Xander glared at the little kid who had grabbed the last plastic M16 rifle in the shop. The boy hurried out the door, shooting nervous glances over his shoulder as if to see if the weirdo who glared at him would follow.
The male Scooby had no intention to do that though. It would do him no good and he had to admit, albeit reluctantly, that if he hadn't been looking around the shop for so long he could have grabbed the rifle before the kid did. He let out a sigh and started to look through the shop for something else that would go with his military fatigues. He couldn't afford any of the complete costumes, no matter how cool it would be dress up in one of them.
He could see Buffy fawning over some fancy 18th century gown that she was sure would impress Angel. Willow was nodding obediently at her side, supporting the blonde in her quest to impress the vampire.
Xander turned away in disgust and walked over to the bargain bin to find something he could afford.
There were a large assortment of swords and knives, covered with fake blood. A big knife might work if he pretended that he'd lost his rifle and had to rely completely on his combat knife. It wasn't that fun or original though and Xander wanted something that stood out a little. That thought caused him to pause for a few seconds while he reflected on how utterly unoriginal it would have had been to go with the rifle like he had intended. For a moment he considered going after the kid and thank him for saving him some embarrassment. It would probably be a bad idea though. The kid was already gone and on the off chance that he could find him again he was pretty sure that the sight of the guy who had glared daggers at him would make the kid scramble for cover. He sooo didn't need Stein and his cronies to nag him about stalking children.
Then he found the perfect addition to his costume, hidden behind a couple of large broadswords. It was a wicked looking two-bladed axe that looked like it could cut through anything despite being of plastic. Xander grinned as he mentally went through what he'd have to do to make the costume work. It was almost a shame that he'd have to cover the shiny blade with some dull colours to make it fit the costume. But you did what you had to do.
He did his best to ignore the creepy feeling he got of the shop owner as he paid the two dollars asked for the axe. Perhaps it was just something with the British food that made them weird. He'd have to ask Giles about that when the Watcher was in a good mood. It was probably not a good question to ask when the librarian had a bad day.
Xander absently adjusted some of the 'stuffing' he'd added to the costume to get the right muscular look. He'd picked up Buffy and Willow at the Summers' residence and they were just trying to line up the kids Snyder had decided they were to escort. Buffy had looked amazing in the gown; he couldn't deny that. It was just the reason for her wearing it that sucked. Willow had gone with her old and tried ghost costume despite Buffy's obvious efforts to convince the redhead to wear something different. Xander grinned as he watched his friends head off with their groups. He could have told Buffy that beforehand and saved her the trouble.
He let the grin fade away as he turned to face the kids who had all lined up as per his orders. "Listen up troops, on sleazing extra candy: tears are key. Tears will normally get you the double-bagger. You can also try the old 'you missed me' routine, but it's risky.
Only go there for chocolate. Understood?"
All the kids nodded as one, soaking up any advise that would get them more candy.
The grin returned to his face again as he added: "Of course if that doesn't work you can always wave a big axe around and try to look menacing." He made a few practice slashes with his weapon and watched the mischief playing in the eyes of the kids. This was going to be lots of fun.
"Harris!"
Xander cringed at the voice.
"Yes, sir?"
Snyder glared angrily at him. "You are a lost cause and everybody knows it. That doesn't mean that you are free to corrupt the kids,"
the troll growled. "Follow him but don't listen to what he says," he added to the kids who all had backed away at the sight of the Principal. "Now get moving and be back on time or you're going to find yourself with a month of detention!"
The group hurried away, all of them eager to put as much distance as possible between them and Snyder. "And that," Xander glanced over his shoulder to make sure they were out of hearing distance, "is the ultimate proof that school is evil." The kids glanced nervously in the direction of the Principal.
There was a bright flash of light and he suddenly found himself in a completely different place. He looked around, quickly scanning the area for any threats, his hands automatically going for his weapons. It looked like he'd lost most of them when whatever it was happened.
All he had left was his trusty old axe. It looked like he was in a small town back on Earth, or on a similar planet, again, but he had no idea how he'd got here. It wasn't the same feeling as when walking through a teleporter and he knew for sure that he hadn't done that.
A scream cut through the darkness and he reacted without thinking, running towards the sound. It had been so long since he'd seen another human being that he didn't really care if the person deserved to be saved from whatever the danger was. He just wanted to see a living, breathing human again. It wasn't long before he came up on a blonde girl dressed in a fancy gown that looked so out of date and out of place that it was ridiculous. Some creatures, that resembled humans but had faces that were completely disfigured, were attacking her, and instead of fighting back or running she just stood there screaming her lungs out. Letting out a sigh he adjusted the grip on his axe and jumped into the fray. It wasn't Ogres or Vores but he was pretty sure his axe would get the job done.
Xander dodged as another vampire came flying in his direction, his axe coming up over his head to neatly cleave the undead creature in two halves. It looked like the vampires wanted to make up for their inactivity during Halloween the night before, and it apparently suited Buffy just fine. The slayer had some issues to work out and she was furiously tearing into the vampires. Xander was pretty sure that she wanted to prove to herself that she had nothing in common with the 18th century lady she'd been last night. He could understand that.
He spun to the left and chopped the head of another vampire that got too close to him. Mostly he and Willow were trying to stay out of the way and stake the vampires that Buffy had crippled. If he wanted to he could have done a lot more of the fighting but he acknowledged Buffy's need for some violence and let her have the fun. Besides, it was not a bad sight to watch.
He dusted another vampire that landed in front of him and winced as the axe got caught in the ground in the middle of the dust pile that had been the vamp. He was still a not used to the extra strength and the weight of the axe - the axe that for some reason or another had stayed 'real' even after Ethan's spell was ended. He had just pulled it free from the ground when he felt someone else grab it and yank it from his grasp. Xander spun around and dodged out of the way as his own weapon was used against him. Unfortunately it brought him right in the grasp of another vampire that was just joining the battle.
Still a little off-balance from the close call with the axe he didn't manage to block the vampire who grabbed him in a chokehold.
Willow had just dusted her second vampire for the night when she saw the vampire grab Xander. She let out a yell and noticed out of the corner of her eye as Buffy quickly finished the vampire she was battling with and moved to help their friend.
She didn't make it.
Buffy had only got half the way when the vampire suddenly smiled and twisted Xander's neck around. The 'snap' of his neck breaking echoed through the cemetery.
Willow fell to her knees, the strength leaving her legs as she saw her eldest friend die right in front of her eyes. Buffy reacted on auto-pilot and tore the vampire to pieces, taking out the one who grabbed Xander's axe, at the same time. She stumbled over to the still body of her best male friend and fell to her knees, tears streaming down her cheeks. Absently she grabbed the small backpack that laid beside his body and clutched it to her chest, as if trying to pretend it was Xander she hugged.
"Noooooooo!!" Willow's heart searing wail cut through the night air, sending shivers down the spine of anyone who heard it.
In the library Giles was reading through one of his old journals, trying to figure out to where Ethan Rayne might have disappeared. If he could figure that out he could pass the information on to the Watchers Council and they could send people to handle the Chaos Mage.
The Watcher took a sip of tea and promptly spit it out, right over his journal, as Xander suddenly materialized in a sparkle of light, holding the same axe he had used with such skill the previous night.
Xander looked around, a little disoriented at first, and his eyes took in the familiar sight of the library. He let out a groan and shook his head sadly. "Figures the entrance to Hell would be the starting point."
"Xander? W-what a-are you doing here? A-and how did you get here?"
"Hey G-man, how's it hanging?"
"Do not call me that," Giles answered automatically, despite the shock he was in.
Xander's eyes widened and his lips twisted into a wicked grin.
"Hey, at least now we know what happens when you die!"
Giles managed to get out a: "What?" despite the situation.
Xander's grin widened. "You respawn."
"Huh?"