__Giles__
By Sandra Pascoe



You're in an Italian restaurant . Rupert decided to "kill two birds with
one stone" and celebrate Valentine's Day together with your one month
anniversary and you agreed with alacrity. Has it only been a month, you
think as you watch Rupert settle the bill, it seems as though you've
known and loved him forever. It had been a perfect evening . marvellous
food and Rupert at your side . what more could you want? You leave the
restaurant and Rupert's arm snakes around your shoulders, pulling you
close. You snuggle into him, wrapping your arm around his waist. You
feel more content in this one moment than you ever have been. You
don't speak . neither of you feel the need to disrupt this perfect moment
with words. You near the car and suddenly a yell cuts through the
silence. You find yourself being pushed aside as Rupert turns to face
the "attacker". You watch in amazement as he fluidly and efficiently
spins on his heel and thrusts a wooden stake into the "man's" chest. As
the dust settles, Rupert walks towards you, a look of complete
despondency on his face. You feel dazed and confused as Rupert ushers
you towards the car but once safely inside, you start to question him.
Without looking at you he tells you a story . a story you do not doubt for
an instant . his voice, the way his hands clasp the steering wheel . you
know that every word is true - and that frightens you more than the
encounter outside the restaurant. Your mind is buzzing with thoughts .
Ripper, Eyghon, Vampires, Watchers, Slayers . it's all a confusing blur
and you don't notice that Rupert has driven you to your house. He turns
to look at you and you suck in a breath at the pain on his face. You open
your mouth to speak but Rupert shakes his head.

"No," he says, "not now. You need time to think about all this. I was
hoping we'd have more time . I'd hoped to prepare you more. If . if you
don't want to continue . I'll understand."

You frown at him and a small smile crosses his face. He gently reaches
out and tenderly caresses your cheek.

"Take your time," he says. "Be sure."

You nod and get out of the car. Rupert watches until you step inside
your house and then he drives off.

You spend a restless night, not a lot seems to make sense anymore and
you finally give up trying to sleep. Turning on the TV you gaze blankly at
the screen, going over everything in your mind. You finally make a
decision but it doesn't help - you can't think, can't seem to do anything.
When dawn breaks you breathe a sigh of relief and head off to shower
and dress. You need to see Rupert, you long to see him but you have to
go to work and, in this case, a simple telephone call will not be enough.
Work is a complete disaster - you make silly mistakes all morning, can't
concentrate on anything and finally decide to simply take the afternoon
off. You head towards the "Magic Box", your stomach churning and your
hands sweaty. You have your speech all prepared, you know exactly
what to say . what to tell him. Taking a deep breath, you push open the
door and step inside. Anya looks up as you enter and then she turns to
where Rupert is arranging a pile of books.

"Giles!" She yells, "your girlfriend's here!"

You wince at her strident tones and then realise that Rupert has seen
your wince. From the look on his face, you know that he's
misinterpreted it entirely. Suddenly your carefully prepared speech goes
out of the window. Bugger this, you think and stride towards him. He
keeps his head down, not looking at you. You sigh and reach up,
grabbing his head and dragging it down. You capture his lips in a
searing kiss and you can almost feel the relief flood through him. He
pulls you closer, almost lifting you off your feet in his enthusiasm. As you
break the kiss, Rupert grins down at you.

"I take it you've made your decision."

You nod. "I've decided that it doesn't matter. Watchers, Slayers and rest
of that crap . it doesn't matter one jot."

Rupert frowns and you smile up at him.

"I know it's all true," you reassure him, "but it still doesn't matter. All
that matters is that I love you.and I want you. Every part of you . and if
that includes Slayers, Vampires and Demons then so be it. I'm not giving
you up that easily."

Rupert giggles with delight and you feel your knees weakening at the
sound.

"How about teaching me a few of those fancy moves of yours?" You ask
innocently and a dangerous gleam enters Rupert's eyes. Aha, you think,
seems like a part of this Ripper character is still there.

"So," you say softly as you wrap your arms around him, "you never did
tell me what happened to the rest of that cursed chocolate . I don't
suppose you thought to keep any?"

"Ripper doesn't need chocolate," murmurs Rupert as he softly kisses
your neck, "he'll be here whenever you need him."

"Oh goodie," you reply with a soft giggle, "but at the moment I'm more
than happy with Rupert."

* * *