Title: Alexei

Series: Pretending Prologue

Author: Xandria

Rating: NC17+ Slash, het m/m/f, Xander/Spike/Anya

Spoiler: Welcome To the Hellmouth, The Pack, Halloween

Fandom: Buffy The Pretender

Summary: Xander is a genius, a Pretender, like Jarod. Years ago he was smuggled out and brought up to lead a 'normal life', in hiding. Unfortunately Jarod arrives in Sunnydale, leading the Centre hounds to Xander.

Warning: child abuse, violence

Archive: Ooh, if you like. Anywhere at all. Just let me know so I can look.

Date: Monday, December 04, 2000

Feedback: Yes please. I love it. And it leads to more stories usually.

E-mail: tonicorn_1@yahoo.com

Notes: A few vignettes of Xander's life, up to beginning of story.

Notes 2: Thank you to Litle Pinky and Anjxr for answering my questions, and to B3v and Marina for the Russian phrasing and the name especially.

Disclaimer: These characters aren't mine, they belong to Joss, and that's that. *SOB!*. Heck, if I did own them, I'd be in Queensland with all the boys attending to my every little whim! {I can dream can't I?} The idea isn't mine either, it's from the Adopt A Plot Bunny Agency. The plot, however? That's mine *EG* and I have an army of feral smurfs and rabid teddybears to back me up.

By Xandria
****

1982 SAN FRANCISCO

Tatiana Alexandrovna Nikitina, displaced Russian, Professor of Biotechnology, Master of Anthropology and with an IQ of 350, was currently speaking to her most important audience ever.

"That's the way, kroshka, my little Alexei, my little malysh, lozhechku za mamu. Oh what a good detka you are!" She cooed as she fed her son of ten months, Alexei, already a ringer for his mother with a tuft of sable brown hair and chocolate brown eyes. He blinked at her and smiled.

And then it began. They burst in, guns held out, and snatched the child from his mother. He began to cry and she yelled at them to let her go, to be with her son, her malysh. Ignoring her, they took her son away. As they went, they heard the sounds of her screams, suddenly cut off. A bald man smoking a cigarette watched it all. One of the men came up to him and showed him the baby. He nodded and spoke.

"This is the one. Take him back to the Centre. And send a clean up team to our former colleague's apartment to take care of things.

"Yes Dr Raines."

1984 THE CENTRE: DELAWARE

Jarod, Pretender and currently the Centres highest rating genius, watched as Sydney tested the latest in a series of children. There were always tests, and Jarod yawned. He couldn't understand why he was here watching this one and said so.

"Because of his response, Jarod. This child is amazing, he can already do the things you did at an older age, things the average person couldn't."

"And?" Jarod said disinterestedly. Sydney looked at him and sighed. Why would he think it was amazing, the Centre was all he knew? No outside influences to interfere with the simulations, no family, no holidays, birthdays, nothing.

The amazing things that happened at the Centre, the psychics like Angelo, the fantastic results, were all a matter of fact to him, no more, no less. He sighed as he remembered the time a few years ago when Mrs. Parker had died and he had hit Jarod. Why had he hit the boy when he couldn't understand why all the grief, he had not been taught about love or loss, either.

"Young Alexei here, and you, working together, you could find out things, Jarod. Imagine." Sydney said. Jarod shuddered inwardly. Another child brought up the way he was? He knew something was missing from his life and he wanted to find it.

But he didn't want any more children to be brought up the way he had, no. Jarod started to plan then. A way to get Alexei out, and then maybe him. There were all these things out there in the world, and his family, too, somewhere.

1985 SUNNYDALE KINDERGARTEN

A little brown haired boy watched as all the children ran around the yard in the kindergarten. It was frightening, he had never been around other children before, let alone so many other people. He held on tight to the woman holding his hand and trembled slightly.

"Listen, brat, let go of me. I ain't being paid to stand here all day, just to look after ya. So you get over there with all the other little beggars. I know you're smart, kid, so you can make your own way back when it's over.

And don't be too loud either when you get back. Fred'll be back from his shift by then and he don't like to be disturbed too much when he does." Joan Harris pulled the little boy's hand off of hers and shoved him towards the other children.

He stared at them and looked for a place to go. Right there, next to that little girl with the red hair.

1996 HARRIS HOUSEHOLD

"Now you listen to me you little shit. I don't want to see anything higher than a C on your report cards anymore, you hear me? If you show you got brains, any brains all, they'll find out and take you away!"

"Well maybe it would be better than here, Fred!" Xander yelled. Fred Harris glared at him and with a roar grabbed the young boy as he tried to get away.

"Don't you ever call me that, either! You call me Dad and Joan Mom, otherwise they'll know something's up. It wouldn't be better than here, boy. You like fresh air, don't you? To go out where you want? These people, they'd lock you up inside and you'd never see the sun again.

So you be careful, hear? I ain't letting a good source of money go 'cause of your stupidity!" Each word was punctuated by a slap as Fred Harris emphasized his words to his 'son'. "You hear me?!"

"Yes."

"What was that? What do you call me?"

"Dad. Yes...Dad". Xander said bitterly.

NEXT DAY

Xander sighed as he left the Harris's place, aching from the beating Fred Harris had given him the night before.

He liked school, it was great, so easy. Yeah he acted up in class, but after the first week or so he knew each subject. An eidetic memory was good, very good. But he had to pretend, to be something else, an average kid. And he hated lying to Willow and Jesse like this.

Pretending he needed help with maths. Yeah right. Willow was smart, yeah, but Xander read for fun equations she hadn't even heard of yet. When he could sneak into the library, that is. He could spend hours in there, reading all the books.

Xander brightened up suddenly and smiled as he set off on his skateboard towards school. A new school year. And a new librarian, who had brought in a shipment of books with him. He couldn't wait to see what they were about.

1999 THE ROAD

Xander drove on down the road, out of Sunnydale, smiling happily. At last he was free, to go out and see a little of the world. To find out for himself what life was like without the Hellmouth.

And maybe he could try out a few different things, too, explore a little, see if he liked boys more than girls.

He certainly had gone off them after Faith. But he had liked both equally before, so maybe it was time to see what that side was like. He headed in the direction of Oxnard first and smiled. Time to experience the world.

ONE DAY LATER: OXNARD

"That much?! Damn, that'll take all my road trip money and then some. Look, do you know any place that's hiring? And then I can pay you as soon as."

"Sure kid. Try The Fabulous Ladies Night Club, I hear they're hiring."

A WEEK LATER

Xander stood there, tired, his hands sore, his feet sore, from washing dishes. He stretched and yawned before grabbing the next pot in the pile waiting to be scrubbed.

This wasn't quite what he expected when he wanted to experience life out side the Hellmouth, but oh well. Maybe he should take on a series of jobs like this, just to see what it could be like.

"Hey Harris. How are you at dancing?" His boss suddenly said from behind him. Xander jumped and turned around to stare at his boss. Dancing? He sucked. Except for those times when he let out the Hyena and The Soldier, and let himself remember. He was pretty good then.

But he could only let go when he knew for certain the Scoobies were nowhere near. He had no wish for another spell from Giles to de- possess him, no way. The first time was enough and unfortunately he remembered it all. An eidetic memory really sucked at times.

"Not bad, why?" he said and smiled.

end: Alexei