needsaparrot | The clinic* and points elsewhere, Sunday Afternoon

Like yesterday, Xander was sitting in the chair by Willow's cot, his laptop open, still hoping for a reply from the other Willow to show up in his inbox. At least it wasn't his turn for an all-contact-is-cut-off heart attack; he'd gotten a short, annoyed answer from Kennedy when he'd tried calling her, that boiled down to "I don't know and right now I don't care and you can officially stick that pushpin in the Off Again column this week." It was just Willow who wasn't answering.

That made two of her. "Y'know, you could wake up anytime now," he said to the Willow in the bed. "If you don't do it soon, you're gonna miss the Snoopy Dance."

Peter	Still convinced he could find some way to help out Jaye, Peter stopped by the clinic. As he wandered around, he noticed Xander. "Hey," he said, quietly, not wanting to intrude.
Xander	"Also? Finals. You're sleeping through Finals Week," Xander added, watching Willow's closed eyelids for any sign of a reaction. He looked up and over at Peter. "Damn, you'd think if anything would wake her up, it'd be that."
Peter	"You holding up okay?" Peter asked. Knowing the clinic staff as he did, he figured plenty had been done for Xander's friend.
Xander	"I could live with never seeing this place again," Xander admitted. "No offense to the folks who work here. Just kinda hate the ending-up-in part."
Peter	"I'm a big believer in just visiting for fun," Peter agreed. "I'd much rather be here on a social call."
Xander	Xander blinked at him, in that one-eyed no-I'm-not-winking-seriously way. "You visit hospitals for fun?"
Peter	"Ronan's a friend of mine," Peter explained, looking sheepish. Well, sheepish behind the bangs. So... sheepdogish?
Xander	Which expression made Xander wonder about this year's misdialapalooza and whether he'd accidentally been right in his totally wrong assumptions, but all he said was, "Nice guy. My boyfriend hangs out with him sometimes."
Peter	"I haven't had any complaints so far," Peter said. He came further into the room. "How's Bridge doing?"
Xander	"Mostly hanging out at my place - he busted up his ankle pretty bad," Xander answered. "Which of course means he's still hobbling into school for finals and to open the library, because clearly all the people I love are insane." He pointed to Willow. "She's probably dreaming about algebra."
Peter	"I'm sorry she's not better," Peter said. He looked at Willow, and thought about Claire. "That guy's pretty sick." The words felt inadequate, and the look on Peter's face showed he wished he could say it better.
Xander	Xander snorted. "That's one way of putting it." He slid his computer off his lap and onto a table, then leaned over to fuss with the corner of Willow's blanket, like straightening out a non-existent wrinkle would actually accomplish something besides giving him something to do with his hands. "The hell of it is, she could make him better, if she was awake. Probably why he went after her."
Peter	"She'd do that?" Peter asked. "Even after what he did to her?" Peter was holding just a tiny bit of a grudge over what happened to Claire still, yes.
Xander	"Not for Angelus." Xander shook his head. "But when he's got a soul, he's ...annoying in less bitey stabby neckbreaky ways."
Peter	"I met him before," Peter said. "He seemed... weird."
Xander	"Pale, glowery, and inexplicably attractive to hot blondes?" Possibly the inexplicable part was a lie, but Xander had public standards to maintain.
Peter	"Pale, kinda made me wonder if maybe he was mildly autistic, didn't exactly do a poll on the last bit," Peter replied. "But otherwise he seemed harmless. Not like this guy."
Xander	Xander let out a laugh. "You, I like; you get to stay." Then his face turned serious. "He's not harmless; he's a vampire. But when he's Angel," he admitted, "He's not harmless on our side."
Peter	"So he could be fixed," Peter said, latching on to something ~~his co-dependant brain~~ he could understand.
Xander	"There's a spell, yeah. Curse, actually." Xander nodded towards the bed. "Takes a super-mega-charged witch to pull it off, though."
Peter	"Hard to wave a wand when you're unconscious," Peter agreed.
Xander	"Less with the wand, more with the Latin and stinky herbs, but yeah." Xander tapped his laptop. "And my other super-mega-chargy BFF ~~who hasn't been into wands for a while badum-ching~~ isn't answering her messages."
Peter	"Wait, so how does this work?" Peter asked. His mind went to the first person he knew who worked with Latin and bad creatures. "Why not ask Sam to give it a try?"
Xander	"Winchester?' Xander shook his head. "You gotta have actual power to do this one. I could read the words--" Not that he'd know what he was saying for half of them, but he could read Latin well enough to set things on fire. "--but best case, it wouldn't do anything at all, worst case, I'd end up a crispy critter."
Peter	"I can - " 'heal' is what Peter was going to say automatically, because that's where his brain went when he heard about something having a high chance of injury. But then the other thing Xander said caught up with him. "Power? This is a power?"
Xander	"Some spells where I come from, anybody with a spicerack and the right book can do," Xander answered. "This one takes a real witch, somebody with powers, yeah."
Peter	"Huh." Peter took another look at Willow, as though that would somehow answer his question. "Do you think... I mean I copy people's powers, right?"
Xander	He hadn't known that per se, but it explained what the guy had been able to do when they'd gone in after Claire. "Magic powers?"
Peter	"Good question?" Peter replied. "Some things I can copy - like Bridge? With the - " Peter waved his hand " - thing? Others I can't. I don't know why that is."
Xander	Xander raised an eyebrow. He wasn't wearing gloves, which seemed to indicate the lack of an off-switch hadn't carried over. Something to point out to Bridge later, maybe. "What would you have to do? To copy her, if you can?"
Peter	"This should be enough," Peter said. "I do it whenever I'm near someone. Does she have any other powers? Besides the curse? We could test it."
Xander	"Besides actual spells?" Xander pushed a hand absently through his hair. "She can levitate stuff. And talk in people's heads except I'm not sure she can do that yet so forget you heard it."
Peter	Peter unconsciously mirrored Xander's gesture. Or he was almost always pushing his bangs back. One or the other. "TK I've already got. Mind reading too. Looks like the only way to find out is for me to try using her magic."
Xander	Xander was about to say it couldn't hurt, when he realized how stupid a statement that would be. See above re: crispy critter. "You sure about that? Could get scary, if it works."
Peter	"Absolutely," Peter said. "Besides, it's not like I could accidentally end the world, right?"
Xander	Xander winced. "You don't wanna know how much you don't wanna know the answer to that."
Peter	Peter facepalmed. "Well... if that's a danger, I've already copied it. May as well try to get some good out of this."
Xander	Xander nodded. "Don't think you're gonna blow up the world with a gypsy soul-curse, anyway."
Peter	"So how does this work?" Peter asked. "Do I just say some words?"
Xander	"There's a ritual, yeah. Got interrupted the only time I was ever there for it, but it was a little more intense than just getting chanty. I have a copy." Xander reached for his laptop, nodding towards Willow. "This used to be hers. The one of her that's my age. Pretend that makes sense; it's easier on your brain."
Peter	"Claire knows a version of me who met her in high school but he's an adult," Peter said. "I've learned to just go with it."
Xander	"Welcome to the crazy club." Xander thumb-clicked his way into the In Case of Emergency folder Willow had insisted on all of them having, once the Scooby Gang went global. "Here we go. One ritual of ensoulment, not quite free of charge." Considering the price Jenny Calendar had paid for it.
Peter	Peter peered over Xander's shoulder. He felt almost certain that somewhere out there Nathan was annoyed that he hadn't learned Latin. Well, more annoyed than he usually was. "Please tell me I don't have to know what any of that means."
Xander	"My intimate knowledge of how long it takes eyebrows to regrow if you read out loud from the wrong books says no."
Peter	"Self-healing would probably fix that, right?" Peter asked. He may have also self-consciously fiddled with his hair.
Xander	"I guess. Sounds like you won the superpower lottery." Xander scrolled down the page to look at the list of supplies.
Peter	"It has pros and cons," Peter said. He kept reading over Xander's shoulder. "Okay, this stuff I don't know about."
Xander	"The not so garden-variety secret herbs and spices?" Xander said. "Got those. Wanted to be ready if--" He glanced at Willow and winced. "When she wakes up. Or if we found somebody else. They're back at my place."
Peter	"So that's it?" Peter asked. "We get that together and give it a go?"
Xander	"And an Orb of Here, Soul, Here Boy, too," Xander said, letting more hope slip into his voice than he'd intended to, and wondering where along the line the cavalry with a rock turned into a guy who'd be hopeful about this. What next, AARP? "I picked up the other stuff, but Willow should have one of those in her her room. Possibly holding down homework."
Peter	There were so many things to ask about, and yet the one Peter went with was "If it's an orb wouldn't it just roll off?"
Xander	"....You know, I never asked." Xander's own idea of suitable paperweights tended more towards coffee mug and crescent wrench. "If somebody can get into her room one of the great mysteries of modern science may be revealed."
Peter	"Sure," Peter said. He held out his hand. "Got a key?"
Xander	Xander frowned. "To her dorm room? Not so much."
Peter	"Too much to hope she's got a roommate?" Peter asked.
Xander	Xander shook his head. "Not anymore; she transferred to another school."
Peter	Peter knew about Marie, but he'd had a vague hope maybe Willow had gotten a new one. Since the answer was no, they were down to a final option. "Okay, I might be able to do this if you think your friend wouldn't mind."
Xander	"To get a soul back in Angelus? I don't think she'd mind if you ran the door down with a bulldozer. Which... is always an option. I know where to get one of those."
Peter	"Well if this doesn't work I can try bringing superstrength into the mix," Peter said. "Then paying for the door to get fixed after." Peter raked a hand through his hair as he took stock of everything that needed to be done. "I was actually here to check on someone for Jaye. Let me do that and then run back to the dorms for that orb."
Xander	"Roger that." Xander started to pack up his computer, taking a moment to touch Willow on the shoulder, then he stopped. "Willow's twitchy about backups for a reason, when it comes to this spell; you should have a copy. You got a flash drive or something so we can save the doc?"
Peter	Peter had been halfway out the door when Xander's words hit him. Next up came facepalming. "Save the - man, no wonder this drives Jaye crazy." Well... beyond the inanimate objects that apparently spoke to her. Peter had come to accept that part as a given.
Xander	"...Using Word on a Mac?" Xander asked, pulling out his own flashdrive because hey, dumbass, you got one of those for your birthday this year.
Peter	"No, because - actually there's no short answer to because," Peter said. "Let's just say I'm pretty sure it'll be fine if I go directly to the dorms and meet up with you after."
Xander	Xander shut his laptop, detached the little Swiss Army Knife flashdrive Bridge had given him for his birthday, and tossed it towards Peter. "Works for me."
Peter	Peter caught the drive and put it safely into his coat pocket. "I'll call you when I've got the orb," he said, and went to jog back to the dorms.

Back at the Dorms

Peter

Willow's door had been locked, but luckily Peter was able to handle it. He took hold of the doorknob, concentrated, and thought about how he'd really like it if the door would open. Sure enough after a moment there was a click and he was able to go inside.

Once inside he looked around. The first orb-like object he found was a small hedgehog who curled up at the sight of a stranger. Peter gave a brief check to make sure the animal was still being fed while its owner was away, then kept looking. Computer equipment, books, more books, enough office supplies to restock a medium-sized country, a few black and/or lacy items that looked like none of Peter's business and -

Ha! One orb. It was currently resting on top of a stack of papers that a brief scan revealed to look an awful lot like Bitterwoman fanfic. Which was about where Peter decided he wasn't going to read more. And no, he couldn't tell how a round object didn't roll right off of the papers.

Still - mission accomplished. Or this part of it at least. Peter pocketed the orb, whipped out his Treo, and gave Xander a call to confirm he'd found the right item. Not wanting to chance using a new-to-him power where people might get hurt, he told Xander to meet him at the beach. It'd be cold, but at least no one would be there but the two of them.

Peter then locked the room up behind him and went to meet up with Xander.

Ye Olde Secluded Spot on the Beach

Xander	Xander had a circle of candles set out out on the sand, and the herbs and stones arranged as best as he could remember. He also had a screen filled with gobbeldygook in front of him, and a frown on his face. "You're not gonna believe this," he said as soon as he saw Peter approaching. "The file's--"
Peter	"Bad time to tell you I ran a magnet over mine?" Peter said, by way of a joke. He fished the flashdrive out of his pocket and tossed it over to Xander.
Xander	"I both hate you, and like your style." Xander inserted the drive, made about three more copies just in case, then fired it up, the translated spell filling the screen. "But if you can make this work, I'll take back the first part."
Peter	"Here's hoping," Peter said. He looked around. "So - what? I channel your friend's powers and say the words?" While hoping that saying them phonetically would count, but there was no need to mention that out loud.
Xander	Xander pulled out his lighter to set the candles flickering. "That's the idea. And I, uh. Hand you stuff. And watch for crazy vampires who might want to crash the shindig, not that I've got a history with that or anything." Which? Was why he'd also brought his axe.
Peter	"I appreciate it," Peter said. Xander sounded knowledgable enough about all of this that he figured he could trust him to watch his back while he did this. Even so, better safe than sorry as far as other dangers were concerned. "Try not to get closer than you have to. I can copy, I'm still working on control." Which was maybe something to have mentioned earlier but oh well. Peter reread the spell one more time, then readied himself. Having practiced on the beach so often it was easy for him to fall into the mindset where he let a new power bubble up to the surface. Of course he'd never actually seen Willow use magic, which got in the way of trying to picture himself doing it. But he remembered Claude's advice to act like the power was a part of him, something he could call on as easily as moving, and repeated that to himself like a mantra that would hopefully banish all the doubts away. Then, as he said the words of the spell out loud, he suddenly felt something grip him. A rush of who-the-hell-knew what that felt different and uncomfortable and like he was out of control of everything. Which, if he'd been coherent enough, he would've realized he was as he was jabbering in Romanian and no longer looking at the spell and his eyes had changed and - - and just as quickly it left him. Peter came to on his hands and knees. He felt shakey. A feeling of wetness on his lips alerted him to how somewhere in there he'd gotten a nosebleed. "Are you okay?" Peter asked, because his first panic was thinking he may have hurt Xander.
Xander	Xander just stared at him -- as he'd been doing since the eyes went familiarly dark - for another moment, before shaking his head and crouching down to offer a hand up. "I think that's my line, dude."
Peter	"I'll heal," Peter said. He accepted the hand up, then went to wipe his nose on the back of his shirtsleeve. "Please tell me that worked." Because he didn't know if he could do it again, but it almost went without saying that he'd be stupid enough to try.
Xander	"Well, you sure as hell did something." Xander leaned down to start packing things up. "Orb went all glowy. I choose to believe that means it was working and not that the chick from Pixie Dust is trapped inside."
Peter	"I'll call the jail," Peter said. Because being Nathan Petrelli's little brother meant, amongst other things, having a strong instinct to call someone to help take care of problems. In this case, someone in charge who could determine if the spell had worked.