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madimpossibledreamerMain Points:
Jojo's Bizarre Adventure/Buffy the Vampire Slayer AU
Chapter Summary: Johan can't hide in dreams forever. Time to wake up.
Word Count: 1611
Rating: Teen
Note: HERE THERE PROBABLY BE BUFFY/JJBA SPOILERS.
“Wake up, Jojo!” Harsh, urgent.
Torturing him by talking about clowns. Now that’s just cruel. Though Dad’s speaking really funny…but if that’s the case, he should get up now, so maybe he won’t pass out when Dad starts in…
He sits up abruptly, hitting the head leaning anxiously above him, and winces. When that’s the only pain, it’s clear that whoever this is, it’s not Dad. A glimpse at the (now battered) hat sitting on top of the blond hair, and he realizes, the world shifting instantly, clicking back into place.
“You…you wouldn’t wake up. I thought…” Now that he’s awake, all the anger seems to have drained, and the stoic Englishman’s eyes look bright, his breathing shaky.
Johan manages a smile. There’s no reason to make an ally worry about him, and it’d hurt Speedwagon’s pride if he actually cried. Next time, though, he shouldn’t spend so long asleep. “Nope. I’m still among the living and breathing.” He looks around and realizes that they’re not in the hotel. They’re in what looks to be a ratty old basement, but at least it has a cot and Xander’s slept on worse in his Watcher duties. “What happened?”
“It caught on fire. We managed to get away before the police arrived. We don’t have time to answer questions.” He glares, but it’s not genuine. “You’re heavy, you know.”
“And here I was trying to cut back on the junk food,” he jokes. “I guess we’ll just have to go running for our lives sometime soon. It’s pretty good exercise.”
Unfortunately, Fitz is just as good at seeing through his cheerful mask. Something about the way Speedwagon is acting is…off, but then, he’s probably just trying to conceal his worry. The blond takes a deep breath, looking a little softer. “Nightmares?” The way Fitz asks, Xander’s not alone.
He nods. “Some of them. Apparently Pretender can talk to people, which is nice. Though one of them was a friend that died, so that sucks. At least they’re not about Ahn, right now…”
“An?” By the confused way Fitz screws up his face, he doesn’t get the nickname. Jojo doesn’t exactly want to get into this, but this is his ally who’s proven himself, who’s nearly died for him. He deserves an answer.
“Anya. Ex-demon, ex-fiancé, and ex-alive.” The flat tone could make you think he didn’t care, like the wisecrack he’d made the first time he’d heard. But it hadn’t really sunk in, and…well, humor was his defense mechanism, wasn’t it? The soft look on Fitz’s face says that he’s spotted the anguish in the eyes.
“I’ve lost someone, too. Besides mum,” Fitz volunteers, and then the aura of pain and loss and sheer emotion becomes too much for them both.
They sit in awkward silence for about a minute, before Xander’s had too much. For once, he’s not going to let his mouth and his curiosity get away from him. He notices the linen in Fitz’s trembling hands, and it’s familiar enough he knows exactly what to do. “You’re trying to bandage your back, right? Here, let me.”
To his surprise, Fitz grits his teeth and moves further away on the bed. “I’m perfectly fine doing it on my own. I don’t need your help, Jojo,” he growls.
The hurt must show on his face. He’d gotten pretty good at hiding it, but it’s either been slipping through due to lack of practice while he was in Africa, or Fitz is just really good at reading him. He thought they’d been getting closer, been developing a bond of trust. He’d reached the point where he’d even call the man his friend, but then, fighting always did have a way of bringing people closer together.
The expression softens slightly, and green eyes look away, avoiding his gaze. “I wouldn’t want to be a burden. It’s fine.”
Xander stares at him for one long moment, gauging how much he can push the guy, then comes to a decision. He’ll push, gently but insistently. “It’s okay, it’s not that big of a deal. I’ve had a lot of practice. Besides, if it gets infected we’ll have a whole lot more to worry about. Shirt off.”
It would’ve been easy enough. Fitz had already taken off the hat and the vest, blond hair unruly from the constant presence of the hat. Still, he’s hesitant about taking off his shirt. Probably a Giles-like thing. From his obviously considerable expertise in dealing with Englishmen, Xander guessed that it was probably an always-trying-to-be-proper thing, especially as Fitz was generally so worried about appearances.
“If it’s scars, don’t worry about it. I’ve got a lot of scars from acting as bait. There was this one time where a Master Vampire moved into town, and he was a lot warier than the other vampires. Which meant he was stronger and more intelligent. Not intelligent enough to have survived as long as the Master, which Buffy killed, but still intelligent enough to be more of a challenge than your average bloodsucking fiend. Anyway, I was acting as bait, like usual, and…” And that, apparently, was enough to take Fitz’s mind off of this. He still removed his shirt pretty slowly, but he was slightly worried and intrigued by the story.
And then Xander noticed what Fitz had probably been trying so desperately to hide. A tattoo.
Rather like Giles trying to pretend he hadn’t been a rogue warlock in his youth. That thought unfortunately broke through his story and made the amusement show on his face.
Instantly, Fitz becomes indignant, trying to cover the tattoo with his hand. As it’s on his back, though, he isn’t very successful. “It was stupid, I know, but I was young.” The blond is practically challenging him to make fun of him for it.
So Xander grabs the bandages and without a word gets to work. It’s somewhat comforting to be doing this for someone else again. Nostalgic, too, and for most people that would be kind of messed up, but Xander hasn’t exactly had the most normal childhood and he’s come to terms with that.
He waits until the confusion becomes uncertainty before commenting. “I don’t know, I kind of like it,” he eventually says, staring at it for a moment before returning to the bandaging. “I mean, I don’t know that I could ever get one. People poking at me with things has started to trigger a ‘fight now and not get eaten or sacrificed’ response.”
This clearly isn’t the response Fitz is expecting. He stares at his hands helplessly, then, in a very soft voice that Xander can barely hear, confesses, “That’s not who I am anymore.”
Xander places a hand on the blond’s shoulder, trying to be comforting. It’s probably a little weird, judging from the look he’s getting, but then, he’s used to comforting girls, so maybe he’s a little awkward at this too. “I don’t know. You’re still a fighter. At least, I’d consider you one. And I’m really glad you’ve got my back.”
“You didn’t need me.” He caught the slight resentment, the loss and confusion of wanting to find one’s place in the world, and he understood.
Xander sighs. “I’m not sure how that would’ve gone without you,” he finally admits. It’s different to say it out loud than to just think about it. “Normally, yeah, I’d trust my friends to the ends of the earth, but…something was definitely wrong. And you’ve saved me since.”
The way Fitz becomes flustered, he hasn’t had anyone thank him in a long time. It’s kind of sad, really. “You wouldn’t have needed it if I hadn’t dragged you into all of this,” he mutters eventually, glaring softly at the carpet. He really does feel guilty. So Xander had made the right choice. Not that he hadn’t known that, but it’s nice to have that confirmed.
Mr. Speedwagon, you’re not allowed to become an Angel McBroodyface 2.0. He doesn’t giggle out loud at the thought, especially not after what he’d learned, but just raises an eyebrow. “And I’m a Joestar.” It feels right, but weird, to say that out loud. He’s starting to get used to the idea, though. “You think that trouble wasn’t going to find me anyway? From my dreams, from everything you’ve told me, we’re danger-magnets. The stone mask resurfacing now of all times is proof of that. And as for being in danger all the time, that’s nothing new. That’s been my life since I was fifteen. I’m just glad that I got to make a new friend. Someone who can fight the same way I do and can help me learn about this wacky new side to the world. Like I said, nothing new, just different.”
For one long moment, green eyes just stare at him in shock. He starts reviewing what he said, though he’s pretty sure he thought that out more than usual. And then Fitz starts laughing, and after a moment Xander joins in at the absurdity of it all.
The thief girl walks in. If they’re going to be working with her, they at least need to get a pseudonym at some point. She stares at them and slowly backs away again, which just seems even more hilarious. It takes some effort, but Xander stops laughing and goes after her. Her running away now wouldn’t help anything.
Jojo's Bizarre Adventure/Buffy the Vampire Slayer AU
Chapter Summary: Johan can't hide in dreams forever. Time to wake up.
Word Count: 1611
Rating: Teen
Note: HERE THERE PROBABLY BE BUFFY/JJBA SPOILERS.
Xander feels tears on his cheeks as he wakes. He hasn’t done that since he was a kid, and it takes him a minute to even want to sit up and greet the cold, cruel world. It’s disorienting. Was Mom hurt again? Did Dad get drunk?
“Wake up, Jojo!” Harsh, urgent.
Torturing him by talking about clowns. Now that’s just cruel. Though Dad’s speaking really funny…but if that’s the case, he should get up now, so maybe he won’t pass out when Dad starts in…
He sits up abruptly, hitting the head leaning anxiously above him, and winces. When that’s the only pain, it’s clear that whoever this is, it’s not Dad. A glimpse at the (now battered) hat sitting on top of the blond hair, and he realizes, the world shifting instantly, clicking back into place.
“You…you wouldn’t wake up. I thought…” Now that he’s awake, all the anger seems to have drained, and the stoic Englishman’s eyes look bright, his breathing shaky.
Johan manages a smile. There’s no reason to make an ally worry about him, and it’d hurt Speedwagon’s pride if he actually cried. Next time, though, he shouldn’t spend so long asleep. “Nope. I’m still among the living and breathing.” He looks around and realizes that they’re not in the hotel. They’re in what looks to be a ratty old basement, but at least it has a cot and Xander’s slept on worse in his Watcher duties. “What happened?”
“It caught on fire. We managed to get away before the police arrived. We don’t have time to answer questions.” He glares, but it’s not genuine. “You’re heavy, you know.”
“And here I was trying to cut back on the junk food,” he jokes. “I guess we’ll just have to go running for our lives sometime soon. It’s pretty good exercise.”
Unfortunately, Fitz is just as good at seeing through his cheerful mask. Something about the way Speedwagon is acting is…off, but then, he’s probably just trying to conceal his worry. The blond takes a deep breath, looking a little softer. “Nightmares?” The way Fitz asks, Xander’s not alone.
He nods. “Some of them. Apparently Pretender can talk to people, which is nice. Though one of them was a friend that died, so that sucks. At least they’re not about Ahn, right now…”
“An?” By the confused way Fitz screws up his face, he doesn’t get the nickname. Jojo doesn’t exactly want to get into this, but this is his ally who’s proven himself, who’s nearly died for him. He deserves an answer.
“Anya. Ex-demon, ex-fiancé, and ex-alive.” The flat tone could make you think he didn’t care, like the wisecrack he’d made the first time he’d heard. But it hadn’t really sunk in, and…well, humor was his defense mechanism, wasn’t it? The soft look on Fitz’s face says that he’s spotted the anguish in the eyes.
“I’ve lost someone, too. Besides mum,” Fitz volunteers, and then the aura of pain and loss and sheer emotion becomes too much for them both.
They sit in awkward silence for about a minute, before Xander’s had too much. For once, he’s not going to let his mouth and his curiosity get away from him. He notices the linen in Fitz’s trembling hands, and it’s familiar enough he knows exactly what to do. “You’re trying to bandage your back, right? Here, let me.”
To his surprise, Fitz grits his teeth and moves further away on the bed. “I’m perfectly fine doing it on my own. I don’t need your help, Jojo,” he growls.
The hurt must show on his face. He’d gotten pretty good at hiding it, but it’s either been slipping through due to lack of practice while he was in Africa, or Fitz is just really good at reading him. He thought they’d been getting closer, been developing a bond of trust. He’d reached the point where he’d even call the man his friend, but then, fighting always did have a way of bringing people closer together.
The expression softens slightly, and green eyes look away, avoiding his gaze. “I wouldn’t want to be a burden. It’s fine.”
Xander stares at him for one long moment, gauging how much he can push the guy, then comes to a decision. He’ll push, gently but insistently. “It’s okay, it’s not that big of a deal. I’ve had a lot of practice. Besides, if it gets infected we’ll have a whole lot more to worry about. Shirt off.”
It would’ve been easy enough. Fitz had already taken off the hat and the vest, blond hair unruly from the constant presence of the hat. Still, he’s hesitant about taking off his shirt. Probably a Giles-like thing. From his obviously considerable expertise in dealing with Englishmen, Xander guessed that it was probably an always-trying-to-be-proper thing, especially as Fitz was generally so worried about appearances.
“If it’s scars, don’t worry about it. I’ve got a lot of scars from acting as bait. There was this one time where a Master Vampire moved into town, and he was a lot warier than the other vampires. Which meant he was stronger and more intelligent. Not intelligent enough to have survived as long as the Master, which Buffy killed, but still intelligent enough to be more of a challenge than your average bloodsucking fiend. Anyway, I was acting as bait, like usual, and…” And that, apparently, was enough to take Fitz’s mind off of this. He still removed his shirt pretty slowly, but he was slightly worried and intrigued by the story.
And then Xander noticed what Fitz had probably been trying so desperately to hide. A tattoo.
Rather like Giles trying to pretend he hadn’t been a rogue warlock in his youth. That thought unfortunately broke through his story and made the amusement show on his face.
Instantly, Fitz becomes indignant, trying to cover the tattoo with his hand. As it’s on his back, though, he isn’t very successful. “It was stupid, I know, but I was young.” The blond is practically challenging him to make fun of him for it.
So Xander grabs the bandages and without a word gets to work. It’s somewhat comforting to be doing this for someone else again. Nostalgic, too, and for most people that would be kind of messed up, but Xander hasn’t exactly had the most normal childhood and he’s come to terms with that.
He waits until the confusion becomes uncertainty before commenting. “I don’t know, I kind of like it,” he eventually says, staring at it for a moment before returning to the bandaging. “I mean, I don’t know that I could ever get one. People poking at me with things has started to trigger a ‘fight now and not get eaten or sacrificed’ response.”
This clearly isn’t the response Fitz is expecting. He stares at his hands helplessly, then, in a very soft voice that Xander can barely hear, confesses, “That’s not who I am anymore.”
Xander places a hand on the blond’s shoulder, trying to be comforting. It’s probably a little weird, judging from the look he’s getting, but then, he’s used to comforting girls, so maybe he’s a little awkward at this too. “I don’t know. You’re still a fighter. At least, I’d consider you one. And I’m really glad you’ve got my back.”
“You didn’t need me.” He caught the slight resentment, the loss and confusion of wanting to find one’s place in the world, and he understood.
Xander sighs. “I’m not sure how that would’ve gone without you,” he finally admits. It’s different to say it out loud than to just think about it. “Normally, yeah, I’d trust my friends to the ends of the earth, but…something was definitely wrong. And you’ve saved me since.”
The way Fitz becomes flustered, he hasn’t had anyone thank him in a long time. It’s kind of sad, really. “You wouldn’t have needed it if I hadn’t dragged you into all of this,” he mutters eventually, glaring softly at the carpet. He really does feel guilty. So Xander had made the right choice. Not that he hadn’t known that, but it’s nice to have that confirmed.
Mr. Speedwagon, you’re not allowed to become an Angel McBroodyface 2.0. He doesn’t giggle out loud at the thought, especially not after what he’d learned, but just raises an eyebrow. “And I’m a Joestar.” It feels right, but weird, to say that out loud. He’s starting to get used to the idea, though. “You think that trouble wasn’t going to find me anyway? From my dreams, from everything you’ve told me, we’re danger-magnets. The stone mask resurfacing now of all times is proof of that. And as for being in danger all the time, that’s nothing new. That’s been my life since I was fifteen. I’m just glad that I got to make a new friend. Someone who can fight the same way I do and can help me learn about this wacky new side to the world. Like I said, nothing new, just different.”
For one long moment, green eyes just stare at him in shock. He starts reviewing what he said, though he’s pretty sure he thought that out more than usual. And then Fitz starts laughing, and after a moment Xander joins in at the absurdity of it all.
The thief girl walks in. If they’re going to be working with her, they at least need to get a pseudonym at some point. She stares at them and slowly backs away again, which just seems even more hilarious. It takes some effort, but Xander stops laughing and goes after her. Her running away now wouldn’t help anything.