Fic: The Wonderland Subject (69/?)
What's this? Another chapter? Have I gone mad? Is this reality, or just some fevered dream?
CHAPTER SIXTY EIGHT
Xander moaned. Someone was making a lot of noise. Didn’t they realize he was trying to sleep? This was the first time he’d felt tired since waking up in the infirmary, and he wanted nothing more than to luxuriate in the relaxing calm of sleep. After all, he needed to make sure his strength was up so he could be ready for Franks and the other Wonderland Subjects.
Xander frowned in the darkness. Wait a second. When had he gone to bed?
His eyes slid open, and Xander was shocked to find himself lying flat on his back in the middle of the grass. He sat up straight and looked around, searching for the noise that had woken him.
It was Buffy, letting out those wordless grunts that meant she was fighting as seriously as she was able. Her hair was stringy with blood, and her clothing was torn and disheveled. Beside her was Captain America. Wisps of blond hair were sticking out from the cracks in his helmet, and dark purple splotches had stained the blue and red of his uniform. His jaw was swollen and blood was trickling out of his mouth.
And standing over them, bigger and more imposing than ever before, was Brute. His dull orange skin was tight against the bulging bulk of his muscles. Blood and dirt caked his body, and his eyes were wild with rage. Each of his hands were nearly half the size of Buffy, and they looked strong enough to tear through a car without any trouble.
Brute roared and tried to slam his hand down at Buffy, but she sprang out of the way just in time. Brute moved with an impossible quickness as he spun around and tried to swipe at Captain America, who blocked the strike with his shield. A loud metallic clang echoed around them as Captain America was propelled off his feet, but he landed in a three point stance that had him sliding along the grass before steadying himself.
Buffy suddenly leapt forward and threw a solid haymaker across Brute’s jaw, but was caught in a brutal counterpunch that caught her right in the gut. Buffy was sent flying back nearly twenty feet where she crumpled in a heap, unable even to cluch her stomach.
“Buffy!”
Xander felt the familiar lurch in his stomach. It was the same sensation he always felt when someone he loved was in danger. It was the same feeling he’d felt when he saw Willow trapped in Brute’s grasp. It was the feeling he’d felt before more strength than he had ever imagined flowed into him.
He raced across the distance towards Buffy, and managed to get there just in time to get between her and the pursuing threat that was Brute. Xander slid to a halt before her, fists balled as he stared up at Brute. The orange behemoth was easily twice Xander’s size.
“You stay away from her!” Xander yelled as Brute made to step forward. Xander chanced a quick glance back at Buffy. She was struggling to stay up on one knee, and was clearly in a lot of pain.
Brute’s eyes were nearly bulging from his head as he looked down at Xander. “Xander?” he said in a voice like thunder. “You ain’t my buddy no more! I hate you!”
“Oh yeah?” Xander said, sure that any moment now he would feel the power of the Hulk flow into him. He decided to try out some of that superhero quipping that Buffy did so well. “Well you’re a good-for-nothing so-and-so!”
Yeah, Xander thought triumphantly. Take that!
Brute roared again and swung a huge meaty fist at Xander’s head. Xander raised both of his arms to block it, but the strength of the blow crashed into him with more force than he could have imagined. The bones in his arms snapped with a crack that was muffled only by the louder impact of Brute’s fist against Xander’s body. The world went topsy-turvy around him as he suddenly found himself sliding across the dirt, his arms limp at his sides.
Xander was still struggling to get to his feet when Brute jumped the distance between them, easily leaping over twenty feet and crashing down to the ground before Xander. Brute’s roar ringed in Xander’s ears as Brute lifted both hands over his head. Then he swung both of his fists directly down at Xander.
Only to be stopped by Captain America’s shield. Crouched in the grass in front of him, Captain America grit his teeth as he held his shield overhead, bracing for another strike.
Brute pulled his fists up and swung them down again, driving Captain America into the ground with the impact of the hit. “I hate you!” he roared and then pulled his fists up and drove them down again and again. Though Captain America’s shield was able to take most of the impact, the force of the blow was still transferring through it with enough strength to make Captain America grunt with every hit. “I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!”
“Now would be a good time to go Hulk!” Captain America yelled at Xander, wincing with every inhuman strike.
“I’m trying!” Xander yelled back. His eyes watered with pain as he could feel his bones knitting themselves back together. He tried to focus on Buffy; on how much it scared him to see her that hurt. Brute could have killed her with a blow like that. Brute could kill Buffy.
He felt the familiar lurch of fear for her, but there was no accompanying sense of power. His skin did not change color, his muscles did not bulge, and his height did not increase. Fear crept up into his voice as he yelled back to Captain America, “I-I think I’m tapped out!”
“Great,” Captain America said through gritted teeth, as the berserk force that was Brute continued to rain blows down upon his shield, determined to either break through the unbreakable object or else shatter Captain America’s bones to dust with the utter force of it. There was no telling how long the shield could absorb those blows, especially if Brute was getting stronger as he got madder. Xander didn’t know if that’s the way Brute’s strength worked, but given the circumstances, it was a pretty good bet.
Xander’s mind raced as he tried to figure out what to do next. Buffy was still groaning behind him, Captain America was grunting in front of him, and Xander was stuck in the middle, unable to do anything except let his bones knit back together.
“Colzy,” an authoritative voice suddenly called out. “Stop it right now!”
Brute grunted. His fists were raised high over his head, but he kept them there as he looked up to the voice. Xander looked up too. It was Willow: her hair and eyes both a silvery white as she floated several feet above the ground. He had never been so glad to see her in all of his life.
“Please, Colzy,” Willow said, her stern voice fading into a calmer, more soothing tone. “It’s time to stop.”
“Nuh-uh! I hate witches! I hate you!” Brute screamed, then reached down with that impossible quickness of his and grabbed Captain America’s shield. He wrenched it free from Captain America’s grip, and with a scream of hatred, he flung the shield directly at Willow.
Willow cast her hands out at that same instant, and Captain America’s shield skidded harmlessly off of a bubble of yellow light that surrounded her entire form.
“You don’t have to fight us,” Willow said. “Please. We can be your friends, Colzy. You don’t have to fight anymore. I know you’re scared, but you don’t have to be.”
“Hate you!”
Brute sprang into the air, his huge hands outstretched towards Willow. She tried to move out of his range, but Brute was too fast for her.
Willow shrieked as the bubble of yellow light shattered at Brute’s touch. An instant later, his hand had encircled around her waist. He slammed back down to the ground, his feet sinking into the dirt a few inches before he held Willow high over his head.
“I ain’t a-scared of no witches,” Brute said with a snarl, and seemed to pause for a moment, as if deciding whether he should crush her to death or slam her down into the ground.
“Let her go!” Xander cried, reacting without thought. He sprang towards Brute and threw a heavy punch at where his kidneys should be, but Brute’s only reaction was to frown and look down at Xander.
“Nuh-uh,” Brute said. He turned to face Xander, Willow still held in one hand. “You ain’t my bestest buddy no more, so I don’t gotta listen to you.”
Willow screamed as Brute’s hand tightened. Xander cried out, “No! Stop!” but Brute paid him no heed. He grinned happily as he continued to apply pressure to Willow’s frail form.
“Colzy!” a different voice called out. It was a voice of powerful authority, and it made even Brute pause. He frowned as he looked behind Xander. Captain America was back on his feet. He strode purposefully towards Brute, index finger pointed up at him. “You put her down right now, mister. This instant!”
“Nuh-uh,” Brute said. “You ain’t the boss of me.”
“Whatever I am, I’ll tell you what I’m not,” Captain America said, standing as straight and tall as he was able. “I’m not your friend. Not if you kill that girl. None of us will ever be your friends ever again.”
Brute’s brow furrowed as he looked down at Captain America. He seemed to think for a moment, and then said, “I-I don’t care. You’re mean.”
“I think you do care,” Captain America said. He clapped a hand on Xander’s shoulder and added, “And I think Xander here cares too.”
Brute blinked and looked to Xander. “Xander? W-why?”
Xander felt the slight nudge of Captain America’s elbow against his middle, urging him to speak. “B-because she’s my friend too,” Xander said. “And, uh, if you hurt her, then, uh, we can’t be friends anymore, Colzy. I promise, I won’t ever be your friend. Ever again. Forever.”
Brute lowered his hand slightly and looked at Willow. “B-but she’s a witch. Witches is bad.”
“Not this one,” Captain America said. “She’s a good witch. A nice witch.”
“B-but she tried to hurt me. She tried to hurt Johnny. He’s my bestest buddy!”
“Xander!” Willow gasped out. “Xander’s your best friend!”
“Uh, yeah,” Xander said, trying to sound as convincing as possible. “You and me, Colzy. Best buds forever. Right?”
Brute blinked again, his face drooping somewhat in sad confusion. “But you lefted me all by myself, and-and-and you wasn’t there to be nice to me no more.” He hiccuped slightly as he inhaled a deep breath, then wiped the back of his free hand across his nose.
“I’m sorry,” Xander said quickly. “I’m real sorry, Colzy. I forgot. I didn’t mean to. I just forgot that we were best buds. But I remember now, okay?”
Brute lowered his hands so that Willow was left hanging only a few feet above the ground. “Sometimes I forgets stuff too,” he said with a sniff. “It’s hard to ‘member stuff all the time.”
“Yeah,” Xander said. “It’s tough. But you forgive me, right? It’s not my fault I forgot.”
“Yeah,” Brute said. “Yeah. It ain’t my fault neither. Sometimes it’s just hard to ‘member stuff, that’s all.”
“So you can trust me, right buddy?”
“Uh-huh,” Brute said. He wiped his nose again and said, “Cause we’re bestest buds, right?”
“Totally,” Xander said. “Bestest best buds ever. So, uh, you can put Willow down now, right?”
Brute looked to Willow, still clutched tightly in one of his massive hands. He sniffed once and then reached out to place her back on her feet. Then he pulled his hand back and said in a rather guilty tone, “Sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt nobody.”
“Th-that’s okay,” Willow said in a gasping voice. She quickly moved behind Xander and Captain America. She knelt down in the grass besides Buffy, the two of them recovering from Brute’s assault.
“Why don’t you sit down for a while, Colzy,” Captain America said. “Take a rest.”
Brute frowned a little deeper at this, then rubbed his eyes experimentally, as if testing to see if he was sleepy. Then his eyes lifted to the battle still commencing behind the others. Giant Men and Slayers were still locked in battle with Wolverine, Nick Fury, and the rest of their forces.
“But everybody’s fightin’,” Brute said. “Johnny said I was s’posedta help fight.”
“Don’t worry about them,” Captain America replied. He clapped a hand on Brute’s shoulder, which wasn’t easy given that his shoulder was nearly eight feet off the ground. “You deserve a break, don’t you?”
“Uh, yeah,” Brute said. He scratched the back of his head and added, “I guess so.”
“Well there you go. Why don’t you go sit down on the steps over there and just wait for us to finish up?”
“But what if people tries to hurt me?” Brute said, looking more to Xander than Captain America.
“They won’t,” Xander said, taking the chance to put a hand on Brute’s massive arm. “I promise, buddy. You’re safe with us.”
“R-really?”
“Really. I’ll make sure nobody hurts you. So will Cap here. A-and Willow too, right Willow?”
“Absolutely,” Willow said. “Nobody will try to hurt you, Colzy.”
“And you can trust her,” Captain America said when Brute gave Willow a skeptical look. “Because she’s a good witch, not a bad witch.”
Brute scratched the back of his head. “I didn’t know they was good witches. I thought they was all bad. I’m real sorry. I thought you was a bad witch.”
“Oh, that’s okay, Colzy. We’re friends now though, right?”
“Oh yeah,” Brute said, nodding his head eagerly. “We’s all friends.”
“That’s good,” Captain America said. “That’s real good.”
“I’m gonna take a rest now,” Brute said as he was led over to the half-demolished stairs that led up to the house. “I’m real tired.”
“You do that,” Captain America said. “Just sit down and rest.”
Brute nodded and sat down on the top of the steps. His huge feet easily reached the ground. Then he smiled to Xander and said, “I’m glad we’s still bestest buddies.”
“Me too, Colzy. Me too.”
The orange coloring to Brute’s skin began to fade away. Before Xander’s eyes, his massive bulk began to diminish. With every slow breath he made, his body became smaller and smaller. Within just a few seconds, Brute was gone.
In his place was a young woman, no more than thirteen or fourteen years old, with ice blue eyes and light blonde hair. She looked utterly exhausted, and was absolutely swimming in the huge pants and torn shirt that Colzy had been wearing. Large, innocent eyes looked up to Xander and said, “Xander?”
Xander stared back down at her. It took another nudge from Captain America for him to say, “Yeah. Yeah, it’s me. C-Colzy?”
She nodded up at him and said, “I think I had a bad dream.”
Xander knelt down beside her and put a hand to the side of her face. “It’s okay. You’re safe now. It’s over.”
“That’s good,” she said, and then wrapped her arms around Xander’s broad chest. He hugged her back as she put her head against his chest and closed her eyes. She made no attempt to let go, so Xander let her stay there.
“Keep an eye on her,” Captain America said. “We still have to finish the rest of Franks’ forces. Shouldn’t be too hard now, but things could still go sour.”
“I will,” Xander said. “But you guys have to check on Buffy. She might be hurt. She can’t handle the other Slayers or Giant Men by herself.”
“I don’t think we have much to worry about,” Willow said, and then pointed up behind Xander. Xander turned his head to find Thor standing over him, with Cyclops standing just behind him.
“It seems I’ve missed much,” Thor observed. He held the legendary weapon Mjolnir in his hands. “But not the entire battle, I hope.”
“There’s still glory to be won,” Captain America told him. “There are a few more giant men that we could use your help with, and a few more Slayers to subdue.”
“Then step aside, sons of Midgard,” Thor said as he lifted his hammer high overhead. “Let us put an end to this!”
“Uh, yeah,” Cyclops said as he adjusted his visor. “What he said.”
Xander just remained where he was, holding the teenaged girl that had once been Colzy, and wondering why everything in his life always came back to tiny women who could beat the ever-loving crap out of him.
CHAPTER SIXTY EIGHT
Xander moaned. Someone was making a lot of noise. Didn’t they realize he was trying to sleep? This was the first time he’d felt tired since waking up in the infirmary, and he wanted nothing more than to luxuriate in the relaxing calm of sleep. After all, he needed to make sure his strength was up so he could be ready for Franks and the other Wonderland Subjects.
Xander frowned in the darkness. Wait a second. When had he gone to bed?
His eyes slid open, and Xander was shocked to find himself lying flat on his back in the middle of the grass. He sat up straight and looked around, searching for the noise that had woken him.
It was Buffy, letting out those wordless grunts that meant she was fighting as seriously as she was able. Her hair was stringy with blood, and her clothing was torn and disheveled. Beside her was Captain America. Wisps of blond hair were sticking out from the cracks in his helmet, and dark purple splotches had stained the blue and red of his uniform. His jaw was swollen and blood was trickling out of his mouth.
And standing over them, bigger and more imposing than ever before, was Brute. His dull orange skin was tight against the bulging bulk of his muscles. Blood and dirt caked his body, and his eyes were wild with rage. Each of his hands were nearly half the size of Buffy, and they looked strong enough to tear through a car without any trouble.
Brute roared and tried to slam his hand down at Buffy, but she sprang out of the way just in time. Brute moved with an impossible quickness as he spun around and tried to swipe at Captain America, who blocked the strike with his shield. A loud metallic clang echoed around them as Captain America was propelled off his feet, but he landed in a three point stance that had him sliding along the grass before steadying himself.
Buffy suddenly leapt forward and threw a solid haymaker across Brute’s jaw, but was caught in a brutal counterpunch that caught her right in the gut. Buffy was sent flying back nearly twenty feet where she crumpled in a heap, unable even to cluch her stomach.
“Buffy!”
Xander felt the familiar lurch in his stomach. It was the same sensation he always felt when someone he loved was in danger. It was the same feeling he’d felt when he saw Willow trapped in Brute’s grasp. It was the feeling he’d felt before more strength than he had ever imagined flowed into him.
He raced across the distance towards Buffy, and managed to get there just in time to get between her and the pursuing threat that was Brute. Xander slid to a halt before her, fists balled as he stared up at Brute. The orange behemoth was easily twice Xander’s size.
“You stay away from her!” Xander yelled as Brute made to step forward. Xander chanced a quick glance back at Buffy. She was struggling to stay up on one knee, and was clearly in a lot of pain.
Brute’s eyes were nearly bulging from his head as he looked down at Xander. “Xander?” he said in a voice like thunder. “You ain’t my buddy no more! I hate you!”
“Oh yeah?” Xander said, sure that any moment now he would feel the power of the Hulk flow into him. He decided to try out some of that superhero quipping that Buffy did so well. “Well you’re a good-for-nothing so-and-so!”
Yeah, Xander thought triumphantly. Take that!
Brute roared again and swung a huge meaty fist at Xander’s head. Xander raised both of his arms to block it, but the strength of the blow crashed into him with more force than he could have imagined. The bones in his arms snapped with a crack that was muffled only by the louder impact of Brute’s fist against Xander’s body. The world went topsy-turvy around him as he suddenly found himself sliding across the dirt, his arms limp at his sides.
Xander was still struggling to get to his feet when Brute jumped the distance between them, easily leaping over twenty feet and crashing down to the ground before Xander. Brute’s roar ringed in Xander’s ears as Brute lifted both hands over his head. Then he swung both of his fists directly down at Xander.
Only to be stopped by Captain America’s shield. Crouched in the grass in front of him, Captain America grit his teeth as he held his shield overhead, bracing for another strike.
Brute pulled his fists up and swung them down again, driving Captain America into the ground with the impact of the hit. “I hate you!” he roared and then pulled his fists up and drove them down again and again. Though Captain America’s shield was able to take most of the impact, the force of the blow was still transferring through it with enough strength to make Captain America grunt with every hit. “I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!”
“Now would be a good time to go Hulk!” Captain America yelled at Xander, wincing with every inhuman strike.
“I’m trying!” Xander yelled back. His eyes watered with pain as he could feel his bones knitting themselves back together. He tried to focus on Buffy; on how much it scared him to see her that hurt. Brute could have killed her with a blow like that. Brute could kill Buffy.
He felt the familiar lurch of fear for her, but there was no accompanying sense of power. His skin did not change color, his muscles did not bulge, and his height did not increase. Fear crept up into his voice as he yelled back to Captain America, “I-I think I’m tapped out!”
“Great,” Captain America said through gritted teeth, as the berserk force that was Brute continued to rain blows down upon his shield, determined to either break through the unbreakable object or else shatter Captain America’s bones to dust with the utter force of it. There was no telling how long the shield could absorb those blows, especially if Brute was getting stronger as he got madder. Xander didn’t know if that’s the way Brute’s strength worked, but given the circumstances, it was a pretty good bet.
Xander’s mind raced as he tried to figure out what to do next. Buffy was still groaning behind him, Captain America was grunting in front of him, and Xander was stuck in the middle, unable to do anything except let his bones knit back together.
“Colzy,” an authoritative voice suddenly called out. “Stop it right now!”
Brute grunted. His fists were raised high over his head, but he kept them there as he looked up to the voice. Xander looked up too. It was Willow: her hair and eyes both a silvery white as she floated several feet above the ground. He had never been so glad to see her in all of his life.
“Please, Colzy,” Willow said, her stern voice fading into a calmer, more soothing tone. “It’s time to stop.”
“Nuh-uh! I hate witches! I hate you!” Brute screamed, then reached down with that impossible quickness of his and grabbed Captain America’s shield. He wrenched it free from Captain America’s grip, and with a scream of hatred, he flung the shield directly at Willow.
Willow cast her hands out at that same instant, and Captain America’s shield skidded harmlessly off of a bubble of yellow light that surrounded her entire form.
“You don’t have to fight us,” Willow said. “Please. We can be your friends, Colzy. You don’t have to fight anymore. I know you’re scared, but you don’t have to be.”
“Hate you!”
Brute sprang into the air, his huge hands outstretched towards Willow. She tried to move out of his range, but Brute was too fast for her.
Willow shrieked as the bubble of yellow light shattered at Brute’s touch. An instant later, his hand had encircled around her waist. He slammed back down to the ground, his feet sinking into the dirt a few inches before he held Willow high over his head.
“I ain’t a-scared of no witches,” Brute said with a snarl, and seemed to pause for a moment, as if deciding whether he should crush her to death or slam her down into the ground.
“Let her go!” Xander cried, reacting without thought. He sprang towards Brute and threw a heavy punch at where his kidneys should be, but Brute’s only reaction was to frown and look down at Xander.
“Nuh-uh,” Brute said. He turned to face Xander, Willow still held in one hand. “You ain’t my bestest buddy no more, so I don’t gotta listen to you.”
Willow screamed as Brute’s hand tightened. Xander cried out, “No! Stop!” but Brute paid him no heed. He grinned happily as he continued to apply pressure to Willow’s frail form.
“Colzy!” a different voice called out. It was a voice of powerful authority, and it made even Brute pause. He frowned as he looked behind Xander. Captain America was back on his feet. He strode purposefully towards Brute, index finger pointed up at him. “You put her down right now, mister. This instant!”
“Nuh-uh,” Brute said. “You ain’t the boss of me.”
“Whatever I am, I’ll tell you what I’m not,” Captain America said, standing as straight and tall as he was able. “I’m not your friend. Not if you kill that girl. None of us will ever be your friends ever again.”
Brute’s brow furrowed as he looked down at Captain America. He seemed to think for a moment, and then said, “I-I don’t care. You’re mean.”
“I think you do care,” Captain America said. He clapped a hand on Xander’s shoulder and added, “And I think Xander here cares too.”
Brute blinked and looked to Xander. “Xander? W-why?”
Xander felt the slight nudge of Captain America’s elbow against his middle, urging him to speak. “B-because she’s my friend too,” Xander said. “And, uh, if you hurt her, then, uh, we can’t be friends anymore, Colzy. I promise, I won’t ever be your friend. Ever again. Forever.”
Brute lowered his hand slightly and looked at Willow. “B-but she’s a witch. Witches is bad.”
“Not this one,” Captain America said. “She’s a good witch. A nice witch.”
“B-but she tried to hurt me. She tried to hurt Johnny. He’s my bestest buddy!”
“Xander!” Willow gasped out. “Xander’s your best friend!”
“Uh, yeah,” Xander said, trying to sound as convincing as possible. “You and me, Colzy. Best buds forever. Right?”
Brute blinked again, his face drooping somewhat in sad confusion. “But you lefted me all by myself, and-and-and you wasn’t there to be nice to me no more.” He hiccuped slightly as he inhaled a deep breath, then wiped the back of his free hand across his nose.
“I’m sorry,” Xander said quickly. “I’m real sorry, Colzy. I forgot. I didn’t mean to. I just forgot that we were best buds. But I remember now, okay?”
Brute lowered his hands so that Willow was left hanging only a few feet above the ground. “Sometimes I forgets stuff too,” he said with a sniff. “It’s hard to ‘member stuff all the time.”
“Yeah,” Xander said. “It’s tough. But you forgive me, right? It’s not my fault I forgot.”
“Yeah,” Brute said. “Yeah. It ain’t my fault neither. Sometimes it’s just hard to ‘member stuff, that’s all.”
“So you can trust me, right buddy?”
“Uh-huh,” Brute said. He wiped his nose again and said, “Cause we’re bestest buds, right?”
“Totally,” Xander said. “Bestest best buds ever. So, uh, you can put Willow down now, right?”
Brute looked to Willow, still clutched tightly in one of his massive hands. He sniffed once and then reached out to place her back on her feet. Then he pulled his hand back and said in a rather guilty tone, “Sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt nobody.”
“Th-that’s okay,” Willow said in a gasping voice. She quickly moved behind Xander and Captain America. She knelt down in the grass besides Buffy, the two of them recovering from Brute’s assault.
“Why don’t you sit down for a while, Colzy,” Captain America said. “Take a rest.”
Brute frowned a little deeper at this, then rubbed his eyes experimentally, as if testing to see if he was sleepy. Then his eyes lifted to the battle still commencing behind the others. Giant Men and Slayers were still locked in battle with Wolverine, Nick Fury, and the rest of their forces.
“But everybody’s fightin’,” Brute said. “Johnny said I was s’posedta help fight.”
“Don’t worry about them,” Captain America replied. He clapped a hand on Brute’s shoulder, which wasn’t easy given that his shoulder was nearly eight feet off the ground. “You deserve a break, don’t you?”
“Uh, yeah,” Brute said. He scratched the back of his head and added, “I guess so.”
“Well there you go. Why don’t you go sit down on the steps over there and just wait for us to finish up?”
“But what if people tries to hurt me?” Brute said, looking more to Xander than Captain America.
“They won’t,” Xander said, taking the chance to put a hand on Brute’s massive arm. “I promise, buddy. You’re safe with us.”
“R-really?”
“Really. I’ll make sure nobody hurts you. So will Cap here. A-and Willow too, right Willow?”
“Absolutely,” Willow said. “Nobody will try to hurt you, Colzy.”
“And you can trust her,” Captain America said when Brute gave Willow a skeptical look. “Because she’s a good witch, not a bad witch.”
Brute scratched the back of his head. “I didn’t know they was good witches. I thought they was all bad. I’m real sorry. I thought you was a bad witch.”
“Oh, that’s okay, Colzy. We’re friends now though, right?”
“Oh yeah,” Brute said, nodding his head eagerly. “We’s all friends.”
“That’s good,” Captain America said. “That’s real good.”
“I’m gonna take a rest now,” Brute said as he was led over to the half-demolished stairs that led up to the house. “I’m real tired.”
“You do that,” Captain America said. “Just sit down and rest.”
Brute nodded and sat down on the top of the steps. His huge feet easily reached the ground. Then he smiled to Xander and said, “I’m glad we’s still bestest buddies.”
“Me too, Colzy. Me too.”
The orange coloring to Brute’s skin began to fade away. Before Xander’s eyes, his massive bulk began to diminish. With every slow breath he made, his body became smaller and smaller. Within just a few seconds, Brute was gone.
In his place was a young woman, no more than thirteen or fourteen years old, with ice blue eyes and light blonde hair. She looked utterly exhausted, and was absolutely swimming in the huge pants and torn shirt that Colzy had been wearing. Large, innocent eyes looked up to Xander and said, “Xander?”
Xander stared back down at her. It took another nudge from Captain America for him to say, “Yeah. Yeah, it’s me. C-Colzy?”
She nodded up at him and said, “I think I had a bad dream.”
Xander knelt down beside her and put a hand to the side of her face. “It’s okay. You’re safe now. It’s over.”
“That’s good,” she said, and then wrapped her arms around Xander’s broad chest. He hugged her back as she put her head against his chest and closed her eyes. She made no attempt to let go, so Xander let her stay there.
“Keep an eye on her,” Captain America said. “We still have to finish the rest of Franks’ forces. Shouldn’t be too hard now, but things could still go sour.”
“I will,” Xander said. “But you guys have to check on Buffy. She might be hurt. She can’t handle the other Slayers or Giant Men by herself.”
“I don’t think we have much to worry about,” Willow said, and then pointed up behind Xander. Xander turned his head to find Thor standing over him, with Cyclops standing just behind him.
“It seems I’ve missed much,” Thor observed. He held the legendary weapon Mjolnir in his hands. “But not the entire battle, I hope.”
“There’s still glory to be won,” Captain America told him. “There are a few more giant men that we could use your help with, and a few more Slayers to subdue.”
“Then step aside, sons of Midgard,” Thor said as he lifted his hammer high overhead. “Let us put an end to this!”
“Uh, yeah,” Cyclops said as he adjusted his visor. “What he said.”
Xander just remained where he was, holding the teenaged girl that had once been Colzy, and wondering why everything in his life always came back to tiny women who could beat the ever-loving crap out of him.