Author: Kathryn A Pantaleo

Rating: FRM

Disclaimers: All things Buffy belong to Joss Whedon, UPN, Mutant Enemy, and whomever else he shares them with! I can only dream!!

On the steps of the dais, Xander Harris eased Giles to the ground. The convulsions had stopped, and Giles curled up on his side, his head cradled in his uninjured arm, his muscles still rigid. He was sweat-soaked, and his breath coming in short gasps. He was unresponsive to all attempts to rouse him.

Xander looked to where the Preceptor of the Knights rallied his troops and joined Buffy in the fight, united now against a mutual foe, a common evil.

Then he saw the slight, blonde form of the Slayer running across the catwalk. He could see her intent.

"Buffy! NO!" he screamed. He watched, horrified, as the monster fell through the wall of windows, the golden head of Buffy Summers disappearing with it.

He jumped up and grabbed the nearest Knight. "Stay with him!" he shouted, pointing to Giles’ still form. Xander charged across the warehouse and out through the wreckage.

The Preceptor and his remaining Knights lined the edge of the wharf, looking into the churning water. Xander pushed through until he stood next to the Preceptor, searching the inky water below. The Preceptor suddenly saw something bright.

"There!" he shouted, pointing. Xander dove off the wharf. He could see nothing. He surfaced again.

"Further to the left, and down!" shouted the Preceptor. Xander dove again. This time he caught a glimpse of something red. Buffys’ tee shirt. He grabbed her and pulled for the surface. He swam to the edge of the wharf, dragging his friend through the water behind him.

The Preceptor reached down and grabbed her by the back of her shirt and pulled her up on to the dock. More hands reached out for Xander, and he was quickly on his knees next to the motionless form of the Slayer.

There was no sign of the fallen Knights. Men wearing chain mail do not fair well in deep water.

Buffy was not breathing. Xander felt her neck, and was rewarded with a pulse, although a faint one. He turned her head sideways and pressed on her chest. Water came out of her mouth and nose. A few more compressions and she choked, gasped, and rolled on her side, retching water.

"Praise GOD!" the Preceptor said.

"Me too!" Xander added fervently.

The Preceptor barked an order, and the Knights produced two cloaks, which Xander and Buffy were wrapped in. Xander held her as she coughed up half the harbor. Buffy had a long, bleeding cut that ran along her hairline, but otherwise was unharmed.

When she could talk again, Buffy looked at Xander. "I hate it when they drown me! Did we win?"

"The demon is dead, thanks to you," the Preceptor said. He reached down and helped her to her feet, then led them inside the wrecked warehouse again.

Buffys’ amazing powers of recuperation were already kicking in. She was feeling her strength flooding back and her head clearing as they walked. Then she saw her Watcher sprawled on the steps of the dais. She ran to him.

"Giles! Giles, can you hear me?" she knelt next to him taking his hand and wrapping her other arm about his shoulders.

Giles stirred. "Buffy?" he asked weakly, his speech slightly slurred. "whass hap-…happening?" He opened his eyes. "You’re hurt!" he said in concern, pulling himself up into a sitting position, and regretting it instantly as the room spun around him and his stomach churned. . He gasped and leaned forward to cradle his aching head on his knees.

"It’s ok, Giles," she said, concerned for him. "It’s just a scratch." She looked up at Xander.

"What happened to him?" she asked.

"I don’t know." Xander said. "He mumbled something, pointed, and then he collapsed!"

"He cast a spell" the Preceptor informed them. "A truth spell. It forced the demon to reveal itself. You would not have been able to kill it if it had not reverted to its natural form…Very clever, really."

Buffy Summers didn’t think so. "HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND!??" she yelled at her Watcher. Giles winced. "Are you TRYING to kill yourself?"

"Seemed like a good idea, at the time," the suffering Watcher mumbled.

The Preceptor handed Buffy a small flask. "Here, give him some of this."

Buffy put her hand on the back of Giles neck. "Here, Giles, drink this." He obediently lifted his head and drank from the flask. His eyes popped open as the fiery liquid burned a path to his stomach. He coughed a few times, and he felt his head clear some.

"BLOODY HELL!" he said, when he could speak again.

Buffy shot a suspicious look at the Preceptor. "

That wasn’t water!" she accused.

"Scotch!" Giles gasped.

The Preceptor smiled. "For medicinal purposed only, I assure you!"

"Did we win?" Giles asked.

"Your Champion here defeated her enemy. And you have all rid us of a great evil. Sir Victor had been gaining power in the order for some time," the Preceptor said. "He had great sway with many of the Knights. He wanted to break from many of our ancient traditions. He wanted power. I have been expecting a coup attempt for quite some time. I don’t know where he came in contact with that demon, but he must have consorted with it in an attempt to gain the power he so desperately wanted. He has been adamant about the need to destroy "the key" for quite some time. He finally convinced me that it was necessary, although I had many reservations."

"And now?" Buffy asked softly. "Now…Well, you have given me much to consider," the Preceptor said. "I don’t truly know what the key is. I don’t know exactly what it would do. But I do know that it is powerful, and dangerous, and precious." He looked at the group before him. "I know now that even my Knights are not impervious to the temptations inherent with that kind of power. But I think that you people are. I think that you will protect this key with your lives. I don’t know if you are strong enough to stand against Glory. I don’t know if anyone is. But I think that you are our best hope. The Monks chose the keys’ protector well."

Buffy smiled in relief, and Xander reached over and kissed her cheek. She wrapped her arms around Giles’ neck for a moment and hugged him to her. When she let go, she was rewarded with a broad, relieved smile from her Watcher. It was something she saw all too rarely lately. The Preceptor looked at the group, seeing the love, trust, and pride there. "Indeed," he thought, "the monks have chosen well!"

Buffy came down the stairs in the Summers’ house, toweling her hair dry, finally feeling clean and warm again. It had taken a lot of lather to remove the scent of "harbor" from her hair. They had returned to the house, a bit wet and bedraggled, but triumphant in their victory. The demon was destroyed, the Knights no longer a threat to them, and, for the moment, Dawn was safe. They had been joyfully greeted by her mother, sister, and the rest of the Scoobies, and had told them all that had occurred. She and Xander had been doing most of the talking, and when she had asked Giles a question, she had found him to be sound asleep, sitting up on the couch. She had carefully maneuvered him until he was prone on the couch, removed his shoes and glasses, and covered the exhausted man with a throw, and then shooed the others from the living room, leaving him to rest. A shower and a change of clothes had restored her, and now, with dusk approaching, she walked through the ground floor of her home. She stood in the doorway of the dining room for a moment, looking at her family and friends. Joyce had worked her own, personal brand of magic in the kitchen, and was feeding the hungry group of Scoobies. She smiled as they bantered back and forth around the table. Then she went into the living room to check on her Watcher.

Giles tossed restlessly on the couch, muttering in his sleep. She slipped onto the edge of the couch next to him and gently rested her hand on his forehead. She was relieved, no fever.

She put a hand on his uninjured shoulder and shook him carefully.

"Giles," she called, "Giles, wake up!" He started and thrashed himself awake, trying to sit up. His eyes were sleep-filled, frightened, and confused.

"What! Where?"

"Shhhh...it’s ok, Giles. You’re having a bad dream," she said gently.

"Buffy! Oh God." he groaned, allowing her to push him back into the softness of the cushions. "I thought…I saw…It was killing you…"

"It’s ok," she repeated. "Everything is all right now." He smiled up at her, reaching out in a familiar gesture, and gently tucked a few stray strands of hair behind her ear.

"What time is it?" he asked.

"It’s almost 7. You’ve been asleep most of the afternoon."

"Really? That spell about finished me, I’m afraid." He knew that was a mistake almost immediately. He saw the warning signs in the tightening around her eyes.

"You’re not off the hook for that, Watcher-mine! What were you thinking, trying to cast a spell in the shape that you’re in?"

"I really had no choice, Buffy…I knew that there was something inside of him, trying to get out. When you ran him through, and he was unharmed, I realized that the only way for you to defeat him was to kill him in his true form. Not to mention that some of the Knights were ready to fall down and worship him. "

"So, to help me, you turned the big, nasty Knight into a 12 ft snarly demon?"

Giles looked a bit crestfallen at that. "I didn’t know the bloody thing was going to be that much trouble… I thought he was some sort of changeling."

Buffy gave him a stern look. "That’s not the point, and you know it! You were probably right, If it hadn’t reverted to its true form I wouldn’t have known to hit it in the eye. But the point is that you took a terrible risk! The backlash from that spell could have weakened you to the point of dying, and you know it. Or it could have just fried your brains. You wouldn’t be of much use to me in a coma, would you?"

"I’m sorry I frightened you, Buffy, but, given the same circumstances, I’d do it all over again. I know a Watcher is just supposed to guide and observe, but I threw that rulebook out the window about an hour after meeting you, and I will do everything in my power to protect you. It’s my right, it’s my responsibility, and I couldn’t bloody well stand myself if I did any less!"

"I just…. I can’t stand to see you hurt like this, Giles!"

He took her hand and gave it a squeeze. "Don’t worry, Buffy. I’ll be right enough in no time." He started sit up, "Is Xander still here? Maybe he could drive me home, I don’t think… Oh, dear…" the last as the room started to spin around him.

Buffy caught him by the shoulders and pushed him back onto the couch. "YOU are going nowhere, Rupert Giles! You are going to stay here, with us, until I say that you are strong enough to be home on your own again!"

"Buffy, really, I…" he started to protest weakly.

"Giles, this one is my call! Until further notice, I’m your Watcher, and it’s going to stay that way until you are back on your feet!" Her tone softened.. "Giles, please, you know that I’m right! Please say that you’ll stay here and let us take care of you for awhile?"

"Buffy, you’ve already done so much, I really can’t impose…"

She took his hand. "Giles, you’re hurt, and we’re family… now please, It’s a done deal, ok?" She could see that she had won. Stubborn as he was, Giles realized that he was too vulnerable in his present condition. Simply trying to sit up had been too much for him.

He surrendered, and nodded his acceptance of her terms. "Very well, Buffy," he said, resignedly, "you win, I’ll stay. But just until I’m stronger!"

"Cool," she said around a smile. "You know I love to win!"

He gave a short laugh, and his smile turned into a yawn. "Are you hungry?" She asked him. "Mom made some dinner…"

"Hmmm…no, not really. I don’t think I could keep anything down right now…Maybe later…" She could tell he was tired again, his voice was soft and sleepy.

"Then why don’t you try to go back to sleep? I want you to rest." She reached out and gently pushed the sandy curls off his forehead. "Everyone is here, and safe. You’re safe. Sleep now…I’ll be right here." She remained at his side, holding his hand, until his breathing became deep and regular once more. She laid his hand across his chest, and made sure the throw covered him snugly. Then she left the room.

In the hallway, she picked up the battle-ax that had served them so well, and went out on to the front porch. Xander found her there, some time later.

Xander came out onto the porch, and saw Buffy sitting on the wooden porch swing.

"Hey, Bufster! What ‘cha doin’?" he greeted her cheerfully. As he came around her, he saw the ax.

"Buffy?" he asked quietly, looking around, "What’s wrong?" He scanned the street, seeking danger.

"It’s ok, Zand," she said. "There’s nothing here…at least, not right now."

"Ok…Then, why with the Slice and Dice?"

She met his eyes, and he saw the fear and pain of the last few days there. "Because there are still bad things out there," she said. "And I know that they are there, waiting. But for now, tonight, every one I love is safe, in this house. And for tonight, just this one night, I’m going to sit here, with this ax in my hands, and know that nothing is going to get by me and hurt them. Not tonight."

Xander found that he couldn’t speak for a moment around the lump in his throat. Then he nodded.

"Want company?" And with that he sat in the porch chair next to her, and watched as twilight settled over Sunnydale.

The End.