Chapter Text
The New Council didn’t have annual meetings yet. They were too new for that. What they did instead was call each other, sometimes from across the world, and say variations on the theme of ‘Yep, everything’s okay over here, no need to come and check up on us, no, honestly there’s not.’ Occasionally they even filed reports, although some of them were more assiduous about that than others. Faith, for example, had never even thought about writing one. Xander had sent off a shopping list, thinking that no one really read them.
Given that the Council had splintered rather early on into different bases and had yet to form a single HQ, he wasn’t entirely wrong.
This was the first time that all of the core Scoobies, as well as most of the Potentials who had fought in Sunnydale, had been all in the same room for some time. Willow thought that it was about time that they did start work on an HQ, seeing as how things were starting to heat up in Cleveland, and certain demon species had decided that they weren’t really that keen on having armies of Slayers all over the place and would quite like to start doing something about it. Hence everyone being there – when a powerful witch wanted you somewhere, it was hard to say no.
No one wanted to volunteer. There was a reason that they had done everything that they had, and that wasn’t because they liked paperwork.
“I vote for Andrew.” Xander said eventually. “Giles can stand behind him with a big pointy stick until he gets the hang of things.”
Faith grinned. “I like that plan.”
“Got to say, there’s definitely something going for it.” Buffy added.
Giles looked like he would rather be just about anyone else, as well as somewhere else entirely.
“See, that wasn’t so hard, was it?” Willow said, sounding very self-satisfied. “Giles is good at all that old-school Watcher-y stuff, and Andrew… well, yeah.”
Giles muttered something about not liking how things were run around here, but didn’t argue. She had a point.
Andrew stood. “I would be most honoured to-“
“Oh, give it a rest.” Giles growled.
Andrew sat.
“So.” Xander said, changing the subject. “I was thinking of taking a few Slayers and heading over to Starling City. Thoughts?”
“Can I just point out that this shouldn’t really be how decisions are formed? We are an international demon-hunting organisation. We should have some kind of process.” Giles said grumpily.
Xander rolled his eye. “Noted. I suggest that you make that your first order of business.”
Caridad leant towards the person next to her and whispered “Where’s Starling City?” She had spent a large part of the last year fighting Yetis in Siberia.
“Ooh ooh ohh!” Andrew said excitedly, virtually jumping out of his seat. “The city where a billionaire made an earthquake machine and collapsed half the city! The city with the vigilante! That is so cool! I want to go!”
Caridad looked at him. “Is he serious?”
Xander nodded. “’fraid so.”
“What’s happing in Starling isn’t demonic though.” Giles pointed out. “It’s not really our field.”
Xander started ticking points off on his fingers. “Firstly, they’ve got the kind of extreme night life where they need a guy with a bow to sort things out. Even if there aren’t demons involved, that’s still something worth looking into. Secondly, if billionaires start making earthquake machines, then that’s kind of a sign that something weird is going on. I’m thinking killer robots next, and that’s right up our alley. Thirdly, it’s a collapsed city, and we kind of collapsed Sunnydale. So we should probably help sort this one out, right? You know, like karma? Fourthly, I mean, it already begins with S. So did Sunnydale. Coincidence, much?”
Buffy blinked. “Um, yeah? Xan, that kind of is.”
“You must have been planning that speech for a really long time.” Faith commented.
Xander shrugged. “All through my trip here. All three seconds of it.” He gestured at Willow. “She didn’t even let me finish my lunch.”
“Hey, Red? You might want to let him have a bit more time to plan next time. That last point is the kind of thing that turns a person’s brain to mush.”
“Hey!” Xander said indignantly. “Anyway, I already asked Vi to be my deputy and everything. Besides, if we’re meant to be helping people, why not send a construction guy to a city that collapsed on itself? Besides, I can make sure that no other billionaires build weapons of mass destruction either.”
“I bet Vi just volunteered so she could have a shooting contest with the Hood.” Buffy said. Vi shrugged, but didn’t deny it.
“You’re going to go no matter what we say, aren’t you?” Giles said.
Xander nodded. “Yep. It’s too interesting not to go. An earthquake machine and a vigilante archer? C’mon, you don’t really expect me to miss out on that?”
“Well, as my first decision as acting… whatever my title is, I say that you go.” Giles said.
Xander clapped his hands together. “Way to go, G-Man!”
~*~
Thea Queen didn’t work behind the bar very often. When you’re the daughter of a billionaire and you work behind a bar, you tend to get hit on by some very drunk people, just so they can say they could. Even more so when your mother was accused of helping to collapse half a city.
But since Oliver hadn’t been back five minutes, and she had taken over Verdant, and bar tenders kept calling in sick or just not coming (having half a city collapse wasn’t great for business) she didn’t have much of a choice.
A man in an eyepatch came and leant on the bar. “What can I get you?”
“Water.”
Thea blinked. The amount of people who came to the club and ordered water was approximately none. Still, he was a customer, and this was a quiet night, so she went and got him some.
“I’ll have you know that water is a very manly drink.” Xander commented.
“I’m sure it is.” Thea said, very carefully not smirking.
“You’re probably thinking ‘Hey, a guy in an eyepatch, he could order any drink he likes, and he picks water?’ Well, I happen to like water.”
“I didn’t say anything.”
“Yeah, but you thought it.”
“Look, Mr Mind-Reader, if you’re so bothered about what I think then why don’t you order a different drink? This is a night club, we have all kinds of alcohol.”
Xander shrugged. “I didn’t come here for the alcohol.”
“Okay.” Thea walked off to get another customer their drink.
“Came here for the atmosphere.” Xander called after her. “I used to go to a place. A lot smaller than this. Not nearly as nice. But still, I liked it. Used to go most nights.”
Thea came back. It was a quiet night, and at least this guy wasn’t hitting on her. Besides, bar tenders were supposed to listen to people in this kind of situation. “What happened?”
“Oh, it collapsed, along with the rest of my town.” Xander said airily. “So I'm here being all nostalgic.”
“I’m sorry.”
“It’s not your fault.” He looked at her and smirked. “At least I'm old enough to drink the stuff you serve here.”
Thea smiled and shook her head. “A man who doesn’t drink alcohol has no advantage over someone who can’t.”
The man tilted his head. “You sound like you’re quoting someone.”
“Maybe I am.”
“So, Miss Snooty, do you have the time?”
“You have a watch. Besides, what makes you think I’ll give you the time of day when you start calling me names?”
“You started it. And my watch is still on Portugal time. Normally I’d change it on the flight over, but I, uh, didn’t have a chance to do that this time. And I can’t actually remember the time difference right now.”
Thea told him the time, and Xander nodded and changed his watch. “Anyway, as nice as it’s been to be subtly mocked for drinking water at a night club, I’ve got to go. I’m expecting some to call me.” he flashed her a smile. “So, Miss Snooty, this is goodbye. Try not to laugh at people’s drink choices next time.”
~*~
The Mayor of Starling City was giving a speech. People in sharp suits and pretty dresses were listening raptly.
And a young woman wearing a fluffy hat was tugging on the sleeve of a security guard. “Excuse me.”
“Not now, girl.”
“Excuse me.”
“Look, girl, it’s my job to look out for threats. How am I meant to do that when you keep bothering me?”
“Well, about those threats… there are four guys wearing masks and carrying guns lying unconscious in a room down the hall.”
“What?”
“I did try to tell you, but you didn’t seem to want to listen.”
“Look, if this is a prank…”
Vi fluttered her eyes beneath her fluffy hat. She didn’t look like the kind of person to prank anyone. “Would I do that?”
The guard followed her, and sure enough, there were four unconscious masked gunmen, just as she had said. “Did you see what happened?”
“Oh yeah. I knocked them out.”
The guard whirled around in surprise. Vi held out a card. “We did try to talk to the Mayor earlier. We suspected that there would be some kind of threat today. Maybe you’ll listen to us now?”