Series: The Hellmouth Chronicles
Title: Winter Of Discontent 24/?
Author: Gileswench
Contact: gileswench@yahoo.com
Date: 5/30/03
Spoilers: AU from very early S5ish. No Dawn, no Glory, and Giles' mighty Citroen lives on.
Summary: Meetings and meanderings of consequence.
Rating: PG for the mildest of swearing, nasty vampire threats, incredibly mild mention of sexuality.
Pairing: Buffy/Giles, W/T, X/Anya, Crystal/Joyce
Distribution: If you've had my permission in the past, you have it now. All others, ask and ye shall receive.
Feedback: Constructive criticism always welcome. Praise abjectly sought.
Disclaimer: It all belongs to Joss, Mutant Enemy, etc., etc., etc. I just let them have all the fun Joss won't. I own nothing except my twisted mind which you really don't want. Please don't sue.
Notes: Yes, I know it's been an incredibly long time. I was appalled when I realized exactly how long. Anyway, for those who need a refresher course, I believe the only site that has the entire series up to date is Of Demons and Destiny at: http://vampirecows.com/odd/
Dedication: To all of you who have begged, plead, and offered up your firstborns over the last six months to get me off my duff and writing this one again. My apologies, and my thanks to all of you.

Willow walked in the door of The Bronze and began to scan the room for an unoccupied table. The crowd was thick both on and off the dance floor.

"Great," she sulked. "Who knew this place was ever crowded on a Thursday."

She decided to get herself a drink before she continued her search for seating. After all, it wouldn't do her any good to find a spot if she was thirsty the rest of the evening because she was afraid to move. Before she could get far, though, someone called her name.

"Hey, Willow. How are you?"

She turned to see who was hailing her.

"Michael, hey, how are you?" she beamed. "I haven't seen you in so long."

"Oh, I'm okay. Is...is Amy...?"

"Still a rat? 'Fraid so. I don't think she wants to be a person again. She seems to be resisting me. I wish she wouldn't."

Michael nodded sadly, then smiled slightly.

"Look," he said, "I've got some friends I'm with, over there." He pointed to a table in a fairly dark corner. "If you want, you could come sit with us. They're all witches, too. You've got to meet Julia. She's really powerful and really cool. I've told her all about you, but when I took her to Stevenson Hall to meet you, they said you'd moved. Where'd you go?"

"Oh...I got a place with some friends...off-campus. My mom thinks it's a big sex cult. But it's not."

"Well, maybe I could come over sometime. To see how Amy's doing."

"Um...yeah. Sure. That'd be nice. I bet she'd like to see you."

"Great." There was a short, awkward silence. "Okay, well, you get your drink and come over. We'll be waiting."

"Yeah. Great. I'll be there as soon as I've got my Coke."

They nodded a couple more times, then the boy made his way back to his seat. Willow watched him talking to a tall, dark-haired girl. She was pretty and intense. Suddenly, the girl looked over and locked eyes with Willow. All thought of soda disappeared. She left the line and headed over to the table.

*****

"Look, I didn't even know Rupert had a sister when we got married," Buffy said. "I didn't exactly get the chance to fill out an application. Why are you and your dad so down on this whole deal, anyway? I don't get it, and I'm tired of defending my marriage to the world. So, as far as I'm concerned, the defense rests. You want to know why we got married? Tough. I'm not explaining it again. Love just happens. That's how it is. And if all the poets and philosophers and scientists in the world for centuries and centuries haven't been able to tell us how it happens and why, I don't know why anyone would think I have the answer. I don't. The only thing I know is I love Rupert and he loves me. If that's not good enough for you, then I can't make you happy."

She sat with an angry thump on the bed and crossed her arms under her bosom. Gertrude shot her an annoyed look and sat next to her.

"Why are you so determined that I'm against this?" she asked. "And it might have occurred to you that if you didn't know about us, we certainly didn't know much about you. All we knew was that Rupert had gone to America to Watch his Slayer. The next we heard, he'd been fired for losing his objectivity. Of course, we expected him to come home, but he stayed here. Now we find he's married you, and you're already pregnant. I need to know what sort of woman my brother has married. I want to know what the hell happened."

"He came here. He was here for me. We were friends. Then, one night, we realized there was more. You know the old story, don't you? Man meets girl, girl falls for cursed vampire, girl loses vampire, girl falls for soldier, girl loses soldier, girl opens her eyes and finally sees man, and they live happily ever after...if everyone would just get off their damn backs. That's what the hell happened. Satisfied?"

Buffy knew she sounded unbearably bratty, but she couldn't seem to stop herself. All she wanted in that moment was to go to her own room and lie down in Rupert's arms and know that everything was going to work itself out in the end. She could feel tears rising, stinging her eyes. Well, she wasn't going to cry; not with a stranger for an audience. She stood.

"Look," she said, "it's been a long night and I'm bushed. I'm going to bed. If you need anything...Leo's usually around somewhere. You can ask him."

Before Gertrude could respond, she was out of the room and halfway down the stairs.

*****

Angel tiptoed quietly into the kitchen. If he was lucky, nobody would be there. He wasn't lucky.

"So, you're back?"

"Hey, Leo. Good to see you," Angel said in a tone he prayed was less guilty than it sounded to him. "You're up late."

"For my sins," he agreed wryly. "You missed a big day. Where were you?"

"Where...? Oh, I was...following this demon who looked like he was up to no good, and I got caught at dawn. Had to find shelter. Couldn't get back until now," the vampire prevaricated nervously. "You?"

"I was right here. Are you hungry? There's some fresh pig's blood in the refrigerator."

At Angel's nod, Leo went about preparing the meal. The vampire sat.

"It's been some time since sunset," the live man observed.

"Yeah, well...I ran into Spike. We had a long talk."

"Yes?"

"Y'know, I think he's really sorry about that whole hitting Giles thing."

"Why would that be?"

"Probably because he's got some demons after him and he needs a place to lay low for a while." Angel nodded his thanks as Leo handed him the steaming mug and sat across from him. "I think he'll behave himself if we let him back in."

"You're probably right," the old man said. "For now. What about a week from now when he forgets how dangerous it is for him on the outside?"

*****

Cordelia opened the door and let Wesley in. He smiled nervously at her. She smiled nervously back.

"So," she said after an awkward moment of silence, "did you bring your show and tell?"

"Yes. I just...Cordelia, you know I love you, don't you?"

"Of course I know that, you big silly. Look, whatever this is, we can find a way to deal. So, we kept some secrets. So what? We're telling now and the past is the past."

"Still, I think perhaps you'd best sit down."

The girl moved to the edge of the bed and settled herself, trying not to show how apprehensive she felt. Wesley's tone of voice was so ominous, so resigned, her heart sank. He pulled a photograph out of his pocket and handed it to her quickly, as if it was the only way he could be sure not to change his mind. She looked at it silently.

It was a picture of a young woman with dark hair and eyes. She laughed for the camera, her head at a cocky angle, her smile wide and confident.

"Okay," Cordelia said slowly, "I know this isn't your sister. The face is all wrong and her clothes? Not exactly haute couture. Plus nobody but nobody should ever try to wear their hair that teased out. I'm thinking maybe she was a...a girlfriend from the wrong side of the tracks? I don't care about that, Wesley. I know I wasn't your first. You weren't mine, either, and let's face it, you're a little bit older than me. So if this is all about showing me the faces of every other woman you've ever slept with, you can just tuck your little picture gallery away and never, ever show it to me, okay?" Her words increased in both speed and volume, holding off his inevitable answer. She stood and paced the room. "I don't need to know this. All I need to know is that I'm gonna be the last. Just tell me that, and I'll be happy."

"Cordelia," Wesley said sharply. He took her by the shoulders and stopped her in her tracks. "You don't understand," he went on more gently. "She's not a girlfriend. That's my wife."

*****

"Buffy, hey, Buffy," Anya called as the Slayer passed her in the hallway.

"What is it?" she snapped, trying not to let her tears show.

"You don't have to bite my head off," the ex-demon huffed. "It wouldn't hurt you to be polite, would it?"

Buffy bit back the sharp answer on the tip of her tongue, took a deep breath, and counted to three before she faced Anya.

"I'm sorry," she said edgily. "It's been a really, really long day and I'm feeling a little hormonal on top of that. Whatever you have to say, is there any way you can just save it for tomorrow?"

"I can."

Buffy began to move away. Anya spoke again.

"But it's probably a very bad idea if I do."

Spinning to face the other girl, Buffy glared at her.

"What is it?" she bit out. "What else is going on that I need to deal with right now?"

"Your father."

"What about him?"

"Did Willow tell you we saw him tonight? Oh, and for the record, crosses aren't the only religious symbols that work on vampires. I stopped him bullying Crystal with a Star of David! Isn't that great? It means you could use a...a Buddha or a statue of Bast, or whatever sort of devotional device floats your boat." Her grin of excitement waned when she realized how hard Buffy was glaring at her. She shrugged and went on. "Anyway. I don't know if Willow told you, but Hank had a message for you."

"A message? What message?"

"He said he's going to take out ten people every night until you come face him."

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