'No one said this was going to be easy.' Xander thought to himself as he looked at the crater that was once Sunnydale. Everything that could have gone wrong had. Anya had died, Buffy was seriously wounded. But not only that.... Everything had changed. The first had won. Even if Xander was the only one that knew it.
"We won." Buffy announced as she stood infront of the group of kids looking at the large crater they had called home mere hours before.
"Hmmph.." Xander grunted and turned walking back toward the bus.
"Is he gonna be okay?" The potential known as Rona asked the rest of the scooby gang.
"He'll bounce back," Buffy stated without looking toward the new slayer.,"He always does."
"Something's not right B," Faith started while watching Xander retreat from the grueling sun into the oven they were using for transportation. The air conditioners on School Buses weren't the best in the world.," This doesn't feel like a win." Xander stopped walking, although he was over fifty feet away and by all normal standards shouldn't have heard Faiths' statement.
"That's because it's not!" He yelled back loudly but looked as though he had whispered the words. All eyes turned toward the carpenter.
"What are you talking about?" Buffy asked with a casual attitude." We won Xander. The first was stopped."
"So?" The male scooby asked as he walked forward with a steady grace.
"The first was stopped, did you even stop to think about the reprecussions of the win?" He asked while looking over everyone. Giles walked from the bus as Xander began to speak.
"We didn't win Buffy. We're not the good guys in this. At best we worked our asses off for a draw!"
"What's this *We* stuff Xand?" Buffy stated venomously but immediatly regreted her words... She didn't apologize.
"Fair enough," Xander stated nodding his head making sure everyone noticed the black eye patch he wore.," I didn't do my part for the team. I didn't stop any of this from happening. I didn't stand up to your stupid ass decisions until it was to late."
"Stupid?!" Buffy asked/screamed in rage.," What the hell is that supposed to mean?"
"Buffy," Xander said in a patient tone like one would talk to small child.," Did you even stop to think of how things got easier as the year went by?" Everyone looked at him skepticly.
"Think about it," Xander continued," The first Turokhan, you got your ass handed to you, but in the end all these *NEW* and *WEAKER* slayers could take down dozens. Caleb smacked all of us around like a ragdoll, you and Spike included, then you just all of a sudden kill him one on one?"
"I...I got stronger.." Buffy stated as a weak and droll answer. Xander shook his head.
"Have you heard the old saying about power?" Xander asked slipping into an almost Giles mode.
"I'm not corrupted." Buffy stated with a defiant tone.
"No Buffy, your not," Xander stated with a sigh," Your worse." Everyone looked at Xander as if telling him silently to explain.
"Power dements even more than it corrupts, lowering the guard of foresight and raising the haste of action"
"For those of us just getting outta the Pen, care to explain?"
"He means that because we're so powerful," Willow began finally beginning to understand.," We didn't see the consequences of our actions, we didn't think ahead far enough to see how the outcome could eventually make things worse."
"Exactly." Xander said with no expression on his face.
"Well," Buffy started not liking how the conversation was going.," If you thought so far ahead why didn't you say something? Why didn't you stop us?"
"Would you have even listened?" Xander asked in an almost defeated tone. Buffy and Willow simply looked at the ground.
"Thought not."
"What do you think of the outcome Xander?" Giles asked making his presence known. Xander sighed.
"One of two ways," He started while he looked toward all the new slayers that were gathered around him.," One, peace reigns for somewhere around fifty years.."
"Why fifty?" One of the slayers cut in then looked toward the ground in embarrassment.
"Because even if there are a thousand slayers now, there's only one out of that thousand that was chosen. Only one that will activate a new slayer at death." He stated as he looked directly into Faiths eyes.
"How do you know this?" Buffy asked causing Xander and Faith to break eye contact and the young man to look over at her.
"The first slayer told me. Sort of."
"Sort of?" Buffy asked but Xander simply ignored her going on.
"Or two, total hell on earth, caused by something worse then demons, human females with the hunger for more power. And I'm not making a woman scorned joke." Xander said with all seriousness.
"What do you propose we do Xander?" Giles asked walking up beside the young man.
"Hope for the best, prepare for the worst, and head for L.A."
"Angel?" Buffy asked with a curious voice.
"Yeah, Angel."
"Why? You hate Angel." Buffy said with even more curiousity.
"Cordy told me to."
"Cordelia?" Buffy, Willow, Giles, Dawn, and Faith asked at the same time in the same shocked tone. Instead of answering the young one eyed carpenter turned and walked back toward the bus.
"We're wasing daylight."
"We aren't going anywhere till we get an explanation." Buffy stated.
"Fine," Xander said without turning back.," I'll go alone." The young man kept walking as he passed the open door of the school bus. He didn't look back, and he didn't say a word as he boarded the same bus two miles up the road. The trip to L.A. was a silent one, filled with no words and lots of contemplation. Everyone on board knew that things would never be the same, they just didn't know it to the extent that Xander did.
"He's the one who see's." Dawn whispered as she sat in the seat beside her sister.
"What?" Buffy asked shocked.
"I told Xander that was his power, he's the one who see's." The bus again fell into a silence as Buffy began to think of things she'd never thought of in the last year. She began to think of her friends, and of the rest of the earth. Two rows up and a seat over Xander Harris smiled slightly.
"He's the one who see's." Buffy whispered to herself knowing it was the truth. She turned her head and looked out the window at the passing scenery. Soon they would be in L.A. soon they would find out the consequences of there actions, soon, very soon, they would make the appropriate corrections.
'Yes, I will' Xander thought to himself as he too turned his head and watched the scenery fly by.