Giles awoke to a soft pink hued sky and the sound of waves lapping gently against the hull of the yacht, reaching out for his spectacles; he slid them onto his face and peered at his watch through sleep blurred eyes.

Uncurling himself from the bottom bunk, he stood and stretched. In the bunk now at his eye level, Xander slept peacefully, a slim trail of drool puddling on his pillow.

Slipping into the silent living area he crossed to the galley and put the kettle on to boil while he sat and enjoyed his early morning peace.

"Morning Giles." A soft voice floated up from the other room and he smiled. "Good morning Tara." he whispered, crossing into the larger room and smiling warmly. "Did you sleep well?"

Tara was sat, her knees curled up into her chest and wrapped in a large blanket. Smiling softly, she nodded.

"Willow is practicing her breast-stroke." she told him, instantly wishing she could pluck the words from the air and stuff them back in her throat. Her cheeks flushed a deep and fiery crimson and she dropped her eyes.

Retracing his steps, Giles laid a heavy hand on her shoulder as he paused in the doorway.

"I know what you meant." he told her, squeezing her muscular shoulder fondly and easing her embarrassment. "Would you like a cup of tea?" he asked, pulling two mugs from the cupboard before she had replied.

"Please." Tara told him as she fought to control the burning in her cheeks.

"I'll have one too." Willows voice was still husky with sleep and she slumped heavily on the couch next to her girlfriend, placing a delicate kiss on her lips.

Giles returned to the larger living area with a tray of tea and some bagels that the girls had purchased the day before. They sat and ate their breakfast in relative silence, each one lost in the mental speculation of what their travels would hold.

Buffy appeared in the doorway, her cabin was furthest from the living areas and she had obviously made a trip to the bathroom before joining them. "Mornin all." she said brightly as she helped herself to a bagel and sat next to Giles.

"Morning Buffy." the three echoed in unison.

"So, what adventures are we having on the high seas today?" she asked, her enthusiasm and excitement hadn't been in the least bit diluted by her arrival aboard the yacht.

Giles rose and fetched some charts that Brian had organised for them. "Well, according to my friend, there is some good fishing to be had here." he told them, pointing to a mark on the chart. The others gathered around the map, taking mental notes of the position the Watcher was indicating.

"So fishing and sunbathing!" Buffy said cheerfully. "Anyone want juice, you did get juice, right?" she asked, focusing her question in the direction of Willow and Tara.

"Yeah, we got juice." Willow told her and smiled as her friend bounced off to fetch herself her morning beverage.

With their small but filling breakfast consumed, Willow and Giles headed on deck to examine the controls and various satellite locators on the helm, all the while Giles gave a running commentary on the name and function of each of the pieces of equipment.

As Tara cleared up and washed the dishes, Buffy returned to her cabin and dressed for her day of sunbathing. Opting for a simple black bikini and light blue sarong, she also headed on deck to join Willow and Giles, Tara joined them moments later, adorned in long shorts and a vest top. Willow had decided that she needed some colour and had also chosen a bikini and shorts.

After two full hours on deck, under the hot sunshine, Giles had decided that his jeans and shirt were too much and headed back below deck to change.

As Buffy found herself a place on the bow of the boat, she laid out a towel and set a book and personal stereo next to it, her sunglasses had been the very first thing she had put on that morning and, so far, they hadn't left her face.

As Buffy returned to join Willow and Tara at the helm, Giles reappeared and was met with three open mouthed stares before the young women in front of him burst into fits of laughter. In a simple polo shirt and shorts, Giles failed to see the funny side of his outfit and frowned at their response.

"Oh Giles, you have legs!" Buffy managed between her laughing, the tears streaming from under her sunnies and dripping onto the deck.

Giles rolled his eyes playfully, suddenly understanding why the girls where all laughing so heartily.

As the giggles and tears were washed away, Giles decided it was more than time they set sail so to speak.

"What about Xander?" Tara asked suddenly.

"Oh, he won't be up until lunch!" Willow told her and settled herself down on the side of the boat, her legs dangling over the edge and her feet trailing in the water. Everyone giggled and Giles started the boat, manoeuvring carefully out of the dock, he pointed the vessel into open water and gunned the engine, speeding them all into an unknown adventure.

After about an hour, Xander emerged on deck looking decidedly green around the gills. "I don't travel well." he told Giles, making the older man jump noticeably. Offering him a weak smile, Giles slowed the yacht slightly and they continued their cruise. Buffy was laid out in her bikini, the gentle spray coating her already tanned skin and making her glisten in the sunlight. Willow and Tara were playing cards and seemed to be enjoying their free time.

"There's Dramamine in the first aid box." Giles told Xander who disappeared below deck to fetch the welcome medication.

"Hey Giles, look." Willows voice called the Watcher back to attention. He hadn't realised he had been day dreaming, his mind lost in the beauty and serenity of the open ocean. "Dolphins!" Willow, Tara and Buffy were all hanging over the rail at the front of the boat, watching a pod of dolphins racing in perfect time with them.

Xander appeared on deck and looked only slightly better. "Xander, you're up!" Willow announced as she noticed her friend. "C'mon, look there's dolphins." she told him, gesturing for him to join them.

"If you happen to find my stomach, or sea legs, gimme a yell." he told Giles before venturing towards the girls.

Once the dolphins had grown tired of following the yacht, Giles slowed down and the group ate a large lunch. "How about some fishing?" Giles asked as he and Buffy tidied away the lunch things.

"I'd like that." Tara replied, surprising everyone.

"You fish?" Willow asked her, unable to hide the astonishment in her voice.

"I went a few times with my dad, before…. well, just before." she replied, hanging her head and covering her eyes with her hair at the same time.

Reaching out, Willow took Tara's hand in her own and squeezed it gently. After Tara's family had arrived, unannounced on her twentieth birthday, she had revealed everything to Willow. Everything about her family and her past and the torment she had suffered at the hands of both her brother and father. The revelations had stunned and chilled Willow to the core of her existence. The things that Tara had experienced while in the supposed care of her family had left the redhead grateful for her own disinterested parents. That night Willow had held Tara and made a solemn vow to never let anyone hurt her again.

Almost by magic, the rest of the Scooby core had vanished on deck, leaving the two witches alone in the living area. "I'm sorry." Willow whispered softly, brushing Tara's hair back behind her ears. "I didn't mean, I didn't know… I never meant to…." her words were cut off by Tara's lips pressing gently into her own.

"I know." the blonde breathed as they parted. "And it's alright. They were my past and you are my future." she finished, pulling Willow in for another delicate kiss.

On deck, Xander had finally managed to find his sea legs, although he thought that was, in part due to the fact that were no longer moving, a small mercy for which he was thankful. Giles had taken to sitting on the deck and was enjoying the sunshine.

"So G-man." Xander asked loudly, "Where are we?" He was studying the chart that had been placed behind a plexi-glass screen. The lines and rough blobs made no sense to him and he wondered how anyone could understand it.

Giles was suddenly by his side and he took a moment to look at the compass that was mounted in the panel in front of him. "Erm, oh yes. Here we are." he said, pointing to an area on the map. "Obviously not iexactly/i there but somewhere under my finger." Giles said, blushing slightly. He hadn't realised quite how far out they had travelled and felt strangely and inexplicably nervous.

From below deck, they heard faint murmurs and moans and Giles look at Xander quizzically. They looked from each other and back down the open hatch into the living area of the boat before regarding each other once again. Xanders face had turned beetroot red and Giles' suspicions were confirmed.

"I'm going swimming." Xander announced, a mixture of arousal and embarrassment flooding his body. As he turned and stripped off his shirt, Giles slammed down the hatch and rushed after him.

"Good idea!" he said and followed Xanders lead in diving from the side, leaving Buffy to stare after them in comical confusion.

"Ok, that was weird." the Slayer said aloud as she watched her friends swimming and diving in the crystal blue waters. "Oh shoot. No sunscreen!" she said after reaching for the bottle and finding the place it had occupied to be empty. "Oh well." Standing briskly, she walked carefully towards the hatch and pulled it open.

Striding through the living area, she frowned when she saw it to be empty. "Willow? Tara?" she asked gently. Nothing. Shrugging her shoulders, she stepped into the kitchen, 'sorry Captain. Galley' she mentally chastised herself, to fetch the sunscreen. She remembered putting it on the side before lunch and banged her fist on the counter when it wasn't there. Racking her brain, she tried to remember where she had moved it to, then remembered that Willow had taken it into her bedroom after her shower.

As she strode back through the main living area, she momentarily wondered what had happened to cause both Xander and Giles to 'abandon ship' in such a manner. "Guys are weird!" she muttered as she reached the door.

Knocking rapidly, Buffy tapped her foot on the floor before knocking again. Tara's voice rang out around the boat; "Yes!" she called loudly, causing Buffy to push the door open and step inside.

"Oh my god!" the Slayer exclaimed as she looked up towards her friends. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry!" she mumbled, backing rapidly towards the door. Willow looked up from her place between Tara's legs, her face a hot and fiery red. Tara's chest heaved with exertion as she scrambled to try and cover her naked body. "I'm going, I'm going!" Buffy continued backing away, only succeeding in backing herself into the doorframe. Turning on the balls of her feet, Buffy fled from the room, shaking her head in the vain attempt that she could somehow shake the images of what she had just seem from her mind.

Rushing back on deck, she stripped her sarong from her waist and dove overboard, allowing the cool ocean to wash away the images.