Title: 'Tough'
Description: Missing scene from the 'Becoming' two parter after Giles is kidnapped by the vamps. Angel taunts Giles about Jenny.
Rating: K+ for implied torture only.
Author's notes: As if the Giles/Jenny stuff in 'Becoming Part 2' wasn't heartbreaking enough, I had to go and write this.
Angel straightened up, theatrically working out the cricks in his neck.
"You know, I've got to hand it to you, you don't give up easily."
The floor was slick and slippery with blood, but he stepped lightly over it. His footsteps echoed on the stone; the only sound apart from Giles' ragged breath.
"You're much tougher than your girlfriend. She didn't put up much of a fight before I snapped her pretty little neck."
There was pain, fading but still raw and fresh. But pain could be overcome. Just one more enemy to defeat, one more demon to slay. Giles counted the cracked and fading tiles on the wall. Focus on that. Focus on anything else.
Angel cocked his head thoughtfully to the side.
"Unless you count crying, of course."
There were 75 complete tiles left on the wall.
"…fast runner though, you've gotta give her that", he continued conversationally, sauntering around the back of the chair, out of sight.
There were metallic noises behind him as Angel opened a drawer, but that was irrelevant, out of his control. He began to count the leaves of the plant in the corner.
"You know I had to chase her around the whole damn school before I caught up with her? It was worth it though, to see the look on her face. Man, it was priceless, you should've been there!"
Don't listen to the voice. The voice is unimportant. There were 87 leaves on the plant. The plant itself was probably plastic.
"It's really a shame you weren't there. We could have had some fun. Come to think of it, why was she all alone in the school so late? Pretty stupid of her, considering."
Ignore it. Don't listen. Work out the area of the room. Don't listen. Assuming the tiles are approximately twelve inches across…
Angel strolled back into view holding something metallic in his hand.
"Oh that's right, I remember!" He slapped his forehead in mock disbelief. "She was looking for my cure!" He grinned and shook his head, walking over to the nearby table and picking up a rag.
Giles had run out of calculations. Move on the abstract then. Ignore the room. Ignore his voice.
Angel paced across the floor briskly, polishing the thing in his hand with the rag.
"Either she liked me whole lot more than I realised—" He paused, and chuckled darkly. "Which seems unlikely, since I did just kill her uncle and all."
The square of 11 is 121. The Cube of 11 is 1331. The square of 12 is 144. The cube of 12 is 1728. The square of 13 is 169.
"Or…she wanted to get back in somebody's good books. Enough to stay working in a public building after dark in Sunnydale? She must have really liked you, man." He stopped abruptly and crouched down until his face was inches from Giles' own.
"Pity you let her die alone" he murmured softly, and winked.
The cube of 13 is…is…
Angel leapt up and deposited the rag on the nearby table.
"Man, I'm hungry! You know, I think I might just go get a snack before I finish up here?" He glanced behind him and a smile spread slowly across his face.
"Hey, are you crying?" Angel gave a delighted laugh, strode over and slapped Giles companionably on the shoulder.
Jenny.
"Guess you're not as tough as I thought."