Replacing the Zippo

[Blacksheep]

You decided to focus on keeping your ear to the ground and spending time at the bar. Marcie continued to be a wonderful back up for that. You were considering whether or not you should introduce her. They wouldn't be put off by the fact that she was invisible, it was a chance for her to socialize more with others outside of your group. They also might try to kill or eat her though, that was something you still had to keep into consideration.

You knew that you were tolerated because the bar was a neutral space and you took care to never let your guard drop among the predators. They might like your spunk and enjoy telling you gossip, but they could also decide that you were a particularly tasty snack at any moment. Especially with the constant mix of new people passing through.

Spike it seemed had made a complete menace of himself after taking apart the local court and driving any vampires he could find into serving Drusilla while he kept working on a cure. Interestingly enough you also got to hear news about some of the local demon cults around Sunnydale and their plans for various rituals. The fertility ritual was one that you could have done without hearing about it in quite such explicit detail, but the one where it was just a case of offering a hunted animal to their demonic overlord wasn't so bad. The news about the fraternity that would be offering their usual girls to continue their wealth came up, with plenty of teasing about how humans tended to offer things that were so valuable for the most ridiculous things.

[ ]Suggest a group disrupt the offering of the girls to watch the humans scramble for fun
[ ]Tell Giles and Buffy what you found out
[ ]Focus on the vampires
[ ]Write-in

[ ]Reveal Marcie to the bar
[ ]Marcie stays hidden

 

[Blacksheep]

Marcie was unsure when you asked her if she wanted to be introduced to the others at the bar. It was easy to understand. She was invisible because of people purposely choosing to turn away from her. If she didn't reach out, she didn't have to be rejected. You didn't know if it was best to let her wait on this or try to encourage her. You weren't in her situation after all. You could do with less attention at times, and you had friends you could rely on.

You found a chance to talk to Giles and Buffy about the cult at the university preparing sacrifices. Buffy was quick to grab onto the invitation with Cordelia to a frat party to get in and start looking around. It was slightly stressful to have Buffy come back out with a drugged Cordelia. Funnily enough this was a good sign, as it meant Buffy had gotten to Cordelia before she woke up to the demon trying to eat her, but seeing Cordelia so helpless did make your heart squeeze in distress.

[ ]Take the group out for ice cream to unwind
[ ]Watch over Cordelia to make sure she's alright
[ ]Pretend everything's fine: this is typical for Sunnydale, no big deal
[ ]Write-in

Halloween was coming up. And not just any Halloween. The Halloween when Ethan turned everyone into their costumes. You could use this.

[ ]Avoid the enchanted costumes, you don't want to test your luck
[ ]Pick out a costume: what do you want to be?
[ ]Help friends pick out costumes

 

[Blacksheep]

Your suggestion this time for going out for ice cream went down a lot better. Everyone talked and relaxed, and when you split up it was a good hour later with the tension of the day cleared away. You had successfully helped the group unwind and feel safe after the crazy cult incident. It wasn't perfect, but the success buoyed you up the entire way back home.

With Halloween coming up you found yourself doing your best to make plans. Whatever costume you put together had to be as cheap as possible with your funds. Most of your friends thankfully had better funds than you did. Buffy was currently completely mooning over Angel, which had you shifting uncomfortably. Angel being further integrated into the group helped, but the vampire still pinged you as a threat to keep a close eye on. Angel revealed that he planned to spend Halloween out of the way, which immediately had Buffy wanting to also take the night off. Giles was agreeable with that, as Halloween was supposed to be quiet supernatural wise. Of course, this was the Hellmouth. Rules were bent or outright broken here.

You went as a group down to Ethan's costume shop and started browsing through it all. Buffy was of course drawn to the more elegant gowns, clearly dreaming of impressing Angel with her outfit. You dug around for a while before you found a couple cheap pieces you could use for a detective costume. You would have loved to go as Batman, but you just couldn't afford anything Batman. There were pieces you could maybe use for a Batman mask, but you were afraid the magic might be keyed to a different character you didn't know. At least a magnifying glass and Sherlock style hat was relatively cheap, just five bucks. More than you had wanted to spend, but it would be worth it if you got the skills you wanted.

You had talked Marcie into trying out a Fantastic Four costume, in the hopes that dressing as Invisible Girl would give her a measure of control over her abilities. It wasn't guaranteed, but it was something that allowed her to be included somewhat in your plans for trick or treating, and that was always something you tried to keep in mind. Willow was more tricky. Her shyness had her usually going as a bedsheet ghost, something simple that completely covered her up. Buffy would want to push for something more adventurous, but you knew that the best way to get Willow actually dressed was picking something that was still fairly modest.

You tried to encourage Willow by telling her all about how cool the Scarlet Witch was, and how she already had red hair for it. Buffy however shot it down as comic geek stuff, and Willow was swayed to go as a more classical witch. Well, it was still something magical, if not what you had hoped for. And there was a good chance that the costume would in fact help with Willow's powers.

>>>>

The detective immediately knew that something was wrong as he came into awareness of the world around him. People were screaming and fighting. His first impulse was to say that it was a celebration gone wrong. City wide celebrations occasionally deteriorated into riots after all. But there was something very wrong with the people around them. Something about their costumes that simply pinged the detective as not being right.

He watched for a couple minutes before he placed the difference. Somehow, in some way, some of the costumes were real. It looked like people had been celebrating Halloween, and somehow actual monsters had become mixed up with everything. He had no explanation for how such a thing was possible, but he at least could do his best to try and get the innocents out of the way.

The detective wasn't the only one doing so. There were others mixed in who were doing their best to fight back against the tide of monsters. And not all of the monsters were non human. The detective kept a close eye out as he brought a group to a house. A teen flickered out of invisibility and drove off a devil before creating some type of barriers that she used to drive fights apart. A witch cackled as she cursed others, adding to the chaos with her spells.

He was kept busy for hours this way, fighting through the monsters. He was surprised when what he had mistaken as a man grabbed him and turned out to in fact be a vampire. He did his best to hit weak points and escape, but it didn't work as he was dragged away. The detective watched with a calculating gaze as he was brought before a dark goth princess vampire. She smiled softly at him as she swayed in her dress. "Even clouded this one still sees," she murmured.

"A good gift for you then? Still not sure what you want with him," the vampire said.

"His dancing dodges blades, I want him to dance for us," she said.

"He will," the vampire promised. The detective thought he was going to be forced immediately, but the female vampire drew away her lover with a giggle. He started to work on escaping, waiting for an opening to run.

>>>>

You jolted as the night fell away. This was not supposed to happen. You had thought you were safe for Halloween. Vampires don't go out in it. Spike did try to go after Buffy, but that had been a rather half hearted attempt. You hadn't expected that it would turn to you. Drusilla beamed as she looked at you. "He's awake."

"Finally," Spike said. He grinned at you. "So, pet, you're going to help with whatever my lovely dark princess asks for. Got it?"

[ ]Write-in

 

[Blacksheep]

"Okay, so what can I do for you? I'm a squishy human, I can't do that much," you babbled.

"What do you want to do with him princess?" Spike asked Drusilla lovingly.

"Ask him how to get Daddy back," Drusilla said absently. Spike grimaced but looked at you expectantly.

"You didn't have to kidnap me for that," you admitted. "He's not taking as good care of his conscience as you'd hope."

"Daddy's a bad boy," Drusilla laughed.

"And we just need to sit pretty and wait for it?" Spike grinned. "And what about my love's health? How do I fix that?"

"I don't know," you admit. "I know it's something to do with Sire's blood, but you find a ritual for it in a book. I don't know what book."

Spike grinned. "So you're useful after all." Drusilla drifted towards you and you shuddered as her lips brushed over your neck. "I can get you something better than a twig like him, love." She turned and drifted back to him shifting to watch something no one else saw. "Your vision's pretty clear, pet. Thanks for the advice." Spike patted your cheek and stood up.

"No one is coming for him," Drusilla said dreamily.

"Good," Spike said with a grin. He gave Drusilla a kiss that made her giggle in delight and headed out. Drusilla continued to watch nothing.

You were tied up for far too long. Spike came back with a girl and you watched Drusilla drain her even as she fought and struggled until she was limp and lifeless, brown eyes still staring at you with fear. The sun rose and Drusilla and Spike were far too happy to have sex only a few feet away from where you were sat. You learned far too much about the pair's kinks as they played. That might have been the most horrifying part of the whole experience, honestly. They seemed mostly happy to ignore you now that you'd given them some answers.

You jerked in shock when something touched you. You looked around wildly, but saw nothing there even as the ropes around you were untied. It took too long for it to click. "Marcie," you whispered.

"Come on, let's go," she whispered back. You followed after her, slipping out of the building and into the sun. You took a deep breath basking in the warmth that meant you were safe.

"How did you find me?"

"The group's been hitting every vampire nest we could find," Marcie replied. "It was luck I was the one to find you."

"The pair are freaky, I am so glad to be out of there before they started another sex marathon."

Getting reunited with everyone meant Willow crying on you. You were doing your best to push down on what happened and not think too much about it. What could Spike and Drusilla really do with what you'd told them? And...should you try to tell them?

[ ]Admit to knowing things
[ ]Say honestly what happened with Spike and Drusilla, but dance around what you know
[ ]Suppress what happened
[ ]Write-in

 

[Blacksheep]

"So, I might have something to confess," you said. You gave an appeasing smile.

"What is it?" Willow demanded. "Did you get really hurt?" Marcie flickered into visibility making you jump. You had hoped she'd gain that ability but it still caught you off guard to actually see her.

"They were really gross, but no. They...grabbed me because they think I'm like Drusilla. That I know stuff."

Giles straightened and gave you a sharp look. "And why would they think that?"

You gave the most casual shrug that you could. "Maybe because I've seen things that could possibly happen? I wouldn't say it's particularly reliable though."

"But it was enough to get their attention." Giles frowned. "Drusilla is an incredibly powerful seer, but that has always been clouded by her madness. If you have similar abilities that is a serious subject."

"It's really not reliable," you repeated. "I know some things that could possibly happen, but it doesn't adapt to changes. Marcie doesn't exist in any of them."

"Interesting. I will have to check my books." Giles turned to start doing research.

"So you're a magic guy now?" Buffy asked half seriously.

"A really bad one. It didn't let me save Jesse," you said quietly. Willow hugged you extra tightly.

"We're gonna figure this out," Willow promised. "We're not going to let them eat you." That was really good news, considering you didn't know how things were going to go now.

"So what are Spike and his crazy girl gonna do?" Buffy challenged.

"Try to use Angel to cure her," you said frankly.

Buffy immediately whirled around and grabbed onto Angel. You had to admit you were developing a dislike for Angel similar to the original Xander. The guy was not that useful to have around, and the little romance with Buffy was annoying.

"I can handle them," Angel assured Buffy. "They are my progeny, I taught them what they know."

Buffy continued to worry about Angel, but Giles was more interested in testing what kind of seer abilities you had. That was a touch discomfiting, you didn't like the idea of the Watchers Council getting involved with you because of your "seer" skills. They would not be nice to their human magic 8-ball. At least you had confirmation Marcie could turn visible again. Did anything happen to Willow?

[ ]Help Buffy with keeping Angel away from Spike and Drusilla
[ ]Try to cover how your 'seer' abilities work with Giles, hopefully in a way to make him not report you
[ ]Spend time with Marcie, it's awesome she's finally visible!
[ ]Ask Willow about her Halloween experiences
[ ]Write-in

 

[Blacksheep]

It was a good idea to spend some time with Willow and Marcie. Both of them had changed a lot with Halloween. It would be good to catch up with them and talk all about it.

Both of them were happy to spend time together. Marcie was more withdrawn, with Willow babbling at a thousand words a minute. You had been worried about Willow, but it seemed she didn't remember much from her time as a witch. She did find it much easier to draw on magic, and was talking about bothering Ms Calendar about technomagic. Marcie just seemed to be relishing in not having to struggle to draw attention to herself. She kept looking down at herself like she was expecting it to wear off. It wasn't the problem you'd been expecting when you'd wanted to check in with them. You had thought Willow would be more worried about the experience. But she had always been rather quick to move on. Something that was important when nothing really stopped in Sunnydale. There wasn't time for mourning or dealing with the curve balls the Hellmouth kept throwing at everyone. Perhaps this was a good thing.

You were more concerned when you showed up to school to see that Buffy's old friend Ford had shown up. You knew he wanted to be turned to survive the cancer he had, and was more than willing to turn on Buffy to get that done. At least, that was how it went in canon. Would it change with what Spike and Drusilla knew now?

[ ]Try to find proof Ford is lying
[ ]Focus on self defense
[ ]Talk to Ms Calendar about magic and Willow
[ ]Write-in

 

[Blacksheep]

You were automatically going to start looking for evidence to prove Ford wasn't meant to be here, before you remembered. Your friends knew you knew things now. You didn't have to act like you didn't have knowledge. It was strange. It made so many more things possible than before, and yet at the same time you wanted to still tread with care in case things weren't like how they had been on the show. Things were changing!

So you approached Ford and pulled him off to a quiet hall. "Hey, I know you have cancer," you told him.

Ford paled. "What? What do you-how do you know that?"

"I know things." You shrugged. "Not all of it's useful, but...anyways, I know you can't have just come here to see Buffy. Not with that."

"You can't tell her," Ford told you. "She'll just stress about it."

"She deserves the truth. You should tell her, or I will."

"Alright, I'll let her know." You relaxed and let Ford walk away. That had been a mistake.

Buffy pinned you to a wall. "I get that you have issues Xander, but that doesn't give you the right to threaten my friend," she growled.

"Whoa, whoa! What are you talking about Buffy?"

"Ford told me that you told him to stop hanging around me, that you didn't think someone like him should be bothering with me. He's my friend Xander!"

"That's not what's going on!"

"It's not? So you're not jealous that another guy who knows about vampires turned up? You know I'm dating Angel!"

"That-that has nothing to do with this!" It was a terrible mistake, but it wasn't related to Ford.

"Yeah? Then why did you run him off?"

"I didn't! I just told him to tell you that he's dying!"

"He's what?" Buffy let go and you took a deep breath. Buffy could be rough when she was upset.

"He has cancer in his brain. He doesn't have long left. He didn't come to see you, he's looking for a fix," you said.

Buffy turned and left, not bothering to apologize. You were happy to just take the time to breath.

Maybe you shouldn't have gotten involved. You had helped Buffy, sure. She would handle the betrayal better this time. She sure hadn't thanked you for it though. You were bitter as you headed back to class. You'd just let them do what they wanted this time.

It was somewhat of a surprise when you did hear how things ended up playing out. Ford had traded Angel, not Buffy. Drusilla was healed, and Ford had been taken as a new toy for her to play with. Buffy had managed to rescue him but Ford had died from his injuries. Perhaps in some ways it was better. Buffy wasn't personally betrayed, though it was still a type of betrayal. Ford hadn't been turned into a vampire either, so Buffy hadn't been forced to kill him a second time.

You were worried about what a fully healed Drusilla would be seeking for now. Her madness made her deeply unpredictable. Knowing what she wanted didn't mean knowing how she would try to get it.

[ ]Focus on the demon that will be coming after Giles soon
[ ]Ask Willow about learning magic from Mrs Calendar: a proper teacher would be good for her
[ ]Spend time with Marcie
[ ]Focus on school
[ ]Write-in

 

[Blacksheep]

Sometimes what you really need is an escape from the ridiculousness your life has become. It's easier around Marcie. She was in a single episode of the show. She doesn't expect you to be the Xander that the others used to know, and there's no concerns about what might be in the future. It's fun to spend time with her and just talk about regular stuff without thoughts of what could happen to her in the future hanging around in your head.

Your new talents of observation have made people watching much more fun than it was before. Marcie seems just as delighted to sit beside you and guess about what's going on with them. You do your best to be accurate, but it's easy to get carried away and come up with more and more ridiculous things that's going on. Hey, some of them might even be correct! Life is far stranger than fiction after all.

You almost missed seeing Kendra walking through town. This vampire slayer was destined to have a tragically short life. With Drusilla at full health there was an even greater risk to her. Marcie frowned. "Xander? What is it?"

"That's the second slayer," you blurted out.

"I thought there was only supposed to be one? That it was a whole big deal that way?"

"Yes, but I brought Buffy back when she wasn't supposed to be. The next slayer activated when that happened." You had just forgotten that it wouldn't be Faith who you would be seeing as the next slayer. Guilt churned in your gut. Faith's life had been terrible, but Kendra's had been little better. She hadn't been as lucky as Buffy. She had been raised as a weapon by the Watcher's Council. And if Faith was to become a slayer, Kendra had to die first.

[ ]Tell Giles about the second slayer being here
[ ]Talk to Kendra directly to warn her about Drusilla
[ ]Write-in

 

[Blacksheep]

You hurried down to Giles' home and knocked on the door. The man was mildly peeved at being bothered, but let you in. "There's a second slayer in town."

"I beg your pardon?" Giles asked.

"A second slayer. The next slayer is called whenever the previous slayer dies. That doesn't account for slayers dying for a few seconds before being revived like Buffy was. So there's now two slayers. And the second one is here."

"I-good grief." Giles paled as the implication of my words struck him. His slayer had died. He had thought he had been doing well managing everything unusual attached to her, and yet the truth was she was meant to be dead. Would be dead, were it not for the particularly stubborn boy now standing in his home talking to him. "And you're sure you're not mistaken?"

"I'm not going to say that my visions are perfect, but she fits what I saw way too well." You took a deep breath. "She won't die here, but she will die young." And that stung to think of.

"Where is her Watcher? Why is she here?" Giles demanded.

"She's here to do Buffy's job. When Kendra activated it was assumed Buffy was dead. So she's here to take her position on the hellmouth."

"The Council knows she's not!"

You shrugged. "I don't know what happened there. But there's a second slayer in town, and she doesn't know about Buffy or yourself."

Giles was a reliable man once he got going. He headed out the door to find Kendra and deal with a secondary slayer in town.

Buffy and Kendra got into a fight over Angel, one which only worsened when Drusilla and Spike showed up to play. The girls settled on a truce to hunt Spike and Drusilla. Giles found himself realizing that he far preferred Buffy's liveliness over Kendra's robotic obedience. Kendra was the slayer Giles had hoped to have, but Kendra struggled without orders and had little to live for. You knew that was part of what would kill her. Slayers fell easily when they didn't have a reason to live.

It was bothering you. You knew Kendra would die, but you didn't know what would kill her. You knew that it was because she was too 'traditional' following the Council's rules. You didn't know if speaking up would help at all. If it did help, if you did save Kendra, would Faith never come?

Were you even qualified to make that choice?

You had tried with Jesse, and look how well that had turned out. You had saved Marcie, but things were still so similar to how they had been in the show. You couldn't even split up Angel and Buffy, even if you did get him closer to the group so it was easier to keep an eye on him. Should you even try?

[ ]Write-in

 

[Blacksheep]

It felt awkward to consider it, but you had made a decision. You wanted to try and give Kendra something to hold onto. A way for her to keep fighting even after she was recalled once more from Sunnydale. There were too many monsters in the world for the Watchers' Council to allow the Slayers to remain in the same town together. It had only happened with Faith because they had lost control over her entirely.

You awkwardly invited Kendra to come out for the usual after battle take out. The dark Slayer was timid about accepting, but came along with the group. Willow was fascinated by her existence, and you did your best to keep Willow from completely overwhelming the girl. Buffy seemed happy herself, curled up together with Angel in their seats.

It wasn't bad. You went to movies together, and told Kendra about your favorite comics. When she was recalled back to her original Watcher it was with a smile on her face. You hoped that would be enough to help her live longer.

You were still working on a solution for the Inca Mummy girl. Researching it was slow. You just weren't particularly academically inclined. It was difficult. You could think of so many things, so many ways to solve things, and yet reading and searching through books had you slogging away like a moron. You silently told yourself that you weren't one. You didn't need book smarts to be capable.

It was during a tech hangout with Ms Calendar going over new things for Willow and Cordelia that Buffy showed up in a flurry. "Something's wrong with Giles," she announced.

Your heart sunk. You knew what this was. The dream demon that Giles had summoned with his dark magic friends as a teen. It was here to complete the contract, and take Giles' life.

Originally the dream demon would find an opening to possess Ms Calendar. It would be defeated by being tricked to try and claim Angel, finding it killed by the demon already occupying what it had mistaken as a corpse. It would give Buffy more understanding of why Giles was as strict as he was, and Angel would become more accepted for the aid he offered. You knew however, that Giles' old friend Ethan from Halloween would try to offer Buffy as a way to buy time for himself, and Giles was currently under suspicion for murder.

It was fairly harmless, and part of you did like Ethan. He had been a fun character on the show, never truly aligned with evil but more than happy to leave death in his wake with the chaos he stirred up. Always independent. But this wasn't the show, and you needed to decide what you wanted to do.

[ ]Help the others find out about the dream demon early
[ ]Leave them to research it alone
[ ]Find another way to trap the dream demon-maybe the Incan Mummy?
[ ]Write-in