<You have chosen a difficult path alongside the Slayer, It is full of hardships and trials, but I am sure that you can do what you want in your Heart. you can fight, you can protect the ones you care about yourself, and you can be the best and prove everyone wrong about you… all you need is the training, which I can provide>
Xander remained silent for along time pondering over what Girever had told him. It was over an hour later when he answered with a single word spoken aloud to the room.
"Yes"
The Harris household was peaceful in the early mornings, which the neighbours were thankful for after the late nights shouting matches between Mr. and Mrs. Harris. This morning, however, the peaceful tranquillity was broken by a small sound coming from the basement.
*click*
a pause for a few seconds then *click* *click* *click* in a swift combination.
<Your timing is off>
'Not by much'
<Even half a second can make the difference between a shallow cut and a major wound>
'sighSigh…let me guess, do it over again'
Xander didn't hear a reply but he got the feeling of a smug smile being sent his way as he was bent double trying to regain his breath.
He could already feel the gaps in Squall's memories from yesterday, they were already begin to fadefading, and if he wanted to keep any of them. So hehe had to practise to keep the memories he wanted.
Right now Griever was 'guiding' Xander through some of the Gunblade Kata's, more like torture in Xander's opinion, he had already done it three times this morning and his arm muscles were groaning in agony to keep the heavy weapon from falling on the floor.
<Do you wish to quit and prove everyone right about you…?>
To answer Xander Sslowly Xander straightened and rose the gunbladeGunblade up in front of him, ignoring his protesting muscles and started again.
*click*, *click*, *click*…
Xander rubbed his sore muscles as he trudged up the steps to Sunnydale High School and met both Buffy and Willow standing in the entrance of the school. "Ah, my two favourite Ladies, what a pleasure it is to bask in your beauty"
Willow blushed red as Buffy just rolled her eyes, "Cut the flattery, where were you yesterday mister" Buffy cried
"Here there and somewhere in-between" Xander replied with a grin "seriously though I just needed a day to get my head on straight"
Buffy nodded "Yeah I know, I had to spend all of yesterday trying not to answer everything my mum asked me in French, brightside though, thanks to Madam Summergate I can now pass French with ease"
"That's my Buff. Look on the bright side" Xander said "What about you Will's, what was it like being Casper the friendly ghost"
"Frustrating, I couldn't touch anything, and did you see what I had to run around in…I was so embarrassed"
"Yeah I did" Xander said in a faraway tone as he thought about how to answer the question that was sure to come next, that caused Willow to turn bright red and Buffy to give her a triumphant smile.
Seeing that Willow wouldn't be able to form anything apart from monosyllabic words Buffy added "And what about you…What was it like to be…err the guy with a weird sword thingy"
"First its called a Gunblade, and-" He was interrupted by the bell ringing "we best get going to *yawn* class, I'll tell you in the free period in the library, okay"
Giles had just finished talking about the spell that was cast last night, and checked Buffy knew her patrol route for tonight before he wandered into his office to 'do some filing', before anyone started to ask him question about how he knew Ethan.
"So Xan, who did you turn intoXander rubbed his sore muscles as he trudged up the steps to Sunnydale High School and met both Buffy and Willow standing in the entrence of the school. "Ah, my two favorite Ladies, what last night" Buffy said with a smile
"Squall Leonhart"
"And for those of us not in the know…?" Buffy asked
Willow started talking before Xander could continue "Squall is the hero of the computer game Final Fantasy 8, well he's not really a classic type of hero he's a mercenary trained since he was a young child, and has a drive to be the best focusing all his energy on training making him very serious, anti social and broody"
"You've been practising that having you"
Willow just nodded
"Wow Xander, you really got in the 'Come as your not' Halloween sprit" Buffy quipped "That's like the complete opposite of you"
"Yeah, I guess" Xander said with a smile and half shrug 'complete opposite, I wouldn't say that much, Like Griever said we've both got the same drive'
"So what do you get up to after you ran off last night"
'ran off?' "Well I tried to make sure no civilians got killed from the monsters, then I ran into Spike with some groupies, I beat up his groupies"
"How many" Willow asked wide-eyed
"Err…Five I think. Anyway Spike jumps me before I can heal myself and we start fighting, Squall thought he was Seifer, his rival" Xander added for Buffy's benefit "I won but Squall wouldn't kill his rival when he was unarmed"
"Anything else" asked Buffy in disbelief
"Yeah I think Spike was a bit annoyed with me beating him so he sent some more Vamps after me, I kept fighting them for a while, they almost got me. Squall was apprehensive about killing humans so they kept getting back up, I finally beat them and cured myself of my wounds when the spell ended, I quickly ran back home and rang you guys to find out what happened"
Buffy gave a small whistle "You was lucky that spell didn't end earlier then it did"
"Yeah Xander, if it had ended just a second earlier then you could have been killed"
"I suppose, but I didn't and I beat over ten Vamps" Xander said with a smug smile
"Yeah it was lucky you dressed like your complete opposite, huh" Buffy teased
'WHAT' his surprise at the put down must have shown on his face because Buffy quickly added "Oh come on Xander, like you could have survived against three Vampires, let alone over ten"
"She's right Xander"
Xander could practically hear the words that were not said "Because you're not the slayer, you're only human, worse, your only Xander…"
But Xander didn't let any of how these word affect him though he just hung his head and gave it a little shake 'maybe I cant do much now, but later…'
"I suppose your right…"
"Course I'm right" Buffy said "Now do you remember anything about this Squall character"
Xander slowly raised his head and stared out the window above their heads "Some" He said after a few seconds "The Squall I was possessed by was the same age as me, 17, so he didn't know much about magic or anything else, he hadn't got round to that part of training yet, just the theory part. But I do remember the rules of the Garden and SeeD, and how to use a Gunblade. Although were am it isn't like I can pick one of those up from someone's Garage sale"
"What is a Gunblabe anyhow"
"Simply like it sounds, a cross between a Sword and a Gun, when the trigger is pulled a pulse of energy is sent along the blade, increasing the destructive power immensely"
"Sounds dangerous"
"In untrained hands it is dangerous, in the hands of an expert…its Lethal"
"Ooookay, I think that you're starting to sound a little psycho about it"
"Sorry Buff, I'm channelling my inner Squall, he was nuts about the Gunblade"
"You can't remember anything else" Willow spoke up
"Nope…sorry"
"Ahh well, hey how do you two fancy coming round to mine tonight, watch a few vids, I could use a easy night after the fun that was Halloween" Buffy said
"Yeah sounds good, Xander?"
"Yeah I'm in as if I could say no too two beautiful ladies" Xander said "But I think I might have to head home early, I got a few things that I need to do"
"Okay, as long as I walk you home before I go on patrol" She saw Xander's mouth begin to open "No discussion Xander, after last night Spike will probably be after you"
"I'm afraid I'll have to agree with Buffy here, Xander you will probably be a target for Spike for what your possessed self did to him" Giles said startling them all
"Man, don't do that Giles, you almost gave me a Heart attack"
Xander would swear that Giles gave him a truly evil smile then, 'Giles… scary….nah', but it was gone before he added "Do you agree to not go out alone without Buffy, for a while at least"
'Am I some sort of child?!' "I guess you right"
"Good see you tonight"
"Hey Dawnie"
"Oh hey Xand" Dawn said dejectedly
"Hey what's a matter Dawn, did Buffy do something to wind you up again, God sometimes I wonder who the youngest sister is the way you two act" Xander said as he stepped into the Summer Home
Dawn smiled as he made the comment about Buffy as she said "Well it's not that, this time, it's…."
"What Dawn you can tell me"
"It's just do you know the money I got for my Birthday"
"Yeah you made out like a bandit"
Dawn smile faded as she continued "I spent it all last night on a bus ticket to Denver, mom found out when she had to pick me up from the bus station and flipped out, so now I'm broke and grounded…sigh"
"What, were you trying to Runway or something and why Denver…?"
"I don't know what I was trying to do, and I don't know why I choose Denver the only person I know in Denver is Grandma and I haven't seen her in five years" she lowered her head
Xander knelt down in front of her and lifted her head up to look her in the face "You were dressed as little Red Riding Hood weren't you" he said as if explained everything
"Yeah so?"
"So…don't worry about it, You wont be grounded for long, your mom's just worried about you trying to do a runaway, just give it a week or so and everything should be okay again"
"I suppose"
"XANDER"
"Gotta go, the princess call's"
"More like bellows"
"Heh yeah you got that right, see ya Dawnster"
Dawn watched him go, well more watched his butt, with a small smile on her face as she wandered in to the living room to watch TV.
Xander rushed up the stairs to Buffy's Room to find her and Willow sitting on the bed. "What took you so long?" Buffy asked as soon as she saw him
"Talking to Dawn"
"Oh, hey you know she's grounded last night"
"Yep, another casualty of the Halloween incident"
"It's just that mom going out tomorrow night and needs me to be the prison warden for the little squirt, but with patrol……." Buffy trailed off
"Say no more Mistress Buffy, me and Willow would be happy to help" Xander said as he bowed "Right Willow"
"Err…Sorry Xander, I've going to help research at the Library"
For the briefest of seconds a look of betrayal crossed his features before it was replaced by a lopsided smile "That's fine, I'm sure me and the Dawnster will have a blast"
"Thanks Xander"
"See ya Buffy, good luck on Patrol"
"See ya Xander" "Yeah Bye Xand"
Xander watched Buffy and Willow walk down the chatting to each other about different things until they walked out of sight. Only then did he close the door and walk slowly up to his room. 'I wonder if they respect me, they don't think I can be useful in this fight, God Buffy's using me as a Goddamn Baby-sitting service'
<Prove them wrong>
'How'
<Train, become better, the best>
'Should I have told them about you'
<that is up to you, but would they allow me in your mind, would they allow you to train>
Xander tried to come up with a response to defend his friends
"I… don't know" Xander finally said to the empty room, he walked over to the bed and removed the Gunblade from beneath it. He tilted the blade in his hand so he could see his reflection in the blade "But until I tell them about me…you, I'll train"
Xander sat on floor in the middle of his room with his eyes closed, his breathing slow and steady as he tried to clear his mind as he remembered doing thousands of times before but knowing that he had never done anything like this before in his life. The Posters on the wall gradually faded from view to leave a grey expanse, the only features was a small computer conceal that displayed a picture of Xander and globes of different coloured light that floated around aimlessly.
'Where am I?'
<This is your mind's representation of what you call junctioning >
Xander walked over to the console and started to press buttons randomly 'Hey this is just like the game'
<of course, Your mind has created an interface that is easy to understand and use> Griever paused before adding <it's very simplistic>
'whoa cool' Xander thought as he looked over the controls 'and Hey! Did you just call me dumb'
Griever remained silent
Xander just shrugged as he turned back to the controls 'Hey, this just tell me what I can junction magic to'
<So?>
'so…' Xander repeated 'Where's the magic to junction with'
<What do you think the floating globes of light are>
'Oh…of course' Xander said as he bowed his head slightly in shame, he reached up to make a grab at one of the globes that was floating close by, but just before his hand touched the globe swerved away from him.
Xander looked at in puzzlement for a moment before asking 'Is it supposed to do that'
<The magic knows that you are not its natural user, it is you that has stolen it away> Griever growled <you must force it under your minds control, Prove to be its master, be able to summon it to you within your own mind to be able to junction it>
'Sounds like a difficult way to cast spells'
Griever gave a roar of laughter <To cast spell as you said you must take the process one step further, Forcing the magic out of your body>
'And to get more magic' Xander asked with a feeling of doom
<You must be able to get into another person's body and pull the magic out with your mind, and then cast it, to store the magic you must force it into yourself, this is even more arduous>
'Just great' Xander muttered, 'its not just Difficult its Arduous'
<The most worthwhile things in this life regularly are>
Griever looked down on the person he had chosen to bond himself to on this plane, He did not have the advantages that Squall had had, He did not have a whole school which would help him reach beyond his potential gifted in the art of magic's. No AleXander only had a voice in his head that could only point him in the right direction. It wouldn't be surprised if Xander gave up on the magical side of thing and focused mainly on the physical aspect
Griever was broken from it's musings and it watched Xander hold out his hand and pull a sphere of Magic towards him with a look of utter concentration on his face.
It gave a smile, which would make most being run away in terror when worn on its face, when Xander snatched the Sphere out of the air.
"Hiya Dawnster"
"Xander" Dawn gave a happy shout before a frown crossed her features "What now I have to have three wardens?"
"Yes for you are the young criminal mastermind Dawn Summer who plans to take over the World" Xander teased her
Dawn picking up on her cue tried to give a diabolical laugh, which melted into giggles as she looked at Xander pretending to cower from her
"I hope not" Came Mrs. Summers reply as she walked out of the living room, she gave Dawn a kiss on the forehead before opening the door and turning to Xander "There's food in the fridge and a box of Twinkies on the table, Buffy and Willow are upstairs, and you young lady be good and stay inside okay"
"Yes mom" "Cya Mrs. Summers" answered her before she closed the door
As soon as the door shut Xander clapped his hand together and said "Twinkies" before running into the kitchen Dawn on his heels laughing at his antics.
Five minutes later Buffy and Willow entered the kitchen to find Xander and Dawn finishing a twinkie eating contest, Xander stuffed the last Twinkie into his mouth rose his hand and shouted what could have been 'Champion' but came out "Am - Hki - On"
Buffy turned round to Willow "Sometimes I wonder who the biggest kid is"
Willow hid her smile at their antics and nodded along to Buffy statement. Xander quickly swallowed his Twinkie "Hey, everyone knows I'm the biggest kid" Xander cried in indignation
Buffy just rolled her eyes and asked, "Is mom gone yet"
"Yeah she left a few minute ago"
"Cool, see yeah later Dawn, Xander"
"Huh were are you two off to?" Dawn asked in confusion
"Erm… Me and Willow have got a big test tomorrow that we need to study in the school library for" Buffy answered as Willow nodded her head beside her
"Oh…okay, well see you later then Buffy"
Buffy gave a quick shout of "bye" as she left with Willow beside her, their heads bent together in whispered conservation.
Dawn bent her head down slightly, avoiding Xander's eyes, and said "So did Princess Buffy dumb her duties on you hey Xan"
"What no" Xander stated venomously as he slowly reached under Dawn's chin, forcing her to look at him the eyes "Well kinda, I thought that we would all hang out together, but Buffy and Wills had other plans, I'm kinda mad they ditched me. But it's a small sacrifice to make to hang out with my favourite Dawnie"
"Really?"
"Really, Really"
Dawn just hugged him, "thanks" she whispered as she regrettably
"That's ok, come on, what do you want to do now…"
When Joyce Summers came home it was to find her youngest daughter curled up on the couch next to her eldest daughter best male friend, both fast asleep.
This part was mainly just to cover who Squall is and what Xander can now do, it's not gonna be a walk in the park after one Halloween incident.
The whole Dawn thing was just an idea so that Xander wouldn't tell the rest of the Scooby about his abilities, it kinda grew to be slightly bigger than I thought it would be. And no before anybody asks its not a XD fic, not that I don't like those fic, I do (read Wild Horses) but at the moment Dawns 12 or minus 3 depending on how you look at it and this is not that kind of fic