Title: Lovers in
Author: Froxyn
Rating: FRM
Pairing: Buffy/Giles
Timeline: AU, still in Sunnydale, pick a season.
Synopsis: Buffy’s been thinking.
Author’s
Note: Album fic. Song and lyrics can be found here.
“What’s on your mind, Buffy?” Giles asked softly, lifting his eyes from the book in his hands to look at her.
She smiled, her legs curled under her as she sat on the couch…her head propped up with her hand, her elbow resting on the arm of the couch. “Why does anything have to be on my mind? Can’t I just…watch you for a while?”
He chuckled softly and closed the book, setting it aside as he crossed his left leg over his right knee and leaned back in the comfortable armchair. “So…nothing’s on your mind then?”
“Yeah, okay…something’s on my mind.” She responded after a moment. “But, nothing bad. At least, I don’t think it’s bad.”
He arched an eyebrow at her, intrigued by her statement. “If you were to tell me what that something is, I might be able to offer my opinion on the degree of its, um…badness.”
Buffy snorted. “Badness? Oh, you’ve been around us way too long now, mister.”
“I’m not sure I could ever be around you for too long, Buffy.” He answered softly, yet sincerely. “So…tell me.”
She was quiet for a moment, seemingly sifting through her thoughts. When she started speaking, Giles gave her his undivided attention.
“We never stop. I mean…it’s like…no matter what happens, we find a way to rise above it and carry on. With life…with…love. And I was just thinking that you and I have been through some really bad shit over the years.”
“We have.” Giles agreed, tilting his head slightly.
“And as bad as things got…we still had each other. And Will and Xand. But, some of the things that happened would’ve been bad enough for other people in our situation to go their separate ways.”
His brow furrowed. “In our situation? I rather doubt many people would be in a similar situation to us.”
“Well, I didn’t really mean a Watcher and a Slayer. I meant…two people who care for one another…who had fallen in love with each other over time. Like…well, I wouldn’t have been able to forgive Angel for temporarily getting rid of my Slayer strength.”
“Ah.” Giles responded, standing and making his way over to the liquor cabinet.
“Ah? What does ‘ah’ mean?” She asked quickly, watching him pour two drinks.
He turned, a tumbler in each hand and walked over to the couch with a smile on his face. “Just that I understand what you’re trying to say.”
She took the proffered drink and took a small sip. “You had so many chances…I gave you so many reasons…to leave me.”
“And vice versa.” Giles stated matter-of-factly, swallowing a sip of the single malt. “A few times I actually thought that perhaps I’d overstepped the line for the last time.”
“But, we didn’t. Leave, I mean.” She gazed into his eyes. “It’s gotten really bad at times, but…we stayed.”
He nodded and took another drink before continuing.
“When something is of great importance, one tends to fight harder to keep it.”
She smirked, looking down as she swirled the contents of her tumbler. “And are we ‘of great importance’?”
He was quiet for a moment, waiting until her eyes met his once more. “You are of great importance to me. You always have been.”
“So you fight to keep me?”
He shook his head, amusement showing in his eyes. “I wouldn’t say it’s a struggle. But, I’ll do what’s necessary to keep you by my side. When we have a bad spell, be it an argument or an emotional upheaval of some sort, I hold you closer to me.”
When she tilted her head, he sighed softly. “I’m not explaining this well, am I?”
“No, no…I think I get what you’re saying.” She placed her glass on the lamp table and turned to face him properly. “When adversity gets you down, then you work harder to strive.”
A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. “And I think you’ve been around me for far too long.”
She shook her head, moving to straddle his thighs. She pulled the tumbler from his hand and smiled lovingly at him.
“No…I don’t think that’s possible.”
“I’m going to take you away from here one day.” He whispered, sliding his hands up her denim-clad thighs. “I dream of just…taking you anywhere that’s not Sunnydale. Just the two of us…for just a while.”
“I can’t wait.” She whispered back.
With that, she knocked back the drink…pouring the remnants of the alcohol into her mouth. Before he could question her, she dropped the empty tumbler to the floor and slid her right hand to the back of his neck.
He accepted her kiss readily, opening his mouth under hers to allow the transfer of the liquid from her mouth to his. He swallowed the warm alcohol, relishing the sensation of the slow burn as it slid down his throat.
As his tongue slipped between her lips, his hands moved underneath her shirt. She tore her mouth away from his and leaned back, gazing into his lust-darkened eyes.
“I love you.”
He smiled and gave her a gentle nod. “I love you. Always have.”
His eyes dropped to her firm breasts as she pulled her shirt over her head and let it fall to the floor. His fingers pulled at the buttons on his own shirt as she unsnapped and unzipped her jeans.
Giles had no doubt that one day they would be free…to a certain extent. One day the Hellmouth would close. One day their time in Sunnydale would come to an end. And one day he would take Buffy away…just the two of them.
His eyes darkened another shade as Buffy climbed off of him and quickly shed the rest of her clothes. Within seconds, his own shirt had been discarded and his jeans were being impatiently tugged down and off.
One day they’d get out.
But, for now…he was more than happy with the life he shared with her. And as she slowly sank onto his erection and leaned forward to cover his mouth with hers, he knew that they would be able to defeat whatever ‘badness’ reared its ugly head at them.
Because together they were stronger than whatever evil could throw at them.
~ End