*****

Xander listened as Willow told them all what Fred had just told her. Pain and rage filled him. He looked over to where Buffy and Spike sat side by side. Spike was still covered in bruises and Buffy was ignoring Spike. It hurt to see everything that was happening. His friends were falling apart and now Cordy had been sucked in by the First.

Taking a deep breath he stood and made his way towards the door. "Xander?" Willow called softly. Xander turned back to her and shook his head. He then walked out the door. It was time to stop this all he had to do was find out what started it in the first place and how to fix it.

Four hours later....

Xander sat in the middle of a circle of power. Around him white candles burned at the four corners. In his cupped palms were two clear chrystals. Closing his eyes he began to chant.

"Reveal to me the moment of change.
Reveal to me the moment of evils awakening.
Reveal to me what can reverse the awakening."

A few seconds later images and feelings began to play through his mind. Riley getting onto the chopper, the feel of Buffy's heart shattering. Then Glory's coming and Buffy ignoring her instincts in care of pride and not calling Angel in for help, because she didn't want him to see that her life had fallen apart. Then words poured into his mind and a spell took form.

Xander gasped and looked around him in shock as the spell ended. Knowing that he already had what he needed to complete the spell Xander began to chant again and to pray that it worked.

"Darkness has descended
Darkness has called
Evil is taking hold
Send away the evil
Bring back the light
Bring back the soul
Send away the evil
Turn time backwards
Turn time straight
Changed the worlds doomed fate
I offer my blood
I offer my heart
Turn time backwards
Turn time straight
Change the worlds doomed fate."

As the last word is spoken dark golden light fills the room and Xander disappears.

=====================================================================

Xander groaned and opened his eyes, for a few minutes he was confused and disoriented. Then memory returned and he shot up right in the bed. Looking around him he wept in relief. He was in the basement. Shock ripped through him as he saw the man laying beside him.

Doyle was a bit startled himself. He looked up at the handsome boy in confusion for several seconds then cleared his throat and sat up. "Hello there, it seems the spell worked." Xander nodded in dazed agreement. They sat further up and leaned against the headboard.

"Okay first thing we need to do is get a hold of Angel and Buffy. We need to bring the LA crew here and keep Riley and his friends from leaving. Then we need to get Spike." Xander ticked off as he rubbed his forehead.

Doyle grinned and looked over at the boy. "Right then, how do we explain to them that I'm alive and that you changed time?" Doyke asked amusement in his voice. Xander looked at him blankly for a moment then grinned.

"Well Angel and Cordy trust you and the Scoobies trust me. So you get The LA crew and I get the Scoobies. Though I think you got the better bet. Then we need to find a way to get Oz back here. The group needs him even if he didn't realize it. Also we need to get our hands on Andrew and Jonathon. I want to keep them from falling under Warren's influence." Doyle shook his head in amazement. Xander was not content with saving a few people, he wanted to save them all.

"I think we should start with those two and Spike first. Then move on to the others. We can chain them up her if we have to." Doyle and Xander snickered over that. "Okay lets go get Spike." Xander nodded in agreement.

The two men stood then froze as they realized they were naked and blushed. "Maybe we should get dressed first." Xander said looking away shyly. Doyle agreed and they raided his closet.

Doyle chose some of Xander's less loud clothing. "I'm getting out of this basement again as soon as possible." Xander growled as he pulled on his clothes. "Shit I gotta break up with Anya. So not looking forward to that."

Doyle winced, the boy had a lot of changes to make and very little time before Glory showed up. They could kill Ben, but neither man wanted to do that. Instead they wanted to find a way to sperate the two and kill Glory. To do that they needed to get evryone together.

*****
Part 2:

Xander stood outside of Spike's crypt and wondered how he was going to get the vampire to come with him without actually hurting the other man. Looking over at Doyle they both shrugged. Doyle made shooing motions and Xander sighed then knocked on the door of the crypt.

Spike sighed as he heard the whelp finally knock on the door. Unlike the others the boy actually knocked on the crypt instead of just barging in. It was just one of the many things he liked about the boy. Not that he would ever actually admit it. Though he did wonder who the other human with Xander was.

Finally he called, "Come in whelp, before some beastie decides ta eat ya!" Spike heard snickers coming from outside the door and the whelp's rueful laughter. a few seconds later Xander and a man that Spike thought was dead walked through the door. "Oi! Whelp what's with the dead man look alike?"

Doyle rolled his eyes in exasperation. "Your humor hasn't improved any since the last time I saw you Spike."

Spike raised an eyebrow, "I thought you were dead."

"I was, now I'm not." Doyle told him.

Xander chuckled again and walked over to Spike. "I need you to come stay at my place for awhile. Doyle will go with you. There's a Passions marathon on that you can watch." Spike's eyes widened and he wondered for a moment if something was wrong.

"Why? Somethin wrong?" Spike asked figuring there was no other reason for the whelp to want him around. Especially after the Adam incident.

Xander sighed and thought for a minute. Should he tell Spike the truth?

*****
Part 3:

"Let's sit down and I'll tell you everything thats been going on." Spike raised an eyebrow, but sat down in his recliner and wached as the boyu found a way to make himself comfortable on the floor.

Taking a deep breath Xander began to tell Spike every thing that had been happing since Adam's defeat. As he spoke Spike surged to his feet and began to pace as he listened in growing horror as the boy told him about the future. Spike cringed as he was told that he fell in love with Buffy, nearly raped her and ran off to get himself a soul. The whole idea sickened him. When Xander got to the part about the First Spike actually whimpered.

When he was finished he waited to see how Spike would react to the news. Doyle was also shaken. He knew why he had been brought back, but hearing all that Xander and his friends had suffered was shattering to the former demon.

"I want to help. We've got to get Buffy to admit she loves the tosser and we need to get Joyce into the hospital as soon as possible. She's a good woman, she invites me over for cocca." Spike told Xander as he passed.

Xander reached up and pulled Spike down into his lap. Both Spike and Doyle were surprised by this, but Xander didn't give them time to question. "Don't worry about Joyce. I know how to heal her. right know I'm worried about you. You need human blood or Sires blood to heal from what happened with the Initative right?"

Spike was confused, but nodded in agreement. He yelped in surprise when Xander lifted him up and turned him around so that they were face to face. "I want you to feed from me."

"WHAT?!" Doyle and Spike shouted at the sametime.

"I want you to feed from me. I know it won't set you chip off, so feed. You won't kill me." Xander's voice held utter confidence and trust. That alone was enough to convince Spike that he was telling the truth. The Xander he was used to didn't trust him or care for him in anyway.

Hunger began to drive at him and Spike could admit, if only to himself thAt he was starving. When Xander offered his throat to Spike again, Spike tool the offer up and delicatly bit the boy's neck.

Doyle watched in bemused silence s Xander fed his blood to the vampire. He feared that Xander's trust was misplace, but Spike stopped after only a few minutes. Doyle released a deep breath and watched as the pair parted.

Spike shivered with surpressed emotion. It hd been far to long since he had fed off of a human. It was even more incredible for him that it was offered so freely. From Xander no less. "What do we do next?" he asked euphoric.

"I gather the other two and take them back to the basement and you go there with Doyle. Then I go get the components of another spell and get rid of that fucking chip." Xander told him.

Spike looked at him in confusion. "Why would you remove my chip, are you going to soul me?" Fear made his voice crack.

"Never! Getting your soul drove you insane for awhile. I wouldn't do that to you. However I will bind you so that you can only feed on murderers and rapists, you know evil humans."

Spike gapped at him then laughed with relief.

Doyle chuckled, "There's an idea we need to give to Angel, the broody one needs more than animal blood also." The other two looked at him for a moment before laughing again.

"Look out world here we come." Xander chuckled again and looked at his helpers.

*****
Part 4:

Xander waked up to the front door of Jonathon's apartment and taking a deep breath knocked on the door. He was startled when Andrew opened the door. His chest ached lightly at seeing his reluctant friend alive. Andrew had been killed by a vampire the night before Willow told him about Cordy. Xander had been surprised by how much he missed Jonathon until he was gone.

"Um hello, can I help you?" Andrew asked shyly. He was surprised to see Xander Harris at Jonathon's door. He and Jon had a crush on the good looking boy. Xander was the outcasts hero. Buffy wasn't the only one who had saved people and they knew it.

Xander smiled down at Andrew and nodded. "Is Jonathon here? I need his help with something."

Andrew gapped at Xander in stunned awe. He wanted Jonathon's help? Cool! "Ah come on in." Andrew said and stepped back to allow Xander into the apartment.

When they reached the livingroom, Jonathon gapped at them. "Xander?" he squeked.

"Hey Jonathon, listen I need your help with something and I think that Andrew here can help as well." Xander told them as he sat in a chair and smiled charmingly.

The two boy were shocked. Andrew didn't even think that Xander knew his name. "What do you need us to do?" Jonathon asked excitedly.

Xander smiled and thought, *Gotcha!*

"Can you go over to my place, I have two friends that are waiting for you and they'll explain everything. I need to go gather a few things up and get ahold of a few people. Will you go over there for me, now?" Xander asked again using all of his conciderable charm.

Both young men agreed and Xander gave them directions. A few minutes later they all left the apartment and Xander headed towards the Summer house. He knew that Buffy was there visiting her mom and he wanted to see Joyce.

His mind was filled with knowledge and he knew he needed to use it to heal Joyce. Her death was part of what destroyed Buffy and set the world on its dark path.

*****
Part 5:

When Xander knocked on Buffy's door he was elated to see Dawn answer. he chuckled when she squealed his name and hugged him. "Hey Dawnie, hows my favorite girl?" Dawn giggled and pulled him into the kitchen where Buffy, her Mom, Willow and Tara were sitting. As she did she told him how good things were going and how wonderful school was.

Dawn looked at Xander in confusion when he came to an abrupt halt at the sight of the four other women who dominated his mind and heart. "Hello Xander." Joyce said pleased to see the young man. They were ll shocked whem Xander was suddenly rushing across the room and pulling joyce into his arms. Joyce was unsure what was going on, but she let herself be hld by the shaking and destraught young man. After a few minutes he turned and repeated his actions with Tara whi he had come to love like a sister.

Willow was shocked and concerned by Xander's behavior. There was also the fact that he felt different to her than usual. More powerful and confident. "Xander whats wrong?" Buffy asked as she lowered him onto a stool. He looked up into Buffy's eyes and couldn't help the tears that ran down his face. Her eyes held the same fire that they did before Joyce's death and her own.

Buffy allowed herself to be pulled into a three way hug as Xander pulled her and Willow into his arms. They were all alarmed when he began to cry.

Xander hadn't thought he would be affected this way, but the sight of his girls so happy and full of life broke apart the shell he had kept over his emotions. He desperately wanted Giles. "Call Giles please? Have him come her I'll explain every thing." Xander told them as he fought to get control of himself.

He had not intended to tell any of them about the spell, but they were his life and he knew that he couldn't keep the truth from them. Still shaken, but beginning to get comtrol of himself he sent out a mental call to Doyle. Their minds were still linked.

*Doyle, bring Spike, Andrew and Jonathon here to Buffy's. Have you called Angel?*

*Yeh, don't think he believed me though, actually on the phone with Mr. Broody now.* Doyle answered. He was concerned by what he was feeling from Xander.

*Tell him to come tonight and tell him to come to Buffy's. Make sure he brings the whole Fang Gang with him.* Xander told the seer.

Doyle agreed and the two broke contact. Xander wondered if he should bring the others in or if this was enough. He still had to find Oz and keep the soldiers from leaving town.

*****
Part 6:

Xander had refused to say anything to anyone until Angel and the others arrived. Spike, Doyle, Andrew and Jonathon had shown up at the same time as Giles. The older man was surprised to find himself in a tight hug. He just let Xander hold him for several minutes before Xander broke away with a watery smile.

What was even more unnerving was the fact that both Doyle and Spike were squeezed up against him and seemed to be giving Xander the comfort he needed. In the three hours they sat waiting and trying to get information out of Xander, Riley and his friend Graham showed up. When Riley was told what was going on, he was confused and decided to wait.

The fact that Angel was coming made him even more unnerved. Or at least a little more unnerved, the sight of Xander pressed against Spike was as unnerving as hell. Obviously something was wrong.

The knock at the front door was a relief for all of them. Xander wanted to tell everyone the truth and get it over with. He stood as Cordelia, Angel, Wes and Gunn came through the door. They were given another shock as Xander greeted Wes and Angel with a warm smile. Cordy started in surprise when Xander gave her a warm kiss on the forehead. She was confused by what was going on.

He nodded hello to Gunn, then stepped back so they could see who was in the room with them. At their first sight of Doyle, Angel and Cordelia swarmed all over him. They hugged him tightly and began to demand answers. Doyle silenced them and turned to Xander. "It's your show boss." Xander nodded and took a deep breath.

"I'm not your Xander, I'm from the future. Three years to be precise. In the time I come from, things are bad. Actually they're worse than bad." He stopped speaking and tears streamed down his face.

He took another breath and turned to face them again. Slowly he began to tell them everything. The girls were all sobbing by the time he was finished. Riley was sitting with his head in his hands and the others looked ill. "I came back to stop this from happening. To do this we have to stop Glory. To stop Glory we have to separate her from Ben." He turned to look at Dawn, who was staring at him with wide, horrified eyes.

Remembering how Dawn had acted the first time the truth was revealed, Xander went to her and pulled her into his lap. Cradling her close, he smiled. "Dawnie, you're thinking you're not real now, but you are. You're my Dawnie, my best girl. You're a gentle, sweet girl who is loved and cared for. Being the Key is just second place. No matter what happens, you are real and a vital part of our lives." Dawn burrowed into Xander's arms and felt safe there. That was Xander's gift, she thought, as she snuggled close to him.

Andrew looked at Jonathon with tears and fear in his eyes. "I won't kill him now will I?" he asked brokenly. The two held hands and looked at Xander in appeal.

Xander shook his head. "No, but we need your help. The stuff you did with Warren could be used to help us. You're both good with magic. We can always use extra back up. Are you willing?" They both nodded.

Xander turned to look at the Fang Gang and smiled. "We need you here. I realize that you helped a lot of people in the original time line, but a lot more are going to die if you stay in LA. Come home, Angel. This is where you're needed, where you belong. Your Childe needs you. We need you." Angel could only stare at him in dazed silence.

Xander turned his attention to Cordelia. "I have a way to make your visions easier to bear, but it will change you. You won't be completely human anymore."

His attention turned then to Wes. "Wes, I'm sorry for the way that I treated you. You're a good man and a damn good researcher. We could use your skills here. I hope you decide to stay. Gunn, I didn't get to know you in the other time line, but I know from Cordy that you're one hell of a fighter. We need you in Sunnydale. I hope you all decide to stay."

He then turned his attention to his family. "Buffy, you've got to tell Riley how you really feel. He thinks you don't love him." Buffy's eyes widened in shock, and her eyes went to Riley. "Riley, Graham, you guys need to have the Initiative doctors look you over. Those drugs that Walsh was giving you have messed with your heart. All of your buddies need treatment as well."

He looked at Giles and smiled sadly. "Giles, I'm so sorry for not seeing you for who you are. We need you. You're our rock and our father. Please don't leave us. You are not useless. Joyce, all I need to do is get the ingredients to the spell to heal you. I love you. I just wish I had a mother like you."

Finally he turned his attention to Willow and Tara. "Wills, I love you. You're my oldest friend and my sister. I am telling you now, you have to learn to control your magic before it costs you the best thing to ever happen in your life. Tara loves you so much. I don't think you realize just how much. I found a spell to help you control your magic, but you have to be the one to perform it."

"Tara, you are my family now and I want you to know, you're not a demon. Your family used that as a way of keeping control of the women in your family. You're human and you're beautiful and you're ours. So when your family comes, we're going to kick their asses and send them packing." Tara's eyes were wide and she began to cry. Willow pulled her into her arms and cuddled her.

"Any more bombs you need to drop Xan?" Buffy asked weakly.

Xander nodded. "Yeah, I'm going to bring Faith out of her coma and back into the fold, and find Oz and bring him home as well." They all gaped at him in astonishment.

That was a big bomb to drop.

*****
Part 7:

No one said anything for a long time; they just stared at him in stunned silence. Then Willow spoke, "I know where Oz is. He wrote to me and to Tara."

Xander smiled at her warmly. His family was together. He just needed to find a way to keep them that way. Though right now he was exhausted and in desperate need of sleep. He cuddled Dawn close and stroked a hand through her hair distractedly. As he did, memories of the other time line assulted him and he shivered.

"Xander?" He blinked and looked around him. Buffy was looking at him with worry in her eyes. "Are you alright?"

"No, but I will be," he answered softly.

"Damn right you will be. We'll make sure of it. We need to go back to LA and pack. I'll need to start looking for a place to live and we'll need an office. Xander, can you scope out a place for us while you're looking for your place? It'll need to be vamp proof and maybe have a living space as well." Everyone looked at Cordy in shock and confusion.

"What, you heard Xander, we're needed here. Besides, Doyle's here and I'm not letting him out of my sight," Cordy growled.

Xander laughed, the others grinned in relief and Cordy smiled in triumph. "You're one of a kind, Cordy," Xander told her.

She preened. "Well of course I am. So what are you going to change me into? Will it be alluring and special like me?"

"Of course, only the best for you. I'll get the ingredients for the spell when I get the ones for Joyce's. OH SHIT!" His eyes widened and he gulped.

"What, what's wrong?" Angel asked.

"Anya, I haven't told her we have to break up."

"Oh Shit!" the Scoobies echoed.

===================================================

Anya hummed to herself as she got ready to go and see Xander. They were going to be seeing the other Scoobies tonight so they would get to tease them by pretending she didn't know how to behave around humans. It was a harmless game, but they enjoyed teasing the others.

It was just one of the many things that Anya enjoyed about being with Xander. He was funny, attractive and excellent in bed. She loved him, but not the way he deserved. Sometimes she felt guilty for not loving him enough, but still hanging on to him.

The world was so different from what it had been when she was human. So much faster and so much crazier. Even as a demon she had very little contact with humans unless they were wishing for vengeance. Mostly she spent her time with D'Hoffryn and her friends. Now she was mortal, and stuck trying to find a way to belong again.

She shuck off her thoughts when she heard a knock at the door. When she answered the door she knew something was wrong, just from the look on Xander's face. There was pain and despair in his eyes, and he looked exhausted. She hated that look. Often times it was brought on by his friends. Secretly, she thought they used and abused him, but she never said it out loud.

"Xander, what's wrong?" she asked, as she pulled him into the apartment and to the sofa.

"Anya, I have something to tell you and it's going to hurt." She tensed, but listened as he began to speak. When he got to the part about him standing her up at the altar, she winced at the self hatred in his voice. Finally, as he finished, she felt numb.

Xander looked at Anya and waited tensely to see how she would react to their break up. He was pleased, and felt his heart break all over again, as she climbed into his arms and held him. Like Dawn, Anya always had the power to calm him. Despite the way they behaved around the others, Anya was loving and unselfish. It was because of her that he got over the way his parents and friends treated him.

They sat holding one another for a long time, before Anya straightened away from him and looked into his eyes. "Xander... You still want me around, right? I don't have to go away?" she asked hesitantly.

"Of course I want you around. I love you An, you're my friend. Besides, who else is gonna help me embarrass Giles?" The two laughed. They loved teasing the Englishman. They liked when he went all Ripperish.

===================================================

The next night found Xander walking through a house near the old mansion. Spike, Willow and Anya with him. They were all watching Xander. He was so different from what they remembered. He didn't talk to fill the silence, nor did he seem to vibrate with impatient energy. Instead, he was quiet and calm and had a feeling of surpressed action about him.

They had all been surprised by Xander telling them the truth about his family. Xander was wealthy, but he had wanted to do things on his own without touching his inheritance. Now that he had come back in time, he didn't care anymore. He could use the money to get a safe place to live and still work if he chose to.

They were all surprised that he would want to go back to construction, but he merely told them it was something he liked and was good at. Spike had just shook his head and agreed with the boy. After all, he had money he hadn't touched since Dru had gone off with the antler freak. Besides, pretending to be poor had gotten him in with the Scoobies, and closer to the source of his and Dru's obsession.

Spike wondered what they would do if he told them that Dru had released her Sire's hold on him, and that was why he had returned to Sunnyhell in the first place. Spike had become obsessed with Xander after Angel had given the boy to him. He figured it was the lack of fear, but excess of rage he had smelled off of the boy. Even Angel had been surprised by the boy's reaction to the ruse.

Spike also knew that the boy would have gladly staked both of them that night. Xander never forgot what they were. He worked with them, but he knew the potential they had for violence. During the whole Adam debacle he had had to work hardest on Xander, because the boy knew he was a liar. It was one of the many things Spike liked about him.

Xander stopped and turned back to the others. "Well, what do you think? I know it needs a little work. No one's lived here since Grams died, but I think it will work for us. Not to mention it will give us a place to live." Spike blinked when he realized the boy was talking to him.

"Us?" Spike asked hopefully.

"Yeah, us. Just think, hot water and free cable," Xander told the blond with a slight smile.

Spike chuckled, "I'm in, Whelp."

Xander's smiled widened, and for a moment some of the sadness left his eyes. Then he sobered. "I've got to go to the hospital now. Spike, can you walk the girls back to Giles'?"

Spike nodded, "Sure thing Pet, shall we ladies?"

==================================================

Xander walked through the hospital and down the corridor to the ward where Faith was staying. His dark eyes took in everything around him. When he reached her, his breath caught and he took a slow deep breath. She looked a lot like sleeping beauty.

Going to her bedside, he dragged a chair with him and sat down. Very gently he took her hand in his. Closing his eyes he began to chant:

"In the dark she lays,
No light to pierce her daze,
Into her mind I go,
to bring her back into the fold."

Xander's head slumped forward, and his head lay on his and Faith's joined hands.

When he opened his eyes he was standing in a surreal dreamscape. Faith was screaming at the night and the creatures that clawed at her skin. "Faith!" Xander cried, rushing to the wounded slayer.

Faith looked up at him in confusion and fear. "Xander? Have you come to punish me?" she asked brokenly.

"No, Faith, I've come to heal you and bring you home," he told her as he took her hand. As he touched her the dreamscape changed and they stood in a park. Faith looked around her in wonder.

Xander hugged her gently. "Wake up Faith, wake up and come home."

Faith gasped and looked around her in confusion. Her eyes widened as she saw Xander sitting beside her. "Are you ready to come home, Faith?" Tears filled her eyes and she nodded. She was going home.

*****
tbc