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Part 2
Despite himself, Xander couldn't help but laugh at Darla's use of words. "I'm sorry," he said when he saw it was agitating her. "But I can't even win a fight against Angel. Believe me, I've tried. So how do you expect Alex to?"
"Because he's not you," Cordelia answered. "Alex has a black belt in karate and served in the military for a short period of time. He knows how to handle himself quite well." Under her breath, she added, "That's what I love about him."
Xander considered this a moment, his mind reeling. "Okay, so that definitely puts Angel in jeopardy... My question is, what do we do about it?"
"We can't do anything," Darla put in. "Whatever actions Alex takes will have to be halted by the people in your world alone. We have no say in it... All we can do is to figure out how to bring him back and send you home simultaneously."
At that point, Xander and the two girls looked at Ethan, as if expecting him to automatically have the answers. But the elder man merely shook his head. "I'll have to do some research into the matter," Ethan said. "And it may take a few days before I find anything, provided there is something to find. Either way, I don't want you to get your hopes up."
Cordelia sighed, then took a step closer to Xander's bedside, taking his hand in hers lovingly. "In the meantime, you should get some sleep," she said softly. "Gather your strength... And we'll discuss this further at a later time, Xander..."
Cordelia stayed by Xander's side for a long while, until she was certain he was fully asleep. With that done, she gently eased her hand from his and went out to the living room of her loft, shutting the double sliding doors behind her.
Then, she turned to face Ethan, taking a few steps towards him. "You just love keeping the truth from everyone, don't you? You've withheld information from me, you've done it to Alex, and you're doing it now with Xander!" she said angrily.
Ethan smirked, something that never failed to infuriate her. Cordelia wondered, not for the first time, how she had wound up with this arrogant bastard for a Watcher. "Let it go, Cordy. What Xander doesn't know won't kill him," he replied. "And, in light of how he feels towards Willow in his world, he doesn't need to know what really happened to her here."
"But he could find out," Cordelia fired back. "The longer he's here, the greater the chance is. So I think we should just tell him and spare him what will be an enormous shock!"
"And run the risk of Xander deciding to go after Angelus himself?" Ethan asked. "Because, odds are, that's exactly what will happen if he knows."
Cordelia sighed, rubbing at her exhausted eyes. She knew that Ethan believed his intentions were good, but this situation did not call for any secrets to be kept. With this in mind, she looked towards Darla, who stood silently in one corner of the room. "You're the tiebreaker as usual. What do you think?" Cordelia said wearily.
Darla looked up, not at all surprised that she was being dragged into this argument. Brushing back the strands of her long blonde hair, she said, "I'm going to have to go with Ethan on this. The less Xander knows, the better. You could even go one step further and make sure he does not leave this apartment even for an instant while he's here... In fact, that'd probably be best, because you and I both know what will happen if Angelus gets his hands on Xander." Darla grabbed her jacket from a nearby chair. "Now if you'll excuse me, I've got to get home, before I'm missed."
Cordelia watched Darla leave, then turned back to Ethan. "Okay, I give," she said. "Doesn't mean I have to like it though." Looking back towards the closed bedroom doors, she added, "I just hope he's spared the truth about Willow..."
His slumber was fraught with a series of nightmares, making Xander doze off and on the whole night. In spite of that, he was feeling better nevertheless when he awoke at last. After a few moments of calling for Cordelia, to no avail, Xander chose to get up by himself.
He sat up and swung his legs over the side of the bed. Quickly, he placed both hands on the mattress to either side of him, feeling slightly dizzy. But once that passed, he got to his feet, starting out of the room.
The smell of waffles hit him from the moment he opened the doors, and Xander drifted towards the kitchen. Upon seeing his approach, Cordelia abandoned her post at the skillet, walking around the counter to help him to a chair. "Are you okay to walk?" she asked in worry. "I mean, you don't want to overdo it so soon after the accident."
"I'm fine," Xander assured her. "And I should know what my limitations are. I wouldn't be up and around otherwise." He looked up at her a moment, at the remnants of flour on her face and in her black hair. "Do you fuss over Alex this much?"
Cordelia paused a moment. "It's what you do when you care about someone," she replied, going back to finish with the waffles. Once they were ready, she served one to Xander. "Do you do the same for Willow?"
Xander paused a moment at the mention of his wife, winning a curious look from Cordelia. Finally, he said, "Yeah, I did a little bit. Not that it matters now. I suspect that when I get back, Willow will be asking me for an annulment."
Cordelia raised an eyebrow. "Why would she do that? I mean, I thought... I guess I figured you wrong. I know that Alex really loved her at one point in time. I just figured, from the way you talked about her, that you felt the same way."
Xander scowled. "Yeah, well, our marriage was a mistake, something that shouldn't have happened. She and I have Angel to blame for assuring that it did." With that, Xander went on to tell her all about the vampire's deceit that had led to him placing a ring on Willow's finger.
"And it wasn't fair to either of us," Xander concluded. "That Angel felt the only way to get me out of Buffy's life was to pair me off with a girl I only viewed as a friend! I never thought he would do something that cold!"
Cordelia remained silent a moment. "I don't know how to respond to that," she said quietly. "Except, I'm sorry it had to happen that way for you... So, here's my next question. Would it really matter to you at all if Alex did kill him?"
Xander froze, for he hadn't really considered that aspect. He thought long and hard over it, then slowly nodded. "Yes, it would," he admitted. "Only because it would break Buffy's heart to lose him, and I would never wish that on her."
Cordelia hesitated, catching the hidden meaning in the words he had used. "Wait a minute. You're saying... Angel and Buffy are involved!?" she said in disbelief.
Xander managed a silly little grin, taking a bite of his waffle. "Certainly the kind of thing you wouldn't expect of a slayer and a vampire, huh? They make a pretty unusual match, I'll admit that," he replied. "But they've somehow managed to make it work. In fact, they even have a baby daughter, and they're planning to get married soon. It's that serious... Plus, ever since she became a vampire herself, it's only made things more right between them."
Noticing that Cordelia was staring at him incredulously, Xander knew they were about to have a very lengthy discussion on this subject. But, strangely, he didn't mind; he was eager to share all the differences between her world and his. After all, it would help to pass the time a little faster for a while...