Title: The Fortress of Watcher-tude
Rating: G
Warnings: None.
Summary: Rupert Giles chose the library for a reason.

A/N: Originally written for the Giles round at the Genfic_Minis LJ community.

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The library. It was the perfect fit, of course. Could there possibly be a better environment for a Watcher? Even apart from the practical uses, there was a comfort to be had in books. Rupert Giles liked books, the power of words, the wealth in knowledge, the musty smell of the volumes. The library was a place where he could maintain the strictest order. The books were alphabetized, quiet was expected, and a general sense of peace and understanding was promoted. The library was the place where Rupert Giles would be in control.

He looked toward the double doors as one of them opened. Two girls entered, chatting animatedly. The first was tall with long brunette hair and spoke with an overtly assertive quality in her voice. The second had long blonde hair and nodded a lot. Blonde…she was supposed to be blonde. Perhaps this was her.

"Hey Miss…" the brunette began, trailing off as she turned to face the Watcher. "You're not Miss Adams," she observed.

"Um, no," he agreed, "I'm the new librarian. Rupert Giles," he explained as he extended a hand. The two girls stared at his hand for a moment as though wondering why he was holding it out.

"So where's Miss Adams," the blonde asked in a high, demanding tone.

"Well, I'm – I'm not sure actually," he stammered in reply, finally withdrawing his hand. "I only know she won't be returning."

"Did she die?" questioned the brunette.

"That seems to happen a lot around here," the blonde supplemented.

"Really?" His interest was piqued. "That's fascinating."

"I have books," the brunette said, clearly bored by this conversation.

"Yes, I see that," he responded, nodding toward the armful of books in the brunette's hands.

"I'm returning them," she told him impatiently.

"Oh, yes, right," he began walking over to the counter. "Um, name?"

"Cordelia Chase," she informed him plainly.

"And you?" he asked the blonde.

"I'm not returning any books," she answered in confusion.

"Well, yes, but… You're not – you're not new, are you?"

"This guy's weird," the blonde said to her friend, not even bothering to lower her voice.

"He's a librarian," said Cordelia dismissively. "Weird's, like, part of the job description or something."

"Your books, Miss Chase," he prompted shortly, drumming his fingers on the counter top.

"We were having a conversation," the blonde chastised him. "It's rude to interrupt."

"Whatever," Cordelia sighed, setting four books on the counter.

"Good," he mumbled, opening the cover of the first to check its due date. "Good. Good. G – wait a moment."

"What?" Cordelia snapped.

"This book was checked out more than a year ago," he pointed out.

"So?" the blonde girl inquired.

"So there's a fine," he explained in a vaguely grumpy tone.

"She brought the book back," the blonde contested, shrugging as she began to blow a bubble with her chewing gum.

"Thirteen months later than it was supposed to have been returned," he countered. "You'll have to pay the fine, Miss Chase."

"Okay," said Cordelia, grabbing the book. "I'll just return this one another day then."

"W-wait, you can't…" he stared blankly as the girls turned to walk away. "There are rules, you know? You can't just..."

He hung his head as the door swung shut behind them. The library was supposed to represent controlled circumstances. That was precisely why he has drawn to the profession. That and the decreased likelihood of encountering students like Cordelia and her friend. Hopefully he wouldn't see much more of either of them.