WDWG - Chapter 34: Seamus

Buffy woke to the sound of rain hitting the large glass windows in their bedroom and snuggled deeper into the covers. Feeling Giles' arm tighten around her waist, she let out a contented sigh and listened to his steady breathing as he continued to sleep. From the other room in their apartment, she heard the maid setting up breakfast for them and decided that while it was a decadent luxury every once in a while, she preferred getting up and making her own breakfast.

"I smell coffee," Giles muttered in a gruff voice against his pillow several minutes later.

"You don't have to be up yet, it's still early," she answered, turning in his embrace to face him.

"So much to do," he complained, opening his eyes when he felt her lips press against his.

"All that's left is to play host and go over the accounts, Ru. You've been at this for the better part of a week, it's almost as if you were researching an apocalypse."

"As bad as that?" the concerned Watcher asked, running his fingers through a loose strand of her hair.

"Yeah, late nights, early mornings, only no Willow or Xander to help track down the big bad."

"We'll need them for the next stage, assuming all goes to plan. I look forward to having them close by again." Giles turned his head in the direction of the door to the sitting room. "I smell bacon."

Buffy giggled, "So much for lingering in bed."

Focusing his attention back onto his fiancée, Giles asked, "How are you holding up? I'm afraid I've not been as attentive as I should."

"Are you kidding? You've been great," Buffy said, lifting herself up to kiss his chin. "I just wish there wasn't so much going on, but hey, we can't stay on vacation forever. Real life, ya know?"

"I do," he sighed regretfully.

"Best not say your wedding vows like that, mister!" the blonde teased, giving him a playful slap on his bare shoulder.

Giles rolled her over, looming above her with a playful grin. "I promise much more enthusiasm come that day, my love."

Using her Slayer strength, Buffy rolled him until she gained the upper hand, straddling his torso and pinning his hands above his head. Eying the splint on his left hand she asked, "How much longer?"

"A month, maybe less, depends on how quickly I am healing. They were small fractures and I've been a good patient this time 'round. Must be your influence," he said, grinning up at her. The clock in the other room chimed eight and the prone Watcher sighed regretfully. "Would that we could spend the day in bed."

"Mmmm, maybe we can pretend to not be home."

"I don't think they'll believe it."

"It'll take them the better part of a month to find us in this labyrinth of a house."

"You forget your dog is coming with Sebastian. He'll suss you out within mere moments."

"My dog?" she asked incredulously. "Hardly. Besides, I bet your uncle probably knows this place just as well as he does his own house and will ferret us out pretty quickly," Buffy pouted, moving off of her fiancé and getting out of bed. "On the plus side, private breakfast with coffee and bacon."

"I am sure there are other healthier offerings as well."

"Trample on my dreams."

Laughing, Giles threw off the duvet and rose out of bed. "Wouldn't dream of it. You can have whatever you like."

XxXxXxXx

The weather cleared, though it was still overcast, and the couple watched as the black Bentley pulled up the drive and parked before the grand entrance to the house. The moment Alan, Lord Banbury's driver, stepped around and opened the rear passenger door, a hulking grey Irish wolfhound bounded out of the back and ran towards the Slayer. As soon as he was within a couple feet he stopped, reared up, placed his front paws on Buffy's shoulders, and looked down on her before rubbing the top of his head against her cheek.

"That's the happiest I've seen him in a fortnight!" Sebastian declared as he stepped out of the vehicle.

If it weren't for her strength and exceptional balance, the massive dog would've had her pinned to the ground. As it was, she had a hard time remaining upright because of the angle and the leverage he had.

"Seamus, off!" Giles commanded and the wolfhound dropped to four legs, his tongue lolling out the side of his mouth in happiness as Buffy dropped to her knees to hug him.

"Do I get one of those too?" his lordship asked.

"Of course," Buffy answered, hopping to her feet. Throwing her arms around the older man, she asserted, "I've missed you."

"And I've missed you both as well," the earl answered, putting both arms around the couple and leading them inside. He stopped a moment and looked back towards the car before whistling a command, "Ivey, come!"

The wheaten wolfhound jumped from the back of the car and loped after the group and her brother as they entered the great house.

"Domestic life looks good on you both," Sebastian said conversationally as they made their way towards the morning room. "Definitely less haunted than when you first arrived."

"It's been nearly a month since the Hellmouth was destroyed," Giles answered casually.

"Cause enough for celebration," his lordship answered. "When are you expecting the others to arrive?"

"Late afternoon."

"Time enough to catch up and have a leisurely luncheon, then."

XxXxXxXx

After lunch, Buffy excused herself to go running while the weather was still amendable, offering to take the two wolfhounds with her. Giles and his uncle retired to the study to discuss Council business and matters of the estate.

"Thank you for clearing the way for me to speak with Robin Wood. He wouldn't answer any of my questions without going through the chain of command," Sebastian said, taking a seat in one of the antique wingback chairs.

Giles walked over to the highboy and poured them both a generous finger of the thirty-year-old scotch his father had kept, handing the second glass to the elder Watcher before sitting behind the great oak desk. "It wasn't an issue. It was my fault for not introducing you before we went our separate ways back in California."

"Still, he's very loyal to you."

Taking a healthy swig of the amber liquid, the younger man answered, "Make no mistake, his loyalty lies with Buffy. And with Faith. It is because of them that he is with us."

"Whatever the reason, he is a good man to have on our side. He and Faith are doing a remarkable job leading the team in Cleveland. The undead population is down fifteen percent already, the new Hellmouth isn't expanding, they've already found and recruited six new Slayers in the Midwest alone, and Robin says Xander is bringing three more."

"How many new Slayers have we identified internationally apart from North America?" Giles asked, picking up his father's fountain pen and pulling out a notepad of paper from the top right hand drawer.

Sebastian stared into his glass and answered, "Twelve."

"How many active Watchers do we have?"

"Not nearly as many as we are going to need. Recruitment is... difficult. Several families were wiped out by the Bringers, finding people to fill those roles is becoming more difficult in a world that is growing ever more skeptical. We need our established Watchers, not all of whom are active Watcher material, to help find the new Slayers. In addition to those challenges, the two remaining seers in the Council cannot cope with the influx of Slayers, nor can they match them up with those who should be their fated Watchers. It's a damnable mess."

Giles blew out a breath, "On the plus side, the spell was only meant to activate girls with Slayer potential for that given day. So there should be a finite number Slayers out there."

"The problem is we do not know that number, and identifying the girls is nearly an impossible task, Rupert. How many potentials were activated in a world population of four billion on that given day?"

"We do the best we can..."

"All the more reason to get the Academy up and running as soon as possible."

The two men grimaced. Giles put the pen down and looked at his notes, only able to make out a few words here and there. His attempts at writing right handed were valiant, but he was still rather hopeless.

"Without Xander, I cannot draw up any architectural plans to convert the house into a proper school. If we have need right away, we can create a couple makeshift dormitories from several apartments in the west wing. The large dining room can serve its purpose, and we can set up a few of the unused rooms into classrooms. Sports equipment is easily procured and we can transform the old equestrian arena into a gym to accommodate training needs. We made do with far less in Sunnydale."

"Indeed you did. Cheers," Sebastian said, leaning forward to tap his tumbler against his nephew's.

Downing the last of his scotch, the younger Watcher set down his glass and rubbed the back of his neck. "There's a lot to think about and we'll need to address these issues with Buffy and the rest of the Board."

XxXxXxXx

The ground was soft from the early morning rainfall and it was cooler that day than it had been in a while as the sun attempted to peak through the cloud cover with very limited success. The Slayer picked up her pace as she crested the hill with Ivey taking the lead and Seamus loping faithfully by her side. Her initial explorations the previous day had allowed her to scope out the possibility of a suitable running route down to the coast a few miles away and she was determined to check it out. There was an obvious serpentine path down and she continued her journey, meticulously mapping the course in her head for future runs.

Rounding a corner on the path down the hill, Buffy's mind wandered back to Giles and his uncle. She worried about her fiancé and hoped that Sebastian would lure him out of the protective shell he currently enveloped himself in. She had no doubt that he would talk to her when he was ready, but the older man had a way of getting through to his nephew.

As she hit about the three mile mark in her run, Buffy was consumed with a wave of exhaustion. "Oh, Jesus!" she exclaimed, dropping to her knees and gulping in air as quickly as she could.

Seamus stopped and was at her side within a heartbeat, dropping to his belly and whimpering loudly. Ivey circled back and stood guard over the two. The Slayer looked the great grey wolfhound in the eye, groaned, and rolled onto her back, staring up into the grey sky, her legs and arms feeling as though they weighed a ton from the lactic acid building up in her muscles.

Trying not to panic, Buffy kept her focus at a fixed point in the sky and evened out her breathing. With the wind blowing off the bay on her sweat soaked skin, she started to shiver and the muscles in her left leg started to cramp. That was an unfamiliar and excruciating experience. The last time she felt something like it was immediately after the Cruciamentum.

The pain built in her leg and she let out a howl as the tears started to fall. Seamus moved closer to her, providing her with much needed warmth, and she turned into him to shield herself from the wind as she tried to flex her leg to work the muscle free. The big dog nuzzled at her and licked her face when she moaned in pain.

Ivey settled down next to her on the other side, providing additional body heat, and as soon as Buffy had worked out the cramp, she wrapped her arm over Seamus, hugging him close. She didn't know how long she'd laid there comforted by the two wolfhounds, but after a while she recovered enough to start making her way back to the house.

Periodically bracing herself against Seamus until the Slayer healing kicked in, Buffy limped to the top of the hill while Ivey patrolled the area back and forth. Everything ached and she was tired, so she took a moment to sit down contemplating the two mile hike back to the mansion. At least most of it was down hill.

When she finally made it to the house, the Slayer sighed in relief and, upon entering it, went looking for Giles. The dogs followed her into the house, never leaving her side, earning a disapproving look from Matthew the butler as he pointed her in the direction of the drawing room. She knew she must've looked a mess too, but at the moment, she couldn't be bothered.

Opening the doors, she noticed Giles standing at one of the tables studying one of the ledgers in his hand. He had changed his clothes and was dressed much as he had at the magic shop, a dark blue suit, with a crisp light blue shirt, and a delicate blue and yellow silk tie. He'd removed the jacket and the suspenders showed off his powerful shoulders.

Looking around the room, she noticed he wasn't alone. Sebastian was there, along with a woman and three other men. Members of the board. Shit. Deciding it might be best just to go shower and make herself presentable first, Buffy started to turn but her escape was thwarted by Seamus as he let out a resounding woof and walked over to Giles, nudging the Watcher's body towards the Slayer with his head.

Giles absently stroked the wolfhound's head and addressed his fiancée, "Buffy, darling, I was starting to worry," he stated, setting down the book and walking over to her. "Everything alright?"

Eyeing the new Watchers in the room with a little hesitancy, the Slayer answered untruthfully, "It's a bit embarrassing, but I, uh, got lost on my run."

The others, in their excitement, moved forward to meet the famous heroine, but both wolfhounds moved in front of the couple, heads lowered and feet planted before them as they growled low in their throats.

"Seamus, Ivey, no! Come!" Buffy commanded wearily. Both dogs immediately did as they were told, flanking her sides, only Seamus wrapped his body around hers. "Sit!" she continued, and when they had done so, she scratched them both behind the ears. "It's okay," she told them.

"Why don't you get cleaned up?" Giles suggested tenderly, taking in her disheveled and sweaty appearance. "Dinner is in an hour and a half and introductions can wait until then."

Buffy nodded and reached up to give him a kiss. "Thanks. Sorry for being late."

He nodded his understanding and as she turned to leave the great grey wolfhound started to follow her but Buffy bid him to stay in the drawing room with the others, closing the door behind her. Seamus paced and whimpered miserably before settling down in front of the door with a heavy sigh. His sister, now relieved of duty, ambled over to Sebastian and flopped down at his feet awaiting her master's approval, which the nobleman was all too happy to give her.

"Extraordinary!" a rich Irish brogue sounded behind Giles. "What outstanding hounds those pups have grown into, Sebastian!"

"Truly they are, Declan," the white-haired Watcher responded as the attention shifted to the two men conversing.

"I always believed it was one of my grandfather's tales. I've never seen anything like that."

"Like what?" Giles asked, taking a seat on the large leather chair.

"The male has bonded with your Slayer."

"He's very taken with her," Giles agreed.

The Irishman shook his head. "You're not understanding. My family has bred wolfhounds to work with Slayers since we became Watchers. Every active O'Faolain Watcher has had a hound at their Slayer's side. I did with Jenna," he began to explain. "A wolfhound is an ancient breed that fights fiercely and proudly next to his or her master in battle. Growing up, we were told stories of our dogs bonding with Slayers, protecting both them and their Watchers, but the individual dog's life belonged only to the Slayer. I had hoped that one of the pups my father had bred when Jenna was called would bond with her, but none ever did and so we chose Turlough, the most fierce of the litter to aid us. He was loyal and brave, but in the end he was more my dog than hers."

"And you think Seamus has this bond with Buffy." It was more a statement than a question.

"I do. It's not just his actions, but his body language when he's around her, Giles. He's hers. Look at the way he watches the door. He wants to go through it to find her, and he would if she hadn't told him to stay. His body is tense, on guard, and will remain so until she walks back through it and he sees that she is safe."

"He's not been the dog I've known for the last two years since he's met her. He was always a bit of a jester. Now, it seems as though he has a purpose," Sebastian added. "I was not exaggerating when I told you he was despondent and looking for her these past two weeks, Rupert."

"And Ivey? I haven't seen her so animated around Buffy before," Giles observed. "Is she starting the bonding process as well?"

Declan O'Faolain looked over at the wheaten wolfhound snoring at her master's feet. "No, she's protecting her pack. His Lordship accepts the Slayer as a part of his family so she does as well."

"You can't have them both, Rupert," his uncle chided.

Giles was indignant and started to defend himself when a shorter man with silver hair walked over and patted his shoulder, "Can't you tell when he's teasing by now?"

Daniel McTavish's cane thumped against the wooden floor as he walked over to the chair next to Sebastian's. His knee had been shattered after he had come to the rescue of a group of drunken Watchers-in-training who were attacked by a gang of vampires. The young men were on their way back to the Academy from a football match and were in high spirits and off guard when the vampires confronted them in an alley. McTavish had been out that evening visiting friends when he heard the commotion near by. A few of the recruits sobered up enough to assist, but the Watcher had staked three of the five before taking a tire iron to the knee. The other two vampires had run off shortly after the devastating injury and none of the young recruits had been seriously hurt.

Daniel McTavish was legendary in the Council and beloved by all.

Giles had known him since he was a boy, and when he returned to the Council, the older man had taken an interest in him, becoming his mentor and teaching him about demons and the most effective ways to research. McTavish had also helped Giles channel his frustration and anger through meditation, and by building on his already extensive fencing knowledge. After a particularly frustrating day, the senior Watcher had put a broad sword in Giles' hand and started instructing him in medieval sword combat, which was much more rough and tumble than the sport of fencing and would prove more effective in the field.

Looking up at his uncle, Giles caught the mischievous grin and the twinkle in those ice blue eyes and felt silly. "Yes, well..."

"I've never heard of this legend, but if the dog is protective of her, whether there is some 'bond' or not, I say keep it, Rupert," a female voice interjected.

"It's not really my decision, is it?" the active Watcher answered.

"You are her Watcher, make it for her. Having the dog around can only serve to your advantage. You've lost her before," she continued, her voice raised in challenge.

Giles felt his anger rise and he bit down on his scathing comment, keeping his cool pale eyes trained on the older woman and warning her to not continue her thoughts. They all had, with the exceptions of Sebastian and Daniel, lost their Slayers. Giles was the only one who'd gotten his back, twice, and for this reason alone he was willing to let the woman's comments go, but just this once.

"Griet, please," Sebastian entreated. "Buffy is retired. We're not going to put her in harms way again. And do try to remember that she is also Head of Council along with Rupert, not a fresh faced girl who was just Called."

Sebastian was always the voice of reason. It was why he was Chairman of the Board.

"My apologies," Griet van Aalten yielded.

"Mine too. I know your heart is in the right place," Giles capitulated.

The Dutch woman nodded, her haunted eyes, the color of blue hyacinths, meeting his. No active Watcher ever got over the loss of their Slayer, but Giles had to wonder what sort of sick joke had caused the fates to choose her as her younger sister's Watcher.

An American accent broke the tension in the room, "You know, if it's not raining and we have time before dinner, I'd like to see the grounds. I know the property is extensive, but I want to see what's around and get a feel for the place."

"Excellent suggestion, Jonathan!" Sebastian agreed, getting up from his chair. The group of Watchers made their way out the drawing room, Ivey trotting behind her master.

"Seamus, come," Giles commanded as he followed his guests. The wolfhound reluctantly stood and gazed towards the grand staircase before following his Slayer's Watcher out the door.