Author: Gabby Spike (aka Elizabeth Wilde)

Story: Surprise Endings: 1 of 1

Series: n/a

Rating: PG-13

Pairings: Xander/other, hints of Buffy/Xander

Summary: Buffy goes to visit Xander after a long time apart.

Spoilers: nope

Category: General, Angst

Setting: none given

Disclaimer: I don't own the Buffy characters or the song "Love's Found a Shoulder" by Nanci Griffith. I'm just borrowing them, so don't sue, okay?

Distribution: Anyone who has my fic, anyone who wants it and asks.

Notes: none given

Feedback: Yes, please? Especially constructive. gabby_spike5@yahoo.com

Webpage: http://www.oocities.org/gabby_spike5/index.html

My friends think I'm crazy and maybe it's true
'Cuz I'll go on and love you this way
Though I have discovered that you love another
And hardly remember my name.

My youth was so crazy, my heart was so lazy
Love never could stand me still
Oh, but love's found a shoulder now that I'm older
With plenty of time to kill.

I wish you well for your new love
'Cuz true love is so hard to hold.
You'll be the one that I dream of
'Till I find a love of my own.

~Nanci Griffith "Love's Found a Shoulder"

Catheryn stretched and rolled over, knowing that if she got up, she would be admitting to the world that she was capable of movement and, therefore, able to go to work. "Hey, I'll pay you if you'll go in for me today."

From the other side of the bed, her husband groaned. "I don't want to go to //my// work. I'm definitely not going to yours."

"Got something against data processing?" she asked, turning enough to jerk the pillow from under his head and hit him with it.

"Oomph. Yes, I do." He sat up and swung his legs over the edge of the bed, pausing to glare at his alarm clock and blink at the sun rising outside the window. "It's boring."

"As opposed to being a secretary, which is a thrill-a-minute," she returned. Catheryn planted a quick kiss on her husband's shoulder before heading toward their closet. "We really should save up and buy a maid."

"We can do it with our spare money. And I'm not a secretary, I'm a personal assistant."

An ankle-length blue skirt and matching jacket, followed by a white blouse, landed on the bed. They were soon joined by some nylons and a pair of black flats. "Whatever you say, love." She cast around in her drawer for a few minutes. "Did you do laundry yesterday?"

"No, Tuesday is your day."

"Damn!" Catheryn went into the hall and fished a bra out of the hamper. "I suppose nobody'll notice. Not like I'm in the habit of rolling around in mud while wearing just my bra."

"Though I wouldn't discourage it," he added with a quick grin.

"So glad I married a comedian."

"Amateur comedian." He began pulling on his socks and wondering where he'd last seen his suit.

"Very." A gentle knock on the front door silenced them both. Catheryn sighed. "I know, I know, my turn."

"Yep. I dealt with the Avon lady. You get this one." He watched with a smile as his wife padded down the hall in her bare feet wearing only his nightshirt. //Whoever is at the door will be getting quite a show...//

He heard feminine voices speaking softly in the front of the house. Finally Catheryn returned, looking put-upon. "She wants to talk to you. But it still counts as a turn! Says her name is Buffy." When his face went deathly white, she cocked her head and asked, "Who's Buffy?"

"So, Xander, where you headed?"

"Fame, fortune . . . wherever the gas I have left in the tank will take me." Xander half-smiled, then ducked his head, studying the ground and wishing he had the courage to say what he really wanted to say. "Anya said I'd end up stranded on the side of the road before I hit LA I think she and Willow have a bet going."

"Oh." From her tone, Xander wasn't entirely sure she'd even heard him. "I guess you already said good-bye to Willow?"

"And Giles and Oz. Yeah. I just wanted to tell you... just you."

"Yeah." Buffy stared at him for the briefest of moments then began, "Well... that's it then? You're going to go and find a new job, new life, new place. We probably won't ever see you again, will we?"

"Sure you will! I'll visit, I'll write, I'll call. You'll be sick of hearing from me. Plus, there's reunions... which will be held in the burnt-out shell once known as Sunnydale High School, no doubt." He reached out and touched her shoulder. "Hug before I go?"

She smiled and fell against his chest. "Sure thing. I'm gonna miss you."

"Same here. Buffy, I..."

The Slayer pulled back, looking up at him with wide, beautiful eyes. "What?"

"Nothing." His hand brushed against her cheek then dropped. "Good-bye, Buffy."

"Bye."

"So, Buff... Been a long time."

She smiled sadly. "Yeah. Ten years? Maybe more."

Everything about her was exactly as Xander remember it except for the jagged scar on her right cheek and another on her left arm. She was still Buffy, still beautiful and deceptively delicate-looking. The tight jeans and black turtleneck she wore hugged her form in exactly the right places. "So how are things with... still with Riley?"

"Oh, God, no. We broke up... years ago." Buffy twisted her hands together and avoided looking directly at Xander. "There are been a couple other guys, but nothing that stuck. The world's oldest Slayer ever just doesn't seem to draw the hunks like she used to."

"Don't worry, Buff." Xander grinned and attempted to lighten the situation. "If I can find somebody like Catheryn that's willing to put up with me... you're bound to find somebody great."

Something in Buffy's expression darkened. "She seems nice. Willow said that you guys have been married for two years?"

"Yep. Two years next week. I tried to invite you to the wedding, but the invitation got returned."

She shrugged. "I've been moving around a lot."

"Find anyplace good?"

The Slayer shook her head. "Guess Sunnydale was my peak. It's been mostly downhill since then."

Catheryn walked into the room and leaned over the back of Xander's chair to give him a quick kiss before turning a smile on the Slayer. "It was nice meeting you, Buffy. Feel free to come by for dinner, okay? I promise I won't cook."

"Have a good day at work," Xander said with a smile, squeezing his wife's hand.

"I'm going to need it. Personnel review today. Yea. Bye, guys." Catheryn walked quickly out of the house and locked the door behind her.

"Never lost that Sunnydale safety sense, huh?" Buffy asked.

"Never. And if I ever have children, they too will lock their doors constantly, have high-tech security systems and train their dogs to kill those without reflections." Xander leaned back and Buffy got her first glimpse of how changed he was. Instead of a smile or a look of inadequate embarrassment, Xander wore a look of piercing scrutiny. "Okay, we've done chit-chat. You didn't come here after however the hell long it's been for that, though. Did you?"

With a sigh, the Slayer leaned forward, chin-length dark blond hair falling forward and almost shielding her face from view. Almost. "I wish I could tell you why I came." Her voice was s oft and almost broken, tears seeping into the words. "I don't know. I guess I just thought that if I could find something that wasn't scary and evil, something from when things were still good... I guess I'm trying to find the past." Buffy looked up and half-smiled, full lips trembling slightly.

"Hey," Xander rose, then knelt in front of her chair, dark eyes looking into hers, "it's okay."

Buffy smiled a little more and laughed. "It's okay? And why's that?"

"Because I said so, that's why," Xander replied with a sincere smile. "The universe must bend to the will of the Zeppo, Buff."

She smiled in earnest. "Nobody calls me Buff anymore." A pause. "There's nobody around to call me Buff."

"So don't stay away this time." Xander rocked back on his heels. "Stay here, get a place. You'll be welcome here anytime you want. And Cath even promised not to cook, so you'll survive the experience. Stay."

Buffy shook her head firmly and left her seat, stepping past Xander. "I can't. I can't live in the past. I'd be alone if I did. Nothing's the same anymore."

"No. No, it's all different." He followed her to the door, expression grave. "Different doesn't have to be bad."

"I know. Xander, I..."

"What?"

"Nothing." Her hand brushed against his cheek, then dropped. "Good-bye, Xander."

"Bye."