Xander yelped and dropped the razor when the unexpected knock made his hand slip. Mumbling under his breath, he added yet another piece of tissue to the collection dotting his face. He turned to glare at Tony when he came through the door.

"Xander? Are you all right? I thought I heard..." Antony stopped in mid sentence, the glare Xander shooting at him warning him that laughter would not be a good idea. "I'm sorry Xander. I didn't mean to startle you. I have something better for those cuts if you want it."

Xander sighed and hung his head, "No, I'm fine."

Antony resisted the urge to hug the younger man, choosing instead to dwell on more practical matters. "Here are the clean clothes I promised. And I had the pharmacy deliver your prescription, but you need to take it with food so I'll leave it in the kitchen. I need to put some more of the antibiotic on your back, do you want me to do it now, or wait until you're finished?"

Antony's calm, straight forward manner helped ease Xander's nerves. "Might as well do it now."

"All right. Go ahead and get comfortable, I'll be back in a second."

Antony returned with the ointment and winced when he was once again confronted with the evidence of Frank Harris' brutality. The bruises actually looked worse today. He took a deep breath and managed to sound normal when he spoke. "This might sting a little, but I'll be as gentle as I can."

Xander nodded, not bothering to turn around. Antony squeezed some of the antibiotic on a finger and gingerly spread it across the uppermost welt, cringing in sympathy when Xander flinched away. Neither man spoke until the last cut had been taken care of.

"All done Xander."

"Thanks." Xander said softly.

Antony leaned down and kissed the top of his head, his voice equally soft, "You're welcome. I'll go make us something to eat. Join me when you're ready." Antony closed the door quietly behind him, giving the younger man some privacy.

*****

Antony saw movement in the corner of his eye and turned to see Xander standing in the doorway. His hair was still wet and the sweats he'd given the boy were too big. He looked impossibly young. Antony cleared his throat, "Breakfast is almost ready, go ahead and sit down. Do you drink coffee?"

Xander perched on the edge of the chair, careful to keep away from the hard, wooden back. "Coffee would be good, as long as it's not Starbuck's."

Antony brought him a mug, pushing the sugar bowl closer, "You don't like Starbuck's?"

"I worked there for a while, if I never smell it again I'll die happy."

Antony laughed, "I know what you mean. I delivered pizza when I was in high school, I couldn't even think about pepperoni for years afterwards."

Xander smiled and started to tell him about driving the ice cream truck when he remembered where he was and why he was here. He wrapped both hands around the mug and stared into the steam rising from it.

Antony reached out a hand but pulled it back at the last second. He didn't think Xander would accept comfort from him, at least not yet. He went back to the stove and served up their breakfast.

He put the plate covered with food in front of Xander's nose, slightly insulted when Xander looked up at him with shocked eyes. "I might not be the greatest cook in the world Xander, but I'm not completely helpless."

"It's not that, it's just, I don't think anyone's ever actually cooked me breakfast before."

"What about your Mom? Didn't she make breakfast for you?"

Xander shook his head, busy shoveling bites of omelet into his mouth. He grabbed the glass of milk Tony sat in front of him, draining half of it in one gulp. "Mom is more of the cold cereal type. She hasn't turned on a stove in a couple of years." He started in on the hash browns, mumbling around his fork, "This is really good."

Antony picked up Xander's prescription and tipped two of the small, white pills into his hand. He layed them next to Xander's plate, "Those are the pain reliever's David prescribed for you. You should probably take them, but you don't have to if you don't want to."

Xander looked at the innocent appearing pills then up at Antony. Antony shrugged, "It's your back, you know if you need them or not."

Xander popped both of the pills into his mouth, washing them down with the rest of his milk. Antony tipped his head at the empty glass, "There's more in the frig if you want it."

"I'm good." They finished their breakfast in silence, neither eager to begin the conversation they needed to have. Antony finally decided they couldn't put it off any longer.

"Xander, I think we should have that talk now. Grab your coffee, we'll go into the den." Xander's heart was jumping in his chest, but he followed the older man into a room off of the livingroom.

Bookcases covered almost every inch of wall space, containing an eclectic mix of sturdy leather bound tomes and ragged paperbacks. The desk in the corner housed everything a computer junkie could want. Giles and Willow would have loved it here. Xander swallowed tears, he still couldn't believe the way they'd treated him. A large hand took his mug and carefully led him to an overstuffed couch.

Xander huddled into himself, the events of the last two days crashing in on him all at once. He didn't fight the arms that pulled him against a strong chest, or the hand that gently ran through his hair.

Xander finally pushed away from the comfort of that embrace and wiped his eyes, trying to stay calm. "Sorry, didn't mean to blubber all over you."

"That's okay Xander, I doubt I would have handled this situation as well as you have."

Xander shrugged, plucking at a thread on the hem of his shirt. "I've had lots of practice handling weird stuff."

Antony tilted Xander's chin up so he could look into his eyes. "We need to discuss a few things Xander."

"Yeah, I guess. What do you want to know?"

Antony picked up a small pile of paper from the coffee table. "These are the papers your father gave me. Do you know what they say?"

"He said it was a legal contract giving you complete control over me."

Antony handed him the papers, allowing him to read them for himself. "Not actually. It's a court order stating that you are incapable of making your own decisions and placing you under your parents control. Did you ever go to a hearing?"

Xander looked up, confusion evident. "No. And I haven't seen Doctor Michaels for years. He was my doctor when I was little. I heard he retired. Why would he say....Oh shit."

"What is it?"

"Dr. Michaels. I used to get hurt alot and he always used to say I needed a keeper."

"Okay, the first thing we do is get this court order revoked. Whatever your father is up to, it has something to do with this."

"Can we do that? Get it revoked, I mean."

"I think so. I spoke to my lawyer already this morning. He doesn't think there will be a problem. I expect to hear from him this afternoon."

Xander studied the thick rug under his bare feet, unwilling to look at the other man, "What happens after I get my rights back? Can I leave?"

"I've been thinking about that, and I have a proposition for you. I know you don't have any money, and you can't very well go home. So what I propose is this, we'll sign a contract stating that you willingly agree to stay with me and be my companion for one year. At the end of that year I provide you with enough money to go where ever you'd like and start over. Or we could renegotiate at the time. It'll be your decision."

Xander jumped up from the couch and paced around the room, "You want me to sign a contract saying I'll have sex with you for a year is what you mean!"

Antony crossed to where Xander stood and wrapped both arms around his waist, careful to avoid touching any of the bruises or welts, "Being a companion is about more than sex, although that will be part of it."

Xander pushed against Tony's chest and broke his hold, "No way! Not happening! I'm not a rentboy or companion or whatever you want to call it. It all means the same thing, *whore*. I'm not going to let you fuck me just so I can get money. I'd rather be homeless and starve to death." Xander headed out of the room, determined to leave.

Antony caught him by the arm before he could get more than a few feet. He turned Xander to face him, "The money is because you shouldn't be involved in this. Whoever is behind this is after me, you just got caught in the middle. If you stay with me I can protect you. And as for sex, trust me, when it finally happens, and it *will* happen, you'll want me as badly as I want you."

Xander's heart was pounding in his chest, he believed everything Tony said, but it'd be a cold day in Hell before he'd admit how being this close to the other man was turning him on. "Then it'll never happen," he sneered, "there's nothing you could do to make me want you. You're a man and I don't go that way."

Antony quirked one brow at him, "Never is a *very* long time Xander." Antony wrapped one hand around the back of Xander's neck and pulled him close. He took possession of Xander's mouth, forcing it open and thrusting his tongue inside.

He licked across the roof, enjoying the shudder it caused, and pulled back to nibble on the full lower lip before sucking on it lightly. He used every ounce of his not inconsiderable skill to drive them both to the edge. They were both breathing hard when he finally raised his head.

Tony pressed his palm against the bulge tenting the front of Xander's sweats, stroking it lightly, "You may not want to admit it Xander, but you *do* want me. Or at least what I can make you feel. Just think about my offer, that's all I ask." Tony released him and stepped back, "I know this is a lot for you to handle, especially after the last few days. I need to take care of some business so I'll be in here for most of the day. Please feel free to explore the grounds. There's stuff for sandwiches in the kitchen if you get hungry. We'll talk again after I hear from the lawyer."

Xander numbly nodded his head and left the room, his body screaming at him to go back while his mind told him to run as fast and as far as he could. Neither would get their way.

*****

Xander sat across the table from Tony and tried to eat, but for the most part he just pushed his dinner around his plate. He wanted to ask if the lawyer had called but didn't want to have 'that' discussion again. He'd spent the day sitting on the edge of the huge swimming pool he'd discovered behind the house, wishing he could slid into the cool water and never come out. But the thought of chlorine hitting the open wounds on his back was enough to stop him.

He couldn't get the memory of how wonderful Tony's mouth had felt on his out of his mind. For a while he'd forgotten about his father, slimy lawyers and his worthless friends, he'd been living one of his dreams. Reality was harsh, contracts had no place in a relationship, and that's what he wanted. He just couldn't bring himself to say it. Finally, his silence forced the older man to broach the subject himself.

"Xander, my lawyer called. He managed to contact Dr. Michael's and he made a sworn statement to the effect that he hadn't seen you in years and was never asked to testify about your ability to make your own judgments. The court order has been revoked. Actually, Mike said that the judge was most interested in how it got passed in the first place."

Xander kept his eyes on the patterns he was making on his plate, "That's good. That it was revoked I mean." He shrugged slightly, wincing when the muscles in his back twinged, "I overhead my father say that some lawyer told him to make the deal with you. I think his name was Wolf or something like that."

Tony reached across the table and raised Xander's face, "This is important Xander, could it have been Wolfram? Wolfram and Hart?"

"Yeah, I think that was it. Why? Do you know who they are?"

The look on Tony's face was almost frightening, "Oh yes, I know exactly who they are."

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