Anthony Giles Harris and Jessica Travers Harris (nee LaVelle) had lived in Sunnydale for three years keeping an eye on the Hell Mouth before stumbling across their Slayer, a young witch named Maria Castle from a mainly Sicilian background. The Harrises included Maria as family and not just as a Slayer, and never really were able to return home. With little Alex, nicknamed and sung to as Alessandro by the young Slayer, they enjoyed two full years of slowly touring the major cities of Europe clearing out small nests of undead left behind by two particularly troublesome vampires, Drusilla and William.
They were in just-arrived in New York when they decided to go out to dinner, having headed out to America again on immediate orders from the Council to search for an old vampire named Kakistos that had surfaced anew in the Northeastern United States in this January of 1983. They'd sent their possessions across the day before, and were walking by the docks when they heard a scuffle. They moved quickly around toward the Hudson-side of the warehouse, finding a mid-twenties street tough fighting off five vampires. Maria threw a fire spell into the midst of the vampires and charged in, twin stakes stabbing, vampires dusting and four large Polgaras, betting in the dark recesses of the warehouse exterior, noticed the humans with the Slayer, and becoming angry that their entertainment had been interrupted.
Anthony rushed in, coat-hidden short sword drawn, hoping to slow the demons and allow his family to escape.
"Run Jessica!" he cried, "Get Alex to safety! I love you!" as he wounded one and used the surprise to slice off an arm-spike from another. Maria fought hard, and her companion, surprised to have had his prize fight interrupted, knew his own life would be forfeit to the Polgaran bookies. He tapped into his own magic and began to fight back, but after burning three more vampires approaching the fight, he burned a Polgara before being thrown into a wall gasping for breath.
Ethan Rayne knew a Slayer and Watchers when he saw them, all that time with Ripper and the others had given him more than he'd ever wanted of them, but that nasty buried sense of balance and honor he'd kept hidden pushed him to remain conscious and try to help enough so they could all flee. Unfortunately, as got to his knees, Jessica Harris managed to burn a Polgara with magic as she ran toward Ethan's position and the escape beyond him, only to be skewered by a demon. Ethan caught the toddler as the mother fell to the ground dying, looking up to see Maria badly wounded and Anthony hurled into the wall near Ethan himself, not moving.
Maria was suffering from a concussion as two vampires and a Polgara remained to fight, surprised when Ethan's revolver fire striking the vampires, allowed her to quickly dust the undead. The Polgara knocked her into the wall between Anthony and Jessica, then slowly stalked toward Ethan as he fired the last of his rounds into its face. Maria picked up Anthony's sword, leapt in front of Ethan and exchanged mortal wounds with the demon. As it died, she slumped between her surrogate parents and watched as an also-dying Jessica addressed Ethan.
"Ethan Rayne?" the woman gasped in recognition, "They sent us here after Kakistos, you must protect Alex, Ethan, even if you hate Rupert now." She raised her hand to her pocket, and reached out with an amulet to her dying husband and Slayer-daughter. "The memory spell, Maria, for your little brother." Turning back to the troublesome chaos practitioner, "I know you better than Rupert, Ethan, I'm one who can see people. I don't know who sent us here, but Anthony suspects Kakistos was to be Maria's Cruciamentum on her birthday next week, and he doesn't trust the Council lately. You raise Alex away from them but teach him."
Maria placed the amulet on her little brother's forehead, as Jessica grabbed Anthony's still-warm hand in her own to touch the amulet. A light flashed and the baby quieted as three fighters for light themselves went dark. Ethan looked at the baby, and started to gather up effects to make it look like a robbery.
"Oh, damn," he sighed, "Maybe you'll be the rare Watcher to be have a sense of humor; gods know your lovely mother did."
Ethan Rayne's pinned down honor compelled him to disappear young Xander from the scopes of the Watchers and any demons in the know, dumping Anthony's body and that of Jessica into the Hudson so that if found Xander's would be believed lost.
The Trouble of Tottenham Court collected the Harris possessions, including a vintage automobile and a sizable library, and headed west to Sunnydale. Ethan had known Jessica but not Anthony really, and hadn't learned their middle names, but when he found out, the mage decided to raise him as an Anti-Watcher, what one should be with all of their skills and maybe preempt a slayer to get back at the old tweeds that stole his best friend away.
Taking over the three-year-vacant property proved easy, and assuming the identity of Anthony Harris, rented out the property while choosing to live in San Francisco for two years.
Life went well, Alex learning very quickly and gaining Ethan's approval and exhortations to greater achievement. Ethan suspected that some of the knowledge had been passed into the subconscious from the spell, but as the child hadn't suddenly spoken like an adult dismissed it as an unfortunate failure he'd have to compensate for himself.
Ethan opened an occult magic and book store, making a good living but contracting out on the side to profitably use his dark inclinations without risk to the boy.
He'd moved into an upscale enough neighborhood and had found an older woman willing to watch after Alex when Ethan himself was busy. "Gramms" Halliwell was a strict and upright woman who provided an excellent balance of nurture and discipline even if she wasn't properly British.
Ms. Halliwell senses the magical upbringing being foisted upon the young boy. Secretly and against her better judgment began regularly blessing him, and teaching him White Magic techniques to keep him as safe as possible from the corruption of Chaos and practitioner magic that Ethan favored. As she admitted to Alex one day, her granddaughters mustn't know about the witchcraft as she wanted them to have as normal lives as possible until they were old enough to decide for themselves.
"But why do you teach me, Gramms?" the four-year-old prodigy asked with big brown eyes boring lovingly into her own.
"Because, my little Alex, you've already been touched by magic, and not just by that you've been learning lately," she replied quietly and in reference to Ethan, "Is there anything you can tell me?"
"It's nothing bad, Gramms, but I'm not supposed to talk about it with anyone." The older woman could sense the truth behind his words and hoped he could discuss it with her someday; it seemed to be something between a memory spell and a geas.
"Okay, go play with the girls."
When kindergarten time came around and a Slayer begins a regular-enough presence in the Bay Area, Ethan and Xander moved back to Sunnydale, where he easily establishes friendships with kids named Willow, Jesse and Amy, but somehow with a better perspective than most kids his age even balances out a semi-friendship, barb-exchanging relationship with a young rich girl named Cordelia Chase since he dresses well and his remarks are better than others, less hurtful, going for the intellect rather than the emotion.
Time passes, with his after-dark time spent in learning and training as a mage, a Watcher, an assistant in the local occult and magic store and as the musical instrument player Ethan never found the time to pursue.
The summers saw Alex are spent with the future Charmed Ones, paid for by Ethan who makes up for school-year domesticity by concentrating his chaos trouble for summers. Whenever the girls are away, Gramms teaches white magic to Xander, who admits he doesn't care for his father's magic. They both pinky-swear to keep it from Ethan and especially the girls as she still doesn't want her kids drawn in, but she *must* help 'her honorary grandson.' She makes Xander promise to minimize his use of magic, and never use it unless necessary for others, and not to tell anyone she's teaching him.
In Sunnydale, Catherine Madison is discovered by Ethan, and in exchange for babysitting in the manner of Halliwell in the Bay Area, he teaches her some chaos as well as regular magic. This leads to Amy joining Xander, Jesse and Willow as a quartet instead of a trio. The small group survive the dormant-Hell Mouth years, especially as Xander and Amy are required to be in by nightfall.
By fourteen years of age, Xander is nearing Ripper, Ethan, and Gramms levels of magical skill in different flavors, and is in generally good shape, is 'fluent and literate' in American, English, Latin, Ancient Greek, Sumerian, French; can read Egyptian/hieroglyphs, norse runes and Italian and Spanish. Practical mathematics are sufficient to maintain the straight A average expected of him.
"You're better than they are, so at least humor me in this, Alexander," Ethan would tell the young boy, who grimaced at the word better, "You know what I mean, Alex; you have a better background and deeper learning in the *real* world, and your mother would have wanted it." That was almost always enough; the only time Ethan had come close to actually beating his young charge was when Alexander had given his word on something an was in the process of reneging, "Alexander, if you break your word, I'll beat you all the way back to England and bind your powers and beat you again. I have very few actual stricture, if you actually give your word, you keep; tell the truth unless it'll kill you or me because it's easier to remember, though try not to say anything is even better; the use power need not be used for too serious a purpose *once you've mastered it* but treat it absolutely seriously in the actual use of it so you don't yourself suffer stupidly and embarrassingly. And once you're eighteen, your loyalty once given stays that way until you declare it annulled. So, I'll help you with keeping your word this time, but give me *your word* that you won't use it frivolously."
"I will, my word."
"Excellent, Alex, now let's get to work."
May 1995, as school for the year was finishing up, Ethan learned from a seer that a Slayer will be called in the richer part of Los Angeles in early 1996 and would not be already in Council hands. He moves Alexander to LA and enrolls him in Hemery Junior High and enrolls him in him in four different martial arts classes. 'This will be good practice for his own slayer later,' he thought to himself, 'Hopefully we can poach this one before the tweed coats can get to her.'
After settling in and pre-registering Alexander for the upcoming school year, the two males head back to New York on some business, Ethan simply restocking their new place before deciding whether to go strictly mail-order rather than open another shop of the H&R (Harris and Rayne) business empire of the Sunnydale and San Francisco stores.
The trip was memorable, the first time in a while the two had really taken a vacation of sorts, even if business prompted it. Ethan had shown him the usual sights, adding his own commentary on each, and as they approached Times Square, they tripped over a bum, Ethan about to complain when he noticed seven vampires in bad suits closing in.
"Mister Rayne, a pleasure to see you again after all these years," the black vampire addressed him with a bit of nineteen-thirties style, "I'm sure the boss would love to meet ya, and your apprentice."
"I really have a pressing engagement, perhaps if you give him my regards, I'll phone him later to set up an appointment?"
"Funny you are, but I'm afraid not, Mister Rayne, so if the two of you will come with us?"
"Incendiere!" Ethan cried as Alex let out "Arsum!" in two spell variants to toast four of the vampires and send the others running for cover.
The bum suddenly threw himself at one of the vampires, pounding on it and managing to drive a piece of broken crate into its heart, then to Alex and Ethan, "Run!"
The three ran as the Kakistos vampires regrouped at the sudden reduction of numbers. Two blocks later, the indigent started to break away when he is stopped by an intent Ethan Rayne, who raises his hand and mutters a few words.
"Hold, vampire," the chaos mage intoned, using necromantic magic he'd learnt when he'd assessed the sheer numbers of vampires starting to gather in Sunnydale, "Why did you help us and what is your name?"
"I don't know?name's Angel," the vampire grated out, "Why do you care? I was leaving just now."
"Well, in spite of ?you have a soul!" the mage exclaimed as he cast several types of divination and aura-reading spells, "You're that Angelus that pissed off the gypsies aren't you?aren't you?"
"Y-yes-s?" Angel unwillingly admitted under the power of the mage, his barest survival on rats rendering him unable to resist at all.
"Well, if Kakistos and that Trickster of his are going to be after me, I need Alex safely escorted to California?you're elected. Let's go."
The vampire dejectedly followed the two for about half and hour when they walked behind a butcher's shop and Ethan pounded on the back door and purchased a gallon of fresh beef blood then ordered him to drink it. They waited another twenty minutes as the vampire turned away and gulped the red substance deeply but ashamedly, energy starting to return to the extremely gaunt features of the undead creature. Ethan began a spell and cast it as the vampire turned back to face them.
"Now, Angelus," Ethan command, "I place this geas upon you to protect and defend Alexander, to get him to his home in California alive and well, then at his use of the word 'Spartacus' you will be released from service." The vampire winced for an instant, then sighed.
"How am I to get him there?"
"He has money, buy an old car if necessary and drive at night, just do it, I need to spend whatever time is necessary to lead them away."
They'd headed back to the docks area, circling around Kakistos' pursuers.
"What are we doing?" the vampire asked, responsible for the boy but not in charge of him.
"We're going to have you ambush one or two of these guys to get a car and some money to get out of town in."
"You're kidding, right?"
"Come on, you're Mister Vampire Guy, you just need to thump 'em in the head and basically rob them before dusting them."
"You've done this before?"
"Once, last week, I was on the way home and saw a vamp go after a 7-11 clerk. I smack 'im in the head, the vamp, not the clerk, and paid for my slurpee and some junk food with what he had on him and pocketed the rest; I usually eat properly, but a Twinkie is a Twinkie."
Luckily, Angel had been able to simply slug the vamp waiting next to the car, and they were off, five hundred dollars to the good and it even had a ful tank of gas.
The next night found Angel and Alexander in Baltimore; the down and out vampire had a car in storage there from many years before, black of course with a very large trunk full of books and personal effects gathered over the years. They transferred what they had to Angel's vehicle, including an impressive array of guns and ammo from the other vehicle's false trunk, and started heading toward DC but foregoing the Interstate to first determine if they'd been followed. A couple of times, Angel had sworn he'd seen a VW bug driven by a dark-haired twenty-something gal, but eventually he'd assured himself it was coincidence.
Approaching three in the morning, they pulled into a convenience in a DC suburb to gas up and get to the other side of DC before finding lodging. A skittish girl came around the corner, a duffle over her arm, clearly a runaway; Angel felt the early sages of compassion but managed to fight it off. He had enough to brood about without adding more.
Xander came out of the store with a couple bags; the store had a better than average selection and it was probably best to minimize stops and just get home. The girl's stomach rumbled as she looked around the parking lot of the club next door, and the store itself as if looking for something.
"You okay?" Alexander asked the girl and grabbed a twin-pack from the bag, "You really shouldn't be out here at night, some drunk'll hurt you." He threw her the golden snacks, "Here, ya sound hungry, need a ride away from these guys coming toward us, at least to the corner, my?brother's car's at the pump."
The girl looked at the bikery mid-twenties guys with the Howie Long look approaching, overhearing one tell the other 'five by five' after making an obviously inappropriate remark about her, "Yeah?maybe the corner?or a coupla blocks, huh?" Xander nodded, and pointed at the Angelmobile with his chin.
They started walking, the guys starting to shift toward them a bit. Angel looked up and started to frown from the car and walked to meet the two teens.
"Hey Angel!" he called to his 'brother' loudly, then looked at a billboard across the street with a big church promotion on it, "*Faith* and I got the snacks, ready to roll?"
The bikers slowed and changed direction back to store as there fun would cost them a little much, especially when Angel nodded and swung his arm back toward the car a little impatiently, "Come on, Alex."
"Everything?five by five?Faith?" Xander smiled as he let the girl know he was aware of what had been avoided.
"Five by five?Lex," she smirked back.
Two weeks later, the trio pulled into Los Angeles, the vampire exhausted after playing straight-man for most of that time, and only toward the end starting to score the occasional verbal hit.
They'd left the biker situation behind and had gotten down the road a little ways when Angel, looked in the rear view mirror at 'Faith' and brought up the issue.
"So where can we drop you off?Faith?" the ensouled vampire asked, not expecting a real answer but hoping to lose the complication of a fourteen year old runaway.
"Where you guys heading?" she countered, starting to believe that since hey were asking her if they could drop her off, that they would when asked.
"Out West," the boy just a little older than herself answered.
"Cool."
"You have a place to go?" Xander asked quietly.
"Uh, sure?" she started, but saw the knowing look he was giving her, "?don't, my parents just died?"
"Foster home?" Angel asked, not comfortable with the direction this was taking as they neared the freeway. The girl shook her head.
"It's?not good for me to be there?"
""Hmm, "the young man she'd called Lex responded, looking intent for a moment, but not in a bad way, "How's California sound?"
"As the guy said, five by five," she returned with an uncertain look. Angel looked at Lex, who nodded back, and Angel got on the Interstate.
A two week of nights later, Angel is thinking of how he'd managed to fulfil his unwilling directive, but has come to not only not hate the teens, but can't believe he might actually miss the incessant chatter. The trip had been slower than expected, a couple of minor but time-consuming repairs turning the trip into a road vacation.
He'd been endlessly talked at until giving in to the occasional side trip, and looking back it was actually enjoyable. He'd seen the Grand Canyon from the shady side of the Village, San Xavier Mission in Tucson, Tombstone and the OK Corral, Roswell and its alien kitsch, the Alamo of all things?
"Hey, Boy?"
"Yeah, Girl?"
"Ya know what I remember?"
"What?"
"The Alamo?"
And before that they'd actually gone to Graceland in Memphis, stopped at Stone Mountain in Georgia, stopped at the occasional tourist trap if it was open in sun-shaded hours?in all looking back to DC, the best non-evil time of his life or unlife. And the fact that they were wearing cheap sombreros, and singing badly most of the trip when not talking movies, had frosted the cake so to speak. And as they had the money, he found himself pulling the car into Disneyland of all places as a result of a deal he'd made with back near Needles if they'd only take a nap or plain be quiet he'd take them there.
Angel didn't know what he'd do once they got to Ethan Rayne's place, as he didn't really expect the man to escape Kakistos' clutches for long; it might be better to turn to the teens over to CPS in spite of how they boy make him feel like a big-brother.
The trio were walking up a less-traveled path to the main gate when a very badly dressed man bumped into them. Angel looked around and saw that everyone around him was frozen into place.
"We don't have more than a minute to speak, so just listen. My name's Whistler, I work for the Powers That Be?not Angels but you get the idea."
He explains how something went wrong and the Harrises weren't supposed to head for NYC, and the whole Rayne thing, but that Angel and Xander's paths would have crossed later, and maybe the girl's as well."
"Ethan Rayne might survive his run around, but he won't be in touch for the next two or three years, though he and Alex will email each other and the boy for the most part will be running Rayne's business.
"Since I would have met up with you in less than a year to offer you a shot at redemption, you get the offer now. But you have to look over the kids until you and the kid woulda met."
"How'll I pay for things?"
"We can figure things out but I need an answer yesterday?"
"Okay?" Angel replies, then cries out in intense pain as Whistler places his hand on Angel's chest.
"What was that for?"
"It will anchor your soul so the demon can't come out and play again. It only lasts until you would've met, so after that you're back on your own. Then he can choose whatever destiny he would've had."
"Destiny and choice usually don't go together?"
"Somehow, he's like Lawrence of Arabia: He does his own writing."
"So what do I do?"
"I teach you to be a champion and you hopefully will teach everything you know so that the boy will make good choices. You can't tell him about this though. Here's a grand to get started, I'll contact you in a week or so to get started."
Things unfroze as though nothing had happened, the two youths laughing as they approached the gate. Somehow, in spite of the pain and responsibility, Angel felt a little of the weight lift and actually smiled a tiny bit as he reached in to pay the admission.
Jana of the Calderash felt confusion as she placed a tracking device under the bumper of the vampire's car; following Angelus to Disneyland was beyond surreal, especially as he accompanied to young people that seemed to know him. On a whim, she decided to follow them into the theme park, and tried to close the gap somewhat when she felt arcane magic pass over her, and other than a poorly dressed man say something to the vampire, nothing happened.
Jana, whose legal name was Jenny Calendar, had been rushed out of her life to spy on a vampire, her older predecessor unable to respond as flexibly after twenty relatively easy years on the job. Jenny, unfortunately, had just graduated college with her cousin, in business and computer science, had completed her initial studies in the basic magics of the Tribes, and was told her cousin would join her once Angelus settled down. Uncle Enjos was quite adamant about it, and handed her five thousand dollars and told her to go.
Now she watched as he played straight man and burdened big brother to a couple of insane kids, the make taking the long coat for himself while the girl placed a set of ears on the vampire's head, eliciting a half-grimace, half-smile. Later they added t-shirts and a stop at the caricaturist's, as well as rides, to their list before the park closed. She figured that very few of the younger people of her tribe could doubt that deep within, the demon was suffering and screaming at the indignity of it all, though the strangest part of the night, perhaps, was that as she left the park, she overheard two park employees speaking into tiny microphones on their uniforms.
"Yes, sir, the vampire *has* left, and we were finally get all three aura readers to agree?there seemed to be a soul in the individual, sealed in by strong magics?yes, sir, they think that's why he was able to pass through the barriers around the park?no, sir, he was no trouble at all, in fact, considering what he is, the control believe any demon inside would have been suffering?do you want us to alert mobile units to follow? No? What about the one following?uh-huh? No interference? Very well sir."
The employees turned and the young man that had been speaking actually winked at Jenny and gestured toward the park entrance.
Looking around, she hadn't noticed there were four large Disney characters near her up until that moment. 'No wonder nothing bad happens at the Magic Kingdom...these guys are ready for *anything.*'
The next couple of months passed uneventfully, Jenny watched Angelus and kept an eye out on the young people who seemed to have mutually adopted him. The young man with help from the others spent the time working out and opening a magic and occult book store, part of a small but increasingly reputed chain that surprised everyone with its quality, attention to detail and willingness to go into mail-order for non-volatile items. She still hadn't figured out how one so young was entrusted with that level of responsibility
Jenny herself had investigated a little, watching in fascination as the girl soon had a very tight and well-historied cover identity and was enrolled in school in the same year as the young man, while the vampire settled into a routine of playing 'front man' as the adult in the family unit, and spent a fair amount of time at a dojo next door with the weird little man from in from of Disneyland. She slowly noted as Angelus, 'no Liam as he'd been introduced, mustn't slip,' seemed to teach the boy to martial arts and to recover quickly from knock-downs.
Jenny managed to get a job across the street at Helen's kitchen, making her own name tag rather than be known as Anne or Betty. The kids and the vampire came in for maybe half their meals, usually in, but sometimes to go, and this allowed Jenny to establish a better ability to keep an eye on things until her cousin Diane finally showed up after stopping in Boston in late August. She'd watch the girl, Faith, pick up in assuredness over the weeks, and hoped this wasn't a twisted vampire thing that'd end up hurting the girl. It wasn't that the girl had had a rough background, but from what little Jenny'd picked up off the group, the girl had lost her parents and was just trying to do her best to get through to adulthood.
"Hey, Jenn!" the two teens called out on the Sunday morning before school would start, tumbling into a corner booth.
"Hey guys!" Jenny greeted the, genuinely happy to see her two young friends, "Two usuals each?"
"Yup," and "You betcha, big sis!" called back to her from Xander and Faith, the latter now Faith Angel. Seeing that it was extremely slow, she put in their order and signaled the boss she was sitting but still on the clock.
"So, ready for school?" she smiled, receiving two eye-rolls but noticed a glimpse of fear in Faith's.
""Should be just fine, "Faith said, "Just the new school, new *high*school jitters, though Lex here seems ready to become big man on campus?"
"Really?"
"Yeah!" Faith enthused, clearly adoring her 'cousin' and not letting him get a word in edgewise, "He's, like, already tried out for a bunch of the teams and made it! Though he still won't start playing electric guitar instead of that acoustic thing of his." Xander blushed and shook his head.
"My biggest fan?" he mock-complained, a sparkle in his large brown eyes, "But any way, school's looking to be cool, the classes from junior high are letting me coast in a few things, and the tests I took mean I don't have to worry about freshman requirements or language."
"What're you taking instead?" Jenny asked as she refilled the drinks and made a coffee-refill circuit around the pace, "I'm sure you don't get study hall for the day."
"Dare to dream?" Faith laughed, then slurped her morning milkshake as 'Lex' continued.
"Well, let's see?computer programming, algebra-trigonometry, biology and chemistry?thought I'd get them both out of the way, auto shop and wood shop."
"Shop classes? A young business man like you?"
"Hey, Liam might own the car, but already I think I know more about cars, and I've always been interested in woodwork, especially after fixing up the store."
"Ya know, Xander? I'm *not* prying, but how did some one your age luck out and get to become a store owner?" She wandered over to the counter and retrieved their food orders, cashiered for the other two tables in her area, then sat down again.
"My uncle actually owns them, and I've been working them since the beginning so it's no big deal, the real problem is going to be the retail side of things during the school year."
"Yeah, I know, I'm starting a new job teaching tomorrow, but that's entry level, and my cousin Diane's coming to town tonight so she'll be looking for work and I don't want her working here since she also got the same creds I do?"
"Oh?" the young man replied, "Does she have any book store or magic store experience?"
"No, but we both?dabbled with the New Age crowd in college, and have degrees in business and computer science?"
"Awesome, when does she get in? I have Liam covering, but he's so *not* the day person and even though he's willing to cover it, retail's not in his blood." Jenny smiled as she got what he and the snickering Faith believed to be the inside jokes.
"Around five? She might be a little jet-lagged, but I since I live in the neighborhood, I could bring her 'round seven? And if you decide to take your business onto the web, her and I both have done a few professional sites back east?"
"Sounds good?"
'Lex' Harris and Faith Angel walked into school looking like a million bucks, drawing only a few stares since most at this school were in upper-income families, but their energy and smiles turned a few heads. Lex was happy that he'd lucked into finding himself a *store manager* in Diane Calendar, and was impressed enough with Jenny during the get-together he gave her a three-month consultancy to set up the online and automation stuff, after which he'd decide whether it warranted bringing her onboard as full-time staff. This allowed him to keep Liam as the weekend escort to check on other stores until school required Liam to go it solo.
Classes went well, and lucky for Lex his uncle had gotten him in the habit of front-loading the days work so it'd be out of the way 'by the time you actually are ready for the day.' He'd received only a couple of emails from Ethan, and as a result simply transferred money into an account that the man could draw from pretty much anywhere in the world, and as the business was mature enough Xander easily continued operations.
Fourth period, with the really hard stuff out of the way and after checking out the cheerleaders, especially a really short cute one from afar, Xander with a just-arriving Faith coasted into computer programming class to find Jenny as the teacher.
"No way," Faith smiled, "This is where you're teaching, Big Sis?"
"Hey guys," she smiled back, "Cool, huh? Didn't really think about it until I checked the rosters this morning, but yeah."
"Awesome, teach, if I need help with the homework, I know where to find it," Faith smirked, her practice of her mother's general northeastern accent starting to finally take hold instinctively, "So between you and Brain-Boy, here, I'm fixin' to get at least Bs all the time."
"I'm sure you'll get As, Faith, just have a little confidence," the teacher said as class time started.
Xadner had gotten through most of the auto shop class before getting teamed up with one of the more advanced students, a guy who had the cool hair and dressed blue collar unlike most of the kids at school.
"Hey, Pike," the teen introduced himself, shaking hands, "Calluses on your hands, better watch that around some of these high-maintenance girls, that'll scare 'em off."
"Just fitting in enough, do the impression thing with the teachers and the less-snotty ones," Xander smiled, "And since I'm usually too busy to think about dating the rich cheerleader, I think I'll manage. Name's Lex, Pike, so what're we working on?"
"Well, I tend to work on classic cars when I can get my hands on 'em, all of two so far, and any type of bike, Honda or Harley, I just like to fix 'em, ya know?"
"Sounds good to me, man, so what's the deal?"
"Well, if parents, students or staff bring in their vehicles and pay for the parts and supplies, we take care of them, the first part of class is giving you the book work so the teacher'll be able to show it to the paper pushers, but your real grade comes from diving in and doing the work."
"So how'd you get ahead here?"
"Took shop here a couple summers, got held back one year, so I'm still a sophomore, but after I finish shop this year I'll get my GED and my mechanic certs."
"Just from school?"
"Nah, work at a shop, and I've been doing side work out at a truck stop, so I can work the rigs when I turn eighteen next December.
Who's the girl you came in with?"
"Cool, that's Faith, my cousin."
"Kissing?"
"Just getting' ta know her, folks died and she's out here with her big bro, who's like a step-uncle of mine or something?don't ask, math's easier."
"Sure man, let's get to work."
Faith couldn't believe it, a real holiday without Mom or Dad; lucklily as soon as she'd left the foster home she'd found another one, with a teen entrepreneur who with an esouled vampire fought the things that preyed in the night. Would she have lasted long? Maybe, maybe not, but Dana Tasker, now Faith Helen Angel, was thankful she wouldn't have to find out.
School had been great for the last few months, and as things came up, somehow it was handled and they got through it. Even though she'd lied about her age, being younger than they knew, she'd always excelled in school when she applied herself, and with the training she'd gotten with two intelligence agents in the family, was able to really focus on being the daughter she'd want to be for them had they lived. Uncle Spence and Uncle Gib might still be out there, but she'd only be a liability, professionally and personally if push came to shove, so here she'd decided to remain.
Liam was actually funny once you got by the whole vampire thing, and they'd had the caricatures framed and put on the mantle where anyone could see, and if anyone asked why he wasn't in the pictures?duh, who was taking the pictures. He really was like she'd imagined a big brother would be, maybe better since he didn't order her around but instead only expected her to think everything through once more if any of them asked her. 'Wow,' she thought with a bittersweet smile, 'That's even harder to duck around than Daddy on a rampage.' A small contained sniff, that had Lex looking up as he helped her set the table for later this afternoon, Liam crawling in for coffee before helping with meal preparations later.
"Hey, it'll be okay," Lex said, walking over to give her a reassuring hug, "It's okay to cry, and it's okay to remember, Faith, I'll never be one to tell you to forget, but know that even though it's different, you *do* have family and friends for you."
She smiled and laughed in embarrassment at the same time, glad to have someone who understood what it was like to lose one's parents, and a new family that somehow put itself together. The door opened, and Jenny and Diane led the new arrivals from San Francisco and Sunnydale into the house, carrying most of breakfast in with them.
Liam came up and handed Faith her morning cup of joe while lending a supportive hand on her shoulder.
"Here, 'baby sis,'" the former Scourge of Europe smiled at her, "double the coffee, half the water." She just nodded her thanks as Lex broke the hug to help greet the guests.
"Gramms! Girls!" Lex called out, then see his Sunnydale buds, "Wills! Jesse! Great to see everybody!" He quickly hugged the girls, twirling them around, Gramms gently, before exchanging mock-horror looks with Jess, who quickly did the manly-hug-pat-on-the-back routine.
Luggage was taken to rooms, the store occupying a double-space meant the equivalent of four apartments with a total of ten bedrooms upstairs.
"Wow, Xander," Willow and Prue both gushed, then laughed at Phoebe chimed in, "You and Ethan must be loaded or something to afford this!"
"Nah, just a lot of fixing up after we bought the taxes on the place and cleared out a few bums," Xander demurred, "But we're doing quite well now, so I figured these two apartments facing the street are for you San Francisco types, Jess and Wills are in this apartment: Liam, Faith and I stay in this one most of the time."
"What about the other one?" Piper asked, as it was opened and looked ready for guests.
"Just in case any other guests need to stay the night or somebody has the need to time-out, Pippy," he told her, winking at Gramms as he used the nickname.
"How many times have I asked you *not* to call me that, Alexander?" the young woman asked, rolling her eyes.
"Okay, okay, LS," he smirked, putting her bags in 'her' apartment next to Gramms.
"LS?" she asked with trepidation.
"Long-Stockings, oh future love interest," mock-sagely as he winked at Gramms and the others without Piper catching it.
"Love interest?" she gasped
"I know, Phoebe told me about your secret crush on me, and its cool by me," he smiled indulgently, then turned 'innocently' to the others including Angel, and made a funny face, "But I'm afraid as young s I am I'm married to the business, so we'll just have to have the occasional fling when I'm in town." He left the room with Gramms, others quickly following to settle in before they heard, "Phoebe!"
"You are a very bad young man, Alexander," Gramms chided, "Though very funny."
"I know, and with the girls there're just so many buttons to push."
"You know they'll get even, don't you?"
"Kinda countin' on it Gramms, it'll be just like when I'd stay with you and they started to date."
"Speaking of which, grandson? Have you started dating?"
"Nah, I have a good life, lot of commitments, I just don't get the date thing yet. Mostly I hang out with friends with shared interests, or go grab burgers with Faith."
"Tell me about Faith, Alexander, I don't remember another honorary family member."
"Her parent s died, she had trouble at the foster home they just whisked her off to without letting her grab more than a duffle, she was being approached by a biker gang when Liam and I rode in and saved the day. She's been with us ever since," he smiled in remembrance, and checked to make sure no one was overhearing, "She knows about the things in the night, and wants to be with us, she's family now, Gramms."
"And what're your feelings toward her, Alexander," she said as they reached the kitchen area, no one else taking control of it yet.
"Well, nothing romantic, though I could see it happening some day, right now it's a lot like the Girls, ya know, friends who are girls, though Faith has just enough tom-boy to be extra comfortable to be around, half-way between how I feel about Jess and Wills, ya know."
"Well I won't give you the talk, you know better, so I'll let the poor girl be free of my teasing for the moment, on two conditions."
"Um, okay?"
"First, the kitchen is mine today, and second, you're aware Mr. Angel is a vampire?with a soul? You'll need to explain that one as you've invited the girls here in the same premises."
"Okay it's like this?."
"So, Faith, you and the Xandman?" Jesse hinted, causing Willow to roll her eyes, but feel a slight twinge of the crush she'd had before it had changed to oblivious Jesse.
"Wha? No!" the dark-haired girl exclaimed, "Just buds, ya know."
"Come on, Jesse, let's get unpacked," Willow said, "You don't want to be late for breakfast."
"Whoa Wills! Don't scare me like that!" the boy said but scrambled anyway, moving his stuff to the other bedroom.
"Thanks Willow," Faith sighed, "Lex is just a good friend, not a boyfriend, ya know? It's nice to have one of those. So, you and Jesse dating?"
"No," the girl replied, blushing, "He doesn't see me that way."
"Shame, maybe he'll grow up, be like Lex."
"I think someone might have a crush on her 'good friend' huh?" Willow smiled, knowing the signs, however faint.
"Maybe at some point, but not yet, we're just getting into the whole friends and family thing, ya know? But?"
"Yeah, I know?"
"Hey Pike! Come on in!" Faith called out to the young mechanic in white t-shirt and full denim including vest, who looked like a young Luke Perry, "Games are on the sets in the back room if you want the sports, but the food's over with the womenfolk, your choice."
"Hey guys, thanks for havin' me over, brought a little something with me?" he smiled, holding up a brown paper bag.
"Back in the main kitchen, you remember the way, pard?"
"Shore do, Miss Faith," he play-mocked as he tipped an imaginary hat and moved toward the back of the building where there was the restaurant kitchen from when the place had been a snazzy Italian/Cheers-looking place with lots of wood. It was always weird in a good way to walk through the strange store and find a home in the back. His own was workable if less than ideal.
"Hey Pike!" Lex called out, "Gramms, this is one of my few male friends, a great guy and excellent mechanic, an honest one too. Pike, this is my Gramms."
"Ma'am," Pike politely greeted her, "I hope you don't mind, but I brought a few stray things I thought might make for either munchies or an interest set of salad toppings."
"Let's see what you have there, young man," Gramms smiled, then really smiled as she saw prosciutto, provolone, fresh romano, greek olives, and related items, "Mr. Pike, I dare say you've just promoted yourself to Salad Chef, if you'll head over to where Piper is, she'll tell you what you need to do, wherever did you find all this, it must be a hundred or so dollars?"
"I fixed up the delicatessen truck last night, and we traded labor at wholesale, so I thought I'd take it in food, so he doubled up on me."
"You must be very good indeed, and welcome to Thanksgiving."
"Go! Go! Ahhhh!" Faith grimaced later as the Redskins crashed and burned, then headed for the kitchen, asking Lex, "Hey guys, Lex? Want anything from the kitchen?"
"Just an update on the Pike-Piper food fest, and maybe a coke?"
"Me too, Faith," Phoebe called out, the only other football watcher as Prue, the Calendars and Wills had pinned down Angel when they'd found out he knew most of the dances from disco and before. Jesse had stayed as much to mock as to watch the girls move.
"Hey Jenn!" Faith called, "You guys need anything?"
"Nah, just remember, Liam's a dancer, not a singer?"
Later that evening, when the neighborhood quieted and the guests were for the most part heading out, Xander found Faith up on the deck they'd put together up on the roof from bits and pieces.
"Hey," he greeted her, handing her sweater to her, making her roll her eyes.
"Hey?thanks," she returned, smiling a little, thinking her Mom would be glad someone was mildly nagging at her, "Just catching the lights before heading in." Being on the 'fourth floor' in a neighborhood not exceeding to floors at best gave them an excellent tough admittedly limited view of the cityscape, the wealthy suburbs nearby and the poorer ungentrified LA of the thirties and forties around them.
"Know what you mean, figured I'd make sure you had a sweater, see how you were doing?"
"I'm fine, Lex," she smiled, her eyes smiling also even if tinged with tears, "And I love being part of Clan Alexander, it's what I imagine it would be like if I'd come from a family with lots of kids and cousins."
"I'll be heading out in a few minutes with Liam, you check the locks after us?" he asked, and smiled as she smiled and nodded, "Thanks Faith, g'night."
Xander was checking his email, finding one from Ethan marked urgent.
'Slayer called in your area, Alexander,' the note informed him, 'Apparently somewhere in your area, perhaps even your school, a cheerleader. A Watcher named Merrick has been assigned to her; check our customer records in case he's been in. If you decide not to pursue 'The Great Usurpation' I'll understand as I'd planned it for both of us.
Good news, I hope to have lost these infernal vampires in the next couple of months. I've noticed how well you've done with the business; I'm proud of you son. You may be young in years, but I'm proud of you. On a different note, I've talked to a few of my actually reputable contacts from my youth and will be setting up a branch store here in London, and will hire the manager and such, and shall send you the particulars later as you'll remain in overall charge.
Who'd've thought a son of mine would be the 'CEO' of a small multinational before leaving secondary education, eh?' Anyway, please let me know what I can do for you while this far away, Alex, and please be safe.'
'Hmm, a bit late to head out and look around tonight, giving Cassandra a ride home put me behind a bit,' he thought to himself, smiling that Ethan had expressed uncommon approval for his accomplishments.
"Hey, Liam," Faith greeted the vampire, "You see Lex recently?"
"Yeah, he's down in the basement working on something," Liam replied, "Anything I can help you with?"
"Nah, I just wanted to know if he was still going to the last game of the season tonight."
"Isn't it a bit late in the season?"
"Well the whole teacher's strike thing kinda put the games back a coupla weeks?and I'm feeling a little energetic."
"Homework done?"
"Huh? Yeah, I did all my papers and everything, should be able to coast the next coupla weeks, ya know"
"Good, and I think he's planning to go to the game, asked me to drop him off and pick him up, no problem for another?"
"Cool."
Xander, known to his friends in Los Angeles as Lex, had quietly searched out most of the reasonable locations for a Watcher, especially one using the name Merrick, but so far nothing came up.
Using some rather obscure Watchers spells learned from Ethan and his parents' books, he'd been able to determine that the recent Slayer was a Hemery student, which would mean she was probably a freshman or sophomore at his own high school. And after talking to Cassandra about general gossip, he had a guess that a cheerleader by the name of Buffy Summers, who he might have seen in glancing, was his best prospect. What he would do beyond locate her, he didn't know, but with Slayers being what they were, he wore his long trench coat with weapons just in case.
Faith had accompanied him, and on a whim he'd asked Liam to attend, telling him it was just a hunch., when at the end of the game he watched as Summers suddenly ran out onto the field just before the end of the game, chasing after someone who could very well turn out to be a vampire.
"Liam, get the car and follow me, Faith, go with Liam and stay in the car. You'll have the walkie-talkie in case I need something."
He ran after the cheerleader, it taking him a few precious minutes to race around the victorious crowd to nearly catch the Watcher as he moved down the street. The dark teen ducked into a dark spot and managed to don his balaclava and place a black tunic over his shirt just to throw off recognition more. Drawing his 45 and super-soaker with holy water, he paralleled the man he presumed to be Merrick, avoiding detection. Radioing Liam and Faith, he directed them to his location and made sure Faith had a soaker before he lead an equally disguised Liam toward the sound of an encounter just through some bushes.
Liam and Lex look each other in the eye, Lex gesturing to the older man's crossbow but moving out before he can be stopped, firing super-soaker at Lothos from a mere twenty feet away, causing him to jerk in pain as the to-him acid scorches his face. Dropped just as he was pulling the trigger, Merrick mispositioned his gun and managed to deeply graze his skull, falling unconscious.
"Ahhh!" screamed Lothos as he leapt back, taking a crossbow bolt in the shoulder instead of the heart as Lex began firing at him, causing considerable immediate damage. Lothos fled.
"Irish! Get the Limey to the hospital before Lothos can get back with reinforcements," Lex directed as he reloaded, I'll follow Pike to make sure he doesn't get killed."
Liam picked up the old wounded man and ran at vampire speed back toward the vehicle as Lex radioed 'Blondie' to be ready with the first adi kit.
After a moment, weapons drawn, Lex heads away, only to find Buffy Summers watching him from the trees, Pike coming up eventually.
"What have you done with Merrick?"
"He's being taken to a hospital for a bullet wound to the head."
"Who are you? And where's Lothos?"
"I'm the Sassenach, and Lothos is recovering from multiple gunshot wounds and a face of holy water," Lex replied, "I'll be seeing you later, Slayer."
Not a lot was going on at school the next day, though Buffy's odd behavior had not gone completely unnoticed. Lex worked the male side of the gossip machine while Faith looked into it from the other side of the gender aisle, and nothing 'vampire' related seemed to come up.
Pike, however, seemed to be among the living, and Mr. Merick had slipped into a coma but physically was out of danger.
Friday, December 8th, 1995
"Still going to this dance?" Liam asked his hunting apprentice, trying to make sure the youth had his priorities straight.
"Where would Angelus attack a known Slayer at a known location? Especially after you found out he's recruited Knox and his twenty bastards to help him out?"
"Just checking, I know she's pretty?"
"And if anyone's, she's Pike's okay? Right now, my mind is still on the mission."
The dance seemed nice enough, and it amused Lex to help Pike out with the tuxedo and all the while pretending to not have a clue about the wooden stakes quietly placed inside, even offering a ride and 'limousine service' afterwards if it'd help.
"Thanks anyways, guys, but even I can take it from here."
Watching their friend head in to what could become a problem situation, Liam turned to Lex, "Let's park the car here, and start our rounds?with this many we'll stay paired."
The next half-hour proved nerve-wracking but somehow they managed to roll-up eight of Knox's minions before the Dance was suddenly brought under attack, and Knox realized his 'boys' were missing and turned to deal with that threat instead.
Lex fired both soaker and 45 into a clump of five bloodsuckers as they sauntered around a corner, catching them by surprise as Liam fought three that had come from the other direction. The young man fired at lower levels, striking knees, femurs and groins to great painful effect as the holy water caught unprotected faces dead-on.
Running out of ammo, Lex took out his sharpened broom handle and was able to get all five before running out of water.
Liam kicked and dusted his second opponent as Lex screamed and charged from behind the third, who started and briefly turned, only realizing the mistake as Liam's stake ended his unlife.
"Thanks, but quieter next time," Liam cautioned as Lex reloaded the firearm, "I guess that combo slows 'em down but maybe some kind of wooden claw set on the back of your wrists might be better than the broomstick," he suggested as they ran back for the car, only to be cut off by Knox and his remaining four minions. The master vampire, not having seen Lex's recent success, waved three of his minions toward the boy as he and the other minion surged for Liam.
Lex fired automatically, rolling out of the way as two dusted from sheer neck and jaw trauma, and the final minion was knocking the gun aside. Evading the first blows, the young man was getting his short broomstick up to protect himself only to have it become two as the vampire struck forward. Remembering a trick he'd gotten away with once against Liam in sparring, Lex dropped back and forcibly kicked up into the jaw of the over-extended attacker, the full hit causing teeth to fly and the vampire to actually lose consciousness.
Liam had managed to roll to the side and stake the minion, but Knox was no pushover. Though distracted by the gunfire, it'd taken a moment to register that the boy had taken out three minions in ten seconds for only some real bruising on the forehead. Knox landed a punch to Liam's side, then a follow-up kick to the kidneys before noticing the young man nearly finished with reloading. The master vampire had had enough and ran around the alley corner and away form the school.
Liam winced and got up, then staked the unconscious vampire.
"I thought you were out of ammunition," Liam noted as the watched the end of Lothos from the window.
"Knox didn't know it, that's why I was loud and doing it under the light."
"Not bad, little brother, not bad."
In this universe, the Charmed Ones are younger by three years, even Paige if this story eventually includes her, though likely they'll do the Destiny Thing on schedule; it fits my story better and from what little I've garnered from web sites, the three years of age won't make too much difference to anyone.
For the time being if you don't catch the minor crossovers/cameos, I won't mention them?but I disclaim them as well. There's also one that refers very slightly to the work of a fanfic writer?and if he catches the reference, he needs to prove it's his by writing more?Otherwise it doesn't count as a minor tribute. :)
"Winter Break, here we come," Faith greeted freedom from school for a few weeks as her and Lex met up with Pike in the parking lot, "Gotta love it."
"Come on, Faith, we know you really love school," Pike chided her, "Just remember that doesn't make you any less hot."
"Thanks Pike," she replied, blushing, "I'm just glad I made it through semester finals, unlike the Letterman here."
"Hey, can I help it if I'm *good,*" Lex replied, pretending to dust the varsity letter on his jacket, "And besides, the way you're going, you'll make the squad or one of the girls' teams next year, maybe the martial arts team."
"Ya think?" Faith asked, "That'd be cool I guess."
"I've seen ya work out, Faith," Pike said as he drove them in one of his fix up cars, "You'll do quite well, and with your grades staying up, it might get you into college on scholarship."
"What if I don't want college? You're not."
"Hey, I'm a hands on guy with the cars, I'm not interested in designing them, so why go to college when I can buckle down and get my certs in a few years," the handsome grease-monkey rebutted, "But your grades are good enough that you should push high and hard until you narrow down a specialty."
"Is that what the Buffy Princess thinks?" she teased, causing the mechanic to blush, "And by the way, any word yet on the whole burning the gym thing?"
"Not yet, but I think even with her parent's money, Buffy'll be kicked out by the end of the semester."
"Yeah?and the way her *friends* blamed her for the whole mess, and the cowards who voted to sacrifice her to the vampires just want to forget it, it sure made the papers do the bad on her."
"Yeah," Lex agreed, "It made her look like she'd hung out with gangs or at least had pissed them off enough to make the school a target; if she gets kicked out she probably won't be accepted in any of the LA schools."
"Then what?" Pike asked.
"Home schooling, GED, boarding school out of state?" Faith listed, "Probably the last unless her parents get a clue."
"Well, her Mom has all of a sudden started to stay home a little more," Pike revealed, "And her Dad'd not been very supportive, won't budge on his career needs or the parties he goes to in order to advance himself to take the time to fight the school board. It was all he could do to quash charges being filed." Lex headed into the Uber Burger to pick up their usual order, after listening to a whiny New Yorker in the back of a car complaining how the always **** you at the drive through.
"That sucks, feel sorry for her, my parents were all career but I knew I was important."
"Yeah, Zeph and my Uncle Rory are the only two that come close to family since?"
"Benny?"
"Yeah, the, uh, gang members initiated him and he's gone now," Pike said.
"Uhm, you saying about an Uncle?"
"Yeah, Rory, he was born in England but came over when he was little, he works for a computer company up near Ventura, he has a lot of weird hobbies, like taxidermy, taking odd second jobs as janitors or street cleaners, drinks a lot but never fights when he's drunk."
"Yeah, it's kinda different, ever since his older brother died back in the eighties he just hasn't really hung around here or Sunnydale too much, usually does security work for some big three-letter corporation."
"Three-letter corporation?"
"Yeah, I know the name is three letters not IBM, but?"
"Gotcha, so how are things with you and Buffy?"
"Holdin' pattern, her Mom might be makin' some time for her but that doesn't mean goin' out with the grease monkey, so we're just pals I guess."
"Don't wanna fight the Mom?"
"Family's important, I know from what I don't have, though I'm cool. Buffy needs the chance to actually see her folks for a change, and the, uh, gang activity has dropped to nothing in the last couple of weeks."
"Gotcha."
"Thanks, man," Pike replied as Lex handed him a drink, "That does the job."
The pair of demon hunters carefully surveyed the situation, a few decrepit buildings in a neighborhood not on the upside of improvement, a vacant lot, and several vampires heading into it. The two hunters had been quietly eliminating the small independent nests, using radio tags to follow the vampires around to determine their 'family' or network, for close to three months. A hundred and twelve vampires, four fyarl demons and a polgara were their known toll, and they'd managed to directly use or cash out nearly four hundred thousand dollars from the undead and demonic, arranging half of it to pay off the last outside creditors of the business including the property improvements. Faith didn't know yet, but they'd quietly set her up a college fund, and had furnished all three homes (San Francisco, Sunnydale and the LA upstairs) as a result, not having to dig into the business revenues. They'd also 'repossessed' and cleared title on matching vehicles and such for each location. And with a bit of research and long discussions, Liam was now packing firearms, for which he had the paperwork, and they would test out different ammunition to see how it might soften up a nest of vampires when the younger partner's martial skills and test range practice indicted they could step up in the size of opposition. The gunfire on 'Slayer Night' had shown itself useful, but unless they could disable every one, they needed to really know what they were doing.
They watched as their targets stepped into the lot, Liam took out his 45 and fired a shot at each of the vampires, grounding two of them but winging the third which seemed to disappear into thin air.
"Careful, Sassenach," the balaclaved individual told his equally disguised partner, "He might be wearing some type of cloaking amulet."
The younger man carefully examined their surroundings, moving forward slowly as Liam knocked the two vampires unconscious and removed valuables.
"He's not here," Lex replied, looking and then pointing at the space in front of him, "Walk there, I'll follow."
The two stepped in, finding a doorway down some steps as a green demon talked to 'Raoul' to have somebody clean up the vampire dust.
"?some rude hunter or bookie thinks they can just dust a customer, can't they wait 'til he's on the way out of the club. Oh, hello," the green demon grimaced as he saw the two hunters, "I'll have you know there's a no violence spell on the club, so don't try anything you'll only rebound it on your selves." The demon looked at the two of them, then back to see that no one inside had noticed them yet, "If you want to remain anonymous in the club, you'll want to lose the masks, or you'll be followed out. It's neutral ground here."
They watched as the green guy turned and walked back, the guy cleaning up the dust of presumably the vampire Liam shot, finishing and also heading back in.
"I say we come back another time, maybe in different clothes," Lex told his partner, who nodded as they headed for home, "We have to take the girls malling tomorrow evening, and I still have to finish working on the Buick with Pike."
"Hey Lex," Diane greeted as she opened the shop, "Anything on the agenda today?"
"Nothing special, have the shopping done, but I finally got word back from Uncle Ethan, he's in London again for some reason, but sent back all of the paperwork signed in advance for the next year or so, so that's handy.
"Cool, always like to know the paycheck is there," she teased, having no fear on that point.
"That's for sure, Jenny back from the Bay and Sunnydale yet?"
"No, she's auditing early, so she'll be back this evening, anything I can help with?"
"No, just curious, and to see if you two are sure you're not heading to the Bay with us for Christmas with the Halliwells?"
"No, we have family coming into town, and they can be trying enough, but thanks."
"Sure, it'll be strange enough with just Faith along, Liam's going to be having some happy quiet time after giving up bachelorhood for these last few months."
"There they are!" Piper called as the two teens got off the plane, "Let's get their luggage and head back." She looked around to see that her sisters had instead run forward to hug the two arrivals.
"Hey, all! It's great to see you," Lex responded, returning the hugs enthusiastically, Faith warmly but with less enthusiasm.
"Now Xander," Phoebe said as she walked arm-in-arm with the male teen, "Piper was reminding me of a certain trick you pulled on us at Thanksgiving."
"You mean saying that you told me about Piper's crush?" he smiled as both Phoebe and Piper nodded. "Well that was just to cover for the feelings we've shared for so long, Pheebs," he replied, kissing her on the cheek and placing his ear to the top of her head as he side-hugged her, deadpanning, "Are you wanting to tell everybody about us already, Darling?"
"Wha-who? You?!" the girl gasped as she blushed deeply in being out-maneuvered by a professional, only to have everybody break out in laughs at her meeting her verbal Waterloo, "Xaaaaaander!"
The London weather was as cold as expected, and Ethan had just drawn out more money his son Alexander had transferred for him.
'Son, there's that thought again,' the Chaos mage pondered for a moment, "Who'd've considered *me* as a father type, though he calls me Uncle Ethan because I told him to.'
The man sighed as he walked down the street, remembering when with Rupert he'd get into trouble to royally piss off their Watcher relatives and anyone else who managed to get in their way. The man continued thinking about the life he'd carved out with Alexander these last twelve years, and decided it was nearing time to bite the proverbial bullet and perhaps talk to Father and the Family again, let them know he was almost respectable now except for the need to lead stray vampire mercenaries and the occasional bored human bounty hunter away from his charge.
'And it all started with Jessica, and my grandiose plans to become a Watcher in fact even without their blessing, to show them up with street smarts instead of book smarts, though Lord knows Ripper and I had both. I wonder where he is?maybe at the Museum?'
"So, you ever tell 'em, Gramms?" Lex asked as he shared a cup of tea while the girls watched a girlie movie in the other room, then fended off a look from her, "I'm asking so I know id I still need to be careful talking about things around here?"
"Do your friends know about your magical talent?"
"I don't think so, but I've come close to using it why out hunting vampires with Liam, but I've been able to maintain my shields," he replied seriously, "And again, I'm just checking, I'm not getting back into that conversation with you."
"Good, Alexander, but if your friends know about vampires?"
"Only Liam and Faith, Gramms, the others just think he and I are male bonding or girl watching or something, but nobody's really asked."
Dana watched the movie with the 'Three Ps' as she called them, remembering doing this with her Mom before the secret agent stuff came up with Dad, 'That was fun, I sure miss 'em, but I wouldn't have met Lex?' She chided herself, she knew there was a slight crush, but the last few months had been an adventure almost as intense as some of the stories her folks or Uncle Gib told her.
It was tough, but she was happy with her life, and wondered for only the dozenth time today how she could act a little freer than before, as if Xander giving her the name change had allowed her to decide who she was going to be; luckily Liam and the others were there to help provide her with the options she would have had at home, as well as whichever ones she could make without worrying about what others would think if the world came crashing down. It already had, so that worry wasn't the terror it could have been.
She looked up briefly toward the way to the kitchen, catching Lex give her an understanding nod and a smile before he disappeared to talk with Gramms.
The knock on Rupert's door came as a surprise to him; his father being off in Asia somewhere on Council business, he couldn't think of any cousins who might be aware enough of his whereabouts to make the effort. He was certainly not expecting the face looking back at him.
"Ethan?!" he declared in shock, "What the Devil are you doing here?"
"I find myself in a moral quandary, Ri-Rupert, and in all honesty you are the closest thing I have had as a friend in nearly fifteen years," the reticent and arrogant at the same time man responded, "I've been hovering on your bloody stoop for nearly an hour deciding on knocking on the stupid door."
Rupert Giles stepped back and with a sigh allowed his old friend and nemesis into the small but cozy flat.
"Tea?" he gestured to Ethan as the latter placed his hat, coat and scarf on hooks, "So to what do I owe the pleasure of your sudden visitation?"
"First, I'm not asking for money, or anything illegal, Rupert," the man sighed but kept his usual look of indifference on his face, Rupert however noting the eyes showed worry., "I'd like you to help me reestablish ties with my family the right way."
"After all these years?"
"I know, but you see, quite a ways back I set up a magic supply business in America, and took on the guardianship of a young boy, just *barely* getting beyond nappies," Ethan grimaced with some humor, "And everything was going along fine, my boy and I were opening our third shop, when we took a trip to New York." He paused, sipped tea while cogitating on his next selection of words.
"Anyway, I manage to get the boy to safety, but I've been eluding trouble I'd thought buried back in eighty-three for the last six or seven months, Rupert?"
"And the boy?"
"He's prospering, can you believe it?" the mage enthused somewhat proudly, eyes blazing even if the rest of him remained indifferent, "The bugger's taken our mostly mail order business, and has kept it growing, he sends *me* money, Ripper. A lad not yet seeing sixteen summers is supporting his old man by running a business?"
"And you haven't the foggiest notion how to feel?"
"Exactly, old boy."
"So what precisely do you want from me?"
"Make a few inquiries, let them know what I've just told you," the man quietly emphasized, "I want to establish ties for Alexander in the event something happens to me. I want him to be a Watcher some day." Giles nearly spewed tea hearing this.
"You what?!" Rupert gasped, shaking his head in disbelief, "*You* want a son of yours to be a Watcher."
"I know," Ethan sighed, "But I've taught him almost everything I know, languages, referencing, all the stuff you and I were able to do before?you know, and I've had others instruct him in the good stuff, even if they didn't realize I knew, natural-borns and practioners of the white magics."
"And the Chaos?"
"He's aware of it, and the mechanics, and to *never* use it without permission or a back-up."
"An American teenager?"
"With British discipline, and a real grasp of the basics, he already knows about vampires, and such, and his marks in school have been excellent."
"You really do have a son don't you?"
"Isn't it the most amazing mind-%^&* ever?" Ethan laughed, "He may not be of my blood, but?"
"Alright."
"Hmm."
"I'll make a few contacts, but no promises, Ethan?"
"Thank you, Rupert, here's a card with my e-mail account on it."
"Your what?"
"It's a computer thing, and the only safe way to contact me, for either of us."
"I'll have to get someone to help me with one of those infernal machines?"
"Just don't tell them who I am, alright?"
"Everything alright in there?" Gramms asked and received a warm nod, "So tell me again about a normal day in your life, we didn't get as much time alone to talk as I'd hoped over Thanksgiving, though it was interesting to here Prue go on about how well you were doing running the business and all, I think she's hoping to do something similar career-wise."
"I'm *not* going to bring up the magic, Gramms, but she'd have been ideal to become General Manager after she graduates, I'd really like to opne stores in Boston, New York and Chicago, maybe New Orleans and Miami, but I'm only one guy and I don't really want to leave school yet."
"I know, but back to you?"
"Okay, from about seven to seven I'm either being super student and athlete, or handling the General Manager duties, and still not burning out; I guess the still being *in* a store on a daily basis means keeping my hands busy and my mind aware of the details. I learn a few new moves now and again, then with Liam train the others so they'll be safer when they go out. I spend Saturdays practicing my magics so I keep at the top of my ability but don't rely on them, and integrate them with my other skills to be the best I can. I help out at the dojo next door four evenings a week as a hobby, trading whatever needs doing for more advanced lessons. Three nights a week, Faith's convinced me to take up the electrical guitar, so I've made her go in for lessons with me. On Sundays, the group except Liam, whoever's around, heads out for a day trip, beach, hiking, whatever, and I show Faith the acoustic classical guitar you've had me play since I was little."
"Do you play the piano any more?"
"Sometimes on Sundays, there's a shelter down the way that does the mission thing, and sometimes I'll fill in when their regular person isn't there, but other than that, not really? And four or five nights a week Liam and I sneak off and dust prune the surrounding neighborhoods to keep them safer. I guess that's it, busy, but I lucked out and my hobbies and studies seemed to overlap."
"I'm very happy for you, though I still worry?"
"I know, Gramms, Liam's a you-know-what, and Uncle Ethan's not around, but I'm doing fine. I'm half-way afraid of next summer; I'm not in denial but without school my situation might start to hit home, but we'll see."
"Alexander, remember you're only?" she started, then realized something that had been niggling at the back of her mind, "my god you're not even sixteen yet are you?"
"And I'm doing more than most men who are ten years older, Gramms? Remember, I *have* been responsible and in charge of eleven employees and three retail stores, raising Faith as well as myself, making my part of LA safe as half of the 'Neighborhood Watch,' rehumanizing a trapped soul, making sure Faith and I not only have good grades, but are already financially able to go to college even if everything else collapses, and have built a family structure that includes three adults, all of whom work for and with me, and one of whom's mine and Faith's computer programming teacher. Trust me, Gramms, I've even been in e-mail contact with Uncle Ethan for paperwork I can't get others to front. Hey, if I need help, I have you to call, right? I see you guys about every month for a day or so?"
"But you should have fun, enjoy your youth?"
"I am, actually, and most things I might be interested in aren't legal until I'm over eighteen or I've gone to college, Gramms, like learning to fly a plane, or hiking the divide from New Mexico to Alaska, or start a construction company to fix up neighborhoods like the ones near my current ones."
"It doesn't feel right now that I remember just how young you are."
"Gramms, let's change topics before we have our first real fight, I mean you still have three daughters to take care of, one just gradating college, one just out of high school and one still in her senior year. To take me on as well you'd have to take on the business and let them *know* about the real world."
"Alright, Alexander, we'll let it go, but since you're Mister Business Man I want you to put in one of those video phone links and you or Faith call me every day, you here?"
"Alright," Xander sighed, "That seems fair, I guess."
Liam came in around dawn to find Lex still hunched over the computer catching up with business; he felt it strange that one so young could be so driven, even after watching him for seven months.
"Working on anything in particular/" he asked as a miraculously early-rising Faith came in and started to pour herself some coffee and tossed over a mug for him to nuke his repast in the microwave.
"Yeah, it looks like Morales is going to sell out his pawn shop with the repossession business for the three hundred grand you discussed with him."
"I guess saving his kid and then talking to his bookie gave him a way out?"
"That and I told him I'd keep his kid in the business until done with college, just to keep the Morales name with the place."
"The kid seemed trustworthy, and he doesn't hang out with the neighborhood gangs at all."
"Yeah, I might move him in to replace his dad on desk duty, that way I know we'll keep the money where it belongs."
"What's the timeframe for the sale?"
"Tomorrow, six o'clock, here, you're the statutory agent, and his bookie gets paid a third while agreeing to cut Tony out of loans, the son gets a third put into the trust fund until he's gradated from college, and the Dad's legitimate debts get paid first, so Morales'll pocket about fifteen but be debt-free and no one's trying to kill him or his family."
"So we now have a front for most of your asset transfers, Lex?" Faith remarked, "Do you think we should see if Pike and his old man might want jobs? Father-son repo and ready again side of things if the cute younger Morales is going to be night clerk?"
"Cool, Faith!" Lex enthused, "I hadn't thought about Pike's old man; if we keep them together and busy he'll have less of a chance of backsliding on Pike for a while, maybe until after he graduates, and I think the guy's pretty good with the tool work himself."
"What about the business side during the day, Lex?" Liam brooded (but not a wasteful annoying cryptic brood), you're spreading yourself too thin already, and even I need to rest a bit."
"Maybe there's another Calendar cousin needing a job?" Faith mused, "They sound like they're from a big family."
"Good Faith," Liam nodded, "And maybe we could squeeze things a bit and buy out that Zeph guy? He could do fix-it on the vehicles that come in if we can get Pike to do repo work. Maybe we should see if any off-duty police officers want day work?"
"Playing with fire, Liam," Lex laughed, then frowned, "Or maybe retired cops that know the area, and it will help us legitimize what we're doing if it gets by them and we learn what as cops they look for."
"What if you go at it with the insurance guys or whatever either selling to you at quarter-price like we do the used books and stuff here, or something," Faith suggested as the coffee got her really going, remembering her parents talking about how they'd cycle things around and 'clean' assets for agency use.
"Whoa, Faith," Xander smiled, then turned to Liam, "I think somebody might end up as a real corporate financial officer after college.
More good ideas, I think we need to get you awake this early all the time."
"Don't even think it, pretty boy," the girl yawned, "I'm heading back for round two while the getting's good."
"Okay, Xander, I don't have a cousin, but I have a friend who just graduated and was talking about moving out here," Diane said as Jenny sprawled out on a couch nursing a coffee before opening the shop, "We told her what it was, and she said her Uncle Carl in Chicago had kidded her about retiring out here. So I gave them the particulars, and they're both flying out next Tuesday."
"So which one of them'll take the job?" the young man asked.
"Well, I'm proposing that Uncle Carl actually be the day guy," Diane replied, "And Carlotta should be brought on as the manager and dispatcher, there's enough money to cover it, and it'll build in flexibility until you and Liam figure out the business of the business."
"Cool, thanks guys," Lex said, getting a pleased nod from Liam, who had hated keeping accounts since he'd been human the first time on his father's estate.
"A question Jenn and I have thought," Diane broached, "if you don't mind answering it, is where are you getting the money for this and the shop in London that your Uncle Ethan's setting up?"
"Well Diane, a lot of money comes from taking advantage of Liam's night activities," Lex replied with seeming trepidation, "We've been running an unofficial bail business, but with bookies instead of the courts, and kinda act as credit arbitrators, so between both sides we've become Morales' main 'referral' for business the last coupla months." Everyone in the room nodded as they each understood he was passing on technical truth without revealing the vampire dusting parts, and not knowing *everybody* in the room actually knew the truth.
"So you managed to save up enough until you could cut out the middle man?" Jenny asked.
"Yeah, and we have folks in the shelters and neighborhoods on the look out for us, we pay a small cash finder's fee for anything we can reasonably salvage. And you'd be surprised at just how many family cars I've brought into the school auto shop without paying for labor."
"No one's noticed?"
"No one else's bringing in cars to work on, so no one's saying anything because it isn't an issue yet."
"Anything else?" Liam asked, then seeing gestures that there wasn't, "Then I think Lex and I are going to head out to a few contacts to check on business, then head to Sunnydale to check on the store there and see the kids."
Ethan Rayne waited quietly in the South Kensington Starbuck's. Rupert had actually sent an email letting him know that a second cousin of them both, and Sir Clarence Rayne, the current head of Ethan's family had agreed to meet where the rest of the family would be unlikely to espy them, the American coffee place at four. Ethan actually felt nervous; his 'son' had sent him the particulars of the recent acquisitions, and finally revealed how he'd been raising capital. 'Add four years and some serious rock music and he'd be the best of me an Ripper's crowd,' he smiled, 'And learning that Alexander had located Merrick's place and assumed creating identity by the Watcher to allay the fears of the Council. The boy had started sending 'that email due to a broken hand, as he could type with two fingers' and the old buggers had fallen for it. The copies to Ethan had impressed the troublemaker quite a bit, referring to a 'recovering slayer still able to attrition the undead' in the neighborhoods the boy and Angelus were clearing. And now the boy had learned of a particularly juicy target up in the Seattle area he was heading for next week, maybe enough to open another branch up there. He smiled at the picture of Alexander with a few chums, to hear a throat clearing.
"Well, Ethan, I'd expect you a little more attentive as you asked for this meeting," his Uncle Clarence emotionlessly remarked. Ethan stood up, gave a slight bow to the three, and gestured to seats.
"Uh, my apologies, sir, I was reflecting on the latest word from my boy Alexander in America," Ethan politely returned with a little apology in his voice, "He's doing quite well in his education, and is upholding our business interests while I'm in London."
"You never let us know you had a son, Ethan," the man reproved, the young woman with him grimacing slightly.
"Well I *was* told by my father and the Council to never contact them again while he lived, then cast out of the family."
"What you did wasn't easy to forgive, Ethan?" Clarence began, to have Ethan hold up a hand.
"And until I found out that the Council and the Giles' *had* forgiven my equally-guilty cohort Rupert, I kept my distance and made a life for myself. It's too late to make much in the way of amends, but I at least wish to see if the possibility of establishing family connections between Alexander and his cousins exists. I don't have to be invited to family gatherings, but I'd like to know if he can pass the entrance examinations, fairly, if the Raynes will help him into University and possibly if he proves himself, the Watchers, at least in America somewhere if not here at home."
"You don't ask for much do you?" the older Rayne responded, to have the younger woman place her hand on his wrist.
"He really isn't, Clarence, he's asking for Alexander, not for himself," Lara McConnell Croft quietly asserted, "And from the way you went on about him all the way here, the change in tactics after all this time should at least give it consideration."
"Lara, you'll never learn to hold a real grudge if you keep acting so infernally reasonable," the much older man sighed, then turned to Ethan, "Have him present himself after the current term is up, but that is all, Ethan, as I will not punish him due to Lara's intervention, but I still won't forgive you your brother's death in regards to the demon; you'd given me your word to protect him. Rupert will provide you with the contact information, and since Lara suggested leniency, she'll host him when he comes over and serve as that contact. Good day."
Rupert remained as the other two quickly departed, the young lady smiling encouragement, causing Ethan to query his former friend.
"Rupert, how old is cousin Lara these days?"
"Oh, hmm, twenty, why?"
"I was hoping younger, her willingness there to jump in for Alexander had me hoping she could serve as a slightly older peer for Alexander when he comes over."
"Urm, I'm sorry about Clarence, Ethan?"
"Don't be Rupert, this was for Alexander, and I'll take what little the man will give, for the boy's sake," Ethan sighed with only slight tiredness, "And I can only hope for the best."
January 4th, 1996
"Hey Pike!" Xander called out as his friend came in with his first official repossession, "How'd it go?"
"Okay, I guess?" the young man demurred, his mind elsewhere.
"Hey, where are you right now?" Xander asked wit concern, "Something go wrong?"
"Nah, it's Buffy's mom, she's forcing Buffy into counseling or something, I think Buffy slipped up and her mom thinks part of the gym fire was her fault after all."
"That really sucks, man, sorry to hear it."
"So Pike, they letting Buffy out of, you know?" Faith asked the young mechanic.
"Yeah, and she's on full probation the rest of the year, one mistake and she's out."
"That's rough, but at least she's not still in the 'happy house' right?"
"Yeah, but it's gonna be rough, her father's pretty much turning away from her, but is putting in the right appearances."
"That's not right?"
"Buffy's seeing *Tyler* again?" Faith asked Pike, "Why?"
"She's trying to be everything expected of her, even if it means fewer 'gang members' are dealt with," he replied, "And with her mom really making an effort for the first time in years?"
"Yeah, can't fight it, I hear ya?"
"So, what's Lex up to, I didn't see him today?"
"He had to fly up to San Francisco, the manager of the place was killed in a car wreck, so business calls. Luckily he doesn't have to miss a game, so school's cool with it."
"Bummer about why he's gone, so burgers again before I go to work?"
"Sounds good."
The young man was going through the books with Liam and Gramms, double-checking to make sure everything was in place, having paid their respects earlier that day to family of their manager. The 'P' sisters had the afternoon off and had forced their way over Gramms' objections into helping out, confused by the 'yuck' factor of some things, sold at the same place as New Age trinkets and assorted books. They'd proved moderately helpful, Piper keeping Phoebe from breaking things mainly. Prue had surprised them all by really digging into the inventory and doing a great job, ignoring everything except as it pertained to getting the job down.
"So do you have someone in mind to manage the store yet Alex?" Prue suddenly asked. The chime of the door rang, though they'd posted the 'Closed' sign.
"I was wondering that same thing," Ethan asked with small but friendly smirk, receiving appropriately friendly hugs from the girls, even 'Gramms' before exchanging an enthusiastic handshake and manly hug with Alexander. Liam held himself in the back of the shop, uncomfortable to be in the presence of Ethan Rayne once again.
"Well, my boy, my plane was delayed, so I didn't make the service, and shall have to fly out early tomorrow, but I wasn't going to let you face this alone," Ethan remarked seriously, then gave a smile that included everyone, "And I see I needn't have worried. So, have you finally talked your 'grandmother' here into taking the position yet?"
"I'm not really interested, Ethan, but thank you for the consideration?"
"I'll do it!" Prue interrupted, "A-and Piper and Phoebe'll work part-time for extra money if I need help." Ethan smiled, but cocked an eyebrow at both 'Gramms' and Alexander, nodding that it was *their* decision.
"I don't think so, dear," her grandmother said, "This business attracts a rather weird clientele."
"Gramms, I need a job, and starting as a retail manager would give me a boost," the young woman insisted, "And their online income has grown remarkably in only five months!" Alexander looked at both women, sighing, then turning to Ethan.
"Well, Unk," he said with an exaggerated headshake, "The ideal situation would be to have Gramms take on the store, so she can keep the weirdoes away, and I've been suggesting to you that I need a Retail Manager so I can keep up my *studies.*"
"Well, with that online stuff, on top of the mail order, I'm inclined to agree," he returned in an equal mock whisper, "But I won't let your Clan Alexander blow itself into little pieces by letting any one but 'Gramms' make *this* decision."
"See, Gramms!" Prue enthused, "I just handle the business side of things, and maybe help set up the Seattle store next month. Please!"
"Oh god, please just say yes so she'll stop," Phoebe whined lightly, rolling her eyes as Piper snickered in the corner, "And besides, this is San Francisco, weird is a trademark Prue's embraced."
"Hey!"
"And more importantly, when she's outta town it'll be quieter."
"Hey!"
"Fine," the older woman capitulated, receiving sympathetic smiles from Ethan and Alexander, "But we'll set the ground rules before we officially accept."
The three males had seen off the women after finishing take-out, gathering in the back of the now-quiet store, Liam somewhat reticently. Ethan had treated him well enough in front of the gals, but who knew what would happen now.
"I did some research after a few of Alexander's messages revealed what you'd been up to," the chaos mage began, cocking an appraising eyebrow at the vampire, "And I can see that your soul is more? anchored than before. That being the case, and as you've provided protection and support? thank you?Liam Angel." Liam let out a breath he hadn't realized he'd taken.
"It was my?pleasure," the former Angelus replied, then risked a gesture at Lex, "Even with the danger of pithy remarks gone astray."
"Hey!" the young man responded with a smile at his uncle, "It must be your inspiration, usually he's not this good at the zingers."
"Nevertheless, what I am about to say is for the demon in you in case it gets free, not for the soul of Liam with whom I am pleased," Ethan continued, "I am a Chaos Mage, demon, and if you take control, simply walk away and do your mischief somewhere else. If you cause trouble for this family or its friends, I *will* find you and make the Romany look like happy little fairies on greeting cards in comparison. I'll curse you with happy nauseating little warm and fuzzy feelings that make *me* sick and I *am* human." He smiled, straightened his jacket, and smiled, and offered his hand to the vampire, "There, that's done, my thanks Liam, and I've noticed you're not on the payroll, are you taking a share out of the, shall we say, capital line item?"
"Not a lot, I really don't *have* that many expenses," the vampire informed him, then smiled slightly, "And 'little brother' here keeps picking up strays and building his business empire to employ them?"
"Ah, I have noticed that his expansions already seem to have personnel ready at hand, doesn't he?" he nodded with a small head shake, "And while on the subject of family, Alexander, I've not quite sealed the rift with mine, but they've agreed to give you the once-over this summer, and possibly clear the way for you to attend Oxford when the time comes."
"Oxford, Uncle?father?" Xander asked, unsure of the situation, but appropriately expressing his emotional state, "Really?"
"Yes, but it will be your choice, one I hope you will make if the family doesn't quite take us, you, in as deserved, and at the very least you'll be taking examinations for credits that can favorably transfer to a lesser institution of your choice."
"Sounds fair, I guess, and by then I should be done with setting up the Seattle store."
"Why a store in Seattle? The vampire looting I understood from your post."
"Well, the only stores up there are these two places, an occult bookstore that also deals with rare and hard t find issues which we've occasionally cross-ordered from, and is run by distant cousins of ours, a Linda Pryce and her stepmother, Eleanor Harris-Pryce, who are wanting to be with some infirmed friends back in Boston. We can offer them a fair and clean deal, I believe, and perhaps set them up in a Boston branch as managers, hmm?"
"My god lad, that's brilliant!" Ethan enthused, then became slightly more reticent, "And you've researched the family a bit, eh?"
"I used a memory spell to recall Mother's words to you, 'You raise Alex from them, but teach him,' and that's good enough for me?Father, but you also taught me to be thorough and not let the tweed brigade learn who I am." The vampire placed a reassuring hand on the lad's shoulder, nodding in support.
"Thank you, my son," Ethan said, the chronic troublemaker choking on the oddity of normality in his life, "?.and you said there was a second business?"
"Oh, yes," he replied, his language improving with the return of his father-figure, "There's a magic store bordering a 'warehouse' district that is being 'gentrified' but younger professionals even though there's a surprising number of fairly low-key covens and others in the area. If I remember, there's either a gallery or a martial arts studio and bar nearby, nothing bad."
"So where exactly is it?"
"They're between a couple smaller cities up there, Cascade and Seacouver, and it would give us a convenient regional position for traditional retail-purchasers. I forwarded the particulars to your last e-mail location, as well as possibilities in Detroit and Toronto."
"Hmm, Toronto, maybe, but I think Chicago would be a better location if you're thinking about the region."
"Toronto," Liam contributed, "Has a quiet but active population that fringes if not actually interacts with the supernatural."
"Ah, after this Washington business, maybe we'll meet and open yet another site, but finding help you can trust?we'll see," Ethan nodded, appreciating lucre as much as a bit of trouble for the unchanging, "Oh, how is the side-line stuff you mentioned?"
"Going well," Lex added, "we're already running at a solid break-even without our 'extra acquisitions,' and we added a retired officer named?"
"..Lockley," Liam replied, "And so far he's giving us a solid reputation for trying *not* to get into any trouble, so the police are giving us a favorable eye and a little extra cover." Ethan nodded appreciatively, like a donut shop owner working the late shift with cops around.
"Excellent, in that case why don't we make the rounds of the town, and call it a night, shall we?"
"Oh, I have one add bit of news," Xander replied, "And we'll keep this to ourselves for now, but apparently a cousin of mine?ours? Any way, I go to school with him, his name's ?