TITLE:  No Dominion
AUTHOR: tkw
SPOILERS:  Restless, although there is a fleeting mention of Dawn as well.  If that’s going to spoil you, then my condolences because you’re even further behind than where I live.
RATING:  PG-13, for some naughty words and gratuitous Barbie references.
PAIRING:  B/G friendship, with some UST bubbling away underneath.  Bubble, bubble.
FEEDBACK: tkw97@yahoo.com
DISTRIBUTION:  If you want anything of mine, just ask.
DISCLAIMER:  I don’t own anything to do with the Buffyverse.  Nor do I own Monty Python.  Or Dylan Thomas.   Or Winnie the Pooh.  Well, bugger me, this is getting depressing. How about I list what I do own?  Nothing.  There you go.  Please don’t sue.
SUMMARY:  Buffy’s having bad dreams.  There’s evil a-happening and Scooby research.  What more could you ask for, except a sexy Watcher?  Wait, we’ve got one of those, too.  So, all bases covered then.  Let’s push on, shall we?
Thank you oh so much to my brilliant betas; Gail, who takes the time out of her busy day to help me be a much more betterer writer, and Shelley, who provided the Girl Scout dissertation and the history of peanut development.  And some plot stuff as well, but that wasn’t half as interesting<g>   I bow down before you guys.

She was running.  She pushed herself hard, trying to go faster.  This was not enough and she needed to dig down deep inside and summon up that extra burst of speed. She was the Slayer.  Her body was a finely honed fighting machine, used to being pushed beyond the normal limits of human endurance, and then some.  She was the latest in a long line of mystical warriors chosen to defend mankind, granted gifts of superior speed, strength and skill needed to battle the forces of evil that sought control of her realm. Creatures of the night hated her, feared her and respected her.   Her every move was fluid, graceful and a study of power controlled. 

Usually.

Tonight she ran like a girl.

‘And not a particularly coordinated one at that,’ thought Buffy, as she tripped for what seemed like the zillionth time.  ‘More Spazzy Spice than Sporty Spice.’  Scrambling to her feet, she took off down a dark alley, only to find her way blocked by a chainlink fence.  It was at least ten feet high, so rather than try to scale the barrier; she pulled on a tear and squeezed herself through the gap.

The panicky feeling that had been bouncing around her insides had now settled in to a hard ball of terror in the pit of her stomach.  This was not a sensation she was comfortable with.  She was used to being the one inducing the dread, not feeling it like this.  It reminded her of her eighteenth birthday, or even Halloween last year, when she and her friends had been stuck in that frat house with the teeny fear demon.  They had all been so afraid and she still remembered the overwhelming distress of being alone.  Of having everyone leave her.

Then Giles had shown up with Anya and a chainsaw.  Buffy had never thought to ask just what he was doing with one lying handy around the house.  He really didn’t seem like the power tool kind of guy.  She had never seen him even fix a leaky faucet, let alone try and build himself a log cabin.  Maybe he kept it for chopping up the bodies of dead demons that obstinately refused to disintegrate.  Not that he’d ever offered to share it out on burial detail.  Or maybe he just liked the way it throbbed in his hands.  Some sort of macho male thing.

She would never be truly alone because she had Giles.  She knew that.  Even after how poorly she had treated him last year, he was still here for her.  Buffy wasn’t particularly proud of her unthinking behaviour since she started college, but in her defense it had been just that.  Unthinking.  She hadn’t meant to push him away and she certainly never meant to hurt him so badly.  In fact, she hadn’t even realized he was hurting at all.  She would have thought he was pleased to not have to bother about her so much.  She had gotten carried away with the Initiative and Riley, and had forgotten the people who had been with her from the beginning.

Not anymore.  When she needed help, her true friends showed up.  They backed her play and lent her their strength.  They went above and beyond the call of duty, because the duty only really belonged to her and Giles.  Even he had been offered the opportunity to relinquish his obligations and skip happily off home.  But he had stayed with her, only to be pushed aside for studly soldiers and their shiny weapons.  So Buffy had resolved to be a better friend.  To let the people who mattered know she loved and appreciated them.  She had been doing so well, too, until this thing chasing her had decided she was munchable.  Now she really just wanted someone, anyone, to help her.  She wanted to scream for Giles, but she was struggling to draw breath into her burning lungs as it was.

She used her right hand to push off from the wall and gain a little extra momentum as she rounded yet another corner.  Nothing seemed right.  No matter where she ran, she seemed to be stuck in a maze of dead ends and dark passageways.  There were no familiar landmarks, nothing she could use to guide her to safety.

Her pursuer was gaining steadily.  No footsteps could be heard behind her, no panting of breath as it chased her down, but Buffy knew it was getting closer.  And the closer it came, the more her stomach twisted in fright.  When she looked behind her, there was nothing in sight to cause this overwhelming fear, yet she knew the reaction was entirely justified.  The walls of the alley seemed to be closing in on her as well, the resulting sense of claustrophobia making her chest tighten even more. 

Turning right this time, Buffy tried to get her legs pumping harder.  Unfortunately, it seemed that today was the day her body refused to co-operate with her on any level.  First the bad horror movie type falling and now the great imitation of a tortoise when she really needed to be making like a hare.  Glancing up, she saw a figure standing on the fire escape at the end of the alley, watching her.  He was motionless, merely observing her desperate flight of fear.

There was no mistaking him, not even at a distance and as terrified as she was.  Concentrating on reaching the silent spectator, Buffy ran straight into a row of trashcans, knocking both them and herself sprawling across the ground.  Still, he didn’t move or even change expression.

Pain shot through Buffy’s left knee as she landed hard on a piece of broken glass.  She barely felt it though, as the horrible fear that had been threatening to overrun her for some time now finally consumed her and left her paralyzed.  She knew there was nowhere left to run, no possible place to hide.

Turning her head, she fixed her eyes on the one person she had always counted on as he stood and impassively watched her plight.

‘Giles, please!  Help me.’  She tried to plead with him, but the words wouldn’t come.  Instead, a voice that definitely wasn’t hers came out of her mouth.

“Where are you?”

With that, Buffy felt the darkness finally descend and a terror she had never even imagined possible take her.

***

She bolted up in bed, her breath coming in short, shallow pants as she tore herself out of sleep.  Sweat had wet the front of her shirt, her heart was racing and her knee ached.  Reaching down to rub it, she reminded herself it was just a dream.  A particularly freaksome one, but a dream nonetheless.  Still, she checked her knee just in case, she’d seen Nightmare on Elm Street.  Living on the Hellmouth meant you always had to check these things, on the off chance.  And being the slayer meant that the chances were less off and more on.

This didn’t seem like a prophetic dream; just a regular nightmare.  One that had left her with a residual feeling of anxiety, again.  At three o’clock in the morning there was only one way to get rid of these nasty thoughts, and that was to go and find something to kill, or at least maim really badly.  Throwing back the bed covers, Buffy reached for her jeans and prepared to hunt.

***

Across town, Rupert Giles was splashing cold water on his face for the third time this week.  He was used to disturbed sleep and unsettling dreams, but these had rattled him.

In the four years he had been Buffy’s Watcher, he had seen her die in his nightmares many times.  Each time it had somehow been his fault, he was found wanting.  She was ill prepared, he made the wrong connections, was too late to save her and so forth.  The only thing these dreams had in common was that he couldn’t save her, no matter how hard he tried.  This, he was used to.  What bothered him about the new ones was that he never tried to help her.  He just stood silently and watched as she met her death.  He wanted to reach out and do something but his body would not obey.  The images of his dream were fast fading now that he was awake, but he could not forget the imploring look in her eyes as she waited for him to come to her aid.  There was no chance of going back to sleep, so he went downstairs to put the kettle on.

Giles rubbed his eye wearily as he shelved yet another book.  He had been hard at work this summer, cataloging all his books and collating the many pieces of information he had collected over the years.  He had felt at a terrible loss over the last year; no job, no clear direction and his slayer drifting away.  He wasn’t particularly upset over the loss of employment, after all his first duty was to Buffy.  His job in the Sunnydale High library was merely a means to be close to her without raising any undue suspicion.  Still, it had been a little sad to watch it explode into a thousand pieces and reduced to a pile of smoldering rubble.  Not to mention the overpowering smell of charred snake that had settled over the area for several days.  He had seriously considered becoming a vegetarian for a while after that.

No, his sense of purpose and identity had somehow become tied to a young woman.  When Buffy had edged him out of her life he had felt it keenly.  Like a vital part of him was missing.  He wasn’t quite sure when that had happened, when his slayer had somehow crawled into his soul and set up shop there as if she owned it.  And now she did, he admitted ruefully to himself.  It was useless to try and deny it any longer.  He realized on her eighteenth birthday that she was the most important thing in his life, not the Council, not his family and not his birthright.  Not even the Slayer.  Just Buffy.  He would simply have to take what she would offer him.  It wasn’t fair of him to expect her to revolve her life around her middle-aged ex-watcher.  So he would be whatever she needed him to be and be content she was protected and happy.  This was something very few watchers could ever hope for.

Hence the mad organization of resources.  With the Initiative gone, Buffy was turning back to her old ways of fighting evil.  She would patrol and come to him for advice.  She seemed to be getting on well with Willow and Xander again and in general looked a much happier person.  She appeared to want to mend the fractured relationship with her watcher as well.  Over the last few weeks the two of them had spent quite a lot of time together and Giles had found a renewed sense of purpose in his life.  Buffy was his slayer, regardless of what the Council said, and she needed his knowledge and research skills.  Their reconnection as friends helped to galvanize him into action.  It wouldn’t do to be caught napping like an idiot again.  There was a time when he would have catalogued the Word of Valios the day he took possession of it.  Lives depended on one young woman and she depended on him to have the answers she required.  So he would make sure she was never disappointed again.

There was quite a lot that needed to be done.  If only he wasn’t so damnably tired. These nightmares had robbed him of any decent sleep over the past week.  Giles supposed that his resolution to be a better watcher to Buffy had led to his fears of letting her down manifesting themselves in his dreams.  They were just so intense …and so draining.  In addition to the tiredness resulting from lack of sleep, there was also a weariness that he couldn’t understand.  He couldn’t seem to recover fully afterwards, as if each successive dream was sucking the energy out of him.  Still, they would stop soon and a good night’s sleep would do him wonders.  Maybe he would just go and take a quick nap now.  He wasn’t really accomplishing much like this.

The sound of his front door being opened quickly put paid to any plans of rest.  Xander and Anya’s voices floated over to him, leading to the beginnings of a headache.  They were engaged in one of their typical back and forth banters.  Looking up, he noticed Willow, Tara and Riley behind them.  As always, his gaze skimmed over them as he automatically sought out Buffy.  She was standing at the rear, regarding him with a small smile on her face.  He smiled back.

“Hey, Giles.  Stacking musty books?  You crazy funster, you.  There is obviously no better way to spend a beautiful summer’s day than reshelving.  The Dewey Decimal system is our friend.”  With a happy wave Xander deposited himself on the sofa and proceeded to open one of the several bags of chips he had in his arms.  Anya sat next to him and held up three video tapes.

“We brought entertainment.  There is no decent programming on over the summer and you are highly unlikely to have anything I would want to watch.  Buffy said you had a video machine so we rented these.”

“Thank you so much Anya,” Giles replied, the sarcasm heavy on his voice.  “Won’t you come in and make yourself at home?”

However, any irony was lost on the ex-demon as she reached over and took a handful of Xander’s crisps, settling in comfortably.  “Your home is much more comfortable to be in than Xander’s basement.  There is no leaking water or noticeable odour of mildew.”

‘Excuse me,” came the defensive reply.  “But eau de dank is the new smell in household fragrances.  All the best European homes have it.  You people just aren’t on the cutting edge of interior decorating like me.”  He continued sheepishly as the others looked at him in disbelief.  “Or possibly I could stand to open a window or ten.  Maybe knock down a wall to let in some fresh air.”

“Ooh, fresh air,” said Anya, sounding excited.  “That would stop me having to breathe through my mouth, which becomes very difficult when I’m…”

“So, Giles,” Willow cut in urgently.  “Did we interrupt you or something?  Sorry, we just thought it might be nice to have a pizza and video night.  We didn’t think you would be busy or anything.  We could go, if you want.”

“Not at all, Willow.  I’m just a little tired.  I’ve been rearranging my books.  Come in, pizza and movies do sound nice.”  Giles waved the other four into his living area.  Tara smiled at him by way of greeting and moved to sit next to Willow.

“Hi, Mister Giles.”  Riley was carrying two bags of popcorn as he worked his way over to the sofa.

“Riley,” the older man acknowledged, before turning his attention back to Buffy, who had yet to speak.  He noticed she still had that odd little smile on her face as she regarded him.

“You need to get out more, Giles,” she said, broadening into a grin.  “Work on your all over tan or something.”

He smiled back, pleased to see she was happy.  “I think that might upset the neighbours a little, but I’ll bear it in mind next time the earth rotates backwards.”

“There are beaches for that kind of thing,” Anya called helpfully.

“An, please.  You’ll ruin many a rainy day fantasy if I’m forced to have Giles and nudist beaches in the same place in my brain.  The naked Swedish beach volleyball team do not need help from anyone but me.”  A smack on his arm from Anya stopped Xander from expanding any further.

“That was an overshare, wasn’t it?” he asked, looking around at the others.

“Uh huh,” Willow nodded.

“I didn’t really think so,” said Riley, as Buffy rolled her eyes.

“We’ll talk later,” Xander promised.  “But for now, sit back and enjoy those crazy Brits from Monty Python as they search for the Holy Grail.  It has brave knights, saucy maidens and flying farm animals.  Something for everyone.”

Sitting in his chair, Giles was finally beginning to relax.  Buffy was curled up on the couch between Riley and Willow, obviously fine.  It helped a lot to have her here.  Watching her death each night was not something he recovered from easily, and to have her in sight went a long way to reassuring his troubled mind.  Glancing up from the movie, he noticed that Buffy had, in fact, drifted off to sleep.

***

This was her kind of place.  There was sun, sand and surf.  Buffy was lying on the beach, just catching some rays in her bikini.  The sky was clear, the sun was shining and the only thing missing was a well-oiled, buff hottie bringing her a drink with a little umbrella in it.  She relaxed and watched the tropical palms sway a little in the light breeze.

A moment later, her sense of peace was shattered as every slayer nerve in her body screamed.  A wind began to whip up, forcing the palms to bend under its fury.  The clear blue sky was now turning black, with an ominous dark cloud moving forwards.

On closer inspection, the cloud was actually rolling towards her at an alarming rate.  If she concentrated, Buffy could make out what looked to be shapes of demons within, clawing and snarling at her.

Her Slayer senses on high alert, Buffy began to run.  She didn’t know where she needed to run, just knew she had to get away.  As a slayer, she had become fairly intimate with fear, embracing it on a nightly basis.  She believed a little bit of fear was not a bad thing, it stopped her from getting too cocky.  Every time she faced a vampire or other demon, she felt a little tingle of fright run through her, that tonight might be the night and this might be the one to finally beat her.  It gave her an edge, it reminded her that she was alive.

Not fear like this, though.  This was all-consuming and terrified her right down to her bones.  It seemed that each time she faced this thing in her dreams, the horror was stored up to be revisited upon her twofold the next time.  So as she tried to outpace the darkness, her progress was once again hampered by her panic.

***

Buffy shifted a little in her sleep and moaned softly.  Riley shifted his arm around her and nestled her into his side.

Across the room, Giles felt a strong pull to sleep.  He closed his eyes briefly, intending to open them again a second later, but immediately fell into a slumber.

***

He was on a cliff, overlooking a beach.  It was the same as the other times, unable to move a muscle, forced to just watch.  Buffy was on the sand below, trying to escape a large black cloud that seemed to want to consume her.  Figures of demons were enclosed within it, trying furiously to break free.  Perhaps they smelled his slayer’s blood and ached to taste her.  Whatever the reason, she was their target.  A passage from a picture book he used to read to his nephew sprang unbidden into his mind: “They roared their terrible roars and gnashed their terrible teeth and rolled their terrible eyes and showed their terrible claws”.  Although he doubted there was a simple magic trick to tame these wild things.  Somehow, he sensed that it was up to him, but how?  He was trapped inside this immobile dream body, unable to move or speak.

***

Buffy’s feet were sinking further and further into the sand as she tried to run.  She had noticed Giles on the clifftop and was trying vainly to reach him again.  Yet he continued to stand there.  She opened her mouth to call out to him, but once again the voice that emerged did not belong to her.

“Rebecca, where are you?”  It was an anguished howl, full of sadness and panic.

Buffy turned to see the cloud descend upon her, the fangs and crazed eyes of the creatures within showing their bloodlust.  As the terror and the pain shot through her body, she called silently for her watcher.

***

With a sharp intake of breath, Buffy sat straight up on the couch, her eyes wide with shock.  At the same instant, Giles also awoke suddenly, with Buffy’s name on his lips.  Everyone’s attention left the movie and focused on the watcher and slayer as they stared at each other, both chests heaving.

Still reeling from her dream, Buffy blurted out: “why do you just stand there?  Why won’t you help?”

“I’m trying, but I can’t move,” replied Giles in frustration.

As this sunk in, the two of them continued to stare in shock.

“There was a cloud,” Buffy said finally.

“And a beach,” continued Giles.  “I was on a cliff.”  The look on Buffy’s face confirmed this was correct.

“Dream sharage,” nodded Willow.  “But how come it’s just you two this time?  Why weren’t we invited?  Not that I’m anxious to suffer public humiliation and death again, but still.”

Riley looked on, confused.  He tried to put his arm around Buffy to comfort her, but she shrugged it off, wrapping her arms around herself instead.

‘This was a beach dream?” asked Xander.  “Were you naked and perhaps playing a rousing game of beach volleyball with some friendly Swedish lasses?  Because I can tell you how that one ends.  Although, Giles might want to hone in on someone else’s dreams from now on.  But you can feel free to stay if you want, Buff.”

“I’m going to make some tea,” Giles declared as he pushed himself up out of the chair.

“Cranky,” huffed Buffy.  “I’m the one who got eaten.”

“Well, I’m the one who had to bloody stand still and watch,” he replied as he went into the kitchen.  Buffy got up and followed him in.

Riley watched her go, concern written all over his face.  He turned to Willow, Tara and Xander, as Anya had gone back to watching the movie.  “What was that all about?” he asked.  “Should we go and find out?”

“Nah,” replied Xander.  “They’ll sort it out and let us know.”  He popped a handful of chips in his mouth.

“But they’re sharing dreams,” said Riley.  “How can you just watch TV?”

“We all did it a few weeks ago,” Willow supplied.  “Had a big ole group dream.  On our last video night.”  She turned to Xander.  “We really need to stop having these, or at least choose movies that don’t bore us to sleep.”

“I missed something, didn’t I?”  Riley was still a little puzzled.  “But why Buffy and Giles?”

“Must be a watcher/slayer thing.” Willow did not seem at all perturbed.  Riley figured if anyone would show some common sense and realize that it was not entirely…normal for people to make guest appearances in each other’s dreams, it would have been Willow.  Or maybe Tara.  Probably not Xander.  Most definitely not Anya.  He couldn’t hear anything from the kitchen and was going to press the issue, when his train of thought was disrupted by a shriek from Anya.

“Ahh!  It’s hideous!  I can’t look!”  The ex-demon had her hands over her eyes, only peeking out from a tiny gap in the corner.  “You didn’t tell me this was a horror film, Xander.  Aren’t there supposed to be warnings or ratings on the front cover?”

At Anya’s screech, Buffy had poked her head around from the kitchen to see what the matter was.  When she realized what had happened she returned her attention to Giles, who continued to make them tea in silence.  Neither of them had actually spoken since they had left the living room and he arched his eyebrow in question at her.

“It’s just up to the bunny bit,” Buffy offered in explanation.  “You know, where the rabbit rips the knights apart?  I guess Xander forgot about that as he contemplated our viewing choices for the evening.  Either that or Willow actually picked the movie.”

“Ah,” was Giles’ only reply as he pulled out two cups.

Buffy figured he was still a little shaken from the dream so she stood quietly watching, waiting for him to say what was on his mind.  Truth be told, she was kind of surprised he was taking it so hard.  She was the one who had been turned into a demon chew toy.  Apparently her death was not a pleasant subject for him.  Buffy tried to avoid thinking about it herself, but she always thought Giles was prepared for it.  As much as you could prepare for someone to die.  He had known since he was ten years old that it would happen someday.  He would have a slayer and she would die.  The knowledge that it could still shake him to his core, even in a dream, gave Buffy a warm, tingly feeling inside.  It helped to dispel the lingering despair from her nightmare.

Back in the living room, Anya’s voice had risen in her annoyance.  Xander was trying to persuade her that the bunny scene was absurd, but Anya was protesting that there was now actual video evidence of the savagery of rabbits.  Buffy’s attention was returned to the kitchen as Giles handed her a cup of hot tea.

Taking a careful sip, he asked her, “How many of these dreams have you had?”

Buffy thought carefully before answering.  “Three, before today.  You were in all of them.”

Her watcher nodded in agreement.  “That’s the same as me.  The next question is why didn’t you tell me about them?”

“They weren’t prophecy dreams,” she replied a little defensively.  “I can tell the difference.  I thought they were just your regular, run of the mill, ‘you’re gonna die piggy piggy die’ dreams.  Slayers get that a lot, you know.  And why didn’t you tell me about your little adventures in the land of nod, Mister Mute?”

“They aren’t all that different from my regular dreams,” he replied evenly, holding her gaze for a second before dropping it down to stare at the cup in his hand.  “Only the inability to move really sets them apart.”

“Oh,” she said softly, suddenly realizing just how much he kept hidden from her.  How he never talked of his fears, except that once in high school when their nightmares all came true.  He dreamed of failing her, of letting her die.  “That’s gotta bite.”

“It does rather,” he answered, looking sadly at her over his glasses.  Suddenly he straightened and shook himself back into Watchermode.  “But that’s not important.  What we need to figure out is if there is an actual danger to you and why I seem to be present in your dreams.”

“We’ll get our top minds on it,” Buffy assured him.  “And we’ll let Xander help too.  Scoobies to the rescue, yadda yadda.”  Reaching out, she placed her hand on his forearm.  “But it is important, *you’re* important, ‘kay?”

Giles smiled gently at his slayer.  It was ridiculous that such a simple statement should cause him such joy.  To know she cared for him- as a person, not just as a text book with arms- caused a warm glow to spread throughout his body.

Once Anya had been somewhat placated and the rabbit exploded by the Holy Hand Grenade, Riley considered bringing up the subject of Buffy and Giles again.  He was beginning to think he didn’t quite understand their relationship. He knew Giles had been her watcher.  Buffy had explained how his role was to train her, guide her and research the demons she fought.  But she had also said Giles had been fired, that he was no longer her watcher.  Yet everyone here seemed to think he was. 

Riley had equated Buffy’s relationship with Giles to that of his with Maggie Walsh.  They had never shared dreams.  In fact, Maggie had never really featured in any of his dreams.  Well, except for that one time and he couldn’t even look her in the eye for days afterwards, what with the whole black leather theme.  In hindsight, it was definitely a good thing his nighttime thoughts weren’t shared with his mentor.  Or Forrest.  Or Graham.  They’d never shower with him in the room again.

“So,” he began.  “I thought Buffy didn’t have a watcher anymore.  Wasn’t Giles fired a while ago?”

Willow turned to face him.  “Well, kinda.  But it didn’t really mean anything.  Except he stopped getting paid.”

“And we were introduced to the joy that is Wesley,” supplied Xander.

“Wesley?” asked Tara who, Riley was gratified to see, seemed as interested in the subject as he was.

“Wes was Giles replacement,” answered Willow.  “When the Council fired Giles, they sent Wesley to take over.  He was a big goober, Buffy was mean to him and he left after a few months.”  She giggled.  “Now he works in LA with Angel.”

“Man, Wesley *and* Cordelia.  That’s some serious atonement Deadboy’s putting in.”  Xander seemed oddly satisfied by this.

Riley was trying to get this all straight in his head.  “So Giles was fired and Buffy got a new watcher, but he’s in LA?”

“No, Wesley got fired too after Faith went bad and Buffy quit.”  Willow raised her hand to stop the question that was so obviously going to come out of Riley’s mouth.  “It’s easier to just accept that Giles *is* Buffy’s watcher.  It’s a destiny thing.  He isn’t technically, but he is really, if you know what I mean.”

Xander put on an awful British accent.  “He’s not her watcher, he’s just a very naughty boy.”

Willow shook her head in exasperation, but before she could say anything, Tara spoke up.

“Welease Wupert!”  As soon as the words left her mouth, she turned a bright shade of red.  After a beat of stunned silence, Willow and Xander burst into peals of laughter.  Riley wasn’t quite sure of the joke.  He liked Buffy’s friends, but boy, were they weird at times.

Gasping a little for breath, Willow managed to say: “That’s it.  I’m cutting you both off.  No more Python for you.”

All thoughts of the movie were immediately cast aside as Buffy and Giles chose that moment to come back in.  Even Anya turned to regard them.

Xander was the first to speak.  “So guys, what’s the what?  Evil to be found, asses to be kicked, names to be taken, yes?”

Giles ran his hand tiredly over his face.  “It seems Buffy and I have been sharing several dreams.  In each one, Buffy is pursued and killed by some sort of malevolent presence, as I stand by watching, unable to move or speak.”

“I can’t really run from it,” Buffy continued.  “I know it’s gonna get me every time and it makes me feel this horrible fear that slows me down.”

Willow clapped her hands.  “So, we research!  Evil’s afoot, and that’s what we do best.  Xander will get the pizza, and we’ll hit the books.”

“Hey, that’s all I’m good for?” came the indignant protest.

“No,” Willow soothed him.  “You help lots.  We all do.  We just need to play to our strengths right now.”

“And food is my strength.  Gotcha.  Must keep up the energy of the troops.  Save a big, musty book for me.”  With that, he grabbed his keys and walked out the door.

Giles, meanwhile, had headed over to the newly organized books and was grabbing volumes off the shelves.  When his arms were full, he walked to the table and deposited his load on top.

“We’ll start with anything that possesses the ability to enter or to influence dreams,” he directed.

“A-are the dreams…” Tara started, but then changed tack.  “Should we be l-looking for something like an in-incubus?”

Riley frowned, concern written all over his face, but no-one was looking at him.  Glancing up from his book, Giles replied: “I think we can safely say not.  The dreams are in no way sexual.  But let’s not exclude anything yet.”

Riley released some of the tension in his body and got up from his seat to go to Buffy.  He had been hoping she would come and sit by him, allow him to wrap his arms around her and offer comfort.  Instead, she paced restlessly around the perimeter of the room.

“Hey,” the commando said as he gently touched her arm.  “We’ll figure it out.  Don’t worry.”

She smiled up at him faintly and allowed him to slide his arms around her.  Riley pulled her to his chest and Buffy rested her head there briefly, before pulling away again.

“Let’s get busy then, huh?  Giles always hogs the books with pictures.”

Riley felt a twinge of something that might be identified as sadness.  He loved Buffy, he was certain of it.  He wanted to be with her and live his life with her.  But he wasn’t sure she wanted the same thing.  It was nothing he could put his finger on yet, but the fact that she went to sit down next to Giles rather than let him hold her bothered him more than it should.  He picked up a book and turned to the index.

When Xander returned with the pizza, everyone continued to work as they ate, warnings from Giles about the incompatibility of greasy fingers and priceless books ringing in their ears.  Various demons were discussed when discovered, but none seemed to fit the profile. 

“How about this one, Buffy?” asked Anya, showing a picture of an extremely unattractive looking demon.  Its face was long and angular, with empty sockets where the eyes should have been.  Just looking at it sent a shiver down Buffy’s spine.  Particularly loathsome were its hands, which were gnarled and had the very long fingernails filed to sharp points.  Anya shook the book enticingly.  “Induces fear.  Eats your soul.  Just your type of guy.”

Buffy shook her head slowly.  “I don’t think so.  I mean, he kinda fits, but I never saw anything who looked like that.”  She indicated the illustration.  “I’m pretty sure I’d remember him.  But put him in the maybe pile.”

Anya handed the book to Giles, who picked up a piece of pizza as he read.  Hopefully, this was not the demon they were facing.  Tek’an was an ancient entity, known to roam the netherworld and eat the souls of those who had not yet passed on to where they were supposed to be.  Once eaten, the soul would know only eternal torment and pain, which accounted for the horrific fear he induced in his victims.  And there was no mention of how to kill him.

But Buffy wasn’t dead.  Her soul was still tied to her body and Tek’an could not exist on the mortal plane.  Reading further, Giles could not actually see any mention of him being able to enter dreams.  There was no point, as he could only consume a soul in the grey area, which existed when a soul had left its earthly shell, and had yet to find a permanent resting place.  Anya had obviously not been paying attention, noticing only the common factor of terror.  Still, Giles committed the facts to memory.

As he absentmindedly bit down on his pizza, he made a face.  Still reading, he held out the slice to Buffy, who examined it and picked off the offending items.  He looked up to see her popping them in her mouth as she found them.

“Yum,” she said.  “Olives,” she explained to Riley.  “Giles doesn’t like them.  But Xander always gets them on the pizza.”

“I have this theory,” Xander began, but was cut off by a chorus of moans.  “Oh, you mock me now, but when this is taught in institutions of higher learning throughout the land, we’ll see who’s laughing then, Chuckles.”  He turned his attention back to Riley.  “Anyhow, as I was saying before I was so rudely interrupted, I have this theory that olives are the great tester for compatibility.  You’ll find you always pick a partner with the opposite taste, to save you from an olive debacle.”

Xander was picking up speed.  “Buffy likes olives, Giles is a freak who doesn’t.  Watcher, slayer, perfect partnership.  I enjoy the olivey goodness, while my bestest bud does not.”  He indicated Willow.  “And neither does the lovely Anya.  So, works out well on both fronts.  You see where I’m going here?”

Riley nodded, but his expression wasn’t particularly happy.  Then Xander noticed Buffy wore the same look.

“Oh God,” he grimaced.  “You both like olives, don’t you?”  When Riley nodded, Xander looked pleadingly at Willow.  “Is there any way I can gracefully save the situation?”

Willow shook her head regretfully, so Xander continued on brightly.  “Ignore me, I’m full of crap.  Pass me some more pizza Buff.  Maybe, if there’s food in my mouth, then there won’t be room for my foot.”

“We can only hope,” commented Giles dryly as he watched Buffy pass the box.  Once Xander had taken the pizza from her, she stood.

“I’m going patrolling,” she announced.

“Already?” asked Willow, surprised.  “Are the vamps even gonna be up yet?”

“Well, you know what they say,” replied Buffy.  “The early slayer catches the vamp.  A stake in time saves nine.  Prevention is better than carnage.”

“I’ll come with you,” offered Riley, rising from his seat.

“Sure, just let me grab some weapons.”  Buffy’s smile didn’t quite reach her eyes though, he noticed.

Giles went over to his weapons chest to help Buffy select something.  “Are you alright?” he asked her softly.

“Yeah,” she answered in the same low tones.  “Just, after the dreams, I get, kinda…look, can I talk to you later?  It doesn’t matter now.”

“It does matter,” he said, echoing her sentiments from earlier in the kitchen.  “But please come by when you finish tonight.  I’ll be up.”

“Okay,” she said as she grabbed some bolts for her crossbow.  “But right now I’m off to bring about the dusty demise of some dastardly demons.”  She thought about that for a moment and then asked, “I really need to pick some more mature programming for Saturday morning TV, don’t I?”

 As Willow had predicted, there were no vampires around yet.  Buffy had just needed to get out of the apartment and go find something to pummel.  After each of those dreams, she was left with several feelings.  The fear lingered, as did the aloneness.  There was also anger, at her inability to fight back and to beat this thing.  She often said that she just wanted to be a normal girl, but truth be told, that wasn’t who she was any more.  She was the Slayer and she fought back, damnit!  She didn’t run, trip and scream.  She whupped some evil ass!  She was angry that these stupid dreams were affecting her so badly.  So she went out after each one and found a vampire to stake.  With each blow she dealt, each kick she landed, she was reaffirming her identity.  Buffy Summers: Slayer, Warrior of Light and Deliverer of Witty Quips.

There was something else driving her as well, something even more primal.  She didn’t understand it, but she knew it came from deep inside.  It was the way she knew the sun had gone down, even in a windowless room.  It was the instinct that told her which grave would be yielding a newborn vamp.  It was the gut feeling she followed, trusting it to lead her to evil to fight.

She had possessed all these senses since she became the slayer, but had not ever bothered to sharpen them.  Now, they seemed to be sharpening themselves.  In addition to this, Buffy found herself wanting to get out there, to engage in battle and let her primordial self take over.  It was different, a little disturbing, but very satisfying.  She would discuss this with Giles when she went back to him later.

Right now, she tried to concentrate on Riley.  She hadn’t really known how to tell him she wanted to be alone on patrol, but now she wished she had just gone ahead and hurt his feelings.  For the last hour he had been asking incessant questions: about high school, about Wesley, and mostly about Giles.  About her and Giles.  Every time she answered him, he had three more questions.  He wanted her to explain things that she didn’t know how to.  Things she just accepted as a given, Riley wanted to know why and how.  What Buffy really wanted was for him to just accept her as she was, not to try and analyze her.  She was beginning to feel like one of the demons she had seen strapped to a table in the Initiative, being dissected.  Why didn’t they understand that some things were just different and that was the way it was.

Riley was sweet and kind and loving…but he still had trouble with the slayer stuff.  Like the way he kept accompanying her on patrol.  She had managed to stay alive before she met him, except for that one time, but now he kept insisting it was dangerous and she shouldn’t go alone.  At first she’d been glad of the company and a little pleased he worried about her.  Now, however, it was a bit wearing.  Sometimes a slayer just needed to be alone, to lose herself and hunt.  And slayers didn’t hunt in packs.  Plus, she kept getting all those little military hand signals confused.

A sudden sound startled her out of her reverie.  Breaking right quickly, she took two steps, vaulted over a headstone and came face to face with….Spike.  Buffy blew out a breath in annoyance.  She was itching for a fight and it was no fun when he couldn’t hit back.  Alright, it was a little bit of fun, but she kinda felt like the class bully picking on the little kid with the Coke bottle glasses and buck teeth.  She giggled at the mental picture of Spike with thick glasses and teeth like Bugs Bunny.  Then she added a part in the centre of his slicked down hair and pulled his plaid pants up around his armpits.  ‘There,’ she thought.  ‘Who’s the Big Bad now?’

“What are you laughing at?”  Spike’s voice brought her back to reality.  “Finally lost it, eh?  Knew it would only be a matter of time before all that hair dye worked its way into your itty bitty brain.”

“Look who’s talking, peroxide boy.”  Wonderful, now her quips were slipping.  That was the best she could come up with?  Soon she’d be down to ‘I know you are, but what am I?’.  Before she could say something more cutting, Riley stepped out of the bushes, a taser trained on Spike.

“What are you doing here?  Hasn’t anyone staked you yet?”

Spike just glared back at him, taking another drag on his cigarette.  “Such big words from the Ken doll.”  When Riley took a menacing step towards him, Spike just rolled his eyes.  “Now, now, don’t get your molded plastic bits in a twist.  Slayer Barbie won’t be happy when you get back to the Dreamhouse.”

“Shut up Spike,” Buffy replied automatically.  “And you didn’t tell us what you’re doing here.”

“I can do as I please.  Land of the free and all that.”  When Buffy just continued to stare at him, he went on, testily.  “Look, I’m not hurting anyone, so why don’t you and the giant action figure just sod off.”

“Sure,” Buffy agreed.  “Its not like you can do anything but scream like a baby if you try and hurt someone anyway.  I’m after vampires that can cause some damage.  Or at least do something other than clutch their head in pain after a naughty thought.”

With that, Buffy set off into the night.  Riley glowered at Spike for a second and then followed her.  Spike stared after them and then sniffed in disgust.

“Bollocks to you, you stupid cow,” he called into the darkness, before setting off to look for a fight.  It was early, but there were always some tossers hanging around Willy’s.  As long as there was a hint of demon in them, he could inflict some pain.  If he couldn’t hurt the slayer, then he’d just have to take his aggression out on something else.  It wasn’t healthy for a bloke to store it all up.

***

Giles was dozing fitfully on his couch.  He was trying to stay awake to research, but the lack of sleep was really catching up with him.  The rest of the gang had left about an hour ago and he was still waiting for Buffy.  He never slept well unless he knew she was safe.  Which didn’t happen that often.  She just didn’t realize how much her welfare meant to him, so she didn’t give it a second thought if she forgot to check in.  He had very few good nights sleep, especially in the past year.

He didn’t notice the front door open and close softly.  Nor did he wake when Buffy settled into the chair opposite.  He did, however, start when he felt someone stroke his forehead.  His eyes shot open and it took him a second to focus.  Buffy was staring at him, an apologetic look on her face.

“Sorry, I…” She gestured vaguely at him.  “I didn’t mean to wake you.  You looked, well, not peaceful, but…pooped.”

“Not at all,” Giles replied as he sat up and replaced his glasses.  “I mean, I am a little tired, but I’m glad you woke me.”

“Wow,” Buffy said, dryly.  “Definite mastery of the understatement there, Giles.  A little tired.  And Spike’s a little annoying.”

“Spike?”  For a second, Buffy wanted to smooth away the frown that creased her watcher’s forehead.  She didn’t know why she had impulsively touched him while he slept, but she had enjoyed the moment of closeness.  “Is he…?”  Giles left the question hanging in the air, unsure of what Spike could possibly be up to this time.

“Nah, just hanging around in his usual putrid cloud of smoke.”  Buffy left the subject and began to report.  “Pretty quiet tonight, bleach blond mosquitoes aside.  Only two vampires and they’re both blowin’ in the wind.”

Giles ran his hand through his hair as he regarded his slayer.  “It is summertime, Buffy.  Traditionally, fairly quiet on the Hellmouth.  You needn’t patrol quite so vigorously.  Besides, I’m sure it will take a while for the demon population to rebuild after Adam’s massacre.”

“I know,” she said quietly.  “That was what I was going to say before.  Since the spell we did, I’ve been feeling…like…Uberslayer.  I want to patrol, and I know where they are.  I feel…like a slayer.  I never felt like this before.  I always felt like Buffy, with a layer of slayer.  Now, its like I’m a marble cake.  All the layers running into one.”  She smiled at him before continuing.  “Also, the dreams piss me off.  Its nice to just go hit something.”

“I imagine so,” he said, returning her smile.  “It is possible that the spell had something to do with these new reactions.  The First Slayer was angry you didn’t acknowledge her as the source of your power.  And the spell allowed her to somehow attack us all in our dreams.”  He was thinking fast now, trying to tie the recent dreams with the past ones, and to somehow include the changes within Buffy as well.  “Maybe, it released some sort of ‘Slayerness’ that was within you, just largely untapped.  Unfortunately, it still doesn’t help with our present predicament.  It’s not the First Slayer after us now.  But perhaps the same power which allowed the First Slayer in, is also responsible for allowing in the evil that is haunting you now.”

“Like it piggybacked in?” asked Buffy.  “Just stuck its evil thumb out and hitched a ride?”

“Of sorts,” Giles replied, a little frustrated.  He had theories, but nothing to tell him if they were right or wrong.  “I’ll just see if…”

Buffy gently took the book out of his hand.  “No more research tonight,” she said firmly.  “It’s bedtime for you, young man.”  She shook her head to stop his protest.  “Giles, you’re too tired to see straight.  Go to sleep and we’ll figure it out in the morning.  I’ll try not to get eaten by Freddy Krueger and you’ll try to get some shut-eye.  Then, you can have your books back.  Go.”  She dismissed him with a wave of her hand towards the stairs.

“Buffy, I don’t…” That was as far as he got before she cut him off again.

“Go.”

They locked eyes for a moment, before Giles gracefully gave in and rose from the couch.

“Goodnight, Buffy,” he said as he headed for the stairs.

“Night, Giles.”

She waited until she heard him getting into bed before she let herself out, quietly closing the door behind her.

With his heart pounding wildly in his chest, Giles sat straight up in bed.  Another dream, this time mere hours since the last one.  They had started off a couple of nights apart, but seemed to be coming closer after each one.  He didn’t know if he could cope if they now came every time he closed his eyes.  He was tired and emotionally overwrought.  He had thought himself used to dreaming of Buffy’s death, if ‘used to’ was the proper term, but these forays into nighttime terror had taken him to new planes of anguish.  As calm a face as he tried to put on for Buffy, he now really didn’t want to go to sleep.

He closed his eyes and lay back against the pillow, weariness overcoming him.  He wanted to resist the tug to rest, but his body rebelled against him.  Closing his eyes only brought fragments of the dream rushing back at him; the look on her face as she reached for him, her desperate attempts to outpace her pursuer, the panic in her voice as she called for him…

Giles forced himself to sit back up.  Fumbling around in his bedside drawer, he found a notepad and a pen.  On it, he wrote the word ‘Rebecca’, followed by a question mark.  Buffy hadn’t called out his name; in fact, the voice wasn’t even hers.  Now that it had lodged in his conscious mind, Giles thought he remembered something similar in the other dreams.  With all the danger and dread associated with the dreams, he had let this small piece of information lie buried in his subconscious.  It wasn’t much, but at least they had something to go on now.

The sound of the phone ringing downstairs helped to drag him further out of the doze he so badly wanted to slip in to.  He forced his leaden eyes open and actually had to concentrate to get his legs out of bed and on to the floor.  He navigated the stairs slowly and was fairly surprised to find the phone still ringing when he reached it.

“Hello?”  Even to his ears, his voice sounded thick and woolly.  He cleared his throat and tried again.

“Hello?”  Better.  Buffy’s voice answered him.

“Giles?  What took you so long?  I thought you woke up when I did.”

“Ah, yes.  I was just…in the bathroom.”  He didn’t want to tell her he was still so tired; didn’t want her to think she couldn’t call him when she needed to.  Buffy, on the other hand, sounded wide-awake and very agitated.  He looked at the clock, four am.

“I had another one, but I’m guessing you know that.  I just wanted to let you know I was okay.  I figured you’d be up too and you seemed kinda upset today so I thought you’d want to know.  Sorry, I didn’t mean to disturb you.”

Her voice was helping, bringing him more and more awake just hearing her.  “Not at all, Buffy.  I’m very glad you called.  I most certainly want to know.  It helps set my mind at ease.”

“Consider it eased.” He could hear the smile in her voice over the phone.  She had seemed awfully pleased to know he worried over her well-being.  “Are you up, up?  Or are you going back to bed?”

The thought of going back to sleep only to witness her death once more led to a shiver running down his spine.  “I think I am definitely up, up.”

“Can I come over?”  Her voice suddenly sounded a little unsure.  “It’ll be dawn soon, so there’s nothing around to slay and I really don’t feel like sitting here by myself right now.”

“You know you’re always welcome, Buffy,” Giles replied gently.  “And I must admit I don’t particularly fancy sitting by myself, either.”

“Cool,” came the happy answer.  “Put the kettle on, Polly.  We can watch bad infomercials together ‘til the sun comes up and then hiss at the perky aerobics lady, who must be some sort of demon because nobody human is that bouncy, that early.”

“See you soon then,” he answered before putting down the phone.  Bad infomercials?  There were good ones?  Although, he did agree with Buffy about the aerobics show.  Not that he had ever watched.  Spike was the one who had turned that on.  He merely happened to be in the room at the same time.  Just like Passions.  No one could ever prove otherwise.

***

It was nice to eat breakfast with another person, Giles thought.  It had been a while since he had taken the time to cook a proper meal in the morning and sit down to enjoy it.  When he worked at the high school, it had been a case of grabbing something on the way out of the door, or more often than not, eating whatever was available after spending the entire night researching in the library.  He hadn’t much bothered to cook breakfast over the last year, rationalizing it wasn’t really worth the effort for one person.  Spike didn’t count as a person.  Just a very inconvenient visitor who slept in his bathtub.  When he was young, his father would always scold him for feeding stray kittens.  “Once they know they can get food here Rupert, they’ll never leave,” the elder Giles used to say, in that exasperated tone he always seemed to use when speaking to his son.  So he’d never really wanted to feed Spike, just in case he decided it was too comfortable to leave. 

Now, he decided to put that theory to work on Buffy.  Maybe if he fed her, she would stay.  Lord knows she needed to eat more.  It was never a good sign when you could count the bones in someone’s chest.  Whereas Spike had been a tiresome guest, Buffy made his apartment feel like a home.  Giles decided he liked this very much. He liked having her reclining on his couch, feet on the coffee table, eating his eggs and sausages.   Most of all, he liked the way her eyes sparkled as she did.  The oppressive atmosphere created by the dark dreams had begun to lift the second she smiled at him and now seemed very far away.  A little ashamed at himself, he admitted he would very much like to have her around all the time, not matter how selfish such a wish was.

“Y’know,” her voice cut into his thoughts.  “This is the most fun I’ve ever had after being stalked and ripped apart by a vicious dream nasty.  Much better therapy than running around a graveyard killing things.  Although, the calorie count here is horrific.”  She indicated the now empty breakfast plate.  “But tastylicious.”

Getting up from her seat, she carried her plate and mug into the kitchen.  She started to fill the sink with hot water and detergent.  Giles grabbed a dishcloth as he brought his empty dishes in as well.

“I was thinking,” he began, carefully avoiding looking at her face.  “That it seems to have been beneficial to us both to be in company when we wake after…” He didn’t finish the end of the sentence because it wasn’t necessary.  Taking a soapy dish from her hand, he began to dry it as he went on.  “If you wished, you are most welcome to stay here until we find a solution.  Only if you are comfortable with that.”  He looked up to see her reaction to his suggestion.

Her eyes were bright as she looked directly at him.  “I’d like that a lot.  I’d be very comfy with that.”

He smiled shyly, feeling a little silly even as he did so.  This shouldn’t be affecting him so much, but he couldn’t help it.  She would be here, with him, even if it was only for a short while, and he could pretend.  Pretend that he could shield her from the darkness and that she might be safe.

“As would I,” was all he said.

A knock on the door was a rude invasion into their private little world.  Glancing at the clock, Giles went to see who it was.  He doubted it was any of the Scooby gang, it was a little early for them and they rarely knocked anyway.  Certainly not if they arrived en masse.  He hoped it wasn’t Jehovah’s Witnesses.  He had enough pamphlets.  Or worse yet, Girl Scouts.  Buy one box of cookies and you go on some sort of Girl Scout hit list.  When they came to his door, looking beseeching and innocent, he couldn’t help but buy the damn biscuits. They were so delicious he always ate them as soon as he received them and then felt compelled to jog them off.  Maybe Buffy could say no to them.

Emboldened by this thought, he opened the door to find not a gaggle of preteen girls, but Riley Finn, the world’s largest Boy Scout.  Giles felt his previous good mood evaporate at the sight of Buffy’s boyfriend.  He didn’t know why.  Riley was nice and polite and Giles never had a problem with him before.  Suddenly though, Riley Finn was the very last person Giles wanted to see.  His hand itched to slam the door in the soldier’s face, but good manners prevented him from following through on that impulse.

“Riley,” he said pleasantly instead.  “You’re here early.”

“I was looking for Buffy, Mister Giles.  She’s not at home and…” He trailed off as he stepped inside and noticed Buffy washing the dishes.

“Hey,” she said cheerfully, giving a soapy little wave.  “Reveille get you up early?”

“No, I was looking for you.”  Obviously Riley was confused, but unwilling to come right out and ask why she was here.  Settling for safe ground, he asked, “Do you want to go grab a coffee or something?”

“No thanks, we just ate.  Why don’t we get started on the research before the others get here?  We are fuelled up and good to go, at least until Xander brings the donuts.”

Again, Giles didn’t understand why he was so pleased Buffy refused Riley’s offer of coffee.  He was beginning to suspect if he examined these feelings a little closer, then he might find something he wasn’t sure either of them were ready for.  So he settled for enjoying the fleeting look of resentment that crossed Riley’s face before both men began to gather the necessary books for the day ahead.

When the others arrived, Giles filled them in on the latest developments.  He explained his theory that the same force that allowed the First Slayer to attack them in their dreams had somehow opened a door to this new threat.  He also told them that he had heard the name Rebecca, and that the voice coming out of Buffy’s body didn’t seem to belong to her.

Willow had been listening intently and taking notes as he talked.  Now she studied her

lecture pad and began to summarize.  “Okay, something is chasing Buffy.  It catches her and kills her, while Giles has to stand and watch.  Someone else calls for a person named Rebecca, only it comes out of Buffy’s mouth.”  She looked around to make sure everyone was following her.  Picking up a different coloured pen, she began to make notes on some possibilities.

“One answer is that Buffy is not the actual target, but the person who’s voice it is.  What we then have to work out is why they are in Buffy’s dream.  And why Giles is there.  We need to know who the voice belongs to and who Rebecca is.  Which is not going to be easy to work out.”

“Is there going to be a test on this, Professor?” asked Xander, eyeing all of the notes and multitude of pens.

“Give her half an hour and she’ll have flow diagrams and overheads made up,” Tara replied, smiling fondly at the redhead.

“I was leaning more towards a Powerpoint,” offered Willow.  “For the exciting colour background options.”

“Rebecca is a fairly common name.  Hard to narrow it down,” said Riley.  “Why don’t we just try and kill the demon?”

“How?” asked Xander.  “We don’t know what it is, what it wants or even why it seems to enjoy Slayer snacks.  I mean, I’m all for the killing before it decides to move on and sample a Scooby snack, but methinks ‘how’ is a pretty important part of a plan.”

Riley was at a loss.  This was not what he was used to.  At the Initiative, when a demon was located, he and his troops were sent to capture it or to kill it.  Other people identified it and he didn’t ever remember anyone asking what it wanted.  As far as he was concerned, it wanted to be killed. 

They had to find an answer.  Dream demons had to be able to die just like anything else.  When someone came up with the ‘how’, all they had to do was point him in the right direction.  He’d get the job done.  He was a ‘go to’ guy.  Buffy was in trouble, so he’d do everything he could to protect her.  He only needed a chance to show her how much he loved her.  He’d given up everything for her: his job, his friends, his mission.  He’d done it because he believed it was the right thing.  All he wanted was for her to believe that too.

All the researching was frustrating.  They didn’t seem to be getting anywhere and it wasn’t his forte.  Action was.  So right now, he was frustrated and annoyed.  Frustrated at his inability to help Buffy and annoyed that she wouldn’t even let him try.  When he had gone to Buffy’s house early this morning, he had wanted to see how her night had been after he left when patrol finished.  He’d planned to take her out for breakfast, so they could spend some time together and he could offer his support.  Instead, he got Buffy’s little sister telling him she wasn’t there.  He’d gone to a few places to look for her and had ended up at Giles’ house.  Riley thought maybe the Watcher might have an idea where she might be.  He didn’t expect to find Buffy happily washing Giles’ dishes, so happy doing housework she didn’t even want to get some coffee with her boyfriend.

Now the two of them were sitting with their heads together talking in low voices, having tuned out the rest of the group.  Riley was physically sitting next to Buffy, but he might have been a million miles away for all she noticed.  Her attention was focused on Giles…and they kept touching.  Her fingers on his arm, their legs brushing against each other, his hand on her shoulder.  Riley was noticing every single touch and he didn’t like it.  He didn’t like the contact, but he also didn’t like the thoughts it led to.  He wasn’t a jealous guy, but…*he* should be the one she was touching for reassurance, the one she went to after her bad dreams.  Not some other guy, Watcher or no.  He was willing to give her everything he had; all she had to do was accept.  He might not be able to compete with her physically, but everyone needed emotional support; even the superheroes.  He could do that for her.

Riley swallowed his bitterness and tried to focus on his book.  Maybe if he were the one who found the demon, then Buffy would pay some attention to him.  He sighed.  Great, now he was three years old.

Willow, Xander and Tara were trying to work out the significance of Rebecca.  Each suggestion was jotted down on Willow’s notepad, but nothing seemed plausible.  Until Anya spoke up.

“Rebecca was the name of the last Watcher,” she said.  “Rebecca Harford.  Maybe she is involved, seeing as how these dreams involve a Watcher and Slayer.”

Everyone in the room had stopped what they were doing and were staring at the ex demon with varying looks of incredulity on their faces.

“How do you know this?”  Giles was the first one to speak.

“It was in one of those articles I read yesterday.  Watchers are a very boring bunch.  They’re lucky that they publish their own stuff and have a captive audience.  Nobody would pay money for that.  What?  Why are you all still looking at me?”

Willow looked irritated.  “Why didn’t you say something before?”

“Giles only mentioned the name this morning and I didn’t remember until just now.  So I told you as soon as I could.  Can you all stop staring now?”

Xander clapped his hands together.  “Let’s get this lady on the phone and see what she knows.  Pull out your little black Watcher’s book, G-man, and give her a bell.”

“That’s not possible, I’m afraid,” Giles began, but was cut off by Xander.

“I know there’s a time difference, but I bet she won’t mind being woken up.  Slayer in peril here.”

“She’s not sleeping, she’s dead,” the Watcher replied, bluntly.

“Oh, I guess that’s a real long distance call,” said Willow softly.

“How do you know?” Tara asked.

Giles closed his eyes briefly before opening them again and glancing around at the group.  His gaze rested on Buffy for a second before he answered.

“The loss of a slayer is hard on her watcher and many struggle with life after and withdraw .  However, now that Anya mentions it, I do remember Rebecca Harford.  I knew her briefly in London.  Her Slayer didn’t last very long, only about three months.  Rebecca was killed and Nadia died a week after her.”

“Nadia was her Slayer?” queried Buffy.  When Giles nodded, she went on.  “How old was she?”

“About fifteen,” he said, sadly.

Buffy looked stricken at this.  Giles watched her closely.  She rarely shared her feelings with those around her, even though people would listen.  She wanted to be strong and to be respected.  She thought letting others in would make her weak.…even her Watcher.  He wanted to tell her that that was precisely what he was here for, to help shoulder her burdens and to lend her whatever she needed to make her strong.  He made a mental note to tell her this, away from the others.  They had been connecting so well lately; she was finally opening up to him in a way she hadn’t before.

She mourned this child, called to a destiny she had no control over, only to lose her life mere months later.  The others didn’t really understand that being the Slayer meant your choices were taken away from you.  They sympathized, but until you were told that you could do nothing but kill demons until the day you died, it was impossible to understand.  Her friends stayed in Sunnydale to fight the good fight, and Buffy loved them for it, but each and every one still had the option to leave.  No one would condemn them if they did.  Buffy just didn’t get that choice; if she left, people would die.  Evil just seemed to follow her anyway, like she was catnip for badness. 

Nadia didn’t get a choice either.  At fifteen, your life should be a myriad of possibilities laid out before you, not a foregone conclusion.  Buffy thought of how much she had come to rely on Giles.  She relied on Willow and Xander as well, but Giles was her rock, the center of her crazyverse.  When Merrick died, Buffy went through the whole buffet of grief, including an extra side helping of guilt.  A man had sacrificed his life to save hers.  Someone she had grown to like and respect had died so that she would live.  Buffy knew what it was to see a Watcher die.  Merrick’s death had been bad, but Giles’ would be so much worse.  When she first came to Sunnydale, the idea of being responsible for another Watcher terrified her.  She’d tried to blow Giles off, but fate had other ideas.  They’d grown so close since the day he’d banged a copy of ‘Vampyr’ down on the library counter.  Their partnership was so different to the one between Merrick and her.  Watcher and Slayer, yes, but also friends…and something else indefinable.  She couldn’t imagine losing him. The moment on her birthday when Quentin Travers ordered Giles to leave had nearly caused her heart to stop.  She could still remember the panic she felt in the few seconds before he said he wasn’t going anywhere.  She was angry, certainly, but had never entertained the idea of him leaving her.  Like Xander had said: ‘Watcher, Slayer, perfect partnership’.  To have that partnership shattered must have caused a pain for Nadia that Buffy didn’t want to contemplate. 

Riley rubbed his hand reassuringly up and down Buffy’s arm.  He leant down to catch her gaze and thus missed Giles’ eyes narrowing at his soothing gesture.  Unfortunately for Riley, he misread the cause for Buffy’s concern.

“Don’t sweat it,” he tried to comfort her.  “You’re a much better Slayer than her.  This demon won’t get you, we’re all here to help.”

“What?”  She turned on him.  “You think I’m worried about who’s better?”

The obvious anger in her voice made Riley backpedal as quickly as he could.

“No, no, I meant…”

Buffy cut him off, eyes blazing.  “What *did* you mean?  God, she was fifteen years old, just a kid…and she died.  She lost the one person who would have meant anything to her and then something killed her.  It doesn’t matter how good a Slayer you are, something is always gonna get you.  But nobody should have to die alone, like that.”

“Maybe she wasn’t alone,” Anya offered, trying to help.

“Her Watcher was gone, she was alone,” Buffy said flatly, and then stood up.  Without saying anything else, she turned and left the apartment.  Riley stood as well, intent on following her and apologizing, but Giles stopped him.

“No, I’ll go,” he said.  Riley stared at him for a moment, then sat back down.  After Giles had left, there was an uncomfortable silence until Willow brought them all back to task.

“Okay,” said the red haired witch, determinedly.  “What we need to do is find out as much as possible on Rebecca Harford and Nadia.  Riley and Xander, you keep looking for our demon buddy, while we delve into the Watcher files.”

Riley picked up a new book, but couldn’t concentrate at all.  All he could think about was Giles and Buffy, together.  What were they talking about?  What was Giles doing for her that he couldn’t?  What made that old man so damn special?

Giles wasn’t sure where Buffy might have gone, but found he didn’t have far to look.  When he opened the front door to his apartment, there she was.  Just sitting in the courtyard, at the table set there, head in her hands.  Unsure of what to say, he simply sat down across from her, trusting her to tell him what she was thinking.

“She must have been scared,” Buffy said finally.

“I dare say she was,” Giles replied, still not sure what she needed from him.

“Being without her Watcher,” she continued, as if he hadn’t spoken.  “When you’re new to the slaying, it’s nice to have a partner, y’know?  Even if he is a weird old guy who wears an overcoat.”

Giles just nodded.

“Do you think Rebecca saved her life?” Buffy asked suddenly, lifting her eyes to his for the first time since he sat down.  “Do you think Nadia had to watch her die because she wasn’t good enough to save her Watcher?”

In a flash, Giles realized why Buffy was taking this situation so personally.  He reached out to take her hands in his.

“Listen to me, Buffy.  This is dangerous work we do.  Death is always a possibility.  We know that, and still we choose to go forth, with our eyes well and truly open.  If Rebecca gave her life so that her Slayer might live, then I have no doubt she did so freely.  There is no measuring stick for being a Slayer.  You just are.  It has nothing to do with how ‘good’ Nadia was at it, just as Merrick’s death had nothing to do with your ability as a Slayer.”

“It had everything to do with it,” Buffy said, softly.  “If I had been better, he wouldn’t have died.”

“And if I hadn’t been so stubborn, Jenny wouldn’t have died.”

Buffy stared at him with shock in her eyes.  “No, Giles, never.  That was…”

He cut in gently, before she could finish that thought.

“That was unfortunate, tragic and horrible, but it happened.  No matter how much we wish it, we can’t go back and change things.  We just go on, and the people we lose live on in our thoughts and our actions.  We help those we can; it does no good to dwell on those we couldn’t.  All that matters is that we try.”

She gave a little sniff, as if she were trying to hold back tears.  “So I have a chance to help this girl.  Maybe to put some things right.”

“Yes, you do.  It is obvious she needs help, and you are the person she’s reached.  You are a fine Slayer.  I know Merrick would have been as proud of you as I am.”

“I don’t always give you a lot to be proud of, do I?” she asked, sadly.  “The worst thing is, I know you are.  Proud of me.  And I don’t know why.  I told you before; I’ve never really felt like a real Slayer, it’s just starting to happen now.  What if I’m really not good enough?  What if I can’t help this girl?  What if I can’t save you?”  The last part came out at barely a whisper.

Giles moved from his seat round to Buffy’s chair.  Still holding her hands, he knelt beside her.

“For once in your life, will you just stop and listen to what I have to say?  Put aside your fixed notions and just accept that in this, I’m right.  I am not your responsibility and you do not need to save me.  You need to worry about you, and this girl.  You *are* good enough.  I have never known a person like you.”

Suddenly, he changed tack.

“Do you know how a Slayer is chosen?”  When she shook her head in the negative, he continued.  “Neither does anyone else.  It has baffled the Council for centuries.  They can identify the Potentials through magic, but don’t know what makes them a Potential.  I have a theory though, as to how a Slayer is chosen.  I believe you are chosen by your soul.  The Powers That Be look at the souls before they are given a body and say ‘That one has the strength, the courage and the nobility to be a Slayer’.  Someone looked at your soul, Buffy Summers, and said ‘*She* is a Slayer’.  There was no mistake, no mix up.  You are everything a Slayer is meant to be.  You are everything a Watcher could hope for.  And it is my honour and my privilege to serve you.”

A few tears had escaped Buffy’s eyes as he had made his impassioned speech and they ran down her cheeks.  In an attempt to lighten the mood, she asked: “Serve me?  Like my own personal waiter?”

Recognizing what she was doing, Giles smiled softly and reached up to wipe her tears away with the back of his hand.  She gladly leaned into his touch.

“Not a waiter, no.  More like…a knight serves his queen.”

“Do you say ‘ni’?” came Xander’s voice from the direction of the door, followed by the sound of a slap as someone whacked him.

Both Buffy and Giles started, and looked over to see the others watching them.  Xander was eyeing Willow and rubbing his arm where he’d been hit and Riley’s jaw was tightly clenched.  Giles realized he was still holding Buffy’s hand, but decided not to let go.  Annoyed at the intrusion, Giles turned to the group.

“Yes, Xander, I do say ‘ni’.  Now why don’t you go off somewhere and find me some shrubbery?”

The boy held up his hands in a gesture of surrender.  “Whoa there with the grumpy.  We come bearing good news, we think.  Didn’t mean to interrupt, we just came out to look for you…and there you were.”

Buffy rubbed her hand over her face and stood up.  She pulled Giles to his feet and then laced her fingers through his. 

“Come on then.  We’ve got good news.  Let’s get this show on the road.”  She smiled at him and he felt all his annoyance simply melt away.  How easily she could control him, with just a look.  He was glad she didn’t realize the extent of the magic she wove around him.  Buffy gave a little tug and pulled him towards the apartment.  When they reached the door, she led him inside and past Riley.  The young commando continued to stand in the entrance, arms folded.  Once they reached the living room, Buffy let go of her Watcher’s hand and Giles felt a stab of disappointment.  She turned to Riley, but he spoke first.

“Buffy, I’m sorry.  I didn’t mean to upset you.  I just want to help you.”

She gave him a little smile, equal parts apology and acceptance.  “I know, I over reacted.  Just some sub text that became a bit too texty.  But it’s all good now.  I didn’t mean to bite your head off.  I’m sorry too.”

Riley opened his mouth to tell her it was okay, that she could tell him anything, but it was too late.  She had already turned her back on him and gone over to the sofa.  When she become conscious of the fact that he hadn’t followed her, she looked over at him, puzzled.  She indicated that he join them with a dip of her head.  Satisfied once she saw him begin to move, she returned her attention to Willow once more.

“So,” Buffy asked.  “News?  Goodness?  Spill.”

Willow was practically bouncing in her seat with excitement.  Tara reached over and patted her leg, which seemed to calm the redhead down a bit.

“Well,” Willow began happily.  “If it is this other Slayer trying to contact you, we have a spell we can do.  It’s similar to the one we did when Faith took your body.  We can look into the nether realm, to see if she’s there.”

“The nether realm?” asked Xander.  “Sounds kinda…naughty.  Can I come?”

“The nether realm is not very conducive to sexual activity,” Anya supplied.  “It exists outside the physical realm and that’s where all the fun of sex is.”

“Yes, well, be that as it may,” said Giles, trying to banish Anya’s words from his mind.  “That is a very powerful spell, Willow.  You would need to send Buffy in there, and possibly me as well.  Could you keep us both anchored to the physical realm and pull us out when you need to?”

“I’ve thought this through, Giles.  We’ve done this before, Tara and me.  It worked fine then.  We’d just need to amp it up a bit and use the others as anchors too.  There’s no danger to anyone.”   Willow put on her patented resolve face.  “We can do this.”

Giles continued to look doubtful, so the young witch went on, trying to convince him.

“If it is this Slayer, we can find her and find out what she wants.  We can also find out what’s chasing her.  Then we could fight it and Buffy can sleep tight again.”  She knew she had him when she mentioned Buffy’s safety.  “Come on, nothing can go wrong.  Aren’t you even the teensiest bit excited about holidaying in the nether realm?”

“I’ve got chills,” he responded, dryly.

“Ooh, are they multiplying?” asked Xander, suddenly.

“Yeah,” Buffy joined in.  “And are you losing control?”

Willow grinned at him before adding, “Because the power you’re supplying...”

The three of them raised their hands to shoulder level, palms up, and waggled them.  In unison, they all giggled: “It’s electrifying!”

Giles continued to stare at them.  He shook his head before speaking.  “So, you’re saying, I better shape up?”

Xander hooted with laughter as the girls looked astonished.  “Way to go, Big G, with the pop culture.”

“Please, I have watched television in the last twenty years, strange as it may seem.  However, that doesn’t change the fact I am still extremely concerned about this spell.”  He sighed, taking a breath.  “But if you are sure you can do it, then it may be the only way to get the information we need.”

Willow clapped her hands together happily.  “Alright, this will work, I promise.  Tara and I will go to the magic shop and get the supplies we need, and we’ll all meet back here at six.”  She looked around at the group.  “Everyone needs to be focused; so go home, relax, have a sleep if you need one.”  The last instruction was directed pointedly at Giles.  “No scatterbrains allowed.”

With that, Willow stood up and gathered her things.  Taking Tara’s hand, both waved goodbye as they headed to the door.  Xander took that as his cue and motioned to Anya that they should leave too.

“We’re going to relax now,” she announced.  “Possibly by a massage.  I have flavoured oils for when things…”

“No one needs the details,” her boyfriend reminded her quickly.  “Remember when I explained the concept of ‘Too Much Information’?  I think you’re teetering dangerously close to the edge of that precipice here.”

“Okay,” Anya agreed enthusiastically.  “Save it for home.  Let’s go, Xander.  I bought Jaffa.”

Their departure left Riley, Buffy and Giles in the living room together.  After an awkward pause, Giles excused himself into the kitchen to make some tea.

Riley reached out to take Buffy’s hand.  He rubbed his thumb gently over the back.  “Do you want me to walk you home, or do you want to come back to my place?” he asked, keeping his voice low so Giles wouldn’t hear.  He wasn’t sure why he felt the need to conceal the conversation from the other man and he was a bit annoyed at himself.  Buffy was his girlfriend and they could do what they liked.  Still, he kept the volume down.

“No,” Buffy answered him, in the same quiet tone.  “Look, you go, I’m going to stay here with Giles.”

Riley’s face darkened and his thumb stopped its movement on her hand, but she didn’t notice.  Nor did Buffy pick up the tension in his voice as he questioned her.

“What?  Why?”

“Just to make sure Giles gets some rest.  He hasn’t been sleeping so well lately.”

Riley just didn’t understand.  “Neither have you.  Let him rest by himself and I’ll make sure you can have a sleep, too.”

Buffy smiled reassuringly.  “Nah, I’m fine.  You can go, though, and we’ll see you later.”

It didn’t escape his attention that she said ‘*we’ll* see you later’, not ‘I’ll see you’.  So that was the way it was, then.  She didn’t even trust him to watch over her while she slept.  He let go of her hand.

“Look, Buffy, I know you’ve had a hard few days.  I’ve tried to help, but I can’t if you won’t let me.”

She looked at him, not understanding what he was saying.  “You’ve been researching, with the rest of us.”

“Not that.”  Riley blew out a frustrated breath.  “You won’t let me in.  Every time I try, you turn to *him*.”

The angry emphasis he put on the word ‘him’ finally made the situation clear to her.  The uncomprehending look on Buffy’s face disappeared and was replaced with a much darker stare.

“You’re jealous?” she asked, incredulously.  “Something is trying to chomp on me and you’re upset because I’m not sobbing in your manly arms like a girl?”

“I’m not after sobbing, just…something,” he returned.  “Anything but the nothing you give me.”

“This is not about *you*,” she came back, quietly furious now.  “This is about me, and Giles, and a dead girl, and a demon, and there isn’t room for your ego.  You need to understand that.”

“I’m trying to understand,” he said, sadly.  “But you won’t let me.  I’m going now and I’m hoping you’ll come with me so we can talk this out.  Otherwise, I’m not coming back this evening.”

“So, you’ll just bail when I need your help, because your feelings are hurt?” she asked in disbelief.

“You don’t need me, Buffy.  I doubt you ever really have.  Willow said they only needed four people for the spell, so you don’t need me for that.  And apparently not for anything else, either.  I wish you did, but…” Riley trailed off and looked at her before he stood.  When she made no move to join him he continued.  “Just so you know, I had offers when I went back for debriefing.  For positions where I was significant and could make a difference in the world.  I’ll call you later, when we’ve both had some time to think about what we want.  You know where I am if you need me.”

With a last look, he crossed the room and left the apartment.  Buffy threw herself back into the sofa and exhaled.  At the sound of the door closing, Giles poked his head out.

“Buffy?” he called, uncertainly.  “Are you still here?”

“Yep,” she replied, a little unsteadily.  “Just us meeces.”

Giles crossed the room, bearing two cups of tea.  He handed one to his Slayer and sat on the sofa beside her.

“Riley left?” he queried as he took a sip of his hot drink.

“Because I didn’t need him,” came the dejected reply.

“Pardon?”  Her answer wasn’t what he was expecting and it puzzled him.

Buffy turned large eyes up to him.  “He won’t be back tonight.  Why do I always pick the wrong men, Giles?”

Now he understood.  He placed a comforting arm around her shoulders.  “So you’ll recognize the right one when he comes along, I expect.  Everyone needs a few wrong starts before they finally get it right.  It doesn’t make it hurt any less, though.”

“Well, I should be used to it by now,” she sighed.  “But that’s not what I need to be thinking about.  Willow said we had to be focused.  So I’ll worry about Mr. Sucky Timing afterwards, and you can buy me yet another tub of consolation ice cream.”

Giles smiled down at her and admired the brave face she was trying to put on.  She was right, Riley’s timing couldn’t have been worse.  He was in the room when Willow told them all to be focused; yet his focus had only extended to himself.  So now Buffy was distracted at a time when she really didn’t need to be.

“Your choice of flavour, naturally,” he agreed, moving his hand up to the back of her neck and squeezing gently.

Buffy moaned her approval and tilted her head slightly to allow him better access.  A little surprised at her trusting gesture, he nonetheless complied with her silent request and began to massage her neck.

“Naturally,” she said, her voice lower than usual.  “If you want to choose the flavour, then you have to get your heart stomped on by someone when you’re least expecting it.”  Now she shifted in her seat so more of her back faced towards him.  Obediently, he lifted his other hand and rubbed along her shoulders.

“Although,” she said suddenly, breaking the silence that had descended as he worked the tension out of her body.  “If women find out you can do this, then they won’t be inclined to let you go, and I’ll have to keep choosing the ice cream.”

He chuckled softly.  “Well, in that case, I’ll just have to reserve this especially for you, won’t I?  Otherwise I’ll be forced to consume that cookie dough concoction forever and never get any mint chocolate chip.”

“Deals can be reached,” she giggled, before groaning and twisting in her seat so she faced him.  “Any more of that and I’m going to fall asleep.  Which is of the bad at the moment.  So why don’t you go and rest?”  She waved off the protest she knew was coming.  “I’ve been thinking, and we only seem to have the dreams when we sleep together.”  She hastily corrected herself.  “Are asleep at the same time.  So you should be safe if I stay awake.  Willow said to get some rest.  And I don’t think she likes to be disobeyed.  We don’t want a visit from the Mistress of Pain.”

“Perish the thought,” he nodded.  As much as he was loathe to admit it, Buffy was correct.  He did need to rest if he was to be alert for the spell.  Willow might have total confidence in herself, but Giles wasn’t quite at that stage yet.  He could still remember being blinded by her ‘My Will be Done’ spell.  And the awful sounds Buffy and Spike made kissing as they celebrated their engagement.  No, awareness was imperative for this evening.  Nothing could go wrong, not with Buffy in the nether world.

He put his cup on the table and rose.  “Wake me at five o’clock if I’m not up, please.”

Buffy looked slightly stunned.  “That was a lot easier than I thought it would be.  Still, yay me and my super powers of persuasion.  Can I borrow your car on the weekend?”

“I’m not that befuddled yet,” he retorted.  “I’m simply acknowledging that I need to be at my peak this evening and I won’t be like this.”

When she continued to look at him, he sighed.  “And I was greatly moved by your super powers of persuasion.”

She smiled at him, that brief, dazzling expression which had the ability to turn his whole world on its ear in an instant.  “I thought so,” was her satisfied answer.  “I’ll come get you at five.”  He headed up to his loft.

***

At five o’clock, Buffy tiptoed into Giles’ bedroom.  Turned out her theory had been correct, because he had slept soundly for well over several hours.  She guessed that hadn’t happened a lot lately.

She’d managed to pass the time downstairs by, oddly enough, reading.  Anya was right, summer TV sucked and Giles didn’t even have cable.  So she’d wandered around, flicking through books on his shelves, trying resolutely to keep her mind off Riley and his stupid demand she think only of him.  He was the one who was thinking only of him.  If her welfare were his top concern, he wouldn’t care where she got her help; only that she did.  ‘Giles cares about you like that’ a little voice in her head supplied unexpectedly.  Buffy was a bit startled.  Not that this was earth-shattering information; she’d known for a while that Giles cared deeply for her.  She’d just never directly compared Giles to any of her boyfriends before.  This was new and surprising.  To stop her brain from going *there* as well, she pulled a book out and sat down.

It turned out to be an old copy of ‘The House at Pooh Corner’.  There was an inscription on the inside cover, indicating the book was a fourth birthday present to Rupert from his grandmother.  It was weird to think of him as four years old, as a kid named Rupert.  He had a whole other family, lived in a totally different country and had no idea that one day he would be given a pain in the ass American slayer to watch.  Buffy wondered what he looked like as a little kid.  She wondered if he was close to his grandmother, if she read him stories from this book or if someone else did.  Was this the grandmother who had been a Watcher as well?  Suddenly, she really wanted to know more about Rupert Giles.

But he was upstairs, sleeping.  So she settled for losing herself in the Hundred Acre Wood for a while, with Winnie the Pooh, Piglet, Eeyore, Tigger and the rest of Christopher Robin’s friends.  It relaxed her, imaging Giles as a young boy enjoying the same stories.  Just for a short time, she felt young and carefree again.  She hadn’t felt that in a long time.

Five o’clock actually came quicker than she had expected.  So now she was standing at the edge of Giles’ bed, looking at the naked chest of her Watcher.  She always thought he slept in pyjamas buttoned up to the top button, or at least with a tee shirt on.  Not bare chested and…male.  It was a nice chest too, with hair on it.  Buffy didn’t have any experience with chest hair.  She had a sudden impulse to run her fingers through it, just to see what it felt like.

She shook herself out of it quickly.  What was she thinking?  Touching his face while he slept yesterday had been one thing, but this was something else entirely.  Before she could change her mind, she gently grabbed his shoulder to shake him awake.

“Giles?’ she called softly.

Once again, he woke to Buffy’s touch.  When his eyes opened, the first thing he saw was her face, gazing down at him.  His first instinct was to pull her down with him, but he dismissed that as a product of the confusion that often accompanied wakening.  Instead, he blinked his eyes several times, as if to clear his vision, and reached over to the table for his glasses.

“Yes, Buffy?” he asked, when he could focus again.  He sat up to regard her and suddenly realized he’d gone to sleep without a shirt.  He wasn’t used to being this uncovered around her.

“Five o’clock,” came the short explanation.

“Already?”  Giles glanced over at the clock by the bedside.  Good Lord, he’d slept for hours, although it felt a lot less.

“I’ll just, uh, go and let you put on something a little…less half-nakedy.”  She flashed a quick grin at him.  “Very action hero, though.”  Then she was making her way downstairs, leaving him alone in the loft to get dressed.

***

When he came down, he found that Buffy had prepared food.  He made his way over to the breakfast bar to see what it was.

“Soup?” she offered him.  He took the proffered bowl and spoon and sat on the stool to eat.  Buffy joined him with her own meal.

“I hope you don’t mind,” she said, apologetically.  “But I figured if we’re not supposed to be tired, then hungry wasn’t really any better.  And you cooked for me this morning.  Okay, cooking an actual meal and just heating up a can of soup I found in your kitchen isn’t really the same thing, but if you go with the ‘thought that counts’ scenario, then I’m not that far behind.”

“Not at all,” Giles replied.  “It’s nice to eat something out of a can someone else has opened for a change.”

“We should do this again,” Buffy said, her voice suddenly serious.  “Y’know, consume canned food products together.”

Giles looked across at her and thought carefully before replying.  “Certainly, but I’ve heard there are places you can go where they have food that doesn’t come out of a can and it tastes infinitely better.  Perhaps we should investigate these reports?”

“We’d better check it out,” she agreed, levity returning to her tone.  “Whoever heard of such a wacky notion?”

They smiled at each other, both pleased by the other’s response.  They continued to eat in a companionable silence.  Almost immediately after they finished, Willow and Tara arrived, followed by Xander and Anya two minutes later.  The furniture in the living room was pushed out of the way, creating a large space in the living room.  Willow began to set up things for the spell, placing candles at strategic points around the room.

“When’s Riley gonna get here?” asked Xander, as he played with the jar of strange coloured sand Willow had brought.  She took it out of his hands with a glare.

“He’s, uh, he had something else he needed to do,” explained Buffy.  The others didn’t need to know about the argument.  Riley had said that they would talk, but as far as Buffy was concerned, it was over.  She didn’t need a guy who couldn’t handle who she was.  And she was never going to be the kind of girl he really wanted.  Riley wanted someone he could rescue.  If he couldn’t do it physically, then he’d do it emotionally.  Buffy simply didn’t need him to do either.  She needed someone to stand by her side and offer support.  Someone who understood that he couldn’t always come first.  Not because she didn’t love him, but because sometimes it was unavoidable.  That was the nature of her calling.  There was just the one girl in each generation, fighting a never-ending supply of demons.  She didn’t have the time or the energy to struggle for acceptance in her personal relationships.  That had to be unconditional. 

“Something else?  What kind of else would he need to do now?” frowned Xander.

“Oh, you’ve been scorned!” Anya exclaimed.

“No, there was no scorning,” Buffy said, knowing that this was going to somehow end in the graphic description of some unfaithful man’s death.

“Yes, scorned,” the ex demon insisted.  “He should be here to help, but he’s not.  So…do you want to seek vengeance?  It’s been a while since I’ve seen a good wish granted.  I could help you with some suggestions.”

“Please, honey, no more trips down evisceration lane,” begged Xander.  “Buffy doesn’t need vengeance, do you?”

“I’m good,” she agreed.  “Riley’s not here, let’s just leave it at that.  We ready to go, Will?”

“Sure,” her best friend nodded, giving her a ‘we’ll talk later’ look.  “You and Giles sit down here, facing each other.”  Willow indicated a space inside a circle of orange sand and they took their places.  The space was small, so their knees touched.  The others sat at four points outside the circle of sand, each in between two candles.

“Now, this part is easy for you two,” Willow went on when everyone was set in place.  “Buffy and Giles, just hold hands, close your eyes and concentrate on each other.  We’ll do all the work.”

“The Chosen One’s slacking off, again,” complained Xander.  “We always have to carry you.  I’m going to join a union and do something about this.”

“Get me some better pay and working conditions while you’re at it,” joked Buffy, trying to mask her nerves.

Giles closed his eyes and listened to the sound of Willow whispering the spell.  Tara’s voice joined in and Giles could feel the magic rising.  He was surprised by the power behind it.  Willow’s magic had indeed grown strong, and Tara seemed to compliment and strengthen her lover.  He would need to keep an eye on the young couple after this.  Such power would not go unnoticed for long.  Darker influences would seek them out, to twist and corrupt what should be used for good.  Not to mention the darkness that could be created inside a person, by the magic itself.  These things could not be left to grow unchecked.  He would talk seriously to them, later.

He turned his concentration back to his Slayer.  It was amazing how attuned to her he was in this situation.  He could feel himself breaking free of his body, yet he could still feel everything about her.  He could feel how nervous she was; yet underneath was that steely determination he so admired.  She was pushing past her fear, trying to force it down so she could do this.  How could she doubt her ability as a Slayer?  He could see it in her, and it called to him.  He hoped she could see the answer within him, in the same way.

Suddenly, everything changed, and he felt severed from reality. From everything but Buffy. Giles understood that the spell had worked and they were in the nether realm.  He could still feel this connection with her and realized now that she could feel it too.  He could feel her deep inside his consciousness and it was unlike anything he had known before.  There was comfort and contentment, strength and dependence, trust and hope.  Her belief in him gave him a sense of power he hadn’t felt in a long time.  He could feel as she sought out his faith in her and how it gave her strength.

He could make out her shape in the shadowy darkness.  As his vision adjusted to the poor light, she came more into focus.  All around them, he was conscious of forms on the edge of his vision.  If he focused and concentrated, they would become a little clearer, but would then dissipate before he could work out what they were.  He guessed they were the souls of the nether realm, trying to find their resting place.

Buffy was now completely visible to him.  He supposed the connection that they were feeling allowed them to see each other clearly.  She was frowning, looking a little worried.

“Okay, we’ve beamed off the Enterprise, what now?”  Her voice sounded muffled, as if he was separated from her by something solid.  Before he could offer a suggestion, Willow’s voice sounded around them.

“Just wait, Buffy.  She’ll come to you.”

“Willow?  Where are you?”  Buffy was looking around for her friends.

“We’re watching.  And anchoring you.  Don’t worry.  If it is this Slayer contacting you in your dreams, she should feel your presence and be drawn to you.”  A little giggle came from the witch.  “In the meantime, I can live out my omnipotent deity fantasies.  With the disembodied voice and all.”

Buffy laughed.  “Are you a happy god or a vengeful god?”

“Hap-diddily-appy, Bufferino.” 

Suddenly, Buffy began to look out into the darkness intently.  Giles followed her gaze.  Then, he could make out a faint shape, slowly coming closer.  Soon, a young girl was standing before them.  Unlike the others in this realm, she appeared solid.  Maybe the connection between Slayers made her visible to them.  She was about fifteen years old, with straight, shoulder length black hair.  Her eyes were a deep brown, large and sad.  She just stared silently at them.

“Nadia?” Buffy asked cautiously.

“Who are you?” the girl asked.  Giles had to strain to hear her properly.

“I’m Buffy.  And this is Giles.  We’ve come to help you.”

“You can’t.  I can’t find her and I’ve been looking forever.  I’m so tired and I can’t run anymore.”

Buffy frowned.  “Hey, you called the cavalry and we’ve come charging.  A bit more enthusiasm, please.”

The girl looked puzzled.  “Who called you?”

“You did, in my dreams,” Buffy said.  “On the Slayer hotline.”

“You’re a Slayer?”  This seemed to animate the girl a little.  She looked at Giles for the first time.  “Are you her Watcher?”  When he nodded, she went on excitedly.  “Have you found her?”

“Rebecca?” he queried.  The look of hope on her face nearly broke his heart.  When he gently told her that they hadn’t, the form of the dead Slayer seemed to fold in on herself.

“Then run,” she told them sadly.  “Because he’s coming again, I can feel it.  I have to find Rebecca before he gets her.  It’s my fault she’s here and I have to save her.”  She turned her attention to Buffy.  “Do not go gentle.  Make sure you rage.  That’s what Bec always told me.  I just wish she’d told me that the night wasn’t so good after all.”

All of a sudden, the atmosphere around them seemed to swirl and then become heavy.  Buffy looked at Giles in alarm. They turned back to Nadia, whose face was now contorted in fear.  Buffy could feel the familiar sense of terror spread through her gut.

“I told you he was coming,” Nadia cried.  “Run!”  She brushed past them and disappeared into the blackness.  Buffy wanted to follow her, but the panic was worse here. It rolled over her in waves and she couldn’t move.  Giles tried to reach out and grab her arm, to get her going, but he found his body wouldn’t obey his commands.  He could feel Buffy’s terror through the connection they shared.

In the distance, he could see the source of that fear.  The demon Anya had found in the book was bearing down on them.  Tek’an was a fearsome sight.  Tall and dark, with a gleaming white skull.  An inky mist enveloped his lower legs.  He glided towards them.  A razor sharp fingernail pointed at the Watcher and his Slayer. The demon’s mouth opened and a mocking laugh emerged.  Giles could see the rows of sharp teeth in his mouth as he came closer.  The souls of his victims were visible through the empty eye sockets, screaming in eternal torment.  That was where Giles and Buffy were going to end up. They could be consumed in this realm.

And both were frozen in place.  He couldn’t prevent her death.

The demon had them.  Tek’an hovered just in front of Buffy.  Giles could feel her struggle to push through the blanket of terror that had overwhelmed her.  She was slowly regaining some control over herself, but it was too late.  The demon smiled at them both, his dagger-like teeth showing.

“A Slayer’s soul.”  The voice came out as a chilling hiss.  “Just what I was after.”

Buffy’s eyes opened wide as the demon bent his head to her.  Giles struggled against his invisible bonds.  This was his nightmare come true before his eyes.  He was going to have to stand here and watch Buffy die.  She would suffer an eternity of pain and anguish because he failed her.  This could not happen.

He reached deep inside himself.  Thought back to a time when he had run from his responsibilities and embraced a power that brought only chaos and destruction.  He had not touched that part of him in years; afraid to unearth things he had worked hard to bury.  Once it had come easily to him, now he had to dredge it from the recesses of his mind.   But he would unleash it to save her.  It was all he could think to do. 

She believed in him.  There was power to be found in that belief, power in their connection.  He would give everything to protect her and it was with that thought that he hurled the words at the demon.

“GET AWAY!”  With every ounce of effort and magic he could summon, Giles forced his arm up.  Once it began to move, it came easily.  He threw his arm out at the demon and released the magic that had welled up inside him in response to the threat to Buffy.

It hit the demon full on.  With an angry howl, Tek’an was forcibly thrown away from the Slayer and into the blackness.  Giles tried to force his body to move again, but he was weak from expending the magical energy.  They couldn’t stay there though.  All he had done was bought them some time.  The demon would return, hungry for his Slayer’s soul.  Buffy was slowly regaining her composure and she turned to him, reaching for his hand.  The second she made contact, they were yanked from the nether realm and back into consciousness.

When his eyes opened, Giles realized he was flat on his back on his living room floor, with Buffy sprawled out on top of him.  Her eyes were still scrunched tightly shut.  He smoothed her hair back off her face and gently rubbed her cheek with the back of his fingers.  She opened her eyes as well and he silently urged her to sit up.  Then, he gazed around at the others.  Everyone looked shell-shocked and sat staring at each other in stunned silence.  Willow had blood running from her nose.  She absently wiped at it with her sleeve.  Still no one spoke.

Xander was the first to break the quiet.  “Man, am I glad I wore my brown underwear today!  That was…somehow scary just doesn’t say enough.  But that’s all my brain will supply, over and over.”

“Are you alright?” Tara anxiously enquired, looking at Buffy and Giles.  She handed a handkerchief to Willow.

“Fine.”  Giles waved her concern off, before looking questioningly at Buffy.  She nodded.  “How are you, Willow?”

“Peachy,” she snuffled.  Satisfied that the blood had stopped, she removed the handkerchief.  “It was just kinda hard to pull you out of there.  That demon had some sort of hold on you.  When you knocked him away, Giles, it loosened his grip long enough for us to get you back.”

“Dragging out the suspense, were you, Will?” joked Buffy, her voice a little shaky.

“In a ‘stay tuned for next week’s episode’ kind of way,” agreed Xander.  “But the G-man stepped up to the plate and knocked that sucker outta the ball park.”

“Don’t call me that.  And I prefer to say ‘played a glorious lofted drive over long on for six’,” Giles replied.  Xander gave him a ‘huh?’ face.  “Cricket metaphor,” he explained, before turning back to the witches.  “Willow, Tara, that was impressive.” 

Tara smiled, but Willow fairly glowed with pride.  Praise from Giles was hard to come by and it meant a lot to her to earn his approval, especially in the magical arena. 

Anya stared pointedly at Giles, obviously waiting for acknowledgement and he obliged.   “Xander, Anya, your help was invaluable tonight.”

Anya smiled, pleased to be included.  “We were anchors,” she explained.  “And you were very hard to hold on to without your bodies.  We had to hang on very tight.”

“Thanks guys, you all did a great job,” said Buffy.  “And now we need to work out how we can get back in there and help this girl.”

“Are you insane?” asked Anya in disbelief.  “That thing almost ate you.  If it weren’t for Giles, you would have been dinner.  He’s going to get that girl eventually.  If you two go back, then he’ll just have a three-course meal.  And Xander might get sucked in too, trying to hold on to you.  He’d be a side dish!”

“Hey, I’d be a hearty entrée, at least,” her boyfriend protested.

“No one’s on the menu here,” Buffy insisted.  “We have to make sure the kitchen is closed for this guy, permanently.  So…we research, we find out how to kill him and we make the nether world safe again.”

“It’s never going to be safe,” offered Anya, grumpily.  “There are demons all over that realm.  Easy pickings, you know.  Not that that was ever my thing, but I’ve heard stories.”

“Well, safer then,” amended Buffy.  “You guys up for an all-nighter?”

“Count me in,” said Xander.

Both Wiccans nodded.  “We’re good,” said Willow.  “Let’s clean up and get to work.”

“Fine,” huffed Anya.  “If Xander’s staying.”

***

Within half an hour, the place was back to normal.  Furniture was returned to its rightful position and books were once more strewn over the coffee table.  Giles was once again in the kitchen preparing snacks when Buffy joined him.

“I didn’t get a chance to thank you,” she said softly.  “For the save back there.”

He smiled at her.  “Well, I do owe you ice cream.  I’d hate for you to think I was a welcher.” 

“I think maybe I owe *you* something now.”   She raised an eyebrow as he shook his head.

“You owe me nothing.  Everything is paid in full.”

“I can feel you,” Buffy said suddenly, seemingly out of nowhere.  “Still.  Not as much as before, but you’re still there if I concentrate.”

“And I you,” he replied.  “Does it bother you?”

“No, it’s nice,” she admitted.  “To just know you’re there.  I don’t know what you’re thinking or anything.  It’s not like my brief flirtation with an aspect of the demon.  I’m just aware of you.  It’s hard to explain.”

“Not to me.  I know exactly what you mean.”  He quirked another smile at her.  “I can glare at you on a whole other plane now.”

She groaned in mock frustration.  “Joy.  So, any ideas on how to kill the Techno monster?”  His brow knitted in confusion, so she tried again.  “Texaco demon?”  This time he shook his head slightly in exasperation.  “Teriyaki?  Help me out here.”

“Tek’an,” he supplied.  “I don’t know.  I suppose we’ll have to examine the magical possibilities, because that was the only thing that seemed to have an effect on him.”

“Yeah, get down with your bad self there, Giles.  I didn’t know you could do that.”

“I haven’t done anything like that in a very long time,” he told her.  “Releasing that kind of power is unpredictable and has only led to trouble in the past.”

“Well, we were already over the bag limit for trouble, so it couldn’t have made it worse.”

“It can always get worse, Buffy.”  That was said with such an underlying sadness that Buffy decided she didn’t want to go there.  And she was pretty sure Giles didn’t want to either.  She tried to steer the conversation in a different direction.

“We also need to find Rebecca, so Nadia can tell her she remembers her poetry lessons.”

Giles looked a little surprised at this.  “I didn’t know you were familiar with Dylan Thomas’ work, Buffy.”

“I’m just chock full of surprises, aren’t I?  Like a Kinder egg.  I took English Lit in high school.  I needed to choose a poem to write about for an essay and ‘Do Not Go Gentle’ seemed kind of appropriate.  That, and it was short and very repetitive.  Those things were high on my list of selection criteria.”

Her glib answer made him shake his head in amused frustration.  “There is more to recognizing good poetry than simplicity, my dear girl.”

“I know that,” she grinned mischievously, happy to push his buttons and pleased to see the sadness in his eyes replaced with something lighter.  “Some of Xander’s dirty limericks are pretty complicated.  It’s not easy to find things that rhyme with ‘contortions’.”

“I’m just going to frown in abject disapproval by way of a reply,” was all Giles said.

Just to keep the happy spark in his eyes for a little longer, Buffy began to quote.

“Though they go mad they shall be sane,

Though they sink through the sea they shall rise again;

Though lovers be lost love shall not”

“And death shall have no dominion,” Giles finished, watching her intently.

She shrugged.  “I needed to bring in some of his other work to compare and contrast.  I thought that was really pretty, and its kind of stuck in my mind since then.  Do you wanna hear a limerick now?”

He laughed quickly.  “I think not, thank you.  But you never cease to amaze me, Buffy.”

“I’m amazing,” she agreed.  “Who else can kill vampires every night and still possess the stamina to brave the malls during the sales, looking as good as I do?  I am a woman of many talents.”

“You are indeed,” he said, a wealth of feeling behind his words.

The hours passed by in relative silence, each team member busy with his allotted task.  Giles called a break around midnight, so that they could refresh themselves and give their tired eyes a chance to recover.  Pizza was called for, once again.  It seemed to be the staple diet of these young people.  Giles made a mental note to take Buffy to a proper restaurant, if she still wanted to go out and eat with him.  He hoped she wouldn’t change her mind.  Their current situation had forced them closer together in a way he hadn’t really anticipated.  All he had ever wanted was a partnership with her, as Watcher and Slayer.  Now, that no longer seemed enough.  He wanted to take her out to a decent meal, he wanted to hear the laughter in her voice as she teased him and he wanted to wake to the sight of her every day.

The question was though, would she want any of those things as well?  With him?  He’d always thought Buffy was drawn to a pretty face and content to disregard any underlying incompatibilities in favour of the illusion of normality she craved so much.  Now, he wasn’t quite so sure.  She seemed to be content in his company, and they had slipped back into the easy pattern of familiarity they had once had.  Actually, it seemed to have gone deeper the last two days, for both of them.  They had touched more since the dreams began than they had in the past four years.  Giles found himself liking the feel of her hand in his and the way she seemed to caress his skin when she made contact.  A week ago he would have chastised himself severely for harbouring such thoughts; now he found himself contemplating the possibilities they offered. 

There was time to explore the potential in their relationship later.  Buffy needed to focus on their present dilemma, now was not the time to bring something new and uncertain into the mix.  Riley had shown an utter disregard for her responsibilities and Giles would be damned if he would commit the same offense.  If their relationship were to change, then it would do so in a time when it could flourish.  And only if there was no chance of damaging the Watcher/Slayer rapport that was working so well.  A solid foundation was necessary to build upon and he would not chance a crack that might bring everything tumbling down.   So, caution would be exercised, with maybe a few subtle hints dropped so he could gauge her reaction.  He would then allow her to set the pace and steer the direction. 

He regarded the small group of people who surrounded him.  They were all quieter than usual tonight.  The spell had taken a lot out of Willow and she looked quite pale.  Giles again marveled at her magic.  To control a powerful spell like that, and to fight the pull of the demon so as to able to bring them back, spoke of a true magical talent.  Combined, the two witches made a formidable pair.

Xander and Anya sat together on the sofa, sharing food.  If Buffy needed some help, Xander was the first one to volunteer, even if he wasn’t the strongest fighter in the group.  Giles felt a rush of respect for him.  The young man did it out of loyalty to his friends and because it was the right thing to do.  He did the best he could with what he was given and never turned the other way. 

Giles watched the two people who gave their unwavering support to Buffy, who had done so since they first met her.  He was glad they had found partners who made them happy.  Tara was sweet and gentle, with a kind heart.  Oz’s departure had been hard on Willow, and he was pleased she had moved on to find love again. 

Anya…well, that relationship was harder to understand, but as long as Xander was happy.  Giles remembered being nineteen and guessed that the constant sex went a long way to smoothing over any bumps caused by Anya’s often tactless nature.  Still no one was forcing Anya, or Tara, to be here and help.  That spoke volumes for their characters.

As he watched them, Tara suddenly furrowed her brow and put down her drink.  She went to the pile of books and selected several.  She began flicking through them and searching until she found what she was looking for.  She read the page intently and then went back to another book to check what she had discovered.  In the meantime, Willow had noticed her efforts and gone to offer assistance.  The two witches now sat together, heads bowed over the books, whispering excitedly.

Willow looked up to catch Giles’ gaze and grinned happily at him.

“Eureka!” she exclaimed, waving a book in the air.

All attention turned to her a she pointed to a passage in the book.  “The Soul Devourer,” she explained.  “It doesn’t give him a name here, but Tara remembered some similarities from yesterday so she went back to check.  We’re pretty sure it’s our guy.”  She stopped to flash a proud grin in Tara’s direction.  When she noticed the approving looks on everyone else’s faces, the blonde witch blushed and ducked her head little.

“Anyhoo,” Willow went on,  “it doesn’t say much in here, but it does offer a suggestion to cripple him.  Apparently he can’t be killed, but some of the souls he’s eaten can be released.  That weakens him and he has to hide to regain his strength.  He gets his power from the souls he consumes.  That must be why he is after a slayer’s soul.  It says here some souls have more strength than others.  Until he … digests the souls to absorb their power, they can be released.  Those are the ones you can see through his eyes.”

Willow stopped to take a breath and to check that everyone was following her.  “Apparently, that’s originally where the saying ‘the eyes are the window to the soul’ came from.  You have to break the window to let the souls out.  Then he loses some of his power and has to disappear for ages before he can go back to browsing the all-you-can-eat soul bar in the nether world.”

“So,” Xander suggested.  “Who’s up for a little nether world baseball?  What better recipe for window breakage than a bat, a ball and some really bad outfielders?”  He waved a dismissive hand in Giles’ direction.  “Or cricket.  We could play cricket, I know.  But you do realize that no one else has any idea what a ‘lofted drive’ is, don’t you?”

Giles ignored the younger man as he held out his hand to Willow.  She handed him the book and he read over the pages.  When he finished, he put the book down and took off his glasses.

“Well done Tara, you seem to have found a solution to our problem.”  Before he could continue, Buffy spoke up.

“Um, not to rain on the well deserved Taraparade or anything, but how does this solve anything?  We know *what* we need to do, but I don’t hear a *how* in there anywhere.”

“We’ll find a spell to bind him temporarily, and then you’ll just smash his skull,” said Giles, simply.

Buffy stared at him.  “Were you in the same nether world as I was? Did you not see me curl up into a useless little Slayer ball?”

“You are the only one who has the strength to do it.  I can perform the spell, but you’ll need to deliver the blow.”

“All I can hear is blah blah blah Giles is insane,” Buffy muttered.  “It’s not like I *want* to just stand there and offer up my soul on a handy silver platter; I can’t help it!”

“This is not only about physical strength,” Giles stated firmly, holding her gaze unwaveringly.  “I could feel you battle through your fear, Buffy.  You were succeeding, so I know you can do this.  You will be prepared this time and you CAN fight this.  I will offer what assistance I can, but there is a reason you are the Slayer.  Demons like this need to be fought and you were the one chosen to do so.  You have the power.”

Buffy didn’t look away, instead remembering the depth of the connection they shared in the nether realm.  His faith in her had been like a beacon; it shone out through all the complex emotions swirling within him.  She remembered the feeling of power it had given her, to know that someone believed in her that much.  She could use that she realized, use it to help her.  If she didn’t do something, then innocent souls would be denied the peace they deserved.  She’d been angry at the way the dreams made her feel, weak and powerless.  Now was her chance to fight back, to prove that she was meant to be the Slayer.  Another man had believed in her that way and he had died because of that conviction.  She would repay that faith, from both of them.

She nodded.  “Okay, find the spell.”

The corners of Giles’ mouth turned up slightly, indicating his approval of her decision.  Buffy could see how much her resolve meant to him though; it was plainly visible in his eyes.  She was noticing everything about him lately.

Anya groaned.  “You’re going back to that place?  We have to do that spell again?  Xander better not get eaten,” she threatened, wagging a finger.

“No one’s getting eaten, honey,” Xander soothed.

“I-I’ve got another spell here,” Tara began cautiously.  “It calls a soul forth from its resting place, temporarily.  It can’t be performed on this plane, because the souls can’t cross over.  But if you do it in the nether realm, then you should be able to find Nadia’s Watcher.  To reunite them.”

Buffy smiled her approval.

Xander nodded.  “Cool, a happy ending to a cautionary tale for the kiddies.  Anya and I found out that Rebecca died protecting Nadia.  Somehow, Nadia believed that her Watcher’s soul was trapped in the nether realm.  No more Watcher, no more writey downy, so we don’t know what happened next except that Slaygal got herself a bit dead.  And is now calling 1800-HELP-ME-BUFFY.  You give out the number to one dead slayer, and soon they’re all calling.  At least this one wants assistance, not to rip out our vital organs.”

“Nadia wants to find her Watcher,” Giles said.  “I don’t believe the contact was intentional.  Possibly, the spell that let the First Slayer connect with Buffy also transmitted Nadia’s distress.  She is simply running from the demon and searching for Rebecca.”

“Then we’ll help find her,” said Buffy, determinedly.

“Willow, Tara, see if you can find a spell I can use to bind Tek’an enough for Buffy to get a blow in,” Giles instructed.  “We’ll call it a night and try the spell to put us back in the nether realm tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow, no, Giles,” Willow responded, the urgency plain in her voice.  “We can do it tonight.”

“Absolutely not,” he insisted.  “You’re exhausted and we all need to rest.”

“Think about it,” Willow urged.  “That thing is mad as hell at you and still he’s chasing her.  Now he’s hungry and pissed, and very, very close.  He’s gonna get her, tomorrow might be too late.  We have a chance to stop this now.  I’m fine, I can rest later.”  She repeated her words from earlier, when she had convinced him of the need for the spell in the first place.  “We can do this.”

Giles was about to protest again, but he looked around at the determined faces in the room.  He didn’t want the dead Slayer in danger longer than necessary, but he felt a responsibility for everyone in his house at the moment.  He could see that they were all ready to go, even Anya.  He sighed.  There came a point when he needed to accept that they were all capable of making their own decisions.  He could advise and offer suggestions, but they knew their own limits.  So he nodded his acquiescence. 

“We need to be very careful, Willow,” he warned.  “At the first sign that something isn’t going to plan, or if it becomes too much for you…”

“We’re outta there,” she agreed.  “Faster than a speeding bullet.”

“Let’s get ready to rumble,” Xander enthused.

***

Giles and Buffy sat in the circle of sand again.  They held hands and Buffy gave him a determined smile.  They both closed their eyes and concentrated as the magic rose around them once again.

The relocation was not as unexpected this time.  The connection between them burned brightly once more and Buffy clung to it like a lifeline.  It took very little time for Nadia to appear, her face once more betraying her distress.

“Why are you here?” she asked.  “He’s right behind me.”

Buffy could feel it.  She could feel the terror, and the panic.  Every single instinct she ever possessed told her to run.  She fought the feeling as best she could, but could feel it begin to overwhelm her.

She braced herself.  She knew this would happen.  She was prepared this time and she would NOT go gentle.  She would rage.  She reached out through her connection with Giles and sought his strength.  He offered it to her gladly.  She could feel his love, his devotion and his determination.  She accepted it all and made herself strong.

Tek’an’s roar cut through the darkness.  It chilled her spine, but still she stood firm.  She was the Slayer.  She resisted the urge to crumple.  The demon appeared.

Giles’ voice began to sound as he chanted the words to the spell.  It was hard to hear him, but she felt comforted anyway.

The demon descended on them, but froze just before he could make contact.  Behind her, Buffy felt Giles sag a little as he finished the spell.  She turned slowly to the demon.

Tek’an was angry, that was obvious.  And the spell was not going to hold him for long.  Buffy could see his limbs began to twitch as he struggled to break free of the magic.  She took a deep breath to control herself, then stepped up to him.

With every ounce of power she could muster, Buffy punched her fist into his right eye socket.  Her hand met a barrier she couldn’t see, but she just pushed through it, until there was no more resistance. 

A high-pitched scream came from the demon.  Buffy pulled her hand back and Tek’an moved, the magic breaking down.  He brought his hand up to his eye, in a vain attempt to stop the souls escaping.  She pressed forward, raising her hand to strike again.

This time, she aimed for the other eye socket.  Her aim was true and she felt the invisible barrier shatter under her assault.  Gossamer figures were escaping from underneath the demon’s hands, released from the torment they had suffered.

With an angry howl, Tek’an stabbed a sharp finger at Buffy’s head.  He had to take his hand away from his damaged eye, which allowed more souls to drift away.  Buffy moved her head to the side to avoid his attack and then countered.

She let everything fall away and allowed the Slayer within to take over.  It was a glorious feeling; one that left her exhilarated and secure in her abilities.  There was no more fear, no more doubt in herself.  This was who she was.  And behind it all was the constant presence of Giles, reminding her of the power she wielded.  She dodged the demon’s wild attacks and easily moved in to land telling blows upon him.  She rained hit upon hit on his head.  Every time he tried to defend himself, more souls would escape and he would become weaker. 

Buffy could see them, ethereal mists floating free.    She jumped, spun and a vicious ‘crack’ sounded as her blow found its target.  Tek’an screamed in pain and began to stumble backwards.  Still screaming, the demon faded in to the darkness and then was gone.

Buffy turned back to Giles.  He had recovered and was looking at her with quiet pride.  She could feel it all through the connection and she knew that he could feel her too.  She smiled brilliantly at him.  Over his shoulder, she could see the form of Nadia approaching.

“You up for weaving any more of that magic, Watcherman?  We’ve got a happy ending to finish off.”

“Your wish is my command,” he said, and began to chant again.

***

The reunion between Nadia and Rebecca moved Buffy more than she would have imagined.  Giles’ magic had caused a glowing light to illuminate the darkness and Rebecca had stepped out of it.  Nadia was now going to return with her, to her place of rest.  This was right.  Both of them had been prepared to sacrifice everything for the other; they deserved to find peace together.

When they turned to leave, Buffy called out to them.

“Wait.  If either of you happen to see another Watcher in there, would you say hi for me?  His name’s Merrick.  Don’t be put off by the perverty appearance.  Just let him know I’m doing okay, would you?”

Rebecca smiled, nodded and stepped into the light.  Then they were gone.

Buffy reached over and took Giles hand.

“Ready to be beamed up?” she asked.

***

They were once again in Giles’ living room, looking around at their anchors.  This time, however, the shell-shocked expressions had been replaced with ones of relief and excitement.  As usual, Xander was the first to offer comment.

“How awesome was that?  We rock on so many levels.”  He reached over to embrace Anya.  She gladly returned his hug.

Willow smiled tiredly.  “I’m wiped, but we did it.”

“Yep,” Buffy agreed.  “We are one helluva team.  A very tired team, but we do indeed rock.”

“I knew you could do it,” Giles said softly in her ear.  “That’s why you’re my Slayer.”

She grinned.  “And that’s why you’re my Watcher.” 

He smiled back, his eyes twinkling.

***

Buffy and Giles sat side by side on the sofa when the others had left.  Buffy leaned her head on to his shoulder.  Without thinking, Giles raised his arm to accommodate her and wrapped it around her to draw her closer.  She snuggled into his chest in satisfaction.  They continued to sit there in a comfortable silence until Buffy spoke.

“I’ve been thinking,” she said.

“Hmm?” murmured Giles, questioningly.

“Yeah, you’re not as smart as you think you are.”  This got his attention and he looked down at her with his eyebrow raised.

“How so?

“You told me, you weren’t my responsibility.  You said I should just accept that you were right.  Well, you weren’t, ergo:  not so smart.  Bordering on dumb, actually.”