It seems that I haven't been quite clear. This is towards the tail end of season one Buffy with Prophecy Girl not occurring until latter summer. There also seems to be a misunderstanding to who Giles is related to. He is James' half-brother through their shared mother. He is the step-son of Edward Potter, who raised him, but is bound by the destiny given to him by his father Jayson Giles. I hope that clears up any confusion.
Chapter 4: Bad Dreams, Sibling Rivalry Begins, and the Homeland.
One would suppose that Hell would be a fiery brimstone of unending torture. This was only half true for the ancient vampire known as the Master. Torture would be the least of it for the spawn of hell entrapped in an eternal heaven. The church was not nearly as ancient as the vampire wedged inside of it, but if any youth would have dropped inside of it they would have considered them quite close in age.
The church had once been beautiful before the world had swallowed it, with one large deftly crafted cross standing in the middle of the room. A tiny river, the result of cracked plumbing ran through the tiny church just below the Master's throne. Many a time the Master would gaze at that mocking stream that represented the world beyond his reach and imagined the day it would run red with blood.
He sat there thus, imagining it still with the boy vampire, the Anointed One, standing at his side. Occasionally, the Master's clawed hand would come out to brush the boy's head, as though he were a pet. The Master had dined the Anointed his knew favorite, since the Vampire Slayer had bewitched Angelus into slaying Darla, though he had not sired the boy himself.
The Slayer. It was her that he must have before he could escape his prison, her blood, the power that ran through it. Yet it was her that he could not have, could not grab, and must wait for.
The signs were all pointing to his ascension and the pieces were beginning to fall into place. His Anointed would lead the Slayer to him and she would die, allowing him to continue the work he had started so many years ago. He had waited so patiently and now only days kept him from his destiny and the fate of the Slayer.
And he could no longer wait. Each second seemed to tick in his mind from an unseen clock. It drummed inside of him with the sound of marching parade. He had heard them overhead, the sound of blood rushing through their veins, loud and pure. That blood he could hunt and must wait to be brought to him. And perhaps this was the most torturous of his prison's devices.
He heard the soft whimpering before his underlying had appeared with a blonde woman in his clutches. They were all blonde now. Again and again he would sink his teeth into the soft flesh of their neck teased by the vision that it would be the tiny blonde whose power would release him from his prison.
The young vampire, only forty years of dying, flung that girl before his Master and knelt next to her, fixing her in place. "I have brought you your dinner, Master," he proclaimed, wishing to fall into the good graces of he who would rule.
"Block the entrances, I wish for a chase," the Master called to the other vampires who sat in his court, waiting for his coronation.
"Block the entrances, I wish for a chase," the voice called in her dreams.
She saw the girl, perhaps a year or so older then herself released by a clawed hand, try to scurry out of the dark cavern, and rebuffed by unseen bodies. Water that leaked into the cavern. The girl ran and dodged, chased by that mocking voice. She fell into the water, face first, and fought to regain her footing. But another hand, translucent and almost skeletal grasped the long mane of blonde hair and ripped her head back.
It was impossible to not see the look of horror and fear that passed over the girls face as a pair of fangs descended and pierced the girls fragile skin. A sucking sound, like that when you reach the bottom of your Diet Coke, rushed into her ears. And a cry, staccato and piercing rented the air.
Buffy shot up in her covers, cold sweat causing her feather bangs to cling to her forehead. Her breath came in and out in rushed gasps. She looked around Willow's room, her mind not yet grasping where she was. The screaming was still blaring, only this time she recognized it as the trumpeting of the alarm clock. Willow had set it to make sure that Buffy did not sleep in and miss her appointment with Giles.
With a groan, Buffy reached over and smashed the clock, momentarily forgetting the powers of strength gifting a Slayer. Rubbing sleep from her eyes, she glanced around the room and found that Xander was on the other side of Willow's bed, sleeping in his own mound of blankets and pillows, his head cradled underneath one arm. Next to her, Willow stirred.
"Give me another ten minutes, Mom," the redhead muttered as she readjusted herself.
Buffy nudged her. "Willow wake up," she hissed into her friends ear.
The Slayer was nearly bowled over as Willows shot up in bed. "I'm awake. I'm awake." He dark eyes instantly snapped on the destroyed alarm clock. "What?"
"Sorry, Wills, I slayed the alarm," she said with a shrug. "It had to be stopped."
"Ugh," Willow let out the sigh as she fell back against her pillow. "Tell me again why we're up at the crack of dawn?"
"It's 10:00 in the morning, Wills," Xander interjected from his spot on the floor. "Hardly dawnage."
Buffy scooted out of the bed and grabbed her knapsack. "You guys can get the shut eye, but I've got to go to Giles'. See what's the what with the research." She was pulling a bottle of shampoo from her bag as she gave them a questioning look.
"No, we're with you Buff," Xander assured her, running a hand through his dark hair. "Avengers assemble."
It was more like waking the dead, zombies walking aimlessly through the house, their eyes glazed over. Xander actually ran into several pieces of furniture as they made their way to eat breakfast. Buffy quickly stashed her dream away for a more personal talk with Giles. She always was a little too wigged out about them and Giles had grown adept at forestalling a major Buffy panic.
Before sitting to eat a plate of left over pizza from the other night, Buffy phoned her mom too let her know she'd be home sometime in the afternoon. Joyce explained that she would be working at the gallery late and that she'd leave something in the fridge for her.
"Bye sweetie, I love you," her mother said too cheerfully over the phone.
"I love you too, Mom," Buffy said, before hanging up. She thought about her deal with Giles and how her Watcher had promised to think about revealing the truth to her mother.
Trepidation filled her at the thought. Right now her mother thought of her as just an innocent girl with a few social problems, a neg to say the least, but what would Joyce think when she learned that her sixteen year old daughter went out routinely to face the forces of darkness. Buffy cringed at the thought and went back into the kitchen.
She walked into the tail end of a conversation between Xander and Willow.
"I just think it's a little beyond weird that the Tweed Man never mentioned him," Xander was saying.
"You mean Harry?" Buffy asked, picking up a slice of cold pizza and bitting off a hunk.
Willow sipped at her orange juice. "He is allowed to have family, Xander. And you know Giles. He isn't Mr. I-Like-To-Share-My-Feelings. Besides it's a personal matter. I was actually thinking of inviting Harry to hang with us. You know, since he knows Buffy's big secret and all."
"Which is another thing. Buffy can't tell her mom, but Giles' nephew gets to be a player," Xander shook his head. "I don't get it."
Buffy swallowed hard. "I'm sure Giles has his reasons." Knowing full well the reasons for Harry and the revelation of her secret identity. No wonder he looked as though he were about to face Snyder in his office. She couldn't imagine having to face a Dark Wizard, the Cheerleader Witch from Hell had been enough. After that debacle, Buffy had stopped missing cheerleading.
She briefly wondered if Harry was truly Giles nephew at all. It seemed too much a coincidence to have this Volder, Vader, Voldemort or whatever it was he called himself, arise and Harry come to live with an uncle who just happened to be the Watcher for the Slayer. There was a little resemblance between the two with the way they spoke and their bespectacled features. Still, long lost relatives was just a little too Days of Our Lives, even for the Hellmouth.
Buffy finished her pizza, breaking little into Xander and Willow's conversation. They had diverged to a nostalgic path and Buffy had found it much safe to watch them tread and not try to intercede. Especially when it came to Cordelia. There was a torrid past that made her happy that she could not participate in the megavision flashback.
Besides it didn't matter if Harry was Giles' nephew or not. He was in danger and she had to protect him. Little did Buffy know that she was not only the protector to the world, but to the Boy-Who-Lived.
Giles let Harry and Remus sleep in. It had been the full moon not but two days ago and the Watcher knew how trying it was to his brother's friend. Harry had been up most of the night, Giles had heard him tossing and muttering in his sleep, crying out for Sirius or murmuring about a snake. Once Giles had thought to carry the boy up to his room, but he remembered waking James up when he'd had a nightmare and the resulting curse and thought better of it.
Instead he had thought to make breakfast for his two sudden house guests and had started a kettle and was now scrambling some eggs. Giles as usual had risen early in the morning, having resigned himself to the research that Buffy so desperately needed if she were finally going to be able to stop the Master. For Giles was sure that the ancient vampire was not about to give up on escaping from the Hellmouth and unleashing his hell upon this realm. Considering the near miss on the day of the Harvest, with both he and Buffy so ill prepared, he did not want to be caught so unawares.
Harry was the first to wake, stumbling blindly for his glasses that Giles had sat on his trunk for fear that one of them would smash them. Tiredly, he ran a hand through his messy hair and reached for his shirt. Some of the mannerisms were so much like James, that Giles couldn't help but smile dumbly at his nephew. For a moment it was like having his dear brother back again and that everything that he'd done in his tumultuous youth, had been nothing more then a terrible nightmare.
Harry seemed to walk to the kitchen without even seeing Giles and appeared as though he were going to start towards the stove when abruptly he noticed that food was already on the table. "What time is it?" he asked, looking momentarily worried.
"Just after ten," Giles answered. "Would you like some breakfast? Eggs, toast, and tea?"
Harry nodded and Giles took a plate from the cupboard and dished a liberal amount of eggs upon it. "Toast is on the table and the mugs are in the cupboard over the sink. Do you like jam on your toast? It should be on the second shelf inside the refrigerator."
"Should we wake Professor Lupin?" Harry asked as he settled with his tea and breakfast.
"He'll wake on his own," Giles assured him. "He needs rest more then anything right now. I assume you know that he is a werewolf."
"Yeah," Harry answered shortly. "I blew up my aunt once," he suddenly added.
Giles chocked on the tea that he'd been sipping. "Good Lord. Literally or figuratively? Too much time spent amongst the mystical."
"Like a balloon," Harry continued. "She really wasn't my aunt. She was Uncle Vernon's sister, foul thing. I never liked it when she came to visit. Always brought this detestable dog named Ripper."
The Watcher nearly chocked again. Was Harry threatening him? Giles supposed he was in his own veiled way, but why? "Yes, well, I don't have a pet so you should get on here."
Silence filled the kitchen, the Watcher and the Boy-Who-Lived, each finding their breakfast frightfully fascinating. As Harry was finishing his toast, Giles ventured to engage him in conversation yet again.
"I suppose you're looking forward to going back to Hogwarts? I've visited there a time or two myself, quite a remarkable castle," Giles babbled.
"Aren't you a Muggle?" Harry interjected.
Giles succeeded in not wincing, he'd always hated that designation. "Yes, I am."
"Then how is it that you could enter the magical world?" Harry asked, unkindly.
"I was given the opportunity because of my parents and my brother. I grew up in your world, Harry," Giles answered.
A light seemed to dawn on the boy. "So you are a squib?"
This time the Watcher failed, this word was even worse then the other. "I suppose you could say that."
Harry eventually took notice of his discomfort. "That must have been difficult," he said, insightfully.
It was at this point that Giles decided that the boy was as much an emotional roller coaster as was his Slayer. James had been too jolly of a boy, unable to think past the next great adventure. Something Giles had always envied in his brother; the opportunity to chose from moment to moment what you would be. And perhaps this was the biggest difference between Harry and James.
Harry could not chose whether he wanted to face Voldemort or not, his every breath was one that would draw him closer by degrees to the confrontation. Hatred filled Giles as he thought that Voldemort had not only stolen Harry's ability to chose but had raped James' of it as well; stealing away that next moment of wonder.
"I loved my family, Harry," Giles muttered. "I know that you'd rather be with Sirius at this time. It is unfair when the ones we love are taken from us, but I want this to work between you and I." And he really did. He didn't know when exactly he'd begun to love Harry, it had just happened over night. "I'd like us to be a family."
The green eyes gazed at him with a strange mixture of doubt and unyielding hope. Giles figured that Harry had never had a proper home, where love and affection were shared freely. Cold fear sat over the Watcher's heart, afraid that he would not be able to give what his nephew so obviously needed. Over the year's of Watcher training, Giles had become quite reserved working to make up for the Eyghon incident with Ethan and their friend they'd been forced to kill to stop the demon rising.
There came a knock from his door and not a breath later, Buffy, Willow, and Xander trooped into the room, saving Harry from an answer that Giles' himself was not sure of. He wanted to be a family to Harry but could he be?
Buffy and Xander were adamantly talking about the infernal Bronze and the latest lack-luster band, when Willow spotted Remus and shushed them both. Much to Giles' surprise, the werewolf rose straight away from the hide-a-bed and looked at the three teenagers.
"That's alright, I'm awake. Rupert if it would be alright, I'd like to use your shower," Remus said, seeming as though he'd been aware this whole time. Had he overheard the conversation between Giles and Harry?
"Top of the stairs, to your right," Giles informed him.
"Thank you," Remus said and followed Giles instructions.
Giles and Harry exchanged questioning looks before Harry shrugged. "He does tend to wake suddenly."
"Strange guy," Buffy interrupted, steeping around the sofa bed. She shuddered and Giles wondered if she could sense the wolf inside Remus. Vampire Slayer's were supposed to come equipped with all sorts of mystical bells and whistles. However, Buffy's all seemed to be attached to fashion.
He made a mental note to inform Buffy of Remus' illness.
Harry was currently glaring at the Slayer with malice. "He's not strange."
"And you're a good measure of this how?" Buffy asked with that feigned innocence that could get on anyone's nerves.
She had been more ill at eased lately, no doubt worried about the Master and whatever was building in the vampire world. Still, Giles would prefer it if his Slayer and nephew could get along and not be at each other's throats, especially since Buffy was to help protect Harry.
"Harry why don't you have some more breakfast while I speak with Buffy, Xander, and Willow," Giles suggested recognizing that stubborn glint in Harry's eyes that mirrored James'. He could see that it wasn't going to work however and was quick to make another suggestion. "Actually, if you aren't hungry, I'm sure Remus could do with a good breakfast. Why don't you fix him up a plate."
After several heartbeats of glaring, Harry resigned himself to the kitchen. Giles knew that he had just averted a small apocalypse, but some how figured that there would be more. He could not understand this contention between Harry and Buffy, two people in his mind shared much in common. Of course he had heard that it was the people who were the most alike, that often argued the most. It just seemed to have happened rather quickly.
"Buffy, I would appreciate it if you would not antagonize my nephew," Giles said as he sat on the edge of the sofa bed.
"Are you taking his side?" Buffy suddenly challenged.
"Taking what side?" Giles asked, as Willow and Xander looked between the Watcher and the Slayer.
"You don't think that Lupin is weird?" Buffy insisted. "Xander would you say that the guy wasn't exactly joe normal?" Xander opened his mouth to retort but was cutoff by the Slayer. "What do you think Will?" Again her friend tried but Buffy was in a rant. "Fine. Just fine."
The Slayer stormed off leaving both of her friend and Watcher quite perplexed.
Remus had the house to himself, thankfully. Harry had been invited by the Slayer's redheaded friend, Willow, to the Bronze and Rupert had gone back to the High School for books to further his research into the Codex and the prophecies concerning the Master. Remus had been almost tempted to join the Watcher, but knew that he needed to contact the Order of the Phoenix and inform Dumbledore that Rupert had accepted his nephew.
The werewolf was glad for Harry for he had overheard that conversation between Rupert and his nephew. Harry of course was cautious, having his hopes thwarted too many times to be overtly hopeful. Last night he had seen Harry clutching the watch Sirius had bought for his birthday and knew that the young wizard was far from healing from the death of his godfather. But Rupert seemed willing to give it a try and that caused the werewolf to reconsider his position on James' long lost brother.
Rupert had changed. There was no denying it in the way he looked, presented himself, and the atmosphere he was surrounded in. If it hadn't been for the hazel color of his eyes, so much like James', Remus would have thought him an entirely different person.
He could not Floo to the Order, for Rupert's fireplace had not been connected to the network, but he could apparate. Normally such a journey would have taxed him to greatly, but America did have a relaxing affect and Remus felt stronger then he had in a long time. Do take a look around the room, making sure that he was not visible by the world outside, Remus closed his eyes and magicked himself to his house in London.
There he grabbed a handful of Floo powder and walked into his foreplace. "Number 12 Grimmauld Place," he called, tossing the sand to the floor.
Before he could even peak his head out past the mantel, Ronald Weasley and Hermione Granger were bounding towards him. No doubt they had been waiting hopefully for Harry to return. He saw their saddened expressions when he emerged alone.
"So that's it then. He's a bloody yank," Ron said gloomily.
"Oh Ronald, he's just staying there for the summer," Hermione attempted to scold him, but her voice sounded just as deflated as the redheads. "He'll be back in time for school." She rested a hand on his and patted it.
"What's his uncle doing in the States anyway?" Ron asked, not willing to give up as easily as Hermione.
Remus sighed. "It's a rather long story and not one that I'm at liberty to tell you. Has Professor Dumbledore checked in?"
To make Ron and Hermione feel more involved with the Order of the Phoenix, pretty much because they would find someone to become involved regardless. The Order had decided that they would be in charge of keeping track of those who came in and out of Grimmauld Place. It had been Molly's idea and a rather good one Remus' had thought, except that Ron seemed intent on not caring about what he considered parchment work or even more boring then Professor Binns.
It was Hermione who answered. "He's upstairs with Professor Snape in his office."
"Makes my day," Remus muttered under his breath. "I'll be upstairs." He could not take the solemn looks of the two who used to be his students. "Look I'll see if I can bring you with me tomorrow."
Their faces lit up. "Really?" Ron asked.
"I'll see what I can do," Remus repeated.
He mounted the stairs, feeling strange inside his Muggle clothing with only his cloak to remind him he was a Wizard. Knocking he was greeted by a, "Come in."
Professor Dumbledore looked up from behind his spectacles and smiled at Remus. "I take it young Harry is in place with his uncle?"
"He is Headmaster, however, Mr. Giles would like audience with the Order. He fears that not everyone is trustworthy," he said, glancing at the greasy haired potions master who sat in the chair opposite Professor Dumbledore's desk.
"A Muggle making demands," Snape sneered. "Who does he think he is?"
Dumbledore gave him a knowing glance. "He is more then a Muggle, Severus."
"And might provide us with a much needed ally," Remus continued. "He has been given a Slayer. And I would think that it would be a good idea to at least introduce him to you, Albus. Then you could decide from there."
A/N: Please forgive the mix up. I was recently reading Peter Pan and the Darlings live at Number 14.