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Title: Castaways 16/16 A week later, Buffy came home to find Willow sitting in the living room watching TV. "Hey, Will," she said a little quietly. "Dawn get to her sleep over okay?" "Hey, Buff. Yup, she did. Giles got on his plane okay?" "Yeah. And since he isn't flying Watcher Airlines this time, I think he'll even make it to England just fine. But he's under strict orders to call me the minute he gets to Heathrow and about once an hour after that until he comes home." Willow giggled. "And I bet that's one order he's gonna be happy to follow. I've never seen him so happy. He's been all glowy since you guys got back. You, too, until tonight." "I just don't glow so much without my honey. But this is temporary non- glowiness. At least he'd only been there a little while, so it won't take him that long to clear things up and come back to me." "Um...Buffy? I don't want to make any trouble, but, I think Giles might have a pretty big loose end to tie up over there." "What are you talking about? He's just got to deal with bank stuff and lease his flat to someone and arrange a new greencard. With the Council helping out, I don't think that'll take too long. I wish you could have been there when we convinced Travers to let Giles keep on being my Watcher. It was funny. Especially when he agreed to pay me for my Slaying. I'm the first Slayer in history to get a check for killing beasties." "Hey, that's cool! But, back on the Giles and loose ends subject...I don't want to upset you, especially when you've just said goodbye to him and all, but...Buffy, I think there's something you should know." "What is it, Will? You have big news face. Big bad news face." "I - it's just, when you were missing, Dawn tried to call Giles and - don't take this the wrong way, Buffy, but she said a woman answered the phone. I think maybe he had somebody living with him. It might take a while to clear up something like that, 'cause Giles is a really good guy and he'd try to make it easy on her, I think. And just remember, I only said 'cause I think you sorta need to know that. I don't want to hurt you or, y'know, be hurt *by* you for saying." Buffy stared blankly at her friend for a moment, then burst into gales of laughter. "Oh my God, Will, you should see your face! I needed a good laugh, too." She sobered as quickly as she could. "No, really, it's okay, Will. That was just Mattie." "Mattie? What's a Mattie?" "She's his housekeeper. She's been with the family for ages, he says, housekeeping and nannying and stuff. She's like a million years old. She used to change his diapers, even." "How come we never heard of her before?" "Come on, Will. We never knew because we never asked and he's not exactly share guy. That, incidentally, is a character trait we are working to tone down a little bit. Not that I want to turn him all Oprah, but sometimes things need to get said. Both of us are working on that, 'cause we both really suck at it. We would never have gotten so offtrack if we'd ever sat down and hashed out the big stuff before." "So what happens to Mattie? Does she retire or what?" Buffy grinned widely. "Nope. Giles tried, but I guess the women in his life just aren't the order taking type. She's coming here to help with Dawn and make all Giles' favorite yucky English foods. He grumbled about interfering women for a solid hour when she said she was moving to Sunnydale." "Happy, huh?" "The happiest. He won't ever say, but he loves her to pieces. And she can give me all the dirt on him from when he was a little boy, so I think I'm gonna love her, too. There's just this one thing...I don't know how to say this, Will." "She's gonna live here with you and Giles and Dawn, huh?" "Yeah. She doesn't have anywhere else to go or anything. Is it okay? It's not that I want you gone - really - there just isn't going to be room." "It's okay. Actually, it makes it easier to say this..." Buffy's eyes widened and she smiled even more broadly. "You and Tara?" "We're gonna give it another try. I don't know how it will work out, but, I love her, Buffy. And she loves me." Buffy hugged her best friend close. "That's the most important thing, Will. And I think the time apart has made both of you a lot more ready for this. Just do me one favor, will you?" "What's that?" "Stay tonight and let's have ice cream and chick flicks? I feel the need of some serious best friend bonding with my man gone. We could invite Tara." Willow shook her head. "This is best friend bonding. No honeys allowed. It's in the rules." "Piffle on the rules, Will. And Tara's best friend material, too. Call your woman and get her over here. Hell, let's invite Anya, too. We'll have a Scooby grrl pajama party." "Xander's gonna feel left out." "Okay, he can come along too, as long as he understands that hair braiding and boytalk is the order of the night." "If there's enough junk food and Anya, I think he'll be down with that. Or we could invite Spike so there's another guy." "Or not," Buffy said quickly. "I haven't seen Spike since I told him about me and Giles. I don't think he's coming back. Besides, he was never really Scooby, and tonight is strictly white hats. No grey allowed." As Buffy headed to the kitchen to organize snacks, she could hear Willow in the dining room calling their friends. She smiled. Life was finally really good again. She opened a cupboard and pulled down bags of chips and pretzels and microwave popcorn. Her hand found an object she wasn't expecting at the back. She pulled it down to find it was a small box with a note taped to the top. 'Buffy', the note read, 'you weren't meant to find this, but I know you will. You always do the unexpected, after all. In this one case, though, I hope you will do what I want and that you will be wearing this when I come home to you. All my love, Rupert ps: I know this is an unusual choice for the purpose, but I can be unexpected too' Buffy held her breath as she opened the box. She felt sure she knew what was in it. And it was. A ring. The gold band was delicate and decorated with a square of black onyx. She smiled and slipped it on her left ring finger. It was a perfect fit. Her reverie was interrupted when Willow came into the kitchen. "Okay, everybody's coming in a little while. I told Tara to pick the movies 'cause I don't trust Xander and Anya to find something we'll all be able to deal with, and is that a ring? Buffy! You didn't tell me Giles had popped the question! And why isn't that a diamond?" Buffy hugged Willow until the redhead had to gasp for breath. As Buffy laughed, she ticked off the answers to Willow's questions on her fingers. "Good call, yes, I didn't know he was gonna until I found this at the back of the cupboard, and this is just right. Better than a diamond." "Better than a diamond? How's that? Y'know, it sorta looks like..." "His ring. I know. That's what's so perfect. We match inside and now we sorta match outside, too." "And he left that sitting in the kitchen cupboard while he went off to England? That was just plain weird." "No, that's just plain Rupert Giles. Quirky guy. I think he was a little chicken to ask me the normal way. Big, dumb jerk," she finished affectionately. "Lucky big dumb jerk," Willow corrected. Buffy shook her head. "I'm the lucky one, Will. So, do you think we should invite Ethan to the wedding and tie him up somewhere until it's over, or do we just send him an announcement? After all, we sort of owe him one for getting us together." "I don't think Miss Manners has ever been asked that question, Buff." "Should I write to her? Might make her day more interesting." Willow shook her head. "Y'know, you're a sort of a puzzle sometimes." "Nah," Buffy said rubbing a finger across the smooth black stone of her engagement ring. "Just a part of one."
THE END
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