Title: Willow Weep for Me
Author: Fabrisse and Gileswench
E-mail: Fabrisse@hotmail.com or gileswench@yahoo.com
Pairing: G/W/O
Rating: NC-17
Disclaimer: All hail Joss sole owner and profiter from the below named
characters. Not me.
Summary: Wesley picks a humiliating partner for Giles. Part 4 of "The Bet" series
Spoilers: Season 3
Feedback: Always welcome.
Archiving: UCSL and GilesRulesBaby. Anyone else please ask.

#signs indicate continuity blocks from story to story
* indicates Giles' inner thoughts

##############

"Here's your proof, you bastard" Giles spat as he
flung the hairnet down in front of Wesley. "Would you
like the used condom as well?"

"I hardly think that will be necessary, Mr. Giles.
This...trophy satisfies me that you have adequately
completed the task set before you."

"So who is the next to be?" Giles' cheeks burned with
fury and shame, but once underway the challenge could
not be refused.

"I've not quite decided yet. I will come round to your
flat tonight, say at nine o'clock. That should give me
time to decide, and you time to recover from this
afternoon's ordeal."

"Nine it is, then, In the meantime, you can fucking
well get out of my library."

##############
It had been a tough day and there were at least 40 more hours of Wesley's
hell to go through. And he'd already used his one veto. Damn.

Rupert Giles took a small sip of the single malt that he'd allowed himself.
There was a knock at the door.

"Oz, Willow. What are you doing here? Don't tell me the world's going to
end again?" He said hopefully. Giles put his scotch down and stood back
to let the young couple in to his apartment.

Oz spoke first. "You may not have realized..., hmmm, when I'm in wolf form I
don't understand much of what's going on around me. But over the next day
or so I'll put together things I've seen, conversations I've overheard."

Giles had forgotten that his conversation with Wesley detailing the
specifics of the bet, or should he think of it as a test, had taken place at
the full moon. Dear lord, what must this young man think of him. "I can
explain..."

"Hey, there's no need to explain. Wesley's being a prick and you're trying
to protect Buffy which is much harder to do unofficially." Giles didn't
think he'd ever heard so much out of Oz at one time before. He was touched
by Oz's comprehension. Oz continued, "Willow and I talked about it a
little." At Giles shocked expression Willow broke in, "Oz thought there
might be a spell that could help. It was only the two of us. No-one else
except Wesley and I guess the participants know. I wasn't able to find a
spell and neither of us knew when, if, the challenge had begun yet."

"Yes, at 1:37 this afternoon." Giles glanced at the clock it was now 7:00.
Wesley would be stopping in at 9 with his next "assignment". Willow looked
at Oz and said, "May I use the bathroom." Giles nodded.

"Willow and I have discussed this and she wants to talk to you. Any
decision is fine," Oz's voice slipped down to a whisper or was it a growl?
"But don't you dare hurt Willow." He walked away and began to look through
Giles' extensive record collection. He selected one and Giles heard the
cool strains of Modern Jazz Quartet come through the speakers.

Willow entered the room as Oz found a book from Giles shelves and began to
read quietly in the corner. Giles stood looking at the pretty redhead.
"Where are my manners. Please sit down, would you care for a glass of water
or something?" Willow just gave that little quirked smile that meant she
was nervous. She sat on the sofa and patted the spot next her. Giles sat
down a little farther away than she'd indicated.

"Willow, what is this about?" Giles was surprised by her blush. Willow
began to stammer and it finally occurred to him that maybe if he didn't look
at her she'd be able to form coherent sentences.

"I know this is kind of presumptuous and all, but Oz told me that you had a
choice for one of the people in this ..." Willow hunted for an unobscene word
and finally came up with, "marathon." She turned to look at him, and Giles
risked looking right back at her. While obviously uncomfortable, Willow
continued to look him straight in the eye as she said, "Take me."

Giles was very glad he'd put his drink down or otherwise he'd have choked.
No, actually, right now he needed that drink. As he took a breath to form a
reply, Willow began to speak again. "Oz and I discussed this very
carefully. He knows that I've had, well, a bit of a crush on you for awhile
and, well, you just seem the type of man who'd prefer someone you know and
are, you know, friends with, I mean I think we're friends, I hope we're
friends, and I know you probably think that I'm young, but I'm over the age
of consent and I know what I'm offering and"

"Willow, breathe." The redhead stopped and smiled and finished her thought,
"Oz and I agreed that we're here for you. Either of us. Both of us.
Whatever you're most comfortable with. Because Wesley's just being a
poophead." Giles looked across the room; Oz met Giles eyes and gave a brief
nod.

*****
For one wild moment, Giles thought about what she was saying and was
enraptured. He imagined licking her and wondered if her quim would taste
like strawberry cream. Then he thought no, her hair wasn't like
strawberries, it was like spice and she smelled of cinnamon and ginger and
nutmeg and cardamom.

And Oz. Giles hadn't missed the implication in Willow's statement. Had Oz
ever been with a man before, and if not, what did it mean that he was
willing to trust Giles to be his first in that arena. Most of all he had to
stop thinking of running his hand's over Oz's ass, or Willow's breasts for
that matter.

He was so stiff it was painful. The effort not to lean over and kiss her
was nearly overwhelming.
*****

"Willow, I don't know what to say. This is the ö I'm ö I don't think anyone
has ever made me such a loving and generous offer. But I *must * say no."
Giles took one look at the stricken look on Willow's face and thought, "I
could have beat her black and blue and not hurt her one-tenth as much."
Willow's eyes brimmed over and Giles pulled her to him and let her cry
against his chest. "I thought we were friends, I thought we could...I thought
you CARED!" His arms wrapped tightly around her shoulders Giles kissed the
top of her head.

"I do care. Listen, love, please listen to me. It's because I care that I
can't say yes. I'd be lying if I said that your age had nothing to do with
it. No that's not really it, let me explain. Please." Over Willow's head
Giles once again met Oz's eyes. While telepathy was not a known werewolf
trait, Giles got the clear idea that Willow had better be made happy soon.

"Willow, are you listening? " Willow looked up at him her face was ravaged
by tears that he just wanted to kiss away. "We are friends; that's merely
one of the reasons that I can't just use you this way to get my job back."
She was still crying but Giles was glad to see that she was also paying
attention.

With great effort Willow got herself under control, "I misunderstood the
signals. I thought you found me attractive and I was wrong no biggie."

Giles pulled her back to him and cradled her against his shoulder. "You,
Willow Rosenberg, are a most beautiful woman. And I will kick myself for
months for not having accepted you, but it's because I value our friendship
and my growing friendship with Oz that I can't turn either of you ö both of
you ö into a one-night stand. I look at you and Oz together and suddenly
my day is a little happier. The two of you have already been through a few
hard times, but you obviously love and respect each other and I'm happy for
you. At the moment you and Oz are going through all the joys of first love.
I can't interfere with that. Or rather I could, but right now you are so
very innocent and although you know exactly what you're offering, you can't
yet know all the emotional consequences of making love. And we do care
about each other enough ö love each other enough, if you will ö that there
would indeed be consequences."

*****
Giles wasn't at all surprised that Oz could be generous. Oz loved Willow
and wanted her to be happy. But he was a little surprised that Oz would
allow someone else to deflower the woman he loved. Was Oz afraid that he
might hurt Willow? Or frighten her? Or... Giles thought for a moment. He'd
never seen Oz in the shower or a swimsuit, but he knew enough about
proportions to think that Oz would probably have a very thick cock.
Filling, perfect for so many women that Giles had known, but very painful
for a first time. Generous indeed.
*****

Willow noticed a change in Giles breathing, it was almost like he was, "Are
you laughing at me?" Oz's ears perked up and Giles quickly explained, "The
title of this song is ÎWillow Weep for Me' I thought it was ironic to hear
it while I had a weeping Willow in my arms." This obviously wasn't helping.
Giles tried a different tack, "Do you know why I wear tweed?"

Willow sniffed up at him, startled, "Because Americans remember that
Englishman are stuffy and hunt and ride, but never remember that you also
invented punk rock and the commandos. It's camouflage."

"Very perceptive. But you missed one other part of the reason I wear
tweeds. They're loose. Especially when worn with braces, er, suspenders.
You see Englishmen have heard all the songs about California girls and how
long-legged and beautiful they are, and I'm more of a sensualist than you
might think. I was afraid that, at age 40 odd, I was about to relive my,
excuse the expression, blue-balled teenage years. And for the first
fortnight, I did. But by then I'd overheard enough conversations about
football and boys and fashion and movie stars to know that the packages were
pretty but there were no gifts inside, just vacuum.

"You are right. I need more than the package to be attracted. And you are
so much more than pretty wrapping paper. Every time you walk into my
library I begin to conjugate verbs, because then my instant erection upon
seeing you will subside. My Latin's improved tremendously, and I no longer
have to worry about losing my Greek. Currently, I'm working on Medieval
Gaelic." Willow began to smile a little, though the tears were still
brimming in her lovely eyes.

"Now, you mustn't tell Buffy this, or Faith for that matter, but I'll admit
to enjoying watching them work out, all the bits moving and such. But when
I'm trying to find an excuse just to stay away from that god-awful high
school, you're the reason that I get up and go into the library anyway. "

He thought for a moment and added, "While I'd like to think that I wouldn't
sleep with a woman who was too young to vote, I also know that if Wesley
chooses Faith, as I'm afraid he might, I'll have very few problems with it.
Faith has been quite, er, active. She knows how to enjoy the purely
physical side of sex and, though I may think she needs to experience the
emotional side, I think that she could understand the bargain. And maybe I
have just enough ego to think that I could help her, what's the phrase, get
in touch with her emotions. The fact that you're a virgin and in a
relationship does make part of the difference."

Willow sniffed and said, "Giles, I really like that you're holding me, but
this position is really getting uncomfortable." Giles smiled, "Come here,"
he said and pulled her across his lap to hold her against his other
shoulder. Willow felt his stiffness against the back of her legs and her
eyes widened. Giles smiled wryly, "Now do you believe me?"

*****
For just a moment he wanted to pull down her panties and plunge into her.
Feel the warm stickiness surrounding him and look into her eyes and see the
soft glow of sex in them.
He looked at the red hair and pale skin leaning against his shoulder. And
her ears, he could trace his tongue around her ears and really make her
squirm. Giles could see the pulse in her neck and suddenly understood why
vampires found it so intoxicating. He wanted to press his lips against that
little throb; he could imagine timing his rhythm to its hot beat, both pulse
and thrusts speeding up until they both burst with the pleasure. He took a
deep breath and forced himself to look away.
*****

"Tell you what. I have a, hmmm, proposition for you. If you still have an
understanding partner and still want to, on the eve of your 21st birthday,
I'll take you out to dinner. At exactly midnight, I'll give you a glass of
good champagne and then spend the next 24 hours making love to you. I
guarantee that you'll be smiling for the next year." At Willow's
incredulous glance he amended, "You're right, I should slow down a bit. The
guarantee is only good for six months."

Willow giggled and then, "What if you have a partner? And why do you always
use partner rather than boyfriend or girlfriend?"

"To answer the 2nd question first: I came of age in 1970 and shagged
anything with a heartbeat ö and a couple of things without, come to think of
it. I wouldn't dare to presume which gender *I'd* end up with much less
anyone else. Did I shock you?"

"A little. And what about the first question?"

"Any partner I have will understand about a promise made to a friend or they
won't remain my partner. Any other questions?"

"And if my partner is interested in joining us?"

"Then I demand 48 hours and someone else making the tea in order to spread 6
months of smiles." Willow was beginning to grin. "Just one more question?
What if I still haven't done the deed?"

"Then my highly erotic redhead it will mean that the mayor's ascension has
taken place and we no longer exist. Seriously, in that case, if you are
still interested, I'll make certain that your experience is as pain free as
possible and that you are cherished as much as you deserve to be." Once
again Oz and Giles eyes met across the room. This time it was clear that
Ripper was promising mayhem to any werewolf who didn't also keep that
promise.

"I like the way you think. But could you make it single malt scotch. I've
tasted champagne and the scotch smells so good and... and smoky on you." As
she got happier, Willow began to bounce a little on his lap. "Willow, if
you don't want me to have a schoolboy's accident, you'd best let me get up
and make you some tea."

"Do you have any tea that's erotic?" Willow playfully inquired. Giles
lifted one eyebrow as he went into the kitchen.

Lapsang Souchong went into the warmed pot as he waited for the water to
boil. He thought she'd find its smokiness erotic enough. He also debated
whether to get some ice out of the fridge and apply it to his rock hard
crotch. No, he might need to make a quick recovery when Wesley arrived.
The tea was made, and Giles wandered back in to the living room. As he
passed the dining table he added his unfinished scotch to the tray. Giles
sat back down on the sofa and poured Willow a cup of tea. "So, do you
accept my proposition?" Willow grinned happily, "Of course."

Oz wandered over, "Is there a cup for me?" Giles poured it for him and
handed it over. These two lovely young people framing him on the couch had
wanted to make his life a little easier. Somehow sitting here between them,
it was. He smiled as he took another sip of the scotch. One drop stayed on
his lower lip and as he was about to lick it, Oz gently kissed it off his
mouth instead. Giles looked into the younger man's eyes and understood what
he needed to do. He reached to his other side and kissed Willow delicately
on the lips. Willow leaned over him and kissed Oz. A promise had been
made; it would be kept.

########

About half an hour later, after a discussion about the book which Oz had
picked up, Oz and Willow left. Oz shook hands and nodded, and Willow kissed
him on the cheek and wished him luck. They'd not been gone five minutes
when a knock came at his door.

Wesley Wyndham-Pryce stood in the doorway looking smug. "Well, you seem to
have managed your first task. I'm not a cruel man and since you used your
veto so early, I've decided to let you choose between the two most vapid
people in town. And quite possibly the state of California. So, who will
it be? Devon or Harmony?"