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In Dreams I Walk With You	By : QueenB Category: -Buffy the Vampire Slayer > Het - Male/Female > Buffy/Giles Views: 81254 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own Buffy the Vampire Slayer (BtVS), nor any of the characters from it. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

Chapter List
- 6
- 7
- 8
Willow pulled up to the hotel. She had been glad to hear Buffy was all right. She and Dawn had been truly frantic when they didn’t see her in her bed. Fear for her sister had made her so desperate she’d almost gone storming off to find Spike.
They’d both been happy to hear Buffy was with Giles--Willow, especially. Gee, I wonder if Buffy told Giles about the dreams. I wonder what they’ve been doing all day. Buffy and Giles sitting in a tree F-U-C-K-I-N-G and could I be any more juvenile?
A foolish grin flew over her face when she thought about her best friend and the Watcher. I hope he makes Buffy happy. She was so miserable when he left; I can’t believe I didn’t see this before. I’m such a dope.
She stood before the door and knocked another time. Huh, room 911. That’s what the woman at the desk told me. So how come they’re not answering?
There was a flurry of activity behind the door; she could barely make out voices. Then a rumpled-looking Giles answered the door. “Willow? Is it time already? Goodness, I had no idea it was so late. B-Buffy will be out in a moment.”
Willow took in his disheveled appearance and a combination of unease and a certain smug satisfaction on his face. Oooh, did I interrupt something? Go, Buffy!
From within the hotel room, Buffy called, “I’ll be out in a sec, Willow!” A moment later, the golden-haired Slayer came running out with a cheery smile on her face. Willow couldn’t believe it. Buffy looked happier than she’d seen her in a long time. She was happy, period. And that was a good thing. “Willow, wow, is it time already?” She unconsciously echoed Giles’s words as she flung him a saucy grin.
Oh yeah. She got hold of some sweet yummy Giles goodness. Wait ‘til I tell Xander! Willow schooled her features into an innocent expression. “Buffy, you ready to go? I can give you a few more minutes if you want.”
Buffy made a face at Willow and then looked longingly at Giles. “So…I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Of course, dea-Buffy.”
Buffy clutched his hand; she was deeply unwilling to go, even if she was going to see him the very next day. Impulsively she blurted, “Why don’t you come back with us now?” Willow and Giles both appeared surprised. Buffy rushed on, her rationalization tumbling out of her almost as quickly as she thought about it. “Well, you wanted to look into th-the resurrection thing. We could stop at the Magic Box and round up the gang…”
Giles caught on immediately. “Yes, of course. Might as well strike while the iron is hot.”
“Yes, let’s get with the striking and we can call up Tara and talk to her about that gene tan.”
Seeing the pained expression on Willow’s face, swiftly hidden, Giles amended, “Actually, I think Willow might be better suited to this task.” Buffy was puzzled but she was willing to go along with it. “Just let me get my keys.”
“Can I help?” Buffy chimed in.
Giles raised an eyebrow. “Find my keys? No, I believe I can do this on my own. You’d only--delay matters.” On this meaningful comment, he gently closed the door and left the two women standing in the hallway.
As soon as the door closed the redhead turned to Buffy. “So…how did it go?”
“How did what go?”
Willow glared at her best friend. “Don’t give me that, Buffy. Something happened and I want to know what it is. As your official best girlfriend, I have a right to know these things.”
Buffy tried to maintain an innocent look but failed completely. “Honestly, Willow. He’s going to be out any minute. How much detail can I give you? Wait until we get home.”
Willow threw up her arms in exasperation. “Come on, Buffy! I have to get my vicarious smoochies!”
The Slayer was adamant. “Uh uh, you’ll just have to wait.”
Willow looked at the closed door and lowered her voice. “You can at least tell me whether you did the dirty deed or not. Well?”
Buffy’s smile was impish and wistful at the same time. “Ummm, not quite.”
Willow squinched up her nose in puzzlement, glancing at the door again. “What do you mean by not quite? Either you did or you didn’t.”
Buffy pulled her away from the door. “Giles didn’t have any condoms and he was afraid of getting me knocked up so we did…other things.”
“Wow, that’s so sweet. So what other things are we talking about here?”
“That’s it. You’re not getting anything else out of me until later.”
“But Dawn’ll be home and how are we going to talk then? You know how she likes to snoop.” Buffy considered the matter. No doubt about it, her little sister was always spying on other people’s conversation. It would be difficult to have a private confab with Willow with Dawn sniffing around the place. She decided to throw Willow a bone.
“Will, remember those dreams I mentioned? Let’s just say real-Giles is better than dream-Giles any day of the week. With or without the handcuffs.”
“HANDCUFFS?!!?” Willow’s voice shot up an octave just as Giles opened the door.
“Sorry? Did I miss something?”
She gaped at him, her face almost as red as her hair as Buffy snickered and then burst out laughing.
“No, but Willow did. C’mon, Rupert. Let’s get out of here.” Giles stared at her as she used his given name. She wound her arm around him boldly and they strolled down the hallway towards the elevator with a silent, stunned wiccan in their wake.
__________
Research. I never realized how much I missed it. Or them. Giles looked around at the heads bent over the books.
Xander slammed his shut and stretched his arms over his head. “Well, I got nothing. There’s no tales of apocalyptic baddies due to rise unless the Feast of St. Vitus is supposed to mean something.”
“St. Vitus was a man afflicted with a peculiar malady very similar to epilepsy. However, instead of falling down in fits, it caused him and other victims to dance uncontrollably in violent spasms. People saw his affliction as some sort of visitation from God and canonized him,” Giles replied.
“So why would they make a holy day for that? Doesn’t make any sense to me.”
Anya shrugged as she flipped through another book of prophecies and portents. “Humans will look for any excuse to slack off work, Xander. Since this saint danced, they celebrate his day by dancing like loons. Lazy and childish, if you ask me.”
“And that’s why no one did,” was the Englishman’s dry response.
Willow stood up and walked around a bit to stretch her legs. Though she’d put in a call to Tara’s dorm room, she hadn’t been able to reach her ex-girlfriend. Willow couldn’t help wishing that Tara were here and wondering exactly where the blonde wiccan was. Seeing the other two couples with their heads bent over books made her wish all the harder that her lover was with her again.
Buffy straightened up in her seat. “Maybe we’re going about this all wrong, Giles. Our dreams don’t show any specific threat. I remember dreaming about The Three and Angel being attacked with Drusilla playing the looneytoons psychic girl but there’s no definite bad guy in our nightmares.”
“Unless you count Spike,” Willow pointed out.
“Yeah, but since when was Spike any serious threat? Glory, the Mayor, Angelus--those guys were badasses. Spike never really rated that high. He was just a nuisance with a bad dye job,” Buffy returned.
“A nuisance who recently took up having sex with you. Maybe the dreams were telling you to stop that,” Anya mused.
There was uncomfortable silence until Buffy replied, “But I stopped having sex with Spike and we’re still having the dreams. There’s got to be more at work here.”
“You said this last dream was about the First Slayer. Maybe it’s about that spell we did to help you against Adam. It might be cropping up again like an acid flashback.” Xander looked around at everybody’s skeptical faces. “Why not? It could happen.”
“Xander, if that were the case, wouldn’t you and me be getting them, too?”
Willow’s question was a valid one. Giles focused for a moment on the inquiry. “Yes, it does seem strange that you two are omitted from this phenomenon.”
“Maybe not. Giles, you said your dreams got you to come here from England. Maybe that’s the reason you were having them--to get you here. Now that you are, we can get Willow and Xander involved.” Buffy gestured at her two friends.
“What about me? Don’t I count?” Anya didn’t see why she had to be excluded. She had been in Xander’s dream; why couldn’t she share in the dream making as well?
Giles sighed as he tried to explain. “Anya, this isn’t about you. I believe this has to do with Buffy’s feelings since she was resurrected and the fact that she feels ‘wrong’ as Spike put it. Spike’s words may have had a selfish purpose but I believe they are keys as to why Buffy has been disconnected lately. She needs her friends, needs them to survive. Without them, she is weakened and vulnerable. Spike knows this; that’s why he’s been trying so hard to separate her from the rest of us.”
“Yeah, that’s the same stunt he pulled with Adam. Boy, not making with the originality, is he? What can we expect from a guy who wears the same black T-shirt night after night?” Xander observed.
Buffy smiled a little and then sobered. “Great. So we know what the problem is--sorta. I need my friends. But I have them; they’re all around me every day.”
Giles furrowed his brow as tapped his fingers on the tabletop. “Indeed. Your friends are here. It’s as if something or someone is preventing you from connecting with them emotionally.”
“Do you think it’s Spike? Could he have cast a spell of some kind?” Willow’s eyes narrowed as she thought of the possibility. If Spike were somehow responsible for doing this to Buffy, Willow silently swore he would pay. She would find some way to make his life hell; she didn’t even care if she had to resort to magic to do it.
“I don’t think so. Spike doesn’t like to use magic. He was seriously wigged when we brought Buffy back from the dead.”
“Oh no, he was just upset because we didn’t invite him to Buffy’s resurrection. He said Willow would kill her if something was wrong with her and she knew he wouldn’t let her.” Anya’s matter-of-fact observation was met with horror from Buffy and Willow. They completely missed the worried looks exchanged between Giles and Xander.
“He said that? That, that, BASTARD! I can’t believe he would say...oh wait, why am I surprised? This is Spike we’re talking about. A-hole.” She scowled and stomped back to her chair.
“Oops, Anya opens mouth and inserts foot. Will, I never believed him, not for a second.”
Willow waved her hand impatiently. “It doesn’t matter, Xander. You were right about Spike, though. He’s seriously lacking in the imagination department. But he did give us a clue. What if Buffy didn’t come back wrong exactly but missing something?”
The others stared at her blankly. She stood up again and began pacing excitedly around the store, nervous energy pouring off of her while she babbled. “See, we were in the middle of that spell when those Hellion demons attacked. They interrupted me before I could finish. Maybe in those last few seconds when the magic left me, a vital part of Buffy was lost, something that didn’t get into Buffy.”
“Oh, like that episode of Xena Warrior Princess when she came back from Heaven with something missing.” Xander saw the looks ranging from exasperation to pitying amusement. “What? Okay, I know it’s a silly TV reference but, hey, it was a thought.” He slid down in his seat mumbling, “It was a really great show, you know. They never should have killed her off.”
“Please, Xander. You only watched that show for the lesbian subtext. And it’s not like we have a magic chakram to fix Buffy,” Anya sniffed.
Giles had removed his glasses and was studiously polishing them. “Xander’s questionable tastes in popular culture aside, I believe he may have a valid point. Buffy has something vital missing from her personality, Spike is trying to see that she remains so by deliberating separating her from us and Willow’s spell went uncompleted. All these disparate elements would seem to point to one thing.
“We need to cast a spell to see precisely what is wrong with Buffy and how we are involved. Willow, since you, Xander, Anya and Tara were involved in the resurrection spell, I shall certainly need your assistance. Willow, see if you can find Tara again.”
Willow said nothing only stared at the floor. Finally she looked up to see all their eyes on her. She forced a smile onto her face. “Sure. I’ll get Tara in on this. No big.”
“I don’t see why we need Tara if it makes Willow so uncomfortable being around her. Why don’t we just research the spell Willow used to bring Buffy back? We got the urn, she got the vino de mare and all the other stuff. We just came along for the ride afterwards.” Anya spoke up without noticing the sudden fright on Willow’s face or the slowly gathering anger on Giles’.
“Vino de mare? You used that to bring back Buffy? My god, Willow, I knew you were tampering with dangerous forces but I didn’t think you would be that reckless, that shortsighted!” All of a sudden Willow looked as if she wanted to crawl under a desk and hide someplace.
Buffy looked in alarm at Giles. The expression he was wearing wasn’t his Ripper face but it was dangerously close. “Vino de what? Giles, what are you talking about? Willow, what does he mean?”
“Vino de mare means ‘wine of the mother.’ It’s a weird term for some black market item Willow picked up,” Anya explained, still trying to be helpful.
“That’s the literal meaning, Anya. It actually means ‘blood of the mother.’ It’s only called wine because the sorcerer who first used it was trying to be poetic in terms of the allusion to its color. Willow killed someone or something for its blood. Didn’t you, Willow?” The cold question was directed at the redheaded woman.
There was a deathly silence in the Magic Box as Willow’s eyes shot from one disbelieving face to the other. “Buffy…it was the only way. I did tons of research all that summer. I looked up one resurrection spell after another. They were all pretty dark and most of them required magic way beyond my power and items I knew I couldn’t get. This one was the easiest and least likely to backfire. I-I knew there would be consequences but I thought I’d be the only one to pay them.”
“Willow, what did you do? I’m getting the serious wiggins here. Did you…kill somebody?” Xander didn’t want to believe his best friend whom he’d known all his life could commit a crime so heinous but Willow was looking more trapped and scared by the second. Was this what Spike had been warning him about?
“No! I didn’t kill anybody! I’d never do that! But the ritual required a blood sacrifice be made and I made it. It was--it was just a deer. I didn’t think it was too much to ask for in exchange for Buffy’s life!” Willow’s face crumpled and she desperately fought the urge to cry. She’d thought that the act might have repercussions but she’d honestly thought that she would be the one to suffer. Now it looked as if she might be responsible for her friend’s misery.
Giles took a deep breath and inwardly counted to ten. He’d known that something was wrong with Buffy the moment he’d seen her. He had had this discussion with Willow about the resurrection when he first came back from England. But the damage was done and now he had a partial clue as to where the problem lay.
“Very well. There was blood involved. That means dark magic. You have blood on your hands, Willow, and that has affected Buffy. The interruption of the ritual didn’t help matters any, but at least now we know where to start.” He leaned back and rubbed the bridge of his nose wearily.
“We do?” Xander was bewildered. He didn’t think things were any clearer than they had been a moment ago. Sure, they had an answer about that spell but what were they supposed to do now?
Giles answered him. “Yes. We know what the spell entailed and why Buffy feels darkness inside her. There is.”
Buffy grew pale. “There is? Then Spike was right. I am attracted to the darkness.”
Giles hastened to reassure her. “Buffy, Spike was trying to manipulate you. You’re not attracted to the darkness. You may have darkness inside you. But that exists in all of us. The potential to do good or evil is only dependent on our free will. I’m talking about the primal darkness that embodies the First Slayer, the darkness that Dracula once spoke to you about, the tapping into earth magicks and the like. That can be a source of strength as well as weakness. Willow’s spell accentuated the darkness inside you so you’re out of balance. We need to find out how and find a way to right it.”
Buffy blinked at hearing his words. Balance. She’d come to that conclusion before and now Giles was echoing her words. She wanted to tell him about it but the door to the Magic Box suddenly flew open. “Okay, Buffy, I finished my homework like you asked. Now can I please help in the research? It’s not fair for you to keep me out of it. Hi, Giles, it’s great to see you back. How long are you going to stay this time?”
“Hello, Dawn. It’s good to see you as well.” Giles stood up and the girl enveloped him in a hug. “As for research, we’re just about done here. We think we know what the matter is with Buffy. It has to do with her resurrection spell and the First Slayer, we believe.”
“The First Slayer? I don’t understand.”
“Oh, that’s right did didn’t tell you about that wacky dream we all had where the First Slayer tried to kill us in our sleep. It was before you showed up on the scene. Sorta pre-Dawn,” Buffy replied. “Seems she had this ‘I am woman, hear me roar’ thing going on and really resented the idea of me having friends. It was a whole spell-gone-wrong dealie.”
Giles was offended. “The spell didn’t go wrong. There was just an unforeseen consequence of casting it.”
“I know what that’s like,” Willow muttered.
Dawn asked, “So what’s the plan now? How do we fix Buffy so she’s, well, Buffy again?”
Giles didn’t like to do this given Willow’s current anti-magic status but he really felt there was no other choice. “We need to re-do the spell with the original casters.”
“Whoa, hang on a minute there, G-man! Bad idea, I am so not liking this plan. The first time that dreadlocked voodoo woman ripped my heart out of my chest.”
“Xander, I don’t mean the exact original spell. That was meant to lend Buffy power. This time, I want to focus on the roles you, Willow and I played in her lives and the spell itself. If the First Slayer is involved, then I’m certain the answer lies there.”
“So not the original spell? Then what’s the alternative?”
“We induce a dream-state and share the same dream. Then we can lend our aid to each other and Buffy.”
“Uh uh. I like that idea even less. Couldn’t we get trapped in each other’s minds or something?”
Anya sighed and patted her boyfriend’s arm. “Xander, you’re thinking of that Nightmare on Elm Street movie you saw. It’s more likely that you’ll all go collectively mad…which is why you shouldn’t do this. I don’t want to lose you. The wedding’s only two weeks away.”
“That’s right, Xander. You don’t want to mess up your wedding plans just so you can save your best friend’s sanity, huh?” Dawn wondered once again why Xander was so stuck on Anya. The selfish woman only seemed to have room in her head for him to the exclusion of everybody else. Sometimes she thought that all the rest of them could drop dead as far as Anya was concerned.
Xander knew his fiancée didn’t have the best tact in the world but he wasn’t going to let her concern stop him. “Okay, fine. We’re off into Spellville again. What do we have to do? Do we need to wait for the stars to be in alignment or something?”
“No, but the ritual may require some time. We don’t know how long the mental journey may take. We should schedule this for tomorrow night when we’re all fresh. Also, we’ll need Tara. She’s very accomplished, far more so than she realizes.”
“Got it. I’ll call her,” Willow stated.
“Willow, you don’t have to.”
“Yes, I do, Buffy. I got you into this mess. I can’t allow my personal feelings to interfere now.”
Giles pushed back his chair and arose; at this silent signal they all rose and began preparing to close up shop. Dawn hovered indecisively. “Isn’t there anything that I can do?”
“I can’t see how you can contribute, Dawn. The last time we cast this spell it was pretty straightforward. We really don’t need your assistance.” Seeing her crestfallen face, Giles relented slightly. “Well, you can help set up the candles and prepare the magic circle. You can have Willow go over the details with you.”
Dawn bounced excitedly for a second. “Cool! I’ve always wanted to learn magic.” She backpedaled when Buffy opened her mouth to rebuke her. “I mean, not to hurt people or anything. I’m talking about protection spells and such.”
“Really? ‘Cause I distinctly remember you’re wanting to create a zombie out of Mom.”
“Instead I got a zombie sister. At least on your depressive days anyway.”
“And I got a manic sister. At least on your tantrum days anyway,” Buffy retaliated. “Giles, any way to fix Dawnie so she doesn’t scream so much? I can’t believe the monks would give her that kind of design flaw.”
“At least I’m not sleeping with vampires,” Dawn shot back.
“No, I guess that would have happened after you went parking with what’s-his-name? Justin?” Buffy finished up sweetly.
“Buffy, I told you I didn’t know he was a vampire!”
Giles was polishing his glasses again. “My goodness, to think I missed all this petty bickering when I was in England. Now I know why I came back.”
Xander grinned as the two Summers’ women made faces at each other. “Yeah, G-man. How you could have torn yourself away from all this excitement is a mystery to me.”
“Right. Then we’ll reconvene here tomorrow. Any other questions?” Finding no further inquiries to be made, they swiftly closed up shop.
Buffy hesitated and then said to Giles, “I wish you didn’t have to go back to the hotel. I-I’d really like it if you stayed with us. Dawn and Willow and me.”
“Aside from the fact that there’s nowhere for me to sleep, I also have nothing to wear.”
“You could always sleep naked. Xander does that sometimes. It makes having sex a lot easier.”
Giles could feel Buffy studiously trying to avoid looking at him and breathed slowly in an effort not to blush. “Well, Anya, since that wouldn’t be my intention, I don’t think the suggestion would be appropriate. I-I’ll be heading back to my hotel room. Until tomorrow.”
Giles exited the Magic Box and Buffy’s eyes followed him longingly until she realized that Dawn was staring at her. “What?”
“What did you do with Giles all day, Buffy? He never answered my question.”
Buffy tried to be casual. “We talked.”
“Talked about what?”
“Spike.” There, she figured that would throw Dawn off the scent and give her something else to think about.
Sure enough, her little sister’s face crunched up as the implications of that short word hit her. “Oh. Y-you told him about…”
“Yeah. I figured if he was staying here, he needed to know. Besides, knowing Spike, he probably would have told him anyway to tick him off.”
“I guess.” Buffy got up and her sister followed her still talking. “But you couldn’t have talked about Spike all day. What did you do the rest of the time?”
Buffy blushed and was glad the falling darkness hid it from her sister’s prying eyes. “Well, he told me about his time in England. He’s been looking for jobs over there.”
“Really? Any luck?”
“Nope. He was trying out as a teacher but no one’s hiring. Idiots. They’d be getting a great guy.”
“But that’s great! Maybe he’d consider staying here instead.”
Buffy sighed and smiled slightly. “Don’t get your hopes up, Dawn. Like I told you, he’s here to help me get my groove back. That doesn’t necessarily mean a long-term commitment.”
“Well, we’ll just have to convince him then.” Dawn strode with a purposeful stride and Buffy hurried to catch up. Her sister’s longer legs meant that she had to step pretty lively in order to keep up with her.
__________
Spike silently followed Giles to his car as he saw him leave the magic store. He hadn’t been able to get into the Magic Box due to the recission spell so he’d lurked outside. With the blinds down, he hadn’t been able to see or hear anything. But he saw Giles going to his rental car and snarled silently.
He could smell her on him. It was faint, almost indistinct under the odor of fresh soap and clean clothes, but it was there. Her vanilla scent, the smell of her skin and hair--and her sex. So that’s where she’d gone after she knocked him out. When he came to, he’d debated going to his crypt to sleep off his injuries or tracking her home. Deciding on the latter, he’d made his painful way there only to detect no trace of the pherognosis demon’s odor. Now he knew where she’d gone--and to whom.
When had the damn Watcher come back? First he lost Buffy and now this. She hadn’t lost any time in replacing Spike with the man of her dreams and the thought of that was almost as painful as the loss itself. It’s like he’d been something she’d used during the brief period she couldn’t have her beloved Watcher. Now that Giles had come back, she’d tossed Spike off like a cigarette butt.
But that wouldn’t last long if Spike could help it. And he knew just the way to do it. Striding boldly up to Giles, he said, “Well well well. Look who’s back. Thought you’d have enough of dear ole Sunnyhell to last you a lifetime, Watcher.”
Giles opened the car door and turned around casually as if he’d been expecting to see the vampire. “Spike. Likewise, I’m sure. When did you get back into town?”
Spike smirked while trying to figure out Giles’ game. The Watcher wasn’t happy to see him but there wasn’t the usual irritation. Giles appeared happy and secretly pleased with himself as if even Spike’s presence couldn’ rile him.
“I never left. Unlike some. So back to patch things up with the Slayer, are you?”
Giles smiled almost benevolently at him. “Things are solidly patched, as you put it. Now, if you’ll excuse me, I have to get back. Ta.” Giles waved his hand and got into the driver’s seat.
Spike charged forward, determined not to let him get the last word. He needed to talk to the Watcher if he wanted to drive him away. But as if guessing his intention Giles quickly revved up the engine and drove into the night.
Spike quickly scanned the license plate with his eyes and made a mental note of it. It shouldn’t be too hard to find out where the Watcher was staying and the car was a rental, which meant he was staying someplace temporary--like a motel or hotel. Lovely things about those public places. No pesky barriers against vampires.
He rubbed his hands together and then quickly ducked behind a tree. The rest of the blasted Scoobies were just leaving the Magic Box, Buffy among them. He had wanted a chance to talk to her alone and confront her about this new thing with Giles. He would work on one or both of them if he could. He knew how to play on Buffy’s doubts and insecurities. It wouldn’t take much to shatter this newfound closeness with the Watcher not if he had a say in it.
But talking about it in front of her friends was out of the question. If she hadn’t told them about her and Giles already, news of that sort would probably make her pathetic little gang stand up and cheer. He had to bide his time.
Spike strode off into the darkness. He was in the mood for some kitty poker. What the hell, he was feeling lucky.
__________
Dawn had a dozen questions for Buffy about her time with Giles. Buffy answered absently, trying to decide how much to tell her baby sister as she ignored both her and Willow’s inquiring expressions. Baby? She’s not a baby, anymore. She’s taller than are.are. You told her about Spike, why not tell her about this?
Because this is still too new. I don’t want to--I don’t know, jinx it somehow.
Jinx it? What are you, seven? It’ll be good to say a pleasant thing for a change. And she always liked Giles. She’ll be thrilled at the news.
“Hello, earth to Buffy. We’re home now. Geez, way to be a spaz.” Dawn was standing on the doorstep and tapping her foot impatiently.
Buffy started and looked up in surprise as she realized that they were indeed standing on the doorstep of the Summers residence. “Oh right. Here are the keys. You open up.” She tossed them to her sister as Dawn fumbled in the dark.
Dawn groused as she fitted the key into the lock. “You know, we ought to get one of those porch lights, the motion sensors dealies. This is just crazy, groping around in the dark like this. Monsters would just love to attack at a moment like this.”
“Attack the Slayer’s place? Yeah, right, if they had a death wish,” came the sarcastic reply. Then as Dawn closed the door behind them, Buffy blurted, “Dawn, I’m in love with Giles.”
Dawn blinked at the sudden news and then eyed her calmly. “So you finally figured that out, huh? Took you long enough.”
Buffy and Willow’s mouths dropped open; the stunned looks on their faces were priceless. “What? What did you say? How did you know?”
Dawn grinned. She wasn’t a dope or a little kid any longer no matter what her older sister chose to think and she loved surprising Buffy with her insight. “Well, I saw how really depressed you were before he came back and after he left. I thought you were just upset he took off. But then I heard you crying in your sleep and mentioning his name, so I just knew.”
Willow muttered, “Darn! I knew she heard something. Buffy, you might want to think about soundproofing your walls. Maybe Xander can help.”
Buffy walked blindly to the front room couch and plopped down on it. “You knew? I just figured it out myself!”
Dawn shrugged. “Really? Clueless much?”
Buffy sat there slowly digesting this news and then peered at her sister’s expectant face. “And I take it by the way you’re not wigging that you don’t--mind?” Buffy’s voice ended timidly. She really wanted Dawn to approve. She wasn’t sure why; Dawn was a minor technically. Buffy could have carried on with a football team and Dawn’s opinion would have meant zilch. But Dawn was a part of her life and the blonde Slayer wanted Giles there as well. She needed to know Dawn was okay with it.
“No, of course I don’t mind! I think Giles is great. I missed him as much as you did when he left.” Dawn paused while she thought of something. “Does Giles love you?”
Buffy’s face lit up with a slow smile as she thought of Giles taking care of her, both last night and during the day that followed. “He said so. I believe him.”
Dawn plopped down onto the couch beside her sister and gave her a quick hug. “Will he be staying then? With us, I mean…here in America.”
Her older sister sighed, “That I’m not sure about. This is something we all have to talk about.”
Willow wandered into the kitchen. “Hey, guys, want me to microwave up some goodies? I didn’t get any dinner and we were at the Magic Box for hours.”
The two Summers women bounded up and headed for the table. “What have we got?” Buffy called to Willow.
“Um, it looks like leftover chicken parts and pizza. I’m not sure about the pizza, though. It’s looking a little--furry. And not Miss Kitty furry. Hellmouthy furry, as if it were going to jump up and eat me.” Willow shuddered and walked carefully towards the trash while holding the offending food matter at arm’s length.
“It’s probably a good idea to trash the bad pizza then. Getting eaten by food is not something I want to experience.”
Other non-threatening food was prepared and the three women chewed enthusiastically while Dawn tried discussing possible Giles-and-Buffy scenarios. “Does this mean you don’t love Angel any more?”
Buffy rolled a bit of mashed potato on her tongue as she thought that over. “Part of me will always love Angel, Dawn. Love like that comes only once in a lifetime and I’m not sure I’d want to repeat it. But it let me know that I can love and let me know how wonderful love can be. You don’t forget first loves or say later that they didn’t count. They open you up to all the possibilities waiting for you out there. My first love just wasn’t destined to be my only one, that’s all. Remember, Romeo thought he was in love with Rosaline before he ever met his Juliet.”
“Oh.” Dawn appeared to digest that idea along with her noodles. “You telling me you and Giles are like Romeo and Juliet?”
Willow snorted and then coughed as a bit of food went down the wrong way. Buffy wrinkled her nose at the redhead. “No. Romeo and Juliet loved at first sight. It took me six years of trial and error to get this far. Besides, I’m hoping for us to have a happy ending.”
“Are the two of you going to be boinking in here? ‘Cause I need to get my sleep if I’m going to be fresh for school and you get pretty loud.” Willow exchanged a look with Buffy. Dawn was definitely spending too much time around Anya.
“Dawn, let’s not go picking out curtains. We don’t even know if Giles is staying in Sunnydale. Now if you’re both finished, I’m going to wash the dishes. Dawn, you and Willow can go over that spell for tomorrow.”
__________
Buffy was happily engaged in her task as her sensitive Slayer hearing picked up excited murmuring coming from the upstairs bedroom. She hoped Willow would keep Dawn away from anything too dangerous and then dismissed her concerns. She had to trust that the redhead wouldn’t get Dawn involved in dark magic--especially since Willow herself was steering clear of the stuff. They would get Tara to perform the really difficult parts.
She felt almost giddy when she thought of the spell--giddy and nervous. Would she really be okay after they were finished? What if they couldn’t find out what was really wrong with her? She allowed herself to worry for a moment and then firmly dismissed her fears. Giles was on the case and he had never failed her. She trusted him; he would try everything before he gave up on her.
She allowed herself to smile again. God, it felt good to be able to do that without conscious effort in order to please everybody around her. It felt good to smile and actually mean it. She could hardly wait for tomorrow and see what was going to happen.

TBC
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In Dreams I Walk With You