Here are the Xander questions and answers from the Scott Allie Q&A. I can see that the answer about Xander's secret has something to do with why he wants out of the slaying life.
3. Stoney: Hi
I'm really looking forward to seeing some real character progression in S9, particularly with Buffy and Spike, but my question is actually about Xander, one of the often quieter characters:
Will Xander get to address his feelings/reactions about Angel and Giles?
Scott: In short, maybe. No promises, but there is a lot of aftermath from the end of Season 8. But the Buffy title is moving forward more swiftly than the Angel & Faith title is.
6. Sosa Lola: Xander has always been good at hiding his pain and suffering, but after all that has happened to him in the last few years, from losing Anya, an eye, his hometown, Renee and the castle, to watching Buffy betray them with Angel, and watching Giles be killed right in front of him, is it possible that we're going to see Xander break emotionally?
Scott: He's definitely in for some emotional trouble of his own, and the stuff you list is part of why he's withdrawing from the Scooby aspect of things, toward more domesticity. I hope he doesn't break. Buffy has enough problems coming up.
9. Matrim: Will Willow and Xander rebuild their friendship in S9? Willow needs to learn how to be "normal again", after spending years of being a powerful witch and ignoring her talents in other areas like hacking, and Xander should be the perfect guy to help her with that. Both have had plenty of scenes with Buffy in the comics but almost no scenes with only the two of them. Will this change in S9?
I hope the above counts as just one question.
Scott: This isn't really gonna change anytime soon. There are things going on with both that prevent us from focusing on that. You'll see soon...
13. Sosa Lola: Considering the snarky background to their interactions and that Spike had a protective/brotherly role with Dawn at one time, will we get to see any new dynamics between Xander and Spike and how they react to each other anew in S9?
Scott: Yes, but not right away. There's a scene early on where they're together, but what you're talking about doesn't play out. It will, though.
18. Moscow Watcher: When you were breaking down season 9 together with Joss, have you discussed a possibility of Xander changing his profession so that he could spend more time around Buffy and help her in a professional capacity - as a cop or a reporter or a private investigator?
Scott: No, we've been real sold on the idea for a while that Xander would really be looking for more of a very normal life, and mostly putting Scooby activity of any kind behind him. We talked about that sort of thing with other characters, but not Dawn or Xander.
21. tigerfan: Many fans are very excited to see an emotional storyline for Xander like seeing him so gloomy and secretive in this issue. We're excited at the prospects of seeing Xander go through the emotions of all that affected him instead of just being told that he dealt with it all off screen. Would you say this is leading to something big for him story arc wise that would last the whole season as oppose to just a few issues arc? Many Xander fans were afraid that he would disappear into the background with Dawn and wouldn't play much of a role this season, but we're excited and eagerly waiting to see what he's up to and how he's feeling. We just don't want to be burned again on the idea of an emotional story and it mostly play for background growth or a storyline that has more affect on other characters than it does for him. Thanks for continuing with the Q&As!
Scott: Lot of love for Xander, which is great. I can't say how much of this you're getting this season. We're balancing things to make sure that we get through the story in twenty-five issues, not balloon past it like last time. I love the character too, but I'm sure he won't get as much as some readers would like.
26. Chad Schwartz: I was disappointed there was no mention of Xander's complicity in Buffy's bankrobbing and so on. He used to be willing to challenge her when she was going off course and he never did that in S8. I think that fits where they are, but I wish it had been a plot point for further development of that arc. Will it be addressed in S9?
Scott: Xander will call her on some stuff in Season 9, yeah. But he won't say, Remember when you robbed banks, that was bad. But he will have input about better choices going forward.
31. Sosa Lola: I have really enjoyed the issue, especially the part with Xander having a secret and hiding it from Dawn. I love how Buffy knows about it and is being supportive. Is Buffy the only one who knows about it? Does the secret involve her?
Scott: This needs to remain open to interpretation for now.
32. cheryl: Hi Scott, thank you for taking the time to answer our questions. The issue was great today, btw.
My question is this..."Will there be a moment in the over all plot for Xander this season that will have us screaming Holy cow!"
Scott: You mean that hasn't happened yet? Sorry. I don't know that we will succeed in amping Xander's situation that high.
34. Stoney: Hi Scott, thanks for carrying on with the Q&As. It is hard to picture how Xander and Dawn will feature if they are no longer playing an active role in the Scooby gang and whether they can, therefore, work independently of each other as well. Many Xander fans are afraid he will become more 'Dawn's boyfriend' and disappear into the background once again. Are they going to have a decent level of autonomy from eachother and will Xander end up isolating himself if he isn't within the Scoobies, won't be re-establishing his friendship with Willow and is keeping secrets from Dawn?
Scott: Sorry, the only real answer I can give there is that Dawn and Xander will appear together most of the time at least in the early part of the season.
40. Chad Schwartz: In S8, we got a reprise of seasons 2/3 where Buffy's love for Angel is horribly destructive. Xander's reaction to what happened in S8 (his faith and trust in Buffy without judging her or yelling at her) is a big contrast from his anger and going on a mission to kill Angel with Faith in S3. If we are going to be treating Xander as a rich well-developed character, shouldn't the writers deal with how that echoes with the season 3 conflict between Buffy and Xander?
Scott: That is definitely a path we could explore, not so much in contrast to Season 3, but in terms of how he's reacting to things that have happened lately.
41. Sosa Lola: Is poor Xander going to have a guy friend this season? After Jesse's death I don't think he really had a close guy friend. I wonder if he can form a strong friendship with a guy like he did with women. A Xander/Spike friendship would be awesome.
Scott: There are new male characters coming into the cast, so one would hope, but he really does form better friendships with women, from Willow on down the line.
44. tigerfan: Yes, there is a lot of love out there for Xander. I've noticed from looking around the interwebs that there seems to be a lot of excitement and buzz about Xander and his secret and the possibility of a great role for him to play for the season. Many Xander fans have been amped up before at the idea of a possible juicy role only for it to fizzle out. I'm hoping to see a role that takes him off the sidelines and actually see a storyline that focuses on his emotions and part in the story. Would you say that this secret is a big part of his story this year or is it something else?
Scott: No comment, sorry.
