Author's Chapter Notes:
Before we get to chapter 3, a few notes: a)I've realized that I haven't put a disclaimer on here yet, you'd think after reading so many I'd know to do that, guess it just slipped my mind: All characters (except Sam and any others I come up with) are property of Joss Whedon and ME (mutant enemy). I own nothing, just play around with them a bit becuase it's so much fun. b)If anyone's interested, my personal lj is Ciley c)This is probably the one I should have put first since it pertains to the story, I'm going to have a lot of really big, really important, really stressful stuff going on between now and maybe the middle of the month so updates might be a little slow, but after that everything should clear up and I should be able to get back to normal. So if next weeks' update is a little later in the week, that's why--I'm sorry to be doing this so early in the story, but it's not something I can or should postpone. But a do have about four more stories I'm working on and a really short thing that's already done, so I'm not going away. I know that was a really long explanation, and I'm sorry, but I think it was mostly because I feel bad about doing this to everyone. Thank you everyone for the reviews (Brat, Mari, BuffyandSpikeForever, Caitie, and Mariana) and now...on to the story:

And, one more--I've made a few more changes to Chapter One, thing's that I'd thought I'd changed but obviously hadn'd, i'm sorry about that. I'll probably mention this in the next chap as well.
Chapter 3: Will (S)he?

“See you later, Rupes” William said as he turned towards the library door.

“How many times must I tell you not to call me that? I am your father not some..some friend of yours.” William couldn’t help but laugh at the disdain that his father had put into the word ‘friend’, “What’s the matter Rupes’” William emphasized his name, “don’t fancy you and me being mates or friends and here I thought you liked me.?”

“Why must you always do that William, you know that’s not what I meant?” Suddenly an idea struck him, “But if you do think that I don’t like you maybe we should talk about it for a few minutes, I wouldn’t want you thinking-“

Apparently William had thought of the same thing, “Save it da’ I’m not letting you trick me into sticking around just so I’ll be here when you’re precious Buffy shows up. She’s already had her twenty minutes so I’m leaving, I’ll see you later.

Giles had assumed that the days when he wondered how he and William could possibly be related would have ended with his son’s teenage years. Good to know he’s been wrong.

He couldn’t understand, for the life of him, why Will wouldn’t just stick around for a few more minutes, the poor woman was obviously very desperate and was counting on whatever she was doing, working. And his son couldn’t even stick around to see what it was? It was rude is what it was.

But it wasn’t his decision to make, William was a grown man (whether he acted like it or not) and could make his own decisions.

However horrible they might be.

And he, Giles, was going to be left with the aftermath—dealing with Buffy and dealing with William when he complained in a few weeks because he didn’t have a job, yet or the one he did have didn’t pay nearly as much as this one.

Being a father was hard work.

*(*(*(*I*)*)*)*

William had made it down the hallway and was nearly at the doors that would free him from this situation when his conscience—which he’d managed to push aside the last hour or so—made itself known. And boy, was it not happy with him. ‘What are you doing you idiot? A beautiful woman comes in here begging you to spend nearly all day Monday through Friday in her house and you’re going to get paid a hell of a lot of money for it, just for teaching one six-year-old.

And what do you do? Do you do the smart, sensible, not completely asinine thing and take the job? Noooo!’ how was it possible for a voice inside his head to sound sarcastic when he wasn’t feeling remotely amused? ‘You come up with a bunch of bull reasons about her husband firing you. And then she seeks you out and begs you to take the job and you still don’t take the job. But what’s dumbest of all, she’s got something that might actually prove to you that it would be a good idea and what do you do? Well, of course, you run away like a little girl. No, not even a little girl would do this. Can’t you just give the poor woman the benefit of the doubt and see what it is she wants you to see? Would that be so hard?’

William looked up to the ceiling before muttering aloud, “Yes, it would be so hard.” ‘Because then I might agree with her, take the job, who knows probably really, really like her and the kid only to get fired by her husband and then I’d never be able to get a job anywhere else. If what I’ve heard about Mr. Liam O’Connor is right, then he’s no ‘angel’ and I’ll be as good as blacklisted if he fires me.’

Before he could let his own ‘angel’ get the better of him her pushed the door open—and promptly crashed into the little girl that came tumbling through it.

*(*(*(*I*)*)*)*

As she sat at yet another red light, Buffy began to nervously tap her fingertips on the steering wheel. Just a few more minutes and she’d be late.

And William would be gone…..and she’d never be able to get him to agree to teaching Sam.

“Dammit,” she muttered under her breath so her daughter wouldn’t hear, “Why do all of these lights have to be red, it’s not like there are any cars going the other way, hell I’m practically the only driver out today—which is weird by itself, but also not the point.”

If her daughter hadn’t been in the car, Buffy probably would have gone through the red light, since there didn’t appear to be any cars coming, but she’d never endanger her daughter like that. “So, basically, instead of getting her killed in a car crash, I’m letting her be turned into an O’Connor snob.” Buffy said sardonically, “what a choice!”

Just then the light turned green, though and Buffy decided that a little bit of speeding would be okay, all of the cops in town knew her car and knew that she was Angel O’Connor’s wife so there was no way she’d get a ticket for a little speeding. Not if the cop wanted to keep his job.

There were sometimes when having a rich and powerful ass of a husband could be a good thing. She’d never taken advantage of his hold on the police department, but if there was ever going to be a time to be a little less than law abiding, it was now, when her daughter’s life hung in the balance.

‘Way to be dramatic, Buff.’ She was almost, almost there, ‘But it’s true isn’t it?’

Deciding that she should probably give Sam a little talk, she caught her daughter’s eyes in the rearview mirror. “Sam, sweetie, this is something very important for mommy, so you need to be on your best behavior. Okay?”

Sam looked at her mother curiously, “like when Meredith comes over or for Daddy’s friends?”

Now, Buffy really knew that she needed to get William to teach her daughter, “Like when Mer comes over, sweetheart, these are some of mommy’s friends and she wants them to see what a good girl you are, but they like little girls so you talk to them too.”

“Okay.” Buffy knew that finding out you didn’t have to act the way around your mother’s friends that you did around your father’s shouldn’t make a six-year-old so happy, but obviously when it came to her daughter, it did.

“Okay, we’re here now sweetie, but we have to hurry because one of mommy’s friends has to leave soon and we’re already late, so how about we race to the front door.”

“Yay!” Sam loved it when her mother played with her like this, she didn’t really care why, she just thought it was fun. And she wished her dad would do something fun with her sometimes, but he always told her she was getting too old to run around like that and she had to act like a “lady,” she didn’t know what that was, but it didn’t sound like much fun.

Buffy pulled the car into the parking space that was closest to the door, still about 40 feet away, and turned got out of the car, waiting until Sam was out before locking the door. “Okay, see that door,” she pointed to the door that was just down the hallway from the library, “That’s where we’re racing to. Think you can beat me?” Buffy loved to goof around like this with her daughter.

“Of course,” Sam smirked.

”Alright, ready? Set. Go!” And they stared to race towards the school, Buffy letting Sam keep just a little bit of a lead on her.

*(*(*(*I*)*)*)*

Sam knew she was going to beat her mother! And just as she was about to reach the door, it opened and so she went running through it. And into the person who had opened the door.
*(*(*(*I*)*)*)*


“Sam!” Buffy was about to yell when she saw her daughter run through the door, sure there weren’t really that many people at the school since school hadn’t started yet, but she didn’t want anything to happen to her daughter. She started running at full speed to get there and was about to yell her daughter’s name when she saw just who it was that had opened the door—and where her daughter was.

“So, you thought you could leave, did you?” Buffy asked William, smiling when he looked up from her daughter to her, in surprise.

“You are late, luv. I gave you twenty minutes and those are gone now, so if you and the Bit’ll excuse me, I’ve got places to be.” He was going to leave, really he was.

“But I told Sam that she’d get to meet some of my friends. You wouldn’t disappoint a little girl would you?” Buffy didn’t know why she was suddenly acting so playful with him, she suspected it had something to do with Sam being there, but she didn’t have time to analyze things right now.

He looked down at the grinning little girl, ‘Should have known the chit would have an adorable kid, good thing she looks like her and not her father,’ before he looked back up to Buffy, “Fine, let’s go to the library and talk, it’ll give the girl somewhere to sit and all that rot. Not guaranteeing you anything, though.”

“Fair enough,” Buffy said before telling Sam to come with her and leading them all into the library.

*(*(*(*I*)*)*)*
TBC....

Please review :-D





You must login (register) to review.