Magic Box
The gang sat around the table contemplating the fight to be hand in the very near future.
Buffy looked at her best friend, "Look, I know mom wants to gather and make with the merry tomorrow night, but with everything going on—"
Willow's eyes brightened, "— This is exactly what you need! A twentieth birthday party and presents and funny hats and candles you can't blow out!" Willow looked at Oz. "Those used to scare me."
"They still do, love." Oz lovingly kissed her hair.
"I just don't know if this is a good time to break out the party piñata, Will. We need to stay focused if we're going to find a way to stop Glory."
"We're going up against a God. An actual, mightier-than-thou God!"
"Well, you know what they say. The bigger they are—" Oz looked at Xander with a small smile.
"— The faster they stomp you into nothin'?" Anya finished.
"Amongst other things…" Oz frowned.
Buffy shook her head, "She's right. I've thrown everything I got at her, and she just shrugs it off."
"Then we have to find something heavier to throw," Willow suggested with confidence.
Graham sat back and listened to the conversation of hell dimensions if the Key unlocked the door to hell as it was a reference from the Book Of Tarnis. As terrible and as impossible it all sounded he was unable to tear his eyes away from Buffy. He watched her closely as she gathered the information thrown at her. He could see the revolving mechanics of her mind cranking to process the information. He knew whatever was going to happen was going to be bad perhaps worse.
He snapped from his thoughts when he heard her say, "There's something I have to tell you. About Dawn… "
1630 Revello Drive
Graham entered the bedroom closing the door behind him. He turned to see Buffy sitting against the headboard deep in thought.
She didn't notice him toe off his boots or strip himself of his jeans and T-shirt. Her eyes didn't budge from the nothingness to see him standing in front of her in nothing but his boxers and a small smile.
Graham slid onto the bed and sat against the headboard he reached for her hand that was on her lap.
"We're goin' to get through this." He told her softly.
"How do you know that?" She forced herself to look at him.
"'Cause I'm a genius." He tried to joke but she didn't go for it. Graham quickly thought up another approach and wrapped his arm around her shoulders letting her rest her head on his chest. "And 'cause I believe in you." Graham looked down at her pushing her hair from her forehead, "I believe in you with every part of me."
Buffy ran a hand over his stubbled cheek and traced her fingers over his lips. "I love you."
Graham pressed his mouth against her forehead and whispered, "I know."
Next Day
Magic Box
Dawn flew into the Magic Box with Graham following in tow. She settled herself at the table and took out the dairy from her bag and began to write vigorously.
Buffy and Giles walked out of the training room and into the main area of the shop.
An immediate smile passed over her mouth when her eyes landed on her boyfriend then widened when she noticed the coffees from the Expresso Pump in his hands. "Ooh! Coffee, coffee!" She went up to him pressing her mouth against his.
"Hi," Graham happily kissed her back and placed her drink in her hand.
"How was school today?" Buffy asked breaking away from Graham and looked over at Dawn.
"The usual… A big square building filled with boredom and despair."
"Just how I remember it." Buffy sipped the latte.
Graham frowned, "Funny, 'cause I remember hot cheerleaders…"
Buffy glared at him slapping a hand over his chest, "Not funny."
"Say, weren't you a cheerleader?" He asked her letting his eyes run over her body until they landed on her bottom.
Buffy threw him a glance over her shoulder and smiled softly, "I'll wear the outfit for you later." Graham groaned wanting nothing more than to get out of the Magic Box with his girl pronto. Buffy's smile widened as she faced Dawn, "So what's the homework sitch?"
"We're s'posed to imagine what we'll be like in ten years and write a letter to our future self. The teacher's clearly so out of ideas… Wanna help?" Dawn eyed her sister with hope.
"Maybe later," Buffy said running her fingers through Dawn's long brown hair. "I got a few things to take care of."
Dawn watched Giles quickly tuck a notepad away behind the counter then shifted her eyes to Buffy and Graham who hadn't seemed to notice Giles' odd behaviour. "Is it about that weird girl that came to the house?"
"Glory. And no, it's not." Buffy looped her arm around Graham's arm and laid her head on his shoulder sipping her latte.
"Like you'd tell me anyway… 'Dawn's too young' or 'Dawn's too delicate'. God, I hope it isn't sex stuff." Her eyes shot to Graham.
Feeling embarrassed under the teenager's eyes, Graham quietly sat down with a frown. "It's not all I think about…" he grumbled.
Buffy rolled her eyes, "Yeah, a young delicate pain in my butt and you know you do too." Buffy teasingly eyed Graham raising a high brow.
Graham childishly crossed his arms as his frown deepened. "They're makin' fun of me." Graham looked at Giles.
"Don't look at me. This is clearly a Summers women thing." Giles said turning away from the group holding a book in his hand. "And they do have a point, you're as randy as an adolescent boy."
"Hey!" Buffy and Dawn busted into a fit of laughter as Graham snuck lower into the chair. "You guys suck." Graham grimaced.
Dawn turned her eyes back to her older sister and said, "I think you're just freaking out 'cause you have to fight someone prettier than you. That's the big crisis, isn't it?"
Buffy gave her sister the side eye, "Dawn, Glory is powerful and evil and is in no way prettier than me."
"I second that." Graham agreed.
Dawn rolled her eyes and continued, "Maybe you're just getting soft in your advanced age. She didn't look that tough to me."
1630 Revello Drive
Celebrating Buffy's birthday had been known to be a risk everyone always seemed willing to take.
The gang sat on the birthday decorated the living room, surrounding Buffy, who sat on the couch clapping her hands together happily. "Presents!" She grinned.
"See?" Willow beamed with glee, happy that her idea had been working out flawlessly. "Just what you needed."
"You are very, very wise. Now, gimme, gimme, gimme!" She wiggled her fingers for the first set of presents to be handed to her.
"This is extremely suspenseful." Anya watched Buffy open the gifts with wide eyes. "I want the presents!"
Buffy pulled out a white lace dress decorated with gold rhinestones. "Ooh! Pretty!" She looked at Willow and Oz.
"It's from us!" Willow shouted unable to contain herself any longer. "We thought you'd get a lot of crossbows and other kill-y things. So we figured—well, really I figured, less kill-y and more frilly!"
Anya gawked at the beautiful dress, "It's lovely! I wish it was mine!" She felt the eyes of the room and frowned, "Oh, like you weren't thinking the same thing."
"I'm fairly certain I wasn't." Giles grimaced with embarrassment as he sat down beside Joyce handing her a glass of ice tea.
Buffy laughed and took another small box from the pile and removed its newspaper wrapping. "I know who this is from." She raised a brow at Graham knowingly.
"Is it that obvious?" Graham looked at her from his chair across the coffee table.
"The wrapping gave it away." Buffy teased. She opened the lid of Tiffany's jewellery box and gasped breathlessly. She took out a sterling silver Dragonfly necklace. The Dragonfly wings were shaded with sapphire stones. "Oh, Graham, this is beautiful. I love it. Thank you, babe." She leaned forward across the coffee table meeting Graham's lips.
"There's more for later." He whispered into her ear.
"I can't wait." Buffy grinned with anticipation.
"Open mine!" Dawn shouted with impatience shoving her wrapped present into Buffy's hands.
"It's not going to explode is it?" Buffy smirked unwrapping the present to reveal a photograph of herself and Dawn laughing and hugging each other on a beach. The frame was decorated with seashells. Buffy's eyes teared up looking at the photograph.
"It's when we visited Dad that summer in San Diego. I put the shells on myself. They're the ones we picked off the beach."
"Yeah, I remember."
Graham's eyes darted around Buffy's face taking in the sincere emotions displayed across her beautiful features.
Dawn noticed the quietness of the room and frowned, "Jeez, don't get all 'Movie Of The Week' on me. I was just too cheap to buy you a real present."
"It's wonderful." Buffy smiled and took her sister into her arms, "Thank you."
As the group split up in various areas of the house, Graham grasped Buffy's hand and pulled her away for a bit of privacy in the small hallway under the stairs.
"Lift up your hair." He whispered as Buffy bunched her long hair into her hand. He fixed the clasp of the necklace around her neck. "There… Perfect." Buffy faced him. "Just how I imagined it would be."
"I love, love, love it." She said looking down at the Dragonfly emblem.
"That's good but, that's not the main surprise."
Buffy's eyes glistened with excitement, "It's not? What possibly could you have up your sleeve, Mr Miller."
"Well, for one, I got us a room at that fancy hotel you're always badgerin' me about since the day I met yea."
"Really?" Buffy grinned hooking her arms around his neck.
"Your hints were subtle." Graham's heart pounded in his chest watching her smile widen. "Remember that time when you got all dressed up in that gold bikini?"
Buffy eyed him suspiciously, "You mean that Princess Leia metal bikini? Yeah, it's impossible to forget. One of those damn wires kept digging into me all night…"
Graham ran hands down her sides and slid them into her backside jeans pockets. "But you said, you wouldn't unless I dressed up as somethin' you wanted… I believe it was an… outlaw cowboy?"
"Yeah?" Buffy grinned widely biting her bottom lip with anticipation.
"Well, babe, for your happy birthday, I'm puttin' on those alligator boots, the giant Texas belt buckle with the gun holster, and the flannel, and the ten-gallon hat—"
"— Don't forget the tight jeans." Buffy quickly reminded him.
Graham rolled his eyes, "Ah yes, those fuckin' tight jeans. Then you get to wear—"
"— Me? This is my fantasy. And in my fantasy, I'm not dressing up."
"Everyone gets to play." Buffy watched an adolescent grin cross his handsome face. "You get to wear the gold bikini."
Buffy shook her head finding him utterly adorable. "Princess Leia and the outlaw?"
"Mmhm," Graham wagged his brows with excitement.
Buffy held his face between her hands and smiled, "Have I told you how much I loved you today?"
"Every day," He kissed her gently when he suddenly broke away with a question needing to be answered. "What's goin' on with your mom and Giles?"
"Thank you for noticing!" Buffy's eyes bulged out and she covered a hand over his mouth. "I caught them smooching on the porch last night," Buffy whispered.
Graham turned his head seeing Giles standing in the dining room with Joyce and Willow talking. "Way to go Giles." He grinned.
Buffy hooked her hands around his neck and rolled her eyes.