Vorwort: Für meine Schreibpartnerin, das, was sie sich schon so lange von mir gewünscht hat! 3 (Zuerst wollte ich ja Merlin/Arthur schreiben, aber ich war von deinem so beeindruckt. XD) Tippfehler und merkwürdige Formulierungen inbegriffen. Und auf Englisch, da ich die Dialoge nicht auf Deutsch schreiben kann. Herzlichen Glückwunsch! +Konfettiregen+

And for my english readers: English isn't my native language, so there are probably some misspellings or weird expressions. Hope you enjoy it anyway! :)

An englishman's home is his castle

Giles sat at the living room table bent over an old dusty book, when he decided he really couldn't take it anymore. While Timmy was just in the middle of a fight with his mother, he grabbed the remote and turned the TV off.

„Oi! Turn that back on!", shouted the bleachblond vampire that lounged on his couch.

„I won't, Spike", Giles declared and pushed his glasses up. „Every afternoon your watching this", he struggled for words for a moment, „this overly dramatic nonsense -"

„Hey!"

„...and I've got some runes to decipher that could really be of value regarding future supernatural threats.."

„Who cares for apocalypses, Timmy has to save Charity!", the vampire exclaimed.

„..and I really can't work like that", Giles finished his sentence and bended back over his book.

Spike sat up and took a sceptical look at the weighty tome. „What kind of work is that, anyway? Looking up some ancient scribbling to make sure noone's planning to blow the world to dust?"

„Well – given our experiences, that's not very unlikely", Giles pointed out.

The vampire leaned back into the couch. „I bet the slayer just told you something to keep you busy. Bad conscience for you not having a job anymore and that."

He finally gave up on the sentence of cryptical symbols on page forty-five and set his glasses off. „Thanks, Spike, that was really empathetic from you."

„No problem. Can you put it back on now?"

„No."

„Why not? I've never seen this episode before! Who knows if Timmy can save Charity in time? It's your fault when I'm gonna miss the ending!"

„I think I can take this responsibility", Giles muttered.

„Why can't you work somewhere else?", Spike asked impatiently. „You coulds go in the kitchen! Or your bedroom!"

Giles sat up. „Because this is my TV and my couch and – and my house and I defend myself against being banished from my own living room!"

„You don't have to go, just put the telly back on!"

This time, the watcher didn't even answer, he just turned to the next page.

„Giles."

He pretended not to listen.

„Put it back on."

On a piece of paper, he took some notes about a special rune that appeared five times on this page alone and seemed to be very important.

„Giiiiles", the vampire whined, sounding alot like a five-year-old.

He didn't hear that. He would just translate this paragraph and then it would probably make sense - „GIIIILES."

With a very irritated sigh, he looked up. The vampire seemed content. „I can do this all day."

For a moment, Giles debated if it would be really against his moral to stake a helpless but impossibly annoying creature like Spike.

Then he closed the book with a thud and gave up. „Fine." He took the remote out of his pocket and handed it to Spike, who grabbed it eagerly with a grin on his face. „I'm just gonna...go in the kitchen. And make some tea."

The vampire didn't seem to hear him; as he stepped into the kitchen, the sounds of the soap opera were again filling the room.

While Giles searched through the cupboards for the tea his friend had given him as a present at her last visit, he contemplated how to get rid of Spike. It obviously couldn't get on like this, he needed his peace and quiet once in a while.

He started brewing the tea, still in thought. Maybe he could get Xander to take the vampire for a while. Clearly he couldn't just throw him out, not while the initiative was still looking for him. In his current state, even the big bad would be an easy victim.

Spike took this instant of momentary forbearance to pook his head in the kitchen: „Is that Earl Grey?", he asked.

„Yes, indeed."

„Can I have some? Haven't had good english tea in ages."

Giles pulled out a second cup and poured the hot liquid in it. He would talk to Xander tomorrow. Maybe.