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Chapter 4

Everyone immediately started protesting. It was too soon for their friend to leave. Angel, on the other hand, kept silent. He kept thinking that he was wrong about being Xander’s mate. Xander hated him. But then he remembered how Xander had clung to him when the others had startled him upon waking and how quickly Xander relaxed in his presence lately. Making a quick decision, Angel asked Severus for a word in private.

Severus stared at the vampire impassively, knowing exactly what he needed to talk about, and nodded his head sharply. They retreated to the kitchen, completely unnoticed by the rest of the group. Severus crossed his arms across his chest and waited for the vampire to speak.

“I was wondering if you could make arrangements for me to accompany Xander to England,” said Angel nervously. “I believe that I am Xander’s mate and would like the opportunity to find out for sure. I won’t be able to do that if I stay here, and quite frankly, I just want to be there to make sure he stays safe.”

“Have you mentioned any of this to Alexander?” asked Severus quietly.

“I haven’t exactly had the time,” said Angel sharply. “I didn’t realise that I could be his mate until Harry asked you about it.”

“Very well, I’ll make the arrangements, but you will tell Xander before we leave, or you stay here,” said Severus firmly, turning on his heel and leaving the vampire to his thoughts.

Angel straightened his shoulders. ‘Better go ahead and get this over with,” he thought grimly. ‘He’s going to say no, I just know it.’ He walked over to Xander and tapped him on the shoulder. Xander turned to face the vampire and smiled slightly. “I need to talk to you alone for a moment,” said Angel quickly.

Xander just raised his eyebrow and nodded, following Angel into his bedroom. Angel was nervous about something, and seeing the vampire’s unease was making Xander nervous. “So, what did you want to talk about?” he asked hesitantly.

“I asked Severus if I could accompany you to England,” said Angel abruptly. “He agreed to let me go with you.”

“Why would you want to go to England with me?” asked Xander curiously. The last two days had been extremely odd. He’d thought that Angel hated him, but the vampire had not only saved him from that demon, he’d also cared for him while Xander was wounded. Xander remembered waking up in a panic and Angel hugging him and making him feel safe. He just couldn’t muster up the old rancor he’d felt towards Angel in the face of all that.

“I think, and Severus agrees with me, that I am your mate,” said Angel in a rush.

“My mate? But you’re a guy,” said Xander incredulously. “I thought the whole point of a mate was for the purpose of children. That’s kinda impossible when two guys are involved.”

“Xander, elven males can become pregnant, so it’s not that impossible,” said Angel calmly.

“Wha..? How? I could..?” Xander spluttered, unable to form a complete question. “But you’re a vampire, so you’re sterile. That kinda defeats the purpose, too, doesn’t it?”

Angel pulled the sputtering elf into his arms and rubbed his back soothingly, smirking slightly when Xander almost immediately relaxed into his embrace. “Apparently, we’re not completely sterile. We just have an extremely low sperm count. Besides, I’m not that bad, am I?” he whispered softly. “Are you upset because your mate is male?”

“Not really,” mumbled Xander, tucking his head under Angel’s chin. He was quite comfy now, thank you very much. “I’ve been attracted to other males before. I just never acted on that attraction. It’s the pregnant part that upsets me a bit. I don’t think I like that part very much. Plus, I’ve always considered you a rival, and we weren’t exactly friends, so that takes some getting used to. I thought you hated me.”

“I never hated you, Xander,” said Angel softly. “Not even when I figured out that you lied to Buffy to get her to send me to Hell.” Xander stiffened and tried to pull away from Angel, but the vampire simply tightened his hold. “I don’t blame you for it, Xander. I did at first, but I finally realised that if you hadn’t, Buffy would have failed and the world would have been doomed.”

“You really don’t hate me for that?” asked Xander wistfully.

“No, I don’t,” said Angel. “You’re very protective of your friends, and I was hurting them. My demon was always impressed with your determination.”

“Wow,” said Xander, awestruck at the thought that Angelus had been impressed with the Zeppo of the group.

“So, does this mean you don’t mind me coming to England with you?” asked Angel softly.

“Yes, you can come with me. I could always use a friend, especially when I’ll be in a foreign country and surrounded by strangers,” said Xander with a smile. “We’ll wait and see about this mate business, though. I need a little more information before I decide on anything.”

“All right,” said Angel quickly.

A knock sounded on the door, and the door slowly opened. Harry peered around the door and smiled when he saw Xander in Angel’s arms. “Severus said it was time to go.”

Xander smiled at Harry and practically bounced out the door, leaving Angel and Harry to follow in his wake.

*****

“Did he tell you?” Severus asked Xander, nodding his head towards Angel.

“About him coming to England with me and being my mate? Yes, he did,” said Xander quietly.

“And you’re all right with that?” asked Severus curiously.

“I don’t mind him coming with me,” said Xander softly. “He’s actually become a friend over the last few days. I don’t know about him being my mate, but we’ll see.”

Severus held out a sheathed katana and said, “This is the portkey home. You must be touching it when it activates or you’ll get left behind. You have ten minutes to say your goodbyes and have everything prepared for transport.”

Willow immediately started crying again. She squeezed Xander with all her strength when he hugged her goodbye, placing a gentle kiss on his cheek before stepping back. She didn’t know what she was going to do once Xander was gone. Xander was the most important person in her life, and she hated herself for driving him away. Despite what he said, she knew that he just wanted to get away from her. Unfortunately, Willow had no one to blame but herself. It was her lies and betrayals that had brought them to this point.

Buffy wavered between wanting to cry and wanting to scream. On one hand, she was distressed that Xander was leaving, but she knew it was for the best. Xander was overlooked and underestimated too often in Sunnydale, and this would be a great opportunity for him to learn that he was a truly amazing person. On the other hand, Buffy was upset because the man she loved was basically deserting her for her only male friend. It didn’t matter that they had already ender their relationship.

Giles just watched sadly as Xander prepared to leave them. He was going to miss the brat sorely; even the dreaded nickname Xander had given him. Xander truly was the heart of the gang, giving them the strength to continue through sheer faith and will alone. A vital part of them would be leaving with the young man.

“Xander, it’s time,” said Severus, holding the sword so they could all reach.

“Okay,” said Xander, hurrying over to touch the sheathed sword. “I’ll write every week. I promise.” Before they could respond, the four men disappeared

*****

“Albus, where is Harry?” Remus demanded. He’d gone to visit Harry for his birthday, wanting to surprise the boy by letting him leave the Dursley’s early, only to discover Harry already missing. Of course, he’d rushed right to Hogwarts to inform Albus of his disappearance only to be told that Harry was with a trusted friend and would be back shortly.

“Remus, they will be here momentarily. Calm yourself,” said Albus calmly, eyes twinkling merrily. It wasn’t often he got to see Remus Lupin so flustered, but the werewolf obviously cared deeply for the boy. If it weren’t for the fact that he was a werewolf, Albus knew that Remus would have adopted Harry in a heartbeat.

Four people suddenly appeared in Albus’ office, startling the werewolf. Remus immediately recognised Severus, but the other three were unfamiliar. He started to demand where Harry was once again when his surrogate godson’s scent crossed his nose. It was definitely Harry, but the scent had changed somewhat. “Harry?” he asked hesitantly.

“Moony!” cried Harry excitedly, running across the room and jumping into the werewolf’s arms.

“Harry, where have you been? I went to get you from the Dursley’s but you had already disappeared. I was worried,” said Remus quietly, pushing Harry back to get a good look at him. “You look more like your mother everyday.”

“Yeah, did you know my mother was an elf?” asked Harry curiously.

“Of course I did, but she made me promise not tell anyone,” said Remus easily. He looked past Harry and saw the two strangers talking together softly. He was shocked when the other elf looked towards him and he saw a pair of green eyes the exact same shade as Harry’s. “Harry, who is that?” asked Remus, nodding towards Xander.

Harry followed his gaze and smiled brightly. He dragged Remus over to introduce his new cousin. “Moony, this is my cousin Xander,” he said eagerly. “Unfortunately, the poor boy is also Snape’s son, but I won’t hold it against him.” Harry’s teasing comment got a grin from Xander, a glare from Snape, and a bemused expression from Remus.

“You’re Snape’s son?” asked Remus incredulously, looking towards Severus for affirmation to the question. Severus simply nodded shortly and turned back to Albus. “And Harry’s cousin? But how?”

“Apparently my birth mother was Harry’s mother’s sister,” said Xander quickly. “Now that was a mouthful, wasn’t it?”

Harry snickered and decided to take pity on Remus, who was beginning to look a little dazed and confused. “Maybe we should start at the beginning,” said Harry quietly. He told Remus about accompanying Professor Snape to Sunnydale and meeting Xander. He then explained that the heritage potion had revealed that Xander’s father was Snape, and that his mother was Kaelyn Winterstorm, who was also Lily Evans Potter’s sister, making Xander Harry’s only magical cousin. “And this is Angel, Xander’s mate,” Harry finished with a flourish.

“But he’s a vampire,” said Remus tentatively.

“It seems Xander has the same kind of luck that I have,” said Harry with a smirk. “From what I’ve gathered, my cousin has been possessed twice, once by a primal hyena spirit and once by a soldier. He’s also fought demons and vampires on a regular basis and even lead his graduating class in a battle against an ascending demon.”

“You forgot to mention that all of that was done while his magic was still bound,” Angel interjected quietly, causing Xander to blush at all of the attention. “He also faced down Angelus to protect his sick friend.”

“Angelus, of the Scourge of Europe?” asked Remus incredulously, looking at Xander in awe. He’d heard tales of the Scourge of Europe’s exploits, and they weren’t at all nice.

“Yes,” said Angel lightly. “Now, of course, I have a soul, so just call me Angel.”

“You’re Angelus?” asked Remus almost accusingly. Before he could say another word, though, Xander had pushed him away from Angel, growling all the while. Remus just stared at the boy in shock. Where had the blushing boy gone?

“He’s Angel,” snapped Xander angrily, standing in front of Angel protectively. “He feels guilty enough without your accusations, so back off now.” ‘Just who does this man think he is? It’s not like he’s completely free from sin,’ thought Xander viciously.

Angel suddenly wrapped his arms around Xander’s chest, pulling the elf against his chest, as he tried to calm the boy down. Angel had been amazed when Xander had defended him so valiantly after all the things he’d done to him and his friends. He smiled as Xander slowly relaxed in his embrace while still keeping a wary eye on the werewolf.

“Amazing, Lupin,” drawled Severus with an amused smirk. “They’re here all of ten minutes, and you’ve already made them your enemy. I am impressed.”

“Shut up, Severus,” said Remus as got back to his feet. “That was not my intention. I was merely surprised to meet one of the Scourge and reacted rather badly. I do apologise for my rudeness.”

“Apology accepted,” said Angel, covering Xander’s mouth to stifle his protests. Xander sure could hold a grudge if you hurt one of his friends, as he knew well from experience. Remus would probably be better off avoiding Xander for a while, like maybe two years or so. “Professor Snape, are we staying here or finding other accommodations?”

Albus, who had just watched the events unfolding with open curiosity, finally made his presence known. “I am Albus Dumbledore, the headmaster of this school, and rooms have been prepared for all of you. If you will just follow me.”

Albus lead them to the dungeons and stopped in front of a portrait of a dragon and a basilisk entwined together. He gave the password and said, “Harry this will be your room, and you’ll remain here once school starts. There’s no point in sending you back to Gryffindor tower when you may very well find your mate amongst the students.” Leaving Harry to explore his new room, Albus continued down the corridor. He turned the corner, walking past the portrait leading to the Slytherin common room, and stopped at a portrait Godric Gryffindor two rooms down. “And this will be your and Angel’s room, Xander. As I’m sure your father has already told you, you have a lot of catching up to do and very little time to do so. Although you will be sorted into one of the four houses once school starts, you will continue to use this room. If there is nothing further, I will bid you good day.”

Once Albus was gone, Severus peered curiously into the room. He snorted softly when he noticed that there was only one bedroom. He already knew that his son was going to freak out over that. “My rooms are down this corridor behind a portrait of Salazar Slytherin. The password is ‘impertinent brat’ if you ever need to talk to me. The potion’s classroom, where you will be meeting me everyday at 8:oo in the morning, is down the previous corridor, first door on the right. I will see you in the morning.”

Angel pushed Xander, who was looking a little shell-shocked, into their suite and closed the door. “So what do you think so far?” asked Angel, trying to fill the uneasy silence.

“What the hell just happened?” asked Xander quietly. “I just basically attacked someone because they were being mean to you. How did I go from being your tentative friend to your defender? And why is there only one bedroom? Just because you may be my mate does not mean I’m ready to hop into bed with you.”

“Xander, calm down,” said Angel soothingly. “No one expects you to just hop into bed with me. If nothing else, I’ll sleep on the couch. Besides, most friends protect and defend each other, so don’t panic.”

As Xander slowly relaxed again, he finally managed a small smile. “I’m being a big baby, aren’t I?” he asked quietly.

“Just a bit,” said Angel teasingly. “Why don’t we check out our new rooms?” Xander nodded and Angel opened the bedroom door. Staring at the huge bed inside, Angel eyed Xander speculatively. “I don’t really have to sleep on the couch, do I? That bed is big enough to hold ten people. We can share, right? I mean it’s not like we haven’t slept together before.”

“I was injured. That so does not count,” said Xander indignantly. “But nice guy that I am, I’ll allow you to sleep in the bed, too. Just make sure you stay on your side of the bed.”

“You’re all heart,” said Angel dryly.

“Yeah, I hear that all the time,” smirked Xander.