A/N: My twin from another mother had me wait till I wrote some more to update. Actually, I started this chapter the second I finished the last one. She. Forced. Me. ::twitch twitch:: Help. ::meep meep::
Crossed Paths Chapter Eleven:
Anticipation Mounting
The wind brushing through her hair as the top of the car went down, Buffy soaked in the Californian air, her cargo chatting lively next to and behind her. Now that her Pain-in-her-neck new guest was miles away, she felt free to be loose and happy. She didn't have to feel guarded against anyone. She hadn't felt this relieved since the Hellmouth was first destroyed two years ago.
"So, Buffy," Kagome began, wanting to include Buffy in the conversation, "When was the last time you saw your sister?"
Buffy winced, 'Ouch,' she thought. 'Ah well, I had it coming.'
"I haven't seen Dawn in five months. The last time we all went to L.A. to see her, she wanted to help teach at the Slayer Academy. Giles didn't mind watching over her for a while, but no way was I going to let her go all the way to England all by herself without a pressing situation. We had a big fight, and. . . . For the first three months, I tried to call and apologize, but she wouldn't answer. I stopped calling hoping that by giving her some space, she'd have some time to cool down. Let's hope she actually talks to me when we get there."
Kagome didn't let her smile falter. "I'm sure she's not mad at you anymore. From what I know, she won't it against you forever. She'll come around. You only wanted to protect her."
Buffy smiled despite herself. 'My, aren't we the optimistic one?' Her smile grew more hopeful as she passed the sign welcoming all to Los Angeles "Well, there's only one way to find out."
*****
". . . And here we have City Hall. We tried to make it nice and welcoming, but after Mayor Wilkins 'quit' the job, it was hard finding someone willing to take his place. At least we managed to find someone with brains and normality that wanted to 'correct the corruptness of Sunnydale' so much that he took the job without hassle."
Xander was taking his temporary "Tour Guide" responsibility pretty seriously. Decked out in full "Sunnydale Tour '09" gear, including t-shirt and visor, he zealously led the remains of the Inu-and-Sessho-Gangs throughout the town.
Sango couldn't take her eyes off Xander. For some reason, whenever she looked at him, something just didn't fit. Something was wrong here.
She leaned over to Miroku, who was for once keeping his hands to himself, genuinely interested in their new surroundings. She whispered in his ear, trying not the gain the object of her confusion's attention.
"Why is he wearing those odd dressings out here? Even the locals are giving him strange looks."
And, sure enough, the few Sunnydalians that returned to town early were staring at the Great Goofball of California.
Miroku chuckled to himself. "It seems he is merely overexcited to show everyone the accomplishments he helped fulfill. Willow told me earlier that not many people take him seriously because of his . . .well, comedic nature. Just let him have this one."
Sango shrugged. "Alright, I won't tell him if you won't."
"And, over here," Xander continued with a booming voice, "is Sunnydale High School. You guys would be surprised to know that in the past nine years, this school has been blown up and rebuilt three times! Hopefully, if the Hellmouth is really gone, we won't have to worry about shoveling out more money to rebuild it a third time."
Xander stopped so suddenly that Sango almost walked into his back. Fortunately, Miroku halted her progress in the knick of time by grabbing her by the waist and pulling her towards him. Seeing the vein starting to pop in her temple, he slowly backed away and raised his hands in surrender. Accepting his defeat, Sango turned back at Xander, tilting her head in confusion.
"Why the sudden stop, Xander. Is there something wrong?"
Xander shook himself to the present and composed himself again. "Nope," he came his carefree reply. "I thought I saw a guy trespassing on school property, but he was wearing a construction uniform. He was probably just going to see if everything was the way it was supposed to be."
With his suspicion obliterated, Xander all but skipped towards the Sunnydale Mall, their next stop on the tour. Sango and Miroku, however, where not so appeased. As they followed their hyper tour guide, they kept their eyes on the now mysterious high school building.