Title: Once In A Lifetime 18/24
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.
Buffy lifted her hand to knock on the door, only to hesitate. Again. She'd been standing outside his room for several minutes arguing with herself about whether to disturb him or not. She had very logical reasons for being there. After his last comment she wanted him to know that she was okay after the patrol. And she wanted to make sure he wasn't still angry with her. And it had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that she couldn't forget the night before. Or what he'd made her feel.
Buffy sighedg in frustration at herself, then lifted her hand and knocked quickly before she could change her mind. There was no immediate response. "Must have gone to bed." She turned, ready to walk away, when she heard a door handle turn.
Rupert stood in the entryway wearing Giles' glasses, a book in his hand. Buffy recognized it as one of her Watcher's personal diaries. In the room behind him she could see several other journals scattered on the furniture and floor. With his spectacles on, he looked so much like her Giles, it made her heart ache. "Buffy, what.?"
She pasted a bright smile on her face. "Just wanted to let you know everything went fine. So I'll go on home now. Night."
"Wait." He took her hand before she could leave. "Please come in." Rupert stepped back, granting her entry into his room.
"You know you should be careful on the whole invite thing. You never know in vamp central."
Rupert smiled. "Normally, I would. But I doubt you would have been turned in the two hours since we talked."
"Oh." She hesitated, unsure where to sit, or what to do.
"Why did you really come here?" His abrupt question surprised her.
"What? I told you. I wanted to check in."
"Do you 'check in' with Giles after every patrol?"
"Yes." Her response was too quick and too sharp. "No. But you seemed so worried before."
"I always worry when my Buffy has to face evil. Something that started from the moment we met."
"Oh." Buffy ducked her head, her hands playing with one of the buttons on her overcoat.
"Shall I ask again?" His voice was gentle as he sat on the bed. "About your real reason for being here?"
"Well, I um, I was just.."
"Curious?"
"God, no! Is that all you men think about? Sex?"
Rupert smiled. "What makes you think I was talking about sex?"
Buffy's face heated as she felt a blush rise. "Well, I assumed. Because you' re a man. And."
Rupert laughed. "Oh Buffy. One thing that hasn't changed between our worlds. Your stubbornness and unwillingness to admit defeat."
She shrugged. "It's just. I mean last night was.but you're Giles. Even though you're not. And he'd never."
He lay back, resting his head on his hand. "He might, given the right incentive. I could show you a few, um, sensitive spots if you like. Should you ever wish to take the initiative."
Buffy knew it was wrong. He was talking about teaching her how to seduce her Watcher. Giles deserved better than that. She shook her head no as she verbalized her answer. "Okay." Rupert smiled. Then she remembered. "Oh wait. You're married. To me. And I wouldn't appreciate."
"You may not. But she'd understand. Knowing my Buffy, she's probably making a few moves herself."
"On my Giles!? How dare she, the."
"Careful. That's my wife you're talking about, as well as being yourself." He smiled as she stopped in confusion. Holding out his free hand, he beckoned her to him. "For this one night, we'll pretend I'm your Giles, and you're my Buffy. A moment in time, a madness never to be repeated. And tomorrow, after everything is returned to the way it should be, we'll all continue as we had before. What do you say?"
Buffy chewed on her lip, thinking about his offer. In the end, it wasn't his words that won her over, but the physical effect they had on her. Her body remembered his touch from the night before, and how his passion had ignited her. Throwing all caution to the wind, she stepped forward and grasped his hand, allowing him to pull her down beside him.