![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
littleotter73) wrote in ![[community profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/community.png){kind=small}
summer_of_giles2011-07-11 02:10 am
Fic Chasing Daylight Part 2/2
“You ready to go, big guy?” Buffy asked in good humor, stomping down the stairs. When he came out of the kitchen drying his hands on a towel, she threw him a bottle of sunscreen. “You’ll need that. We’re much closer to the equator here than London.”
He caught it deftly. “Thank you.”
“We’ll take my rental, it’s a convertible, so make sure you cover yourself really well.” Giles blanched at the thought of her driving. “I know what you are thinking, and I’m a much better driver now, but if it makes you happy, then you can drive.”
“You know the island better, it’s fine. You’re also not sixteen anymore,” he said, looking at her.
“No, I’m not,” Buffy returned, catching his eyes. She held him in thrall for a moment before he broke the contact slightly flustered.
“I... uh... my sunglasses are upstairs in my bag,” he fumbled, as he turned to race up the stairs. Setting down the sunscreen to root through his bag, he found the case with his sunglasses and took a moment to compose himself. Buffy was starting to make him feel things he didn’t want to think about. Things he couldn’t let himself think about, because it would be too easy to fall in love with her. He’d loved her in some form or another since the day he swore the Watcher’s oath to her, long before they had ever met.
Half way down the stairs, he turned and ran back up, muttering, “Damn! Suncream.”
“Are we getting out of here before siesta, Giles?” she called up, laughing.
Stalking down the steps with a glob of sunscreen on his fingers, he chased her down and painted her nose with it.
“Giles!” she screamed.
“Cheeky wench!” he laughed, as he applied the rest of it to his face and ears before squeezing more into his hands to get his neck and arms. Passing her the bottle, he grabbed her bag and her keys for her and they headed out the door.
Fifteen minutes later, they found themselves in the capital city of Arrecife where they toured the Castillo de San Juan, a 17th Century fort which ironically housed modern art, and walked along the shopping district where Giles bought a hat. Buffy picked out the Panama Jack type white fedora for him, saying he looked rather rakish, and who was he to argue? They window shopped and made conversation about the tropical fashion and she swore that she would get him into some linen. Giles eyed her skeptically, but knew that he would eventually capitulate if she pushed the issue.
“Oh, Giles, look!” she exclaimed, grabbing his hand and pulling him over to the other side of the walking street, “We should totally do this sometime.”
The Watcher looked at the board outside the small sports shop they’d almost walked past. “Snorkeling?”
“I hear the corals around here are beautiful,” she answered wistfully.
“If you like,” he said as she disappeared into the store. He sighed and followed her. When he found her, she turned to him, a triumphant look on her face.
“Tomorrow, 9am sharp, but we need to buy the gear and I bet you didn’t bring your swim trunks.” She giggled when he glared at her. “Well, you can’t snorkel without them. Go pick something out.”
They had lunch before heading back to the bungalow. The lack of sleep the previous evening and the time out in the fresh air and sun had done Giles in and he fell asleep a few minutes after sitting down on one of the couches in the living room.
It was well into the evening when he woke up finding himself sprawled out on the couch under a light blanket. His vision was still blurry from sleep and he reached up to adjust his glasses.
“They’re on the coffee table,” a gentle voice told him, and when he searched his memory to place it, he could only come up with his Slayer to match it with. But that was imposs...ible. He lifted his eyes in the direction the voice came from, and while his eyesight wasn’t great, she was close enough that he could make out her familiar face even in the low light.
Shaking his head to rid himself of the cobwebs, he said in wonder, “I thought I had dreamt all this for a moment.”
“Kinda surreal, huh?” Buffy asked with an amused smile.
“A little. A lot, actually,” he revised. “How long was I asleep?”
“About six hours.”
“You shouldn’t have let me sleep so long. I’m sorry I’ve not been any sort of company this afternoon,” Giles apologized.
“You clearly needed the sleep and it’s not as if I haven’t learned to keep myself company over the past couple years,” she stated matter-of-factly. “I read for pleasure now, check it out: Jane Austen.”
He put his glasses back on, sat up, and looked at the cover of the book. “Emma. Lovely read,” he commented. “Have you really been alone all this time?”
“For the most part,” she answered. “I traveled with an Australian couple when I was in Thailand. Sometimes I make friends where I am staying and sometimes I keep to myself, but it’s mostly been me, myself, and I.”
Keeping quiet and folding the blanket up, he knew his Slayer hated silence and would eventually fill the void by talking. He silently counted to thirty before she offered some more insight into her self banishment.
“At first it was hard. I wanted to be around people, but at the same time I didn’t. After a while, I would sit and meditate like you showed me and eventually I found my center. It took a long time, though. I came to grips with Dad’s death. I know it wasn’t my fault, but having so many issues unresolved between us at the time, and coming off the deaths of Spike and the baby Slayers, it was just too much.” Her stormy green eyes met his jade ones and he saw the acceptance therein. There was still pain, there would always be, but not the haunted look he had seen back in LA.
“Thank you for taking Dawn. I know...”
“It’s not a burden for me, Buffy, I wouldn’t have offered if it was something I didn’t want to do.”
“Oxford, huh?” she asked with a grin spreading across her face. He answered her question with a smile of his own. “Proud papa,” she teased, and he laughed.
They made sandwiches for dinner and spent the evening sitting on the couch together reading to each other from Buffy’s book. He marveled at the tonal quality of her voice as her tongue danced across the words. The language could be quite difficult if one wasn’t accustomed to it, but she had no such difficulty, and he was enchanted. When it was his turn to read again, he took the book from her and she curled up against his side as he continued the tale. Amused by her familiarity with him, he kept his free arm perched on the back of the sofa. After a couple chapters, he found that she had fallen asleep and he put the book down.
“Buffy... Buffy, sweetheart...” he called as he gently shook her. When she woke, he started, “It’s late, we should get some sleep since you have booked us on an excursion tomorrow.”
“Hmmm... okay.” She rose from her seat against him. “This was nice, Giles, thank you.”
He grinned. “It was. Thank you for inviting me here.”
“Will you watch the sunrise with me again tomorrow?”
“Of course.”
Stepping into his space, Buffy gave him a hug before they headed up to their separate rooms.
--------
The following morning they sat on the same outcrop of rocks watching the sunrise, but this time, she sat in his embrace, their proximity not an issue for either of them, and Giles wondered how it was that she fit so perfectly within his arms.
“I never cease to be amazed at how truly different each dawn is,” Buffy whispered as the sun rose above the waterline. “I used to come in from patrol, shower and fall asleep before the sun rose because I knew then that I had beaten back death, kept it at bay in the night. Now... now I want to face life, embrace it. I said yesterday that I’ve been chasing daylight. It’s true. The first daylight. I don’t feel the darkness anymore.”
He hugged her to him and returned in a hush, “You are the light, Buffy. When you beat back death in the night, you allow for the day to dawn. Now is your time to enjoy it. There are others who are happy to have taken up your mantle.”
“I know, and I am finally okay with that too. We did a good thing. No one fights alone anymore. The sacrifices were hard, but they weren’t in vain.”
“No, they weren’t,” he agreed, placing his chin on her shoulder as he watched the sun climb higher into the sky, and he smiled into her hair when she nuzzled her head against his cheek.
----------
Sitting in the boat as they headed out to the reef to go snorkeling, Giles watched Buffy talk to the guide. She was smiling, wearing a wrap around flowing skirt and a light blue tank top, and when she looked over at him, her eyes twinkled. The moment seemed to last forever, like slow motion, and he knew in that instant that his heart didn’t belong to him anymore.
When the boat stopped and anchored, he pulled his snorkeling gear out of his bag, took off his glasses, and stripped down to his short blue trunks when he heard his Slayer come up behind him, “Wow, Giles, you stud, still keeping in shape, I see. Need some help applying the sunscreen in those hard to reach places?”
Slightly embarrassed, Giles turned around and nearly lost the power of speech. Buffy was standing before him in a red bikini and he got an eyeful of the curves he had noticed the previous morning, fueling him with images and fantasies that could very possibly last his lifetime.
“I... uh... that would probably be a good idea.”
“Alright, but you have to return the favor. The sun is intense at this latitude,” she stated as she turned him back around and started massaging the lotion into his neck and back. He loved the feel of her hands on his body and he tried to suppress the light moans that threatened to escape his throat, not entirely sure if he was successful in that endeavor. However, nothing compared to the sensations he felt when it was his turn to apply the sunscreen to her back. Her skin was like silk under his calloused hands, and she turned her head, reaching back to lift her hair for him. Their eyes locked, and when he started to rub the lotion in, she closed her eyes, letting out a soft sigh. Her lips parted and her breathing quickened when he ran his hands down her sides, and she turned ever so slightly towards him. Unable to resist her pull, he wrapped his arms around her and drew her into his body, lowering his head as she raised her hand to guide his lips to hers.
At that moment, the boat lurched in a wake as a speed boat zipped by. They both lost their balance and Giles did everything he could to push Buffy to safety as the momentum threw him out of the boat and into the ocean. Sputtering as he broke the surface, he looked up and found a very concerned Slayer waiting for him.
“Giles, are you okay?”
“Fine,” he called back as he swam towards her. “I’m in now, just throw down the gear.”
She joined him in the ocean, and they donned their masks, fins, and snorkels, exploring the reef and its wildlife. Taking the time to enjoy their surroundings, they also played in the water together, splashing, laughing, and dunking each other under the waves, and when the time came to head back, they were tired, hungry, and happy.
Later they ate dinner at the Chinese restaurant she had recommended, and afterward, the Watcher and Slayer spent the evening in the living room reading Emma to each other, much as they had the previous evening, except when Buffy curled up against Giles this time, he wrapped his arm around her.
------------
The next couple days were spent watching the sunrise, exploring the island, and reading together. They rode camels in Timanfaya National Park, climbed Montana Roja, and spent time walking along the beach. They were almost always touching in some way, holding hands, pushing each other around when they were joking, and, whenever possible, they found excuses to hold one another. Saying good night took longer and longer as they hugged each other before retreating to their rooms, neither one wanting to say the final goodnight.
Lying on his bed that night, Giles reviewed the last few days he’d spent with his Slayer. He wasn’t an idiot, he knew what she wanted, and, ultimately, he knew what he wanted, but so far, he didn’t know what she wanted long term, and he wasn’t sure he could just have a fling in paradise only to head home without her. As it was, he was going to have an excruciating time of it if they were to part. It took a long time for sleep to overtake him and he groaned when he heard the early morning knock at his door.
“Hey Giles, time to go to the beach,” she called.
Rubbing his hands over his eyes, he responded, “Just a moment.” Pulling on the linen slacks and sandals Buffy had bought for him while they were out the previous day, he padded into the bathroom to splash water on his face and change his t-shirt.
Again they sat on a rock holding each other, waiting for the sun to make its appearance. As they waited, Giles decided to test the waters. “I talked to Dawn again yesterday while you were in the shower.” Feeling her stiffen in his embrace, he instinctively nuzzled his cheek against her hair and felt her relax.
“How is she?”
“Hurt that she hasn’t had a chance to talk to you, but she’s trying to be understanding. She passed along Willow and Xander’s love as well.”
“I’ll call her after the sun rises,” Buffy decided.
The Watcher smiled to himself. She was ready to stop running. If she realized it yet herself or not, he wasn’t sure, but what he was sure about was that he was now willing to risk his heart.
“She’ll be thrilled,” he stated, and moved his hand from around her waist, entwining his fingers with hers as she leaned back into him. He kissed her temple and closed his eyes, taking in her scent.
“Not to go all Beatles, but here comes the sun,” Buffy quipped, and the contented Watcher opened his eyes to welcome the day with her. He understood her fascination, but he found his focus wasn’t really where it was supposed to be.
They watched in silence as the sun broke through the horizon, announcing the arrival of the day. The surf rolled in and they were content to sit and hold one another, neither one wanting the moment to end. It was Giles who finally moved, taking a moment to look at his watch after the sky evened out to it’s normal blue hue.
“Dawn will be getting ready for school now. Are you ready?” her Watcher asked softly, pulling out his phone from his pocket.
“As I’ll ever be,” Buffy answered, turning to face him. “I just sort of worry that it will be like it was when I came back from LA that summer after killing Angel, or worse yet, after I died.”
“They’ve all grown a lot since then, Buffy.”
“I know, but I left you all with a huge mess... again,” she responded, gnawing on her lower lip and gazing at their footprints in the sand.
Giles lifted her chin with his forefinger, his pale green eyes reflecting his concern for her. “If they want to be mad at anyone, they can be mad at me. I told you to take the time you needed, and you did. Right now, it’s just a phone call. What happens after that is entirely up to you.”
They held one another’s gaze, both knowing his words had an entirely different meaning behind them than those pertinent to their conversation.
“How did I ever let you go all those years ago?” she breathed, searching his face for answers.
“I’m here now,” Giles answered barely above a whisper.
Dropping her gaze to the mobile phone in his hand, Buffy steeled her resolve. “Okay, call her.”
He nodded, dialed the number, and put the phone to his ear, “Good morning, sleepyhead, it’s Dad... yes... everything’s fine... the weather has been lovely and we’ve done a lot of sightseeing.” Looking over at his Slayer, he smiled apologetically. “Dawn, listen, your sister would like to speak with you...”
Pulling the phone away from his ear at the sound of the excitable teen screaming, Giles passed it to Buffy. He squeezed her shoulder and motioned that he was heading back to their place, allowing her to talk to her sister in peace. As he left the beach, he figured the call would probably cost him a fortune, but it didn’t matter.
He whiled away the time puttering around the house and getting things ready for breakfast when he noticed that an hour had almost passed. Worried that she hadn’t made it back yet, he walked back to the beach and found her still sitting on the rock, her eyes red from crying. Racing over to her, he thought that if Dawn had said something to upset his... Buffy... he would ensure that the girl would be grounded until graduation, perhaps longer.
“Buffy, are you alright?” Giles asked, crouching in front of her and handing her his white handkerchief.
“Mostly happy tears... I promise,” she sniffled. “And some regretful. She sounds so grown up. Oh, I made her late for school.”
He laughed, taking her hand in his. “I am sure she doesn’t care, and who am I to chide her for tardiness when she was given the opportunity to speak with you?”
Her lips twitched up into a small smile. “I never asked, do you have a picture of her?”
“I do.” He pulled out his wallet and fished out Dawn’s most recent school photo. Handing it to her, he said, “This was taken at the beginning of term.”
“Wow. That’s my baby sister.”
“Indeed. Most days, she’s still a bit of a goofball and her tendency to whine a little to try and get her way hasn’t faded as I would have hoped.”
Buffy laughed. “She told me how good you are with her.”
He ducked his head, slightly embarrassed, “Come on,” he said, standing up again. “I have breakfast ready and we should go back while I can still feel my lower extremities.” He offered her his hand and when she stood up, she embraced him.
“Thank you. We’re both so lucky to have you in our lives,” she declared, looking up at him.
“I’m the lucky one,” he murmured, his finger tracing her cheek.
“I want to see her, Giles... and Willow and Xander.”
His voice was soft yet husky, “Then we fly to London. When do you want to go?”
“Soon... day after tomorrow, maybe?”
“You tell me, and I will have the Council jet here, ready to take us home.”
“Traveling in style these days?”
“Being the boss has its benefits,” the Head Watcher responded, mesmerized by the look of amusement in her mossy green eyes. “Come on, let’s have some breakfast, shall we?”
They lounged around the bungalow the rest of the morning talking and reading together, and as Buffy read, Giles sat on the floor below her, enjoying listening to the sound of her voice and the calming touch of her fingers combing through his hair. After finishing the book and eating a quick lunch, they drove south to explore a couple of the coastal towns they’d missed earlier in the week. When the sun went down, they stopped and had a late dinner in Arrecife before returning to their bungalow.
As they walked through the door, Buffy asked, “I’m not really tired, do you think we could watch a movie on the DVD player?”
“I’d like that. Why don’t you choose the film whilst I get us some drinks?”
Halfway through the remake of The Thomas Crown Affair, Buffy got up to refill her glass of water and when she came back, she found her Watcher sprawled out on the couch. Glaring at him, she moved one of his legs off the sofa and settled herself between them using him as a backstop. Giles put his arms around her and she took one of his hands in hers.
The movie was full of sexual tension and intrigue, and Giles found himself half watching the movie and half watching Buffy as she lightly dragged her fingers along his left hand. Between the low lighting in the room, the film, and her touch, Giles was incredibly turned on. He responded to her caresses by gliding his fingers back along hers and he nuzzled his face into her hair, periodically kissing the top of her head, until he no longer cared what was on the screen. Even the light floral scent from her shampoo had an affect on him. Their fingers danced along the other’s, slow and methodical - light exchanges, but enough to cause their breathing to become erratic. When her fingers traced up his arm, Giles shivered, and she turned part way in his embrace.
Tracing his jawline with the back of her hand, she then ran her index finger over his lips. He held her gaze and kissed her finger. Buffy shifted so that she could lean down to kiss him, teasing him lightly, brushing her lips against his, until he ran his hand through her hair and around to the back of her head to take control.
He’d been waiting for this moment for days and as he applied more pressure to her lips, she parted them for him, her tongue peaking out, and he caressed it with his. He felt her hands exploring his chest beneath his shirt, and when she scraped one of his nipples with her fingernail, he tore his mouth from hers, letting out a strangled moan.
Buffy giggled at his reaction and pushed his shirt up over his head before licking and sucking her way up along the vein pulsating in his neck towards his ear. “You have a beautiful body, Giles,” she said appreciatively. “Wide shoulders...” she started a list as she kissed her way to each body part. “Well developed pecs... sensitive nipples...”
“Dear God, Buffy,” he gasped as she sucked the one she hadn’t teased earlier into her mouth and flicked it with her tongue.
Having finished her exploration of his chest, she moved further down, continuing her list, “Toned tummy with a cute little belly button...” and he writhed beneath her as she dipped her tongue into the dimple. “And now we come to the happy trail, Giles, so tantalizing...” she murmured as she made her way towards the button of his slacks.
He whimpered and pulled her back up his body, sitting up to kiss her along her neck and chin. He ran his hands along the outside of her legs and lifted her skirt before resting his hands on her hips.
“I didn’t get to show you how much I admire your legs,” she admonished, running her hands through his hair as she moved to straddle his lap, her forehead pressing against his as she lowered herself to grind against his hard groin. “Long and lean... powerful thighs.”
He looked into her eyes, moaning appreciatively as his hands trailed up her sides, taking her tank top with them, and she raised her arms over his head to help him remove the garment. She wore a lacy white bra and in the low lighting from the TV, he caught sight of her hardened pink nipples. Latching on to one with his lips, he nibbled and licked at it while he teased the other, rolling it between the forefinger and thumb on his left hand, enjoying the lascivious sounds coming from his Slayer as she continued to undulate against him.
“I think we need to move this party upstairs,” Buffy whispered in his ear before scraping her teeth along his earlobe.
“Wise idea,” he responded breathlessly. “Your room or mine?”
“Ours,” Buffy answered, settling herself back onto his thighs, her eyes searching his.
Steadying himself, Giles cupped her cheek, declaring, “I love you.”
She smiled at him, leaning in to kiss him, once, twice, three times, “I know... I love you, too.” Climbing off of him, she stood up, and offered him her hand.
Unable to stop kissing or touching each other, it took them a few minutes to make their way up the stairs, but when they finally made it to the top, the Slayer took his hand and opened the door that was once only her bedroom. He followed her in and she let go of him, turning to face him as she undid the clasp of her bra and shrugged it off.
Giles drew in a sharp breath. “Beautiful, Buffy, simply perfection,” he murmured as he stepped forward, taking her in his arms.
They made love slowly, and when he finally entered her, it was as though all the pieces fell into place. Everything they had been through had brought them to this place. He loved watching her above him, but quickly flipped her over and settled between her thighs when he felt them drawing close. Hovering above her he stopped his movements to look at her.
When she felt him still, she opened her eyes and claimed him, “Mine... my Giles.”
Lowering himself, he kissed her softly. “Always.”
It was then that they abandoned themselves to the physical sensations and let go. Giles increased the pace, rested his forehead in the crook of her neck, and she met him stroke for stroke.
“Take me over, Giles,” she begged, grabbing his backside with both of her hands.
He gently bit down on the pulse point of her neck and she screamed her release. The sensations of her inner muscles grabbing his cock threw him over the edge and he called out her name as he came.
As they lay in the afterglow caressing each other, the contented Watcher looked at the clock next to their bed. “It’s about time to greet the day, my love.”
“You don’t mind?” Buffy asked, knowing he had to be exhausted.
He rolled onto his side and brushed his lips against hers. “Get dressed,” he answered softly.
They took up their customary spot on the rocks, Giles holding her in his arms as the first fingers of light graced the sky.
“I figured it out a while ago... that we were supposed to be together. When I would watch the dawn break, there was only one person I wanted to share it with.”
“And when did you come to this epiphany?”
“The first time I stayed up to watch the sunrise from the high rise apartment I rented in New York. It was my last day in the city and I was leaving for Thailand that evening. After that, I sent you the invitation to meet me.”
“I’m sorry I didn’t figure it out sooner,” he replied regretfully.
“I probably wasn’t ready then,” Buffy responded insightfully, pulling her lover closer to her. “Doesn’t matter, we’re here now.”
“Indeed.”
-----------------
Giles looked at his watch as he sat in his overstuffed chair in the library. Dawn would be home any minute. He had only beaten her home by an hour and left his leather bag in the hallway to herald his arrival when she walked through the door. It had been a week since he had met Buffy on the beach in Lanzarote and he knew his adopted daughter would be anxious for news of her sister.
Picking up the crime novel he had forgotten the week prior, he started to reread the first three pages.
“Dad!” A high pitched voiced squealed as he heard the front door slam shut.
“In the library, sweetheart,” he called back, steadying his voice.
The girl ran into the room, and launched herself into his arms as he stood up, “How are you? Is Buffy coming home? I got the highest mark in the class for that Shakespeare paper I turned in. Hey... you’re tan!”
Giles laughed at her babbling. “Well done! I’m fine. The holiday did me some good,” he stated with amusement. “I have something for you.” He held up an open box containing the olivine earrings and necklace from Buffy.
Dawn took it and inspected the jewelry, “They’re beautiful!” she admired, her voice unstable. “How... how was she? Is Buffy-”
“Hey, kiddo,” the Slayer greeted as she moved out of the shadows.
Dawn looked at her sibling, for once speechless, and started shaking as the silent sobs wracked her body. In an instant Buffy was at her side, pulling her into an embrace, allowing her tears to fall as well.
“Are you staying?” the younger girl asked when she finally found her voice.
“Yeah, I am. Forever,” Buffy replied, lifting her eyes to her lover and taking his hand. “I’ve finally caught up with the daylight.”
Giles gave Buffy a soft kiss on her lips before turning his attention to Dawn.
The teen’s eyes widened as a goofy grin crept to her face. “Oh. My. God!”
no subject
This one turned out really well, I think. The narrative moved along nicely, and I liked the way you gave them a little time alone to realize the potential in their relationship.
The postcards were an especially nice touch- weirdly romantic, and she just *would* expect him to be able to figure it out!
As usual, I am delighted with your work. And you get an extra Jammie Dodger since it's your birthday and all! (gives cookie)
no subject
You can see her sitting there, shaking her head and thinking, "It's plain English. Miss ya, love ya, wish you were here." LOL
Yay! I don't like the apricot ones though. :)