FIC: Ain't No Sunshine (Part 4/?)
What: BtVS fanfic
Posted in: Summer of Giles 2012
Pairing: Faith & Giles
Rating: G, FRC
Setting: Post "Chosen," no comics. Any similarity to the comics is coincidence as I haven't read them, though I have read some synopses of them online.
Disclaimer: I own nothing in the BtVS universe and no one pays me for my fan fiction either (sadly).
Summary: Sometime after Sunnydale imploded, Faith has left Cleveland and Robin and come to England to find Giles. Giles has been working to rebuild the Council, and Faith is hoping she can be of some help to him.
Note: Recommend you read Part 1, 2 and 3 first.
Flashback:
FAITH
Looks like the Hellmouth is officially closed for business.
GILES
There is another one in Cleveland. (Faith gapes at him.)
Not to spoil the moment... (he says somewhat apologetically)
XANDER
We saved the world.
WILLOW
We changed the world. I can feel them, Buffy. All over.
Slayers are awakening everywhere.
DAWN
We'll have to find them.
WILLOW
We will.
GILES
Yes, because the mall was actually in Sunnydale, so no hope of going there tomorrow... (Behind him, Faith smiles at Giles’ sarcastic comment, though she wasn’t privy to the pre-battle banter between Xander, Buffy and Willow he was referring to.)
DAWN
We destroyed the Mall? I fought on
the wrong side...
XANDER
All those shops gone... The Gap, Starbucks, Toys R Us... who will remember all those landmarks unless we tell the world of them?
GILES
(Gazing out into the giant pit that was once Sunnydale, and, as usual, ignoring Xander’s nonsense.)
We have a lot of work ahead of us...
FAITH
(Glancing at Giles incredulously, then to the others.)
Can I push him in?
WILLOW
You got my vote.
FAITH
(Mostly to Giles.) I just wanna sleep, yo. For like a week. (She playfully shoves Giles.)
DAWN
I guess we all could. If we wanted to.
WILLOW
Yeah, the First is scrunched, so...
What do you think we should do, Buffy?
FAITH
(Looking at Buffy.) Yeah, you're not the one and only
chosen anymore. Just gotta live like
a person. How's that feel?
DAWN
Yeah Buffy? What are we gonna do now?
_________________________________________
“I take it you didn’t have to work today,” Faith stated, watching the scenery slip past outside her window as they headed to... wherever he was taking her shopping.
“I...,” he glanced at her quickly, then back to the road, “N-no. I t-took a... p-personal day.”
She regarded Giles’ face from where she sat in the passenger’s seat, feeling slightly ill-at-ease on the ‘wrong’ side of the car, and not sure she’d be able to adjust to it. She had to stop herself a couple of times from grabbing the wheel from Giles and steering them onto the other side of the road.
The way he’d said ‘personal day’... she could tell there was more he wasn’t telling her. She filed that away hoping to have the chance to ask about it at another time. Today, it might be best to keep things light. Day after a drunk-fest, sometimes the blues were closer at hand than we might like. And whatever had sent Giles into his drunken tail-spin, Faith was pretty sure he wasn’t over it.
So, she chuckled as she said, “Good thing. Don’t know what those Watchers would’ve thought if you’d showed up in the state you were in this mornin’.”
He looked rueful, then noticed her smiling at him, and smiled a bit himself as he replied, “I’m sure it wouldn’t be perceived as ‘behaviour fitting a representative of the respected tradition of the Watcher’s Council’,” he agreed somewhat mockingly.
They drove on in comfortable silence for a while. Then something occurred to Faith. “I thought Willow told me, when she visited you here, that it was like, some kind of ranch or something you lived on? Like, in the country? Horses and stuff.” She hadn’t really thought of it until now, but if he had a ranch somewhere here, why was he living in a 2 bedroom apartment in London?
“Y-yes. She did. S-stay with me there. I-I still... I still own that property.”
She frowned slightly at him, waiting for an explanation. He gave her a sideways glance, then added, “I got a flat in London to be closer to Council Headquarters. I w-was n-needed there, t-to... oversee the rebuilding. I h-hoped... eventually... when things were under control... to return there. To the r-ranch I mean.”
Faith thought about what he’d said for few minutes, then she cocked her head slightly. “You mean, like, retirement?”
He paused a moment, then gave a curt nod.
“You really think you could walk away? Hand over the reigns and just... what? Ride off into the sunset?” Her tone wasn’t one of judgement, but incredulity. She couldn’t imagine Giles not somehow there, fighting the good fight, in some way. More than that, she couldn’t imagine that he’d even considered walking away. He’d always seemed so... committed. She’d never thought of him as wanting something else, a different kind of life. Faith suddenly realized how much she didn’t know about Giles.
Then he was pulling into a parking lot. “First stop,” he said, turning off the engine.
“Boots?” she read the sign. “Shoes are probably the least important thing I need, but, okay.” She shrugged. It was his money.
“It’s not a shoe store,” he explained as they walked towards the entrance. He sensed this would be a day full of little explanations like this. And he found that the thought didn’t bother him in the slightest. It might be refreshing to see his home through someone else’s eyes. He smiled as he held the door for her.
____________________________________
(A video, just for fun.This is not what their shopping trip was like -- this time -- but who knows what kind of naughty dreams our favourite Watcher has? :P )
____________________________________
A few hours and a number of stops later, Faith had several bags of new clothes, accessories, enough toiletries to pamper a princess (or so Giles thought), and even some music and movies and other do-dads. Giles was somewhat worn out from it all. Not really his scene, so to speak, plus, hello hangover. They picked up some take-away and a bottle of wine (Faith’s request) on the way home so he wouldn’t have to cook (though he promised Faith he’d whip up something special the next night. He liked to cook, and he rarely had anyone to cook for besides himself).
They got back to Giles’ apartment building and entered at the same time as one of Giles’ across-the-hall neighbours who was apparently just getting home from work. Faith recognized him all too well, but said nothing. Giles gave him a friendly smile and nod saying, “Allister.”
Still annoyed from being so rudely awakened the previous night, Allister took in the scene: Giles loaded down with purchases, the girl apparently still in the same clothing he’d seen her in the night before, and also carrying bags, as well as food and a bottle of wine -- and came to his own conclusions. A sour expression on his face, he muttered, “Try to keep the party inside your flat tonight, eh old man?”
Attempting to balance too many things and fiddling to retrieve his keys, Giles didn’t notice his neighbour’s facial expression, nor did he quite hear Allister’s remark. He responded, “Pardon?” as he turned back to his door to work the key in the lock, nearly dropping several packages and bags, yet somehow managing to hold on to them. This gave Faith time to wink suggestively at the neighbour and shift the packages she was holding, freeing one hand to slide up Giles’ back in a comically lust-filled gesture. Disgusted (or jealous?), Allister entered his own apartment and slammed the door, causing Faith to grin wickedly. Still distracted with what he was doing, Giles mistook Faith’s touch for her trying to get his attention, “Mmmm?” Innocent as ever, Faith looked in his eyes and said, “Let me take some of those,” grabbing some of the purchases out of his arms so he could properly unlock the door.
_______________________________
Over dinner they got into the wine, and Giles gently prodded Faith about her trip. They’d established that it wasn’t any kind of work emergency that sent her here. He didn’t want to push her to tell him anything she wasn’t comfortable sharing, but he was quite curious to know why she came to England, to him, and why she left Cleveland... and Robin? He also wondered how long she’d be staying, but truthfully, he was too afraid of the answer to ask.
He wasn’t ready to admit to himself, let alone to Faith, that he secretly hoped she’d stay... indefinitely. He missed having a... friend? comrade?... from his Sunnydale days nearby. They’d all been through hell and back together -- literally -- and now he was off by himself in England and he longed to have someone he could talk to, someone who understood. Who understood because they were there. Their epic battle with the First had marked them all permanently. They were bonded because of it. And those bonds made him ache at times for their company. But, he was fairly certain Faith would soon want to get back to the States, so his subconscious preferred that he not bring up the topic at all. Avoid the pain.
The new Watchers he’d been recruiting were proving to be excellent people, and he had great faith in their abilities to find and train the Slayers. But he couldn’t seem to allow himself to let any of these new work relationships become more than professional. And all his old mates from England, and many of his aquaintances, and colleagues from the Council were, well, dead. Except for Ethan. Well, he assumed Ethan was still alive in some military prison somewhere. Perhaps that was something he should look into come to think of it. He’d mention it to Celina on Monday.
Olivia was still alive too of course. Though she’d moved on, was married now, and he really didn’t have a place in her life except as a memory. Professionally his life couldn’t be more successful -- prestigious career, respected position, excellent income -- but personally, he was floundering.
“I got a package one day, from the Watcher’s Council, with a passport in it,” Faith explained, her voice startling him out of his momentary reverie. Lost in his own maudlin introspection, Giles had forgotten for a second that he’d asked Faith about why she’d come. His attention back on her now, he looked at her quizzically, hoping she was going to expand more on this overly literal answer.
“I assume you had something to do with that,” she looked down at her wine, then back at him almost shyly. “With getting me a passport I mean. An escaped ex-con? Must have taken a bit of work to sort that out.”
Was this gratitude? Giles was taken-aback He wasn’t expecting to be thanked, though it had been a hell of a hassle and had required him to use every connection he had as well as all the influence of the Watcher’s Council to clear Faith’s name. Not looking at her, he explained, “Faith, you are an indispensible ally. Speaking for the Council, I need you to be free to travel and to be able to respond at a moment’s notice to go where you are needed. We can’t have you being held up at customs and constantly being pursued by the police and FBI. I did what needed to be done.”
He turned to her then, but she looked slightly amused rather than moved.
“That the speech you used to convince the other Watchers?” she smirked at him.
“I... w-well, y-yes. Actually,” he replied. They both laughed then, and Faith refilled their wine glasses.
To her, getting the passport felt like forgiveness that she didn’t realize she’d needed. After defeating the First in Sunnydale, she kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. For Buffy, or Giles, or someone, to tell her it was time she went back to prison to finish her sentence. When the passport came, which couldn’t be granted without a full pardon, Faith had actually cried, though she’d hidden it from Robin, cracking a joke when she shared the good news with him.
Faith had been staring into her wine, but now she glanced out the side of her eye at Giles, then decided to spill. She was dying to understand what had made him do it. “Don’t you think...,” she faced him, “I mean, shouldn’t I go back to jail?” Her look was piercing, raw, and almost desperate.
Ahhh, Giles thought, settling back in his chair. So, was that it? He didn’t answer right away, then he said finally, softly, “Do you think that’s where you’re needed?”
Faith slammed down her glass, splashing a bit of wine on the table, and stood quickly, tipping her chair over in the process. She was frustrated by his damn Yoda-type answers. “Where I’m needed? I don’t know!” she nearly shouted, pacing. “I wanna help, if I can, totally. But, I’m no leader, I proved that. I don’t know how to teach these girls anything! All I know, I pick up as I go along. Never did much book-learnin’. You know that.” She gestured wildly at him, still pacing the room like a jungle cat about to spring. “Cleveland... Robin’s doin’ good there on his own. Got a good thing goin’. He’s got, like, a team...” she said this more softly. She stopped her pacing, and spoke to the air, unconscioulsy hugging her arms around herself, “Maybe what’s best is if I’m away where I can’t hurt anyone, and y’all just call on me when there’s an emergency.”
Giles was quiet for a few moments, then he got up and moved around the table to her, righting her chair as he passed it. Placing his hands on her shoulders he said, “And what do you get out of that Faith?”
She looked up at him, a bit confused, not sure what he was getting at. “I...you know, I’m paying for what I did,” she finished almost questioningly, looking to see if she’d answered correctly.
“Don’t you think you’ve learned your lesson?” Giles asked gently. “You’ll always carry it with you, you can’t erase what you’ve done. All you can do is make better choices going forward.”
He spoke kindly to her, but for some reason Faith’s anger rose in her. She swatted his hands away and stepped back from him, raising her voice again. “You really think you can trust me? To do what’s right? Work with others? Live the boring, stiff life like... like you?” she asked mockingly, waving her hand at him.
He ignored her attempt to goad him into fighting with her by insulting him, and responded seriously, “Yes, Faith, I trust you.”
Her anger turned to tears then, and she shouted at him, “How can you when I don’t trust myself?” He stepped toward her to fold her into a hug but she ran from him and slammed the door to the spare room -- her room now.
Giles reached a hand to the back of his neck and rubbed absently. Well done old chap, he thought.
Part 5
Posted in: Summer of Giles 2012
Pairing: Faith & Giles
Rating: G, FRC
Setting: Post "Chosen," no comics. Any similarity to the comics is coincidence as I haven't read them, though I have read some synopses of them online.
Disclaimer: I own nothing in the BtVS universe and no one pays me for my fan fiction either (sadly).
Summary: Sometime after Sunnydale imploded, Faith has left Cleveland and Robin and come to England to find Giles. Giles has been working to rebuild the Council, and Faith is hoping she can be of some help to him.
Note: Recommend you read Part 1, 2 and 3 first.
Flashback:
FAITH
Looks like the Hellmouth is officially closed for business.
GILES
There is another one in Cleveland. (Faith gapes at him.)
Not to spoil the moment... (he says somewhat apologetically)
XANDER
We saved the world.
WILLOW
We changed the world. I can feel them, Buffy. All over.
Slayers are awakening everywhere.
DAWN
We'll have to find them.
WILLOW
We will.
GILES
Yes, because the mall was actually in Sunnydale, so no hope of going there tomorrow... (Behind him, Faith smiles at Giles’ sarcastic comment, though she wasn’t privy to the pre-battle banter between Xander, Buffy and Willow he was referring to.)
DAWN
We destroyed the Mall? I fought on
the wrong side...
XANDER
All those shops gone... The Gap, Starbucks, Toys R Us... who will remember all those landmarks unless we tell the world of them?
GILES
(Gazing out into the giant pit that was once Sunnydale, and, as usual, ignoring Xander’s nonsense.)
We have a lot of work ahead of us...
FAITH
(Glancing at Giles incredulously, then to the others.)
Can I push him in?
WILLOW
You got my vote.
FAITH
(Mostly to Giles.) I just wanna sleep, yo. For like a week. (She playfully shoves Giles.)
DAWN
I guess we all could. If we wanted to.
WILLOW
Yeah, the First is scrunched, so...
What do you think we should do, Buffy?
FAITH
(Looking at Buffy.) Yeah, you're not the one and only
chosen anymore. Just gotta live like
a person. How's that feel?
DAWN
Yeah Buffy? What are we gonna do now?
_________________________________________
“I take it you didn’t have to work today,” Faith stated, watching the scenery slip past outside her window as they headed to... wherever he was taking her shopping.
“I...,” he glanced at her quickly, then back to the road, “N-no. I t-took a... p-personal day.”
She regarded Giles’ face from where she sat in the passenger’s seat, feeling slightly ill-at-ease on the ‘wrong’ side of the car, and not sure she’d be able to adjust to it. She had to stop herself a couple of times from grabbing the wheel from Giles and steering them onto the other side of the road.
The way he’d said ‘personal day’... she could tell there was more he wasn’t telling her. She filed that away hoping to have the chance to ask about it at another time. Today, it might be best to keep things light. Day after a drunk-fest, sometimes the blues were closer at hand than we might like. And whatever had sent Giles into his drunken tail-spin, Faith was pretty sure he wasn’t over it.
So, she chuckled as she said, “Good thing. Don’t know what those Watchers would’ve thought if you’d showed up in the state you were in this mornin’.”
He looked rueful, then noticed her smiling at him, and smiled a bit himself as he replied, “I’m sure it wouldn’t be perceived as ‘behaviour fitting a representative of the respected tradition of the Watcher’s Council’,” he agreed somewhat mockingly.
They drove on in comfortable silence for a while. Then something occurred to Faith. “I thought Willow told me, when she visited you here, that it was like, some kind of ranch or something you lived on? Like, in the country? Horses and stuff.” She hadn’t really thought of it until now, but if he had a ranch somewhere here, why was he living in a 2 bedroom apartment in London?
“Y-yes. She did. S-stay with me there. I-I still... I still own that property.”
She frowned slightly at him, waiting for an explanation. He gave her a sideways glance, then added, “I got a flat in London to be closer to Council Headquarters. I w-was n-needed there, t-to... oversee the rebuilding. I h-hoped... eventually... when things were under control... to return there. To the r-ranch I mean.”
Faith thought about what he’d said for few minutes, then she cocked her head slightly. “You mean, like, retirement?”
He paused a moment, then gave a curt nod.
“You really think you could walk away? Hand over the reigns and just... what? Ride off into the sunset?” Her tone wasn’t one of judgement, but incredulity. She couldn’t imagine Giles not somehow there, fighting the good fight, in some way. More than that, she couldn’t imagine that he’d even considered walking away. He’d always seemed so... committed. She’d never thought of him as wanting something else, a different kind of life. Faith suddenly realized how much she didn’t know about Giles.
Then he was pulling into a parking lot. “First stop,” he said, turning off the engine.
“Boots?” she read the sign. “Shoes are probably the least important thing I need, but, okay.” She shrugged. It was his money.
“It’s not a shoe store,” he explained as they walked towards the entrance. He sensed this would be a day full of little explanations like this. And he found that the thought didn’t bother him in the slightest. It might be refreshing to see his home through someone else’s eyes. He smiled as he held the door for her.
____________________________________
(A video, just for fun.This is not what their shopping trip was like -- this time -- but who knows what kind of naughty dreams our favourite Watcher has? :P )
____________________________________
A few hours and a number of stops later, Faith had several bags of new clothes, accessories, enough toiletries to pamper a princess (or so Giles thought), and even some music and movies and other do-dads. Giles was somewhat worn out from it all. Not really his scene, so to speak, plus, hello hangover. They picked up some take-away and a bottle of wine (Faith’s request) on the way home so he wouldn’t have to cook (though he promised Faith he’d whip up something special the next night. He liked to cook, and he rarely had anyone to cook for besides himself).
They got back to Giles’ apartment building and entered at the same time as one of Giles’ across-the-hall neighbours who was apparently just getting home from work. Faith recognized him all too well, but said nothing. Giles gave him a friendly smile and nod saying, “Allister.”
Still annoyed from being so rudely awakened the previous night, Allister took in the scene: Giles loaded down with purchases, the girl apparently still in the same clothing he’d seen her in the night before, and also carrying bags, as well as food and a bottle of wine -- and came to his own conclusions. A sour expression on his face, he muttered, “Try to keep the party inside your flat tonight, eh old man?”
Attempting to balance too many things and fiddling to retrieve his keys, Giles didn’t notice his neighbour’s facial expression, nor did he quite hear Allister’s remark. He responded, “Pardon?” as he turned back to his door to work the key in the lock, nearly dropping several packages and bags, yet somehow managing to hold on to them. This gave Faith time to wink suggestively at the neighbour and shift the packages she was holding, freeing one hand to slide up Giles’ back in a comically lust-filled gesture. Disgusted (or jealous?), Allister entered his own apartment and slammed the door, causing Faith to grin wickedly. Still distracted with what he was doing, Giles mistook Faith’s touch for her trying to get his attention, “Mmmm?” Innocent as ever, Faith looked in his eyes and said, “Let me take some of those,” grabbing some of the purchases out of his arms so he could properly unlock the door.
_______________________________
Over dinner they got into the wine, and Giles gently prodded Faith about her trip. They’d established that it wasn’t any kind of work emergency that sent her here. He didn’t want to push her to tell him anything she wasn’t comfortable sharing, but he was quite curious to know why she came to England, to him, and why she left Cleveland... and Robin? He also wondered how long she’d be staying, but truthfully, he was too afraid of the answer to ask.
He wasn’t ready to admit to himself, let alone to Faith, that he secretly hoped she’d stay... indefinitely. He missed having a... friend? comrade?... from his Sunnydale days nearby. They’d all been through hell and back together -- literally -- and now he was off by himself in England and he longed to have someone he could talk to, someone who understood. Who understood because they were there. Their epic battle with the First had marked them all permanently. They were bonded because of it. And those bonds made him ache at times for their company. But, he was fairly certain Faith would soon want to get back to the States, so his subconscious preferred that he not bring up the topic at all. Avoid the pain.
The new Watchers he’d been recruiting were proving to be excellent people, and he had great faith in their abilities to find and train the Slayers. But he couldn’t seem to allow himself to let any of these new work relationships become more than professional. And all his old mates from England, and many of his aquaintances, and colleagues from the Council were, well, dead. Except for Ethan. Well, he assumed Ethan was still alive in some military prison somewhere. Perhaps that was something he should look into come to think of it. He’d mention it to Celina on Monday.
Olivia was still alive too of course. Though she’d moved on, was married now, and he really didn’t have a place in her life except as a memory. Professionally his life couldn’t be more successful -- prestigious career, respected position, excellent income -- but personally, he was floundering.
“I got a package one day, from the Watcher’s Council, with a passport in it,” Faith explained, her voice startling him out of his momentary reverie. Lost in his own maudlin introspection, Giles had forgotten for a second that he’d asked Faith about why she’d come. His attention back on her now, he looked at her quizzically, hoping she was going to expand more on this overly literal answer.
“I assume you had something to do with that,” she looked down at her wine, then back at him almost shyly. “With getting me a passport I mean. An escaped ex-con? Must have taken a bit of work to sort that out.”
Was this gratitude? Giles was taken-aback He wasn’t expecting to be thanked, though it had been a hell of a hassle and had required him to use every connection he had as well as all the influence of the Watcher’s Council to clear Faith’s name. Not looking at her, he explained, “Faith, you are an indispensible ally. Speaking for the Council, I need you to be free to travel and to be able to respond at a moment’s notice to go where you are needed. We can’t have you being held up at customs and constantly being pursued by the police and FBI. I did what needed to be done.”
He turned to her then, but she looked slightly amused rather than moved.
“That the speech you used to convince the other Watchers?” she smirked at him.
“I... w-well, y-yes. Actually,” he replied. They both laughed then, and Faith refilled their wine glasses.
To her, getting the passport felt like forgiveness that she didn’t realize she’d needed. After defeating the First in Sunnydale, she kept waiting for the other shoe to drop. For Buffy, or Giles, or someone, to tell her it was time she went back to prison to finish her sentence. When the passport came, which couldn’t be granted without a full pardon, Faith had actually cried, though she’d hidden it from Robin, cracking a joke when she shared the good news with him.
Faith had been staring into her wine, but now she glanced out the side of her eye at Giles, then decided to spill. She was dying to understand what had made him do it. “Don’t you think...,” she faced him, “I mean, shouldn’t I go back to jail?” Her look was piercing, raw, and almost desperate.
Ahhh, Giles thought, settling back in his chair. So, was that it? He didn’t answer right away, then he said finally, softly, “Do you think that’s where you’re needed?”
Faith slammed down her glass, splashing a bit of wine on the table, and stood quickly, tipping her chair over in the process. She was frustrated by his damn Yoda-type answers. “Where I’m needed? I don’t know!” she nearly shouted, pacing. “I wanna help, if I can, totally. But, I’m no leader, I proved that. I don’t know how to teach these girls anything! All I know, I pick up as I go along. Never did much book-learnin’. You know that.” She gestured wildly at him, still pacing the room like a jungle cat about to spring. “Cleveland... Robin’s doin’ good there on his own. Got a good thing goin’. He’s got, like, a team...” she said this more softly. She stopped her pacing, and spoke to the air, unconscioulsy hugging her arms around herself, “Maybe what’s best is if I’m away where I can’t hurt anyone, and y’all just call on me when there’s an emergency.”
Giles was quiet for a few moments, then he got up and moved around the table to her, righting her chair as he passed it. Placing his hands on her shoulders he said, “And what do you get out of that Faith?”
She looked up at him, a bit confused, not sure what he was getting at. “I...you know, I’m paying for what I did,” she finished almost questioningly, looking to see if she’d answered correctly.
“Don’t you think you’ve learned your lesson?” Giles asked gently. “You’ll always carry it with you, you can’t erase what you’ve done. All you can do is make better choices going forward.”
He spoke kindly to her, but for some reason Faith’s anger rose in her. She swatted his hands away and stepped back from him, raising her voice again. “You really think you can trust me? To do what’s right? Work with others? Live the boring, stiff life like... like you?” she asked mockingly, waving her hand at him.
He ignored her attempt to goad him into fighting with her by insulting him, and responded seriously, “Yes, Faith, I trust you.”
Her anger turned to tears then, and she shouted at him, “How can you when I don’t trust myself?” He stepped toward her to fold her into a hug but she ran from him and slammed the door to the spare room -- her room now.
Giles reached a hand to the back of his neck and rubbed absently. Well done old chap, he thought.
Part 5