And Found

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They sat on the sofa, bodies turned toward each other, fingers entwined and lips swollen from kisses. Anya's face was a little chaffed from whisker burn, Giles noticed.

He brushed her hair back from her face. "You're a miracle," he said reverently.

"Not really," she said with a smile.

"But how did you survive? Andrew said you died saving him. My God, we left you down there," he said, the anguish evident in his voice.

Anya looked down, bit her lip, and then looked up again.

"You remember when the other you broke my pendent and made me human?"

"Well, I don't actually remember it," Giles said with a smile. "I remember you telling us that's what happened."

"Right. And then you remember how Xander broke my heart and D'Hoffryn made me a Vengeance Demon again?"

Giles sighed sadly, lifted her hand to his mouth and kissed her knuckles. "Yes, I remember that."

Anya smiled softly at his gesture, then took another breath and said, "And you know that I decided that I didn't want to be a Vengeance Demon anymore, and D'Hoffryn killed my friend Halfrek and then turned me human again?"

"Yes, I remember that also."

"Well, here's the thing. I was never human. Not totally."

"What?" Giles asked in surprise.

"See, and you must understand, Rupert, I didn't know this, but when D'Hoffryn makes a Vengeance Demon there really is no going back. When you broke my pendent, I lost my powers, but I was still a demon. Of sorts."

"Good Lord," Giles said, pulling back slightly.

Anya swallowed and looked down with tears filling her eyes. She tugged at her hand, trying to pull her fingers from his. "You hate me now, don’t you?"

He released her hand, but only so he could cup her face in his hands again and kiss her softly on the lips.

"That, my darling girl, I could never do."

She smiled at him, relief evident on her face. "Really?"

"Really."

There was an interlude when no words were spoken, but at last they pulled back, and Anya settled against him, her head cradled on his shoulder.

"So anyway," she said, continuing her story from where she'd left it. "When the Bringer sliced me with the sword, I was hurt. I won't deny that. Things went dark for a while, and when I came to, everything was shaking and falling down." She pulled back and looked at him, her eyes wide with remembered fear. "I didn't know what was going on. I called out but no one answered me. Everything was collapsing, and I just knew that I was going to be buried alive. I tried to get away, but there was no way out."

Giles drew her to him, holding her trembling body close to his until she calmed again. When she was once again able to speak, she continued. "I thought I was going to be buried alive," she repeated. "And then suddenly, there was a glow and D'Hoffryn was there. He took me back to Arash Ma'har. And you know what?" she asked indignantly. "Halfrek was there. He didn't kill her. He couldn't kill her. Vengeance Demons are immortal."

Giles smiled at her indignation and trailed a finger down the side of her face. "At this very moment, I cannot say that I'm sorry to hear that."

She nuzzled his hand with her cheek. "D'Hoffryn tried to talk me into going back to work, but I refused. I didn't know where everyone was, but I figured you'd return to London, so I asked him to send me here."

"I'm so very glad you did."

Anya smiled and leaned forward to kiss him once more. Pulling back, she asked, "Rupert, why didn't you ever tell me how you felt?"

"I couldn't very well do that, now could I? You were engaged to Xander, and..."

"I was engaged?" she asked in surprise. "You mean you cared for me when..."

"I first discovered I was in love with you when we were under that amnesia spell of Willow's and thought we were engaged."

"Oh." Anya looked disappointed. "This is mystical."

"No," Giles said softly. "That was mystical. This is real. When I came back during Willow's rampage, and you were so good and brave, I realized that I did indeed love you."

"But you didn't say anything."

"How could I? You'd returned to being a Vengeance Demon, and I knew that Vengeance Demons never took up with mortal men. Not on a permanent basis anyway. And there was Willow to care for and then the battle against The First to fight. And if all of that wasn't enough, there's the age difference."

"Oh," Anya said. She lowered her eyes and her fingers twisted in her lap. "I'm too old for you?"

Giles chuckled. "No, my darling. I'm too old for you."

Anya looked up at him in surprise and then said drily, "Giles, I'm over eleven hundred and twenty years old."

He blinked. "Oh. Yes. I suppose you are."

Their eyes met in warm amusement, and then Anya looked around the flat.

"This is a nice place, Rupert. Why don't you show me around? Let's start with the bedroom."

Giles felt his heartbeat accelerate.

"Are you sure?"

She didn't answer him with words, but it was a most emphatic 'yes'.

The End.