Someone to Look Out For

Disclaimers: I don't own the characters, dwellings etc… of either "Buffy the Vampire Slayer" or "The Pretender." I'm also a former student who owes 10 grand in student loans, which means that I have no money even is someone should decide to sue me. I also don't know what to write down for a rating right now, but there'll probably be some swearing and violence, so it'll probably not be for little kids. This story takes place after "What's My Line?" but still within season two. I wrote this for the XanderZone list under my real and a different email addy. I added some more to it, and still writing more (I originally finished it, but my former laptop went kaboom, and ceased to function anymore. I'll write more of it as I go along.

"This had better be good," seethed Miss Parker as she sat down beside Jarod on a park bench.

Jarod smirked. "Why Miss Parker, it's nice to see you with such a sunny disposition."

"I've been in and out of airports for thirty-six hours, switching planes, making sure that no one was following me. Then the car that I reserved had been rented out to someone else and why am I explaining myself to you? Just give me one reason not to turn you in!"

"I would think that Alexander would be a good reason."

"And who the hell is, 'Alexander'?"

The Pretender held out a file to her. "How would you react if I answered that he's our son?"

Parker just grabbed the file when she heard the last part. She stilled. "What?!?" She quickly opened it.

"I was poling around the Centre's computer network when I noticed a hidden file in one of Raines' folders in his personal computer, labelled 'JPA198001X.' Interested, I opened it. It's all there. They took our DNA, Parker. They took it and created a new life. They used a surrogate mother because they wanted to see if a child of two red books could create another Pretender."

"As he's not in the Centre's possession, I think that we can safely assume that he's not," Parker commented.

"Straight D minus average."

"Are you sure that he's our kid?"

"He as your tenacity and my penchant for trouble."

Parker felt like giving a snort at this. "That could describe a lot of kids."

"True, but how many of those kids have our DNA?"

"My father knew about this," she stated, reading aloud from the file.

"Raines suggested it; Mr. Parker approved of it."

"Jarod…"

"Miss Parker, I have never lied to you! Misled you, yes, but never lied. Besides don't you think that I would have investigated this thoroughly before telling you?"

Even though she didn't answer, Parker knew that Jarod was right; he had never lied to her before and probably wouldn't start now. "Okay Lab Rat, what do you propose that we do about it? Go up to him and say, "Hi! You're the result of an experiment! Your parents are not your real parents because we are and until recently, we never you existed!" She shook her head. "I don't think that any kid would like hearing that."

"The part about being the result of an experiment, no. But I think that he wouldn't mind finding out that the people he's living with are not his real parents. You haven't finished the file."

Miss Parker quickly read the rest. "Possible child and spousal abuse." She flipped the page. "You hacked into the Sunnydale Hospital mainframe."

"He had been hurt too many times as a child, Miss Parker. The reasons that were given usually didn't match the injuries."

The brunette swallowed as she looked up at the children on the swings. Son, she had a son. A sixteen year old son whom her father had known about. She was a mother. Parker smiled as she recalled a conversation with Sydney she once had, when they had been locked in the basement of a building, designation for demolition. She had mentioned having latte's with the other mother's and going to the mall. While she wouldn't play a role like that, she would accept the fact that she did have a child. While her 'motherly instincts' weren't kicking in yet, she knew that she had to make sure that this child—teenager, she amended—would be kept safe. But first…

Parker turned to face Jarod. "What else can you tell me about him? Likes, dislikes, favourite food… Everything."

*****

"Twinkies?!?" Miss Parker exclaimed as she waited in the car with Jarod, outside Sunnydale High School.

"Yes. Apparently he's just as obsessed with twinkies as I am about Pez."

"Let me guess, he as your sweet-tooth."

"With more than a decade to cultivate it."

"He's your kid alright." She flipped through the file again.

His file.

Her son's file.

She still wasn't feeling maternal, considering of how it had only been two hours since Jarod dropped the bombshell on her but… She wanted to see him, possibly speak to him. Sure Alexander's—or Xander, as the file stated he preferred to be called—life was right in front of her, from school grades and photos, to photos of him with his friends, but a part of her wanted him to tell her who he was, what made him tick. Miss Parker swallowed. "Jarod? How do we keep The Centre from finding out that we know? Because the moment that they find out…"

"I have a rough idea."

"Care to expand on that"

Jarod turned to smile at her. "Not at this particular time."

"That's not good enough."

"That's all I have right now. I'm still working on it."

"Should we talk to him?" she asked.

"What do you think? No, more importantly, what does your inner sense think?"

Parker scoffed at this. "Jarod, if you think that for one second that—"

"No!" Jarod turned around in his seat and grabbed Parker's hands. "Listen to it! You've come a long way in heeding what it says. What does it say?"

The Huntress closed her eyes. A part of her didn't like to do this, as it proved that she was different, that she was a red book like her brother; that there was something else that linked her to her mother besides their identical looks. Her face hardened.

Jarod became worried at this. "What? What is it?"

Parker ignored him. She could hear her Mother's voice, directing her, guiding her, giving her a sense of peace. But at the same time, what was being said was scaring her. She opened her eyes. "We tell him. Everything."

Jarod lifted an eyebrow. "Everything?" Parker nodded. "Why? And why were you scared?"

Parker removed her hands from their captive state. "That's none of your business!"

"If it involves our son, yes it does! If telling him will endanger him, then I will drive off right now!"

"He'll always be in danger as long as the Centre's around."

"That's it," Jarod said as he went to start the car.

"But us telling him won't further endanger him."

"Are your sure?" She nodded. "Then why…"

"It's a personal thing."

Jarod looked at his companion for a few minutes before settling back. "Okay."

"What? You're satisfied with just that? No analysis into my thought processes? No bribing me with more truths about my Mother to get me to talk?"

"No. When you feel comfortable enough, you'll tell me. If not," he shrugged.

"That's it?"

"What? You want me to torture you?"

"You must have something up your sleeve!"

"Nope, nothing comes to mind." He turns to his passenger side window.

Parker notices his contemplative face, from the window's reflection. "What?"

"What do you mean?"

"Unlike me who won't say anything when something's bothering me, you will. Spill."

Jarod turned to face the front window. "I'm wondering if I'll ever see him after we leave town. I'm worrying about The Centre using him to get to me, thus making him expendable. Will he even believe us? He's gotten this far without us in his life not knowing, is it selfish to want to thrust ourselves in it right now, only to disappear for his own good later on? Most of all, I'm not sure how to act around him. He's my son, but you know how I was raised. I don't know what it's like to have a family, to have father-son conversations. Should I even give him 'The Talk'?"

Parker laughed at this. "He's a sixteen-year-old Californian teenager, Jarod. I'm sure that's one conversation you don't have to give."

Jarod continued to face the front window.

Parker swallowed. "You've been thinking this for a while, haven't you?"

"It started soon after I printed out the file and read it on the plane."

The brunette nodded at this. "How long have you been following him?"

"Long enough to know that this place isn't normal."

"Jarod, can you actually name a 'normal town'? One that I've actually heard of, that is?"

"How many towns do you know whose original name was, 'La Boca D'Inferno'?"

"The Mouth of Hell?"

Jarod smirked. "Let's just say that certain myths can be proven here."

"Such as?"

"Vampires."

Miss Parker gave him an incredulous look. "Vampires?"

"Vampires," the Pretender confirmed.

"You've been out way too long, Boy Wonder!"

"You'll believe me tonight."

"I find that very unlikely." The brunette looked at the mass of teenagers that began streaming out of the school. "When does he normally leave?"

"He may be a little later than usual. He's probably making out with a Miss Cordelia Chase in the custodial closet."

"Do I want to know?"

"Well, considering how she's a lot like you, probably not."

"What?!?"

*****

"So," Cordelia began as she fixed her hair. "Same time tomorrow?"

"Vampires and demons couldn't keep me away," Xander replied. He opened the door and peeked outside. "It's clear."

"Good." She gave him a quick kiss. "See you later," she said as she left the closet.

Xander waited five minutes before leaving himself. He walked down the hallway, feeling a growing sensation, but not knowing what it was. He had it for a while now and it was beginning to drive him nuts, not being able to place it! He went to the library. "Hey, G-Man! Anything on today's agenda of, 'dark, creepy and utterly disgusting'?"

"Must you call me that infernal nickname?"

"Nope, it's purely voluntary." Xander looked around the library. "So, nothing Hellmouthy?" Giles shook his head. "Guess that means that I should actually do some homework, huh?"

"That would be advisable, yes."

He sat down at the table, putting his knapsack on the chair beside him. "Where's the Buffster and Willow?"

"I believe that there were a few stores at the mall that had to be conquered."

"Cool, that's good." He frowned. For a moment, he thought that he heard a woman's voice saying his name. He to hear that voice once more.

Silence.

"Xander, are you actually going to study? If so, then I believe it would require you opening your textbook," Giles stated.

"Huh? Yeah, sure." He made no more towards the knapsack.

Giles peered closely at the preoccupied young man. "Xander?"

"Yeah?"

"Is something the matter?" The Watcher walked towards the table.

"No! Why would it?"

"Because you are behaving uncharacteristically."

"I haven't had anything to eat since lunch and I'm out of twinkies," he lied, hoping that the Brit would believe him.

Giles just stared at him. "Xander…"

"I'm not possessed or anything, Giles. I've just been feeling blah for the past few days." 'Blah' being that stupid undiagnosed feeling.

"You're sure now."

"I guess I'll go home and eat," the teenager mused as he grabbed his knapsack. "I'll see you tomorrow, G-Man!"

Harris left the building and noticed the blue car across the street. Strange, he had noticed the man before, but the woman was new. The feeling grew stronger as he crossed the street near them.

'I wonder if I have a hellmouthy sense from hanging around Buffy for so long?' he thought. He waited to see if they would follow. No, they weren't following him. At least, not yet.

Familiarity! Xander thought as his eyebrows furrowed. Okay, the 'Blah' was now officially familiarity. And it began when the guy showed up. He felt familiar and so did she. But was it a good or bad familiar feeling? He remembered when he was a kid that a bald guy seemed familiar, but he had a creepy familiarity about him. That creepiness grew—no, gnawing—until the visits stopped when he was eleven. The founding Scooby contemplated the feeling from the couple. No, it was a good vibe springing from them. He walked some more. Did he want to go home to the 'rents for another round of screaming and yelling or to the nearest, cheapest diner?

It was no contest. As he neared the diner, he noticed the blue car again. Great, it seemed as though they were following him. Damn, he didn't know anyone outside of the local nightlife that would want to follow him around. Then again, maybe they didn't want to hurt him. He snorted, yeah, with his luck that was unlikely, but… They wouldn't hurt him, they didn't want to hurt him, they were just… curious? Why would they be curious about him?

"Oh boy, my very own stalkers," Xander murmured to himself as he walked towards the diner door.

"Oh, God," he said as he stopped. "I have my very own stalkers!" He moved on, remembering the car behind him, thinking that maybe he should speak to Giles about this…well, he could say ,'unnaturalness' but that didn't feel right. He should also tell the Watcher about the couple following him.

'No,' he decided. 'I'll just keep an eye on them'

'Xander,' he heard again. The Scooby looked around just before opening the diner door. Okay, not that he was officially freaking out, but he was close to it. He went inside.

He sat down at the furthest booth when he noticed the blue car park in the parking lot. Something was telling him to invite them to his table; that they needed to tell him something that was important.

"Hey Xander, the usual?"

"Eileen!" Xander looked up at a blond-hair middle-aged woman. He looked at the couple getting out of the car and made a decision. "Yeah. Oh, and two others will be here in a moment and the orders will be to go."

The waitress raised her eyebrows. "Really?"

"Yep," he replied as he saw Jarod and Parker enter the diner. He motioned for them to join him. 'Oh God, why did I just do that?' he questioned himself.

Eileen saw a brief look of surprise on their faces before walking towards the booth. "You're not in any trouble are you?" she asked as she turned back to Xander.

Xander shook his head. "No, just meeting up with some people."

"Okay, I'll bring a couple of menus," she said as she left for the counter.

"Hi," the man greeted as he sat down and pushed himself to the wall. "I'm Jarod."

"And I'm Parker," the female joined in.

"I hope that you don't mind but I asked for our meals to-go. Eileen is bringing you menus."

"Actually, that would be perfect," Jarod said.

"The burgers here are fantastic, as well as the lasagne's and Caesar salad's."

Jarod and Parker glanced at each other before looking at their son.

"Oh, yeah, you do have lots of your mother in you," Jarod said as Eileen handed the adults menus. "Thank-you."

"You're welcome," came the curt reply.

"Xander has recommended your lasagne and caesar salad, so I'll have to go with that, along with a large coffee," Parker stated.

"And could I please have a bacon cheeseburger with the fixings and a coke to go," Jarod added. "And I'm paying for everything."

"You don't have to—"

"I want to."

"And he does have the money. A couple of million, I do believe."

"All of which I've earned."

'Really?" Parker commented.

"Oh, yes, considering how it feels that I've put a life-times' worth into the company... Well, it's the least they could do," Jarod said, smiling at Parker.

"Good to see a company do that these days," Eileen commented as she left.

Xander waited until the waitress was out of earshot. "Now, will you tell me why you're stalking more, or do I get to make wild and crazy ones? Personally, I think that it's because of my dashing good looks. Or maybe you're here before Ed McMahon to tell me that I've won a million dollars from the Publisher's Clearing House so that I can be home when he comes with the cheque."

"It's a bit more…personal that," Jarod said, "But those are good answers."

"Are you kidding?" Xander retorted, "They sucked! I can usually come up with better ones than that, but I'm slightly nervous because I have my very own stalkers."

"I do detect a certain air of fear," Parker admitted.

"Fear? Lady, what you're smelling is probably my underarm evaporating! I'll probably stink up the place in a couple of minutes. Or running out of here crying to my 'Mommy'. Or rather, my friend's mother."

"You don't say?"

"You're right, I wouldn't,'" Xander conceded. "But I know a few people who could make your lives a living hell!"

"No, that's all right. I'm on the run from some of the people she works for," Jarod said. "You want living hell, try getting out from out of the thumb from where a certain corporation."

"The same one who "gave" the millions," the Scooby said doing quotation marks with his fingers. "How bad could they be?"

"Kidnapping, extortion, using children to perform simulations and selling those sims to the highest bidder."

Xander turned to his mother. "And you *work* for these people?!?"

"We grew up in that environment," Jarod explained.

"I joined because my Father is with them. And that was before I knew the extent of what they've done," Parker admitted.

"So why are you here?"

Jarod and Parker looked at each other before turning to the boy before them. "I don't suppose that an older, balding man with a raspy voice, smoking cigarettes had ever visited you before?" the Pretender finally asked.

Xander stilled at this. "You mean, Mr. Bald and Creepy? Yeah." He froze. "Oh, god, he's not coming back here, is he?" He resisted the urge to flee.

"No!" Parker said forcefully. "Not that we're aware of."

"Then why are you here? And don't give me the run around or else I'll be forced to do the hokey pokey."

Parker smirked. "The hokey pokey."

"Yeah, I turn myself around and run straight to… the nearest library!" Remembering that Buffy was shopping, he amended that with, "Or the mall."

"The nearest library is at the high school," Jarod commented.

"And as for the mall, you certainly could use it," Parker added.

"Yeah, and I know all the backyard shortcuts! And I shouldn't have told you that!"

"Well, we now know," Parker said.

"And knowing is half the battle. Yo Joe!" Xander quipped.

Jarod looked puzzled. "I don't understand."