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Giles groaned, his eyelids fluttering.
Willow placed a hand to his head, "He's burning up," she said, frowning. Buffy hovered worriedly, Xander, Spike and the others keeping their distance. A picture frame shattered, all of them jumped. "His magic has gone out of control, I can't stop it."
"What's going to happen to him?" questioned Buffy.
"The magic will burn him from the inside out." Willow chewed at her lip. "There are spells that might slow it down or- or, well, they could make things worse."
Giles tossed and turned, the light above them exploded, plunging them into darkness. Willow winced, as glass showered down on them.
"We have to do something," said Buffy, looking around at them all. This wasn't a demon that she could fight, this wasn't a vampire she could put down.
"We'll figure it out," said Xander, placatingly.
"Before he dies?" Buffy snapped.
Willow reached out again, tried to soothe the magic that bubbled uncontrollably inside of him. If whatever spell or potion had done this to her instead, they would all be in trouble by now. Something dark lashed out at her and Willow cringed, pulling back. "His magic is too different to mine, it thinks I'm an enemy." She shook her head. "Is there anyone at the Council that might be able-"
Spike scoffed, "That lot ain't gonna help with this. He played around with all that magic before he went back to them and took up the tweed. Much more adventurous back then if you ask me. Council'd probably say he was reaping what he'd sown." Buffy glared at him and he shrugged. "Sorry love, but it's true."
Willow gasped, "Ethan Rayne!"
"Oh yeah, that sneaky bastard could probably help. Close back in the day, those two were, so I heard anyway," said Spike, wiggling his eyebrows.
Xander held a hand up, "First of all- ew." Willow rolled her eyes. "Second of all- how do we get in contact with him."
"You don't have too." The voice was smooth. They jumped, again.
Rayne stood in the corner of the room, his arms crossed. If Willow squinted, she thought she could see through him. "You're not here," she stated.
Ethan smiled at her, all teeth and dangerous eyes. "Well observed, little witch. You have come a long way, haven't you?" He pushed off the wall, drew closer to the bed. Giles had quietened with him there, Willow wasn't sure if it was a coincidence or not. "Silly Ripper, never could spot a trick."
"Can you help or not?" growled Buffy, her hands clenched at her side.
Ethan afforded her a single glance before he sat on Giles' bed. He reached over, the moment his hand touched Giles' forehead, it glowed red. Giles let out a breath, his muscles unwinding. Willow could feel the storm inside him calm.
"How did you do it?" asked Willow. She hadn't been able to get close, the magic lashing out at her. But Ethan- it had almost welcomed Ethan.
A smirk pulled at his lips, " Oh, for all his hatred of me, he can never change the fact that we were bonded. By accident, mind you. His magic is mine and mine is his, it's very simple little witch."
Willow didn't think so. That seemed to create more questions than answers. Melding magic was dangerous, she hardly ever came across it in their books. It made the pair stronger but the risks far outweighed the gains. Ethan pulled his hand away.
"I can't do much else until I'm there in person," said Ethan, his voice uncharacteristically serious.
He was looking at her.
Willow swallowed, "How long?"
"Ten hours, if traffic is kind. Which it will be," said Ethan, forcefully. "Keep him alive that long and I'll deal with the rest."
"How do we know we can trust you?" said Buffy, her eyes narrowed in suspicion.
Ethan turned to her and his eyes flashed, "Because I don't want Rupert to die," he all but hissed at her. Giles made a small noise, his hand twitching, moving. Ethan glanced down at him, gave his hand a quick pat. "Don't be like that, Ripper. All will be well, trust me-"
Giles made another noise, his eyes fluttering, trying to open. He gave up after a few moments, but his mouth still moved. Willow could just make out a "not bloody likely" before he stilled once more.
Ethan grinned.
"Ten hours," he said, pointedly. "Keep him alive, witch."
And then he was gone.
Willow sighed, "I'm going to need supplies."
Giles was screaming.
Willow felt panic settle into her veins. Every time she looked at the clock it was as if no time had passed. Light bulbs kept blowing, the window had shattered not long ago, there had even been a small fire at some stage.
And Willow was running out of spells she could use.
His magic wasn't calm anymore, it had come back with a vengeance and he was so hot to the touch. They'd had no choice but to move him to the bath, surround him in ice cold water.
Willow glanced at the clock.
He should have been here by now.
Buffy was pacing relentlessly, no one was speaking. Giles was still screaming and Willow could feel tears burning at her eyes. He didn't have much time left. She kept chanting anyway, tried to soothe his magic, to cool him down, something, anything.
The door slammed open.
Willow was vaguely aware of feet stomping up the stairs, of someone else pushing her aside. She slumped out of Ethan Rayne's way, her fingers tingled from magic overuse, she was exhausted. Xander hooked his arms under hers and pulled her up.
Ethan didn't say anything.
He didn't have a quip or a smirk for them this time. His sleeves were soaked through with water as he leaned forward, his hands either side of Giles' temples. Ethan closed his eyes, and Willow felt the very air calm. It seemed strange, he was a chaos mage, a sorcerer of dark magic and yet- with Giles, everything softened.
"It was too much for him," Ethan muttered. Willow was sure she hadn't asked anything out loud. "He doesn't use his magic enough, he was an easy target. You would have been too, witch. Raw power, he was the same once, a long time ago."
"To what end?" asked Buffy.
Ethan shook his head, eyes still closed. "Can't answer that, Slayer. Could have been vengeance, could have been bad luck."
Willow could feel their magic blending, could feel Ethan taking on some of the chaos for his own. He winced a little, the air felt thick and cloying, the magic pressing down on them all. Could the others feel it as much as she could? Willow almost felt as if she couldn't breathe-
And then it was gone.
Ethan leaned back, studying Giles. His eyes were open now, unreadable, as he and Ethan stared at one another. And then he shivered, doing his best to hide it and an amused grin spread across Ethan's face. "Welcome back, Ripper," he said.
"Ethan," greeted Giles, his teeth chattering.
"How are you feeling?" His head tilted to the side, Willow noticed that Ethan was still touching Giles, his hands having slipped down to his shoulders.
If Giles minded, he didn't say anything.
"Not all that great," said Giles, honestly. "Like I've been hit by a bus." He shivered, again. "And a tad cold." His eyes narrowed, "What are you up too?"
Ethan placed a hand to his chest, "You wound me, Ripper-" Giles rolled his eyes, struggling to get to his feet. Ethan hauled him up before he could slip and hurt himself. Buffy threw them a towel, and Ethan wrapped it around Giles' shoulders. "Don't be foolish, it'll take more than that to cure you."
He guided Giles from the room, Willow couldn't help but notice that he didn't need directions.
"I did tell you to use your magic more," said Ethan, "Not good for you to keep it all cooped up like that, things like this happen."
"I don't think it was my lack of magic use that caused this, Ethan," said Giles, leaning against him. Ethan maneuvered Giles into his room, gently lying him down. "Just a bit of bad luck is all." Giles regarded him, Buffy and Willow found themselves hovering in the doorway. Buffy didn't want to leave him, and Willow didn't exactly trust Ethan but- well, she didn't think he would let anything happen to Giles, at least. "How long will you be staying?" he asked, quietly.
Ethan waved his hand and a chair scraped across the room. He set it as close to the bed as he could, throwing himself back into it with a relieved breath. "As long as I need too, Rupert."
There was a moment of silence, Ethan kicked his legs up onto the bed, getting himself comfortable. Giles shook his head, "Try to behave."
"You're all the entertainment I need, darling." Willow blushed, looking down at her feet. Ethan chuckled, she knew he was looking at them. "Good job, witch. You kept him alive, can't have been easy, not with this stubborn git."
"It- it was fine," Willow mumbled.
"Do you need anything, Giles?" asked Buffy.
Ethan spoke before anyone else could, "He has all that he needs right here," he said, waving a hand down at himself. Buffy cringed, her face scrunching. Ethan looked pleased, "Goodbye ladies," he said, lightly. He flicked his hand, and the door slammed in their faces.
"Ethan!" They heard Giles scold.
Buffy swallowed, thickly. "You think they'll be alright?" she asked.
Willow nodded, "I think they'll be fine."
She could feel their magic again, twisting together, disappearing into one another. She heard a chair move, the shuffle of bed covers.
Willow grabbed Buffy by the hand and tugged her away from the door, "Come on, it's been a long day, let's get some rest."
Buffy couldn't argue with that.
"Giles!"
Willow let the relief flow through her, as Giles offered her a small smile, sipping his tea. He looked much better already, a little of the colour having returned to his face, the lack of screaming.
"Good morning, Willow," said Giles, calmly. "You're up early, considering."
"I- well, I was hungry," she said. "How are you feeling?"
"Better, thank you. I was thinking actually that I might go to the library, whoever did this-" There was a loud thump upstairs, and Giles broke off, as Ethan stomped down the stairs.
"Don't think I didn't hear that," he growled. He looked exhausted, perhaps that was why Giles looked as good as he did. His hair was ruffled, there were dark circles beneath his eyes. "Someone can bring you your bloody books, Ripper." Giles eyed him in amusement, wordlessly pouring another cup of tea and handing it to him. Ethan glanced at her, gave a short nod. "Witch," he greeted.
"My name's Willow, actually," she said, quietly.
Ethan waved his hand, turning a dark look to Giles. "You're to rest," he said, sharply. "I didn't drive ten hours straight for you to rush out and collapse three minutes later, you fool."
Giles held his gaze, "I really feel fine-"
"Because of me," snapped Ethan. He pulled a chair out and sat down, heavily. "Excuse me for erring on the side of caution."
"Perhaps a little more rest can't hurt," Giles allowed. Willow watched some of the tension in Ethan's shoulders loosen. Giles looked at her, "Willow, later on, do you mind fetching a few books for me?"
"I can do that," she said, nodding.
Ethan yawned, finishing off his tea and resting his head against the table. Giles eyed him, fondly. He didn't say anything, he didn't need too.
Willow didn't think she had ever seen Giles this at ease. Not with Joyce, not with Jenny, not with anyone. There was a soft fizzling in the air, Willow could feel it dancing around them.
Magic.
Maybe it wouldn't be so bad if Ethan stuck around, at least for a little while. Willow cleared her throat, edging out of the room. Giles didn't comment on it, she saw him sit in the chair next to Ethan, run his hand through his hair.
"Sop," Ethan muttered, against the table.
Giles smiled, Willow left quickly.
She could eat later.