Safe as Houses (0/?)
Eventually (we hope) co written with mypetorchid
Safe as Houses (working title)
Prologue
". . . and then Marcus pulled up in his jeep, screaming something in Swahili at the lions." Xander gestured grandly with his fork, flinging tomato sauce across the white table cloth. "They flipped out, and I thought for sure they were going to eat me, but Marcus fired a shot right between the pride alpha's legs and Asabi yanked me right into the jeep before the females could get at me. I swear, the whole pride chased us halfway back to the village, but Asabi just kept glaring at them and Marcus kept firing shots, and they finally turned away."
Dawn nodded, poking her fork into the greens of her salad, her hair falling over her face. Xander smiled slightly. "Of course, that wasn't until after the man-eating zebra demon bit off my right leg."
Dawn broke a crouton in half against the side of her plate.
"But Taye, the village elder, promised to grow it back for me within a week. He said he'd grow my eye back, too, but I was all like ‘Bah! I have no need for a left eye!'"
Dawn took a long, gurgling sip of her fifth ginger ale, finishing it off. She kept nodding.
"Of course, he was abducted by the aliens before he could finish growing the leg back, which is why I've cleverly used an abacus as a false foot."
Dawn blinked. She glanced up from her soda to see Xander grinning at her, both eyebrows arched. She flung an olive at him, hitting him square in the nose. "Cut it out."
"Well, if I can't keep you entertained with death-defying escapes from ravenous lions, I'm going to have to get a little creative." Xander sucked the last of his spaghetti into his mouth, studying the girl sitting across from him. "You okay?"
"Yeah." Dawn smiled sheepishly, pushing her hair back behind her ear. "Finals, you know? I'm just tired. I'll be so happy when this semester is over."
"Uh-huh." Xander smiled again. "And I'm sure your exhaustion has nothing at all to do with the wild Princeton parties you've been attending every night?"
"I'm not partying."
"Sure, of course not. No partying for the Dawn-patrol." Xander reached for another slice of garlic bread. "I may not have gone to college myself, Dawnie, but I do know what goes on on those campuses. I promise not to tell on you. Now dish."
"Nothing to dish." Dawn blinked several times, then held her eyes wide open for a moment. "Really, I haven't had the energy to do much partying as well as classes and papers and stuff. Who knew ancient languages would be so . . . ."
"Dull?"
"Work intensive." Dawn shrugged. "I've been getting these big headaches most nights, so I pretty much just stay in. I think I might need glasses, or something. I haven't even gone on patrol or anything."
Xander frowned. "Patrol?" He looked thoughtful for a moment, lapsing into what Dawn referred to as his Giles-mode. It was a side effect of working as a watcher, as much as Xander would deny the title. "I know Princeton doesn't have a slayer. Do you want us to send one in? Have there been vampire related deaths?"
"Not that I know of." Dawn shrugged again. "Can I have some of your water?" She grabbed his glass before he could reply. "Actually, New Jersey seems to be really quiet on the supernatural front. I haven't encountered anything woodge-y at all."
The waiter chose that moment to arrive at their table and remove Xander's now-empty pasta bowl. Dawn pushed her salad to one side to indicate he could remove that as well.
"Would you like a box for that, miss?"
Dawn shook her head, looking a little nauseous. "No thanks." The waiter nodded and moved on. Xander leaned forward.
"Okay, Italian food might have been a bad idea, what with you having lived in Italy for a year. But the salad wasn't that bad, was it?"
Dawn looked down. "Just not that hungry. Can we head back to the dorms now?"
Xander nodded, trying to catch her eye. "Soon as I pay the check. Those finals must be killer."
"The worst. Only one to go, though, and then I'll be all yours, I promise. I mean, here you are, all the way from Africa, and the first Scooby to come visit me at college. I'm being a bad hostess. Do you want to rent a movie, or anything?"
"Sure." Xander sat back a little. "I'm all behind on all the new-releases. We can have a wild movie marathon or something." He glanced at the folds of skin below her eyes. "A low-key wild movie marathon. And you can tell me all about the college adventures you're currently denying that you've had."
Dawn grinned, shaking her head. The waiter came back over with their bill, and Xander pulled out a couple bills. He slipped them into the folder, then pulled them back out with a blink. He peered at them, noting the bright colors, then smiled sheepishly, shoving them back into his wallet and pulling out a credit card. "On the way to the video store, can we stop at a bank? Looks like I forgot to exchange my cash at the airport."
Dawn didn't reply. She had her hand resting against her forehead, her eyes shut.
"Dawn?"
She swayed alarmingly for a moment, then snapped her eyes open. Xander stood, moving around the table. She leaned against him. "Dawn, you okay?"
She still didn't say anything. Xander held her upright as he crouched down next to her. Her eyes fell shut again. "Okay, no bank, now stop kidding around."
She let out a low moan and collapsed against him.
"Dawn? Dawn!" Xander shook her, then lowered her to the floor. He leaned over her, his hand jumping quickly to her throat as he checked to see if she was breathing. He cursed, then spun and locked eyes with a shocked looking hostess and her customers. "You! Blue-jacket guy! Call 911. Tell them--" he swallowed. "She's not breathing." The man twitched, staring down at them. "Go!" He yanked a cell phone out of his pocket and started dialing. Xander turned back to Dawn, his fingers still pressing against her neck. He could feel her pulse slowing down, and he shifted into position by her side, glancing back at the hostess. "Do you people have an AED machine?"
She nodded, then spun and ran for the kitchen. Xander bent down low over Dawn, tilted her head back, pinched her nose, and swallowed.
For the second time in his life he thanked Mrs. Rosenberg for signing him and Willow up for CPR training. It looked like it was about to save the life of another Summers.
Taye - African male's name meaning "He has been seen"
Asabi - African girl's name meaning "One of select birth" (perfect slayer name!)
Safe as Houses (working title)
Prologue
". . . and then Marcus pulled up in his jeep, screaming something in Swahili at the lions." Xander gestured grandly with his fork, flinging tomato sauce across the white table cloth. "They flipped out, and I thought for sure they were going to eat me, but Marcus fired a shot right between the pride alpha's legs and Asabi yanked me right into the jeep before the females could get at me. I swear, the whole pride chased us halfway back to the village, but Asabi just kept glaring at them and Marcus kept firing shots, and they finally turned away."
Dawn nodded, poking her fork into the greens of her salad, her hair falling over her face. Xander smiled slightly. "Of course, that wasn't until after the man-eating zebra demon bit off my right leg."
Dawn broke a crouton in half against the side of her plate.
"But Taye, the village elder, promised to grow it back for me within a week. He said he'd grow my eye back, too, but I was all like ‘Bah! I have no need for a left eye!'"
Dawn took a long, gurgling sip of her fifth ginger ale, finishing it off. She kept nodding.
"Of course, he was abducted by the aliens before he could finish growing the leg back, which is why I've cleverly used an abacus as a false foot."
Dawn blinked. She glanced up from her soda to see Xander grinning at her, both eyebrows arched. She flung an olive at him, hitting him square in the nose. "Cut it out."
"Well, if I can't keep you entertained with death-defying escapes from ravenous lions, I'm going to have to get a little creative." Xander sucked the last of his spaghetti into his mouth, studying the girl sitting across from him. "You okay?"
"Yeah." Dawn smiled sheepishly, pushing her hair back behind her ear. "Finals, you know? I'm just tired. I'll be so happy when this semester is over."
"Uh-huh." Xander smiled again. "And I'm sure your exhaustion has nothing at all to do with the wild Princeton parties you've been attending every night?"
"I'm not partying."
"Sure, of course not. No partying for the Dawn-patrol." Xander reached for another slice of garlic bread. "I may not have gone to college myself, Dawnie, but I do know what goes on on those campuses. I promise not to tell on you. Now dish."
"Nothing to dish." Dawn blinked several times, then held her eyes wide open for a moment. "Really, I haven't had the energy to do much partying as well as classes and papers and stuff. Who knew ancient languages would be so . . . ."
"Dull?"
"Work intensive." Dawn shrugged. "I've been getting these big headaches most nights, so I pretty much just stay in. I think I might need glasses, or something. I haven't even gone on patrol or anything."
Xander frowned. "Patrol?" He looked thoughtful for a moment, lapsing into what Dawn referred to as his Giles-mode. It was a side effect of working as a watcher, as much as Xander would deny the title. "I know Princeton doesn't have a slayer. Do you want us to send one in? Have there been vampire related deaths?"
"Not that I know of." Dawn shrugged again. "Can I have some of your water?" She grabbed his glass before he could reply. "Actually, New Jersey seems to be really quiet on the supernatural front. I haven't encountered anything woodge-y at all."
The waiter chose that moment to arrive at their table and remove Xander's now-empty pasta bowl. Dawn pushed her salad to one side to indicate he could remove that as well.
"Would you like a box for that, miss?"
Dawn shook her head, looking a little nauseous. "No thanks." The waiter nodded and moved on. Xander leaned forward.
"Okay, Italian food might have been a bad idea, what with you having lived in Italy for a year. But the salad wasn't that bad, was it?"
Dawn looked down. "Just not that hungry. Can we head back to the dorms now?"
Xander nodded, trying to catch her eye. "Soon as I pay the check. Those finals must be killer."
"The worst. Only one to go, though, and then I'll be all yours, I promise. I mean, here you are, all the way from Africa, and the first Scooby to come visit me at college. I'm being a bad hostess. Do you want to rent a movie, or anything?"
"Sure." Xander sat back a little. "I'm all behind on all the new-releases. We can have a wild movie marathon or something." He glanced at the folds of skin below her eyes. "A low-key wild movie marathon. And you can tell me all about the college adventures you're currently denying that you've had."
Dawn grinned, shaking her head. The waiter came back over with their bill, and Xander pulled out a couple bills. He slipped them into the folder, then pulled them back out with a blink. He peered at them, noting the bright colors, then smiled sheepishly, shoving them back into his wallet and pulling out a credit card. "On the way to the video store, can we stop at a bank? Looks like I forgot to exchange my cash at the airport."
Dawn didn't reply. She had her hand resting against her forehead, her eyes shut.
"Dawn?"
She swayed alarmingly for a moment, then snapped her eyes open. Xander stood, moving around the table. She leaned against him. "Dawn, you okay?"
She still didn't say anything. Xander held her upright as he crouched down next to her. Her eyes fell shut again. "Okay, no bank, now stop kidding around."
She let out a low moan and collapsed against him.
"Dawn? Dawn!" Xander shook her, then lowered her to the floor. He leaned over her, his hand jumping quickly to her throat as he checked to see if she was breathing. He cursed, then spun and locked eyes with a shocked looking hostess and her customers. "You! Blue-jacket guy! Call 911. Tell them--" he swallowed. "She's not breathing." The man twitched, staring down at them. "Go!" He yanked a cell phone out of his pocket and started dialing. Xander turned back to Dawn, his fingers still pressing against her neck. He could feel her pulse slowing down, and he shifted into position by her side, glancing back at the hostess. "Do you people have an AED machine?"
She nodded, then spun and ran for the kitchen. Xander bent down low over Dawn, tilted her head back, pinched her nose, and swallowed.
For the second time in his life he thanked Mrs. Rosenberg for signing him and Willow up for CPR training. It looked like it was about to save the life of another Summers.
Taye - African male's name meaning "He has been seen"
Asabi - African girl's name meaning "One of select birth" (perfect slayer name!)