The Blonde Leading the Blind:
Chapter One

by GylzGirl

Rating: NC-17
Pairings: B/G (implied Xander/Anya)
Disclaimer: Joss (absent father this season), WB (whyfor call it New Tuesday when it's 2 1/2 years old), and Fox (anybody got a gun) own the Buffy crew. I'm just playing because they need somebody to let them have fun.
Distribution: Solo, my sites, anyone else just ask.
Timeline: Just before Buffy's Sophomore year in college.
Author's Notes: Thanks to Karen, Beth, Gail, Solo, Brenda, Ann and everyone else who's given me help and smiles over the past icky month.

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Buffy sat on the veranda of Giles' apartment, sipping a glass of iced tea. As she waited for her former Watcher, she sighed, soaking in the warm glow of the afternoon in these dying weeks of summer. She'd be starting her sophomore year of college in another week. For the first time, she allowed herself to reflect on the year that had come before. So much had changed since she left the hallowed, and burned out, halls of Sunnydale High. The Scooby Gang had been pushed and pulled and come so close to being utterly ripped apart. But battered and bruised as they were, they were still together, more or less.

And Riley, Buffy's first real post-Angel romance had now gone the way of the fading summer light. After increasingly fewer and fewer communications, Riley had called from his family's farm a few days ago wondering if he should finish out his education at UC Sunnydale now that the Initiative was destroyed. He'd questioned her about her seemingly growing disinterest in keeping connected to him in any way. He'd asked her point blank if he had anything to come back to in Sunnydale. Buffy had wished him well in his upcoming year at Iowa State University and that had been the end.

All in all, it had been one of the best summers of her life. She had stayed around Sunnydale for the most part, not really feeling the need for the emotional potholes down memory lane that her normal summers in Los Angeles meant. LA, the city of men who didn't want Buffy Summers in their lives. How much it had hurt when she figured that out. How glad she was now to have them gone.

There had been a few excursions here and there with Willow and Xander, and on infrequent occasions both of them. For the most part however, her two friends had needed time away from her, and each other, to reflect and come to decisions about where they wanted to go in their lives and who was going to be coming along with them. That had left Buffy many days free to get her own head in order and many days to repair her bond with Giles.

The past year had forced Buffy to grow up, even if she had spent almost all of that year fighting that growth with every ounce of childishness she could muster. Giles had given her a little push toward independence way back in the first days of her Freshman year and even though he had tried to make up for it not even a full day later, she had spent most of the year making him pay for it. She distanced herself further and further and at any complaints she told him she was just doing what he told her to, being an adult, showing him that she didn't need him. Both were lies and finally she had to admit to herself that she only did it because she could.

Giles being Giles though, he welcomed her back with open arms this summer, when she had no one else to turn to. To her surprise, as school had been gearing up again and her other friends were suddenly more available to her, she would even cancel plans with them in order to keep up new "traditions" with Giles. He was patrolling with her almost every other night now and they'd rent movies or just sit up late and talk. She'd even talked him into a beach outing, though with the sunburn he'd received that was most likely going to be a one time event; but what an event. That's what had brought the obvious change in their relationship rocketing to her attention.

He'd been grumpy all the way home from the beach, though she could hardly blame him as red as he was. After much coercion, she'd gotten him to lay down on his sofa and let her put some soothing balm on his skin. As he sighed under her touch, she realized how good he felt and that her thoughts were rapidly entering territory outside the bounds of simple friendship. When she rubbed the ointment close to the waistband of his swimming trunks and she had to bite her lip to keep from asking him to pull them down, even her abundant powers of denial couldn't save her from the realization that she had fallen for Giles, head over heels.

Buffy closed her eyes as the breeze wound its way through the thin crinkle-gauze fabric of the floral print summer dress she wore. "Penny for your thoughts," her favorite voice in the world said softly near her ear.

She smiled without opening her eyes. "Oh I was just thinking about that old daydream I used to have as a little girl. The one about a tall handsome man with a foreign accent coming along to sweep me off my feet."

"Oh," he said from seemingly closer than he had been before. "Like this?"

Buffy's eyes flew open as she felt the sensation of falling only to see Giles grinning down on her as he held her chair tipped backwards precariously. "Hey put me down!" she giggled. He complied and moved to sit at the table across from her.

"So what brings you by?"

"I was just waiting for you."

"Has something happened?"

She gave him a stern look. "Giles, I thought we talked about that."

He nodded. "You're right. You don't only come over here in the wake of catastrophe any more. I apologize if it sounded otherwise."

Buffy grinned. "You're forgiven. I just wanted to spend some time with you."

He smiled. "I wish I'd known. I'd have come home sooner. I have an appointment in a little while. I really only have enough time to shower and change."

"Appointment?"

"Prospective job."

"Really?!" She jumped up from her chair and hugged him tightly. "That's great! What kind of job?!"

"There's talk that the curator of the Sunnydale Museum may be retiring at the end of the month and the Museum's Board of Directors wants to interview their pool of candidates. I've had my resume in for months. Shocked the hell out of me when I got the call this morning."

"So where were you?" She pulled back a little and settled herself on his lap.

"Truthfully? Shopping. My old tweeds seemed a little too...stuffy? And I'm afraid I've let my wardrobe tend toward the casual during my...sabbatical from employment."

"Shopping and you didn't ask me to help? I'm hurt."

He looked into her eyes. For a moment, Buffy was hopeful he would kiss her, then he cleared his throat and stood, easing her off of his lap. "I'm sorry. I got the call and just...went."

"It's okay." Buffy tried not to pout when he removed his hold on her arms.

"It was good to see you. I must go shower now."

"Can I come?" Buffy's eyes widened when she realized she'd said that out loud. He turned to face her. "Back and see you later tonight?" she amended, hoping she was convincing as to it having been one question.

"Nice weather like tonight? I thought you might try the Bronze with Willow or Xander?"

"Bronze...yeah, yes but um...could I come and see you for awhile before?"

Giles' smile warmed her heart. "That would be lovely." He jogged up the stairs and went through his door.

Buffy sank into the chair he vacated and thumped her head down on the table. "Coward!"

On to Chapter 2