A Lie's Worth

Rating: PG-13

Disclaimer: All BtVS characters belong to Joss Whedon.

More Than Your Average Weird

Up in Joyce's bedroom, Joyce and Buffy finished they're earlier conversation about Buffy's future.

"Mom, as a slayer, I won't get to live forever. I want to use my time with the one guy I love more than anything else in the world. But also, I want to protect him."

"Well sweetie, I think Angel can protect himself. He's a big scary vampire!"

"Not what I meant Mom, though I see your point. Actually though, I really don't think that Angel and Spike should have to come to church with us. I mean, everyone else is up for going, but Spike's a vampire and Angel really doesn't like churches! It's just not right!"

"Just trust me Buffy. Okay?"

Realizing she really couldn't win, Buffy relented. "Yeah sure, fine Mom. But this better be worth it. I don't want to have to put up with two vampires in foul moods tomorrow and have to have you take the full blame for it." With that, Buffy gave her mom a look that said- it's all on you- and then went into her own bedroom to hang with her friends.

About an hour after everyone had agreed to stay, Giles decided to head upstairs as Joyce said he could sleep in the guest room. He was tired. Glad that Angel's soul had been restored without any clause, Giles was able to sleep easier. And to Willow, he was very grateful. Being tortured hadn't really helped his physical strength and while he was still angry with Angelus, he understood that Angel was a different 'person'; the man, not the demon. Not that that made it any easier to look at Angel or to be uncontrollably skittish around him but at least he was trying.

It would be hard, Giles knew. Yet, there was some part of him that really hoped Joyce was right and that maybe God could help them all through this tough time. If anything, church should help keep them all in good spirits and renew their faith in a better life to come for them in the future.

Deciding to go by Joyce's room and thank her for letting them stay there, Giles got out of bed, now only wearing his plaid boxers and a gray tee-shirt, and walked down the hall to where Joyce's room was. He knocked on the door but didn't get a reply so knocked a few more times. Eventually he heard Joyce yell from somewhere inside, "Oh, come in already!"

Opening the door, not really thinking about what he would find on the other side, Giles walked in and saw Joyce standing there taking off her makeup in a pair of satin shorts and her lacy bra.

"Well…?" Joyce wondered. Her whole life Buffy had never been one to be quiet, so no reason to start now. Turning around Joyce saw that it was Giles at the door and not Buffy. Noticing that he had been staring, Giles coughed in embarrassment as he turned around, apologizing for his intrusion.

"Rupert, it's okay! Really, I'm sorry I just figured it was Buffy at the door. Of course that's my own fault because she probably would have just walked on in." Laughing slightly at this, Joyce stared into Rupert's eyes as they shared a moment of understanding. The no-shirt issue with Joyce was long forgotten.

"I'm sorry Joyce. It's been a long day. I just wanted to thank you for letting us all stay with you tonight. I think church will be good for these kids. It may help them deal with some of their upcoming battles. And as for Angel and Spike, well I think it will just be funny to watch them be surrounded by the crucifixes," Giles finished letting out a soft chuckle.

Joyce sat down in her bed as she motioned for Giles to come sit near her. He strolled over to her without second thought and sat down by her. Looking deeply into her eyes, Rupert could feel all of Joyce's pain and worries that he shared with her concerning Buffy. They were frightened for her, and their worry left them to confide in each other. Leaning down over Joyce, he kissed her with all the passion left inside of him, and Joyce turned off the light.

Downstairs in the living room, Xander, Oz, Angel and Spike were spread out amongst the couches of the Summers' residence exactly where Joyce had positioned them. Not that Joyce was so naive as to think they would stay there with the girls upstairs, but she at least had to try. As none of the guys really liked each other that much though, they simply waited in their respective sleeping arrangements until the girls came downstairs to join them.

In Buffy's bedroom, Buffy, Willow, Cordelia, and Faith made their beds of blankets and were talking to their parents on their cell phones, explaining how Joyce was taking them all to church in the morning, but leaving out the part about her reasoning in their stories.

Cordelia had never really been best friends with the whole Scooby Gang but she was coming to find that they were really pleasant people, fashion disasters aside. She had been going out with Xander for almost five months now, and she could not remember any guy she had been happier with. Despite all her comments and complaints, Cordy really didn't have a problem being around the Xander's friends and going to church. Going to church reminded her of the old days when she would go with her parents, before they started caring more about money than they did about her. Either way, she was happy because she finally felt like she was part of a family again.

As soon as everyone hung up their phones and Buffy saw that the light in her mother's room was off, Buffy led the girls downstairs for some real fun. Turning on a dim light in the living room, she walked over to Angel and with just a look in his direction, led him upstairs into her room. Lying down on her bed, Buffy waited for Angel to climb on top of her as they engrossed in a long make out session, not even realizing as Willow and Oz strolled into the room and did the same, only lying on the carpeted floor instead.

Still downstairs, Xander and Cordelia were cuddled up in the love seat content in each other's presence. Neither of them could believe that after hating each other for so many years that they were finally in love. It was a funny thing really, but they just felt comfort in each other's arms and knew that together, they could get through anything.

Spike and Faith, who had just recently met, never really had time to converse before. Now, stuck in the Summers' house, they were sitting on the cot in the basement, smoking a cigarette while talking about their past battles with various demons and enemies. Upon asking Spike if slaying demons, or eating people, made him hungry and horny, Spike merely replied by pressing his lips to hers and they spent the rest of the night like that together.

BANG! Buffy's hand sharply pushed the lamp off of her nightstand and onto the floor, waking Buffy, Angel, Willow and OZ up from their respective fantasies. Wanting to make sure no one got hurt, Angel stood up and went to turn on the main light in the room. Upon turning it on he could only see the lamp on the floor and a puzzled and frustrated looks on all the teens' faces. Then Angel took the time to notice that all he was wearing were his boxers, but he did not have time to turn off the lights before Joyce came into the room to see what had happened, wearing a small, red negligee. To say she was shocked, well, she supposed it could have been worse, at least Angel still had on his boxers.

But then to the surprise of them all, Giles walked in behind Joyce, not seeming to realize that he was not wearing much of anything at all. He walked in, examined the damage of the lamp, and without so much as a word retreated into the guest room, where he realized what he had just done.

Joyce, still tired and confused by all this morning mess, went back into her own room to comprehend what had just taken place, and Willow and Oz just forgot that it had ever happened. As Buffy lay back down into her bed, a connection was made in her foggy head and she yelled to her mother, "YOU HAD SEX WITH GILES? TONIGHT? HERE? EWWW!"

But as a way to take Buffy's mind off of her mother and Giles, Angel turned the lights back off and went back over to Buffy, making her forget everything for the rest of the night. Downstairs, Cordy, Xander, Spike, and Faith slept through all the commotion as if nothing had ever happened.