The Awakening.

It was a dark night in Sunnydale, and more so for Xander Harris. He had just had to sit through a Scooby meeting where his heart wrenched at the site of Cordelia almost hanging all over Wesley.

* Flashback *

"Wesley, why don't you take the group and start looking?" Giles asked Wesley after making the plan to go to the Hall of Records to search for information on the Mayor.

Wesley nodded. "Right."

Cordelia popped up from her seat and practically shrieked, "I'm in Wesley's group!"

Giles sighed and replied, "There is just the one group."

Cordelia beamed, "Yes! And I am in it."

* End Flashback *

"I love when you talk, Wesley. I love when you sing, Wesley. Can you say the words jailbait, Wesley? Limey bastard. " Xander mumbled in a disgusted voice.

Suddenly he sees two figures walking towards him. He realizes that it's Faith and Angel. What other guy would wear that much hair gel and what girl would look that hot in leather.

"Hey guys!" He shouts looking at the odd duo. "Man, where you been? You gotta find Buffy. She's going to her place and stocking up on..."

Xander didn't even get to finish as he was interrupted by Angel's fist in his face. Xander fell limply to the ground, out cold.

Angelus calmly smiled at Faith and said, "That guy just bugs me."

Faith grinned at him but couldn't help taking a look back at her former lover.

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As Xander lay there on the garbage littered sidewalk, a barrier that had long been in place in the deep recesses of his mind began to glow. The purple wall had been placed there for many generations, waiting for the perfect host to accept its gifts and to bring back a species that had been dead for centuries.

Slowly a crack appeared in the barrier, then another. Soon, the wall was being pushed forward, due to an unseen force. Finally it crumbled to the floor, each shard vanishing into nothingness.

Left glowing behind the remains of the barrier were five, floating objects. The first was a deep blue, squared gem with a sword placed diagonally in the center. The next was also a square gem, green in color, with a grey kite shield within it. The final three were all spheres of varying colors. The first was a reddish-orange color with a flame burning within, the second was a cool blue globe with a revolving ice shard inside of it, and the final one was a dark blue globe with a red outline and a lightening bolt streaking in the center.

Slowly the three globes began to shudder and then suddenly burst into a multitude of lights.

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Xander's eyes snapped open and he shot up only to fall back down as nerve-racking pain spread throughout his body. He opened his clenched eyes, only to wish he hadn't as a bolt of purple lightning stuck him and enveloped him in a black sphere with the same lightning running across it.

The street light illuminating the sidewalk suddenly exploded in a blast of sparks and shards of glass as a stray bolt of lightning struck it. As the sphere of energy disappeared, all that could be seen were two glowing red eyes...

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Angel's Mansion

Buffy, Angelus, and Faith enter the mansion with Buffy in the lead. She turned to her companions. "Okay, let's get the books someplace safe. Where are they?"

Angelus smirked as he looked at the Slayer. "Actually, there's been a slight change in plan, Buff."

Buffy looked at him confused with a touch of fear mixed in as well, "Buff? You just called ... What's the matter with you?"

Faith stood back with a smile on her face. 'Might as well watch the show.'

"Nothing," Angelus said as he morphed to his more demonic face. "Matter of act, I haven't felt this good in a long time."

Buffy voice quivered with fear as she asked, "Angel?"

"You know, I never properly thanked you for sending me to hell." Angelus

"No." Buffy cried in disbelief.

"Yeah, and I'm just wondering where do I start? Card? Fruit basket? Evisceration?" Angelus laughed as he grabbed Buffy roughly by the arms.

"No," she cried.

"Yeah, I know what you're thinking," Angelus said, looking into Buffy's unbelieving eyes. "Maybe there's still some good deep down inside of me that remembers and loves you. If only you could reach me. Then again, we have reality."

Buffy broke out of his grasp and gazed at him with fury in her eyes. "I will kill you before I let you touch me." Turning to Faith she commanded, "Faith, we need to get out of here, now."

Faith smirked before replying, "Speak for yourself, B. Me, I like it here."

Behind her Buffy hears a growl and turns in time to see Angelus's fist as it crashes into her face.

Angelus smiled down at her before turning to Faith. "One thing I learned about Buffy, she's so cute when she's sleeping."

Before Faith could respond the front door was ripped off its hinges along with most of the wall. Crashing through the hole was a dragon.

It looked just like a stereotypical dragon that was described by storytellers. It stood at a height of seven feet, each foot was armed with three incredibly sharp talons, with another in the back. Each of the two wings on its backs extended to six feet in length and were tipped with a claw at the tip. It's long tail swished behind it looking like a whip ready to strike. It's weak looking paws seemed eager to rip and tear the flesh off it's victims. The scales covering it's body were a brownish-yellow color and its eyes were glowing an eerie red.

It suddenly opened its mouth to reveal the rows of teeth and let out a roar that left Angelus wishing for a stake.

"Rrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrooooooooooooooooooaaaaaaaaaaaaaarrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!!!!!!!!!

(A/N: please bear with me. I have no idea how to type in a dragon's roar. -_-)

"What the fuck!" Faith yelled as she ran over to the table set in a corner and grabbed her dagger from beneath the cover.

Angel, under the guise of Angelus, looked at the creature with fear. He began to back away as the beast followed, backing him into a corner. As soon as Angel's back touched the wall, he knew he was in trouble. Angel looked the dragon in the eye and thought, 'Might as well go for broke.' With all his vampiric strength behind him Angel delivered a haymaker into the reptile's chest...which did absolutely nothing to even bruise the heavily armored lizard.

The dragon's mouth opened and Angel could see what appeared to be a ball of lightning in the back of its throat.

"Oh crap." Angel said before the creatures jaw unhinged like a snake and the lightning breath shot for his face.

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Faith looked in amazement at the dragon as it prepared to vaporize Angelus's head off. She had seen what little damage the two-hundred plus year old master vampire had done to the thing and wasn't anxious to see what it could do to her.

'The Boss isn't gonna want Angelus dust before it's time. Better get my hot ass into this fight,' Faith thought before charging, dagger in hand, at the dragon.

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Buffy awoke with a splitting headache.

'I know I told him to act but did he have to do it so well?' she thought as she looked up. What she saw shocked her to the core. Her boyfriend was pinned against the wall by a dragon. It's paws were cutting into his shoulders and he was struggling to break free.

Buffy kick-flipped to stand and took off at a run.

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Angel watched as the lightning breath missed him completely and struck the wall beside him. He watched as the dragon turned lift it's wing to inspect the dagger that had been stabbed between it's shoulder blades. It's eyes slowly dimmed until they were more brown than red. It stumbled back before getting hit by two kicks from both Slayers.

"Angel! Are you okay?" Buffy asked falling to her knees beside her boyfriend. Angel looked over her shoulder to see Faith backing towards the door.

"You played me. You played me!" Faith shouted looking at the huddled duo and the fallen dragon. From behind her Faith watches as the rest of the Scoobies come in, Each armed with stakes and crosses and assorted weapons.

"Faith, it's over you can't win." Buffy says, as the Scoobies, minus Wesley, stand beside her. "The Mayor's Ascension will not work."

Faith almost laughs as she looks at the group. "Keep dreaming. No one can stop the Ascenscion. Mayor's got it wired, B. He built this town for demons to feed on and come

graduation day, he's getting paid. And I'll be sitting at his right hand. Assuming he has hands after the transformation. I'm not too clear on that part. And all your little lame ass friends are going to be kibbles'n'bits. Think about that while I get the hell outta here." Faith takes a flying leap out of Angel's window and takes off into the night.

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The Scoobies look at the fallen dragon with fear mixed with awe.

Buffy looks at Giles and asks, "So where did it come from?"

Giles wipes his glasses as he studies the creature. "I don't know Buffy, by all accounts, Dragon's should have died out centuries ago. However, this is not a normal dragon."

"What do you mean..." Willow began before the dragon began glowing in a bright white light. It's body seemed to shrink a it transformed back into thew human body of Xander Harris.

"That's what I mean Willow." Giles said even though he was just as amazed as the rest. 'The child is Brood! Incredible.'

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Library

Xander's eyes opened and immediately closed as a bright light was shined into his eyes. "Someone please get that fucking light out of my eyes."

"I'm afraid Mr. Harris that I need to continue my observation seeing as how your species should be extinct." A snobby British voice answered him.

'Ah crap, why did it have to be Wesley. Why not Pamela Anderson, or a naked Buffy?' "What the hell are you talking about Wusley?" Xander asked in an irritated voice as his words sunk in.

"Your in Mr. Giles's office and I would appreciate it if you would...Oomph." Wesley felt the wind leave him as Xander punched him in the groin. Xander couldn't help but hiss in pain.

"That's gotta hurt"

Xander left the office in time to catch a blue guy in robes disappear into thin air. "Whoa!"

The group turned to look at him with surprise.

"What?" Xander asked with suspicion.

Finally Willow got up and handed him a compact mirror. "Here." She said before stepping back.

Xander looked at her weird before checking his reflection in the small lens. What he saw was him except he had light blue hair and green eyes.

TO BE CONTINUED!

R&R soon.