When Willow opened her eyes she was in a new place. Her hands and ankles were still bound, but this time she found herself in the back of some kind of transport truck or bus. Every bump of the road jarred her joints.

Several tribesman sat around her, but she didn’t see the Shaman. It was dark in the back of the transport, with no windows, so she didn’t even know what time it was.

Once the men saw Willow’s eyes flicker open, they put a canteen to her mouth and helped her to drink. She was parched and the water felt wonderful on her sore throat. After they pulled the canteen away she tried to sit up but her bindings kept her down.

“Where are we going? Where’s the boss?” Willow asked them, about to go into full babble mode. The men must have noticed, or had been given instructions, because before she could ask another question a gag was again placed in her mouth. She tried to fight and argue but it was really no use. Eventually she relaxed and just tried to meditate and concentrate on her breathing. And to hope. Mustn’t lose hope, she told herself. They’ll come for her. The Scoobies always won in the end. They’d come and save her.

* * *

Buffy was surprised when she saw the inside of the ‘shack.’ It was actually a nice little cottage with a living room, small kitchenette, and two bedrooms. “Wow, it didn’t look this big from the outside,” she said with amazement.

Brooks chuckled. “Of course it didn’t. That’s all in the magic.” He gave Buffy a wink. “You can take the bedroom off to the right of the bathroom, little lady.” Then Brooks glanced at Xander and Giles. “The sofa folds out into a bed for you two.” Then without further ado, Brooks picked up his bag and headed for the other bedroom. “I’ll fix us supper in a moment,” he said over his shoulder.

Xander hopped down on the sofa, bobbing up and down to check out it’s firmness. “Almost as comfy as my parent’s basement,” he muttered. Buffy giggled, remembering when they all hid there from the Initiative. Giles had been so cranky in the morning. And her, in her Yummy Sushi pajamas. Really, if you thought about it, they had a lot of good memories. “You’d think he could just magic up another few bedrooms,” Xander said.

“I’m sure he wasn’t the one that…uh…procured the facility,” Giles commented. He watched Buffy take her bag into the bedroom and close her door. Xander watched him watching her with a slight smile on his face.

“Seems you two have patched things up,” Xander said gently. Giles blushed as he realized he’d been caught gawking, and shrugged his shoulders awkwardly, going into the kitchen to investigate the cupboards and fridge. “I’m glad,” Xander added, closing his eye and relaxing into the sofa.

Giles glanced up at that, smiling fondly at the boy, but Xander already appeared to be sleeping.

By the time Brooks emerged from his room Giles already had a salad made and some burgers frying on the stove. The Watcher had no idea how the food had arrived at this remote cottage, but there it had been in the various cupboards and fridge. It appeared fresh and his stomach growled at the aroma. He was certain that Xander would awaken soon.

Brooks put a pot on for tea. The two men made dinner in relative silence. They respected each other, but were hardly friends. Giles glanced at Buffy’s bedroom door and wondered when she’d return. It was silly, really, but he was missing her.

Xander finally jumped awake as Giles and Brooks set the table. “Oh, food. Smells great!” Xander jumped off the sofa and hurried over to the table, frowning at the tea. “Got any Pepsi in there?”

Brooks frowned at the boy but Giles hardly noticed. “I’ll go roust Buffy from her room. She should eat as well,” Giles said softly. He went over and quietly knocked on her door. “Buffy? It’s supper time.” When there was no answer he opened the door and peeked in. Buffy was lying down on the bed, sound asleep. Giles smiled and slowly entered the room. He sat down on the edge of the bed and tenderly touched her forehead, moving her bangs off of her face. “Buffy? Wake up, luv.”

Buffy murmured something and then her eyes cracked open. She smiled at Giles and slowly sat up. “Hey, I didn’t mean to fall asleep. I just wanted to rest my eyes for a minute.”

“It’s quite alright. We’ve had a tiring couple of days.” Giles had moved his hand from her forehead, and now didn’t know what to do with it, so he clasped his hands together on his lap.

Buffy regarded him for a moment. She wanted to ask him about what he had meant earlier, about her distracting him for years, and that blush. And the look in his eyes. Even now he seemed more nervous or something. He wasn’t as reserved and stuffy around her as usual. She rather liked it.

“Buffy?” Giles asked her softly. He was bemused by her expression. She was staring at his face, but seemed so far away. Lost in thought, with a happy little expression on her face. “Dinner is getting cold, I suspect.”

Buffy gazed into his eyes and swallowed the sudden lump in her throat. She really wasn’t caring about dinner at the moment. All that mattered was the warm way Giles was looking at her, and how it made her insides melt, and her skin heat up, and how she wanted to lean in and brush her lips against his.

“Buffy?” Giles was starting to get a bit concerned now. “Are you alright?”

She slowly nodded. “Yeah, I just…was thinking.” Buffy didn’t move her eyes from his.

“Thinking? You?” Giles teased her gently.

Buffy frowned and then gave him a look. “Hey, I think all the time, Watcher mine.”

Giles’ heart almost skipped a beat. She hadn’t called him that in years. “And what is your glorious brain thinking of now?”

Buffy hesitated for only a moment. She knew her Watcher. He’d never make a move. She had to do it if there was something between them, otherwise nothing would ever happen. If she was wrong, she’d just blame it on a lack of sleep or something. “This,” she said softly, and then reached up to cup his face in her hands, bringing his face down to meet her lips in a gentle kiss.

Giles stiffened in surprise, but soon relaxed and moaned softly. He slowly moved his arms around her waist to bring her closer, returning the kiss firmly. Buffy smiled against his mouth and then boldly deepened the kiss, parting her lips and inviting in his tongue. Gently their tongues rubbed against each other before exploring deeper. They were both breathing heavily when oxygen became an issue and they broke the kiss. Smiling shyly at each other Buffy moved her head to his shoulder as he embraced her, rubbing his hand up and down the small of her back.

Reality finally settled back in and Giles pulled away, still smiling at her. “We better join them for supper, don’t you think?”

Buffy pretended to pout for a moment, gently touching his face. He was so handsome. How had she not noticed, after all these years?

Giles leaned down and captured that pouty bottom lip between his lips, sucking gently. Buffy groaned and then whimpered when he pulled back with a grin. He stood up and held his hand out to her. “Come on, luv.”

Buffy’s heart stopped in her chest. He called her luv! She slipped her hand into his and let him lead her back out to the dinner table.

They joined the table in silence. Xander was inhaling his burger and Brooks appeared to be disinterested in everything and everyone. Buffy started in on her salad and glanced at them. “Just another rousing family meal together,” she teased. Giles smiled and sipped at his tea. “So, Mr. Brooks, what is the agenda for tomorrow?” Buffy asked the guide as she picked up her burger.

“We continue to travel further into the desert. The Chewa Tribe resides almost dead center. We’ll have to trade the Jeep in for a truck that can carry more supplies such as food and water. The farther in we travel, the less…comforts we’ll have to enjoy.” At the word ‘comforts’ Brooks had waved his hand in the air to take in their current surroundings. “We’ve an equipment warehouse a few miles in where we can get what we need, but that will be the last signs of civilization for awhile.”

Xander pushed away his empty plate and grabbed at some napkins. “When will we get there? How long?” Xander was impatient to get to Willow. Every second counted.

Brooks tried to give the boy a calm look, but it was difficult. He wasn’t used to having others around questioning him on everything. Usually what he said was the law. “Steady and true wins the race, my young friend. If we rush, we may make mistakes we’ll regret later. They don’t know we are after them. I promise you, I’ve done this sort of thing many times, and I’m the best at my job.”

Giles nodded and looked over at Xander. “We need to trust him, Xander. He knows what he’s doing. Would I have brought you here if I had doubts?”

Xander looked down and slowly nodded. “No, I guess not. I’m just…worried.”

Buffy reached over and covered his hands with one of hers. “We all are, Xander. But it’s Will. She’s strong.”

“Yeah, but so were those Shadow Men,” Xander muttered.

Buffy glared at him. “Yes, and I beat them before. We beat them. We beat The First, Xander. When we stick together, we can do anything.”

Xander’s mouth twitched and then he turned his hand palm up to squeeze her hand back. “Right. Right.”

Giles pretended to be interested in his remaining salad, but inside he was smiling. Buffy was back. Buffy with spunk and the love for her friends, after all this time, was finally back.