ote: Thanks to my beta t_geyer for her unending patience, perseverance and support.

SECTION 6 - Healer in your Heart

For the universe and the stars are around you now.
But the healer in your heart is only a breath away.
For there's silence and there's blindness in a raging world.
But the healer in your heart is only a moment away.


(Runrig Album - The Big Wheel Composer Calum MacDonald)




Chapter 6.03
Tuesday, June 18th, 2002


After their meeting, Spike, the Summers women and the Michaels men all waited together for the delivery from the Chinese restaurant before they made their way up to the attic where the rest of the rather extended Scooby gang were waiting for a rather less formal version of the briefing. This time it was Buffy's turn to protest about the patrol plans.

"You're still in worse shape than I am," she argued.

"Yeah? Well, don't you think you've got other things you should be taking care of tonight?" Spike nodded to where Dawn, Brandon and his father were walking ahead of them.

"But, you're better-."

"An', besides, like you said, we can't show the bad guys that any of us are hurt. An' that means me takin' my turn. She's your sister. You don't need to say anythin' deep or provide a cabaret to keep her entertained. Just be there for her. Chances are Junior's gonna have to go home an' spend some time with his family for once. She'll need you."

"But-."

"Look, we'll bring back ice cream an' if Bitlet doesn't want it, I'm sure we can find other uses for it..." The tip of Spike's tongue hovered just behind his teeth as he broke into a grin.

"Tease. You know you're in no fit state to be eating ice cream from anywhere other than a bowl."

"Well, nothing to stop us tryin'."

---

 

Faith paced the room, occasionally letting her gaze drift to the watcher in the corner. She barely resisted the impulse that was telling her to run, knowing that until her patrol partner for the night made an appearance there was nowhere to run to and then there was food and Giles' surprise that had taken all the men to assemble in record time and the women five minutes to make up. And talking of beds...

'Tell him it was a mistake. You changed your mind. It was just one of those moments... but it can't last.' He had softened her up but good. The ride north had been nearly an hour of sea, sun and speed, speed that a watcher had no right to pull off with such effortless style. What happened to the uptight fuddy duddies? Then, before the rush of the adrenaline could fade he'd plied her with the best tacos she'd tasted in literally years and that damn chocolate cheesecake should come with its own health warning. Somehow, he'd managed to get her all full and content. He'd taken her to the nearby motel and he'd done it all over again in different ways. They'd had the kind of slow, fulfilling sex that made most people want to call it 'making love'. They'd still been joined, her head resting on his shoulder when he'd started talking and she'd said it. Chocolate flavoured kisses and the lingering buzz of good sex and she'd said it.

"Look, it doesn't have to be some great big thing. You're here. I'm here. Once we either sort out what's going on or die tryin', then you get your life back. You get to figure out what it is you want to do with that parole of yours. Chances are, I'll be heading back to Edinburgh. No one's trying to pin you down or con you into making a commitment. All I'm saying is, for now, why not make the most of the time we've got? I'll get something sorted out so we're not spending the night in the men' s changing rooms or sleeping on the mats in the gym and we take it from there... If, when the time comes to go our separate ways neither of us wants to, then we work out what we want to do then. All we need to worry about for now is grabbing some time for ourselves while you save the world."

"Sure..."

She turned and caught herself watching him again, rubbing at her upper arms and wishing the others would hurry up and get here. He looked up, just as if he knew the second her gaze fell on him. He didn't move, though, or try to crowd her, like he knew how hemmed in she was feeling. He just let his eyes meet hers for a second or two and his mouth twitched into a reassuring smile before he returned his attention to the maps that Amanda was trying to show him and Wes, but tonight he'd be waiting for her in their room, when she got in from patrol. Faith conjured up a picture of the watcher, naked but for a sheet draped over his hips. She turned again and was glad to hear Spike and Buffy's bickering tones echoing up the stairwell before she mentally disposed of that inconvenient sheet and decided to skip patrol altogether. Maybe, this idea wasn't all bad after all, though.

"Giles, they're coming."

Suddenly a whole room full of people seemed to be vying for the best position to see the happy couple's face when they saw how different their room looked. Faith flattened herself against the wall and let them move past her until she was just another face at the back of the crowd.

Unseen by any of the others, James who had also stayed at the rear of the group took her hand briefly, lifting it until his lips brushed her knuckles before lowering it and loosening his grip to the point where she could slip it free almost without effort.

Faith waited for a few seconds before she pulled it away.

"What the b-lue blazes is goin' on here?" Spike's voice carried over the crowd, his words edited for Rosa's benefit. "You can't all be that hungry?"

"Buffy's old friend bought you a present," the child responded enlightening him. "Everybody helped fix it."

Lydia leaned into Giles' ear with a wicked grin, whispering something that turned his disgruntled expression into one of slightly embarrassed pride.

"Giles?" Buffy asked with a look of puzzlement.

The watcher shifted to the front of the crowd without letting go of Lydia's hand and, using the one he had free, flung open the door to Spike and Buffy's room. "You can call it a belated engagement present," the watcher suggested. "I believe I missed the party."

Buffy looked from the bed with its curved beech head and foot boards set into a brushed aluminium frame and then back at the watcher before she almost giggled aloud at Spike's shocked expression and then at the bed again. She bounced on the balls of her feet without even being aware of it, obviously torn between the urge to hug Giles and test the bed. She compromised in the end, grabbing both Spike and Giles and dragging them into the room behind her so that the two men almost collided in the doorway. She loosened her grip just before she threw herself down onto the bed but Spike landed next to her, both of them bouncing several inches on the highly sprung mattress. Buffy drew herself up to perch on the edge of the bed and smile at Giles. "It's perfect. Thank you!"

Spike simply watched his future wife, the joy on her face as entrancing to him now as ever.

"Dawn pointed me at the web site for the store where you bought your bookshelves," Giles answered.

Spike gave a sombre smile and looked Giles in the eye. He inclined his head in a brief nod. "You realise you're going to have a hard time coming up with a wedding present to top this?"

"I suppose you'll have to wait until you're in the area of Revello Drive to let me know if I succeeded."

"There's more?" Buffy asked, throwing herself at her watcher. "Giles... You know if I could, I'd adopt you, don't you?" She held him in a hug that, for once, didn't leave him with cracked ribs. "What d'you get us? Spike, I think we should get married every year!" she babbled excitedly.

"If it makes you this happy, kitten, I'm game."

"What is it, Giles? I could drive us over so we can look."

"There's no need for that," the watcher quickly averred. "It's really very similar to the suite in Spike's apartment. I didn't want to pick anything where you would have to choose the decor to match and Dawn said that you were planning to redecorate so there was no point choosing something to go with the existing colour scheme. Of course, you can always use that one in your basement and buy a new one for upstairs."

"Giles... you're the best watcher a slayer could ever have."

The words carried far enough for Faith to hear and she chanced another sidelong glance at James. 'That's all you know, B. This slayer's had better.'

---

 

Finally, Mr Michaels had been introduced to those of the group whom he had yet to meet. The food had been eaten and Faith and Spike had headed out on patrol. Giles, Bee, Wes, Xander and Anya had gone to their rooms in order to change before their evening training session. However, Brandon's father had kept Marie back when she, too, would have left. He'd then drawn Lily and Clem apart briefly while the others tidied the debris from the take away, Tara coaxing Rosa into helping with the washing up. Taking a padded envelope from his bag, he drew a black and white photograph from it, showing it to Lily first. It was grainy and not too detailed. but the face that it showed bore an unmistakeable resemblance to his brother's. Lily gave a solemn nod and Andrew Michaels returned the photo to the envelope and pressed it into Lily's hands.

"I'm sorry," he told all three with obvious sincerity. "I know money can't make up for what you've lost, but I took the liberty of ensuring that you would receive a settlement. If you don't want to use the money, I'm sure it would provide Rosa with the sort of education her father would have wanted for her. The details are in there, along with a tape of the security footage from the last day. If it's any consolation, from what we can see on the tape, his death would have been quick, and the soldier responsible was numbered amongst the casualties."

"Thank you," Marie replied in a subdued tone, her eyes glittering with unshed tears.

"I will need to return the tape, unfortunately. It's not the sort of thing that the government can allow to remain in civilian hands. I'll pick it up tomorrow afternoon. I hope it helps you all find a sense of closure."

"How do you know we won't make a run for it?" Marie asked.

"I don't, but Brandon tells me that you have a nice home and a good job that allows you to provide for your daughter. If you ran, then, you'd lose that stable environment that you've worked hard to give her. I know how much my son means to me. I'm guessing your daughter means as much to you. You don't want her to grow up dodging the government at every turn."

"No," Marie acknowledged. "I don't. I know you must have had to call in a lot of favours to get this for us... even temporarily."

"A soldier, even a retired one like me, is supposed to act with honour. I did what was right."

Wes emerged from their room and gave Marie a questioning look.

"Tell Giles I'll be down in a few minutes," she told him.

"You're sure?" Wes queried conscious of the tears she was holding back.

"Yeah, I'm sure. Right now, hitting things seems like a good idea. I'll explain later but there's nothing we can do until after we put Rosa to bed, anyway."

Lily nodded her agreement. "Go learn. We look after Rosa when she come."

---

 

Marie explained to Wes about the package and its contents as they made their way up the stairs to the attic after their training session with Giles.

"Look, I think I should wait in our room," Wes offered as they approached the door to said room. "It seems to me like this is a family thing and it would be wrong for me to intrude."

"Piffle!" came Lily's reply from the living room. "You with Marie now. You her man. You Rosa's, too. Why you think you no family? Who they going to have to help if you not?"

Marie gave a weak smile. "You heard the lady."

"Are you sure? I mean, I'm always here whenever you want to talk, but I'd understand if you wanted privacy." Wes couldn't help but offer Marie one last get-out clause.

"Lily's an empath. Don't you think she knows whether I want you around?"

Lily gave a disparaging shake of her head. "Men! They always need be told ten times. Give your woman a hug and get your skinny English butt in here and give her mother-in-law one, too."

---

 

Spike avoided the group in the living room when he got back from patrol. Faith had already wandered off somewhere on what he thought of as the second floor, and if Spike's guess was right she wouldn't be returning to the room she shared with Dawn any time soon. He followed the sound of quiet voices and found his three favourite women, sitting in the new bed with their backs against the room's side wall so that their legs stretched out across the width of the bed. They seemed to be fighting over some sort of computer game that Brandon had left behind when he'd left with his father.

"I am so kicking your slayer butt," Dawn argued, her arms stretched out to stop Buffy reaching the console as she played.

"You've had it for half an hour. I only had it for five minutes. It's my turn."

"You lost in five minutes. I'm still on my first game."

"You've played it before," the slayer protested, as Tara simply smiled at the sisterly banter.

"That's fine," Spike told both Summers women with a teasing grin, as he flopped onto the bed next to the witch. "You two can argue over the Gameboy, an' once me an' Glinda have eaten all the ice cream..." He pulled a tub from each side pocket of his duster, passing one to Tara and scattering spoons over the quilt. "...I'll show you both how it's done. 'S all in the wrists."

He didn't put up too much of a fight when Buffy comandeered his tub to share with Dawn, tossing them each a spoon before he started helping Tara with the tub in her hand. All he cared about was seeing his girls happy.