Fic: Cast me gently into morning, Giles/Tara, PG

[noelia_g]

Title: Cast me gently into morning
Written for: raedbard for forty_or_better
Pairing: Giles/Tara
Rating: PG
Summary: summer between seasons 5 and 6.



Tara, Giles is pleasantly surprised to find out, makes excellent tea.

Every day, one or two of the children come by, with some feeble excuse and with concern in their eye. He feels like he’s under some kind of a suicide watch. He’s probably right. Willow removes his razor, and thinks she’s not transparent in her actions. Xander breaks the bottle of his best scotch and apologises profusely, blaming clumsiness.

Tara just makes him tea, moving around in his kitchen with confidence and purpose, even though she’s still looking up shyly from behind a curtain of blonde hair.

*

She asks him about Buffy. The other feel content with ignoring the topic completely, as if nothing had happened, or as if she was still alive, but Tara asks him about the high school stories, the demons and the prom night, and sifts through the few pictures he has of that time, sorting them chronologically and putting them into a leather-bound album.

He grips the delicate china cup a little bit too hard, but it’s better than not talking about it.

*

She helps him rearrange all the books into a new shelving system. The process never fails to sooth his nerves, or bring comfort, and it’s nice to have help from someone who knows why Lipwig’s Compendium has its rightful place next to Tolliver’s Encyclopedia.

Tara looks at some books as if they are long lost friends, her smile bittersweet, her long fingers caressing the spines.

“Take this one,” he offers impulsively, after she’s been holding Basic Spells by Dearheart for at least five minutes, absently turning the pages, not really reading at all.

She looks up, startled, but doesn’t refuse the offer. He approves, never turn down a book you want.

“My…my mother had one. Earlier edition. With the b-blue cover,” she offers shyly and he nods.

“The section on herbs had been revised. Maybe you’ll find it useful,” he says matter-of-factly, already turning away to the pile of demonology guides, by the authors, K-T.

“Thank you,” she says quietly, and goes back to sorting through spell books.

*

“You should stay,” she says one day in August, seemingly out of the blue.

He hides his surprise quite well, if he can say so himself. He’s not entirely sure how could know, but it’s true that he’s been checking the prices for one way tickets to London. He hadn’t made a decision yet, but…

“I hadn’t decided yet,” he offers. He doesn’t pretend to not know what she means, he owes her that much.

She nods, and smiles sadly, as if she didn’t believe him.

*

She’s watching him during the research nights, clearly aware that he doesn’t report his findings even when he has all the answers. He’s waiting for them to figure it out themselves, to find the right book, the right rituals.

She has probably figured it all out, knows that he’s preparing them for when he leaves.

He still hadn’t bought the ticket, but it’s only a matter of time. When he’s sure the children will be fine on their own. Just a few more days. Maybe weeks.

*

“You should stay,” she repeats in September, right in the middle of their discussion on healing spells.

“I can’t,” he answers simply, bowing his head.

“You won’t,” she clarifies softly, and reaches for his hand, tugging him closer to her.

She tastes like tea, sweet and bitter and warm and dark. Her fingers are already working on unbuttoning his shirt, as he trails kisses down her neck.

She throws her head back with a low sigh, and he looks at her searchingly before placing a gentle kiss on her shoulder.

“I’m still going,” he offers quietly, and gets a sad look in return.

“I know,” she mutters, running her fingers through his hair, looking up at him.

It’s a goodbye, of sorts, he thinks. But for the moment he’s content to be lost in kissing her.

He’ll buy the ticket in the morning.




* * *
Request 3 (wildcard--any fandom)
Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Character or pairing: Rupert Giles/Tara Maclay
What do we need to know about this pairing?: One man,
one woman. Could possibly be construed as pseudo
mentor/student only not really. Certainly a sizeable
age gap.
Three things you want: Books, un/comfortable silence,
domesticity
Two things you don't want: Anything is fine, really!

A/N: it's much shorter than I wanted it to be, and I'm sorry for that, but my brain kept rebelling...

Comments

[lunabee34.livejournal.com]

Oh this is really nice. Very well done.

[noelia-g.livejournal.com]

Thank you! So glad you liked it :)

[seldomifever.livejournal.com]

I really liked this. Nicely done!

[noelia-g.livejournal.com]

Thank you! I'm glad you liked it :)

[remember-nomore.livejournal.com]

I hate Tara/Giles. Everyone just writes it icky wrong and...

Thankfully you're not everyone and I am about to go read this again 'cause I'm a goober fangirl and I did not adore this... *cough*

[noelia-g.livejournal.com]

It's not a pairing I usually go for, no, even though I ship Giles with pretty much everybody (for heaven's sake, I ship Giles with inanimate objects. Chairs. Doorframes...), but this was actually quite fun to write. Hard and brain-damaging, because I wrote three times more and then had to delete it because it didn't do justice to neither Tara nor Giles, but fun :D

[laurtew.livejournal.com]

This is very well written. I like how descriptive it is. The little details like how they shelve the books and what sets her apart from the others make this very affecting. Thanks for sharing it!

[noelia-g.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much! I'm thrilled you liked it :)

[antennapedia.livejournal.com]

Ouch. Poor Giles. This is so bittersweet. There's something about Tara & Giles together that just works for me, and you're pointing right at it.

[noelia-g.livejournal.com]

It's not a pairing I usually go for, even though I ship Giles with pretty much everybody, but there's something amazingly sweet and right about it...

Thank you, I'm so glad you liked it :)

[helenkacan.livejournal.com]

It wasn't too short at all, because we saw each tiny glimpse into so many pasts perfectly. Tara was one of the most beautifully selfless people in the Buffyverse. So you have her talking about Buffy with Giles. So a Tara thing. Also, mentioning that her mother had had the same book. I think you did intend to make it the past tense, because the MacClay menfolk would probably have taken it away. Even the kissing. Le sigh.

But, I think there's one teeny fix needed. It was a one-way ticket, but you wrote He still hadn’t bought the tickets.

And, now, I'm in the mood for tea.
Melancholy hugs,
H.

[noelia-g.livejournal.com]

You're so right about the fix needed. Fixed, thank you :).

I'm so glad you liked it. In a way, it had been one of the hardest things to write, because I had to remove so many lines I wrote, because it didn't sound right, not like Giles, not like Tara...

I've drunk about seven cups while writing this :).

[raedbard.livejournal.com]

Ohhhhh. Wow. This is so lovely. That might sound like faint praise but, for me, that's what makes these two so interesting together - that it's about quietude and understanding. And you evoke all that absolutely brilliantly.

The whole feeling - the sadness put together with Tara's albeit sad acceptance and Giles' certainty that he will go ... eventually - is perfect. It fits that time in the show beautifully. And you make me miss them so much.

I can't help but ask because it'd be the weirdest coincidence ever if you didn't intend it but - *Lipwig's* Compendium, *Tolliver's* Encyclopedia and Basic Spells by *Dearheart* - Going Postal references, yes? Going Postal happens to be one of my very favourite books ever so that made me extremely squeeful, in the middle of my quiet heartache at the way you've written these two. :)

So, thank you, SO much. This is a beautiful glimpse.

[noelia-g.livejournal.com]

Thank you so much, I'm so glad you liked it :)

Yes, Going Postal :). I've just got Making Money, so I've been rereading Going Postal in preparation (Moist is my second favourite Discworld character, right after Vimes :)). I'm thrilled it happened to be one of your favourites as well! This is fantastic :)

[netgirl-y2k.livejournal.com]

That's gorgeous and wonderful and lovely and other things that I'd be able to think of if only I had a thesaurus to hand.

[alixtii.livejournal.com]

This is sweet and a lovely moment and beautifully written. Excellent use of Giles' POV.