Xander has set the sleeping Buffy in her bed, descending the stairs as Willow and Giles show up. They exchange stories of the night, Xander demonstrating that he is still very fast and strong.
Giles, "what do you remember of Angelus?"
Xander, "Everything, from Liam, Angelus, Angel, Angelus, Xander. I remember every death. I remember his love of Buffy. I remember being a vampire, so cold. And I wonder what's next?"
"That's an easy one, kid," interrupts a Brooklyn-accented voice,"The Powers want you to replace Angel as their champion."
Xander, Willow and Giles turned as one toward the kitchen, shocked at the intrusion as much as the words. Xander was up and across the room in an instant, picking up the short funny-smelling man and slamming him into the doorway as he noted the excellent fashion sense of candy-striped pants and a Hawaiian print shirt that matched one in his closet at home.
"Who are you and how did you get in here?" Xander demanded.
"The name's Whistler, kid, and I walked in the open backdoor," the balance demon replied, slightly flustered. "Like I was sayin'I'm here from the Powers That Be."
"W-Who are the Powers That Be?" Giles, asked, coming up behind Xander with a bit of "Ripper" slipping out, "and exactly what do you mean by 'replacing Angel as their champion?"
"If youse'd put me down…" the Balance demon continued hopefully, and with a nod from Giles, Xander lets the man down. Whistler takes a seat on the couch, regaining his cocky composure. "The Powers are, for example, the ones that determine who the next slayer is, send visions to seers, and generally try to keep things going without directly interferin' you with me so far?"
At their nods, he continues, "Anyhows, Angel was destined to be a major player down the road, and by helping you here he was being readied. Kinda like the minor leagues. Thanks to a certain chaos mage, the home team has an empty seat on the bench. The Powers want you t—"
"That's nice, Whistler," Xander interrupted, "but I'm starting to remember a few things about you and Dead-Boy. You're a balance demon, not a "good" demon. Why are *you* here? And since you're the one responsible for Brooding-Guy coming to town and being cryptic, why should I listen to *you* at all?"
"Because right now things are not out of balance, so I'm allowed run errands for the good guys…like an umpire from the home town team…I might not like some of the calls I make, but I can still hope. Also, if you remember from Angel's memories, I was like his Watcher before he came to Sunnydale, providing support and training."
"S-so that's what you're offering young Mr. Harris, I presume?" Giles asked, seeking clarification on the main topic.
"Essentially, yes," Whistler confirmed, "plus he'll keep his new abilities and skills as part of the bargain."
"A-and those would be?" Giles pressed.
"The hyena and vampire strengths, senses, speed, healing, fighting skills, stealth, memories and such," Whistler started listing.
"You call two hundred years of blood-sucking memories and murder a plus?" Xander interrupted incredulously. "Are you out of YOUR FRICKIN MIND?! WHY?! Why would I want that? And since the *Powers* didn't give me any of this and didn't see it coming, why should I take you seriously? Seems to me all I need is a few spell books and a caster… G-Man—"
"Don't call me that"
"--caan provide the training and watchin. And I wouldn't go a-braggin' a-boot the Slayer thing 'round here. Buffy was never asked ta' be a Vampire Slayer riskin' 'er life fer Powers That Didn't Ask, so if we're going to talk in baseball terms, I'm a free agent. So there!"
"X-Xander," Willow asked, stepping back from her friend,"why are you speaking that way?"
"What way Wills?"
"Kinda Irishy?"
"It must be the Liam and Angelus memories," Xander contemplated aloud. "They had serious problems with anyone wanting them to do something. Even lazier than Angel." Xander felt a hand on his shoulder as Giles indicated he should return his attention to the balance demon currently carrying out a whispered conversation with the ceiling.
"Well kid," Whistler approached, "What do you want? And don't be too greedy, the Powers assist, don't intervene, remember?"
"Xander," Giles said, precluding a response from Xander, "do you think you should rush into anything?"
"Giles, I trust you and Will to watch out for me, and later I might wuss out and do something really stupid," the young man asserted. Then turning to the demon, "does the deal really come with the vampire healing and live forever thing? Do I have that demon face thing?"
"Since you're human, as long as you don't have major organs wasted, you'll recover about half as fast as a vampire, you'll not age, you're immune to most diseases and such, poisons that don't wipe out organs will only keep damaging until they pass outof the body, which will keep healing until then. No cancer or such. No demon face, you're not demonic. Well?"
"How much does the job pay?"
"Nothin'"
"Cool weapons? Guns with infinite bullets? Actual information from the Powers instead of fragments like Dead-Boy? Eidetic memory? Money? Cast out possessors? Freedom from my parents? Immunity to magic? Money?"
"No. No. They're thinking about giving you a seer after you finish some training with me, no, no, only from the living, the court papers will issued Monday morning, maybe an amulet. No."
"I don't seem to be getting much of a sign-on bonus, here. And I already have most of it. Well, if you come up with a *human* seer, Giles'll handle the training, I want the slayer weapon and fighting knowledge, I want to be 21 not 16 looking, and to be very buff. Wills, G-Man, how'm I doing so far?"
"W-well, actually, s-surprisingly well," Giles replied,astonished at the young man's acumen, "Though you might not be too rude to these, err, Powers." Willow broke in with "it's all those D&D games he played, Giles, wrangling with Jesse or Jonathon over every little character thing."
"Well, kid, you'll need blood for each major healing of yourself to replenish what you're burning off, we only have a half-human for the seer, no slayerness, sure and just this once."
Xander looked at those gathered around, then turned to Whistler. "Never mind. Your bosses want everything and give nothing. Tell you what, they want a friend, fine. I already chose this fight. They can go find a *chumpion* for the home team. No demon seers. If they want to give me 'friendship gifts' it might put me in a better mood when they ask for something. Consider it a free poke in the eye of any Bad Guys That Be since I won't count against the rookie draft limits. Oh, and let's drop the baseball analogy."
The four of them stood looking at each other, all shocked that he'd actually said 'No' to the championship, and that he'd used the word analogy appropriately. After a few minutes of silently waiting for a response from the Powers, Buffy came down from the top of the stairs where she'd heard most of the discussion, her face still showing tear streaks and red-eyes. It was at this time that Whistler, cocking his head as if listening, turned to Xander, "the Powers are NOT happy, kid. Maybe you should rethink thin—"
"NO MORE CRAP!" Xander screamed, stunning everybody in the room. The centurie of memories and pain were no longer suppressible even by one used to so doing. "YOUR POWERS ALREADY LET BUFFY DIE. I BROUGHT HER BACK, NOT YOUR CHAMPIONS. YOUR POWERS LET A DEMON IN ME. YOUR POWERS LET MY PARENTS AND LIAM'S…HURT US. YOU LET ANGELUS RUN FREE MURDERING FOR A CENTURY. YOU LET HIM GO UNPUNISHED. YOU LET DARLA GO UNPUNISHED. YOU LET GYPSIES TORTURE A SOUL THAT DIDN'T MURDER ANYBODY. YOU LET YOUR CHAMPION DIE ALONE…YOU KILLED BUFFY'S BOYFRIEND, YOU DUMBASSES. YOU LET SOME CRAZY MAGIC GUY TRY TO KILL PEOPLE I LOVE. I JUST WISH I HAD WHATEVER I NEEDED TO BE THE 'CHAMPION' I SHOULD BE, THAT ANGEL SHOULD'VE BEEN,THAT LIAM MIGHT'VE BEEN, SO THAT I COULD JUST…tell you to just go…"
"DONE!" shouted a chorus of diminutive female demons and their chortling robed and horned male boss as they faded away, delighted that they could turn righteous scorn and vengeance in the stead of the dead victims of Angelus, and on behalf of an alive young woman and her white knight against the plans of the Powers. Two hundred years of vengeance covered in a single wish.
The dark-haired teen was engulfed in white-gold light, screaming in pain as a poorly dressed dark-haired man entered the house and was likewise afflicted.
Whistler gaped, fish-like, before turning to Giles, "The kid's on his own, Ripper. And anyone standing too close to him. Good luck."
Giles, Willow and Buffy rushed to help their friend as the light dissipated to show a very muscular Xander, seams split and buttons popped. Next to him a full duffle bag lay, unnoticed. "I so didn't need that," gasped the teen, only to hear from the new arrival's Irish accent complain, "It's like havin' bloody visions but all over."
Giles moved the man to the living room chair as the girls set Xander down on the couch to recover. Seeing that both were better, and that Whistler had disappeared, Giles introduced himself and his wards to the newcomer, receiving the reply, "My name's Doyle. I'm the seer. What's with the pain and light?"
"Y-you don't know?" Giles pressed curiously.
"Nah, I was told to drive here about two hours ago, and just got here, man," the Irishman conceded. "But I do admit to feeling outta sorts."
"Ow, and I thought I asked for a human not half-demon seer if they sent one," Xander tiredly stated as he sat up woozily, the girls helping. "What kind are you, any way? What do they look like?"
"I'm a half-brachen, just found out a year or so back," Doyle sighed. "And I look like…look like…I can't change!" Doyle turned to the others, "I'm not a demon any more?!" Then, picking up a stake from the coffee table, broke it easily with thumb and two fingers. "I kept a little of my strength it seems."
"Th-that's probably because Xander complained about a non-human seer if they sent him one," Giles speculated. "A-and apparently the light and pain were your transformations as a result of Xander's, uh, outburst."
"So, Xander's the young man on the couch, then?" Doyle asked, continuing as Xander nodded, "You have a place I can stay fer now?"
"Yeah," Xander responded without thinking as he began to stand, "We'll head over to my apartment. It's full of stuff, but we'll make room."
"Xander," Willow began as her and Buffy separated from hugging Xander on the couch, "when did you get an apartment?"
"What do you mean? I'm paid up through the end of the ye—" the teen responded. "Ugh, these Dead-Boy memories are annoying. I'm me, but with most of the memories there…"
"But…you're just Xander, right?" Buffy asked with mixed emotions crossing her face, especially uncertainty.
"Yeah, Buff. No one in here except me," Xander replied, then added to himself so quietly that only Buffy could hear, "sorry."
The blonde girl, shocked at this, fiercely hugged her friend, bursting once more into sobs, "I didn't mean it Xander, (sob) I didn't. I was afraid (sob) Angelus might be there. I-I was afraid of losing you, too. I…(sob)"
Willow joined in the hug, the three scoobs reassuring each other, Giles happily amazed at the apparent restoration of the closeness they'd had before Buffy's brief death. Xander separated the hug after a few minutes. "We'll meet at the Library tomorrow, around nine," Xander decided, quietly. Then, picking up the duffle an with the trademark Xander smirk, he calls out as he in full Dead-Boy regalia and 'power presence' heads out the door, "Come, Doyle. Destiny, or at least a dirty apartment with no groceries, awaits."
Credits roll as we watch but don't hear Giles and the girls watching the two men depart off-camera…
[Pause]
[Pause]
"No, I'm sooooo not giving you gas money.
[Pause]
"No whiskey, either."
[Pause]
"That's Buffy's mom pulling into the driveway"
[Pause]
"NO. I will NOT give you the phone number for the Slayer's MOM."
[Pause]
"Oooo, Twinkies. Maybe ONE tank of gas."
Well, I know for me this is short, but not deciding amongst two or three ideas for this sequel/series I just barreled ahead and combined them, using the combined hurt of Xander and Angel as the 'wish-trigger.' Before anyone thinks that Xander's going to be an over-powered godlike being….please note the minor quotation marks around the word 'champion' in his wish.
Need Feedback. Any requests? Comments? Confusion needing cleared? Deep philosophical discourses on the nature of the universe? On second thought…let's just skip that last one…and save the deep talk for the Journeyverse group (Plot Ideas…Star Trek futures…Shrek as a lost Kine Bard…instead of Buffy dying at the hands of the Master, he'll just kill her hopes for a normal life by selling her to circus freaks and midgets with blocks of ice… Kendra, Cordelia, and the old Buffy will rescue her through intensive shoe shopping during a clearance sale on Manolos…oops, way too many triple mochas at the Espresso Pump…I'll stop babbling now)