Truth of the Matter

The Puppet Show

Author: White Werewolf <whitewerewolf81[at]yahoo.com>

Category: NB/SMG, B/A, B/S, B/X (First time in series to include this 'ship)

Rating: PG-13/R

Spoilers: "The Puppet Show," but all 7 seasons should be known.

Disclaimer: Buffy: the Vampire Slayer is owned by Whedon, Fox, UPN, and ME.

Summery: What Joss really thought of Xander and Nick Brendon

Special Thanks: Nobody. This was something I thought I'd continue.

This is the fifth fic of the Truth Series. The first one during "Welcome to the Hellmouth." This happens during "The Puppet Show"


Chapter 1

Xander sat with the dummy in the library, playing with it. Buffy, Willow, and Giles walked in and spotted Xander with the dummy.

Buffy looked at her friend, "Where did you get that?"

He grinned. "Oh, I, uh, took if out of Mrs. Jackson's cupboard. I thought you said you wanted to be able to speak to Morgan alone, and uh…well, Morgan's alone, and, uh…Sid's with me."

Buffy stated at Sid uncomfortably.

Xander began speaking on Sid's behalf, "Hi, Buffy! Hi Willow! Would you like hear some off-color jokes?"

She said, "I really don't think you should be doing that."

He looked hurt, "What? C'mon…" Using Sid's voice again, "I'm not real!"

Buffy looked wigged, "Xander, quit it!"

She started too walk out of the library when she turned around, "Actually, don't."

"Huh? Why?"

Buffy smiled seductively as she approached him, "Because I find puppeteers incredibly sexy."

"Cut!"

Sarah Michelle Gellar, Nicholas Brendon, Alyson Hannigan, and Anthony Stewart Head looked to see Joss Whedon running from the set.

"Why didn't anyone stop them?"

David Greenwalt said, "Well, this is the second time we're shooting this. And you let Nick give Xander the line, "Redrum. Redrum." So I thought I'd see where Nick and Sarah could go with their characters."

Joss said angrily, "The redrum was just some ad-libbing from Nick. I thought that was funny. I don't want Buffy and Xander to be together."

Sarah growled, "You said you'd give them a chance!"

Nick nodded, "Yeah, you did. I remember."

The creator shook his head, "That was before I met James Marsters!"

"Who?" The four actors who were on the set asked.

Joss smiled, "He's the perfect actor to play Spike. He's going to drive the teenager girls crazy."

"Not to mention you!" Sarah shouted. "Nick and I talked. We love our characters to be together, we talked to you, and you were on your way to see things develop. Then all of a sudden you find James Marsters!"

He said in his defense, "Think of it this way. We'll take a vampire bad ass. Make him a tough villain. Give him a history where he killed two slayers, give him a chip, then later a soul. And you'll get the most grown vampire within a five year stint."

Nick said, "You want a souled vampire, you got Angel. Oh, and the vampire wanting to become human again is nothing new. Look at Forever Knight."

Joss growled, "Where do you think I got the idea! Now will you two stick to the script. No more of trying to bring Buffy and Xander together."

Sarah said, "I'm not giving up on them, Joss. And you can't make me stop this. If you don't at least give Xander a good story, I'm going to walk."

"You do that, and I'll hire Kristy Swanson. She played Buffy in the movie."

Nick sighed, "Just please reconsider, Joss. Xander and Buffy would be perfect together. And to let you know, if Sarah didn't interrupt, I was going to do so and be able to stop Buffy's fear of ventriloquist dummies stop."

"Nick…" Sarah said.

"I wanted Buffy to overcome her fear."

She grinned, "Thank you."

"Actors…" Joss said to himself. Getting an idea, he turned to David Greenwalt. "Let's look into animation."

David sighed, "Can we get back to the show? We'll go back to the beginning of the scene where Buffy, Willow, and Giles walk into the library."

"Stop doing my job!" Joss screamed.

Nick smiled, "David does a better job anyway. He cares about Xander."

"Action!"

The End