Love's Gift - Part 6
By Jill
Rolling her stiff neck, Willow scanned the text on the page before her,
trying to make sense of the something she didn't understand. Looking up
she saw Giles, Oz, Xander, Miss Calender, and Buffy equally engrossed
into reading, while Cordelia was frowning at her nails, pretending she
was reading as well.
Sighing inwardly, Willow gazed back at the text, "It's no use," she said
finally, startling the others. She gave them a little, sheepish smile,
"Sorry. It's just ... I don't understand it." She gestured at the text.
"Finally someone else who feels a little lost here." Cordelia pushed the
sheet in front of her away. "I mean it's English and all, but I don't
see anything unusual."
"Unfortunately," Giles sighed loudly, "neither do I."
"But we can't give up." Buffy's voice showed a hint of panic. "Please,
Giles." The thought of not finding the reason for Angel's comeback, not
knowing what it meant for him, for them, was unthinkable.
"We won't," he assured her quickly. "But I have to agree. It is
frustrating. We've been staring at this text for three days - and nights
- and none of us have found anything. Even Angel seems helpless."
"But it has to be here," the Slayer insisted. "I mean what else...," she
trailed off, when she saw the concern in her watcher's gaze. "What?"
"I know," he began, pulling off his glasses, "We thought ... hoped ...
that the reason for his change was part of his curse. But what ...
what if someone did magic on him. It's possible. This is the Hellmouth
after all."
"No." Buffy shook her head emphatically.
"It's possible," Jenny agreed softly, her eyes as concerned as Giles'
"I have to go with the computer lady here, Buffy," Xander chimed in. "I've
already seen more crazy stuff anyone's ever gonna believe. So, why not?"
"But ... but ..."
"Buffy," Giles reached out, put a hand on Buffy's, holding the glasses in
his other. "This doesn't have to be something bad."
She took a deep breath, tried to calm herself. "I know. But ... if someone
did magic on him, we might never know. Angel might ...," her voice cracked
and she had to swallow. "I cannot lose him, Giles. Not now. Not after I've
just gotten him back."
"Lose him?," Willow frowned, then it hit her. "Oh. Oh God."
Giles nodded. "Yes. Oh God," he agreed. "As long as we don't know what
caused Angel's change, we won't know if-"
"-it's going to stay that way," Willow finished his sentence, her eyes
sadly resting on her best friend who was fighting tears. "Oh, Buffy."
She stood, walked over to the blond, wrapping a comforting arm around
the Slayer's shoulders.
Buffy's chin came up, "Well, then ... then we have to find it, right? I
mean, as soon as we know what caused the change, we know how to deal with
it."
Giles started to clean his glasses, while Xander cleared his throat,
"Uhm ... hating to state the obvious here. But isn't that seeking the
needle in the haystack business again?"
"I don't care," Buffy snapped. "I'm going to find it. I don't like people
messing with my boyfriend."
"He wasn't actually your boyfriend then," Xander cut in, then held up his
hands when the Slayer glared at him, "Shutting up now."
"Yes, that might be wise," Giles put his glasses back on, his voice
dripping with sarcasm. "Jenny do you think, you and Willow might be able
to find anything on the net?"
"I don't know-," the teacher started to reply.
"We'll try," Willow interrupted her, giving Buffy's shoulder a squeeze.
"Thanks Will," the Slayer gave her a grateful look, then turned towards
Jenny. "Thanks."
Startled the gypsy looked up. "Oh. You're welcome," she smiled at the
girl, glad Buffy really seemed to forgive her. She knew how important she
was for Giles and that there would be no chance for a relationship with
the watcher if she couldn't manage to come to terms with Buffy.
"Xander," Giles spoke up again. "You, Cordelia, and Oz, can you go through
some books, please. Check for anything that could be connected with a
prophecy, or ...," he rubbed his forehead. "Well, check the books." He
avoided Buffy's gaze, turned and walked into the stacks.
*
"You are so pretty. Aren't you mama's pretty girl?"
Spike rolled his eyes, whirled his wheelchair away from his lover. She
was getting worse these days. Granted, she didn't whine anymore about
Angel, and all in all it was progress, but now she was all over that
little puppy he'd given her.
He tried to wiggle his toes in his shoes and stifled a groan of
frustration when they didn't obey. He'd been so sure about the stirring
in his legs, had felt it again just yesterday, but the damned things
wouldn't move.
Patient. One of his minions who'd been a doctor in real life, had said
he had to be patient. That it was a matter of time until the feeling
came back. Sure, patient, Spike thought bitingly. Well, the minion
would never know about it. His ashes were blowing in the wind now.
He didn't want to hear about patience, he didn't want to be bound to a
wheelchair, and he didn't want to watch Dru find a new man to satisfy her
needs. He was her man, dammit. It had been hard enough to watch her with
Angel.
Angel.
The bugger was still gone. He'd tried to get word about him, but there was
nothing. He wasn't dead. He would know. Or rather, Dru would know. Spike
couldn't see Angel dying without Dru going into la-la-land. So he was sure,
Angel was still alive. But where the hell was he? Had they captured him?
Had he maybe left Sunnyhell?
No, Angelus would never leave. He was too obsessed with the Slayer. The
sexy, little blond. Yeah, a man could get obsessed with a girl like her.
Spike felt a stirring in his pants, and a startled gasp escaped his
mouth. He looked at Dru, sitting in the corner, holding the puppy, and
the stirring subsided instantly. He shook his head. He had to imagine
it. Maybe he was wishing for it too badly, so he was even feeling things
that weren't even there.
"Boss."
Annoyed to be interrupted, he snapped. "Yes."
"We found him."
Spike raised a brow, "Found whom?"
"Angelus."
"And?" He hoped his voice didn't sound too urgent.
"He's in his old apartment. And he ... sees the Slayer again."
Spike did a double take, "He, what?"
"The Slayer comes to him regularly. And according to my sources he met
with her friends, too."
The blond vampire stared at his minion, then dismissed him with a gesture
of his hand. What the hell was going on? It almost sounded as if the
Slayer-whipped version was back. Or was Angelus just up for one of his
famous mind-games? Damn, he hated being left in the dark. He had to find
out what it meant. Soon.
*
Giles found Jenny at her desk, and when he stepped into her classroom,
her head came up with a start. "Rupert." Her voice was slightly
breathless, and she quickly turned her face away, but he'd already seen
the trace of tears on her cheeks.
"Jenny?," he asked, tentatively stepping closer. "Are you alright?"
"Yes," she nodded, keeping her gaze turned away. "Yes, I'm fine."
He reached for a chair, pulled it close, and sat down. His voice was soft,
when he said, "No, you're not. Is there anything I can do?"
She gave her head a quick shake, and when she looked at him, a smile was
plastered on her face. "Why were you looking for me?," she asked.
"I wanted to know how your web-search was going."
"Oh," she ran a hand through her hair and he could see it was trembling.
"Willow is at it. But I'm going to help her any-"
"Jenny," he interrupted her gently, then, after considering it for a
moment, he reached out and covered her hand with his. "Don't. Something
is bothering you. Please, why don't you trust me?"
"But I do," she insisted, swallowing hard. "I just ..."
"What?," he urged, glad she didn't pull her hand away.
"I called my people again," she admitted finally.
He straightened in his chair, "Oh," was all he said.
She let out a short, unhappy laugh. "Yes. I know I shouldn't have
expected anything else, but ... I tried to explain to my cousin. He is ...
we grew up together, we played together. I've known him all my life." She
shook her head. "And now I suddenly realise I don't know him at all. I
can't even recognize his voice. There's so much hatred in it. He never
met Angel. But he hates him with a passion... It makes me shiver."
He patted her hand, and when she finally looked at him, he smiled. "Human
feelings are a tricky business. And fanaticism is even harder to
understand. Your clan, your family grew up hating Angel."
"I grew up there, too," she argued.
"Yes," he nodded. "But then they sent you to watch him. It gave you a new
perspective. You expected to see a monster, but you met the man instead."
"I did," she agreed, then sighed. "I wish ... I wish they could see him
the way I do. See the grief and shame in his eyes. I bet they would
change their mind."
"Would they really?," Giles asked, and Jenny could hear the doubt in his
voice.
"Wouldn't they?," she replied with another question. "I suppose we will
never know," she added after a moment. With a heavy sigh, she finally
pulled her hand away, "I need to get back to Willow. I left her alone
too long already." She stood, "Thanks," she said softly.
He stood as well, "Thanks for trusting me with your problems."
She smiled then, and Giles felt warmth spread through him. "You are a
wonderful man, Rupert Giles. I'm sorry I didn't trust you from the
start. Many things would have been easier."
"Easier, yes," he said quickly, when she was about to turn away.
"But ...," his eyes locked to hers, "... that doesn't mean we can't
still achieve them."
She held his gaze for a long moment, "I hope so," she whispered finally.
With a last smile she slipped from the room.
... to be continued
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By Jill
Rolling her stiff neck, Willow scanned the text on the page before her,
trying to make sense of the something she didn't understand. Looking up
she saw Giles, Oz, Xander, Miss Calender, and Buffy equally engrossed
into reading, while Cordelia was frowning at her nails, pretending she
was reading as well.
Sighing inwardly, Willow gazed back at the text, "It's no use," she said
finally, startling the others. She gave them a little, sheepish smile,
"Sorry. It's just ... I don't understand it." She gestured at the text.
"Finally someone else who feels a little lost here." Cordelia pushed the
sheet in front of her away. "I mean it's English and all, but I don't
see anything unusual."
"Unfortunately," Giles sighed loudly, "neither do I."
"But we can't give up." Buffy's voice showed a hint of panic. "Please,
Giles." The thought of not finding the reason for Angel's comeback, not
knowing what it meant for him, for them, was unthinkable.
"We won't," he assured her quickly. "But I have to agree. It is
frustrating. We've been staring at this text for three days - and nights
- and none of us have found anything. Even Angel seems helpless."
"But it has to be here," the Slayer insisted. "I mean what else...," she
trailed off, when she saw the concern in her watcher's gaze. "What?"
"I know," he began, pulling off his glasses, "We thought ... hoped ...
that the reason for his change was part of his curse. But what ...
what if someone did magic on him. It's possible. This is the Hellmouth
after all."
"No." Buffy shook her head emphatically.
"It's possible," Jenny agreed softly, her eyes as concerned as Giles'
"I have to go with the computer lady here, Buffy," Xander chimed in. "I've
already seen more crazy stuff anyone's ever gonna believe. So, why not?"
"But ... but ..."
"Buffy," Giles reached out, put a hand on Buffy's, holding the glasses in
his other. "This doesn't have to be something bad."
She took a deep breath, tried to calm herself. "I know. But ... if someone
did magic on him, we might never know. Angel might ...," her voice cracked
and she had to swallow. "I cannot lose him, Giles. Not now. Not after I've
just gotten him back."
"Lose him?," Willow frowned, then it hit her. "Oh. Oh God."
Giles nodded. "Yes. Oh God," he agreed. "As long as we don't know what
caused Angel's change, we won't know if-"
"-it's going to stay that way," Willow finished his sentence, her eyes
sadly resting on her best friend who was fighting tears. "Oh, Buffy."
She stood, walked over to the blond, wrapping a comforting arm around
the Slayer's shoulders.
Buffy's chin came up, "Well, then ... then we have to find it, right? I
mean, as soon as we know what caused the change, we know how to deal with
it."
Giles started to clean his glasses, while Xander cleared his throat,
"Uhm ... hating to state the obvious here. But isn't that seeking the
needle in the haystack business again?"
"I don't care," Buffy snapped. "I'm going to find it. I don't like people
messing with my boyfriend."
"He wasn't actually your boyfriend then," Xander cut in, then held up his
hands when the Slayer glared at him, "Shutting up now."
"Yes, that might be wise," Giles put his glasses back on, his voice
dripping with sarcasm. "Jenny do you think, you and Willow might be able
to find anything on the net?"
"I don't know-," the teacher started to reply.
"We'll try," Willow interrupted her, giving Buffy's shoulder a squeeze.
"Thanks Will," the Slayer gave her a grateful look, then turned towards
Jenny. "Thanks."
Startled the gypsy looked up. "Oh. You're welcome," she smiled at the
girl, glad Buffy really seemed to forgive her. She knew how important she
was for Giles and that there would be no chance for a relationship with
the watcher if she couldn't manage to come to terms with Buffy.
"Xander," Giles spoke up again. "You, Cordelia, and Oz, can you go through
some books, please. Check for anything that could be connected with a
prophecy, or ...," he rubbed his forehead. "Well, check the books." He
avoided Buffy's gaze, turned and walked into the stacks.
*
"You are so pretty. Aren't you mama's pretty girl?"
Spike rolled his eyes, whirled his wheelchair away from his lover. She
was getting worse these days. Granted, she didn't whine anymore about
Angel, and all in all it was progress, but now she was all over that
little puppy he'd given her.
He tried to wiggle his toes in his shoes and stifled a groan of
frustration when they didn't obey. He'd been so sure about the stirring
in his legs, had felt it again just yesterday, but the damned things
wouldn't move.
Patient. One of his minions who'd been a doctor in real life, had said
he had to be patient. That it was a matter of time until the feeling
came back. Sure, patient, Spike thought bitingly. Well, the minion
would never know about it. His ashes were blowing in the wind now.
He didn't want to hear about patience, he didn't want to be bound to a
wheelchair, and he didn't want to watch Dru find a new man to satisfy her
needs. He was her man, dammit. It had been hard enough to watch her with
Angel.
Angel.
The bugger was still gone. He'd tried to get word about him, but there was
nothing. He wasn't dead. He would know. Or rather, Dru would know. Spike
couldn't see Angel dying without Dru going into la-la-land. So he was sure,
Angel was still alive. But where the hell was he? Had they captured him?
Had he maybe left Sunnyhell?
No, Angelus would never leave. He was too obsessed with the Slayer. The
sexy, little blond. Yeah, a man could get obsessed with a girl like her.
Spike felt a stirring in his pants, and a startled gasp escaped his
mouth. He looked at Dru, sitting in the corner, holding the puppy, and
the stirring subsided instantly. He shook his head. He had to imagine
it. Maybe he was wishing for it too badly, so he was even feeling things
that weren't even there.
"Boss."
Annoyed to be interrupted, he snapped. "Yes."
"We found him."
Spike raised a brow, "Found whom?"
"Angelus."
"And?" He hoped his voice didn't sound too urgent.
"He's in his old apartment. And he ... sees the Slayer again."
Spike did a double take, "He, what?"
"The Slayer comes to him regularly. And according to my sources he met
with her friends, too."
The blond vampire stared at his minion, then dismissed him with a gesture
of his hand. What the hell was going on? It almost sounded as if the
Slayer-whipped version was back. Or was Angelus just up for one of his
famous mind-games? Damn, he hated being left in the dark. He had to find
out what it meant. Soon.
*
Giles found Jenny at her desk, and when he stepped into her classroom,
her head came up with a start. "Rupert." Her voice was slightly
breathless, and she quickly turned her face away, but he'd already seen
the trace of tears on her cheeks.
"Jenny?," he asked, tentatively stepping closer. "Are you alright?"
"Yes," she nodded, keeping her gaze turned away. "Yes, I'm fine."
He reached for a chair, pulled it close, and sat down. His voice was soft,
when he said, "No, you're not. Is there anything I can do?"
She gave her head a quick shake, and when she looked at him, a smile was
plastered on her face. "Why were you looking for me?," she asked.
"I wanted to know how your web-search was going."
"Oh," she ran a hand through her hair and he could see it was trembling.
"Willow is at it. But I'm going to help her any-"
"Jenny," he interrupted her gently, then, after considering it for a
moment, he reached out and covered her hand with his. "Don't. Something
is bothering you. Please, why don't you trust me?"
"But I do," she insisted, swallowing hard. "I just ..."
"What?," he urged, glad she didn't pull her hand away.
"I called my people again," she admitted finally.
He straightened in his chair, "Oh," was all he said.
She let out a short, unhappy laugh. "Yes. I know I shouldn't have
expected anything else, but ... I tried to explain to my cousin. He is ...
we grew up together, we played together. I've known him all my life." She
shook her head. "And now I suddenly realise I don't know him at all. I
can't even recognize his voice. There's so much hatred in it. He never
met Angel. But he hates him with a passion... It makes me shiver."
He patted her hand, and when she finally looked at him, he smiled. "Human
feelings are a tricky business. And fanaticism is even harder to
understand. Your clan, your family grew up hating Angel."
"I grew up there, too," she argued.
"Yes," he nodded. "But then they sent you to watch him. It gave you a new
perspective. You expected to see a monster, but you met the man instead."
"I did," she agreed, then sighed. "I wish ... I wish they could see him
the way I do. See the grief and shame in his eyes. I bet they would
change their mind."
"Would they really?," Giles asked, and Jenny could hear the doubt in his
voice.
"Wouldn't they?," she replied with another question. "I suppose we will
never know," she added after a moment. With a heavy sigh, she finally
pulled her hand away, "I need to get back to Willow. I left her alone
too long already." She stood, "Thanks," she said softly.
He stood as well, "Thanks for trusting me with your problems."
She smiled then, and Giles felt warmth spread through him. "You are a
wonderful man, Rupert Giles. I'm sorry I didn't trust you from the
start. Many things would have been easier."
"Easier, yes," he said quickly, when she was about to turn away.
"But ...," his eyes locked to hers, "... that doesn't mean we can't
still achieve them."
She held his gaze for a long moment, "I hope so," she whispered finally.
With a last smile she slipped from the room.
... to be continued
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