Title: Love, Hellmouth Style 19-20
Author: Gileswench
Contact: gileswench@yahoo.com
Feedback: Constructive criticism always welcome. Praise abjectly sought.
Disclaimer: It all belongs to Joss, Mutant Enemy, etc., etc., etc. I just let them have all the fun Joss won't. I own nothing except my twisted mind which you really don't want. Please don't sue.



Buffy rode Giles hard as they worked closer and closer to release. Their bodies shone with sweat, their breaths coming in hard, shallow pants, their muscles taut with effort and desire.

"Oh God, Rupert!"

Buffy convulsed around Giles' manhood, sending him over the edge into bliss.

"Buffy, Darling!"

The door slammed open.

"Buffy! Giles!"

Xander stopped and stood rooted to the spot, his eyes glued to the scene in the loft.

Buffy scrambled off Giles and grabbed the blankets to her naked form, Giles took the sheets.

"Bloody hell!"

"Jesus, Xander! Haven't you ever heard of knocking?!"

*****

"You say Harmony has a childe?" Giles couldn't believe his ears.

He and Buffy were now respectably, albeit minimally dressed, and Xander was slowly overcoming his embarrassment.

"Yeah. And I don't think he's your average minion type, either. He gave us a good run for our money."

"But, you guys are okay, right, Xander?" Buffy handed him a cup of tea and sat next to her husband on the sofa. Giles put his arm around her shoulders in comfort and support.

"We're still here. Anya was kinda shaken up, but we'll live."

"God, this is all my fault. I shouldn't have let you patrol..."

"Buffy, we're okay. I told you. And hey, I almost got the guy!"

"But this is my job. I should be doing it."

"Not right now" Xander replied firmly. "You've got to take care of that little squirt in there." When he saw Giles' raised eyebrow, he went red. "I probably could've come up with a better term, couldn't I?"

"Yes, well, leaving that aside for the moment, what can you tell us about this new vampire?"

Xander hesitated briefly, putting down his untouched tea. "You're not gonna like this, but you knew him, Buffy. It was Parker Abrams."

"Parker? Harmony made Parker a vampire?"

"And for the record, I'd like to say that as poetic justice goes, Shakespeare could've written that one. Bloodsucker in life, bloodsucker in death."

"But I saw him just last night at the party. He was alive then."

"And I saw him tonight when Harmony tried to get him to rip my throat out."

"Wait a minute; you said she *tried* to get him to kill you?" Buffy was confused.

"Yeah, and I gotta say that guy has serious issues with his sexual orientation. Maybe that's why he was such a user when he had a heartbeat. He was scared that eating me would make him gay."

"So he's gonna keep preying on girls. My guess is that he'll use the same lines he did when he was alive. The whole 'I'm so sensitive and my dad died and now I live for the moment' deal he always pulled."

"How do you know so much about this boy's methods, Buffy?"

The other two went quiet at Giles' question. Buffy's gaze turned to the floor. Xander stood.

"I should probably leave you guys to talk now, shouldn't I?" Since neither answered, he headed for the door. "Right. I'll see you later. Bye."

He headed out, and turned for home.

*****

"...and next time I tell you to kill someone, you kill them!"

Harmony emphasized the point by removing the stake from Parker's chest. The new vampire yelped in pain.

"God! I can't believe you wouldn't eat Xander! What was your problem?"

Spike chuckled from his chair and lit a cigarette.

"Give it up, Harm Can't you see you've raised a moron? Like mother, like bloody childe."

"I didn't ask for your opinion. He's young. He's got a lot to learn, but he's his sire's precious baby, and he'll do just fine."

"I don't do guys" Parker muttered under his breath. "I'm into girls, okay? Just girls!"

"Face it, Harm, your precious baby is a sodding poofter and he won't admit it. Why don't we send him down to have a visit with Angel? I'm sure they'll get on magnificently."

He blew air kisses at Parker until the fledgling slid into demon face and growled.

Spike's laughter filled the crypt.

*****

"Did you really think I would be angry with you?"

Buffy shrugged. "I guess I didn't ever want to tell you about that. It was just so, so...stupid. I was totally being the poster child for brain damage."

"And I wasn't when I took up with Ethan all those years ago?" Giles lifted Buffy's chin and kissed her brow. "It's all in the past now."

"So you're not mad at me?"

"Why on earth would I be? In fact, if Parker were still alive, I'd be tempted to give him a good thrashing. And I promise to stake him if I meet up with him in the near future." He pulled Buffy into his arms. "And now, I think we'd best get you back to bed. After all, as Xander reminded us, we've a little squirt to care for."

Buffy giggled as Giles led her up the stairs.

"So, do you think Xander's ever gonna get over the trauma?"

"Serves him right for bursting in without knocking."

"Maybe we ought to start locking the door. Hey, it's just a thought."

*****

Xander crawled under the sheets grateful that Anya was there. It had been a traumatic night between his near-vampire-chow experience and the unexpected sight of Buffy and Giles doing the horizontal bop. He was now looking forward to a restful night's sleep with the woman he loved.

"Did you tell them? About the new vampire?"

"Yeah, An, I did."

"Well?"

"Well what?"

"What is Buffy going to do about it?"

"Nothing right now."

"But she has to. She's the Slayer."

"She's also a mom to be, and I really don't want to think about it, but I believe I just witnessed how that happened tonight." Xander shuddered. "It was kinda creepy."

"Oh, please. You knew they were having sex. That's how babies get made. And since when does Buffy get to ignore her sacred duties because she's gestating? Other Slayers never got to do that."

"Other Slayers? Are you telling me other Slayers have had babies?"

"No. I'm saying they got pregnant. Most of them got killed before the babies were born."

"An, do you want Buffy to die?"

"Of course not. I just don't see why all the rules change for Buffy when they didn't for any other Slayer."

"Because Buffy is...Buffy. And we want her to live. Not to mention what it would do to Giles if anything happened to her."

*****

"I won't hear of it, Buffy!"

"I have to, Rupert. It's my job. It's what I do. You're the one who taught me that I can't ignore it."

"Not now. It's too dangerous."

"And it wasn't a month ago? It wasn't when I went to The Master's lair to die?"

"Will you please listen to reason?"

Buffy stroked Giles' cheek softly.

"Don't you think I'm a little old to change that much?"

"Please don't do this, luv. Think of the baby."

"That's why I need to do this now. In a couple months my body will have changed too much. It'll be more dangerous then. I still move the same way as I did before, and the vamps don't know I'm pregnant. I'm not putting my friends in that kind of danger while I can still do this."

Giles held her tightly to his chest under the covers.

"Then I'm going with you. I won't let you face this Parker alone."

"Thank you." She squeezed him back. "We'll go tomorrow night."

*****

In his hotel room across town, Cedric Giles looked at a family photograph. Himself, his wife, his daughter, and his son stared back at him with frozen smiles.

"Too damn much like his mother. That's the problem."

He knocked back another drink of reprehensible scotch he'd found in the mini-bar.

A short time later, the mini-bar was empty of everything alcoholic. Mr. Giles decided to take a shower and sober up.

He didn't notice when the photograph tumbled to the floor.

Not even when he stepped on his son's face.

*****

The next evening, two figures crept through the shadows of Restview Cemetery, stakes at the ready. Buffy motioned Giles to stay back when she felt the familiar twinge that signaled vampires.

Harmony and her childe were headed back to the crypt after a meal. They had shared a Sophomore girl on her way to a night class. Warmth filled Parker temporarily. The blood had been richly tinged with fear that made it taste all the sweeter. This was the predatory life! Far better than the weeks of painstaking work leading up to the seductions he'd carried out in life.

Now seduction took minutes, and never left some hurt kid to follow him for days afterward. Like that Slayer. He hadn't known who she was then. Now that he did, he'd decided it would be his death's work to take her again.

He'd show Spike with his two bagged Slayers he kept crowing about.

Harmony was terribly proud of her doe-eyed lambiekins. He'd taken to the kill like mother's milk. Plus his way of disarming young girls before showing his true nature was pure artistry. She didn't know how he did it. Perhaps it was because she was such a good sire.

Parker stilled. He sniffed the air.

Humans.

The next thing he knew, a foot jammed into his chin, snapping his head back. Parker tottered back against a headstone. Before he could regain his footing, a fist connected hard with his stomach. Behind him, he could hear Harmony struggling with another human. Another fist slammed into his nose.

Demon face to the fore, Parker kicked back at his blonde assailant. His foot landed in the girl's knee and sent her sprawling to the ground. As he leapt upon her, she raised her feet and sent him flying overhead. She regained her own footing, despite a pronounced limp, and raced towards him, stake raised.

Parker grabbed Buffy by the forearm and propelled her into a stone crypt.

Suddenly, her world exploded in pain. Her cry tore through the night.

Parker was ripped from her as Giles raced to her side, letting Harmony slip away into the shadows.

"Oh dear God! Buffy!"

The Slayer felt her knees give way as her eyes stared uncomprehendingly at the stake where it protruded from her abdomen.

She slid down the wall of the mausoleum.

After that, she knew nothing.

PART 20

No sooner had Parker picked himself up off the ground than he found himself flat on his back again with Spike's boot on his Adam's apple.

"Not you, you little sod! Slayer's mine!" He ground his foot into Parker a bit harder. "If you so much as touch Blondie again, I swear I will make you suffer so much for so long that you will beg me to stake you and put you out of your damn misery. Go back to the crypt. Your punishment will come later."

He let the fledgling up.

"I don't have to listen to you, Spike. You're not my sire."

Spike grabbed the back of the boy's neck and smashed his shapely nose into a solid kneecap.

"You're mine, boy. Harm's my mate, you're her childe, that makes me your sort of father figure. Believe me, I learned some very effective torture techniques at the hands of my sire, not to mention my human father. You will learn them the way I did, boy. Now sod off!"

He tossed Parker off to one side and strode to where Giles tended Buffy's wound. The smell of her sweet blood almost overpowered the vampire. It had been so long since he'd had fresh blood, and Slayer's blood, he remembered how delicious, how strong it was. He ached to taste it again.

But not like this.

Giles barely glanced up at Spike's approach.

"Spike, I need your help."

The vampire let a short bark of derisive laughter.

"My help? With the Slayer unconscious and bleeding all over the ground? Why the hell should I help you?"

"Because if you do, I shall provide you with a year's supply of blood and cigarettes, and if you don't, I shall nail you to a tree to wait for sunrise. Which is it to be?"

"Yeah, all right. I'll help. But only for the blood and fags, mind."

Still, he couldn't help but stare for a moment, and pray to whatever dark Gods might exist that she'd live to kick his undead ass another day.

"Spike! Call the bloody ambulance now!"

"Okay, okay! No need to be so touchy." He pulled a cell phone out of his duster pocket and dialed 911.

"And Spike? See that they hurry. I can't lose them."

"Them? There's only one of her, mate. Barely enough to make that."

Giles' eyes met Spike's. In a flash, the vampire knew what he meant.

"Bloody hell!" Further editorial comment was cut off by the operator answering the call. Spike gave the information needed and impressed the urgency of the situation to the dispatcher. Then he stood and turned.

"Tell you what, Giles, I'll go break the news to the Slayer's Mum and the rest. Don't worry about a thing other than the little woman, mate. Oh, and by the by, I'll want a bit of cash for the service."

"I'll pay you later, Spike." Giles gritted out. "I'm a little busy trying to keep my wife from bleeding to death just now."

"Just mind you don't forget."

Spike sauntered off into the night. As soon as he was certain Giles could neither see nor hear him, he broke into a dead run. He didn't slow down until he reached Revello Drive.

*****

Crystal opened the door.

"I'm looking for Mrs. Summers."

"Well, you found her, 'cause that's me."

The older woman cast a dubious glance at the girl before her.

"Mrs. *Joyce* Summers?"

"Oh, no, I'm Mrs. Crystal Summers. I live here with Joyce. She's in the kitchen. Come on in and I'll get her."

The woman made a quick note as she waited for Joyce to appear. She heard laughter from the kitchen, then Joyce appeared.

"Yes? Can I help you?"

The woman extended her hand to flash her ID.

"Lois Pennington, INS. You are Buffy Giles' mother, I believe?"

"Yes, that's right." Joyce narrowed her eyes at the government official.

"I'd like to ask you a few questions about your daughter's marriage."

Ms. Pennington seated herself before the coffee table and prepared to take notes.

"Of course. Please sit down."

She was about to join the reprehensible woman when there came a frantic knocking at the door.

"Excuse me."

When Joyce opened the door, she was met by Spike doing his best to look nonchalant.

"Right, Joyce, come with me. Bit of an emergency." He swept around and started down the front steps. It took him a moment to realize he wasn't being followed.

"Well come on then! Can't hang about all night."

Joyce stood in the doorway with her arms crossed over her chest.

"Give me one good reason why I should go with you, Spike."

"Bloody hell, woman! Come on! I'll explain it to you on the way to hospital."

"Hospital? What are you talking about?"

"Slayer's down. Giles sent me to fetch you."

The blood drained from Joyce's face. Still, she stayed where she was. She knew how devious Spike could be when he wanted.

"Tell me."

"Stupid fledgling got lucky. Jabbed her with her own stake. look, bring all the crosses and whatnot you like, just get a move on. We don't have all night. Buffy might not either. Not to mention the baby."

Joyce nodded and went into the house to get her purse.

"I'm sorry Ms. Pennington, but we'll have to postpone our talk. My daughter is injured and you are just leaving. Crystal, get your coat. We're going to the hospital."

*****

Giles sat and stared numbly at his hands. Her blood had been thick upon them when they'd wheeled her in. Even now that he'd washed them, ruby tinged his cuticles. The words of Lady MacBeth echoed in his ears: 'What, will these hands ne'er be clean?'. Even his wedding band was tinged with her life.

The door sprang open and Joyce rushed in followed by Crystal and Spike.

"Rupert, where is she? Is she alright?"

"Surgery. She's in surgery. They haven't told me anything more." The words came to him slowly. "She's lost a great deal of blood. I couldn't stop it. I tried, but I couldn't make it stop."

Joyce sat next to him and took his hand. He pulled it away sharply.

"Rupert, are you alright?" She fought the urge to laugh hysterically as she asked the question. Giles was quite clearly not alright. She'd never seen him like this.

He'd lost his glasses in the earlier struggle, leaving his eyes naked pools of pain. A few streaks of blood still clung to his cheek and a bit was matted in his hair where he'd thoughtlessly run his hand through it before realizing the state he was in.

"I will be, Joyce. Just as soon as I know Buffy is safe." He turned slightly unfocused eyes to Spike. "The others, you called them?"

"Yeah. They're on their way now. Red sounded real scared. Droopy Boy didn't want to believe me, but he's coming."

"Thank you."

Spike shrugged. "Pay's right, I'll do most anything."

"You'll get your payment."

"Payment?"

Everyone turned to look at Crystal. Joyce finally came up with the only possible reply.

"It's a long story. You don't need to hear it tonight."

The group sat silently as the clock ticked away the minutes.

*****

An eternity later, the entire Scooby Gang was gathered in the waiting room.

Giles continued to sit apart, staring at his hands. Nobody dared approach him too quickly. Joyce sat with a comforting arm around Crystal's shoulder. The girl seemed to be an emotional anchor for her. Willow tried to be brave, but her chin trembled more often than she would like as Tara stroked her hair in mute sympathy. Spike lounged in mock unconcern in a corner. Xander dealt with his fear by keeping busy. He made sure there were drinks and snacks for everyone, not caring that none of his offerings were consumed. If he sat still, he'd cry, and he refused to do that. Anya surprised them all by suddenly bursting into tears.

Before she could draw breath, Xander had gathered her into his arms and begun to rock her gently to soothe her.

"It's okay, Honey. It's okay." He finally let his own tears flow silently down his cheeks. "Everything's gonna be fine."

"But I never meant for this to happen! I didn't want you to get hurt, but I didn't want Buffy to be hurt either. I didn't."

Xander took her face in his hands. "Anya, you had nothing to do with this. You didn't hurt Buffy."

"But I wanted her to patrol. I didn't want you to get hurt."

"I know. I know you just wanted us to be safe. But you didn't do this. It isn't your fault." He kissed her tears away as best he could through his own.

Across the room, Crystal heard the conversation and was bewildered. She had no idea what "patrol" was, or why Anya seemed to feel so guilty. She made a mental note to find out when things calmed down a little.

A moment later, the surgeon walked through the door. Giles stood, though he wasn't sure his legs would hold his weight.

"Mr. Giles? Your wife has made it through surgery just fine. She's in recovery now. You'll be able to see her soon."

With that, Giles' knees gave way in relief. He sank into the chair and sighed deeply.

"A-and the baby?"

"It was a pretty close thing, but we've managed to keep her from miscarrying. Luckily, the weapon missed both the fetus and the yolk sac, so it will probably be alright. The main problem was the bleeding. Your wife is a very lucky woman, Mr. Giles."

"When can I see her?"

"Very soon. I'll send someone to get you."

"Thank you, doctor."

When the doctor had left, Giles took a deep breath, and seemed to recover himself. He turned to Spike.

"You'd best be on your way. It's nearly sunrise."

"Yeah, well, just wanted to know how it turned out. Keepin' informed, that's all."

The vampire swept out with as much dignity as he could muster.

Giles excused himself to go to the men's room. Once he got there, he wept as though his heart had broken. In reality, it was beginning to heal.


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