I always thought he was a much better friend to Buffy than Willow ever was, in spite of his judgmental ways. Willow always things her way. But for Xander, in the end, he's always there for Buffy and willing to make sacrifices for her. He just needs time to wake up and let the "get it" sink in so that he can get it.
That's why I loved this chapter...because Xander remembered that his friendship with Buffy is more important than his righteousness and acted like a grown-up and showed her in a very sweet, Xan-man way.
I always thought he was a much better friend to Buffy than Willow ever was, in spite of his judgmental ways. Willow always things her way. But for Xander, in the end, he's always there for Buffy and willing to make sacrifices for her. He just needs time to wake up and let the "get it" sink in so that he can get it.
That's why I loved this chapter...because Xander remembered that his friendship with Buffy is more important than his righteousness and acted like a grown-up and showed her in a very sweet, Xan-man way.
Sometimes Sunnydale seems like a community for people like Forrest Gump ... functional and basically nice, but definitely dimmer than the average. I had a huge amount of fun writing the bank scene, although I'm not entirely sure why. Maybe because I had such a clear picture of what Spike looked like in my mind. Thanks for the review! :D
lol. Bad you to miss reviewing a chapter! I was wondering what I'd done wrong. :P
The suspense about Spike's job is about to come to an end. Actually, I thought it would in chapter 58, but that ended up being quite a different chapter than I first anticipated, so I think the reveal will be made in chapter 59 instead. I'm glad I'm keeping you guys guessing. Thanks for the review! :D
Xander is a pleasant surprise. Maybe Tara next?
Thanks for the update. Looking forward to more.
To tell you the truth, I'm not a huge Xander fan either. He's irritating sometimes, but basically okay, just not someone I adore. But I wanted to be fair to his character and I don't think he was a bad person. Spike, however, is adorable no matter what he's doing. And we *will* find out what he's doing very soon. Thanks for the review. :D
Spike's job will be revealed to the readers in chapter 59, I think. 'Til then, I hope I can keep you guessing. Thanks for the review! :D
~liz
"Although Xander jumped to his girlfriend’s defense, his expression and tone seemed uncertain. For the first time, Buffy thought she saw something akin to understanding in his eyes."
One of the things that stands out in your writing is the character development. (Duh) It's evident that you put a lot of thought into how and what each character thinks, and you always tailor their actions, words, etc., to the specific situation. Canon Xander would not--and did not--have this reaction to finding out about Buffy and Spike. Canon Xander constantly stood in denial of Anya's past and did everything he could to pretend that she wasn't an 1100-year-old ex-demon who killed thousands upon thousands of people and started a war. He failed to see the similarities between his relationship with Anya and Buffy's relationships with vampires.
There are a few differences between FtTP and the canon that may have helped to perpetuate his denial. In the canon, Buffy never pointed out to Xander that he overlooked Anya's past because he loved her. In FtTP, Buffy makes Xander aware that to poo-poo her relationship with Spike on the basis of his being a vampire is hypocritical of Xander. It helps him to take a look at himself and to try to understand how Buffy can put Spike’s past aside, as he has done with Anya’s past.
Also, Canon Xander did not find out the truth from his best friend, but from his worst fiend (sorry, couldn't resist). In FtTP, Buffy is open with her friends and Giles about her relationship. Canon Xander had to have felt slighted at Buffy’s concealment of her affair with Spike. They were best friends; best friends share. Buffy is upfront with Xander and everyone else in FtTP, no hurt feelings of her hiding things from him, no hearing from Spike that Buffy’s been boinking the very being that Xander has insisted she’d never boink just after Spike boinked Anya :-P
In Canon Xander's defense, he was awfully thick about many things, not just Anya's demony past; and he definitely changed his attitude toward the Buffy and Spike relationship once Anya became a demon again and he still loved her anyway. But without examining his own relationship with Anya, Xander may never have come to understand Buffy and her vamps. Once again, you’ve made a seemingly small change to the canonical events and made the characters react in a logical, believable way for a completely different outcome. Guess those changes aren’t so small after all ;-)
What drove me crazy on the series was that no one pointed out Xander's hypocrisy to him. I think it's really only human to avoid an issue one is uncomfortable with - and Xander had a really big, uncomfortable issue! If the Scoobies had ever addressed the matter with him instead of standing quietly by as he squelched Anya's every attempt to talk about her past, then maybe he could have a confronted his own feelings and moved on. As it was, I often thought he took his feelings of confusion out on Spike. While Xander's attempted axing of Spike (in season six) made me absolutely hate his character for many months, season seven allowed him to redeem himself in my eyes - somewhat - and understand that while he has many faults, he is not a bad person. In fact, he's no more flawed than the rest of them. They're a pretty screwed up bunch. :P
Thanks for the review!
"I grabbed your post out of the letter box on my way in"
You're killing me with the suspense!!! Plus I'm worried about Spike getting so beat up on that secret job. It's unlike him to let something sneak up on him like that. Sigh.. .
Love this story - thanks for keeping up with it!
My fav's were the following images...
He peered across the desk, restlessly bobbing on his heels until the teller had proven all the bills to be authentic
Spike pocketed his receipt, displayed two fingers at the receptionist on the way to the door, and then exited the building with an overwhelming sense of relief.
Very typical Spike. Outward a show of cocky confidence, while inside a bundle of nerves resides.
How conspicuous can he be? I agree with him, though: Willow and Tara should pay rent. Reguardless of the bacon Spike's rakin' in...
Love the story so far. Xander's moere understsnding than we give him credit for sometimes.
ROFL - Yeah, he let his enthusiasm get ahead of him a bit, but he does have most of his bases covered. Thanks for the review. :)
Well, I've got to say...the two-finger salute was my favorite part and a great relief to Spike. You're right, the poor boy had to put a lot of effort behind his display of good manners and that was his way of releasing the tension. Although he isn't one of my favorite characters, I always thought Xander got a bit of a raw deal in fanfic. True, he became a self-righteous horse's ass in season six, but look at what all the others became. He wasn't a perfect character, but I don't think he was an evil one either. Since Buffy has actually taken the time to confront him about the similarities between Spike and Anya, I think he is too intelligent not to consider them himself. Thanks for the review. :)
This is a great chapter and I'm glad Xander can be so mature, but still in character like S7 Xander, and notice his thing with Anya is similar. Spike's plan for getting money to Buffy is also realistic and I think your description of his outfit and the bank teller's reaction are spot on. Now, of course, I can't wait to read more to see the other reactions, and what is going to happen to the 'perfect ring'!
And still no job from her "friends" and a little help with the house payment.. $3000.. and ... his winnngs won't go far.. Sacrifice.. Dawn wlll have to figure it out if she gave him the account number..
Wonder at the attack the night before....have a feeling more was going on than Spike knows andit doesn't bode well either.
Xander is being reasonable and I'm a bit scared. He was like this in S7 IMHO but don't know if I can believe it at the moment.....hope it's real though because he does have his good points and Buffy needs someone beyond Dawn in her corner.
Nothing to worry about here....nicely done chapter. Love the suspicion at the bank (profiling.....oh yeah!). I picture him looking a lot like that Dresden Files book cover that look so much like JM with the hat and so forth. Spike is the only vampire to just go on like any human making allowances for the flamability but not letting it keep him to a night shift schedule LOL.
Worrying that Riley is gong to show up. Worrying that this "suit" is setting Spike up in some way. Worrying that Buffy won't have sense enough to stand by her man....so many worries, actually! Whew....glad for the updates.
As always, character voices are perfect and plot is compelling.
Kathleen