Chapter 19

A month and a half had passed since Nigel's plot had been exposed and Quentin Travers resigned. After the immediate crisis of the Head Watcher's succession had eased and the investigation into Nigel's conspiracy had finished, Buffy and Giles returned to the family home outside of Bath to pack and prepare for their move to their new terraced house in London's Camden neighborhood. Of course, Buffy didn't really have anything to pack. Everything she had brought with her from Sunnydale had been packed up for her and sent to Frederick and Ellie's home in Chelsea when it was decided that they all would be staying in London.

With the purchase of their new home, Buffy and Giles had already determined that they would buy new furniture since most of the furniture in his apartments was custom made for the rooms long before he had ever moved into them. Mostly what Giles was packing up were his personal items and clothing.

He startled at the knock at his open door and placed the stack of books he was holding into a box. "Come in," he said turning to find his father entering the room.

"I wish you would let me ring a moving company," Frederick said looking around at the boxes.

"Honestly, Dad, it's not that much and we've hired a van for the day."

"Leaving tomorrow then?"

"Yes. We will sign at the solicitor's at ten and then take possession of the keys from the real estate agent directly afterwards. Have you decided which candidate you are taking on as the new estate manager?" Giles asked, changing subjects.

"Upon your suggestion, I will be offering the job to Ms Carmichael," Frederick replied, shoving his hands into his pockets.

Giles smiled in satisfaction. "Very good. Mr Douglas felt she was the most qualified for the job as well. They will work well together."

"That solidifies it then. I will ring her tomorrow." Looking around, his father asked, "So, where is Buffy?"

"Out for a run. There isn't much she can help out with at the moment as I sort through my things, so she decided to stretch her legs and explore the area."

"Ah very good." Frederick sat down in one of the chairs and crossed on leg over the other. "Have a seat, lad."

"Is something wrong, Dad?" Giles asked, taking a seat in the companion chair and mirroring his father's posture.

"No, no," Frederick assured him. "I just thought I ought to ask you what your intentions towards Buffy are, after all, you've bought a house together."

Giles shifted a little uneasily in his chair. "I think it's fairly obvious that we are lovers."

"Yes, of course… although that isn't what I mean. Have you spoken about future plans?"

"We talked about inviting Dawn stay with us for the rest of her summer holidays as soon as we are settled…"

Frederick's grimaced in consternation at his son's misdirection. "That would be lovely. I do miss the girl, but damn it all, boy, I mean more long term. Pets? Children, perhaps? For Christ's sake, marriage?"

Giles cleared his throat. "Not in such detail, no, but my commitment to her is not in question, Dad, she knows this."

"And her's to you?"

"I am secure in her feelings towards me. Buffy would never have entered into this relationship lightly, I assure you."

"Yes, that is obvious, I agree. Then why not discuss marriage? It is very clear that you are both very much in love with the other."

Giles felt the stirrings of rebellion in him. "A thirty year mortgage for which we both are responsible isn't commitment enough?"

"Rupert, I am being serious here!"

"So am I, Dad!" he retorted. Father and son glared at each other before Giles let out a cleansing breath. "Why not discuss marriage? Because it's not been two months since Buffy showed up on our doorstep, and while our relationship has progressed rather quickly, we'd perhaps like to this time to enjoy ourselves before planning a wedding and facing all the responsibilities that come with that." Frederick stared at his son with a look of incredulity and Giles felt the need to continue, "Th-that and there hasn't really been the opportunity, since we have both been rather involved in our new roles in the Council, finding a place to live, and planning the move. We're together and that is enough for the moment, I suppose," Giles answered, trying not to squirm under his father's scrutiny. "May I ask, what's brought all this about?"

"Simply wondering what's taking so long," Frederick replied jovially as he winked at his son. "I love you both, Rupert, and Buffy has become a surrogate daughter to me. I want to see you both happy and it would be nice to formally welcome her into the family." His smile held a natural warmth and Giles felt the defensiveness melt from his shoulders.

"Thank you," Giles stated softly. "And thank you for looking after her when I couldn't."

"She was family even before she stole her way into our hearts, son."

"I know, but thank you all the same," he replied.

Frederick nodded and stood up. "I'll just leave this here then," he stated as he placed a small, blue box on the coffee table before taking his leave. On his way out the door, he stopped and turned back to address his son once more. "Oh, and it's not for either of us to say, but your mother and I are in favor of grandchildren. We rather enjoy spoiling our great-nieces and nephews, and, of course, Dawn whilst we were in Sunnydale, but we thought it might be jolly fun to spoil a grandchild or two of our own. "

Giles watched his father go in disbelief before leaning over and picking up the box.

XxXxXxXxXx

"So, do we have any hard and fast plans besides dinner with your parents tonight?" Buffy asked as she emerged from the bathroom wrapped in a towel and drying her hair.

"No, but I thought perhaps we might take a walk."

"I just came in from a run and now I am all clean," she pouted, making her way over towards him to give him a kiss.

He sighed at the softness of it, wanting to taste more, but he needed to get out of his apartments. He'd spent the better part of the morning finishing up the majority of his packing. All that was left to do now was to pack his clothes and his toiletries.

"I'm not suggesting a vigorous walk," he stated, holding her to him. "But I do need to stretch my legs and take in a change of scenery."

"Do you have something in mind?"

"How about a walk up to the hawthorn tree?"

Buffy smiled at him. The hawthorn tree and the surrounding area was one of her favorite spots on the planet and not just for aesthetic reasons. There was a peaceful energy about the place that set her at ease. "Yeah, that sounds good. Give me a few minutes to get dressed."

"Don't be long," he responded placing a playful kiss on her nose.

It had only taken her about fifteen minutes to get ready and in that time Giles had gone to the kitchen and packed a bottle of wine, a blanket, some fruit, a brick of cheese, and a box of crackers into his knapsack. As they wandered through the woods towards the hawthorn tree, he found himself contemplating her wardrobe choice with amusement. He'd often wondered what went through her head with regards to her sartorial choices. When she was younger and chose to wear a miniskirt and heels to patrol in, he thought she was deliberately trying to vex him. He was a pragmatic sort and she would try his patience by wearing the most ridiculous outfits in which to slay vampires and demons. Of course, as she got older, her patrol clothes were more suited to function and comfort.

But she still had moments where he questioned the practicality of her choice in clothing and he was currently experiencing one of those moments. They headed to what they both considered their own personal sanctuary, which required them to walk through the forest, albeit on a path, but it was a natural path nonetheless, cross a stream, and ford through a field, and there she was wearing a soft cotton blue dress that came down mid thigh and a pair of thong sandals as though she were attending a classical concert on the village green. She looked lovely though, and he counted himself extremely lucky to have been the one who captured her heart.

"You're questioning my footwear choice, aren't you?" Buffy guessed, looking up at him as they came to the stream.

"Not much grip on them to prevent you from slipping on the rocks," he commented with a shrug, knowing that even if he had said something earlier, she wouldn't have changed her mind.

She let go of his hand and pulled her sandals off before dancing across the rocks to the opposite bank, her smile smug and knowing as it spread wide across her lips. It reminded him of another time in the library when she would prove her point during a training session and he laughed good-naturedly as he followed her across the stream.

"Clever girl," Giles chuckled when he met up her on the opposite bank. He surprised her by quickly picking her up and she shrieked with laughter and buried her forehead into his neck as he carried carried her the rest of the way to their spot beneath the hawthorn tree. After gently setting her down, he tenderly ran the knuckles of his left hand over her cheek before thoroughly kissing her.

"I do love you so," he murmured when he ended the kiss.

Buffy smiled up at him. "I might love you a little bit too."

"Just a little bit?" he asked releasing her and taking the blanket out of his knapsack.

She laughed. "Just a smidge," she replied, helping him spread the blanket over the ground.

"As much as that?" he sighed wearily as he played along. "It's a start, I suppose."

Looking around their haven, Buffy took a deep breath before making herself comfortable on the blanket. She felt the earth's goodness and warmth radiate from beneath the lush grass that her Slayer soul craved, but she knew it would feel even better if she were lying in Giles' arms.

"Sit," she invited, patting the area next to her.

Giles toed off his shoes and socks and did as she asked, resting his back against the trunk of the ancient tree. She snuggled into his side and rested her head on his chest as he wrapped his left arm around her.

"Comfortable?" he asked.

"Mmm, so much better," Buffy answered as she wrapped her arm around his waist. "I am going to revise my previous statement and say that I might love you more than a smidge."

"Oh?"

"Yeah, I love you beyond anything anyone can measure."

Giles squeezed her to him and dropped a kiss on top of her head.

"Think we'll find a spot of our own in London?" she asked, changing subjects.

"Not like this, no."

She sighed in resignation. "Didn't think so."

"We're only a couple hours away," he stated softly. "But, as you know, London has beautiful green parks and I am sure we will find a nice place to call our own in the city."

"It won't be as private," she noted as she lightly caressed his fingers with hers. "Nor as peaceful."

"No," Giles agreed. They were quiet a few moments before he moved his head to see if he could tell what she was thinking. There was a look of serenity on her face that he'd never witnessed before. Lacing their fingers together, he raised their joined hands and placed soft kisses along her knuckles. "You look very content."

Buffy smiled and snuggled in closer. "Just taking in the the atmosphere with my favorite guy."

"He's content to be here with you. Would you like some wine?"

"That would be lovely."

He moved out from under her and pulled out the bottle, along with the corkscrew and two glasses from his knapsack and set them on the blanket. When he was finished rooting through his bag, Buffy reached for the raspberries and helped herself to a few while Giles opened the wine.

Handing her her glass, he toasted, "To us."

"To us," she echoed with a smile and tapped her glass against his. "It's nice to get out together and relax. It feels like it's been nonstop."

"It has been with our new roles at the Council, the investigation and the tribunal, and finding a place to live."

"Yeah, all that in a little over a month," she marveled, shaking her head. "It's hard to believe we're here together."

"How do you mean?"

"Well, finding you. Finding out you love me and that you want to be with me. Taking on a new role in the Council and knowing we never have to patrol again, that we never have to place ourselves in harm's way again. I'm still a bit spun, ya know?"

Giles leaned back against the tree and she snuggled back into his side. "I know the feeling," he agreed.

"Oh, and speaking of spun, I made a few calls this morning. Willow and Tara have been accepted to Harvard for grad school. With the lack of activity on the Hellmouth, they both agreed that it is time to move on."

"Wow, that is excellent! I hope you passed along my congratulations as well."

"Of course, but I told them you would want to call them personally."

"Very good."

"And Xander and Anya's little bun is doing well in the oven. Next month they'll find out whether they are expecting a boy or a girl. The names they've picked out are atrocious, but on the plus side, they both hate the other's suggestions, so the baby may luck out and have a normal name."

"Something normal like Buffy?" Giles teased.

"Can it, Rupert!" Buffy shot back. He chuckled before leaning in to kiss her. "Apology accepted," she murmured against his lips. "And Dawn says she can't wait to come and visit. She'll be here mid July and we better be prepared to take her everywhere!"

"She'd better have a list and narrow it down, the island is larger than it looks."

"I am sure she will now that she knows it won't be her only visit. I decided to break the news to everyone that we aren't coming back to Sunnydale."

"I don't know why you didn't when we decided to work with Dad and the Council."

Buffy shrugged and took a sip of her wine. "Call it a trial period."

"Am I on a trial period too?" he asked with amusement, tenderly trailing his index finger down her cheek.

"Hell no! You are stuck with me, mister!" she stated with finality.

"I am glad."

"But then, you knew that."

"I did," he agreed, setting down his glass in his shoe to keep it from tipping over. "But we never have spoken about the future, Buffy, not really."

"We have the house and our new jobs," she countered. "We spoke about those."

"True. But Willow and Tara have grad school and then presumably they will continue their studies and earn their PhDs. Xander and Anya have the shop in San Diego and a child on the way. What do you want? You could go back to school, if you like. Nothing says the job at the Council needs to be full time."

Her face had turned serious at his question. "What do you want?"

"I want you to be happy, love, and if I can somehow provide you with and be part of your happiness, then I will be a richer man for it."

"I am happy," she replied as she moved to kneel beside him, placing her glass within his other shoe. Searching his eyes she insisted, "You make me happy, Giles."

Caressing her cheek, he responded with a small smile, "You make me happy as well, love, ecstatically so."

"See, this is forever. You and me," Buffy stated with a happy grin.

Giles' eyes gleamed with mirth. "Tell me what this forever entails, so I know what I am getting myself into."

"There's no backing out now, mister!" she declared, playfully hitting his shoulder. "You promised. No Slayer scorning."

"I wouldn't dream of it. It's just in the past, my Slayer has included me in her plans, at least most of them. Right now I am flying a little blind."

"She's including you now, but if she need to get specific…" Buffy teased before sobering up when she placed her hand above the scars on his chest. Her gaze fell upon her hand and she quieted for a moment. At times she still felt those harsh moments when she thought she would lose him. "God Giles, you were nearly killed and you fought such an uphill battle to walk again. And then you spent a whole year thinking I was dead. I can't imagine-"

"It's over now, Buffy," he assured her in that quiet assuring tone of his.

"I know, but that's the thing. We've both been through hell these past two years. I missed you so much! But the worst of it all was imagining a world without you. First as I waited for the doctors to tell me if you were going to make it, then letting you go to recuperate and waiting for you to walk through my front door in Sunnydale, and finally realizing it was never going to happen."

"I am sorry," he said with regret.

"I love you, Giles, with all that I am, and there is no doubt in my mind that you love me too. That's why I said that this is forever," she explained, moving her hand to his heart. A shy smile pulled at the edges of her lips before she continued, "And if forever comes with a wedding and perhaps a couple of baby Gileses at some point in the near future, that would be more than fine with me."

A warm breeze wafted through the branches and Giles gently pushed away a errant lock from her cheek, his expression a mixture of amusement, adoration, and awe. "I like this version of forever," he began, matching her serious tone as he drew her across his lap. "But I know how I was a child and I think I might prefer a baby Buffy or two."

She leaned down to kiss him. "I am fairly certain I was a handful and a half. Maybe we'll luck out and have a child that only has our best qualities. You know, brainy and polite in that British way with my coordination and natural curiosity, oh, and perfect eyesight even though little kids in glasses are so cute."

Giles laughed. "With our luck, our child will be rebellious, sarcastic, will abuse the English language with impunity, and have no concept of proper footwear for the occasion at hand," he countered with amused horror.

"I doubt it would be as bad as that," Buffy laughed along with him before her eyes softened and she nuzzled her head into his neck. "But he will be perfect no matter what."

"He? Could be a she."

"Could be," she responded as she lifted her head to look at him, tilting it off to one side. "How about one of each?"

"I am fairly certain that isn't up to us, but I am game to try," Giles answered as he ran his hands down her hips and thighs, before lifting the hem of her dress and running teasing fingers along her exposed skin.

She could feel his burgeoning arousal beneath her. "Right here and now?" she asked, her breath leaving her as he lifted himself up and kissed the tender spot between her neck and her collarbone.

"Wouldn't be the worst idea we've had," he responded with a chuckle before leaning back against the tree.

Buffy laughed with him. "No," she agreed.

Reaching for the backpack, Giles opened the front pocket and pulled out the small blue box his father had given him earlier. He opened it and presented a beautiful Victorian engagement ring to her, featuring a pillow shaped sapphire surrounded by a halo of diamonds, and the gold band decorated with engraving and black enameling.

Looking up at him in shock, Buffy whispered, "It's gorgeous."

Giles took the ring from the box and reverently slid it into place upon her left ring finger. Taking her hand, he kissed the ring and the finger beneath it before looking back up at her, his green eyes filled with emotion. "I thought marriage might be a part of our forever too."

Buffy considered the ring on her finger as she splayed her hand out to the side and inspected it. "It looks old," she said.

"It was my grandmother's, but if you prefer something else, we can find you something new when we are back in London," he suggested quickly, unsure of her comment.

"No!" she replied quickly. "I didn't mean it like that. I love it, I really do! I just meant that it's not a modern style."

The smile returned to Giles' lips. "It's late Victorian," he confirmed.

"Are you sure?"

"Sure it's late Victorian?" he asked with some confusion.

"Are you sure you want me to have it?" Buffy clarified. "I mean, it's an antique and a family heirloom and all."

"I do," he reassured her as he lovingly brushed his lips against hers. "Buffy, you are my family. I want you to have it. And before you go off on whether or not my parents would approve of me giving you the ring, it was my father who dug it out of the safe for me to give to you."

She laughed and kissed him back, tantalizing him with small teasing kisses. "So I guess we have your parent's approval."

"Oh yes. The conversation was a bit awkward towards the end there, with Dad telling me he and Mum want to spoil our future children, but since we've had that chat now, I am sure I'll be able to sit through the talk about where babies come from the night before our wedding."

"You mean you don't know?" she asked as she playfully ground against him.

"It might have slipped my mind, why don't you show me?" he suggested as he slipped his arms around her and cupped the back of her head with his hand, guiding her lips to his.

They made love slowly beneath the ancient hawthorn tree, hands roaming each other's bodies to move unnecessary clothing out of the way and tongues tussling as passionate kisses drew deeper until love yielded to lust and oxygen became an issue. Drunk on pheromones and frenzied entangled masculine and feminine energies, two became one. As they reached their completion, Buffy reached out and braced her arm against the trunk of the tree just above Giles' shoulder while Giles grabbed at an exposed root.

After the world slowly came back to them, they made themselves presentable and she curled up against him and he happily held her in his arms. She lightly trailed fingers lightly over his torso between his unbuttoned shirt, the silence between them comfortable and comforting.

Finally breaking the silence, she said, "Damn, that was intense,"

Giles hugged her to him in response. "It was rather, wasn't it?" he replied.

"Kinda more than usual."

"Well, we did just agree to get married. It might've heightened our emotions a bit," Giles suggested, kissing the top of her head.

"No… different. Not… like that, although… yeah. I mean, lots of happy emotions, but…"

"How so, then?"

Buffy struggled to find the words, but then she realized what it was that threw her off. "Tingly…. like… magicks tingly." She felt his body tense and turned in his arms to look up at him.

He was deep in thought, his eyes wide and his brow furrowed with confusion as he searched his brain for something to explain the lingering magicks that he, too, had now picked up on.

"Uh… Giles, your eyes… they are… they're that same emerald green color they turned when you read me that first day. What did you do?"

He skewed his eyes shut for a moment as if to deny the change. "I didn't do anything."

"Well something happened, because tingly feelings and spooky emerald eyes aren't an everyday occurrence." She could feel a twinge of panic rising, and she tried to remind herself that there had been nothing malevolent in that magickal tingle she felt. In fact, she felt rather relaxed and at ease… and totally blissed out, if she were honest.

Looking up at the tree he muttered to himself, "At least not intentionally."

"Giles, explain… please?" she asked, trying not to panic.

Running his left hand through his already unkempt hair, he cleared his throat, "I uh… I think the tree married us."

"What?"

"Um… the tree represents the male and the female, yes?"

"Uh huh, and duality and balance. We talked about that."

"Well… erm… and we are linked together mystically as Watcher and Slayer…"

"Yeah."

"And uh, when I… came, I grabbed the root of the tree, and I believe you touched the tree as well… it must've opened a conduit to the ancient power inherent in the area… and well w-we uh… just… we just consummated that union…"

Buffy started to laugh. "So that's it, huh?"

"It's rather a very serious it." Giles countered, wishing he had his glasses to wipe, but Buffy had set them down somewhere after she had removed them and he wasn't exactly sure where at the moment.

"We'll still do the traditional ceremony for family and friends," she said lightheartedly with a shrug. "They'd feel cheated if we didn't."

Concern marked his brow and he frowned, "Buffy, this… I don't believe this can be undone."

"So what? Were you planning our eventual divorce too?" she asked, a little hurt.

"No, no! Not at all!" he reassured her, taking her hands in hers. "Never! It's just-"

"Chill, Giles," she said softly, placing her index finger over his mouth. "I get it. This tree, or this place… the ancient power whatever… it knows us. It understands who we are to one another. If we're suddenly mystically or magickally married, then it knows what is in our hearts. Forever. Right?"

The crinkles around his brilliantly illuminated emerald green eyes reflected his happiness and the tension seemed to melt away. "Forever."

Content, Buffy settled back into Giles arms and they relaxed beneath the hawthorn once more. Just a month and a half ago, she'd been lost and distraught because an arrogant little man had gained enough power to exact his revenge to keep her and Giles apart. But she had found Giles and, with the help of his parents, they had thwarted Nigel's plot for retribution and his plans to take over the Council. Now she was embarking on a new life away from Sunnydale and the Hellmouth; away from demons and vampires. One that included the promise of a normal life, Giles' loving parents, a mystical marriage to her best friend that was blessed by an ancient power, and a future that would include little Gileses… or Buffys.

Fate, it turned out, had a grander scheme in mind.