Finding You

[the_huffster]

Title: Finding You
Pairing: Giles/Buffy
Rating: PG
Setting: During "Intervention" with a touch of AU
Word count: 1,183
Disclaimer: I own nothing
Summary: Giles learns that ignoring "the kiss" and vision quests don't mix. Especially when his Slayer learns something disturbing from her spirit guide.
Author's Note: Part 2 of the small series me and will_conqueror1  (who also was my beta for this) wrote for SoG this year

Not for the first time since Buffy had set out into the desert, Giles mentally berated himself for not bringing along something to do while he waited. He knew these vision quests could take anywhere from a few hours to a few days, and yet he still brought nothing with him. But when his Slayer came to him with her concerns, all he had been thinking about was helping her. That still didn’t mean he couldn’t be bored though.

It wasn’t so much the boredom as it was the time alone with his thoughts, particularly his thoughts concerning a certain night a few weeks ago. Things between him and Buffy had changed from the moment he had kissed her but neither one of them had really said anything about that night. To be fair though, they had both been fairly busy dealing with everything else since then.

A part of him hoped that they could talk about it when she returned, while the other part of him hoped it would be swept under the rug for self-preservation reasons. Regardless, figuring out where things would go between them wasn’t exactly a top priority for either Watcher or Slayer. Right now they had Glory to deal with, and keeping Dawn safe; both of which were far more important than figuring out if their relationship would take on a more romantic tone or not.

Giles had been so lost in thought that he hadn’t realized Buffy had come back until she was already sitting next to him, her head resting on his shoulder. 

“If I never have to do another vision quest again, it’ll still be too soon.” She said after a moment.

“I take it you were successful?” he asked softly, his gaze still focused on the fire as he felt her nod her head.

“And I’ll tell you all about my vision later. Right now, I have more important things to take care of.”

He narrowed his eyes and turned to look at her. He was about to ask her what she meant when she leaned forward to kiss him, nearly mirroring when he had kissed her. However, it was very clear that this wasn’t going to be a simple peck when the Slayer deepened the embrace. Giles had a feeling that whatever had been revealed to her was the driving force behind her actions and he knew he should end the kiss, but he found himself returning it.

It wasn’t too much longer before he felt Buffy move to straddle his lap, her arms wrapping around his neck. It was clear that she wanted things to go further, but he knew they needed to talk before the situation got out of hand. Giles pulled back and just looked at her as he tried to gain control of himself.

 “What happened out there, Buffy?” he asked softly.

“Giles, I really don’t want to talk about it right now. All I want to do is be here with you and just…” she made a small noise as a way to convey that she didn’t know how to say what she wanted to. “I need this. Please.”

The Watcher gave her a small smile, even though he was sure it might be too dark to see, and gently moved her off of his lap. In the soft glow of the fire he could see the look of confusion and hurt on her face.

“If we ever cross that line, I don’t want there to be any regret.” He explained. “I need to know what happened on your quest.”

A moment passed and Giles began to wonder if maybe he had made a mistake. Perhaps insisting on her telling him was the wrong choice after all.

“You kissing me was your way of telling me you were in love with me.” Buffy stated. Even though it wasn’t a question he still nodded, which caused her to smile slightly. “I thought that I would have more time to really process that, to really make sure of what I felt because if things go bad…you’re the one person I can’t lose, Giles. And all the guys I fall for tend to go running the opposite direction and…”

Her sentence died when he reached out and gently took her hand.

“Buffy, that night I didn’t kiss you expecting anything from you.” His voice was gentle as he gave her hand a reassuring squeeze. “However you want to progress from that, it doesn’t have to be a hasty decision. There’s plenty of time for us to talk things over and decide what to do.”

“But that’s the thing, you may have the time but I don’t. I’m going to die, Giles.”

“Buffy…”

“This isn’t me just saying it because of occupational hazards. When I was out there…my spirit guide told me that my gift is death.” Her voice was so soft and she looked so vulnerable it broke his heart. “I’m not a cold hearted killer, so I know that’s not what the meaning was. If my death is coming sooner than any of us expect, then I don’t want to miss out on anything.”

He looked down when she turned her hand to lace their fingers. He looked back at his Slayer and, once she was saying registered, leaned forward and kissed her softly. This kiss wasn’t as urgent or demanding, but the passion was still there. When they parted, it was clear that they wouldn’t go any further than that but it was also very clear that their relationship had indeed changed. And they were both very aware of it.

Buffy moved to lean against his side once again, encouraging his arm to hold her close. They sat like that for a few more minutes and enjoyed being close to each other.

“My spirit guide was wrong.” Her voice broke the comfortable silence that had fallen over them.

“Hmmm?”

“She said that love would lead me to my gift.” He felt her shift next to him and turned to look at her once again. 

Giles narrowed his eyes slightly, not entirely sure where she was going with the subject. His puzzlement must have been evident because Buffy laughed softly and muttered something about looking adorable when confused.

“I was told that love would lead me to my oh so wonderful gift of death, and while I’m sure there’s truth in that, she was wrong.” She brought her hand up to run her fingers through his hair. “Learning about my death got me thinking about the night you kissed me and about how I was so afraid I wasn’t capable of love, but then I realized that this gift led me to you.”

It took him a moment to realize what she was telling him before he grinned and held her close. He placed a kiss to her temple. As they held each other, he made a silent promise to do whatever he needed to make sure that she wouldn’t be just another Slayer to die at an early age. After all, they had a future together to plan for.