was told. Holding Xander's hands tightly in hers, she leaned forward and placed her forehead against his even though it was still very hot. "Okay, close your eyes tightly and block out everything except for Xander's heartbeat," Rachel told her. She managed to catch the heartbeat pretty fast.
"Got it," she said.
"Okay, now just hold it," Rachel replied, she then turned to Jill and nodded.
Her daughter began mixing the ingredients and slowly began the chant form the book. Rachel then took the mixture and pored over both Faith and Xander's joined heads; neither moved in reflex. Buffy wasn't surprised Xander didn't move as he was unconscious, but Faith did surprise her. She knew if she had been allowed to go she would have moved when that stuff was pored on her. Faith seemed more in control of herself these days and Buffy wondered whether this was due to Faith having her ancestor's memories or something she had picked up since she went to jail. A bright light surrounded Faith and Xander bringing Buffy's thoughts back to what was going on in front of her. The light turned red and then blue and then faded. Jill's chant grew louder and then stopped suddenly.
"It is done, no one must touch them until they wake themselves, if they make it," Rachel said sounding very drained.
"Willow, you'd better do the location spell; this could take some time. With the arrival of the order soon, we can at least rescue her and be ready for the final battle when Xander and Faith wake," Giles said looking very worried for the boy and girl now joined on the floor.
Faith looked around what looked like a raging battlefield, she could see thousands of dead bodies and the air smelled like the bodies had been dead for a thousand years. She knew she was inside Xander's mind and yet this seemed very real to her.
"I knew you'd come," said a tired voice from behind her. She spun to find Xander kneeling in the middle of the field, his face was streaked with blood, He wore what looked like old style battle armor and he held a sword which seemed to glow with a gold light.
"Xander what the hell is going on here?" she asked as she knelt next to him.
"I was attacked by some sort of spell. My mind is comprehending it like a war. I've managed to hold on so far, but I'm weakening, Faith. The bodies you see are actually my mental defenses against the spell," Xander replied as he tried to stand but fell. Faith managed to catch him.
"Well you just got some help," Faith said as she looked around.
"Thanks," he said as she helped him stand. "Let's go to what my mind has created for my base," he said as he slowly led her off the field.
Buffy was somewhat uneasy as Willow began casting her locator spell; first they had a gang of warriors from the order in the training room trying to get Ethan to talk as their first assignment, Spike and Angel were keeping an eye on them. The fact that Xander and Faith were locked in some kind of trance was really getting to her and lastly she was fearful for Tara; she hoped the shy, young witch was still alive.
Tara suddenly felt the workings of a spell in the air; it was Willow, she was sure of it. She was doing a locator spell to find her, they would be coming soon, but would Xander be with them; she still had no sense of him. The Master was finding as many normal vampires as he could. He planned to bring down the old one. Tara knew from Karan's memories, that Valnon was more powerful than the master and he would defeat the now resurrected vampire easily, but she needed the Master to try before her friends tried to save her and Xander. She decided to use Karan's memories to encourage the Master's plans. She hoped it would also help keep her alive a while longer while her friends came for her.
Xander was slumped in what looked like Faith's motel room when she first came to Sunnydale, that surprised her somewhat and she noticed Xander seemed a little nervous for brining her here. She watched as he tried to wash the blood of his face.
"Xander, how many times has your mind fought this spell?" she asked sitting across from him.
"Nine times so far, I can't keep it up Faith, I'm loosing. This spell is one of the most powerful black magic spells ever. It's ripping away my defenses and once it's done, it will then wipe out my mind bit by bit until all that is left, is me. I'm basically my mind's control center and once it has me alone, it will rip through me, killing me instantly; and you with me, if you are still in here," Xander told her.
"I won't leave you here, Xander," she said looking at him intently.
"Why the hell not?" asked another voice from behind her. She spun to find a second Xander standing there, this one looked like Xander had during the re-opening of the Hellmouth fight. She looked back to the other Xander to find he wouldn't meet her eyes. "Answer me Faith, why won't you leave me here to die?" the other demanded she faced him with a frown.
"Who are you?" she asked.
"I'm the small part of Xander who likes you, the one who fucked you during the apocalypse deal, the one who felt devastated when you kicked me out of the room straight after," the second replied. This stunned Faith totally.
"The spell has split my personality into many different bits, it's why I'm losing so badly," the other Xander told her. "You'll find versions of me who love Buffy and Willow somewhere around here," he added. "But the main ones you'll find is him, and the huge part of me that loves Tara," he finished as he struggled to stand.
"What does this one represent?" Faith asked hesitantly.
"He loves you," Xander said turning away from her.
Faith was too stunned to say a damn thing to either Xander. She looked back to the second Xander who was watching her with great curiosity; Xander had loved her during that whole thing. She shook her head as confusion began to set it. This wasn't the time to get confused, Xander's life was in her hands and so was her own.
"Xander, how do we defeat the spell?" she asked trying to ignore how the second Xander watched her.
"We can't unless I can pull myself together; I mean I have to get the other Xander's to rejoin the whole. That way I can put all my focus in fighting the spell's affect and hopefully win the war which is raging inside me," he informed her.
"So how do we that?" she asked.
"I don't know, each want a different thing," he told her slowly walking toward her.
"It's simple," the second Xander said to both, they looked at him strangely.
"Go on?" Faith asked.
"Each wants a simple answer," the other told her.
"Answer to what question?" she asked stepping closer to him.
"For me the answer as to why he wouldn't allow my feelings for you to grow, and from you the answer to why you kicked me out of the motel room," he told her fiercely.
"The answer is easy for me, if I had allowed your feelings to take control I would've followed Faith into the dark and doomed our friends and the world to hell," the first Xander told his double hotly.
"You don't know that. If we had managed to show Faith a little caring, maybe she wouldn't have been corrupted by the mayor," the second told them both. "None of us really showed her anything, we were too busy telling her how great Buffy was and how she should be more like Buffy and things like that. We failed her first and you know it," he added.
"It was a mistake, but the past is done and nothing we can do will change it," the first said with a shake of his head.
"But at least now you admit the mistake and that fact that you loved Faith," the second told him with a satisfied smile.
"I shouldn't've denied it in the first place, but I had to so I could save my friends," the first said slowly before stepping back to allow Faith and his double some space. What she said was not for him to hear.
"Well Faith?" the second asked hopefully.
"I never allowed my feelings out. I leaned from experience they were a weakness I couldn't afford. I lost my parents just after I was called. It almost destroyed me; I lost my friends and then my watcher. When I came to Sunnydale, I was on the brink of self- destruction until I met all of you. Although I never showed it, I cared for you all as friends. But the fact that all you were so hung up on Buffy, hurt. No matter what I did, you all seemed not to notice it and that made it worse. Willow never trusted me, and Giles always disapproved of my methods. Buffy was okay for a while, but too uptight," Faith said slowly. "You did show me some more care than the rest; you tried to help when you could, you shared my hate of Angel and his relationship with Buffy. I saw something in you, but I didn't want to see it get stronger; it scared me. I tried to discourage it," she added glancing at the second Xander for a second before looking away. "The night we made love I wanted it to be more, but I got freaked afterward. That's why I kicked you out and, after I killed that guy and started my descent, I didn't want you to follow," she finished.
"Thank you," the second said with a smile. Faith looked back at him as he stepped forward and, before she could react, he kissed her hard. Once he released her, he walked over to where the first stood and held his hand out. The first grasped it and suddenly the second began to glow and then he vanished.
"That's one," the first said and to Faith he sounded stronger. She still was having a hard time believing what she had just witnessed and confessed. She tried to push these thoughts away for now.
"Where do we find the others?" she asked.
"The white Knight will be on the field trying to save the world by himself," the first said.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"It's what Angel called me when I loved Buffy, because I kept trying to save her no matter what," he told her. He walked over to her grabbed her hand and led her out of the room and suddenly they were on another battlefield. This one however was smaller and covered in Ash and in the middle stood a third Xander. This one wore gold armor and held a long sword. He had multiple cuts on his face and half of his armor was covered in black dents. Before him was a perfect replica of Angel and Angelus, both separate and both distinctive. Behind them were at least fifty vampires.
"I thought you said he was trying to fight this on his own?" Faith asked.
"He is, this part of my mind is how it views the spells attack," the first Xander explained.
"Well let's help," Faith said suddenly finding a short sword in her hand.
"We'll have to so we can find out what he wants," the first said with a cold smile. They rushed forward, swords raised; they jumped into the fray behind the two versions of Angel leaving them to the White knight version of Xander. Faith and the first Xander easily cut the vamps into pieces, losing themselves in the heat of the battle.
The third Xander smashed his sword into the version of Angelus before turning so quickly that the version of Angel couldn't even move and sliced him into two turning him into ash. Angelus rammed his own fist into the third Xander and knocked him on his ass, leaving him open for a deathblow. Faith and the third Xander watched as Angelus went to drive his foot into the third's face, but the white knight rolled away and jumped back to his feat. He rushed forward, driving his sword straight through Angelus and then he drove it upwards splitting the vampire in two. All three watched in satisfaction as the vamp turned to ash. The third then turned to Faith and the first Xander with a cold glare.
"What do you want?" he asked coldly.
"Don't take it seriously, he's mad at me" the first said.
"Damn right, you gave up on Buffy," the third said angrily.
"Had no choice but to move on, she didn't see us like that and she never will," the first said somewhat sadly.
"You turned your back on her," the third accused.
"I might have once or twice, but only because my anger at the way she treated me got the better of me," the first said.
"Answer me this, if she did fall for you now, what would you do?" the third asked stepping closer to them.
"I don't think I'd fall for her again, I love Tara, at least most of me does," the first told his double.
"Yet some of you still loves Faith, and Willow," the third shot back.
"And Buffy," the first admitted.
The third looked at him closely and then smiled; he then placed his sword on the back of his armor and held his hand out. The first grasped it and like before, the double glowed and then vanished. Faith watched as the first seemed to grow stronger and his stance became more deadly. She couldn't believe all she was leaning about Xander, everyone had thought he was a joker and yet inside he was very serious.
"Almost done; one left, and this one is going to be the hardest," the first said looking at Faith.
"Why?" she asked as once again the first Xander took her hand and led her away from the field.
"I never ever let my feelings for Willow out, I never told her I loved her and then I broke her heart twice once when she caught me kissing Cordelia and second when she found out me and you had slept together. I think that one was the most devastating for her," the first said very sadly.
"Why didn't you ever let me out?" a loud and very annoyed voice shouted from above them.
They looked up to find a fourth Xander standing above them, this one was a much younger version of Xander but the look on his face was very deadly and very angry. Faith never recalled seeing Xander looking so angry and for some reason it unnerved her
"I couldn't, it would have destroyed everything," the first said softly.
"How?" this fourth version of Xander demanded.
"Jessie loved her; he used Cordelia as his cover. He was going to tell her but he got killed I couldn't go behind his back, he was the only male friend I had, hell he was like a brother to me," the first shot back. "I held back for him. I know I hurt her by ignoring how she felt, but I didn't want to betray him. Then, when he died, for some reason I still couldn't tell her. Then the fluke happened and I thought at last we'd be together but it all went wrong and I still couldn't tell her the truth of my feelings," the first added.
"Why?" the other said jumping down toward them.
"I don't know, maybe I was scared; maybe it was the fact that part of me had fallen for Buffy. I just don't know," the first said. "No, that's not true; I know why," he said turning away. "I see Willow as my sister, the one person I can always trust, the one person I know will always be there," the first admitted. "She's everything I ever wanted to be, strong-willed, smart and loyal to a fault. For some reason, I failed in almost all of these aspects but still she holds me steady and keeps me on the path. She is the reason I fight so hard. If she died then I'd die," he said facing his double.
"And Tara?" a fifth version asked appearing next to Faith.
"She is my heart. I would do anything to save her even give my life for her," he answered with a confident smile.
"You'd do that for any of your friends," the fifth said.
"True, but for Tara I'd go that little bit extra. I'd push myself to the breaking point; I'd give my soul to save hers," the first said.
The fourth and fifth versions of Xander nodded and both held their hands put, the first smiled and took both hands and the doubles glowed and then vanished. The first Xander glowed too for a few minutes before it faded.
"It's done; I'm complete," the first said with a broad smile. Suddenly, they were back on the first battlefield, except this time they were surrounded by dozens of old style warriors. Faith even noticed doubles of Buffy and the others including her leading the charge.
"Ready?" Xander asked as he raised his own sword that glowed with a very bright and strong light.
"Yeah," Faith nodded raising her own sword and followed Xander as they charged into thousands of vampires which Xander's mind had used to represent the spell's affect.
The battle was short as Xander was at his best, his strength regained and his defenses repaired. The images of his friends swept left and fight and destroyed the vamps faster than the eye could see. Faith reveled in the battle as she helped her friend break the spell holding them here. Once it was done, both stood in the middle of the field, alone.
"It's done, I'm beginning to wake up," Xander told her. "Thanks Faith, I owe you my life," he said facing her.
"Glad I could help," she smiled at him, he bent down and quickly kissed her one last time before a white flash blinded them both.
Buffy almost jumped when Faith and Xander both jerked awake, both seemed tired and confused but they were awake.
"Giles, Rachel they're awake," she cried.
Everyone except the warriors from the order ran over to where Xander and Faith sat on the floor. Rachel and Jill seemed the most relieved to see them awake
"You did it, Faith," Giles exclaimed.
"Was there any doubt G-man, she's a slayer," Xander said standing up. He then helped Faith up as well.
"We know where Tara is being held," Gunn told them.
"Form up, we're going to rescue her," Xander said fiercely.
"But you just recovered from a dark spell, you can't rush off now into a fight," Wesley said.
"He has to do this Wes. Don't get in his way, we go now," Faith said knowing nothing would stop Xander from rescuing the girl he loved and she wasn't going to let him go alone.
"Very well; Spike, get the warriors from the order ready, we're going to rescue Tara," Giles nodded noticing the look in both Xander's and Faith's eyes letting him know nothing would convince then to stay.
Xander held a long sword as they headed to the factory where Tara was being held. They didn't know which vampire Valnon had resurrected to aid him, but, at the moment, he didn't care. All Xander cared about was saving Tara's life. Faith now understood him better than anyone ever had, including Willow. That was why she had agreed they should go now as Xander had said. She knew now what drove him to fight the darkness. Why he went so far to help his friends. Why he pushed himself so hard, and although she also now knew a part of him loved her, she also knew Tara was the girl who held his heart.
Spike and Angel were walking with the warriors from the order just to make sure none of them tried anything. Faith and Buffy were behind them brining up the rear. Giles was in the middle, along with Willow, Wesley, Gunn, Major Johnson and his team. Each of them looked somewhat nervous but otherwise intent on their mission. They quickly made it to the factory and made a quick check to make sure no one could see them. Xander looked at his watch and noticed it was two-thirty. They still had the advantage of the daylight. He looked at Giles and Wesley and knew they would come up with the best way to attack.
"Okay Giles, which way would be best?" Xander asked.
"We should split. You, Faith, Angel and three of the order should take the back. Buffy, Willow, Spike and four of the order should take the front and the rest of us should use the fire escape on the roof," Giles said as he removed his glasses and prepared for the fight ahead.
"Okay, be careful and don't take any unnecessary risks; we can't afford to loose anyone else," Wesley added. Everybody nodded and split up into their teams.
Xander led Faith, Angel and the three members from the order to the back of the building, making sure not to pass any windows. He could feel his heart beat faster as his anticipation increased. They had to be careful here, one mistake could cost Tara her life and maybe some of their own. As he reached the door, he looked back to where his team waited.
"Angel, you should go first to make sure it's clear and just in case they have any sort of device that detects humans," Xander said to the ensouled vampire.
"No problem," Angel replied. Although he felt some anger at Xander's tone, he knew Xander's mind was on something else so he didn't say anything else.
He slowly tested the door and was relived to find it not locked; he entered and quickly looked around but didn't see anyone guarding the back entrance. This confused him somewhat; nearly every vampire lord he knew kept some of his underlings on guard at every entrance point. He stuck his head out the door and motioned for the others to enter. Xander made a quick scan of the area and moved forward. Angel was surprised at the way Xander was moving and acting. He wondered just how far the memories of his ancestor affected the man and if they would vanish once this was over.
"Seems clear," he mused. "We're going to have to be very quiet. We'd better split up and go down different sides," he added.
"Why?" Angel asked.
"Because then there won't be that much of a chance that we'll be seen," Xander shot back. "You take the three guys from the order and go down the right side, me and Faith will take and left and stay behind the debris," Xander added as he turned and walked slowly away with Faith close behind. Angel stayed where he was for a few seconds before nodding to the warriors behind him and walked toward the right side, making sure to keep an eye out for any vampires.
Tara smiled when she felt Xander's presence wash over her; he was awake and very much alive. She also sensed something had happened to heal him completely. She no longer sensed any of the pain he usually carried. He had faced his pain she realized and now he was coming for her. The only thing that dampened her happiness was the fact that she also sensed Willow was with him. She suddenly noticed the Master enter the room she was kept in. He was smiling as he approached her, and she quickly hid any positive feelings she was showing, now she knew she was almost safe.
"The old one has ordered me to kill you now," the Master told her. She almost cried at the thought she would die with Xander so close to her. "But I won't yet; you have been very helpful in using your knowledge of Valnon to aid my plan. Although I know you do this to stay alive longer so your friends can rescue you," the Master added. "If they do find you, they will be killed and you will die after them," he finished before leaving the room.
Tara tried to keep her calm and not allow any fear to creep into her. She had complete confidence in Xander and the others to free her and destroy the Master again.
Faith was impressed at the way Xander was making his way though the burnt-out factory and the way he had split up his team to improve their chances of success. It was as if he was someone completely different. She knew he had the memories of his ancestor just like she had Buffy's ancestor's memories, but she hadn't been as affected by them as he had. He was acting almost like a solider and then she remembered what Buffy had told her about the Halloween incident and how he had basically become a solider. She wondered if somehow he still had the memories from that event, then she called upon what she had just learned about Xander and she knew that he would use anything to save his friends and the woman he loved so in the end it didn't really matter. She shook her head and cleared her thoughts as she followed Xander deeper into the factory. When he suddenly stopped, she peered over his shoulder to see why and froze instantly. Nearly twenty vampires were standing in the large room they were in. The only thing that made her feel relaxed was that these vampires didn't have any tattoo's or claws, which meant that they were not followers of Valnon. She looked across the room to where Angel and the three warriors from the order were crouched; each looked ready to rush into the room but she was glad they were holding back for now.
"Okay what's the plan, Xand?" she asked quietly.
"I'm going to throw a fire ball at them, but it will take a lot out of me. You'll have to stay close to me to kill any of the survivors," he answered giving her a quick glance.
"No problem," she nodded. She noticed Angel watching them and she knew he understood they were making the first move.
She watched as Xander closed his eyes and began chanting in what she believed was Latin; she then noticed a small ball of fire appear before him. She looked to the where the vampires stood but they hadn't noticed them yet, she pulled out a stake and the dagger she taken from Giles's weapon's locker and prepared herself for the fight ahead. The ball increased suddenly and then shot into the middle of the vamps, setting nine of them on fire which quickly disintegrated. Xander fell backward but she caught him and leaned him against the wall as the remaining vampires walked toward them just as Angel and the three Terakan warriors jumped out of their cover.
Angel slammed into the two leading vampires as the warriors behind him hit the three to the left. Faith made her way to the two on the right. He had guessed Xander would use his inherited powers to take care of the main group; he just hoped he recovered fast enough to help them. Xander pushed himself to his feet and looked to where Faith and the others were fighting the remaining vamps. It was obvious to him they were outnumbered. He raised his sword weakly and ran toward where Faith was somehow holding of three vampires by herself.
Xander raised his sword ignoring the way his arms felt weak and rammed it into the first of the vampires near Faith. It howled in agony as he jammed his sword forward even more and then pulled it back and swung hard decapitating it before it could react.
"Nice timing, Xand," Faith said with a smile as he jump kicked the second while throwing her dagger at the third which hit it squally in the chest
Xander moved forward and slammed his fist into the vampire's face and then brought his knee up into its wounded chest before pulling Faith's dagger out of it and thrusting it into the vamps head as he grabbed the vamp and twisted hard breaking its neck. He watched in satisfaction as it disintegrated. Faith used her stake to dust the second vamp but as she turned to help Angel and the three warriors from the order, she heard a loud groan and a grunt from behind her. She turned to find Xander slumped on the ground with a tall lanky vampire standing above him about to drive her dagger into his back. She felt a huge swirl of adrenalin rush through her and she tackled the vamp, knocking the dagger flying. They landed on the ground hard but Faith recovered fast as she staked the vamp before it could rise. She grabbed the dagger and rushed over to where Xander was weakly pushing himself to his feet.
"You okay?" she asked as she knelt at his side.
"Yeah, just winded. Go help Angel, I'll be there in a few minutes, he said with a smile. She nodded and reluctantly left him to help Angel.
Buffy ducked the wide swing from the Vampire she was currently fighting and dropped to a crouch and swept the vamps legs from under him. As the vamp fell on its back, she staked it quickly and then took a look around to see Willow and Spike finish off the two remaining vamps that had attacked them. They had lost one of the warriors from the order, but the other three were still standing.
"Which way?" Willow asked.
"This way I think," Buffy said hoping the others hadn't encountered this much trouble as she walked forward.
Giles shook his head as the warrior in front of him used his sword to behead the vamp that had jumped them along with seven others on the roof, they had almost broken through, but five more had shown up to help. Finally they had managed to kill most of them only loosing two of the Terakan warriors and Gunn had been badly wounded. Major Johnson and his men were securing the roof just in case they needed to escape through here.
"Gunn, you'd better stay here," he told Gunn as they approached the hatch that led into the factory.
"No problem," Gunn replied in a bitter tone.
"Let's go," Giles said to the others as he opened the hatch.
Faith landed next to Xander's knee. As she tried to push herself back to her feet, she felt a hand push her back down and Xander spoke.
"Stay down. Regain your strength, I'll help finish them off," he told her. She nodded as she watched him. As he stood, she noted he was still weak, but he seemed to be ignoring it; that impressed her greatly.
He rushed the vampire that had been fighting Angel and knocked it into the wall. Before he could strike again, one of the warriors slammed an axe into the vamp cutting it in half.
"Xander," he heard Angel shout out from behind. He turned just in time to block a vampire's thrust with a sword. He stepped backward and waited as the vamp tried another fast strike. Xander quickly blocked it then turned left and struck out, cutting the vamp in half from just below the neck; he smiled as it disintegrated. He looked around and noticed the remaining vamps had been killed. He was glad they hadn't lost any of the hired warriors. He walked over to Faith and helped her back to her feet. He handed her the sword the vamp had been using.
"Cool," she said as she tested its weight.
"Xander!" Tara's cry suddenly echoed through his head as if she had been standing right beside him.
"What?" Faith asked catching the way Xander's face turned grim.
"It's Tara, she's in trouble. We've gotta move now," he said as he turned and rushed forward, quickly forgetting the weakness he still felt in his legs. The danger Tara was still in overrode everything else in his mind. Faith and the others quickly followed him, not bothering to question how Xander knew where he was going and how he knew Tara was in deeper trouble.
Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Disclaimer: I do now own Buffy or any of the others characters in this story except for the ones I have created. Subject: Xander/Tara
I'd like to thank my beta Grossclout for all of his help with this story
Xander sat in the corner of the magic box avoiding everyone especially Willow, he didn't dare look into his friends eyes in fear she would see the truth. That he had fallen in love with her girlfriend, he still found it hard to believe his feelings for the young blond witch. But deep inside himself he kept asking himself if this was somehow related to Robert's love for Karan, Tara's ancestor. He noticed Faith watching him with a sly smile; she knew he could tell by the way she looked at him. 'Great' he thought that was he needed knowing the animosity between her and Willow she might use just to get under Willow's skin and that would lead to real trouble. 'As if we weren't in enough as it is' Xander thought with a shake of his head.
Faith watched Xander intently as he tried to avoid everyone in the magic box especially Red, she had an idea why. Xander had the hots for Tara, not that she could blame him Tara was pretty damn hot. She couldn't help but wonder how Red would react once she knew for sure that Xander was in love with Tara, and she had noticed Tara had blushed when Xander had almost slipped up thanks to B pushing him in her anger. Although she understood B was upset and angry, that was no reason to blame it on Xander, and then there was the fact that she was been affected by her own ancestor's distrust of Xander's ancestor. The memories she continued to have from Buffy's ancestor's life were quite confusing to her, which was no surprise as she was only having these thanks to Buffy dieing and Xander bringing her back.
Tara sat next to Willow but avoided looking at her; luckily Willow was too busy talking with Cordelia and Doyle after the latest bout of visions to question her about Xander's slip. As soon as she thought about Xander she felt warm and safe, she tried to shake it off but she couldn't; her feelings for him were becoming stronger and she couldn't fight them, she didn't want to fight them. She could almost feel Xander's own feelings, due to her special sense, and it made her dizzy with joy.
With a dazed look on her face, Buffy re-entered the magic box, followed by Jill and Rachel. Her anger was gone and was replaced with confusion and surprise. She walked past everyone without sparing them a glance, entered the back room and slammed the door shut.
"How did she take it?" asked Gunn.
"Not too well, she thought we were making it up at first, to protect Xander," Rachel explained.
"I'm not surprised really; her anger can be quite trying at times." Giles sighed as he removed his glasses and rubbed them with handkerchief.
"Yeah, well we don't have time for her anger Giles, we need her focused," Faith said walking over to them.
"I agree, Giles; someone has to talk to her, get her to put Riley's death aside for now," Spike agreed as he stood next to them.
"I'll do it," Angel sighed, not looking forward to the confrontation.
"Very well, go through the back door. In her state, she will have most likely forgotten to lock that as well," Giles told him.
The ensouled vampire nodded and walked out of the shop. Wesley quickly walked over with a worried look.
"Is something wrong, Wes?" Faith asked.
"Yes, where are Major Johnson and his men?" Wesley asked.
"I suppose they have gone on a little scouting mission again. Hopefully they know better than to get into a fight," Giles answered.
"We need some more help, Giles," Faith told him.
"I know, but where can we get it from?" Giles agreed.
"I know you may think I've gone insane for suggesting this, but why not hire the order of Teraka," Spike suggested.
"The order?!" Giles exclaimed in shock.
"Why not? They don't care who they work for, as long as they get paid," Spike told him. "They've killed demons, vampires, humans and countless others as long as they get a good sum of money for each job," Spike added.
"He's right, Giles. They could come in handy," Wesley said.
"Major Johnson may not like this, and neither with Buffy, but I suppose it's our best shot," Giles finally gave in. "Spike, do you have a way to contact them?" he asked.
"Yeah," the vampire told him.
"Giles nodded and indicated for him to follow. Faith went back to her seat just glimpsing Tara and Xander sharing a small glance before quickly looking away like guilty children.
Angel slowly opened the back door to the training area and noticed Buffy had her back to him witch made him feel quite relived, he enter trying not make any noise.
"What do you want Angel?" Buffy's cold voice asked.
"We need to talk, Buffy," he replied, standing a few feet behind her.
"Why?" she asked, her anger was back making Angel feel somewhat apprehensive.
"You're getting distracted, Buffy, and we don't have time for that," he told her simply.
Buffy spun around as fast as possible and tried to knock the vampire out cold, but he was ready and managed to grab her fist.
"See what I mean? Your anger is clouding your judgment," Angel told her calmly.
"My boyfriend is dead, you cold-hearted bastard, and it's Xander's fault and everyone is protecting him and making up lies," she hissed.
"Wrong, Buffy. You can try and blame this on Xander as much as you want, but deep down, you know better," Angel countered. "What Rachel and Jill told you is the truth and you have to accept it, and fast. We don't know when Valnon will attack. So far, we've been beaten each time and, if you stay distracted, you'll be dead as well," he added letting his own anger show.
"Damn you. Get out!" Buffy screamed at her ex-boyfriend.
"Fine, but get your head straight now, while we have time, or else someone may be forced to knock some sense into you," he told her before walking away, not catching Buffy's hard gaze locked onto his back.
Spike placed the phone back onto its holder with a smile as Giles and Wesley came toward him, both with questioning glances.
"Well?" Giles asked.
"They'll take the contract, they're sending us eleven of their warriors, it'll cost us $15000" dollars to be paid on completion of the job," Spike informed them.
"That's quite expensive," Wesley mused.
"When dealing with the order, you learn quickly that they always ask for a large sum," Spike responded.
"Do we have that much money?" Wesley asked as Angel re-entered the store.
"I'll contact the watchers council, and have them send us the money," Giles told them with a tired yawn.
"They'll be a bit hesitant to send that much money," Wesley said.
"Considering the circumstances, I think they will agree it is necessary," Giles stated.
"How long before these warriors arrive?" Wesley asked Spike as he lit a cigarette.
"They said twenty to twenty-five hours max; until then, it's just us," Spike answered.
"I don't suppose they said if they were sending just human warriors?" Angel asked as he joined them at the counter.
"I did ask for them to send just Human warriors; they said they'll do what they can," Spike replied.
Tara watched Xander's every move as he talked with Faith. It was obvious to her that she suspected something between her and Xander, especially after Xander's slip. She wondered if Xander was trying to get her to promise not say anything to Willow. She dreaded what would happen once Willow discovered she had feelings for Xander and vice versa. Buffy was already distracted because of her feelings, and they couldn't afford Willow been distracted as well; but she just didn't know how long she could keep herself under control. She wanted nothing more than to kiss Xander long and hard and never let go, and she could sense Xander was having just as much trouble staying away from her and not letting his feelings take over. She noticed Willow's gaze on her and quickly looked away from Xander, although with great effort, and focused instead on what Giles and the others were discussing, hoping her girlfriend didn't choose now to discuss what Xander's slip meant.
Oz had noticed Tara's gaze locked on Xander and he instantly knew something was happening between the two, especially since Xander had slipped up during Buffy's outburst. He looked to where Willow stood and hoped nothing bad came of what ever it was that was happening between Tara and Xander. He then focused on what Spike had set in motion. They had hired members of the order of Teraka and that, in itself, made him even more nervous. He wondered how Buffy would take it, once she had calmed down enough to focus. In all his time fighting along side Buffy and the others, this had to be the hardest fight they had been involved in.
Buffy finally opened the door and walked back into the main shop. Tara was sleep on the couch near the door next to Cordelia, who was also out cold. Angel and Spike were near the door keeping an eye out the window in case of trouble. Giles, Wesley, Doyle and Willow were near the table, going through some of the books Spike had brought. Xander was talking to Oz on the far side of the room. Upon seeing him, her anger flared, but she managed to hold it down. Faith and Gunn were talking with Major Johnson and his men, who had finally returned from their scouting mission. Jill and Rachel were sleeping in the chairs near the counter. She walked over to where Giles was and waited until he noticed she had come out of the training room.
"How are you Buffy?" Giles asked looking at her.
"I'm okay. So, what's new?" she asked hoping to avoid any conversation on Riley's death.
"We have been forced into a rather difficult situation; luckily Spike came up with a plan that will increase our numbers," Giles told her.
"What was it?" Buffy asked.
"We hired the order of Teraka," Giles said simply.
Buffy's mind seemed to close down for a few seconds and she stared at Giles as if he had three heads. "We what?" she asked, her voice rising in anger and disbelief.
"We hired 11 warriors from the order of Teraka," Giles told her.
"They're killers, they work for the bad guys," Buffy argued.
"No, they work for money; it doesn't matter who hires them as long as they get paid," Spike entered the conversation.
"And how are we going to pay them?" Buffy asked.
"The watchers council is sending us the money; it should be here in five hours. The warriors from the order should be here in twenty hours," Wesley answered before Giles could.
"Why didn't you tell me before going ahead with it?" she demanded.
"You weren't exactly in the listening mood B," Faith said walking over to them.
"I think I would have listened to that piece of information," Buffy said.
"I doubt it," Gunn said from where he now stood next to Spike and Angel.
"Since when do we take ideas of Spike anyway?" Buffy asked.
"Since now; we needed more help and that was the only way," Xander said stepping beside Faith.
"And who the hell put you in charge, murderer?" Buffy said staring coldly at him. Xander flinched.
"I am not in control here, Buff; Giles is," Xander shot back.
"No, I am," Buffy hissed.
"You are in no condition to lead a fight, Buffy," Willow said.
"Damn you all, I am not made of glass. I am leading this fight. I am the slayer," Buffy shouted to them all, waking Tara, Jill, Rachel and Cordelia.
"So am I, B," Faith challenged her sister slayer.
"Please Buffy, we don't want to argue with you; we want to help you. At the moment you are not in a decent state of mind to lead a fight," Giles rationalised.
Buffy spun and stalked back into the training room, slamming the door very hard and locking it. Angel stepped up toward the door with a frown.
"That's it. I warned her someone might be forced to make her see sense, and now someone will have to do it," Angel said angrily. He turned and exited the shop, knowing Buffy might have forgotten to lock the back door again.
Buffy spun as the back door opened and Angel walked into the room just like he had before. In her anger, she had forgotten to lock it again. Then again it was obvious Angel would have broken the door in half to get to her.
"What do you want?" she demanded.
"I warned you someone might have to knock some sense into you. You didn't listen and now someone will knock sense into you," he told her smashing his fist into her face knocking her backward and onto her butt. She got up and hissed as she dropped into a fighting stance. "What you need to do is release your anger, so lets do it," Angel said knowing this was going to be very painful for both of them, but it was the only way to make Buffy's anger dissipate.
Xander tried to focus his mind as Rachel had instructed him, but every time he closed his eyes, he saw an image of Tara. At first it was there for a few minutes, but now it was staying with him for longer periods. He wondered just how deep his feelings for the blonde witch would go, and once again if his ancestor influenced them. He shook his head and tried again, only to see an image of him and Tara lying on a bed holding each other closely, he was whispering something to her and she had the purest smile on her face. His eyes snapped open and quickly located Tara, only to have his eyes connect with her own as if pulled. She seemed to be staring right through him and yet he could feel her at the back of his mind. He tried to pull his eyes away from her, but he couldn't and he dropped deeper into her.
Faith sensed Xander's sudden movement and quickly looked to find him staring directly at Tara, who was also staring back at him. She noticed the way their eyes were fixed on each other as if nothing else existed. As she turned to talk to Giles, she noticed Willow had also noticed where her girlfriend was staring. She could instantly tell her anger and obviously jealously was beginning to win, and she guessed Red was about to explode.
Willow couldn't take it anymore. Since this whole affair started, she had felt like she was loosing Tara. But now, seeing her girlfriend staring openly at Xander, as if he was the only thing that mattered, broke her control and her anger seeped through. She marched toward them and halted between them. She watched as both slowly came out of their daze and met her eyes. Tara flinched at the look in them while Xander seemed to be on the verge of either laughing or crying. She knew Xander would realise what he had done before Tara could, as he had broken her heart once before.
"Willow?" Xander started but Willow was quicker and wheeled on him.
"Don't 'Willow' me, Xander. I see it in your eyes and hers. You're in love with each other," Willow accused them both. "Your slip earlier proved it," she added, her eyes dancing with fire.
Xander hung his head in shame at how he had hurt his friend again, but this time it had been beyond his control but somehow he couldn't get the words out. Tara however couldn't take the accusation in her girlfriend's voice and fled through the door before anyone could react.
Tara ran as fast as she could away from Willow's glare and her anger; away from Xander's love and her own feelings. She didn't notice the car following her until it pulled up in front of her and the door opened quickly and she was pulled into the back before she could even scream. She looked straight into the face of a vamp that just smiled evilly at her and then slammed his fist into face, knocking her unconscious.
Xander jerked up right as he felt the terror from Tara and the pain as someone or something hit her. Faith immediately noticed the look on his face and walked over to him. Willow paid no heed as Cordelia consoled her.
"What is it Xand?" she asked.
"Something has happened to Tara," he answered as another wave of pain shot through him.
"Do you know where she is?" Jill asked, her voice full of concern as she appeared next to them, with Rachel close behind.
"No, I think she's unconscious. Valnon wouldn't send his people after one of us," Xander answered.
"How do you know that?" Giles asked as he noticed the concern on Jill's face at what Xander had said.
"I don't, Robert did and I have his memories," Xander said, his eyes wide.
"You've finally accepted them fully," Rachel noted.
"Oh shit! We are so fucking dumb," Xander suddenly cried.
"Why what is it?" Wesley asked as he rushed over.
"We forgot about the damn artifacts the vamps were after. We were so busy learning about the prophecy and Valnon that we forgot they wanted to raise a damn dead vamp or demon," Xander said dead-eyed.
"Oh dear," Giles said, his own shock coming through.
"They did it to distract us, to split us up so we couldn't attack in force or to at least cause us to lose some of our people rescuing Tara," Wesley told them as he understood the strategy the demon had used to blindside them.
"This makes things even worse," Faith said with a shake of her head.
"We have to rescue her, or else we won't be able to defeat Valnon," Xander told them.
"We have to find them first. Spike, see if you can find out anything," Giles said turning to the blond vamp who quickly nodded and almost ran out of the door.
"Tara," Xander said fearfully before he collapsed as a shockwave of pain shot through him. Faith caught him before he could fall face first onto the floor
"Giles help," she said. Giles quickly took Xander's legs and help place him on the couch next to Fred and Gunn
"This is getting worse than possible," Doyle said with a cold grimace.
"What's happened?" Buffy's voice suddenly broke in. They all turned to see Buffy and Angel supporting each other and both were covered in bruises and both seemed to have a dislocated shoulder.
"Great," Giles cursed.
Xander's body convulsed for the fifth time since he collapsed. Faith, who was keeping watch over him, was beginning to suspect this was not a usual collapse and that someone had cast some sort of spell on him. She turned to where Buffy and Angel were recovering from their injuries and the only good thing seemed to be that Buffy was no longer concentrating on Riley's death. She placed her hand on Xander's forehead and quickly recoiled as if burned.
"Giles, something is wrong; he's burning up," she shouted to where the Watcher stood near the table.
"Burning up?" Giles said somewhat surprised.
"I think this is some sort of spell, Giles; another tactic to delay us," Faith told him. The watcher nodded and began looking through some of his books.
"Rachel is there anything you or Jill can do?" Faith asked.
"I'm afraid there is not much we can do. We may be able to tell you if it is a spell that's all," Rachel replied as she walked over to them.
"At least then we'll know," Faith shot back a little anger creeping through her.
"Okay Jill, get the supplies we'll need," Rachel nodded at her daughter who just went to complete her task.
"Willow, maybe you should try doing a locator spell to find where Tara is been held," Wesley suggested to the red-haired witch who was sitting next to Cordelia.
"I'll try," Willow said in a weak voice; her fear for her girlfriend and her friend overrunning her anger and jealously over what she had seen happen between them.
"Isn't it possible they'll keep her in the caves?" Fred asked.
"I doubt it. According to Xander before he collapsed, they used the artifacts to raise a dead demon or vampire to delay us or split us up, so it makes sense they'll keep her somewhere separate than where Valnon is hiding," Wesley answered her.
"This is making things ten times worse," Cordelia muttered.
"Yes, I'm afraid so. Spike, how long before the warriors from the order arrive?" Wesley agreed.
"Half an hour," Spike answered as he lit one of his smokes.
"Hopefully we'll have found a way to wake Xander and locate Tara before then," Wesley said with a shake of his head.
"Faith, I want you to hold Xander's hand while we perform this spell. Try and keep him still," Rachel told the dark slayer. Faith nodded, moving to Xander's other side to give Rachel and Jill space, and grasped Xander's hand.
"This may cause him some discomfort as usual when using a probe spell," Jill said she placed the items in front of them.
"A what spell?" Faith asked.
"A probe spell; it will allow us to probe Xander's subconscious and thus allow us to determine what is keeping him unconscious," Rachel explained.
"Okay," Faith nodded somewhat uncertain.
Tara tried to keep her eyes closed as she tried to use her link to Xander to call for help but all she could see was darkness and she could also feel pain. As she opened her eyes, she knew something had happened to him just as she had been taken. This meant things were even worse than they were before. She watched as the bald- headed vampire walked toward where she was chained to the wall. She hoped to keep the fear she was feeling off her face.
"So you are the sorcerer's mate. You have power, I can feel it," the vampire said with an evil smile.
"Who are you?" she asked hesitantly.
"I am called the Master. It would seem the old one had need of my services and has brought be back to life after the slayer killed me," the vampire answered his smile turning even more evil. She had forgotten about the artifacts the vampires she, Willow and Xander had encountered had been looking for when this whole mess started.
"I have been ordered to keep you alive and to wait until your mate comes and then kill you both," the vampire taunted her.
"You can't kill him, Valnon must face him," Tara hissed not knowing where the knowledge came from.
"It would seem the old one is not interested in facing the sorcerer again," the master told her stepping a little closer. "It would seem he wants to change the prophecy so that the sorcerer and his friends can not win under any circumstances," the master added. "However, he has made one mistake and that was resurrecting me," the master told her with a wide, evil grin.
"What do you mean?" Tara asked.
"I do not like being ordered around by anyone, not even a demon from hell," the master snarled. "I will make him pay for thinking he can command me," he added before turning and walking away, leaving Tara alone and miserable.
Rachel eyes opened slowly as she released the spell she had cast. Jill was supporting her as she tried to stand. Faith let go of Xander's hand and stood as well, looking at her expectedly.
"It is a spell and a dark one at that," she told them.
"I knew it," Faith hissed.
"Do you know who cast it?" Giles asked as he walked over to them.
"I would suspect it was Valnon, he had a vast knowledge of dark magic," Rachel answered.
"Is there a way we can counter it?" Buffy asked as she joined them.
"Yes, someone is going to have to go inside Xander's mind and help him fight whatever force is attacking him," Rachel told them.
"I'll go" Buffy said
"You can't, it must be someone he trusts and at the moment things between you are not to good, Willow can't either," Rachel told them.
"I'll do it," Faith said fiercely, surprising almost everyone in the room.
"Very well; Mr. Giles, we'll need a very powerful book called the Drakanal," Rachel said facing Giles.
"The demon book of magic?" Giles said shocked.
"Yes, do you have it?" she asked in reply.
"No, but it is in Sunnydale," Giles said.
"Where?" Rachel asked.
"It's in the same tomb the vampire raided to find that item they stole," he replied.
"Buffy, take Angel and Spike and get it now. Jill and I will get the supplies we already know we'll need," Rachel said facing the blonde slayer.
Buffy frowned somewhat at the commanding tone of the woman, but nodded anyway and walked out of the magic box, followed by the two vampires.
"Faith, I think you'd better try and meditate and prepare yourself; this isn't going to be easy," Rachel told the brunette. She nodded, took one more look at Xander's prone form and went into the training room.
Buffy walked into the tomb slowly, making sure no one, especially not any of Valnon's followers, was already inside. She hoped for Xander and Tara' sake that the book they wanted had not already been taken. Angel followed her in whilst Spike stayed outside to keep an eye out for anyone following them.
"So where do we start, in the guy's tomb or in one of these metal boxes they have in the wall?" Angel asked.
"I think the tomb has already been sacked," Buffy said pointing to the open tomb in the middle of the room. "I'd try the boxes," she added. Angel nodded and began using his enhanced strength to pull the boxes open as Buffy did the same on the other side of the tomb.
Tara looked around the cold, damp place where she was been held; it was he old factory where Spike had once held Willow and an unconscious Xander. Buffy and Angel had also had a fight with a few of Valnon's followers here as well at the beginning of this mess. The only good thing that happened was the fact that Valnon had chosen the wrong vampire to resurrect. The Master did not like being the one given orders, he wanted to be the one giving orders and so that would hopefully buy them some time, at least for her friends to put a stop to whatever had happened to Xander and cut of her link to him. The question was, could she stay alive long enough for Xander and her friends to rescue her. She once again tried to use her link to contact Xander although she knew it was hopeless as, for the minute, Xander was unreachable. She felt the darkness and the pain coming from it, but that was all. She feared for him more than she had for anyone else in her entire life and, if he did die, how would she deal with it. She loved him. She was sure of it. No matter how it came about, she was in love with Xander and wanted to spend the rest of her life with him. She felt heart begin to beat faster as she realized what it was she had just thought: She was in love with Xander. What about her feelings for Willow. She shook her head and tried to focus her thoughts, but all she could do was repeat the truth that was in her heart.
Buffy returned to the magic shop with Angel and Spike looking somewhat beat up, however Giles noted Buffy was carrying a large and heavy looking book, it also looked quite old.
"Did you get it?" Giles asked.
"Yeah, but on our way out we ran into a few of Valnon's demon's," Buffy replied, sitting down next to Willow.
"Give me the book quickly, Xander is weakening fast," Rachel said hurriedly. Buffy handed her the book and watched as she sat in front of where Xander lay along with Jill and began looking through the pages. Faith was just exiting the training room looking more relaxed and more at ease than Buffy ever remembered her looking. Faith took a seat on the other side of Xander and just closed her eyes once again, concentrating on what she was about to do.
"Giles, isn't this dangerous?" Buffy asked quietly.
"It can be, but it is the only way to wake Xander," Giles nodded in understanding of Buffy's question. "What Faith is doing takes considerable courage," Giles added, Buffy frowned at this but kept quiet.
"Okay, we have all the ingredients and the spell necessary to send Faith into Xander's mind," Rachel informed them.
"Okay, I want everyone to be quiet I don't want any mistakes made or we may loose both Xander and Faith," Giles told them all.
"Faith, are you ready?" Jill asked.
"Yeah, I'm five by five," Faith said, her voice unusually calm and collected. Her eyes, when they were open, were very intense and everyone had no doubt that she was very intent on saving Xander's life.
"Okay, take both of Xander's hands in yours and then lay your forehead against his," Rachel instructed her. Faith nodded and did as she was told. Holding Xander's hands tightly in hers, she leaned forward and placed her forehead against his even though it was still very hot. "Okay, close your eyes tightly and block out everything except for Xander's heartbeat," Rachel told her. She managed to catch the heartbeat pretty fast.
"Got it," she said.
"Okay, now just hold it," Rachel replied, she then turned to Jill and nodded.
Her daughter began mixing the ingredients and slowly began the chant form the book. Rachel then took the mixture and pored over both Faith and Xander's joined heads; neither moved in reflex. Buffy wasn't surprised Xander didn't move as he was unconscious, but Faith did surprise her. She knew if she had been allowed to go she would have moved when that stuff was pored on her. Faith seemed more in control of herself these days and Buffy wondered whether this was due to Faith having her ancestor's memories or something she had picked up since she went to jail. A bright light surrounded Faith and Xander bringing Buffy's thoughts back to what was going on in front of her. The light turned red and then blue and then faded. Jill's chant grew louder and then stopped suddenly.
"It is done, no one must touch them until they wake themselves, if they make it," Rachel said sounding very drained.
"Willow, you'd better do the location spell; this could take some time. With the arrival of the order soon, we can at least rescue her and be ready for the final battle when Xander and Faith wake," Giles said looking very worried for the boy and girl now joined on the floor.
Faith looked around what looked like a raging battlefield, she could see thousands of dead bodies and the air smelled like the bodies had been dead for a thousand years. She knew she was inside Xander's mind and yet this seemed very real to her.
"I knew you'd come," said a tired voice from behind her. She spun to find Xander kneeling in the middle of the field, his face was streaked with blood, He wore what looked like old style battle armor and he held a sword which seemed to glow with a gold light.
"Xander what the hell is going on here?" she asked as she knelt next to him.
"I was attacked by some sort of spell. My mind is comprehending it like a war. I've managed to hold on so far, but I'm weakening, Faith. The bodies you see are actually my mental defenses against the spell," Xander replied as he tried to stand but fell. Faith managed to catch him.
"Well you just got some help," Faith said as she looked around.
"Thanks," he said as she helped him stand. "Let's go to what my mind has created for my base," he said as he slowly led her off the field.
Buffy was somewhat uneasy as Willow began casting her locator spell; first they had a gang of warriors from the order in the training room trying to get Ethan to talk as their first assignment, Spike and Angel were keeping an eye on them. The fact that Xander and Faith were locked in some kind of trance was really getting to her and lastly she was fearful for Tara; she hoped the shy, young witch was still alive.
Tara suddenly felt the workings of a spell in the air; it was Willow, she was sure of it. She was doing a locator spell to find her, they would be coming soon, but would Xander be with them; she still had no sense of him. The Master was finding as many normal vampires as he could. He planned to bring down the old one. Tara knew from Karan's memories, that Valnon was more powerful than the master and he would defeat the now resurrected vampire easily, but she needed the Master to try before her friends tried to save her and Xander. She decided to use Karan's memories to encourage the Master's plans. She hoped it would also help keep her alive a while longer while her friends came for her.
Xander was slumped in what looked like Faith's motel room when she first came to Sunnydale, that surprised her somewhat and she noticed Xander seemed a little nervous for brining her here. She watched as he tried to wash the blood of his face.
"Xander, how many times has your mind fought this spell?" she asked sitting across from him.
"Nine times so far, I can't keep it up Faith, I'm loosing. This spell is one of the most powerful black magic spells ever. It's ripping away my defenses and once it's done, it will then wipe out my mind bit by bit until all that is left, is me. I'm basically my mind's control center and once it has me alone, it will rip through me, killing me instantly; and you with me, if you are still in here," Xander told her.
"I won't leave you here, Xander," she said looking at him intently.
"Why the hell not?" asked another voice from behind her. She spun to find a second Xander standing there, this one looked like Xander had during the re-opening of the Hellmouth fight. She looked back to the other Xander to find he wouldn't meet her eyes. "Answer me Faith, why won't you leave me here to die?" the other demanded she faced him with a frown.
"Who are you?" she asked.
"I'm the small part of Xander who likes you, the one who fucked you during the apocalypse deal, the one who felt devastated when you kicked me out of the room straight after," the second replied. This stunned Faith totally.
"The spell has split my personality into many different bits, it's why I'm losing so badly," the other Xander told her. "You'll find versions of me who love Buffy and Willow somewhere around here," he added. "But the main ones you'll find is him, and the huge part of me that loves Tara," he finished as he struggled to stand.
"What does this one represent?" Faith asked hesitantly.
"He loves you," Xander said turning away from her.
Faith was too stunned to say a damn thing to either Xander. She looked back to the second Xander who was watching her with great curiosity; Xander had loved her during that whole thing. She shook her head as confusion began to set it. This wasn't the time to get confused, Xander's life was in her hands and so was her own.
"Xander, how do we defeat the spell?" she asked trying to ignore how the second Xander watched her.
"We can't unless I can pull myself together; I mean I have to get the other Xander's to rejoin the whole. That way I can put all my focus in fighting the spell's affect and hopefully win the war which is raging inside me," he informed her.
"So how do we that?" she asked.
"I don't know, each want a different thing," he told her slowly walking toward her.
"It's simple," the second Xander said to both, they looked at him strangely.
"Go on?" Faith asked.
"Each wants a simple answer," the other told her.
"Answer to what question?" she asked stepping closer to him.
"For me the answer as to why he wouldn't allow my feelings for you to grow, and from you the answer to why you kicked me out of the motel room," he told her fiercely.
"The answer is easy for me, if I had allowed your feelings to take control I would've followed Faith into the dark and doomed our friends and the world to hell," the first Xander told his double hotly.
"You don't know that. If we had managed to show Faith a little caring, maybe she wouldn't have been corrupted by the mayor," the second told them both. "None of us really showed her anything, we were too busy telling her how great Buffy was and how she should be more like Buffy and things like that. We failed her first and you know it," he added.
"It was a mistake, but the past is done and nothing we can do will change it," the first said with a shake of his head.
"But at least now you admit the mistake and that fact that you loved Faith," the second told him with a satisfied smile.
"I shouldn't've denied it in the first place, but I had to so I could save my friends," the first said slowly before stepping back to allow Faith and his double some space. What she said was not for him to hear.
"Well Faith?" the second asked hopefully.
"I never allowed my feelings out. I leaned from experience they were a weakness I couldn't afford. I lost my parents just after I was called. It almost destroyed me; I lost my friends and then my watcher. When I came to Sunnydale, I was on the brink of self- destruction until I met all of you. Although I never showed it, I cared for you all as friends. But the fact that all you were so hung up on Buffy, hurt. No matter what I did, you all seemed not to notice it and that made it worse. Willow never trusted me, and Giles always disapproved of my methods. Buffy was okay for a while, but too uptight," Faith said slowly. "You did show me some more care than the rest; you tried to help when you could, you shared my hate of Angel and his relationship with Buffy. I saw something in you, but I didn't want to see it get stronger; it scared me. I tried to discourage it," she added glancing at the second Xander for a second before looking away. "The night we made love I wanted it to be more, but I got freaked afterward. That's why I kicked you out and, after I killed that guy and started my descent, I didn't want you to follow," she finished.
"Thank you," the second said with a smile. Faith looked back at him as he stepped forward and, before she could react, he kissed her hard. Once he released her, he walked over to where the first stood and held his hand out. The first grasped it and suddenly the second began to glow and then he vanished.
"That's one," the first said and to Faith he sounded stronger. She still was having a hard time believing what she had just witnessed and confessed. She tried to push these thoughts away for now.
"Where do we find the others?" she asked.
"The white Knight will be on the field trying to save the world by himself," the first said.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"It's what Angel called me when I loved Buffy, because I kept trying to save her no matter what," he told her. He walked over to her grabbed her hand and led her out of the room and suddenly they were on another battlefield. This one however was smaller and covered in Ash and in the middle stood a third Xander. This one wore gold armor and held a long sword. He had multiple cuts on his face and half of his armor was covered in black dents. Before him was a perfect replica of Angel and Angelus, both separate and both distinctive. Behind them were at least fifty vampires.
"I thought you said he was trying to fight this on his own?" Faith asked.
"He is, this part of my mind is how it views the spells attack," the first Xander explained.
"Well let's help," Faith said suddenly finding a short sword in her hand.
"We'll have to so we can find out what he wants," the first said with a cold smile. They rushed forward, swords raised; they jumped into the fray behind the two versions of Angel leaving them to the White knight version of Xander. Faith and the first Xander easily cut the vamps into pieces, losing themselves in the heat of the battle.
The third Xander smashed his sword into the version of Angelus before turning so quickly that the version of Angel couldn't even move and sliced him into two turning him into ash. Angelus rammed his own fist into the third Xander and knocked him on his ass, leaving him open for a deathblow. Faith and the third Xander watched as Angelus went to drive his foot into the third's face, but the white knight rolled away and jumped back to his feat. He rushed forward, driving his sword straight through Angelus and then he drove it upwards splitting the vampire in two. All three watched in satisfaction as the vamp turned to ash. The third then turned to Faith and the first Xander with a cold glare.
"What do you want?" he asked coldly.
"Don't take it seriously, he's mad at me" the first said.
"Damn right, you gave up on Buffy," the third said angrily.
"Had no choice but to move on, she didn't see us like that and she never will," the first said somewhat sadly.
"You turned your back on her," the third accused.
"I might have once or twice, but only because my anger at the way she treated me got the better of me," the first said.
"Answer me this, if she did fall for you now, what would you do?" the third asked stepping closer to them.
"I don't think I'd fall for her again, I love Tara, at least most of me does," the first told his double.
"Yet some of you still loves Faith, and Willow," the third shot back.
"And Buffy," the first admitted.
The third looked at him closely and then smiled; he then placed his sword on the back of his armor and held his hand out. The first grasped it and like before, the double glowed and then vanished. Faith watched as the first seemed to grow stronger and his stance became more deadly. She couldn't believe all she was leaning about Xander, everyone had thought he was a joker and yet inside he was very serious.
"Almost done; one left, and this one is going to be the hardest," the first said looking at Faith.
"Why?" she asked as once again the first Xander took her hand and led her away from the field.
"I never ever let my feelings for Willow out, I never told her I loved her and then I broke her heart twice once when she caught me kissing Cordelia and second when she found out me and you had slept together. I think that one was the most devastating for her," the first said very sadly.
"Why didn't you ever let me out?" a loud and very annoyed voice shouted from above them.
They looked up to find a fourth Xander standing above them, this one was a much younger version of Xander but the look on his face was very deadly and very angry. Faith never recalled seeing Xander looking so angry and for some reason it unnerved her
"I couldn't, it would have destroyed everything," the first said softly.
"How?" this fourth version of Xander demanded.
"Jessie loved her; he used Cordelia as his cover. He was going to tell her but he got killed I couldn't go behind his back, he was the only male friend I had, hell he was like a brother to me," the first shot back. "I held back for him. I know I hurt her by ignoring how she felt, but I didn't want to betray him. Then, when he died, for some reason I still couldn't tell her. Then the fluke happened and I thought at last we'd be together but it all went wrong and I still couldn't tell her the truth of my feelings," the first added.
"Why?" the other said jumping down toward them.
"I don't know, maybe I was scared; maybe it was the fact that part of me had fallen for Buffy. I just don't know," the first said. "No, that's not true; I know why," he said turning away. "I see Willow as my sister, the one person I can always trust, the one person I know will always be there," the first admitted. "She's everything I ever wanted to be, strong-willed, smart and loyal to a fault. For some reason, I failed in almost all of these aspects but still she holds me steady and keeps me on the path. She is the reason I fight so hard. If she died then I'd die," he said facing his double.
"And Tara?" a fifth version asked appearing next to Faith.
"She is my heart. I would do anything to save her even give my life for her," he answered with a confident smile.
"You'd do that for any of your friends," the fifth said.
"True, but for Tara I'd go that little bit extra. I'd push myself to the breaking point; I'd give my soul to save hers," the first said.
The fourth and fifth versions of Xander nodded and both held their hands put, the first smiled and took both hands and the doubles glowed and then vanished. The first Xander glowed too for a few minutes before it faded.
"It's done; I'm complete," the first said with a broad smile. Suddenly, they were back on the first battlefield, except this time they were surrounded by dozens of old style warriors. Faith even noticed doubles of Buffy and the others including her leading the charge.
"Ready?" Xander asked as he raised his own sword that glowed with a very bright and strong light.
"Yeah," Faith nodded raising her own sword and followed Xander as they charged into thousands of vampires which Xander's mind had used to represent the spell's affect.
The battle was short as Xander was at his best, his strength regained and his defenses repaired. The images of his friends swept left and fight and destroyed the vamps faster than the eye could see. Faith reveled in the battle as she helped her friend break the spell holding them here. Once it was done, both stood in the middle of the field, alone.
"It's done, I'm beginning to wake up," Xander told her. "Thanks Faith, I owe you my life," he said facing her.
"Glad I could help," she smiled at him, he bent down and quickly kissed her one last time before a white flash blinded them both.
Buffy almost jumped when Faith and Xander both jerked awake, both seemed tired and confused but they were awake.
"Giles, Rachel they're awake," she cried.
Everyone except the warriors from the order ran over to where Xander and Faith sat on the floor. Rachel and Jill seemed the most relieved to see them awake
"You did it, Faith," Giles exclaimed.
"Was there any doubt G-man, she's a slayer," Xander said standing up. He then helped Faith up as well.
"We know where Tara is being held," Gunn told them.
"Form up, we're going to rescue her," Xander said fiercely.
"But you just recovered from a dark spell, you can't rush off now into a fight," Wesley said.
"He has to do this Wes. Don't get in his way, we go now," Faith said knowing nothing would stop Xander from rescuing the girl he loved and she wasn't going to let him go alone.
"Very well; Spike, get the warriors from the order ready, we're going to rescue Tara," Giles nodded noticing the look in both Xander's and Faith's eyes letting him know nothing would convince then to stay.
Xander held a long sword as they headed to the factory where Tara was being held. They didn't know which vampire Valnon had resurrected to aid him, but, at the moment, he didn't care. All Xander cared about was saving Tara's life. Faith now understood him better than anyone ever had, including Willow. That was why she had agreed they should go now as Xander had said. She knew now what drove him to fight the darkness. Why he went so far to help his friends. Why he pushed himself so hard, and although she also now knew a part of him loved her, she also knew Tara was the girl who held his heart.
Spike and Angel were walking with the warriors from the order just to make sure none of them tried anything. Faith and Buffy were behind them brining up the rear. Giles was in the middle, along with Willow, Wesley, Gunn, Major Johnson and his team. Each of them looked somewhat nervous but otherwise intent on their mission. They quickly made it to the factory and made a quick check to make sure no one could see them. Xander looked at his watch and noticed it was two-thirty. They still had the advantage of the daylight. He looked at Giles and Wesley and knew they would come up with the best way to attack.
"Okay Giles, which way would be best?" Xander asked.
"We should split. You, Faith, Angel and three of the order should take the back. Buffy, Willow, Spike and four of the order should take the front and the rest of us should use the fire escape on the roof," Giles said as he removed his glasses and prepared for the fight ahead.
"Okay, be careful and don't take any unnecessary risks; we can't afford to loose anyone else," Wesley added. Everybody nodded and split up into their teams.
Xander led Faith, Angel and the three members from the order to the back of the building, making sure not to pass any windows. He could feel his heart beat faster as his anticipation increased. They had to be careful here, one mistake could cost Tara her life and maybe some of their own. As he reached the door, he looked back to where his team waited.
"Angel, you should go first to make sure it's clear and just in case they have any sort of device that detects humans," Xander said to the ensouled vampire.
"No problem," Angel replied. Although he felt some anger at Xander's tone, he knew Xander's mind was on something else so he didn't say anything else.
He slowly tested the door and was relived to find it not locked; he entered and quickly looked around but didn't see anyone guarding the back entrance. This confused him somewhat; nearly every vampire lord he knew kept some of his underlings on guard at every entrance point. He stuck his head out the door and motioned for the others to enter. Xander made a quick scan of the area and moved forward. Angel was surprised at the way Xander was moving and acting. He wondered just how far the memories of his ancestor affected the man and if they would vanish once this was over.
"Seems clear," he mused. "We're going to have to be very quiet. We'd better split up and go down different sides," he added.
"Why?" Angel asked.
"Because then there won't be that much of a chance that we'll be seen," Xander shot back. "You take the three guys from the order and go down the right side, me and Faith will take and left and stay behind the debris," Xander added as he turned and walked slowly away with Faith close behind. Angel stayed where he was for a few seconds before nodding to the warriors behind him and walked toward the right side, making sure to keep an eye out for any vampires.
Tara smiled when she felt Xander's presence wash over her; he was awake and very much alive. She also sensed something had happened to heal him completely. She no longer sensed any of the pain he usually carried. He had faced his pain she realized and now he was coming for her. The only thing that dampened her happiness was the fact that she also sensed Willow was with him. She suddenly noticed the Master enter the room she was kept in. He was smiling as he approached her, and she quickly hid any positive feelings she was showing, now she knew she was almost safe.
"The old one has ordered me to kill you now," the Master told her. She almost cried at the thought she would die with Xander so close to her. "But I won't yet; you have been very helpful in using your knowledge of Valnon to aid my plan. Although I know you do this to stay alive longer so your friends can rescue you," the Master added. "If they do find you, they will be killed and you will die after them," he finished before leaving the room.
Tara tried to keep her calm and not allow any fear to creep into her. She had complete confidence in Xander and the others to free her and destroy the Master again.
Faith was impressed at the way Xander was making his way though the burnt-out factory and the way he had split up his team to improve their chances of success. It was as if he was someone completely different. She knew he had the memories of his ancestor just like she had Buffy's ancestor's memories, but she hadn't been as affected by them as he had. He was acting almost like a solider and then she remembered what Buffy had told her about the Halloween incident and how he had basically become a solider. She wondered if somehow he still had the memories from that event, then she called upon what she had just learned about Xander and she knew that he would use anything to save his friends and the woman he loved so in the end it didn't really matter. She shook her head and cleared her thoughts as she followed Xander deeper into the factory. When he suddenly stopped, she peered over his shoulder to see why and froze instantly. Nearly twenty vampires were standing in the large room they were in. The only thing that made her feel relaxed was that these vampires didn't have any tattoo's or claws, which meant that they were not followers of Valnon. She looked across the room to where Angel and the three warriors from the order were crouched; each looked ready to rush into the room but she was glad they were holding back for now.
"Okay what's the plan, Xand?" she asked quietly.
"I'm going to throw a fire ball at them, but it will take a lot out of me. You'll have to stay close to me to kill any of the survivors," he answered giving her a quick glance.
"No problem," she nodded. She noticed Angel watching them and she knew he understood they were making the first move.
She watched as Xander closed his eyes and began chanting in what she believed was Latin; she then noticed a small ball of fire appear before him. She looked to the where the vampires stood but they hadn't noticed them yet, she pulled out a stake and the dagger she taken from Giles's weapon's locker and prepared herself for the fight ahead. The ball increased suddenly and then shot into the middle of the vamps, setting nine of them on fire which quickly disintegrated. Xander fell backward but she caught him and leaned him against the wall as the remaining vampires walked toward them just as Angel and the three Terakan warriors jumped out of their cover.
Angel slammed into the two leading vampires as the warriors behind him hit the three to the left. Faith made her way to the two on the right. He had guessed Xander would use his inherited powers to take care of the main group; he just hoped he recovered fast enough to help them. Xander pushed himself to his feet and looked to where Faith and the others were fighting the remaining vamps. It was obvious to him they were outnumbered. He raised his sword weakly and ran toward where Faith was somehow holding of three vampires by herself.
Xander raised his sword ignoring the way his arms felt weak and rammed it into the first of the vampires near Faith. It howled in agony as he jammed his sword forward even more and then pulled it back and swung hard decapitating it before it could react.
"Nice timing, Xand," Faith said with a smile as he jump kicked the second while throwing her dagger at the third which hit it squally in the chest
Xander moved forward and slammed his fist into the vampire's face and then brought his knee up into its wounded chest before pulling Faith's dagger out of it and thrusting it into the vamps head as he grabbed the vamp and twisted hard breaking its neck. He watched in satisfaction as it disintegrated. Faith used her stake to dust the second vamp but as she turned to help Angel and the three warriors from the order, she heard a loud groan and a grunt from behind her. She turned to find Xander slumped on the ground with a tall lanky vampire standing above him about to drive her dagger into his back. She felt a huge swirl of adrenalin rush through her and she tackled the vamp, knocking the dagger flying. They landed on the ground hard but Faith recovered fast as she staked the vamp before it could rise. She grabbed the dagger and rushed over to where Xander was weakly pushing himself to his feet.
"You okay?" she asked as she knelt at his side.
"Yeah, just winded. Go help Angel, I'll be there in a few minutes, he said with a smile. She nodded and reluctantly left him to help Angel.
Buffy ducked the wide swing from the Vampire she was currently fighting and dropped to a crouch and swept the vamps legs from under him. As the vamp fell on its back, she staked it quickly and then took a look around to see Willow and Spike finish off the two remaining vamps that had attacked them. They had lost one of the warriors from the order, but the other three were still standing.
"Which way?" Willow asked.
"This way I think," Buffy said hoping the others hadn't encountered this much trouble as she walked forward.
Giles shook his head as the warrior in front of him used his sword to behead the vamp that had jumped them along with seven others on the roof, they had almost broken through, but five more had shown up to help. Finally they had managed to kill most of them only loosing two of the Terakan warriors and Gunn had been badly wounded. Major Johnson and his men were securing the roof just in case they needed to escape through here.
"Gunn, you'd better stay here," he told Gunn as they approached the hatch that led into the factory.
"No problem," Gunn replied in a bitter tone.
"Let's go," Giles said to the others as he opened the hatch.
Faith landed next to Xander's knee. As she tried to push herself back to her feet, she felt a hand push her back down and Xander spoke.
"Stay down. Regain your strength, I'll help finish them off," he told her. She nodded as she watched him. As he stood, she noted he was still weak, but he seemed to be ignoring it; that impressed her greatly.
He rushed the vampire that had been fighting Angel and knocked it into the wall. Before he could strike again, one of the warriors slammed an axe into the vamp cutting it in half.
"Xander," he heard Angel shout out from behind. He turned just in time to block a vampire's thrust with a sword. He stepped backward and waited as the vamp tried another fast strike. Xander quickly blocked it then turned left and struck out, cutting the vamp in half from just below the neck; he smiled as it disintegrated. He looked around and noticed the remaining vamps had been killed. He was glad they hadn't lost any of the hired warriors. He walked over to Faith and helped her back to her feet. He handed her the sword the vamp had been using.
"Cool," she said as she tested its weight.
"Xander!" Tara's cry suddenly echoed through his head as if she had been standing right beside him.
"What?" Faith asked catching the way Xander's face turned grim.
"It's Tara, she's in trouble. We've gotta move now," he said as he turned and rushed forward, quickly forgetting the weakness he still felt in his legs. The danger Tara was still in overrode everything else in his mind. Faith and the others quickly followed him, not bothering to question how Xander knew where he was going and how he knew Tara was in deeper trouble.