Chapter 3 ~*~ Death
"Oh!" Spike said looking up at the rest of the group. They all looked over at him. "I remember"
"Remember what?" Xander asked looking up from his book.
"Where I meet Buffy" He said picking up the picture.
"I told you, you and your friends attacked us, remember?" Giles said taking off his glasses and looking up at Spike.
"No, I vaguely remember that" He said shaking his head "I ran into her later, must have been the next day or something, she was headed out, it was late, probably around midnight" He said looking over at Giles "She kicked my ass" He put his hand to the scar on his eyebrow and smiled. "She did this"
"That's the night she..." He trailed off as he remembered what happened that night and smiled a little. "Oh she's just going to hate this" He said looking back down at his book.
"What" Willow said looking over at Giles "She's going to hate what?"
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"What the hell am I suppose to do?" Buffy said as she walked around the house alone. It was now after 8:00 pm and Buffy was getting restless. She hated this, it was so unfair, she was the slayer and she couldn't do anything. She walked over to the books and pulled on out and sat down to read. 'Blood rights and Ritual' was really boring for having such a gory name and half an hour later she was sleeping.
She opened her eyes and looked around it was still dark out side. She got up with the book and put it back on the shelf. She then walked over to Ripper's fridge and grabbed a Pepsi and opened it up. She looked at it took a drink and sat it back down. 'Ok' She thought 'I can't just stand here' She thought. She looked over at the clock and saw it was close to 11:30. 'Maybe a little patrolling?' she thought as she headed to the door, she grabbed her coat and headed out.
When she got outside she realized she didn't know where any of the grave yards where around here.
"Oh well" She said out loud "Just wondering then" She smiled and put her hand on the cross around her neck. It had been a gift from her Giles on her birthday last year. She wondered how every one back home was doing and for the first time since she'd got there she felt home sick. She missed her sister and Willow, and there was no one here like Xander, and while she really liked Ripper he was not even close to her Giles.
Subconsciously she was heading towards the woods. She had just turned down a dark ally that Ripper had shown her that lead almost strait to the woods. She smiled when she heard a noise and turned. She smiled even bigger when the platinum blonde vampire came out of the shadows.
"Spike" She said looking him over "Man what is it with the trench coat look?" She said looking him over "You'll never change"
"Do I know you?" He said as he started to circle her.
"No not now" She said "But some day you will"
"Well you're talking a little crazy" He said smirking at her.
"Really?" She said getting ready to fight "How's Dru?" She smiled when his face went to surprise "Now there's a girl who's a little crazy"
"Well now I have to kill you" he said shifting to his vampire face. He went to hit her in the face and she grabbed his arm and threw him over her shoulder.
"Yeah right" She said "I don't have time for this" She said staring towards the end of the ally.
"I don't think so" He said smiling as he came at her from behind.
"Well know that's not very nice" She said ducking so he went over her shoulder, again. She picked up a piece of wood and held it over his heart.
"Leave me be" She said smiling at him.
"No" He said pulling her down and rolling over her and then jumping up. She jumped up and went to hit him in the face but missed and hit him in the shoulder. She took and few steps backwards and he started up.
"Leave?" She said looking over his shoulder.
"No" He said walking forward.
"You just never know when to give up Spike" She said throwing the wood and smiling when it slammed into his face. He put his hand up to his eyebrow and pulled it away and smiled at the blood.
"You missed" he said smiling at her.
"No I didn't" She said smiling back. "Now as much as I'd like to kick you ass, and believe me I would, I have things to do" She said and pent to pick up another piece of wood. With a sharp point on the end.
"Spike?" A new voice said coming out of the shadows. "The birds are talking at me again"
"It's ok Luv" He said smiling at Dru. He turned to Buffy and she had the wood ready to throw and it was aimed at Dru.
"I'll find you" He said looking over at Dru. "Come on Luv lets go find something to eat"
"Ok" She said smiling big at him. They turned and walked down the other way and Buffy dropped the wood and turned to head down the ally. 'I'm not going to help' Buffy said to her self 'There probably done anyway' she thought as she walked out of the ally and ended up on the edge of the woods.
She heard a women scram and heard Ripper yelling at someone. She ran through the woods at her top speeds and stopped when she saw Randy, not quite him self, with one hand on Die's throat. As Buffy got closer she could see that Phil and Tom were trying to fight it off but something was holding it back and Ethan and Ripper were huddled over a book saying something in Latin. The Randy thing got up off of Die and smiled at Ethan and Ripper and started over.
The Randy thing held out his hands and Ethan went flying across the field, he would have landed on a broken branch, which was probably The Randy things intentions, if Buffy hadn't grabbed his leg causing him to lose his momentum and crash to the ground pulling her along with him. It turned to Ripper as he was saying something in Latin. Just as he finished The Randy thing looked shocked and then fell to the ground.
Buffy looked at the Ethan and grimaced. She had just saved Ethan's life. She got up without noticing the blood on her arm. 'Man' She thought 'Coulda just let him fly' She thought as she walked over to Ripper 'Save myself some trouble later'
"Is he ok?" She asked already knowing the answer. She looked down when she got to Ripper who was over Randy's body.
"No" He said shaking his head "He's dead"
"Oh I'm sorry" She looked around and pretending to not know what had just happened. "What happened?"
"It took control of him" He said looking at her "There was nothing I could do"
"Well if you had been here to help ground him" Ethan said as he limped over scowling down at Ripper.
"Well if you had just stopped doing it like I said" Ripper said
"But if you had just been here to ground him, you know we need five people for that"
"Damnit!" Ripper said standing up and glaring at Ethan "Just shut up" He said "Bloody hell!" He walked around and stopped when he looked up and caught Buffy's eyes.
"What are we going to do with him?" Tom asked looking down as he sat down next to Die who was a little pale but ok.
"I don't know" Ripper said not looking away from Buffy. "I just...I don't know" Buffy looked around at every one and sighed.
"Do you guys do any drugs?" Buffy asked walking over to Ripper.
"No" He said watching her watching them.
"And what killed him exactly?" Buffy asked letting her 'take charge' personality take over.
"The demon, when he runs out of room in the body causes the heart to stop." Ripper said.
"That's why you have to stay grounded" Ethan said "So you can get out before that happens" He said glaring at Ripper.
"So tell him you were out here doing something and he just fell over" She said "make it sound reasonable, when they do any test it will just look like he had a heart attack"
"And how put you in charge?" Ethan asked walking over to Buffy.
"I did" She said smiling sweetly at him "If you have a better idea lets hear it" She said and stood there for a second "That's what I thought."
"I think that sounds good" Die said from the ground.
"Me too" Tom said
"Ok well that settles it then" Phil said looking around "lets put him in my car" They all loaded Randy in and Die and Tom went with Phil.
"You sure we don't need to come?" Ripper asked acting strong, but Buffy could see he was going to brake.
"No" Die said with tears in her eyes she looked into the back set "There's no room anyway" She looked at Buffy and smiled "Thanks"
"Yeah" Buffy said taking Rippers hand. "Bye" ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"So Buffy didn't change the time line any did she?" Xander asked as they sat eating at the table in Giles' apartment.
"We wouldn't know" Willow said smiling at him. "If she had it would seem like it had always been like that" She looked around "We wouldn't know any different"
"Wow" Dawn said "that's so wiggy" She said looking up and over at Giles. "She didn't do anything weird did she?"
"No not that I can remember" he said thinking over her stay in his flat. Then thinking about the night she saved Ethan and smiled. Then his thoughts went to later that night a he started to turn red. 'Oh god' he thought as he remembered 'I must have been blocking this from my memory' he thought as his face continued to get red.
"Giles" Willow said looking at him as he colored "Giles are you ok?"
"What?" He said looking up and going even redder.
"Are you ok?" She asked again looking shocked when he jumped up out of his seat.
"I'm fine" He said and turned and walked into the kitchen. 'Bleeding Christ!' He thought as he paced the kitchen 'What the hell was she thinking?' she had to know I'd remember this all, 'Oh what I'm I going to say to her when she get back?' he thought. He jumped when someone put a hand on his shoulder.
"Giles" Willow said and smiled when he turned and his face was still red. "Are you ok?"
"God Willow you scared me" He said falling into one of the stools at the island in the kitchen.
"Sorry" She said sitting next to him "Come on something's on your mind what is it?" he shook his head and looked down at his hands.
"Did you remember something?" She said trying to get it out of him. "Did Buffy say something she shouldn't have?"
"N-no" he said shaking his head "Did something she shouldn't have" and the color came back into his cheeks.
"What could she have done that would have been so bad?" Willow asked.
"Not what" Giles said "Who"
"What, I don't get it what are you..." Then it dawned on her. She looked over at Giles and he closed him eyes "Oh" was all Willow said trying not to laugh.
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"Are you ok?" Ripper asked as they walked into his flat.
"I'm fine" She said smiling at him. She walked over the fridge and pulled out some sodas. He sat down and winced.
"Are you ok?" She asked sitting next to him.
"Yeah" He said and Buffy noticed the blood on his forehead. She got up and pulled out a rag. She wet it then brought it up to his head. He winced a little but didn't stop her.
"I thought you were staying here?" He asked after a second.
"Well I got restless" She said "Go thing to or Ethan would be on the wrong end of a very sharp branch." Ripper smiled and nodded his head.
"Well yeah" he said "I think I did something to my back when that thing threw me over the fire. Of course it was probably hopping I'd land in the fire not over it."
"Yeah" Buffy said "Take off you shirt let me see" He looked at her and smiled as he pulled it up over his head. Buffy got up and walked behind him and looked at his back. There was a bruise forming on his right side. She lifted her hands and very carefully began to work out the knot in his neck. He winced once and she stopped.
"No it feels better" He said turning and putting his hand on her arm. She winced at his touch and he pulled away.
"What happened?" He said getting up and trying to move her sleeve so he could look at it. "I can't believe I missed this" He said looking at her when he couldn't get her sleeve up.
"I'm ok" She said and winced again when he pulled on her sleeve. "Or not" She smiled at him and unbuttoned her shirt and slipped it off. She had a little tank top on underneath. "Is that better?" He looked down at her arm and nodded.
"Yes" He said taking a deep breath. "Let me get some wraps for your arm"
"Ok" Buffy said sitting down with her back to him. He just stood there for a second looking at her. Then he turned and walked into the bathroom. He came back and she was drinking her soda.
"I need you to stand up" He said "So you can stretch out your arm.
"Ok" She said getting up and walking over to him. He cleaned the gash on her arm and was wrapping it up when Buffy winced.
"Sorry" He said looking up at her.
"It's ok" She said and smiled a little. She looked down at her arm and watched as he wrapped it up. Buffy didn't notice when she put her hand on his shoulder but he did, and every time she wince she tightened her grip and little then loosened it again. He smiled at her and looked up at her when he finished.
"All better" He said putting the rag on the back of the couch. They both just stood there till she noticed his forehead was still bleeding. She picked up the rag putting her other hand on his face.
"I'm sorry" She said as she cleaned his forehead.
"What are you sorry for?" He said "I'm the one who didn't get there before they started"
"It's not your fault" She said "You always have a hard time seeing that"
"Yes it...what do you mean I always have a hard time seeing that?" He said looking down at her. "You've only known me a little while" He shock his head and sighed "Never mind, You wont tell me and I don't want you to lie to me so never mind"
"I'm sorry" Buffy said lowering her head.
"It's ok" He said lifting her head with his hand "I know you have your reasons, I don't know you all that well and yet I trust you completely" He smiled "That's never happened to me before"
"Me ether" Buffy said in a small voice.
"You'll tell me someday?" He asked smiling at him.
"Some day I won't have to" She said knowing that it made no sense to him. He just smiled and tilted her head up a little more.
"I'm going to kiss you" He said seconds before his lips were on hers. Her mind was screaming at her to stop 'This is Giles!' it kept saying to her. But as soon as his hand was on hip she felt an electric shock run through her and she tuned out that voice. 'I don't care' she thought as he deepened the kiss and her hands went into his hair.
They went back to his room her being half cared and half walking. She fell backwards onto the bed and he fell next to her. He had his hands all over her when the little voice came back. 'No!' It screamed in her head finally braking through alittle.
"No" She said quietly. "No I can't" She said sitting up and pulling away. He looked up at her and she felt like she could just drown in his eyes. 'How did I never notice Giles' eyes before?' She wondered briefly.
"What?" He said looking devastated "What's wrong?"
"I'm not staying, this...this wouldn't be right, I can't..." She trailed off and looked away from his eyes.
"Beth" He said pulling her close to him "Look at me" He said moving her face with his hand again. "I don't care" he smiled at her. "If this is all we have..." He studied her face, pulling it in so he'd always remember.
"I just..." She trailed off again and he put his palm on her warm cheek. She moved her face into the touch and smiled. She leaned into him and kissed him. He laid her back on the bed and kissed her again. She sighed and even the little voice in her head was in heaven.
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Buffy looked down at the sleeping man next to her and couldn't believe what she had just done. 'I'll never be able to look him in the eyes again' she thought as she quietly got up out of bed. It was only 3a.m. but she couldn't sleep.
She pulled on his shirt and walked into the living room. She was bored so she walked over to the book self and pulled out the first book her hand touched and smiled down at the cover. 'Time Travels Finer Points' she opened it up.
"Yes" She said flipping to the page she had read from. There it was, and on the next page 'How to get from then to now'
"Sorry Giles" She said as she ripped the page out of the book. She folded it up and waked over to the purse Ripper had bought her the other day. She sighed and put inside then walked back over to the books. She pulled one of the mysteries off the top self and sat down to read. And figure out how she was going to say goodbye to a man she was pretty sure she was falling in love with.
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"So what do you think Buffy is doing right now" Xander asked as he and Anya walked into their apartment.
"Don't know" She said smiling at him "Come to bed, it's been a long night"
"I'm just worried" He said smiling at her as they walked into their room.
"I know" She said "I'm worried too"
"She'll find her way home though" He said kissing her on they forehead.
"Of course she will" Anya said hopping she was right. "Now come on bed time"
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"Giles is it ok if I stay here tonight?" Dawn asked looking up from her ice-cream bowl.
"Of course you can" He said taking her empty bowl "Lie down and go to sleep, She'll probably be back soon"
"I hope so" Dawn said closing her eyes and stretching out on the couch.
"Me too" He said to him self as he walked to the kitchen. "So how are you doing?"
"Fine" Willow said as she sipped her hot chocolate. "Do you remember how long Buffy is back there for?"
"Well she stayed with me for about a week or so" he said picking up his tea. "Then she leaves, I couldn't tell you where or when she goes from there"
"Right" Willow said "She could be gone for years and still come back today"
"Exactly" He said thinking about that "Lets hope that's not it"
"Yeah" Willow agreed "let's hope"
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"Beth" Someone was shaking her a little "Beth wake up." She opened her eyes and smiled a little when she saw Ripper standing in front of her. Then the night before came flooding back to her, him and her and oh god what was she going to say to Giles? And the book, she had found the book, which meant she had to go home.
"What are you doing out here?" He asked pulling her up a little.
"I...I couldn't sleep so I thought I'd read" She said looking down at the book on the floor. He bent down and picked it up for her.
"Carrie?" He said looking at the cover "Stephen Kings a good writer"
"Yeah he's good" She said and looked him over. He was wearing a pair of boxers and nothing else. 'Man he looked good' she thought as a blush crept on to her cheeks.
"I'm going to jump in the shower" He said still smiling at her.
"Ok" Buffy said standing up "Do you want something to eat?" She asked not knowing what else to say "I could make something?"
"No after we get ready I'll take us to breakfast" He smiled.
"Ok" Buffy said sitting back down. He sat back down next to her and sighed.
"Beth about last night..." He kind of trailed off and looked down at his hands.
"You don't regret it do you?" Buffy said taking his hand in hers.
"No" He said looking up at her "I thought maybe you did"
"No" Buffy said shaking her head. "It was one of the best nights of my life" Buffy said smiling at him.
"Ok" He said smiling big "That's good, ok I'll see you in a minute"
"Ok" Buffy said and smiled when he turned and walked down the hall towards the bathroom. When she heard the water start she got up and walked over to the closet where they had put the camera the other night. She looked down and saw that it still had six pictures left on it.
She walked into his bedroom and smiled. She snapped a picture of the bed in disarray. She walked over to the window and looked out over the busy street and snapped a picture of the view. She smiled when the water went of, a second later the door opened and he walked in with a towel on and his hair dripping wet.
"Hey what have you got behind you back there?" He asked smiling at her.
"Nothing" She said smiling even bigger. She pulled it out and snapped a picture before he had a chance to react.
"Oh I can't believe you just did that" He said smiling at her. "Well my dear pay back is sweet" he said and went after her. She ran up onto the bed giggling and snapping pictures of him. He chased her around the room and out the door. Finally she was on one side of the couch and he was on the other side.
"Come on now give Ripper the camera" He said holding out his hand.
"No" Buffy said smiling "You'll just have to wait and see the pictures later"
"Fine" He said faking a pout. She ran over and hugged him.
"I'm going to jump into the shower" She said "We still going to breakfast?"
"Of course" He said walking into the hall with her. "See you in a minute"
"'K" Buffy said grabbing his towel and running into the bathroom locking the door behind her.
"Well that was just mean" He said and started to walk away bare backed Buffy popped her head out and said "Cheese" causing him to turn his head just in time for her to snap on of his back side.
"Thanks" She said shutting the door just and he ran over.
"Beth" He said smiling "Give me that camera"
"Nope" Buffy said laughing on the other side of the door. "I'll be out in a few"
"Fine" He said smiling "I'll find that camera"
"Sure you will" Buffy said turning on the water.
"You little minx" he said laughing.
"Waters on cant hear you" She said taking off the shirt.
"Uh-huh" He said walking into his bedroom, completely naked.
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"Beth" Ripper said looking over at her sitting on the floor reading.
"You can't have the camera Ripper just give it up" She said looking up at him. He smiled a little but shook his head.
"No, I know, I gave up on that" He said patting the seat next to him. She got up and walked over.
"What is it then?" She asked as she sat down.
"Last night you said you had to leave" He said looking down at his hands. "Don't?" He asked looking up into her eyes.
"What?" Buffy said wishing she could.
"Stay here with me" he said taking her hand. "Just stay here, you can write and tell who ever it is you're going to visit"
"There is no one" She said shaking her head.
"Yeah I figured as much" He smiled a little "See then you can just stay" He looked so hopeful.
"I...I can't" She said shaking her head "There are people at home that depend on me"
"You can always visit them" He said smiling at her. "We could both go and see them"
"Oh...I just...there's no way to help you under stand" She said standing with tears running down her cheeks. "I can't" She said. "I'm sorry"
"Make me understand" He said standing "Are you married? Do you have kids?"
"Hardly" She said taking his hand "You wont believe me if I tried" She kissed the top of his hand. "You said you didn't want me to lie to you"
"I don't" He said watching her.
"Then just believe that I can't tell you" She said. She dropped his hand and walked over to the table by the door. "I'm going to get these pictures developed" She said smiling a little.
"Trust me?" She asked as she opened the door.
"You promise your coming back?" He asked still standing in the same spot.
"I promise" She said smiling at him.
"Ok" He said "I'll see you in a little while"
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"So how did every one sleep last night?" Willow asked the next day when they had all sat down at the table in Giles house.
"Fine" Xander and Anya said looking tired.
"Ok" Dawn said watching Giles.
"Ok" Giles said pulling a book in front of him. "I think we should open the store like..." He trailed off when he heard the wind and walked into his living room to see a tornado of wind started to blow in the middle of the floor.
"Buffy?" Dawn said standing up.
"Let's hope so" Xander said smiling.
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The next day Buffy and Ripper we're sitting in the park. They had been reading but now the sun was going down and it was time for her to go. She stood up and smiled down at him. He stood up too.
"Back to my place?" He asked taking her hand. 'Oh this sucks!' She thought as he smiled at her.
"I have to go" She said standing with him in the park. She pulled something out of her purse and held onto it.
"Where" He said wishing she's stay. He knew just what she meant; he had been waiting for this for the last few days.
"I can't say" She said handing him the picture.
"Just remember I'll see you later" She said as a tear ran down her cheek.
"Ok" Ripper said taking the picture and wiping away the tear "When?"
"Not for a while" She said smiling sadly at him. "There's something in the picture for you, don't read it till you know the time is right"
"How will I know when?" he asked smiling at the picture.
"You'll just know" She said smiling at him "Promise me"
"I promise" he said smiling at her "Well, in a while then" He said kissing her on her check. "I love you" he said in her ear before he turned and walked away with out looking back.
'I love you too' she thought as she watched him walk away with out looking back. She walked into the forest and looked around. She needed to find the spot where she appeared. She walked a little deeper into the woods and sat down. She had about two hours to waste and she was kinda hopping to have a vampire of two come along.
Almost an hour and a half later and still no vampires Buffy got up. She walked back to the edge of the woods and down the line of trees and found there was someone sitting in her way, it almost looked like he was waiting for her.
"Ethan" She said stepping towards him. "What are you doing here?"
"Well waiting for you of course" He said smiling at her.
"Why?" She asked not hiding her dislike for him now.
"Well" He said standing up and walking over to him. "To tell you that I figured it out" He said smiling at him.
"Figured what out?" She asked hopping he did something so she could rightfully kick his ass.
"Where you're from" He said smiling a big cocky grin.
"Oh good for you figured out the mystery of me being an American, did you?" She asked standing there with her arms crossed.
"Ok not where then" He said taking a step towards her "I guess its more, when"
"What!?" Buffy said. "What makes you think I'm from any time but this one?"
"Oh things" He said "Any way, at first I couldn't decide if it was the future or the past but then just now you told Ripper you'd see him so I figure-- But she interrupted him.
"You where spying on us?" She said.
"Yeah" He said "So I figure it's the future"
"Well good for you" She said smiling at him. "Now if you'll excuse me I have things to do and places, or well times to be"
"Oh I don't think so" He said putting his hand on her as she tried to pass. She looked down at his hand and back up to him. "No normal human can just snatch someone out of midair" He said smiling at her.
"Oh so that's what this is about?" She said looking down at his hand again. "Can't stomach the fact that a girl saved your ass?"
"Yeah something like that" He said tightening his grip.
"So I'm not normal right?" She asked smiling at him "Super human or something?" He nodded his head "So don't you think it would be smart to take your hands off me?" She said putting her hand on his and squeezing it really hard.
"Well I'll just let you get on with business then" He said letting his hand fall he smirked at her when the bushes around them moved.
"Yeah you do that" She said and sighed when the first vampire jumped out from the bushes. "I don't suppose you'd tell me how many friends you have back there?"
"A lot," He said running at her. She pulled out the wooden sticks holding her hair up and stabbed him in the chest. Five more jumped out and they were all smiling.
"I really don't have time for this" She said looking down at hr watch. The page had said she needed to leave at the same time she jumped the first time. It was almost ten and see figured she left Giles at about 10:45 or so. As she dusted another vampire four more jumped out of the woods. It was now 10:25.
Three of them jumped her at the same time. She dusted the one on top and kicked to the other two away.
"Now normally I'm not one to dust and run" She said kicking one of them in the balls. "But like I said I don't have time for this" She pushed one of them into the little circle they had formed around her and ran. She could hear them not far behind her. She pulled out the page from her purse. She looked around and realized she was in the right place. She looked over the page real quickly then read out the spell. She could see the vampires closing in on her right before the woods started to spine around her.
She felt like she was falling, like she may never stop. Then just as suddenly as it had started, it stopped. She looked up and smiled. They were all just looking down at her smiling. Dawn was the first one of them to move.
"Buffy!" She said running over to her. Buffy held out her arms and Dawn jumped into them like a five year old.
"Hey Sis" She said smiling at her. "Missed you" Willow, Xander and Anya walked over leaving Giles standing in the door way looking a little shocked.
"It's good to have you back" Xander said sitting down next to her.
"Man good thing you can read Latin" Willow said smiling.
"Yeah" Buffy said "Of course understanding it's another matter" She smiled at Dawn and got up. She walked over to Giles and looked him over.
"Hey Ripper" She said smiling.
"Beth" he said smiling at her too. "It wasn't very nice to brake Ethan's hand"
"Well it didn't hurt anything" She said blushing a little. "I missed you"
"You were with me the whole time" he said confused.
"No" She said "I was with Ripper" She put her hand on his arm "I missed you, Giles" He smiled down at her and she looked up into his eyes. 'The same eyes' she thought smiling at him.
"I like you hair" Willow said braking the mood.
"Yeah?" Buffy said smiling at Giles before she turned around. "Me too"
"Cute purse" Dawn said getting up and walking over to her. "Did you get it there?"
"Yeah" She said smiling "Ripper got it for me"
"Well I didn't know Ripper had such good clothing sense" Xander said smiling at Giles "Something you need to tell us G-man?"
"Excuse me?" Giles said leveling a glare at Xander.
"Just kiddin" Xander said smiling at Buffy.
"Oh you guys want to see some pictures I took of Ripper?" Buffy said pulling some snap shots out of her purse. She waved them around at Giles.
"You wouldn't" Giles said looking horrified.
"Oh but I would" She said smiling evilly up at him. "I guess you shouldn't have given up so fast huh?" Buffy said laughing when he jumped over the table and shot after her.
A/N- So??? What do we all think? This is not the end of this story, just so you all know. I cant wait to hear from you. Till next time... :-)
"Oh!" Spike said looking up at the rest of the group. They all looked over at him. "I remember"
"Remember what?" Xander asked looking up from his book.
"Where I meet Buffy" He said picking up the picture.
"I told you, you and your friends attacked us, remember?" Giles said taking off his glasses and looking up at Spike.
"No, I vaguely remember that" He said shaking his head "I ran into her later, must have been the next day or something, she was headed out, it was late, probably around midnight" He said looking over at Giles "She kicked my ass" He put his hand to the scar on his eyebrow and smiled. "She did this"
"That's the night she..." He trailed off as he remembered what happened that night and smiled a little. "Oh she's just going to hate this" He said looking back down at his book.
"What" Willow said looking over at Giles "She's going to hate what?"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"What the hell am I suppose to do?" Buffy said as she walked around the house alone. It was now after 8:00 pm and Buffy was getting restless. She hated this, it was so unfair, she was the slayer and she couldn't do anything. She walked over to the books and pulled on out and sat down to read. 'Blood rights and Ritual' was really boring for having such a gory name and half an hour later she was sleeping.
She opened her eyes and looked around it was still dark out side. She got up with the book and put it back on the shelf. She then walked over to Ripper's fridge and grabbed a Pepsi and opened it up. She looked at it took a drink and sat it back down. 'Ok' She thought 'I can't just stand here' She thought. She looked over at the clock and saw it was close to 11:30. 'Maybe a little patrolling?' she thought as she headed to the door, she grabbed her coat and headed out.
When she got outside she realized she didn't know where any of the grave yards where around here.
"Oh well" She said out loud "Just wondering then" She smiled and put her hand on the cross around her neck. It had been a gift from her Giles on her birthday last year. She wondered how every one back home was doing and for the first time since she'd got there she felt home sick. She missed her sister and Willow, and there was no one here like Xander, and while she really liked Ripper he was not even close to her Giles.
Subconsciously she was heading towards the woods. She had just turned down a dark ally that Ripper had shown her that lead almost strait to the woods. She smiled when she heard a noise and turned. She smiled even bigger when the platinum blonde vampire came out of the shadows.
"Spike" She said looking him over "Man what is it with the trench coat look?" She said looking him over "You'll never change"
"Do I know you?" He said as he started to circle her.
"No not now" She said "But some day you will"
"Well you're talking a little crazy" He said smirking at her.
"Really?" She said getting ready to fight "How's Dru?" She smiled when his face went to surprise "Now there's a girl who's a little crazy"
"Well now I have to kill you" he said shifting to his vampire face. He went to hit her in the face and she grabbed his arm and threw him over her shoulder.
"Yeah right" She said "I don't have time for this" She said staring towards the end of the ally.
"I don't think so" He said smiling as he came at her from behind.
"Well know that's not very nice" She said ducking so he went over her shoulder, again. She picked up a piece of wood and held it over his heart.
"Leave me be" She said smiling at him.
"No" He said pulling her down and rolling over her and then jumping up. She jumped up and went to hit him in the face but missed and hit him in the shoulder. She took and few steps backwards and he started up.
"Leave?" She said looking over his shoulder.
"No" He said walking forward.
"You just never know when to give up Spike" She said throwing the wood and smiling when it slammed into his face. He put his hand up to his eyebrow and pulled it away and smiled at the blood.
"You missed" he said smiling at her.
"No I didn't" She said smiling back. "Now as much as I'd like to kick you ass, and believe me I would, I have things to do" She said and pent to pick up another piece of wood. With a sharp point on the end.
"Spike?" A new voice said coming out of the shadows. "The birds are talking at me again"
"It's ok Luv" He said smiling at Dru. He turned to Buffy and she had the wood ready to throw and it was aimed at Dru.
"I'll find you" He said looking over at Dru. "Come on Luv lets go find something to eat"
"Ok" She said smiling big at him. They turned and walked down the other way and Buffy dropped the wood and turned to head down the ally. 'I'm not going to help' Buffy said to her self 'There probably done anyway' she thought as she walked out of the ally and ended up on the edge of the woods.
She heard a women scram and heard Ripper yelling at someone. She ran through the woods at her top speeds and stopped when she saw Randy, not quite him self, with one hand on Die's throat. As Buffy got closer she could see that Phil and Tom were trying to fight it off but something was holding it back and Ethan and Ripper were huddled over a book saying something in Latin. The Randy thing got up off of Die and smiled at Ethan and Ripper and started over.
The Randy thing held out his hands and Ethan went flying across the field, he would have landed on a broken branch, which was probably The Randy things intentions, if Buffy hadn't grabbed his leg causing him to lose his momentum and crash to the ground pulling her along with him. It turned to Ripper as he was saying something in Latin. Just as he finished The Randy thing looked shocked and then fell to the ground.
Buffy looked at the Ethan and grimaced. She had just saved Ethan's life. She got up without noticing the blood on her arm. 'Man' She thought 'Coulda just let him fly' She thought as she walked over to Ripper 'Save myself some trouble later'
"Is he ok?" She asked already knowing the answer. She looked down when she got to Ripper who was over Randy's body.
"No" He said shaking his head "He's dead"
"Oh I'm sorry" She looked around and pretending to not know what had just happened. "What happened?"
"It took control of him" He said looking at her "There was nothing I could do"
"Well if you had been here to help ground him" Ethan said as he limped over scowling down at Ripper.
"Well if you had just stopped doing it like I said" Ripper said
"But if you had just been here to ground him, you know we need five people for that"
"Damnit!" Ripper said standing up and glaring at Ethan "Just shut up" He said "Bloody hell!" He walked around and stopped when he looked up and caught Buffy's eyes.
"What are we going to do with him?" Tom asked looking down as he sat down next to Die who was a little pale but ok.
"I don't know" Ripper said not looking away from Buffy. "I just...I don't know" Buffy looked around at every one and sighed.
"Do you guys do any drugs?" Buffy asked walking over to Ripper.
"No" He said watching her watching them.
"And what killed him exactly?" Buffy asked letting her 'take charge' personality take over.
"The demon, when he runs out of room in the body causes the heart to stop." Ripper said.
"That's why you have to stay grounded" Ethan said "So you can get out before that happens" He said glaring at Ripper.
"So tell him you were out here doing something and he just fell over" She said "make it sound reasonable, when they do any test it will just look like he had a heart attack"
"And how put you in charge?" Ethan asked walking over to Buffy.
"I did" She said smiling sweetly at him "If you have a better idea lets hear it" She said and stood there for a second "That's what I thought."
"I think that sounds good" Die said from the ground.
"Me too" Tom said
"Ok well that settles it then" Phil said looking around "lets put him in my car" They all loaded Randy in and Die and Tom went with Phil.
"You sure we don't need to come?" Ripper asked acting strong, but Buffy could see he was going to brake.
"No" Die said with tears in her eyes she looked into the back set "There's no room anyway" She looked at Buffy and smiled "Thanks"
"Yeah" Buffy said taking Rippers hand. "Bye" ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"So Buffy didn't change the time line any did she?" Xander asked as they sat eating at the table in Giles' apartment.
"We wouldn't know" Willow said smiling at him. "If she had it would seem like it had always been like that" She looked around "We wouldn't know any different"
"Wow" Dawn said "that's so wiggy" She said looking up and over at Giles. "She didn't do anything weird did she?"
"No not that I can remember" he said thinking over her stay in his flat. Then thinking about the night she saved Ethan and smiled. Then his thoughts went to later that night a he started to turn red. 'Oh god' he thought as he remembered 'I must have been blocking this from my memory' he thought as his face continued to get red.
"Giles" Willow said looking at him as he colored "Giles are you ok?"
"What?" He said looking up and going even redder.
"Are you ok?" She asked again looking shocked when he jumped up out of his seat.
"I'm fine" He said and turned and walked into the kitchen. 'Bleeding Christ!' He thought as he paced the kitchen 'What the hell was she thinking?' she had to know I'd remember this all, 'Oh what I'm I going to say to her when she get back?' he thought. He jumped when someone put a hand on his shoulder.
"Giles" Willow said and smiled when he turned and his face was still red. "Are you ok?"
"God Willow you scared me" He said falling into one of the stools at the island in the kitchen.
"Sorry" She said sitting next to him "Come on something's on your mind what is it?" he shook his head and looked down at his hands.
"Did you remember something?" She said trying to get it out of him. "Did Buffy say something she shouldn't have?"
"N-no" he said shaking his head "Did something she shouldn't have" and the color came back into his cheeks.
"What could she have done that would have been so bad?" Willow asked.
"Not what" Giles said "Who"
"What, I don't get it what are you..." Then it dawned on her. She looked over at Giles and he closed him eyes "Oh" was all Willow said trying not to laugh.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Are you ok?" Ripper asked as they walked into his flat.
"I'm fine" She said smiling at him. She walked over the fridge and pulled out some sodas. He sat down and winced.
"Are you ok?" She asked sitting next to him.
"Yeah" He said and Buffy noticed the blood on his forehead. She got up and pulled out a rag. She wet it then brought it up to his head. He winced a little but didn't stop her.
"I thought you were staying here?" He asked after a second.
"Well I got restless" She said "Go thing to or Ethan would be on the wrong end of a very sharp branch." Ripper smiled and nodded his head.
"Well yeah" he said "I think I did something to my back when that thing threw me over the fire. Of course it was probably hopping I'd land in the fire not over it."
"Yeah" Buffy said "Take off you shirt let me see" He looked at her and smiled as he pulled it up over his head. Buffy got up and walked behind him and looked at his back. There was a bruise forming on his right side. She lifted her hands and very carefully began to work out the knot in his neck. He winced once and she stopped.
"No it feels better" He said turning and putting his hand on her arm. She winced at his touch and he pulled away.
"What happened?" He said getting up and trying to move her sleeve so he could look at it. "I can't believe I missed this" He said looking at her when he couldn't get her sleeve up.
"I'm ok" She said and winced again when he pulled on her sleeve. "Or not" She smiled at him and unbuttoned her shirt and slipped it off. She had a little tank top on underneath. "Is that better?" He looked down at her arm and nodded.
"Yes" He said taking a deep breath. "Let me get some wraps for your arm"
"Ok" Buffy said sitting down with her back to him. He just stood there for a second looking at her. Then he turned and walked into the bathroom. He came back and she was drinking her soda.
"I need you to stand up" He said "So you can stretch out your arm.
"Ok" She said getting up and walking over to him. He cleaned the gash on her arm and was wrapping it up when Buffy winced.
"Sorry" He said looking up at her.
"It's ok" She said and smiled a little. She looked down at her arm and watched as he wrapped it up. Buffy didn't notice when she put her hand on his shoulder but he did, and every time she wince she tightened her grip and little then loosened it again. He smiled at her and looked up at her when he finished.
"All better" He said putting the rag on the back of the couch. They both just stood there till she noticed his forehead was still bleeding. She picked up the rag putting her other hand on his face.
"I'm sorry" She said as she cleaned his forehead.
"What are you sorry for?" He said "I'm the one who didn't get there before they started"
"It's not your fault" She said "You always have a hard time seeing that"
"Yes it...what do you mean I always have a hard time seeing that?" He said looking down at her. "You've only known me a little while" He shock his head and sighed "Never mind, You wont tell me and I don't want you to lie to me so never mind"
"I'm sorry" Buffy said lowering her head.
"It's ok" He said lifting her head with his hand "I know you have your reasons, I don't know you all that well and yet I trust you completely" He smiled "That's never happened to me before"
"Me ether" Buffy said in a small voice.
"You'll tell me someday?" He asked smiling at him.
"Some day I won't have to" She said knowing that it made no sense to him. He just smiled and tilted her head up a little more.
"I'm going to kiss you" He said seconds before his lips were on hers. Her mind was screaming at her to stop 'This is Giles!' it kept saying to her. But as soon as his hand was on hip she felt an electric shock run through her and she tuned out that voice. 'I don't care' she thought as he deepened the kiss and her hands went into his hair.
They went back to his room her being half cared and half walking. She fell backwards onto the bed and he fell next to her. He had his hands all over her when the little voice came back. 'No!' It screamed in her head finally braking through alittle.
"No" She said quietly. "No I can't" She said sitting up and pulling away. He looked up at her and she felt like she could just drown in his eyes. 'How did I never notice Giles' eyes before?' She wondered briefly.
"What?" He said looking devastated "What's wrong?"
"I'm not staying, this...this wouldn't be right, I can't..." She trailed off and looked away from his eyes.
"Beth" He said pulling her close to him "Look at me" He said moving her face with his hand again. "I don't care" he smiled at her. "If this is all we have..." He studied her face, pulling it in so he'd always remember.
"I just..." She trailed off again and he put his palm on her warm cheek. She moved her face into the touch and smiled. She leaned into him and kissed him. He laid her back on the bed and kissed her again. She sighed and even the little voice in her head was in heaven.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Buffy looked down at the sleeping man next to her and couldn't believe what she had just done. 'I'll never be able to look him in the eyes again' she thought as she quietly got up out of bed. It was only 3a.m. but she couldn't sleep.
She pulled on his shirt and walked into the living room. She was bored so she walked over to the book self and pulled out the first book her hand touched and smiled down at the cover. 'Time Travels Finer Points' she opened it up.
"Yes" She said flipping to the page she had read from. There it was, and on the next page 'How to get from then to now'
"Sorry Giles" She said as she ripped the page out of the book. She folded it up and waked over to the purse Ripper had bought her the other day. She sighed and put inside then walked back over to the books. She pulled one of the mysteries off the top self and sat down to read. And figure out how she was going to say goodbye to a man she was pretty sure she was falling in love with.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"So what do you think Buffy is doing right now" Xander asked as he and Anya walked into their apartment.
"Don't know" She said smiling at him "Come to bed, it's been a long night"
"I'm just worried" He said smiling at her as they walked into their room.
"I know" She said "I'm worried too"
"She'll find her way home though" He said kissing her on they forehead.
"Of course she will" Anya said hopping she was right. "Now come on bed time"
~*~*~*~*~*~
"Giles is it ok if I stay here tonight?" Dawn asked looking up from her ice-cream bowl.
"Of course you can" He said taking her empty bowl "Lie down and go to sleep, She'll probably be back soon"
"I hope so" Dawn said closing her eyes and stretching out on the couch.
"Me too" He said to him self as he walked to the kitchen. "So how are you doing?"
"Fine" Willow said as she sipped her hot chocolate. "Do you remember how long Buffy is back there for?"
"Well she stayed with me for about a week or so" he said picking up his tea. "Then she leaves, I couldn't tell you where or when she goes from there"
"Right" Willow said "She could be gone for years and still come back today"
"Exactly" He said thinking about that "Lets hope that's not it"
"Yeah" Willow agreed "let's hope"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Beth" Someone was shaking her a little "Beth wake up." She opened her eyes and smiled a little when she saw Ripper standing in front of her. Then the night before came flooding back to her, him and her and oh god what was she going to say to Giles? And the book, she had found the book, which meant she had to go home.
"What are you doing out here?" He asked pulling her up a little.
"I...I couldn't sleep so I thought I'd read" She said looking down at the book on the floor. He bent down and picked it up for her.
"Carrie?" He said looking at the cover "Stephen Kings a good writer"
"Yeah he's good" She said and looked him over. He was wearing a pair of boxers and nothing else. 'Man he looked good' she thought as a blush crept on to her cheeks.
"I'm going to jump in the shower" He said still smiling at her.
"Ok" Buffy said standing up "Do you want something to eat?" She asked not knowing what else to say "I could make something?"
"No after we get ready I'll take us to breakfast" He smiled.
"Ok" Buffy said sitting back down. He sat back down next to her and sighed.
"Beth about last night..." He kind of trailed off and looked down at his hands.
"You don't regret it do you?" Buffy said taking his hand in hers.
"No" He said looking up at her "I thought maybe you did"
"No" Buffy said shaking her head. "It was one of the best nights of my life" Buffy said smiling at him.
"Ok" He said smiling big "That's good, ok I'll see you in a minute"
"Ok" Buffy said and smiled when he turned and walked down the hall towards the bathroom. When she heard the water start she got up and walked over to the closet where they had put the camera the other night. She looked down and saw that it still had six pictures left on it.
She walked into his bedroom and smiled. She snapped a picture of the bed in disarray. She walked over to the window and looked out over the busy street and snapped a picture of the view. She smiled when the water went of, a second later the door opened and he walked in with a towel on and his hair dripping wet.
"Hey what have you got behind you back there?" He asked smiling at her.
"Nothing" She said smiling even bigger. She pulled it out and snapped a picture before he had a chance to react.
"Oh I can't believe you just did that" He said smiling at her. "Well my dear pay back is sweet" he said and went after her. She ran up onto the bed giggling and snapping pictures of him. He chased her around the room and out the door. Finally she was on one side of the couch and he was on the other side.
"Come on now give Ripper the camera" He said holding out his hand.
"No" Buffy said smiling "You'll just have to wait and see the pictures later"
"Fine" He said faking a pout. She ran over and hugged him.
"I'm going to jump into the shower" She said "We still going to breakfast?"
"Of course" He said walking into the hall with her. "See you in a minute"
"'K" Buffy said grabbing his towel and running into the bathroom locking the door behind her.
"Well that was just mean" He said and started to walk away bare backed Buffy popped her head out and said "Cheese" causing him to turn his head just in time for her to snap on of his back side.
"Thanks" She said shutting the door just and he ran over.
"Beth" He said smiling "Give me that camera"
"Nope" Buffy said laughing on the other side of the door. "I'll be out in a few"
"Fine" He said smiling "I'll find that camera"
"Sure you will" Buffy said turning on the water.
"You little minx" he said laughing.
"Waters on cant hear you" She said taking off the shirt.
"Uh-huh" He said walking into his bedroom, completely naked.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"Beth" Ripper said looking over at her sitting on the floor reading.
"You can't have the camera Ripper just give it up" She said looking up at him. He smiled a little but shook his head.
"No, I know, I gave up on that" He said patting the seat next to him. She got up and walked over.
"What is it then?" She asked as she sat down.
"Last night you said you had to leave" He said looking down at his hands. "Don't?" He asked looking up into her eyes.
"What?" Buffy said wishing she could.
"Stay here with me" he said taking her hand. "Just stay here, you can write and tell who ever it is you're going to visit"
"There is no one" She said shaking her head.
"Yeah I figured as much" He smiled a little "See then you can just stay" He looked so hopeful.
"I...I can't" She said shaking her head "There are people at home that depend on me"
"You can always visit them" He said smiling at her. "We could both go and see them"
"Oh...I just...there's no way to help you under stand" She said standing with tears running down her cheeks. "I can't" She said. "I'm sorry"
"Make me understand" He said standing "Are you married? Do you have kids?"
"Hardly" She said taking his hand "You wont believe me if I tried" She kissed the top of his hand. "You said you didn't want me to lie to you"
"I don't" He said watching her.
"Then just believe that I can't tell you" She said. She dropped his hand and walked over to the table by the door. "I'm going to get these pictures developed" She said smiling a little.
"Trust me?" She asked as she opened the door.
"You promise your coming back?" He asked still standing in the same spot.
"I promise" She said smiling at him.
"Ok" He said "I'll see you in a little while"
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
"So how did every one sleep last night?" Willow asked the next day when they had all sat down at the table in Giles house.
"Fine" Xander and Anya said looking tired.
"Ok" Dawn said watching Giles.
"Ok" Giles said pulling a book in front of him. "I think we should open the store like..." He trailed off when he heard the wind and walked into his living room to see a tornado of wind started to blow in the middle of the floor.
"Buffy?" Dawn said standing up.
"Let's hope so" Xander said smiling.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
The next day Buffy and Ripper we're sitting in the park. They had been reading but now the sun was going down and it was time for her to go. She stood up and smiled down at him. He stood up too.
"Back to my place?" He asked taking her hand. 'Oh this sucks!' She thought as he smiled at her.
"I have to go" She said standing with him in the park. She pulled something out of her purse and held onto it.
"Where" He said wishing she's stay. He knew just what she meant; he had been waiting for this for the last few days.
"I can't say" She said handing him the picture.
"Just remember I'll see you later" She said as a tear ran down her cheek.
"Ok" Ripper said taking the picture and wiping away the tear "When?"
"Not for a while" She said smiling sadly at him. "There's something in the picture for you, don't read it till you know the time is right"
"How will I know when?" he asked smiling at the picture.
"You'll just know" She said smiling at him "Promise me"
"I promise" he said smiling at her "Well, in a while then" He said kissing her on her check. "I love you" he said in her ear before he turned and walked away with out looking back.
'I love you too' she thought as she watched him walk away with out looking back. She walked into the forest and looked around. She needed to find the spot where she appeared. She walked a little deeper into the woods and sat down. She had about two hours to waste and she was kinda hopping to have a vampire of two come along.
Almost an hour and a half later and still no vampires Buffy got up. She walked back to the edge of the woods and down the line of trees and found there was someone sitting in her way, it almost looked like he was waiting for her.
"Ethan" She said stepping towards him. "What are you doing here?"
"Well waiting for you of course" He said smiling at her.
"Why?" She asked not hiding her dislike for him now.
"Well" He said standing up and walking over to him. "To tell you that I figured it out" He said smiling at him.
"Figured what out?" She asked hopping he did something so she could rightfully kick his ass.
"Where you're from" He said smiling a big cocky grin.
"Oh good for you figured out the mystery of me being an American, did you?" She asked standing there with her arms crossed.
"Ok not where then" He said taking a step towards her "I guess its more, when"
"What!?" Buffy said. "What makes you think I'm from any time but this one?"
"Oh things" He said "Any way, at first I couldn't decide if it was the future or the past but then just now you told Ripper you'd see him so I figure-- But she interrupted him.
"You where spying on us?" She said.
"Yeah" He said "So I figure it's the future"
"Well good for you" She said smiling at him. "Now if you'll excuse me I have things to do and places, or well times to be"
"Oh I don't think so" He said putting his hand on her as she tried to pass. She looked down at his hand and back up to him. "No normal human can just snatch someone out of midair" He said smiling at her.
"Oh so that's what this is about?" She said looking down at his hand again. "Can't stomach the fact that a girl saved your ass?"
"Yeah something like that" He said tightening his grip.
"So I'm not normal right?" She asked smiling at him "Super human or something?" He nodded his head "So don't you think it would be smart to take your hands off me?" She said putting her hand on his and squeezing it really hard.
"Well I'll just let you get on with business then" He said letting his hand fall he smirked at her when the bushes around them moved.
"Yeah you do that" She said and sighed when the first vampire jumped out from the bushes. "I don't suppose you'd tell me how many friends you have back there?"
"A lot," He said running at her. She pulled out the wooden sticks holding her hair up and stabbed him in the chest. Five more jumped out and they were all smiling.
"I really don't have time for this" She said looking down at hr watch. The page had said she needed to leave at the same time she jumped the first time. It was almost ten and see figured she left Giles at about 10:45 or so. As she dusted another vampire four more jumped out of the woods. It was now 10:25.
Three of them jumped her at the same time. She dusted the one on top and kicked to the other two away.
"Now normally I'm not one to dust and run" She said kicking one of them in the balls. "But like I said I don't have time for this" She pushed one of them into the little circle they had formed around her and ran. She could hear them not far behind her. She pulled out the page from her purse. She looked around and realized she was in the right place. She looked over the page real quickly then read out the spell. She could see the vampires closing in on her right before the woods started to spine around her.
She felt like she was falling, like she may never stop. Then just as suddenly as it had started, it stopped. She looked up and smiled. They were all just looking down at her smiling. Dawn was the first one of them to move.
"Buffy!" She said running over to her. Buffy held out her arms and Dawn jumped into them like a five year old.
"Hey Sis" She said smiling at her. "Missed you" Willow, Xander and Anya walked over leaving Giles standing in the door way looking a little shocked.
"It's good to have you back" Xander said sitting down next to her.
"Man good thing you can read Latin" Willow said smiling.
"Yeah" Buffy said "Of course understanding it's another matter" She smiled at Dawn and got up. She walked over to Giles and looked him over.
"Hey Ripper" She said smiling.
"Beth" he said smiling at her too. "It wasn't very nice to brake Ethan's hand"
"Well it didn't hurt anything" She said blushing a little. "I missed you"
"You were with me the whole time" he said confused.
"No" She said "I was with Ripper" She put her hand on his arm "I missed you, Giles" He smiled down at her and she looked up into his eyes. 'The same eyes' she thought smiling at him.
"I like you hair" Willow said braking the mood.
"Yeah?" Buffy said smiling at Giles before she turned around. "Me too"
"Cute purse" Dawn said getting up and walking over to her. "Did you get it there?"
"Yeah" She said smiling "Ripper got it for me"
"Well I didn't know Ripper had such good clothing sense" Xander said smiling at Giles "Something you need to tell us G-man?"
"Excuse me?" Giles said leveling a glare at Xander.
"Just kiddin" Xander said smiling at Buffy.
"Oh you guys want to see some pictures I took of Ripper?" Buffy said pulling some snap shots out of her purse. She waved them around at Giles.
"You wouldn't" Giles said looking horrified.
"Oh but I would" She said smiling evilly up at him. "I guess you shouldn't have given up so fast huh?" Buffy said laughing when he jumped over the table and shot after her.
A/N- So??? What do we all think? This is not the end of this story, just so you all know. I cant wait to hear from you. Till next time... :-)