CHAPTER THIRTEEN: REUNION
Giles was surprised that he had managed to get a flight to LA without any troubles. The Council obviously hadn't given the airport any instructions about not letting him get on a flight. So, with no interruptions, Giles landed in LAX several long hours later. He hired a car and sped his way back to Sunnydale, his tired mind making him work harder to remember to stay on the right side of the road.
He pulled up in front of the Summers house, the windows all blackened. For a frightening minute, he worried that he was too late, or that the Scoobies had taken her elsewhere, but the sudden flickering in the living room indicated that they were there, possibly watching television.
He knocked on the door and opened it, surprised to find it unlocked. No one came rushing at him and he wasn't sure whether that was good or bad. He crept inside and looked into the living room to see Willow and Tara curled up on the couch under a blanket with Dawn on the single chair, all three of them asleep. He went to walk upstairs, but finally noticed a fourth figure in the living room with short dark hair. He got a better look and his eyes went wide. Cordelia Chase.
He swallowed hard and prayed to whatever Powers were out there that Angel was not here as well.
There were empty pizza boxes lying around with books open on the coffee table and the floor. The scene was so achingly familiar that it made Giles heart ache with homesickness. He realised that he was finally home, and he would be here to stay.
He looked into the kitchen, surprised to see it relatively clean. With a sigh, he headed up the stairs and heard whispering coming from Buffy's room. He recognised Xander's voice, but the other person who was whispering was a mystery to him. He knocked on the door quietly.
"It's open," came Xander's quiet whispered.
Giles poked his head through the door, desperate to get a look at his Slayer, but instead, he had Anya throw herself into his arms.
"We're so glad you're back!" she cried.
Xander stepped forward to give the older man a manly hug as well.
"It's been crazy around here without you," Xander said.
Giles nodded and looked past Xander towards Buffy. His heart caught in his throat as he caught sight of her. He held back tears and approached her bed. He saw Wesley sitting beside her, patting down the girls head with a wash cloth. Wesley looked up and gave the older Watcher a faint smile.
"Good to see you back again Mr Giles," Wesley said.
Giles nodded and cast his glance around the room. Wesley seemed to know what Giles was thinking.
"He didn't come Giles. We didn't even tell him we were coming here. Cordy and I thought it best to keep it to ourselves," Wesley said.
Giles nodded, smiling his thanks. He knelt beside the bed and touched Buffy's forehead, surprised by the heat that was radiating from her.
"How is she?" he asked.
"Pretty out of it," Xander replied from behind him. "She kinda comes in and out."
"Yes, she seems to alternate between being completely lucid and being in a trance like state. Reciting the-"
"Council oaths," Giles finished.
Wesley nodded. "You've done you're homework."
"A friend told me that she was dying," Giles said.
Wesley nodded sadly and cast another look to the young woman he had been tending to for the last two days.
"I'm not certain how this works," Wesley admitted. "She seems…calmer when I'm in the room. I must admit I almost expected her to wake up and have the fever break when you walked through the door."
Giles shook his head and let his eyes drink in the sight of Buffy. Even sick as she was, he still thought her to be the loveliest creature he had ever seen.
Behind him, Xander and Anya quickly decided that they could leave and get some rest. Now that Giles was there, they knew that the Slayer would be fine. That's how things always worked. With a quick goodbye, the two Scoobies left the two Watchers with the still sleeping Slayer.
After a few minutes of silence, Wesley cleared his throat, making Giles look up. He had almost forgotten that Wesley was in the room.
"I uh…I feel I have to tell you that…the uh, group…they know what happened between you and Buffy," Wesley said.
Giles' eyes went wide. He hadn't been expecting that.
"Did Buffy tell them?" he asked.
Wesley shook his head. "They found some previous Slayer's diaries, girls who had had this illness when their Watchers, their husbands had died. They worked out that even though the two of you weren't married, that you had slept together. And, Buffy explained it to Willow in one of her quieter moments."
Giles frowned. "If I'd known that this would happen I'd never have left."
It was Wesley's turn to frown. "Why did you leave?"
Giles looked up at the younger man sharply, surprised to see accusation written in Wesley's eyes. Sometime after Graduation, Wesley had grown a spine. And, even though Giles was on the receiving end of Wes's anger, he was honestly glad to see that the man was no longer a simpering excuse for a Watcher.
"I had to. She was relying on me too heavily."
"And the fact that she'd just been ripped out of heaven and was trying to adjust escaped your notice?" Wesley asked.
Giles glared at Wesley, annoyed that the younger man was judging him without having all the facts.
"When you first came to Sunnydale, what were your first thoughts about Buffy?" Giles asked.
Wesley looked surprised at the sudden change of topic. He thought back to his first few days.
"She was far too independent. Insolent. But she was a good Slayer. I have always thought she was a good Slayer," Wesley answered honestly.
Giles nodded. "She was the most independent woman I've ever met. She had fire, and spark, and she loved life. You didn't see her after she came back Wesley. She was defeated. She was letting me do everything for her. She wasn't the Buffy that I knew."
"How could you expect her to be after what they did to her? Angel told me that Willow performed the spell, and if that's true, then…her friends tore her from peace," Wesley said.
"It is true," Giles replied. "And I knew that if I didn't leave, she would keep relying on me too much. And, from what I've heard, she's been doing wonderfully since I left."
Wesley had to admit defeat there. He had heard that Buffy had taken a job as a translator at her mom's old gallery and had been quickly promoted to junior curator there. It was astounding really, and part of that quick turnaround in her life had been because of Giles leaving.
"She's in love with you, you know," Wesley said.
Giles looked away. He had known that. And, had Buffy had said that to him, he would have stayed. But she didn't say anything, because she knew that he would have stayed for that reason. Whilst Buffy may not have wanted him to leave, she wasn't going to blackmail him into staying. He had to respect her for that.
"I know," Giles replied quietly.
"And that wasn't enough reason for you to stay?" Wesley asked.
"It was. And she knew she could get me to stay. But she wasn't ready for anything like that then. I don't know if she is even now."
Wesley sighed. He couldn't believe the idiocy of the older man in front of him. He had the love of a young woman who would gladly lay down her life for him, and he was throwing it away.
"Did you leave just because of that? Or did you go because you couldn't watch her and not have her?" Wesley asked.
Giles sighed. Wesley's question was a fair one. And the younger Watcher was partially correct.
"She pulled away whenever I went to touch her," Giles said sadly. "I couldn't stay and have her not let me touch her."
"And I couldn't let you touch me and not have you," Buffy whispered from the bed.
Giles bent down, hugging her awkwardly.
"How long have you been awake?" he asked.
"Not long," she answered. She gave him a weak smile and reached for his hand, squeezing it gently. "I missed you."
"I missed you too," he replied, tears in his eyes.
"Thank you for coming."
"As if I could ever stay away for long," he whispered.
She smiled and closed her eyes as he gently kissed her forehead. Wesley silently left the room, leaving the Watcher and Slayer to their private reunion.
"How are you feeling?" he asked.
She opened her eyes and gave him a tiny smile.
"Better now that you're here. My head's clearer."
"Good, good," he whispered.
She closed her eyes tiredly.
"So…how does it go away?" she asked.
Giles paused, really having no idea.
"The others will start working on it in the morning," he said, hoping that the others didn't mind him volunteering their services.
Buffy closed her eyes, about to drift off to sleep.
"Will you stay?" she asked.
"I'll get a mattress from the basement and sleep in the living room," he assured her.
She shook her head and shifted over in the bed.
"Just stay Giles. They all know anyway."
Giles hesitated, wanting desperately to slip into her bed beside her, but unsure about it all the same. He still wasn't sure whether the Council would try to stop his relationship with Buffy when they realised he was no longer in England, so he was reluctant to give her hope for a more intimate relationship.
His personal feelings finally one out in the end and he discarded his shoes and sweater, leaving his white t-shirt and slacks on, climbing in beside her.
She snuggled closer to him, and Giles wrapped his arms around her. If he hadn't had thoughts to remain in Sunnydale permanently, having Buffy drifting off to sleep in his arms had certainly settled it, he was there to stay.