Part 3

I'm No Angel

The room was the pale gray of early morning when Giles woke up to the feel of sandpaper on his face. The leopard was licking his face and its voice in his head was telling him to get up and keep quiet. She led him to the corner window and picked up the bone that was lying there. Giles could see Beaker's Woods outside the window but it also seemed to reflect other dimensions. He was shown quick glimpses of different futures.

However the many possible futures that played out in the window offered no solution to defeating the First. Whatever path he took every decision made by he or Buffy led to death of someone dear to him if not

the end of world itself. He couldn't untangle all

this he thought. Was he supposed to decide who lived

and died? One thing was certain every horror started

with Spike's final death. Did he simply need to keep

the vampire alive what good could that do?

How many times did it have to be pointed out that the situation was hopeless? If he heard the leopard say 'from beneath it devours' he would wake Anya with his scream. Then the scene changed a dozen people posing for a photo in front of a birthday banner. The birthday girl was front and

center and Buffy and Anya were on either side of her

looking like a pair of bookends. The whole group was

smiling but the three women in the middle radiated a

happiness he'd never seen in them before.

"When a plant becomes root-bound it needs replanting. Find the vessel and so that you all may become what you already are." The guide thought to Giles

"Tell them all what I've said, each one needs to at the party but what you've seen is for you alone. Let the future unfold for the others and remember if you are to survive at all it will be together."

"Surely I can't be expected to keep what I've seen from Anya and Buffy?" He asked.

"You'll know when the time is right." Then she laughed

and without even a shimmer the leopard was gone

taking the bone with her.

The unpleasant aspects of the night before were pushed aside by Giles as Anya woke up and gained his whole attention. "Hmm... Good morning darling. Please disregard my silly looking grin it's all your fault."

"Good morning, Rupert is your ankle feeling better? At least it wasn't your poor head I really worry you've been knock out too many times and I like your grin and I love the way you say darling." Anya was so busy chastising herself for being so unromantic one moment and so sappy the next that she nearly missed Giles answer to her Willow like babble.

"My ankle's fine and I like the way you say my name." Giles thought to himself that their conversation was becoming as silly as his expression probably was and he just didn't give a damn even under the

circumstances or maybe just because of them.

"Your name makes me smile."

"Because it's ridiculous?"

"No Archibald Leach is a ridiculous name. Your name

makes me smile because it's yours."

"For a comment like that not to mention a night like last night you deserve champagne and roses this morning but I'm afraid all I have to offer is water and a power bar or two." All things considered champagne mightn't be the best idea anyway Giles reflected.

"Since we seem to be trying to out schmoop each other can we assume that last night's mind-blowing orgasms weren't a one time, or rather three time thing." As honest as Anya liked to be this time she promised herself she wouldn't rush into saying 'I love you.' so she change the subject before the words popped out. "Rupert where is Baby?"

"B baby?" The conversation had taken a hard left while Giles was deep in his own thoughts about the night before and what he was shown this morning.

"Yes Baby. You remember the leopard, not so much of a spirit, spirit guide?"

"Oh, um yes of course we were calling her that weren't we? I'm not sure where she went. It's probable the effects of the ritual are over now that it's morning." Giles reasoned to himself that if Anya needed to see the things he was shown last night the guide would have woken her up too.

"It can't be over we didn't get any help. Maybe she's just in another room. I need a bathroom anyway let's go search."

There was no trace of the leopard or the dog anywhere they looked and Giles was beginning to believe that the Sheepdog was also a result of the ritual. When they entered the library Giles was sure they had found the reason they had been led to the Mayor's home. There was sure to be a useful book or artifact here but the Mayor seemed to have a fondness for children's classics and time life books.

"Anya what in the world are you doing?' She seemed to be closely examining every light fixture in the room.

"Don't laugh I'm looking for a lever you know to open the secret passage this room has to have one."

"Of course if Richard Wilkins had owned anything besides the books of ascension it's unlikely they would be kept out where the Junior League could see them."

"I don't know about that the JL can be pretty scary I think the L.A. chapter's run by a demon. You know it's too bad the dog is gone. In the cartoon the dog is always the first to find the hidden passage."

"Yes it's a shame really I'm sure the dog would have been invaluable especially as a dust mop to clear away the cobwebs." Giles said dryly.

"Rupert Giles are you making fun of me?"

"Just a little." He admitted.

"Good." Giles raised a brow and Anya continued "Well I wouldn't want you to make a habit of it but it's nice to see you lighten up a tiny bit."

Giles was going to protest being called stuffy again when he heard the sound of a dog whining and barking "Anya do you hear that?"

"I was right I knew the dog would find it!" Anya said as she pushed at the bookcase she could hear the sound of scratching and barking behind. She finally mange to hit the right spot and the bookcase swung inward and the dog came bounding out and knocked her backwards before Giles could catch her.

"Anya! Are you alright."

"Mop, get off me you menace." Anya giggled under the pile of fur before gabbing Giles hand to pull herself up and reassuring him that she was fine.

"It

looks as if it's a hidden stairway to the attic. Boy

am I glad, I'm really getting sick of basements. I've

been thinking Rupert, why do suppose this place

feels so safe? I mean the Mayor was a pretty big bad. Shouldn't this place be much more evil and creepy?"

"We did plead for knowledge and safety remember. It

could be because of the ritual or something about the

home itself we don't know yet. Just because the

forces of evil prevail right now does not mean that

there isn't a balancing force for good."

"Are you saying someone up there likes us?"

"I don't know. I can only hope..." Giles was speechless when they entered the attic. It was far larger than

the Magic Box had been and the floors to ceiling

shelves were filled with books and artifacts.

Anya hugged his arm just as impressed with the

treasure trove and said, "If a way to deal with the First

exists it's got to be here, this looks like Watcher's Paradise." And they began exploring the rows of bookcases like kids let loose in a very dusty Toys R Us. Both of them were taking stock in their own way. While Giles tried to catalogue it all in his head Anya was mentally taking inventory. "I think the doggy dust mop wasn't such a bad idea after all."

Anya sneezed and seemed to bring Giles back to reality. He moved to steady her ladder. "Be careful coming down that." Giles took advantage of her added height on the ladder and kiss the back of her neck before she reached the floor.

"I'm not the klutz in this relationship." Anya teased a protest from Giles and then said, "We can't take all this you know."

He nodded in agreement. "We should call the others get them to bring cartons for all this."

"That's not a very good idea."

"I realize that none of this belongs to us and

strictly speaking it would be stealing but under the circumstances –"

"No I mean it wouldn't be practical there's too much here were would we put it all? Buffy's house is already overcrowded with teenagers."

"What can we do move in here? That's hardly practical."

"Why not, at least this place has more than one

bathroom. Besides moving "Slayerville" away from the

Hellmouth a little bit might be a good idea."

"We can't just move in here."

"Sure we can there was a for sale sign on the

yard."

"There wasn't any for sale sign. When did you notice the for sale sign? If you say it was while we were kissing I won't be held accountable." He warned only half joking.

"I ran into it last night." She mumbled.

"And here I thought your middle name was Grace."

"Is it? I made up so many sometimes one will slip my

mind." Anya said with a strait face then they were

both laughing, giggles and gales pours out them.

Anyone watching would've wondered what was so funny

and they would be able to say. They were

just as caught up in each other as they were the night

before when they were making love.

They were sitting on the floor Anya was rubbing tears of laughter from her eyes and leaving streaks of grime behind. Giles's sides were aching and when he caught his breath he said simply and deliberately, "I love you."

Anya became just as serious and said,

"I should warn you not to love me. I can't think of a single person we both know who won't hate the idea of us together. I should tell you I'm not good enough for you and even if I were I might not be tomorrow. I'm not sure who or what I am, I change every day. But you didn't hear me say all that because I'm pretty sure that who ever I am now and whoever I become I'll always have enough good sense to love you."

"If you want full disclosure you're not getting it." Giles said, taking a hanky out of his pocket and wiping Anya's cheeks tenderly. "There are a few things I refuse to warn you about. I have a checkered past and an uncertain future. I'm not even sure what country I'll be

in next week but I'm certain that where ever I am I'll love you. One more thing I'm sorry to disappoint you but there's no way I can afford this house."

"It's ok about the house I was planning to buy it myself anyway." Anya said smiling again.