What Changed?

The beginning....

Xander looked up at the building and shook his head in amusement. Of all the places he thought he would find his cousin, it wasn't a police station. Shaking his head again he walked inside and headed for the Major Crimes unit.

Jim looked up when he heard Blair give a happy shout. The rest of the squad watched as Blair let the the dark haired youth lift him off his feet in a hug. "Xander, when did you get here? How long are you staying? God, you grew up!"

The dark haired boy grinned down at him. "Hey, Cousin! I just got here. Just a few days and I was supposed to grow up." They could hear laughter in the boy's words.

Megan, Rafe and Simon also walked over to meet the new arrival. The only member of Blair's family that any of them had ever met was Naomi. They wondered if the teen would be anything like Blair and his mother.

Blair grinned as the others joined them. "Xander, these are my coworkers and my boss. Megan, Rafe and Simon."

Xander smiled at each of them and nodded hello. Jim was wondering what it was about the kid that kept drawing his attention. Xander smelt wonderful. Almost as good as Blair.

"So, how long are you in town for?" Simon asked, grinning. He was hoping for little Blair stories that he could use to tease the younger man with.

"I'm not sure. My plans changed, so I have more time to waste before I head back to Sunnyhell."

They all blinked at him in confusion. "Who would name a town Sunnyhell?" Megan asked before she could stop herself.

"Anyone who's lived there more than a day," Xander answered with a laugh. "The town's name is actually Sunnydale, but it just doesn't fit."

Blair grimaced. He hated Sunnydale. Every time Naomi wanted to spend time with Xander, they shipped him out of the town. That had happened less in the last few years. Naomi feared that Xander didn't want to come to them because he was being hurt by his father.

Blair knew better though. Xander never kept secrets from him, so he knew about the night life of Sunnyhell. Blair had wanted Xander to leave the place for good. After what had happened recently, he hoped Xander wasn't going back.

"Does this mean you won't be going back?" Blair asked hopefully.

The others gave Blair a strange look when he looked afraid and determined after Xander shook his head. "Xan there's no need for you to go back there."

"I have to, my friends need me. I have a place there," Xander told him firmly.

"You can have a place here, too. The college would snap you up in a heartbeat. They're always looking for someone with your talent and aptitude for languages," Blair insisted almost desperately.

"Blair, I'm going back," Xander told him firmly.

Blair sighed and then shrugged. "I'll leave you alone for now, but I'm not giving up."

Xander grinned again. "If you gave up I'd think you were sick," Xander teased.

This got a laugh from Blair's friends. Blair was like a pitbull with a bone. He had to worry something to death. "How about we go out to dinner this evening and you guys can start to catch up," Jim suggested.

Xander looked down at Blair and raised an eyebrow. Blair pouted. "I thought you said you'd cook for me."

Xander grinned again. "I will. However no health food crap and no weeds."

"So what time was dinner?" n asn asked, making them laugh.

"Would seven be alright?" Jim asked, knowing that the others would want to come as well. Jim wondered what it was about Blair's family that they were all charming.

The others agreed, and Simon let Blair leave early so that they could gather up the ingredients for Xander's famous lasagna. The minute that Xander mentioned lasagna, Blair began to drag him out of the building. The people they passed were hard pressed not to laugh outright at the sight of the two of them.

At first, the members of the force had not known what to make of the long haired man, but he had managed to draw them in with his exuberance and his caring. While not commonly known, Blair was always there to offer comfort and visit injured off's.'s. After the attack on the force the year before, Blair had gotten to know several officers and their families.


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Laughter filled the room as the group of men and women talked and told stories about their lives. They were all entranced by the way that Blair and Xander interacted. The two men seemed almost psychic in the way that they dealt with one another. When one would start a sentence, the o wou would finish it, and watching them work in the kitchen had been fascinating.

Xander never said a word, he just held out his hand and Blair would pass him whatever it was that the younger man needed. The sense of pain and desolation that lived in the boy's laughing eyes was fading away the longer that the two were together.

"So Blair tells Ni that the only way to make sundaes is with chocolate ice cream, chocolate fudge and chocolate sprinkles to cover up the fact that the cherry and the whipped cream don't match."

Blair laughed and interrupted. "Xander is just sitting there staring at her, wide eyed and eager. Then he gives her puppy dog eyes."

"We bounced off the walls for about five hours afterwards," Xander added. Their audience laughed in appreciation. Jim shook his head in sympathy for Naomi. Blair was hyperactive enough without sugar. He couldn't imagine pumping him up on sugar and chocolate. Jim shuddered at the thought.

"So, are you and Blair the only geniuses in the family?" Simon asked.

Xander laughed, not used to being referred to as a genius. "Yep, but I think that's because neither of use are actually blood relatives of the Harris clan. Xander's adopted and we're related through Xander's mom," Blair answered. The cousins looked at one another and chuckled.

Jim raised an eyebrow and decided to talk to Blair later about the Harris family. The other three also shared a look. There had been an awful lot of spaces in Xander's history. Especially in recent years. The four had separately looked into Xander's past, unable to stop themselves from being protective.

What they had discovered shocked and worried them. Xander had been present at a lot of different instances of gang violence. He and his friends were often cited as the ones who had eased the situation. Then there was the number of times that Xander had been checked into the hospital, only to leave as a AMA. Some of the injuries listed were horrific.

There was also the fact that a lot of kids died at graduation, and that the school was blown up. Simon wanted to know about that and decided now was as good a time as any. "Xander, I have a question."

Xander looked at him with a raised eyebrow. "Ask away, though I can't guarantee to know the answer," he smiled at Simon.

"What happened at your graduation? Who blew up the school?" Simon asked. He regretted it instantly from the look on both Xander and Blair's faces. Xander's face paled and his eyes dilated. Jim could practically smell the grief on him. Blair's eyes narrowed with anger as he realized that Simon had done a background check on Xander.

"I blew it up." Xander answered, shocking them.

"What? Why?" Jim asked. He could tell that the boy wasn't lying. He could also tell from Blair's reaction that he knew.

"I had to; it was the only way to kill the giant worm demon that used to be the Mayor," Xander answered calmly.

"Huh?" Rafe asked, confused.

Xander rubbed his hands over his face then began to talk. They all listened in growing horror as Xander told them about life in Sunnydale, his graduation and losing Larry to a vampire. When he had finished Blair grasped his hand, and Xander looked far older than his years. Even though the story was fantastical, and even though they shouldn't believe him, they did. They believed every word he said.

"I agree with Sandy, I don't think you should go back there," Megan murmured.

"I have to go back. My friends need me, and my mom's there. Sooner or later my father is going to get himself killed. When he does, I need to be there to get my mom away from that town." Blair sighed and nodded his agreement. He wished the elder Harris would just run out on his family, but he knew the bastard never would.

"So, some of those visits to the hospital were from your father?" Rafe asked, making Blair glare at him. Rafe blushed but didn't back down.

"All of them before age 15 were my father's doing. After I turned 15, very few of them were his doing. Last year he stopped trying to hit me or my mother altogether," Xander answered, and they saw a hardness enter his eyes. It was another thing that reminded them of Blair. Both young men looked and acted harmless. Blair was known to fight hard and dirty if need be. It sounded as if Xander knew how o tho that as well.

"What did you do?" Blair asked, curious.

"I broke his arm and scared the shit out of him," Xander answered, with a cold smirk. Blair snickered.

"Good, a man who hits his kid and his wife isn't a man," Megan said staunchly. The others agreed. As police officers, they had all seen their share of victims of domestic violence. All of them had always wished that the victim would leave or stand up for themselves. Sometimes it made it worse, but often times it helped.


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Xander ended up staying with Jim and Blair for the rest of the week. In that time Naomi showed up and the four spent a great deal of time together. Jim was heartened by the fact that Xander accepted him as easily as Naomi had. For the first time in a long time he felt like the member of a family.

When it came time for Xander to go back to Sunnydale they all took turns trying to get him to stay, but it didn't work. In the end they all watched helplessly as he drove away. Naomi was crying and the others were just as sorrowful. They had all made him promise to call and to email them to let them know he was okay.


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The Present....

Xander looked around Spike's crypt one last time. He had gotten everything from all of the hiding spots that Spike had told him about. Xander had already gotten all of his things from his apartment. His mom was on her way to Naomi. Xander had finally convinced her to leave his father. Now he was on his way to say goodbye to Giles. He had no intention of visiting either of the girls.

They had made it clear that he was not welcome in their new life. That was just fine with him. He had a life to look forward to and no intention of staying in Sunnydale. Spiks wis with his Sire, and Angel had made it clear that they were staying with him. That was fine with Xander. He had only wanted Spike to be somewhere safe. ng tng the way that Angel had cared for his Childe was enough for Xander.

When he reached Giles' apartment he could sense someone else inside. He hoped that he wasn't walking in on a Scooby meeting. Not that he had been invited to many lately. Not since the blow up with Willow about cursing Spike.

Giles pulled away from Ethan and growled, "That better not be Buffy." Ethan chuckled and watched his lover go to the door.

"Xander? Where the hell have you been?!" Giles growled. Ethan shook his head and straightened his clothes.

Xander raised an eyebrow when he saw the wizard. "In LA. Actually I'm on my way back there. Hello, Ethan. You going to cause anymore possessions?"

"Not right now, mate, maybe later," Ethan answered, and he and Giles were both surprised by Xander's laughter.

"What do you mean you're on your way back to LA?" Giles asked, not letting himself be distracted by the rare sound of Xander's laughter. He had noticed that since Xander's road trip the boy didn't laugh very often. When he did it was mocking.

"I'm moving to LA. I'm not needed here anymore and I'm sick of being taken for granted. The thing with Spike was the last straw," Xander answered. The two men could hear the anger in his voice.

"What thing with Spike? I thought we had all gotten over try trying to separate us?" Giles asked, confused.

"So did I until I found out that Buffy had talked Willow into cursing Spike. The poor bastard's got a soul now." Xander answered, furious.

Ethan and Giles looked at him in horror. "WHAT?!" Giles roared. While he wasn't all that fond of the vampire, cursing him when he couldn't defend himself from humans was intolerable.

"Yeah, Spike's been cursed. I took him to Angel. I'm only here to pick up our things and say goodbye to you. You can tell the girls whatever you want. It won't matter," Xander answered.

"Willow and Buffy are going too far just lately. First Buffy puts us all in danger with her Initative involvement, then Willow's will be done spell. Now this. I'll tell them you've gone after I have a little talk with them about responsibility," Giles said, then looked back over at Xander. "I sincerely hope that this doesn't interfere with your project or plans, Xander." Xander grinned and shook his head. Giles was one of the few people that knew the truth about him. Even Spike had kept Xander's secret. Not that the girls would have believed him even if he had told them.

Giles would miss Xander, but he knew it was the time for the boy to get away. He had to stay. Until a new Slayer was called, Buffy was stuck on the hellmouth and so was he. The Council had rehired him after the debacle with the Mayor. He only hoped that Xander's new life was better than his present one.