Something strange was going on, and Buffy was determined to find out what. It wasn't her slayer senses that were warning her. Those were usually fairly straight forward; something would attack, and she would kill it. Unless of course it involved a prophetic slayer dream, in which case, it would be incredibly vague and cryptic and only make sense after the fact, if even then.

No, the 'something strange' that was going on involved her friends. Lately, Willow had been edgy and secretive, sometimes hiding papers or shutting her laptop when Buffy approached. Xander, on the other hand, had been somewhat quiet and withdrawn, but when Buffy asked if anything was wrong, he'd just smile, say he was fine, and crack a joke. That was the trouble with Xander. If something was going on with him that he didn't want you to know about, he hid it behind a mask of smiles and sarcasm that could fool most people.

But Buffy wasn't most people. She'd been friends with Xander and Willow long enough to pick up a thing or two about reading them, and there was definitely something going on with those two. If it were close to her birthday, she might suspect that they were planning a surprise party with the way she sometimes found them whispering to each other and sharing pointed glances when they thought she wasn't looking. But her birthday had already come and gone, much to Buffy's relief.

Her other thought was that Willow and Xander might be venturing into not-just-friends-land again. But after that whole fiasco with Spike and the kissing and Cordelia falling through the floor, Willow and Xander had both seemed sure that it was a mistake.

So Buffy didn't think it was that, which left her back at square one where her two best friends were keeping secrets from her. The slayer in her didn't like being kept out of the loop, and the friend in her didn't like it much either. She just hoped it wasn't because they had found a prophecy that said 'the mayor will ascend and the slayer will die', because while everything worked out okay the last time that happened, Buffy didn't want to keep pushing her luck.

Buffy sighed and flipped another page in the book she was reading. After classes had ended for the day, the gang had met in the library for a little research. Currently, they were all sitting around the table scouring every book they had for even the slightest mention of the ascension or what it might entail, which basically meant they had digressed to Giles muttering under his breath while periodically cleaning his glasses, Willow and Xander playing 'top this demon', and Buffy pretending to read while plotting how to get the truth out of Xander or Willow.

Buffy figured her best bet was Willow. Willow hated keeping secrets, and if Buffy could just get her alone and apply the right amount of pressure, she was sure she could get Willow to crack. Now she just had to figure out how to get her alone.

"…and it has this paralytic mucus that it excretes from its…oh…ew…never mind." Willow scrunched her nose and turned to the next page in her book.

"No, no, check this out." Xander rotated his book and slid it across the table to Willow. "Have you ever seen anything that ugly?"

"Oh, a gwuerlfrawk."

"Bless you," Xander said.

"No, that's the kind of demon it is," Willow told him. "And, yeah, really ugly, but most of the time they take human form."

Xander made a disgusted face. "How does that work? I mean…where do they put all those tentacles?"

"I don't want to know." Willow scanned the page further. "But it says here they're like inventors."

Xander looked uneasy. "If this is the part where you tell me they invented modern television, I don't want to know. I've accepted that demons exist, I'm not ready to accept that they're responsible for late-night TV."

"Actually, they create demons," Giles commented absently as he sifted through the books laid out in front of him.

"So they're like the Dr. Frankenstein of the demon world?" Xander asked.

"That's actually a very good analogy. They tend to populate the Hellmouth and harness its demonic energy to bring their creations to life. Now, where did I put that translated copy of Rickfield's Demonic Phenomena…" Giles mumbled to himself as he stood and moved toward his office.

"Think that will be on Mr. Hargrove's biology final?" Xander asked.

"Not likely," Willow told him apologetically.

"See, we need a class on Hellmouth 101," Xander suggested. "That way there'd be at least one class I'd be sure to pass." Xander sighed and closed the book he'd been reading. "And speaking of passing classes, I better go study for that biology final. Nothing would suck more than to survive the apocalypse only to fail all my classes."

Willow closed her book as well and started gathering her things. "I'll walk with you."

Buffy looked up from her book, seeing her chance. "Hey Will? Could you stay a bit longer? I was wondering if you could help me with my French."

Willow looked at her in surprise. "Oh…um…sure." She turned to Xander, who had stopped to wait for her, and asked, "Do you want to come over later to work on that math thing?"

Xander stared blankly at her. "What math thing? We don't have any-" Willow gave Xander one of those pointed looks that Buffy was beginning to hate, and whatever she was trying to convey finally dawned on Xander. "Right…that math thing." Xander glanced at Buffy then, and she tried to look nonchalant. "Because I want to pass math too," Xander explained.

Yeah, they're real subtle, Buffy thought.

"Right," Willow added. "I'll see you later then."

Buffy watched Xander leave and waited for the library door to swing shut. She turned to Willow, crossed her arms over her chest, and, deciding to cut straight to the chase, bluntly asked, "Okay, what's going on?"

"What?" Willow asked, her eyes widening in panic. "There's nothing, I mean, why would you ask…there's really nothing going on."

Willow's eyes were begging her to believe, but Buffy had developed immunity to Willow-eyes. "I know something's going on. Why are you guys shutting me out?"

Willow's eyes evaded her gaze now. "We're not shutting you out exactly," she pleaded.

"Well, that's what if feels like," Buffy told her. "Why won't you talk to me?"

Willow was starting to get really flustered now; her hands made nervous gestures. "The thing is, I'm not sure if I should say or not. I mean, he didn't say not to say, but I thought if he was going to say, he would say it himself, but since he hasn't said anything, I don't know if should say, you know what I'm saying?"

"Not really," Buffy said, still trying to decipher Willow-speak. "But tell me anyway."

Willow sighed, and her shoulders slumped as some of the anxiety left her, and Buffy knew then that she had her. "Xander's dad isn't his dad."

"Say again?" Buffy really hoped Xander's dad hadn't been possessed because that never ended well.

"Xander found out that Mr. Harris isn't his real father," Willow revised.

"Oh," Buffy said and tried not to feel hurt that Xander hadn't confided in her too.

Willow must have noticed the expression on her face because she tried to explain on his behalf, "I'm sure the reason he didn't tell you wasn't because he didn't want you to know. It's just…with everything that's going on, he probably just didn't want to add anything more to the pile."

"Yeah, I guess." Buffy tried to smile convincingly.

But apparently it wasn't very convincing because Willow's brow furrowed in concern and she tried again, "Don't feel bad. I'm sure he was going to tell you just as soon as everything with the ascension was over and things calmed down."

"Yeah," Buffy nodded without feeling. It hurt that Xander had been going through something this whole time and had felt he couldn't talk to her about it. She didn't want him to think that he couldn't depend on her just because an apocalypse had popped up. Buffy tried to muster up another reassuring smile for Willow and then shrugged. "Well, I should probably get going. I need to check in with my mom and grab some dinner before I go out patrolling tonight."

"Ok," Willow said rather miserably, a guilty, worried expression still twisting her features. "I guess I'll talk to you tomorrow?"

"Yeah, sure," Buffy agreed before turning and walking out the library's double doors.

*****

Willow ushered Xander through the front door and up to her room only seconds after he knocked. She'd been fretting since the moment Buffy had left her in the library, and by now she was nearly vibrating with agitation.

Xander must have noticed because the first question out of his mouth was, "Did you not find anything?"

"Huh?" Willow responded, her mind still focused on the earlier confrontation with Buffy. "No, no, I found stuff." Guilt and anxiety were weighing on her so heavily that she just couldn't take it anymore, and she blurted out gracelessly, "Buffy knows."

Xander gave a single, slow nod. "Well, I had planned on telling her eventually anyway. I was just waiting for the right time."

"I'm sorry," Willow apologized. "She figured out something was going on and cornered me after you left. I didn't mean to, it just sort of came out."

"Really, it's okay, Will." Xander smiled, reinforcing his words. "She, ah…she didn't seem upset about it, did she? I mean…about my not telling her?"

"No," Willow said, then added, "well, maybe a little. Nothing got broken, though. That's gotta be a good sign, right?"

"Well, that, or she's saving it till the next time she sees me," Xander worriedly told her.

"Hey," Willow said, placing her hands on her hips. "She shouldn't be mad at you, she should be supporting you," she told him firmly. Willow didn't think that Buffy had seemed angry, but sometimes the slayer did have a tendency to react rashly and with violent outcomes.

"Ah, I'm sure it'll be fine," Xander waved her off. "I'll try and catch up with her on patrol…talk to her then."

Willow nodded. "Good idea. If there is any pent up anger, she can work out her unresolved feelings on vampires," she told him brightly. She couldn't count the number times she had worked things out with Buffy while Buffy had wailed on vampires or the stray demon or two.

Xander rocked forward, putting his weight on his toes before rolling back on to his heels. "So…" the word was stressed a little impatiently.

"Oh!" Willow, realizing that he was waiting to hear about the information she'd been able to dig up on his family, started and jumped up to retrieve a file folder from her desk.

They both sat on her bed, and Willow opened the file and sorted through the papers. "Okay," Willow said, gearing up for explanation mode. "I started searching through Kansas records dating back to a few years before you were born and found a John and Mary Winchester living in Lawrence, Kansas." Willow sifted through the pages some more. "I also found Lawrence birth certificates for two boys, Dean and Sam Winchester, born to John and Mary."

Willow handed the papers to Xander, and he stared at them a while before slowly nodding.

Willow pulled out another print-out. "I found this newspaper clipping from November 1985. It writes about Mary Winchester dying in an accidental house fire." She handed the clipping over.

"The search started getting more difficult after that. The trail kind of went cold not long after the fire. It's almost like they disappeared.

"I spread the search out and started looking for more recent stuff. There was a Sam Winchester registered at Standford-"

"Hey, that's not far from here," Xander said eagerly.

Willow made an apologetic face. "Yeah, but he's not there anymore. And we don't know for sure if he's the same one."

"Right," Xander said, somewhat disheartened. "Was there anything else?"

"Well," Willow bit her lip, not sure whether or not to divulge the next bit of information. "There was also a mention of a Dean Winchester in St. Louis a few months ago." Xander gave her an interested look and she grimaced before saying, "He was killed breaking into a woman's house. The cops suspected him of being connected to a murder as well."

Xander looked really dismayed at that, and Willow jumped in, "But, like I said, we don't know for sure that it's the same guy. It could be a completely different Dean Winchester."

Xander didn't look convinced and instead asked, "Was there anything else on John Winchester?"

Willow shook her head regretfully. "I'm sorry."

Xander shrugged sadly. "That's okay; at least you tried."

"I was thinking though," Willow said; she had an idea and she really wanted to find something positive to tell him. "They lived in Lawrence for quite a while, so there's gotta be someone there who knows where they went."

Willow shuffled through the papers till she found one with an address on it. "This is the address of where they lived in Lawrence. You might be able to get a forwarding address from the real estate company that sold it, or the people that live there now might be able to tell you something. If not, you might ask around town. Someone's bound to know something.

"You said you wanted to go on a tour of the States after graduation. If you ended up in Kansas anyway…" she left the thought hanging.

"Maybe," he said. Xander stared at the address thoughtfully, and Willow could tell he was considering the possibility too. Xander sighed then and began placing the papers back in the file folder. "Buffy's probably out patrolling by now. I should go find her. Mind if I keep these?" He gestured to the files.

"Of course," Willow answered. "They're yours."

"Thanks for doing this, Will," Xander smiled, but it wasn't as bright as it could have been.

"Anytime," Willow said as they walked down the stairs to the front door. "I just wish I could have found some more information."

"Hey, at least it's something," Xander conceded as they reached the door. "I'll see you tomorrow."

"See you then," Willow said, shutting the door behind him.

*****

The longer it took to find Buffy the more worried Xander got. Not for Buffy, of course, but for himself. Buffy could handle herself when it came to the things that liked to lurk in the cemetery, while Xander, searching alone through the shadowed graveyard, was at an extreme disadvantage when it came to fending off demons and the undead.

It would have been a lot simpler to track Buffy down if Sunnydale didn't have twelve cemeteries through which he had to search. He was just about to give up on Rosemont Memorial when a strange scuffling sound drew his attention to a clump of bushes off to his right.

"Hello," Xander called loudly, then cursed himself for doing something so stupid. "Good idea, Xander. Alert the creepy-crawly thing that you're here."

The scuffling noise sounded again, and Xander inched closer trying to peer into the dark depths of the shrub. He tilted head and leaned in a little further. If he only had a flashlight, he could-

Something clamped down on his shoulder in a strong grip, and Xander jumped and gave a girlish shriek. He spun around and was surprised to find himself facing a very bemused Buffy.

"Xander?" Buffy questioned wryly, raising an eyebrow.

"You startled me," Xander told her, still trying to get his breathing under control.

"Yeah, I guessed that with the girly scream and all."

"I'll have you know that was a very manly yelp." Xander gestured toward the bush next to them and explained, "I heard something scurrying around in there, thought I'd check it out."

Buffy's features took on that determined slayer look she got when she was hunting. She moved Xander aside and leaned in close to the rustling bush. She reached her hand out and was about to pull away some of the branches when something small, brown, and furry came darting out from the bush straight at them.

Buffy gave the girlish shriek this time and jumped back which caused her to knock into Xander which caused him to trip backward over a headstone which sent them both sprawling to the ground.

"Ugh," Buffy groaned and struggled to her feet. "Are you all right?" she asked, reaching a hand out to help him up.

Xander took her hand and let her easily pull him to his feet. "Yeah, I'll live. But that's probably going to leave a bruise," he complained.

"I can't believe I let Ricky the Raccoon get the drop on me," Buffy lamented, dusting bits of grass and dirt off her pants.

"Well, I'll tell you what. If you don't tell anyone I screamed like a girl," Xander suggested gamely, "I won't tell anyone that you…screamed like a girl."

They both frowned at the last part of his suggestion, each thinking that Buffy was a girl and therefore would scream like one.

Finally, Buffy merely shrugged. "Sounds fair to me."

It was then that they both remembered there was an unresolved issue between them that had yet to be addressed, and an awkward tension crept in and stilted their conversation.

"So what are you doing here?" Buffy asked. "I mean…besides checking the bushes for demonic raccoons."

"Actually, I was looking for you. Willow told me she told you, and I just wanted to tell you I'm sorry for not telling you."

"You know, you're starting to sound like Will," Buffy joked.

"I really am sorry," Xander said. "It wasn't that I didn't want to tell you, it's just with everything you've got going on with Faith and the Mayor and the gloom-and-doom day that graduation promises to be…I didn't want to give you anything else to worry about."

"Xander, the thing is," Buffy countered, "all that stuff I'm dealing with, I can handle it because you guys are there backing me up. That's what friends do, and I can't back you up if you won't let me."

"I know," Xander replied. "And did I mention how sorry I am?"

"No, you don't have to be sorry," Buffy sighed, waving off his apology. "I just…I want you to know that I'm here. You know I," Buffy stopped and glanced away, apparently having difficulty getting out whatever it was she wanted to say.

She moved to sit on one of the headstones, and Xander sat down next to her. "Back when I was living in L.A.," she started, "and I found out my parents were getting divorced…I didn't tell any of my friends."

Xander looked over at her in surprise. She had mentioned her dad before, but she had never really talked about her parents' divorce.

"I was going through this thing that I didn't think they could understand," Buffy confided. "I mean, how could they? Even I didn't understand it."

Xander nodded. He couldn't deny that he'd felt a little that way too. He could barely keep track of his own fluctuating feelings on the whole matter, much less sort them out enough to talk to somebody about them.

They were quiet for a moment, then Buffy added dryly, "And considering that my friends then were the biggest gossips in school, it would have ended up all over campus and probably on the six o'clock news. Anyway," Buffy shrugged, "I just want you to know that if you need anything, I'm here."

"I know," Xander said, contemplating for a moment what his world would be like if he didn't have his friends to rely on. "You and Will…I don't know what I'd do without my girls."

"How have things been at home since you found out?" Buffy asked carefully.

"Pretty much the same," Xander said ironically. "I'm not even sure he remembers telling me. It's quite possible that moment got lost in the drunken fog that is his brain."

"What about your mom?"

Xander shook his head. "She's trying extra-hard to pretend that everything's fine and dandy. Apparently that involves extra-wide smiles and baking lots of cookies. She actually offered to pack me a lunch yesterday, then asked if I needed any help with my homework. It was weird."

For as long Xander could remember, his dad had always been a verbally abusive drunk and his mom had been an absent-minded kind of mother who only played the role on random occasions when it occurred to her she was supposed to. He'd learned to fend for himself in most things, had learned to find his own lunches and dinners by the time he was school-age and had realized that if he needed help with something, he'd have to get it from someone other than his parents.

"It probably wouldn't be so bad if she didn't always burn the cookies. I just hope she doesn't try cooking a meal. I might die of food-poisoning before the mayor has a chance to kill us at graduation." Xander sighed and shook the thought away. "I guess she's trying though. Just seems like too little, too late.

"Dad on the other hand spends his time pointing out my every mistake and complaining if I try to exist anywhere that could be construed as 'in his way'; that, or he just ignores my existence completely. I haven't decided which one bugs me more."

"Yeah, I haven't heard from my dad since he had his secretary send me a lovely flower arrangement for my birthday," Buffy commiserated.

"We should start a club," Xander suggested without enthusiasm. "For people with dysfunctional and AWOL dads. We could call it KODD. Kids of Dead-beat Dads."

Buffy threw out her own idea, "Hey, maybe we could get Giles to adopt us. It could be just like it is now except we get to hit him up for money and presents." Then she added more seriously, "I really am lucky to have him as a watcher, looking out for me." She seemed to suddenly realize what she had just said and turned to Xander with a panicked expression. "You won't tell I said that will you?"

"Your secret's safe with me." Xander smiled conspiratorially.

"Good. If he heard me say that, he'd never let me live it down. Buffy, if you don't stop dropping that shoulder, you'll never be able to properly block. Now remember how lucky you are to have me," she mimicked without the accent.

They sat in companionable silence for a few minutes after that. Eventually Buffy broke the quiet again by asking, "Have you thought about finding your real father?"

"Thought about? Yes. Decided? Not so much." Xander shifted on the headstone and dug his hands into his jacket pockets. "Willow was able to scrounge up some information that might be about him…but there's still a big if there. It might not even be the same guy, and even if it is, there's a good chance I'd never be able to find him. And even if I did find him, I can't just walk up to him and say, 'Hi, I'm Xander and I think you might be my dad,' can I?"

Buffy shrugged unhelpfully. "I had someone just walk up to me and say 'Hey, you're a vampire slayer.' It can't get much weirder than that."

"True," Xander conceded, then sighed in frustration. "I just wish I knew what to do."

"Well look on the bright side," Buffy said. "If we survive graduation, you'll have the whole summer to figure it out."

"Yeah, key word there being survive." Xander noticed the offended look Buffy gave him, and he amended, "Which, of course, we will. 'Cause you're gonna kick that ass."

"Right, as soon as we figure out how I go about doing that." Buffy face twisted in an aggravated frown as she looked around the empty cemetery. "Man, what's going on tonight? You'd think there'd be at least one vampire out."

"Well, if you're getting antsy, we could always try scaring up a few more raccoons," Xander offered.

"Eh," Buffy replied as she stood and stretched. "I think I'll just head home and actually get some studying done. Unfortunately, a note that says 'the mayor is an evil demon' won't get me out of the last day of class. Besides, we've gotta get there early tomorrow to pick up our robes."

Xander stood too. "Right, the ever-elegant commencement robes complete with a goofy hat. That's supposed to be our reward for four years of hell? Wearing a goofy get-up while a photographer immortalizes the moment in print? Seems more like a penance to me. At least they'll make for some stylish death shrouds."

"Hey," Buffy said defensively as they began making their way out of the graveyard.

"Not that they will be," Xander corrected. "'Cause you're gonna kick that ass."

They left the cemetery together, neither knowing tomorrow would begin a landslide that would end in a massive battle, a giant snake-demon blown to bits, and the complete destruction of Sunnydale High.

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