Through the Eyes of a Child

[thoughts] because yahell won’t recognize italics


The girls could hear thundering footsteps and griping vamp as they got the apartment door. Obviously Xander hadn’t started winding down yet. Willow reached up and knocked on the door. “Bleedin’ hell quit banging on the door and hang on a minute. Xander get away from that door you don’t know who’s out there. Could be a beastie couldn’t it? No you can’t climb over that, get down. Xander quit you’re running, whelp.” When Spike finally opened the door the appearance of the vampire was enough to set the girl’s giggling off again. He was standing there wearing just his faded black jeans, no shirt, his feet bare, his hair was standing on end and he had a wild pleading look in his eyes. “’bout time somebody showed up to help me. Do somthin’ Red, the whelp's making me as crazy as Dru on a bad day.”

Just then Xander looked up and noticed who was at the door. He ran over and began hugging both the girls. “hi RED. Hi TARA did you come to play with me? i made airplanes and i can fly them really good wanna see? watch me, they fly really really good and its fun to go try catch them.” To illustrate his point Xander began to toss the airplanes and chase after them again.

“Spike, Tara and I thought maybe, if you don’t care, we could take Xander with us for awhile and you can rest. There’s a little park not far from here that no one really goes to any more so there shouldn’t be any one around to see us and since it’s afternoon we don’t have to worry too much about you know whats. That way Xander can run around and get rid of some of this energy and you can sleep.” Spike shocked Willow when he grabbed her around the neck and hugged her. “Hey gay here, girlfriend remember. Spike he’s not that bad.” Spike giving her a look that could only mean ‘bad as compared to what’ turned to get Xander.

“Xan-pet, how would you like to go out for awhile with Red and Glinda?”

“who’s glinda I thought red and tara was here. Where’s glinda? is tara going with us? where are we going? is it going to be fun? are you coming too? how long are we gonna be gone? you have to come with us spike and protected me from the beasties.”

“Oh Goddess, I’m sorry I laughed at you Spike, it is that bad. No more Ding Dongs for breakfast and he only gets one at a time and none when he has super sweet cereal and chocolate milk. And whatever you do make sure he doesn’t get any just before bedtime. Xander, Glinda is what Spike calls Tara. Like he calls me Red and you Xan-pet”

Xander’s lip was poked out and he was glaring at Willow like she had just destroyed his life. “but they was good and spike letted me have them. he’s the boss of me.” The look on his face definitely said that Willow was not his boss and that was that as far as Xander was concerned

“Xander do you want to go to the park? Or would you rather stand in a corner for awhile? Don’t poke that lip out at me mister it doesn’t work.” Willow and Spike both looked at Tara in shock. Xander just stood and stared at her.

“i’ll be good now and i’ll mind. can we really go to the park?”

“Cor Glinda, didn’t know you had it in ya luv. Well come on then whelp you need to get different clothes on and somethin’ on your feet before you can go.” Xander took off running to the bedroom to get changed, Spike following to help him. When Spike and Xander came back in the living room, Xander had his jeans on and was trying to get his shirt over his head. Spike was carrying his shoes and socks. Spike stopped Xan and gently worked his head into the neck hole and smoothed the shirt down over his boy. “Okay whelp get in the chair and let’s get the shoes on.”

“i can putted my own shoes on spike i just need some help tying. i don’t do that so good.” Xander got his socks and shoes on with Spike only having to tell him once that he had them on the wrong feet. Spike knelt down and tied his shoes stopping to walk his finger up Xan’s leg to his waist and tickle him. Willow and Tara were watching the interaction between the two and now knew for sure that Giles had made the right decision about who should care for Xander. Spike obviously cared for their friend. “’k, i’m all ready now can we go.” Xander grabbed Willow’s hand and was tugging her toward the door. Just as they got to the door Xander let go and ran back to Spike, hugged him and gave him a sloppy “little boy” kiss on the check. The vampire looked shocked. “bye spike be back later. i’ll be good pro-miss.”

Willow and Tara soon learned the same lesson that Spike had learned last night. Keep a good strong grip on Xander’s hand and don’t take your eyes off him. He wanted to see and check out everything. Just as Willow predicted the park was deserted. The equipment was still in pretty good shape though. Willow finally let go of Xander’s hand and he took off running to the swings caught one across his belly and launched into the air swinging wildly. After a few minutes of swinging he was on the run again this time to the merry go round. Yelling as he went, “will you push me please, wanna go fast as an airplane.” He jumped on the merry go round and sat in the middle. “push me please, red would you push me…tara push please.” Tara and Willow ran over to the toy and started to push it circles but with one fully-grown Xander sitting on it, it wasn’t easy. Xander was giggling and yelling “faster, faster”. Willow quit pushing and pulled Tara back for a minute to whisper to her.

“Not too fast, I don’t know about this Xander but my six year old Xander used to yell faster until he hurled.” Tara went back and gave Xander an occasional push but didn’t let it pick up too much speed. As it slowed down Xander jumped off and was gone again. He ran over to the jungle gym and was scrambling over it like a monkey. Willow and Tara stretched out under a tree where they had a good view of the playground so they could watch Xander. He was on top of the monkey bars hanging by his knees and swinging. “Xander don’t stay that way too long all the blood will go to your head and you’ll throw up.”

“ok i’ll come down.” He went back to the swings and seemed to be content to just swing. The girls were discussing things they had read that might have to do with Xander’s condition and lost track of time. They didn’t realize it had been almost an hour since they sat down. When they looked up the swings were empty and they couldn’t see Xander anywhere.

“XANDER, where are you?” no answer. “XANDER answer me now.” Again nothing. ALEXANDER LAVELLE HARRIS you better answer me now.” Willow knew just what buttons to push with her friend.

“i’m over here. right by the teeter totter. see me?” Willow and Tara were headed over that way when they finally spotted him half way up a tree hanging from a branch. He was beginning to look a little panicky and was starting to cry. “red i’m stuckted, i can’t get down. help please.” The branch he was hanging on began to creak and finally snapped “WILLOW help.”

“Oh Goddess, Xander, oh no. Oh, please be okay.” Xander was lying on his back just staring until he noticed the girls run up then he began crying. “Oh Xander sweetheart are you alright. Where does it hurt? Let me check you out, no don’t move until I know you are okay.” While Willow babbled, Tara was checking out legs, arms and his neck.

“Sweetie I think he just got the wind knock out of him. There’s no blood and he can move everything so calm down.” Tara was always a calming presence.

“i knowed you was my willow, i knowed it. why are you all growed up willow? yesterday you was only six like me why are you so big willow?” Xander’s crying was becoming hysterical “i want spike, where’s spike? he takes good care of me. i wanna see spike. willow where’s spike? why aren’t you six any more? i don’t want you to be all growed up. did an evil fairy get you or..or..was it a spaced monster? Spppiikkee.”

“Xander honey you have to quit crying now. We’ll go back to Spike’s in a little while when you calm down.”

“willow why are you big?”

“Umm well…it..umm…it was magic, yeah magic. A spell..yeah that’s right, a spell and ah..well..” Willow had a tendency to get flustered when under pressure.

“MAGIC?” Xander’s big brown eyes got even bigger “really magic? but i don’t want you to be growed up who am I gonna play with and..and who’s gonna take care of me when i get hurted? who’s gonna give me lunches and Band-Aids and let me play with their toys? iiii waaannntt mmy sssppiiikkee.” Xander was crying again.

“Xander shh, honey we’re trying to fix it. We’re trying to find a spell to fix Willow all up again. Y..yo..you remember Mr. Giles from last night? Well, he’s a wizard and is going to fix Willow all up. So you two will be the same age again.” Tara looked at Willow and shrugged her shoulders as if to say ‘it was the best I could come up with’.

It was obvious to both girls that Xander was not going to calm down until he got back to Spike. That was something neither witch wanted to face, Spike was probably going to be furious. He really seemed to dote on Xander and acted like a mama bear protecting her cub. Even before he got hurt they had noticed that Spike seemed to be watching out for Xander when they patrolled. It was a much subdued Xander that walked back to the apartment with the witches. When they opened the apartment door Spike was standing in the kitchen. Xander flew across the room and jumped on the vampire, his arms tight around his neck and his legs wrapped around Spike’s hips.

“Here now whelp, what’s the problem?”

Xander was crying again, “i..i..i felled out of a tree and got..got hur..hurted and you wasn’t there and i wanted you. i cried and cried and th..th..that’s my wiiilllooww. do somethin’ spike my willow’s gots an evil spell on her and..and..and we gots to help her.” Spike held Xander’s face against his neck. Vampire strength was certainly coming in handy with the way the boy was wrapped around him. He sat down on a chair without loosing his grip on Xander. He started gently rubbing Xan’s back and crooning to the sobbing boy.

“It’s ok luv, shhh everythin’s gonna be fine. You’re not hurt too bad are ya’? You’ll be fine. Now you need to stop the crying now, you’re gonna run outta water pretty soon.” Spike grabbed a napkin and wiped the tears off his boy’s face. “Now what’s this about Red and an evil spell?”

Willow and Tara looked at each other then at Spike. This couldn’t be Spike, he wasn’t mad, he wasn’t yelling and he was holding Xander on his lap. “He guessed that I was Willow when he screamed for me as he fell. I was so scared I didn’t think. So I had to tell him the truth, you know that truth about the evil spell that made me grow up when he’s still a little boy. But we told him that Giles the wizard is going to fix me all up pretty soon. So we’ll both be the same age again soon, I hope.”

“Take a breath Red, I get it. So the great Wizard Rupert is going to fix you up huh? Let’s hope it’s not to long before that happens and you and Xan-pet are back to normal.” Spike was looking over Xander’s head at the witches and there was unspoken understanding in the three sets of eyes.