Disclaimer: I do not own any part of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I write for the enjoyment of others and myself no copy write infringement was intended.

Nightmare

It was late at night; the sky was overcast making it even darker. A young man was walking through an alley searching for someone. He heard a bloodcurdling scream from several yards ahead. He ran toward the scream...

Rupert Giles woke with his heart pounding. He was entangled in his bed sheets and his body was drenched in sweat. While others would try to forget they're nightmares; he tried desperately to hang on to the memory of his. By the time he had put on his glasses, grabbed a pen and paper the nightmare was but a vague vision of an alley in London. He glanced at his clock. It was 2:00 am.

Giles was no stranger to nightmares. When he was ten years old he learned he was to be trained as a Watcher; like his father and grand-mother before him. He also learned there were far worse things than the boogieman.

When he rebelled against his calling, he discovered firsthand about demons.

With a small circle of friends he would dabble in the black arts summoning demons for the euphoric high it produced. On one occasion, they called forth Eyghon, a demon who would enter into a sleeping or unconscious person. It was Randall's turn to be possessed; he lost control of Eyghon. Giles and his other friends tried to exorcize the demon out of Randall but they failed and Randall died. Since that time, he returned to train as a Watcher; studying demons, vampires, and the varied occults that abound in this world; to the point where he felt the most comfortable with books.

Since being assigned as Watcher for the current Slayer, Buffy Summers, his nightmares had increased. He attributed them to the added stress of his Slayer's erratic emotions and to the need to train her so she would survive her encounters.

Giles needn't have worried though. Quentin Travers, a senior Watcher on the Council, had been impressed with her abilities. Buffy passed the "coming of age" test.

On the other hand Travers told Rupert he had failed as her Watcher. He went on to say; Giles' closeness to Buffy was akin to a father's love for his daughter. This led to Giles' subsequent dismissal as her Watcher. His nightmares should have dissipated but they only intensified.

Giles rose from bed, put on his robe, and made his way to the kitchen to prepare some tea. When the tea was ready, he brought his cup to the couch and picked up his copy of Rare Demons of Ancient Egypt {Just a bit of light reading.} he thought.

Giles finished reading the last page of the book. After setting it on the coffee table, he picked up his teacup, and brought it to the kitchen. Checking the clock, he saw it was 7:00 am. He went to shower and get ready for the day.

He knew he wouldn't have any visitors today. Buffy was spending the weekend away with her mother. Willow and Xander, Buffy's friends from high school were spending the weekend with their respective families. Though he liked his quiet life he had grown accustomed to having these teens around; with their loud music and endless prattle about boyfriend-girlfriend relationships with the aim of what worked or didn't. Giles decided he would go to the new, used bookshop that was opening today. He wanted to search for any books on demonology or witchcraft.

Giles arrived just as the shopkeeper was opening the doors. "Wow, you're my first customer. My name is Peter, if there is anything I can help you find let me know."

"Thank you, are your books sorted in any fashion?"

"What are you interested in?"

"Um... books on the... the occult ... the black arts, and... and so forth; it's a… ah, a hobby of mine."

Peter looked him over wondering why a man of his age would be interested in that nonsense. "Right this way." He brought Giles to the area of the store where the aforementioned books could be found.

Giles started scanning the titles, occasionally pulling one off the shelf looking through the contents and either putting it into a growing stack or re-shelving it. By the time he was done he had five books to purchase. Giles gave Peter his name and number saying if he ever receives more books on the inquired subject to call him.

On his way home he stopped at the market, he purchased the needed ingredients for his evening meal and headed home. He spent the rest of his day reviewing training methods and schedules he had used for Buffy. His intention was to give the information to the new Watcher when he or she arrived. After dinner, Giles went out to do a little patrolling while Buffy was away.

There really hadn't been much activity for a while but it was best to get those who had recently been turned into vampires. When rising for the first time they are disoriented, which made staking them easier for him. Giles meandered through one of the cemeteries, on hearing the sound of a vampire rising. He took out his stake and plunged it through the chest of the demon while it was still pulling himself from the grave. The vampire burst into a cloud of dust. Two hours passed with only the one "dusting" so he called it a night and went home.

By 11 pm he could barely keep his eyes open, he retired to his bedroom. Verifying he had pen and paper in the event of another nightmare, he removed his outer clothing and settled into bed. Giles was asleep as his head hit the pillow.