Giles couldn’t remember the last time he’d met someone’s parents. Most of the women he’d date either didn’t have any or the relationship hadn’t lasted long enough for them to take that step. He was a bit nervous but didn’t want to mess it up, considering how he wanted to spend forever with Fred. “It’s nice to meet you too, Mrs. Burkle,” he said, shaking her hand.
When she asked if he knew about Professor Siedel, Giles nodded. “Fred told me, yes. The Council has taken care of the problem, ma’am and he won’t ever hurt another person again,” he said, glancing over at Fred.
Trish nodded and gave him a smile. “And what are your intentions with my little girl?” she suddenly asked.
Giles coughed a little and looked at Fred again. He wasn’t expecting such a straight forward question so soon after meeting Fred’s mother. But he supposed it was to be expected since Fred had been through so much already. “I love your daughter very much, Mrs. Burkle. I intend on making sure she’s happy for the rest of her life. I want to spend forever with her,” he said, taking Fred’s hand.
“Does this forever include marriage and babies?” Trish asked.
“Erm, yes, if that’s what Fred wants.”
“I’m not asking what Fred wants,” Trish said with a pointed look.
“Yes,” Giles said, looking at Fred. “I would love to marry your daughter and have children with her.”
“Good and I know you make Fred happy,” Trish said, stepping forward and giving Giles a hug. She pulled back and smoothed out his shirt. “I suppose y’all will want to spend some time alone. I need to finish supper, which you will be staying for Mr. Giles. Roger won’t be home for another few hours but I’m sure he’ll want to meet you.”
And before Giles could say another word, Trish was out the door. He turned and looked at Fred again. “Your mother is a lovely woman.”
Fred felt the blood drain from her face the moment her mother asked that first question and prayed that her mother hadn't just scared Rupert off or made him think twice about their relationship. She had finally found someone who made her happy - really, really happy - and she didn't want to lose that because he suddenly became afraid they were moving too fast or being pressured by her parents, even though she knew her mother was just worried about her.
Then he said he wanted marry her and have children with her. Fred felt her heart begin to pound fast in her chest as she turned toward him, tears coming to her eyes again. She watched as Rupert and her mother hugged before her mother left the room to get the rest of dinner ready.
"My mom's the best," she said and then swallowed as she stepped closer to him. "Did you really mean that? That you'd want to marry me and have kids? 'Cause I know that wasn't exactly the best situation to be put in - you know, meeting the mother and then being asked something like that."
Giles swallowed and softly touched her face. He didn’t want to breach the subject of marriage with her so soon. And he felt like a prat since it was her mother who’d brought it up. “Yes,” Giles said before he put his hands on her waist. “I wanted to bring it up at a better time and not in front of your mother.” Giles started to get nervous. He didn’t want Fred to think he was asking her at that moment.
“So, this is your bedroom?” he asked, changing the subject. He was going to ask her but he wanted to make sure he had a ring and it was half-way romantic. Giles stepped away from her and started walk around, looking at the various pictures and awards on the walls. It would seem Fred had always been a genius.
There was a picture of a young girl in a yellow sundress, picking flowers. Giles knew it was Fred and he smiled. The little girl looked so carefree and happy, and Giles had to admit she was quite adorable too. He wondered if their own daughter would be as beautiful. If she was anything like her mother then she would be amazing.
Blinking, Giles shook his head. They weren’t even close to having a child. He turned around and smiled at her. “I love you.”
Fred smiled at him - she hadn't expected him to really say anything more about it, especially not here, so she wasn't surprised when he changed the subject. It was enough to know that he wanted to marry her someday, that he wanted to spend forever with her. She didn't want him to feel he had to ask because her mother brought the subject up.
"Yes, this is my bedroom although as you can see, it's a bit messy at the moment since I'm trying to pack. The consulate said my visa should be here in the next couple of days, so I was trying to get as much done as I could while I was...while I was waiting. The Council was sending someone on Friday to ship all my things over." She felt a her cheeks pinken a bit when she saw him looking at all her awards. "My mom wanted to display everything I ever did and everything I ever won."
She picked up the pile of clothes she had been in the middle of packing when Rupert had come in earlier and placed them in the box on her bed, then walked over to join him in front of the picture.
"I love you, too," she said, rising up on her tiptoes to kiss him. "You do realize I've never had a guy in my room before."
“Is that so?” Giles asked as he reached over and shut the bedroom door. “Shall we see what trouble we can get up to before your mum comes back up?” He ran his hands under her shirt and over her breasts, his thumbs rubbing against her nipples. “I’ve missed you so much, love.”
Giles moved to take her shirt off but quickly stopped when there was a knock on the door. He pulled away from Fred as the door creaked open. “Supper’s ready you two,” Trish said, peeking in. Giles quickly turned around and tugged at the front of his trousers, hoping Trish hadn’t noticed his arousal. “I expect y’all down there within five minutes.”
When the door clicked shut, Giles turned and looked at Fred. “Perhaps I should get a motel room for the duration of my stay. I wouldn’t want your parents to walk in on us,” he said with a blush. “Of course, I’d have to make sure you came home everyday so you finish packing. I’ll supervise while you pack. And I do suppose we should go downstairs before your mother comes back up.”
"Oh..." Fred sighed happily as Rupert's hands roamed over her shirt, teasing her. "I'm thinking there's all kinds of trouble we can get into."
She ran her hands down his sides to the beltloops of his pants and had just hooked her fingers through them to pull him closer when she heard her mother's voice. Turning around quickly to face her, she smoothed her hair down and then tugged on her shirt.
"We'll be there in a minute, Mom," she promised before turning back to Rupert. "That's...that's probably a good idea." Her mom wouldn't make a big deal about having caught them like that a moment ago, but she really didn't want to take a chance of them seeing more. She raised her eyebrow, however, when he mentioned supervising her packing. "Going to get a jump on being my boss, huh? If you can supervise, you can help."
Threading her arm through his, she led him downstairs to find her mom had set the table in the dinning room instead of in the kitchen. She was about to ask if she needed any help when her father appeared on the back porch, kicking some clumps of mud off his boots before walking in.
"Hey, where're my girls?" he called out as he closed the door behind them. Just then he noticed Fred and Giles at the bottom of the steps. "Fred, who's your friend?"
"Dad, this is Rupert Giles, the man I told I'm going to be working with at the Council in England."
Giles never liked meeting the father. Never in his life did he have a good relationship with a girl’s father. When he was younger he never understood why father’s had so many problems with their daughters dating, then he became Buffy’s Watcher and the fatherly instinct kicked in, with both her and Dawn. Giles couldn’t remember how many times he’d wanted to throttle Angel, Spike, Riley, and Xander for looking at Buffy the wrong way, or hurting her. And he would understand if Fred’s father didn’t like him.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Burkle,” he said, holding out his hand.
“The Council, huh? Fred tells us you train Slayers there,” Roger said, shaking Giles’ hand. “That means you’re on the opposite side that Angel is, right?”
“Oh, I like Angel. He’s such a sweet boy,” Trish added. “Took good care of our little girl.”
Giles’ jaw clenched a little when they mentioned how good Angel was. He didn’t like the vampire, and especially now that he was running an evil law firm, but he wasn’t about to make waves with the Burkles. “No. Angel and I are on the same side,” he said with a forced smile. At least Giles hoped they were on the right side still. “He was actually in Sunnydale for a bit and we fought together to save the town once.”
“Angel is always saving the day. He saved Fred from Pylea. Now he’s a real hero,” Roger said. Giles felt his body tense up and resisted the urge to say that Angel wasn’t that great but once again, he kept his mouth shut.
“So, Mr. Giles, do you usually come and pick up young girls that you’ve hired or is our Fred a special case?” Roger asked, crossing his arms.
“Roger!” Trish said, slapping his arm. She looked at her daughter and Giles. “Why don’t we go to the dining room and eat before it gets cold.”
Fred clenched her fists as her father questioned Giles, wanting to tell him to stop acting like a donkey's ass by going on about Angel. She loved her father and knew he was just worried about her, but she was wishing that she had told them why she had come home from Los Angeles after she had originally gotten back.
"Dad, Rupert's a good guy, and he's with the good guys. I wouldn't go work for the Council if it wasn't," she told him. "He's a hero too. He and the others - Willow and Xander and Buffy--they all have saved the world so many times. He's a hero too."
She hoped that would placate her father, but then he questioned why he had come to "pick her up".
"Rupert came here because he had something for me. He's the reason Professor Seidel was exposed, and he brought me an award that was originally in Seidel's name that's now in mine because I was the one that wrote the paper that won." She looked over at Giles as they walked into the dining room and sat down, giving him a smile. "And I'm glad he came."
"Well, I for one am glad to he came too," Trish said as she started passing around the platters of food so everyone could serve themselves. "We get to meet the person Fred's going to be working with before she leaves us. Makes me feel better to know she'll be in good hands."
If Giles wasn’t madly in love with Fred before, he definitely was now. Hearing her defend him made him happy, and a bit randy. But he supposed they would deal with that later. Sitting at the table, he filled his plate and ate as Fred’s parents discussed their neighbors and other new from away the town. Roger had seemed not have anymore questions or wonderful words about Angel.
When they finished their meal, Roger stood and asked Giles to help him clear the table. Giles was afraid that Roger had plans for hurting him in the kitchen but he followed him anyway. Once inside the kitchen, Giles and Fred’s father worked in silence until it drove Giles mad.
“I’m in love with her, Mr. Burkle,” he said, rinsing off a plate.
“And she’s in love with you,” Roger commented before handing another soapy plate to Giles. “I can see it when she looks at you.”
Giles put another dish in the dish strainer and cleared his throat. “I want to marry her,” he said, glancing over at Roger. “I want to give her all she deserves but I want your blessing first.”
Roger blinked at the other man and washed another dish. “I guess that’s okay. Not like I could stop her if I wanted. She’s always been her own person, no matter what her mother and I said. So, yes, you may marry my daughter.”
“Thank you, Mr. Burkle,” Giles said, grinning.
“I would invite you to sit on the porch with me and have a beer but I think Fred’s been wanting some time alone with you,” Roger said as he washed the last plate. He dried off his hands and placed one of them on Giles’ shoulder. “Take care of her.”
“Of course,” Giles said with a small smile. He dried off his hands also and went back to the dining room, where he sat next to Fred. “I don’t know where anything is here. Can someone recommend a good motel?”
When she asked if he knew about Professor Siedel, Giles nodded. “Fred told me, yes. The Council has taken care of the problem, ma’am and he won’t ever hurt another person again,” he said, glancing over at Fred.
Trish nodded and gave him a smile. “And what are your intentions with my little girl?” she suddenly asked.
Giles coughed a little and looked at Fred again. He wasn’t expecting such a straight forward question so soon after meeting Fred’s mother. But he supposed it was to be expected since Fred had been through so much already. “I love your daughter very much, Mrs. Burkle. I intend on making sure she’s happy for the rest of her life. I want to spend forever with her,” he said, taking Fred’s hand.
“Does this forever include marriage and babies?” Trish asked.
“Erm, yes, if that’s what Fred wants.”
“I’m not asking what Fred wants,” Trish said with a pointed look.
“Yes,” Giles said, looking at Fred. “I would love to marry your daughter and have children with her.”
“Good and I know you make Fred happy,” Trish said, stepping forward and giving Giles a hug. She pulled back and smoothed out his shirt. “I suppose y’all will want to spend some time alone. I need to finish supper, which you will be staying for Mr. Giles. Roger won’t be home for another few hours but I’m sure he’ll want to meet you.”
And before Giles could say another word, Trish was out the door. He turned and looked at Fred again. “Your mother is a lovely woman.”
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Then he said he wanted marry her and have children with her. Fred felt her heart begin to pound fast in her chest as she turned toward him, tears coming to her eyes again. She watched as Rupert and her mother hugged before her mother left the room to get the rest of dinner ready.
"My mom's the best," she said and then swallowed as she stepped closer to him. "Did you really mean that? That you'd want to marry me and have kids? 'Cause I know that wasn't exactly the best situation to be put in - you know, meeting the mother and then being asked something like that."
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“So, this is your bedroom?” he asked, changing the subject. He was going to ask her but he wanted to make sure he had a ring and it was half-way romantic. Giles stepped away from her and started walk around, looking at the various pictures and awards on the walls. It would seem Fred had always been a genius.
There was a picture of a young girl in a yellow sundress, picking flowers. Giles knew it was Fred and he smiled. The little girl looked so carefree and happy, and Giles had to admit she was quite adorable too. He wondered if their own daughter would be as beautiful. If she was anything like her mother then she would be amazing.
Blinking, Giles shook his head. They weren’t even close to having a child. He turned around and smiled at her. “I love you.”
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"Yes, this is my bedroom although as you can see, it's a bit messy at the moment since I'm trying to pack. The consulate said my visa should be here in the next couple of days, so I was trying to get as much done as I could while I was...while I was waiting. The Council was sending someone on Friday to ship all my things over." She felt a her cheeks pinken a bit when she saw him looking at all her awards. "My mom wanted to display everything I ever did and everything I ever won."
She picked up the pile of clothes she had been in the middle of packing when Rupert had come in earlier and placed them in the box on her bed, then walked over to join him in front of the picture.
"I love you, too," she said, rising up on her tiptoes to kiss him. "You do realize I've never had a guy in my room before."
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Giles moved to take her shirt off but quickly stopped when there was a knock on the door. He pulled away from Fred as the door creaked open. “Supper’s ready you two,” Trish said, peeking in. Giles quickly turned around and tugged at the front of his trousers, hoping Trish hadn’t noticed his arousal. “I expect y’all down there within five minutes.”
When the door clicked shut, Giles turned and looked at Fred. “Perhaps I should get a motel room for the duration of my stay. I wouldn’t want your parents to walk in on us,” he said with a blush. “Of course, I’d have to make sure you came home everyday so you finish packing. I’ll supervise while you pack. And I do suppose we should go downstairs before your mother comes back up.”
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She ran her hands down his sides to the beltloops of his pants and had just hooked her fingers through them to pull him closer when she heard her mother's voice. Turning around quickly to face her, she smoothed her hair down and then tugged on her shirt.
"We'll be there in a minute, Mom," she promised before turning back to Rupert. "That's...that's probably a good idea." Her mom wouldn't make a big deal about having caught them like that a moment ago, but she really didn't want to take a chance of them seeing more. She raised her eyebrow, however, when he mentioned supervising her packing. "Going to get a jump on being my boss, huh? If you can supervise, you can help."
Threading her arm through his, she led him downstairs to find her mom had set the table in the dinning room instead of in the kitchen. She was about to ask if she needed any help when her father appeared on the back porch, kicking some clumps of mud off his boots before walking in.
"Hey, where're my girls?" he called out as he closed the door behind them. Just then he noticed Fred and Giles at the bottom of the steps. "Fred, who's your friend?"
"Dad, this is Rupert Giles, the man I told I'm going to be working with at the Council in England."
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“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Burkle,” he said, holding out his hand.
“The Council, huh? Fred tells us you train Slayers there,” Roger said, shaking Giles’ hand. “That means you’re on the opposite side that Angel is, right?”
“Oh, I like Angel. He’s such a sweet boy,” Trish added. “Took good care of our little girl.”
Giles’ jaw clenched a little when they mentioned how good Angel was. He didn’t like the vampire, and especially now that he was running an evil law firm, but he wasn’t about to make waves with the Burkles. “No. Angel and I are on the same side,” he said with a forced smile. At least Giles hoped they were on the right side still. “He was actually in Sunnydale for a bit and we fought together to save the town once.”
“Angel is always saving the day. He saved Fred from Pylea. Now he’s a real hero,” Roger said. Giles felt his body tense up and resisted the urge to say that Angel wasn’t that great but once again, he kept his mouth shut.
“So, Mr. Giles, do you usually come and pick up young girls that you’ve hired or is our Fred a special case?” Roger asked, crossing his arms.
“Roger!” Trish said, slapping his arm. She looked at her daughter and Giles. “Why don’t we go to the dining room and eat before it gets cold.”
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"Dad, Rupert's a good guy, and he's with the good guys. I wouldn't go work for the Council if it wasn't," she told him. "He's a hero too. He and the others - Willow and Xander and Buffy--they all have saved the world so many times. He's a hero too."
She hoped that would placate her father, but then he questioned why he had come to "pick her up".
"Rupert came here because he had something for me. He's the reason Professor Seidel was exposed, and he brought me an award that was originally in Seidel's name that's now in mine because I was the one that wrote the paper that won." She looked over at Giles as they walked into the dining room and sat down, giving him a smile. "And I'm glad he came."
"Well, I for one am glad to he came too," Trish said as she started passing around the platters of food so everyone could serve themselves. "We get to meet the person Fred's going to be working with before she leaves us. Makes me feel better to know she'll be in good hands."
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When they finished their meal, Roger stood and asked Giles to help him clear the table. Giles was afraid that Roger had plans for hurting him in the kitchen but he followed him anyway. Once inside the kitchen, Giles and Fred’s father worked in silence until it drove Giles mad.
“I’m in love with her, Mr. Burkle,” he said, rinsing off a plate.
“And she’s in love with you,” Roger commented before handing another soapy plate to Giles. “I can see it when she looks at you.”
Giles put another dish in the dish strainer and cleared his throat. “I want to marry her,” he said, glancing over at Roger. “I want to give her all she deserves but I want your blessing first.”
Roger blinked at the other man and washed another dish. “I guess that’s okay. Not like I could stop her if I wanted. She’s always been her own person, no matter what her mother and I said. So, yes, you may marry my daughter.”
“Thank you, Mr. Burkle,” Giles said, grinning.
“I would invite you to sit on the porch with me and have a beer but I think Fred’s been wanting some time alone with you,” Roger said as he washed the last plate. He dried off his hands and placed one of them on Giles’ shoulder. “Take care of her.”
“Of course,” Giles said with a small smile. He dried off his hands also and went back to the dining room, where he sat next to Fred. “I don’t know where anything is here. Can someone recommend a good motel?”
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