Title:
Flare
Author: Froxyn
Rating: FRAO
Pairing: Buffy/Giles
Synopsis: Buffy’s temper gets the best of her when Giles states that he
should leave Sunnydale.
His head was tilted down, his eyes staring into hers. His breath
quickened, her hands lingering on the lapels of his leather jacket for far too
long. He noticed that the anger had suddenly left her eyes, being
replaced by…
His mouth
was suddenly dry, a lump forming in his throat. Surely he was misreading
her. Or maybe it was a simple case of transference. Seeing his
emotions in her eyes, and not her own. He gasped lightly as her fingers
tightly gripped the soft leather.
“Buffy?”
She stared
into his eyes a moment longer before releasing her hold and giving him a slight
push backward. His heart dropped as her eyes cleared of the emotion he
had wanted to believe was there, leaving only the glistening of unshed tears.
She
diverted her eyes from him before she spoke. There was no anger in her
voice, only resignation.
“Why?”
His hand
trembled slightly as he reached up to wipe a tear that had spilled onto her
cheek. He dropped it slowly as she turned away from him before he could
touch her.
“Buffy, I…”
“Don’t.
Just…don’t. Don’t make this harder than it already is.” Her back
was to him, but he knew she was crying. “You’re leaving. And…there
is nothing I can do about it.”
He took a
deep breath as he took a step forward, almost wishing she was still screaming
at him. His heart crumbled at the thought of his Slayer crying because of
something he had said.
He cleared
his throat softly, hoping to get the words out before she interrupted him again.
“Buffy, I
never said that I was leaving. I said…”
He inhaled
quickly in frustration as she whirled around, the anger back in her blue
eyes. “I heard what you said! And you sure as hell didn’t say ‘Hey,
I think I’ll stay here in Sunnydale for a few more years’, did you?”
He winced
as her voice rose. “Please, calm…”
She took a
step forward quickly, a finger pointed at his chest, her eyes dark with
rage. “Don’t you dare say calm down. I swear, if you say that I
will knock you into the next room.”
His eyes
narrowed slightly, anger sparking in his green irises. “Calm down.”
The words
were said deliberately, in defiance of her furious request. Without
thinking, she swung her leg into a quick roundhouse. Her foot made
contact with his sternum, the air rushing from his lungs as he fell through the
open doorway behind him. His head struck the floor with a sickening crack.
He was aware of one last thought before he fell into darkness.
‘She really
did knock me into the next room.’
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
She
realized what she had done as soon as it happened.
“Giles!”
She ran
quickly to his side, wincing at the sound of his head hitting the floor.
“Oh God, Giles! Open your eyes! Come on, don’t do this to me!”
She felt
for a pulse, exhaling quickly when she found one. She carefully ran her
fingers over his head and down his neck, feeling for any obvious
injuries. She studied her fingers as she pulled them away from his
neck. “No blood, that’s good. Giles?”
She placed
her hand tenderly on his sternum, a tear falling down her cheek as she felt his
chest rise as he inhaled. “It doesn’t feel broken or anything. Come
on Giles, wake up. Please?”
He opened
his eyes, quickly shutting them against the bright light filtering into the
training room.
“Giles!
Are you okay?”
Hearing the
panic in her voice, he re-opened his eyes and grimaced as he pushed himself
up. “I’m fine.”
“Shouldn’t
you lay down? I mean, what if your neck is broken, or your back, or…”
He
interrupted her with a soft chuckle, which ended abruptly when he winced and
clenched his hand in a tight fist. “My neck is not broken, Buffy.
Nor is my back. A rib or two, possibly. But, I’ll live.”
“Your head. It cracked…”
“I’m rather sure it was the floor that cracked.
Not my head.” He lifted his hand and gingerly placed it on the back of
his head before holding it out for her to see. “No blood. No crack.
I’m okay.”
“But…you were…unconscious…”
He placed his hand on his chest, pushing slightly
against his sternum to ease the pain. “Yes, and that’s never happened
before.”
Her eyes fell to his hand on his chest. “I’m
sorry. I didn’t mean…”
He looked up at her, a gentle smile tugging at his
lips. “I know.”
The words were simple, and simply stated. She
met his eyes, hers filled with concern at the way his face showed the pain as
he inhaled.
“We need to get you to the hospital, Giles.”
He nodded slowly. “Probably. I’m quite
sure that I should see a doctor.” He registered the worry in her
eyes. “But, I’m okay, Buffy. I’m going to be just fine.”
She sniffed back a fresh onslaught of tears and
slipped her arm around him. “I’ll help you up.”
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
He carefully slid into the passenger seat of his car,
his ribs firmly taped in place. He offered his Slayer a smile as she
climbed behind the steering wheel.
“Buffy?”
She turned the ignition, looking at him as the car
roared to life. “Are you in pain?”
His smile widened. “No, no pain at the
moment. Just…could you not drive as fast this time?”
For the first time in hours, she smiled. And for
the first time in days, she laughed. It was music to his ears. His
teeth clamped down on his tongue, biting back the words that almost
escaped. He leaned his head back onto the headrest and closed his eyes.
~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~
Feeling a hand brush across his left hip, he opened
his eyes to find a smiling Buffy leaning over him. “Hey…”
He glanced around quickly, taking in the
surroundings. “Are we home?”
She nodded as she unbuckled his seatbelt and stepped
back to help him out of the car. “In one piece, even. My driving
must not have scared you…you slept the whole way home.”
“Either that or Loritab is my new best friend.”
Buffy laughed and gently eased him onto his
feet. She kept her arm around his waist as they walked to his front
door. Flipping through the keys on his key ring, she quickly found the
one she was looking for and slipped it into the lock.
She followed him through the door, keeping her arm
firmly around him for support. She got him settled on the couch and took
a seat on the coffee table in front of him.
They were quiet for several minutes before she took a
deep breath and spoke to him softly.
“Giles, why are you leaving me?”
Slowly, he inhaled deeply and stared at her.
“Buffy, let’s not start this again. I’m not sure that I can handle
another round of getting kicked through a doorway.”
Her eyes glistened as she looked away for a
minute. Turning back to him, she sighed. “I’m not going to argue
with you. I just want to know why you’re leaving.”
He absently licked his lips and nervously ran a hand
through his hair. “I’m not leaving Buffy. What I said…well, it was
said in haste. And, I didn’t say I was leaving. I said that I
probably should leave.” He tilted his head slightly and looked into her
eyes. “There is a difference.”
She wrapped her arms around herself and slowly nodded
her head. “Okay. But why do you think you should leave?”
He leaned back into the couch, his eyes never leaving
hers. “I…I don’t think we should have this conversation at this moment.”
Her eyes widened, her hands falling to her lap.
“Giles…”
He shook his head quickly, a little too quickly he
realized too late. His hand darted out, grabbing onto the armrest of the
sofa to steady himself. “No, Buffy. Neither of us are in a position
to have a rational conversation. I’m…well, I’m not exactly sober.
And you…”
He paused, trying to find the right words as his heart
pounded in his chest. “Well, your emotions are running at a slightly
elevated level at the moment.”
His eyes narrowed in confusion as she started laughing
uncontrollably. “Slightly elevated? Try ‘off the scale’,
Giles. You tell me that you’re leaving…” She shook her head as he
tried to interrupt her. “No, that’s how I heard it then. I know
differently now, but not then. What am I supposed to do without you here?
Who is going to keep me grounded if you’re gone?”
His lips curled into a half-smile. “I don’t keep
you grounded when I am here, Buffy.”
She stood up quickly. “Of course you do!
Look at me…I’m grounded Buffy. Feet firmly planted. That’s me.”
He chuckled softly. “That’s not quite what I
meant. You keep yourself grounded. You have for quite a while
now.” His smile slowly faded, his vision blurring from a thin layer of
tears. “I’m very proud of that fact.”
She sat back down and folded her hands in her
lap. “But, I still need you Giles. You’re still my Watcher.”
A sad smile played at his lips. “I haven’t been
your Watcher for some time, Buffy.”
“Well, maybe not officially. But, you still
watch over me. Don’t you?”
He diverted his eyes for a split second and
nodded. “That I do.”
She jumped back up and started pacing across the
living room in front of him. “And…you have the knowledge.” She
gestured towards the bookshelves full of ancient volumes. “And the
books. And, you speak like ten different languages. You can
translate anything. I…I have enough trouble with English. There are
times when I don’t even understand you…”
He smiled in spite of himself and reached up, grasping
her arm on her next pass. “Buffy, please sit back down.”
She did as he asked and took a deep breath. “I
don’t understand why you think you should probably leave.”
His eyes closed briefly, the painkillers clearly
wearing off. “Buffy, I can’t talk about this right now.” He rode
the wave of pain coursing through him and then reopened his eyes and looked at
her. “I promise you, we will talk about it. But, I just…I just
can’t right now. I’m physically unable to have this deep of a
conversation.”
He could see when it suddenly clicked in her head as
the grimace took over his features and then float away. “I’m sorry,
Giles.” She rummaged through her bag and pulled out a bottle of
pills. “I stopped on the way home and got your prescription filled.”
He gave her a brief smile. “That was very kind
of you, Buffy.”
She shook two pills out of the bottle and handed them
to him. “I’ll get you some water.”
“Not needed.” He popped the pills into his mouth
and quickly swallowed them. He looked towards the stairs that led to his
bedroom and sighed. “I think I’ll just lie here.”
She nodded silently and helped him get comfortable
before pulling off his shoes and draping a blanket across him. “Do
you…would you like me to stay with you?”
His fingers lightly touched her arm and he offered her
a slightly drugged grin. “I would like that, but it’s completely
unnecessary. I’m sure that you have other things that need to be
done.” He yawned as his hand fell from her arm, struggling to keep his
eyes open. “I doubt I’d be much company anyway.”
She watched him closely as his eyes fluttered before
finally closing in sleep. She sighed heavily and gently ran her fingers
through his hair.
“I’ll stay.” She quietly whispered.