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BtVS/HP crossover ficlet, "Birthday", part of the "Not Synonymous" universe
I really wanted to get this posted in time for Harry's birthday but didn't quite make it (at least not in my own timezone). However, it's still July 31st in some places, so I'm going to go ahead and post it - and hopefully won't find five-billion errors when I re-read it again after a good night's sleep. :P
Fits into the universe sometime after "Wish" and before "Family".
Title: Birthday
Series: (Dark and Evil Are) Not Synonymous
Author: Calic0cat
Genre: Crossover, Drama, Angst
Story Pairing: None
Series Pairings: Xander/Spike, Giles/Ethan/Anyanka, Tara/Willow/Oz, Drusilla/Cordelia, Buffy/Riley, Angel(us)/Wes, Harry/Draco, possibly others
Rating: FRC (Fan Rated for Children)
Warnings: None
Disclaimer: Neither the Hogwarts crew nor the Scoobies belong to me.
Website: http://www.calic0cat.net/
Author's Note: The "Not Synonymous" series is majorly AU for BtVS (events took a right turn at Albuquerque beginning sometime around "School Hard" in Season Two) & for HP (for reasons which will become obvious in a hurry). HP's timeline is shifted so that its Book One/Year One begins a year after BtVS Season Seven. Stories in the series are *not* being written in chronological order, nor do they necessarily need to be read in any particular order (though "Visit" actually does make a good starting point).
*************************
The bang of the front door and thunder of feet up the staircase brought Van’s gaze up from his reading. Swinging his legs over the side of the top bunk, he waited eagerly for the bedroom door to open. Xander’s summer job with a lawn care service made for long days; his big brother - Van grinned in delight, still thrilled by the very fact that he *had* a big brother - had been gone for the day before he’d even woken up this morning. Van had been waiting impatiently for his return all day.
Xander burst into the room, arms outstretched, ready for the catch as Van flung himself into them off the top bunk. He spun them around once and set Van down. “Sorry, buddy, gotta hurry - Bronze night tonight!”
Standing in the middle of the room, Van stared in dismay as Xander grabbed some clean clothes and dashed back down the hall to the bathroom. Xan was a great big brother, really, especially since he only had a few months of experience. Van knew whose hard work put food on the table and clothes on his back, and it sure wasn’t his adoptive parents’. Xander wasn’t even a grownup and he took way better care of Van than they did or the Dursleys ever had. Xan even shared his own bedroom with him. Xan teased him and called him all kinds of nicknames but he never, ever, called him a freak or anything else mean, and he never hurt him or let anyone else hurt him. Xan didn’t despise him; Xan didn’t even just put up with him; Xan actually *liked* him! In fact, sometimes, Van even dared to think that, maybe, Xan might even *love* him.
From the doorway, Xander urged, “Hurry up, squirt, I’m supposed to be there, like, now, and I’ve gotta drop you off at Buffy’s place before I meet the others. Mrs. Summers is gonna watch you tonight, okay?”
Van ducked his head and nodded wordlessly, struggling to hide his disappointment as he joined Xander. Of course Xander wanted to go have fun with friends his own age, not stay home with his little brother. It wasn’t fair to expect more. Really, it wasn’t.
Not even because it was his birthday.
After all, it had already been his best birthday ever. He’d got to sleep in and Willow had taken him to the library’s summer reading club, just like she had all week, then he’d come home to the lunch that Xander had left in the fridge for him followed by an afternoon of reading while Mrs Harris watched her “soaps”.
So nobody had wished him a happy birthday, so what? He really shouldn’t have expected anybody to remember; after all, he’d only been here for a few months. Just because Xan lo... liked him...
Van’s steps slowed, his shoulders drooping as he followed Xander along the sidewalk towards Buffy’s house. He didn’t mean to be ungrateful, really he didn’t, Xan and his friends were good to him. But still...
It wasn’t like he’d really *expected* a cake or presents. But he had, maybe, kind of, *hoped*. Really, though, he’d have been happy even if Xan had just wished him a happy birthday and spent the evening with him... Gaze directed firmly at the sidewalk, Van blinked away the welling tears and tried not to sniffle. Since he wasn’t watching where he was going, he nearly fell right over when he abruptly ran into a pair of solid legs. Only Xander’s quick grab for his shoulders saved him from a nasty tumble. Startled, Van looked up to meet Xander’s eyes for an instant. He dropped his gaze again instantly, not wanting Xander to see how upset he was, but it was too late.
“Aw man,” Xander muttered, sounding almost as unhappy as Van felt. “I shoulda known this was a bad idea. C’mere, you.” Strong arms scooped Van up and he instinctively wrapped his legs around Xander’s waist and his arms around Xander’s neck, hiding his face against Xander’s shoulder, his glasses awkwardly squashed in between. “Screw Buffy’s plan; no surprise party is worth making you miserable.”
“S...surprise party?” Van whispered hesitantly. “You... you didn’t really forget?”
Xander said several Very Bad Words, promptly followed by, “Oh, sh... sugar. Don’t tell Buffy’s mom that I said that, okay? I’m s’posed to be setting a good example here, so we’ll just keep my little lapse our little secret, right?”
Van nodded silently, far more interested in the original topic of conversation.
“Right. Now, getting back to your question...
“No, kiddo, I didn’t forget your birthday,” Xander assured him. “Actually, none of us forgot. Buffy just thought it’d be cool to pretend that we did so that the party would be a big surprise. And I guess we all forgot that what seems cool to big kids like us might not be so cool to littler kids like you. Sorry, Van; guess you haven’t had a very happy birthday so far. Think the cake, ice cream, and presents waiting for you at Buffy’s place will make it better?”
Eyes wide, Van nodded. He was going to have cake and ice cream and presents and a *surprise party*? Wow. Dudley never even got to have a surprise party.
“Think you can act all surprised when we go in, or should we just ‘fess up about me telling you?”
“I can act surprised,” Van promised solemnly, trying to keep a huge smile off his face. For the very first birthday cake and ice cream and presents that he could remember? Acting surprised would *not* be a problem.
Fits into the universe sometime after "Wish" and before "Family".
Title: Birthday
Series: (Dark and Evil Are) Not Synonymous
Author: Calic0cat
Genre: Crossover, Drama, Angst
Story Pairing: None
Series Pairings: Xander/Spike, Giles/Ethan/Anyanka, Tara/Willow/Oz, Drusilla/Cordelia, Buffy/Riley, Angel(us)/Wes, Harry/Draco, possibly others
Rating: FRC (Fan Rated for Children)
Warnings: None
Disclaimer: Neither the Hogwarts crew nor the Scoobies belong to me.
Website: http://www.calic0cat.net/
Author's Note: The "Not Synonymous" series is majorly AU for BtVS (events took a right turn at Albuquerque beginning sometime around "School Hard" in Season Two) & for HP (for reasons which will become obvious in a hurry). HP's timeline is shifted so that its Book One/Year One begins a year after BtVS Season Seven. Stories in the series are *not* being written in chronological order, nor do they necessarily need to be read in any particular order (though "Visit" actually does make a good starting point).
*************************
The bang of the front door and thunder of feet up the staircase brought Van’s gaze up from his reading. Swinging his legs over the side of the top bunk, he waited eagerly for the bedroom door to open. Xander’s summer job with a lawn care service made for long days; his big brother - Van grinned in delight, still thrilled by the very fact that he *had* a big brother - had been gone for the day before he’d even woken up this morning. Van had been waiting impatiently for his return all day.
Xander burst into the room, arms outstretched, ready for the catch as Van flung himself into them off the top bunk. He spun them around once and set Van down. “Sorry, buddy, gotta hurry - Bronze night tonight!”
Standing in the middle of the room, Van stared in dismay as Xander grabbed some clean clothes and dashed back down the hall to the bathroom. Xan was a great big brother, really, especially since he only had a few months of experience. Van knew whose hard work put food on the table and clothes on his back, and it sure wasn’t his adoptive parents’. Xander wasn’t even a grownup and he took way better care of Van than they did or the Dursleys ever had. Xan even shared his own bedroom with him. Xan teased him and called him all kinds of nicknames but he never, ever, called him a freak or anything else mean, and he never hurt him or let anyone else hurt him. Xan didn’t despise him; Xan didn’t even just put up with him; Xan actually *liked* him! In fact, sometimes, Van even dared to think that, maybe, Xan might even *love* him.
From the doorway, Xander urged, “Hurry up, squirt, I’m supposed to be there, like, now, and I’ve gotta drop you off at Buffy’s place before I meet the others. Mrs. Summers is gonna watch you tonight, okay?”
Van ducked his head and nodded wordlessly, struggling to hide his disappointment as he joined Xander. Of course Xander wanted to go have fun with friends his own age, not stay home with his little brother. It wasn’t fair to expect more. Really, it wasn’t.
Not even because it was his birthday.
After all, it had already been his best birthday ever. He’d got to sleep in and Willow had taken him to the library’s summer reading club, just like she had all week, then he’d come home to the lunch that Xander had left in the fridge for him followed by an afternoon of reading while Mrs Harris watched her “soaps”.
So nobody had wished him a happy birthday, so what? He really shouldn’t have expected anybody to remember; after all, he’d only been here for a few months. Just because Xan lo... liked him...
Van’s steps slowed, his shoulders drooping as he followed Xander along the sidewalk towards Buffy’s house. He didn’t mean to be ungrateful, really he didn’t, Xan and his friends were good to him. But still...
It wasn’t like he’d really *expected* a cake or presents. But he had, maybe, kind of, *hoped*. Really, though, he’d have been happy even if Xan had just wished him a happy birthday and spent the evening with him... Gaze directed firmly at the sidewalk, Van blinked away the welling tears and tried not to sniffle. Since he wasn’t watching where he was going, he nearly fell right over when he abruptly ran into a pair of solid legs. Only Xander’s quick grab for his shoulders saved him from a nasty tumble. Startled, Van looked up to meet Xander’s eyes for an instant. He dropped his gaze again instantly, not wanting Xander to see how upset he was, but it was too late.
“Aw man,” Xander muttered, sounding almost as unhappy as Van felt. “I shoulda known this was a bad idea. C’mere, you.” Strong arms scooped Van up and he instinctively wrapped his legs around Xander’s waist and his arms around Xander’s neck, hiding his face against Xander’s shoulder, his glasses awkwardly squashed in between. “Screw Buffy’s plan; no surprise party is worth making you miserable.”
“S...surprise party?” Van whispered hesitantly. “You... you didn’t really forget?”
Xander said several Very Bad Words, promptly followed by, “Oh, sh... sugar. Don’t tell Buffy’s mom that I said that, okay? I’m s’posed to be setting a good example here, so we’ll just keep my little lapse our little secret, right?”
Van nodded silently, far more interested in the original topic of conversation.
“Right. Now, getting back to your question...
“No, kiddo, I didn’t forget your birthday,” Xander assured him. “Actually, none of us forgot. Buffy just thought it’d be cool to pretend that we did so that the party would be a big surprise. And I guess we all forgot that what seems cool to big kids like us might not be so cool to littler kids like you. Sorry, Van; guess you haven’t had a very happy birthday so far. Think the cake, ice cream, and presents waiting for you at Buffy’s place will make it better?”
Eyes wide, Van nodded. He was going to have cake and ice cream and presents and a *surprise party*? Wow. Dudley never even got to have a surprise party.
“Think you can act all surprised when we go in, or should we just ‘fess up about me telling you?”
“I can act surprised,” Van promised solemnly, trying to keep a huge smile off his face. For the very first birthday cake and ice cream and presents that he could remember? Acting surprised would *not* be a problem.