Title: Masked desire – part 2 (Music of the night - POTO)

Author: Rippertish

Pairing: Buffy/Giles

Genre: Angst, Romance

Rating: T

Disclaimer: Nope, I still do not own Buffy TVS and its characters. I make no profit out of this... bummer. ;)

Summary: Masks, disguise and magic... it's Carnival in Venice. Giles and Buffy meet accidentally after years apart. Post S7, AU.

A/N: OMG! Thank you for the most surprising and amazing reviews! You guys are the best motivation ever.

A/N 2: Special thanks to mischiefmagnet for the beta. Check out her pre-series Giles fic, It's brilliant.

They had lost the count of how many songs they had danced. They had also completely forgotten about their friends. Some time along the way their waltz frame had vanished and now they were close, very close to each other. Their steps had also adopted a unique rhythm. Their bodies leaned into each other and he could feel her warm and welcoming breath tickling slightly on his neck.

He bent his head over hers and was able to smell her soft fragrance.

This behaviour was unusual to Giles but it felt so overwhelming and oddly natural that he was the one that had drawn her closer to him.
He lost himself to the music, the rhythmic sway and the feel of this captivating woman in his arms. He could not describe or explain it, but it was as if she attracted him like gravity attracts a rock to the ground.

Buffy, all of a sudden realized just how much she had missed him. She felt safe in his arms and, in an inexplicable way, loved. Giles didn't know she was the one under that mask and she wondered what he would do if he were to find out right now. Would he be angry at her? Would he say rash words to her? Or worse, would he simply ignore the situation and leave? The last one would hurt her the most.

Buffy couldn't explain how and why they had drifted so much apart. But that was how things were now, their partnership, their friendship had been lost somewhere down the track.

The Orchestra called a break and they finally pulled away from each other. They exchanged sweet, shy smiles. Giles ducked his head rubbing the back of it and looking somewhat bashfully around the dance floor.

Both were very aware of how close they had been dancing the waltz, which usually would attract a few curious or even disapproving looks. Not in this case though, apparently- everybody else around them seemed to be having a great time and minding their own business. The place was quickly filled with enthusiastic talk and laughter.

At the blink of an eye the room was being invaded by entertainment acts. A man spitting fire opened the spectacle's way through the crowd.

The music picked up onto a happy and excited note and the crowd settled into a circle around the dance floor. They all watched as long and hypnotising yellow and orange flames were blown in the air right in front of their eyes. A jester followed doing his elaborately acrobatic jumps, and the ballet dancers gave the final touch to the breathtaking attraction.

Buffy and Giles were side by side as they watched the compelling proceedings, entranced. They clapped and laughed together while they shared a few comments regarding the actors' incredible performance.

* * Masquerade! Grinning yellows, spinning reds ...
Masquerade! Take your fill - let the spectacle astound you!
Masquerade! Burning glances, turning heads ...
Masquerade! Stop and stare at the sea of smiles around you!
Masquerade! Seething shadows, breathing lies ...
Masquerade! You can fool any friend who ever knew you! * *

An elegantly dressed waiter approached them with a tray and Giles took two flutes of Champagne. "Grazie," he politely thanked the man in Italian. Buffy had noticed that Giles spoke a very refined Italian. In point of fact she wouldn't have expected any less from him, but it still mesmerized her as he probably had very little contact with the language.

Giles suddenly noticed that her interest in the attractions had subsided. "Would you care to join me for some fresh air on the balcony?" he managed to ask while he handed her the Champagne.

"Sure," she said before also thanking him in Italian for the drink.

Positioning himself at her side but slightly behind her, he escorted her to the balcony as a perfect gentleman.

The room had indeed grown quite warm and she found that she appreciated his suggestion.

The balcony was incredibly beautiful. It was just as impressive as the whole mansion and there were plants hanging down from the banister that carried beautiful coloured flowers during spring and summer. It overlooked one of Venice's charming canals, in which from time to time it was possible to spot the romantic gondolas filled with a couple in love and the typically dressed gondolier standing up at the back to guide their way through the narrow waters.

The night was pleasantly chilled and they could hear the muffled laughs and gasps coming from inside.

Giles felt an intense presence of magic, benign and beautiful, covering the city. He hadn't felt it before, but in his current relaxed and heightened state he could sense it easily. He desperately wished he could share this knowledge with her, but in his mind he thought that she would not comprehend the nature of his supernatural beliefs.

"Wow!" she gasped suddenly.

"What is it?" he probed curiously.

"Um... it's just the... energy. But, never mind." she dismissed it with a hand gesture. Buffy leaned her arms straight over the banister, lifting her leg in a happy movement while she looked out at the city.

Giles found her movements hypnotizing, so full of life. He leaned his back against the banister and watched her. "Energy?" he asked, even more curious this time.

"Hmm, yes! Like positive energy all around us. I guess, when you live in Rome you learn to feel it. Well, never mind. I hope you don't think I'm too crazy." she smiled and he shook his head deep in thoughts.

"Anyway, what brought you to Venice?" she asked before taking a sip of her sparkling drink.

He explained how he had come to be here while they both watched a gondola cruising the canal right under them. As it approached, they saw that it was occupied by a couple engaged in an endless and passionate kiss. Their talk subsided due to that image, and when the gondola disappeared around the corner they shared a sequence of slightly embarrassed giggles.

It was a magnificent feeling, all that magic around them, the muffled music and claps coming from inside the room, their costumes and masks, their Champagne in hand and the two of them alone there on the balcony under the stars.

When their laughter finally came to an end, their eyes locked and the world seemed to stop.

"It's Magic," he suddenly said. His voice was lower and distant and the words had rolled out of his mouth with no effort as all his attention seemed focused on her.

"Sorry?" she asked puzzled.

Giles cleared his throat gently, "Night-time sharpens, heightens each sensation...
Darkness stirs and wakes imagination...
Silently the senses abandon their defenses..."

Buffy gasped and widened her eyes in surprise. "The music of the night," she whispered.

He bowed his head confirming her suspicious. He was reciting the lines from one of Phantom of the Opera's most beautiful and touching songs.

He continued, his tone becoming slightly melodic. It felt as if he was really singing it to her.

"Slowly, gently, night unfurls its splendour...
Grasp it, sense it, tremulous and tender...
Turn your face away from the garish light of day,
turn your thoughts away from cold, unfeeling light
and listen to the music of the night..."

He had walked around her making the softly spoken words encircle her and lift her feet from the ground. It was his way of showing her the magic without actually performing it. After the last line was spoken, he stopped by her side and smiled.

Buffy turned to face him but instead of returning his smile, she continued to recite the song from where he had stoped.

"Close your eyes and surrender to your darkest dreams!
Purge your thoughts of the life you knew before!
Close your eyes, let your spirit start to soar!
And you'll live as you've never lived before..."

She noticed when her words caught him by surprise, his smile giving place to a deeply attentive expression.

He closed his eyes for a brief moment which seemed like an eternity to Buffy as her mind replayed her own words. She wondered for a split second which meaning those lines had taken to him.

Before fully opening his eyes, he blinked a few times as if he had been sleeping for hours. Giles was filled with a warm sensation and a strange freedom. He surrendered to his impulses and wrapped his free arm around her waist, pulling her into a movie-like kiss.

Buffy was startled, letting her Champagne glass slip between her fingers, the fine crystal shattering on the terracotta floor.

The sound made by the forgotten glass failed to break the intense mood, only seeming to add even more to the magic of the occasion. Giles held her tighter to him while his tongue made its way into her mouth. Her arms seemed to get a life of their own as they flung around his neck and she found herself responding to the kiss.

Giles' kiss was confident and overwhelming. It carried so much desire and at the same time a comfortable and inviting warmth. Her legs started to feel limp and in a swift movement, he placed his glass of Champagne over the banister and held her with both arms.

His dark cape draped over her body in a protective shield. She had never felt so safe in a man's embrace before. Was this even happening?

Yes, it was... However, at that moment, Ethan chose to enter the balcony.

"Fiiiiiiiu," he whistled and laughed. "Get a room, mate." Ethan joked while making his way towards them swirling the dark-red liquid in his almost empty glass of wine.

Buffy was startled, tearing her lips away from his with a gasp. She hurriedly freed herself from Giles' grip and ran from the balcony, not allowing Ethan to see her face.

Giles ran after her. "Wait! What is your name? How can I find you?..." he trailed off when she disappeared into the middle of the crowd. It would be an impossible task to find her amongst so many masquerades.

"Bloody hell, Ethan. You're gentle like a t-rex."

"Chill out Ripper, mate. Women come and go, like rivers flow..." he said wittily while flinging his arm over Giles' shoulder and dragging him back into the main room.

Giles let himself be guided by Ethan despite his frustration. 'Not this one,' he thought, 'this one was very special, I just can't explain why...'

* * Masquerade... Paper faces on parade...
Masquerade... Hide your face, so the world will never find you...* *

End of chapter 2

* Music of the night is an amazingly beautiful and sensual piece of The Phantom of the Opera. The movie scene can be found at the YouTube link bellow. Just replace (dot) for the proper dot. If you know what I mean! :)

http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=GHAauiJwwmU

** Masquerade also belongs to The Phantom of the Opera.

http:/www(dot)youtube(dot)com/watch?v=RxKjDUrmecA

A/N: I've added some The Phantom of the Opera references just for you, us, super fans. I hope you enjoy them. But if you haven't watched the play or movie yet... you are missing out big time! :)