Title: Once In A Lifetime 14/24
Author: Karen Jephson
Disclaimer: Not mine, unfortunately. Want to adopt and treat them better
than their owners, but I don't have enough.
Feedback: Live for it.
Note: To Trich and Gail. Thanks for your nagging, your precise beta, and your
constant encouragement.
"It must have hurt. When you realized she'd lied to you." The two of them were now in the living room, enjoying a quiet cup of tea. The others had left, wanting to give them a chance to discuss things more. After Giles' shock revelation, nobody had wanted to share past experiences any more, and the meal had continued in a more subdued manner. Finally, even Dawn had decided she'd had enough, and bid them goodnight a few minutes before.
Giles nodded, enjoying the peace of having Buffy to himself for a while...even if it wasn't his Buffy. "At first. Especially as I found out from Xander. I'm not sure how much longer Buffy would have kept it quiet. But I did understand, you know. There is no saying how I might have reacted. And doing the wrong thing would have done the world a great disservice."
Buffy nodded. "I know. He's doing good in L.A. I think he's even saved the world a couple of times."
Giles smiled. "How did your Rupert react?"
She shrugged. "He was very quiet at first. I think he was afraid of what he' d do if he confronted him. But then Angel saved me from that Jekyll and Hide guy. Rupert realized that he might still be saved. We kept him chained and cared for him until we were sure he could be trusted." She sighed, obviously back in that time that had changed her destiny.
Giles hesitated, not wanting to break into her memories, yet curious about where her life had led from there. "And when you and Angel started seeing each other again?"
Buffy looked up in surprise. "Oh, we didn't. At first, I was confused about how I felt about Angel. And the others kinda conspired to keep us apart. We' d all take turns sitting with him." She shrugged, then smiled. "Xander so hated that. Then Rupert and I started spending more time together, so..." she trailed off.
"That's when the two of you started seeing each other?"
"God no! I was still a kid!" Buffy giggled. "Rupert did everything to make sure we 'followed propriety'. I wondered at first why he made sure Willow or Xander were always with us during training and research. I didn't realize you see, until Quentin Travers dropped that great big anvil on my head."