Title: The Immortal
Author: Miss Witch
Email: MissWitch@witchesbrew.zzn.com
Rating: PG13 - language
Summary: Buffy needs a job. Riley finds her one, but then isn’t very happy about it. Plus, her employer has a very interesting secret of her own. A Buffy/Highlander crossover
Disclaimer: I own nothing. Not even my car. BtVS belongs to Joss (all hail), Mutant Enemy (grrr argh), Fox, UPN, WB…. whoever. Basically, it belongs to someone who is not me, no matter how much I whine and beg.
Disclaimer 2: As well as not owning the above things, I also do not own the Highlander series. I make no claims to anything but Keegan, who is, in fact, mine. However, I refuse to take responsibility for her actions. She does what she wants, and I have no control over her.
Spoilers: Season 5 Buffy and Season 5/6 of Highlander the Series
Distribution: If you’ve had my permission before, knock yourself out. If you don’t have my permission, you’ve just to ask.
Feedback: Does the word "Duh!" mean anything to you?
Notes: <> means thoughts.
Notes 2: The word "Celtic" is pronounced "Kell-tic" not "Sell-tic"

Buffy sighed as she paged through the want ads. Nothing. Absolutely nothing. Buffy set the paper aside as she sighed again. It was very simple. She just wanted a job. A job that did not require flipping burgers, wearing a suit and where she wouldn’t get fired for having to miss a day for saving the world.

Unfortunately, no such job seemed to exist. Buffy put her head down on the table. With her mother out of work recovering from her surgery, Buffy wanted to pull her weight and help out with the household bills.

"What’s wrong, babe?" Riley came up behind her and kissed her neck. Buffy shrugged, partly in dismay and partly to make him stop kissing her. Lord knew that Buffy loved him, but his clinginess was driving her crazy. Between him, her mom and Dawn, Buffy was going quietly insane.

"Just checking the want-ads" she told him. Riley began to massage her shoulders.

"Nothing?" he asked. <No, just jobs galore, can’t you see me jumping with joy?> Buffy thought nastily. Shaking her head, Buffy stood.

"Still nothing"

"Maybe this will cheer you up" Riley told her, holding out a flyer. "It was being passed out on campus" Buffy took the yellow paper and read it eagerly.

Underneath was an address not far from the Magic Box. Buffy threw her arms around Riley in joy and kissed him hard on the lips.

"This is perfect" she said. She grabbed her jacket. "I’m going to go over now"

Buffy walked into the gym, Riley in tow. He had insisted on coming with her. It seemed that being commando guy wasn’t enough. He, too, wanted to apply for a job.

Looking around, Buffy couldn’t say that she was impressed. It was pretty Spartan… free weights, a boxing ring and a lot of empty space. The walls were mirrored so that a person could watch themself as they trained. There were several big, hulky guys working out, but other than an appreciative look, none of them said a word at Buffy’s appearance.

In preparation for her "audition" as she’d come to think of it, Buffy had changed into a tank top and some loose pants with sneakers. Looking around, Buffy wondered who exactly she should talk to. Her problem was solved when a tall, striking blonde woman came out from an office. She was dressed similarly to Buffy, her long curly hair pulled back in a ponytail. She gave the couple the once over before speaking.

"Hi. Can I help you?" she asked. Riley swallowed several times, trying to find his tongue. Buffy elbowed him in the stomach.

"We’re here about the self defense teacher job" Buffy told the woman, holding out the yellow paper. The woman smiled and held out her hand.

"I’m Keegan McPherson. I own the place" she explained, shaking Buffy and Riley’s hands in turn as they introduced themselves. Keegan gave them a brief tour of the place, before leading them to an open space.

"Well, who wants to go first?" she asked. When the duo looked at her blankly, Keegan laughed. "To try out, show off. You don’t think I’m going to hire you sight unseen. I want to see what you’ve got" she explained. Buffy shrugged and dropped her bag.

"What do I need to do?" she asked. Keegan smiled. Suddenly she went from a beautiful woman to a dangerous one.

"Kick my ass" she said. Riley looked a little put off by this statement.

"Excuse me, ma’am?" he stuttered. Keegan grinned.

"Military, huh?" she guessed. Buffy grinned at Riley’s discomfort. He shifted from foot to foot. He definitely didn’t know what to make of this woman.

"Um, yes" he answered finally. Keegan nodded.

"You first then" she told him, moving toward the middle of the floor.

"Ok" he said. "What kind of fighting do you want to see?" he asked. Keegan shrugged.

"Doesn’t matter. Just take me down"

Buffy hunkered down against the wall to watch. She had to admit, she was enjoying Riley’s distress. It wasn’t every day he was a fish out of water.

Keegan waited for Riley to make the first move. He lunged at her, which she dodged easily. He regained his balance and threw some quick punches, one of which caught Keegan’s jaw.

"You’re pulling your punches" she told him, hitting him with a right jab that snapped his head back. "Don’t" she said, following with a kick that swept his legs out from under him.

Riley flipped onto his feet as soon as he’d hit the floor, wiping the blood from his lip.

"You asked for it" he told Keegan. Riley came out swinging, full force. Keegan dodged a few, landing a couple of her own on his ribs. She was knocked backwards by a high kick, but remained standing.

An intense fight ensued, but the end result was that Riley ended up on the floor two more times within five minutes. Keegan called an end to the battle.

"That’s enough" she said. She wasn’t even winded by the fight. "You can rest now" she told Riley. Buffy handed Riley a towel as he walked over to her.

"She’s tough" he whispered. Buffy nodded.

"Are you ok?" she asked.

"Nothing a soak in a hot tub won’t cure" he replied.

"You’re up" Keegan said, pointing at Buffy. Buffy moved to the center of the floor. "Don’t pull your punches" Keegan ordered. "Your goal is to take me down. That’s the only rule" she reminded.

Buffy started as Riley did, with a lunge. Keegan moved to dodge it, but Buffy anticipated the dodge and turned in mid-move, landing a jab in Keegan’s side. Keegan twirled with a kick, which Buffy ducked. It was followed by 2 quick punches that caught Buffy unaware, snapping her head back. Keegan managed to back Buffy up toward the wall. Buffy turned, ran toward the wall, and used it to flip herself over Keegan’s head and land on the other side. She managed to hit Keegan a few more times before Keegan was able to turn.

"That’s a girl" Keegan growled, landing an uppercut on Buffy that sent her flying. Buffy scrambled to her feet, used a bench press for height, and kicked Keegan in the jaw.

Slowly, the few people lifting weights stopped to watch the fight. That and get out of the way. Nothing was sacred as the two women worked their way around the room, using every available surface to gain leverage. Finally, Buffy managed to sweep Keegan’s feet out from under her. Not wasting any time, Buffy slammed her foot down on Keegan’s neck, holding her in place.

Applause erupted as Buffy reached down to pull Keegan up.

"How was that?" she asked. Keegan grinned, wiping a trickle of blood from her lip.

"You’re hired"

"I got a job!!" Buffy yelled as she bounded through the door of the Magic Box. Several customers looked at her startled, but Buffy ignored them as she ran over to Giles and grabbed him in a bear hug. Giles’ breath whooshed out of his lungs at the tight embrace. "I got a job!" Buffy repeated, gleefully.

"Buffy, air" Giles gasped. Buffy let go quickly, allowing him to gulp oxygen gratefully. He looked at her glowing face. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen her so joyful. <She deserved as much happiness as possible../../gt;

"What kind of job?" he asked, cleaning his glasses. Buffy was all but bouncing.

"Self defense" she told him. "There’s a new gym that opened just down the street. Riley and I went to apply. The interview consisted of knocking the owner on her butt. Riley didn’t. I did" Buffy told him the last bit of information with no small amount of pride.

"Well, I should hope so" Giles told her, pride filling his voice. He moved behind the counter to ring up a customer. "A new gym you say?" he asked. Buffy nodded. Giles handed the customer their purchase and cleared his throat as he turned back to Buffy. "Would you mind if I went and checked it out?" he asked. Buffy put her hands on her hips, her lips in a pout.

"I’m a big girl, Giles" she told him. <Don’t I know it../../gt; Giles thought. "I don’t think there is any big bad brewing at this gym"

"Still, I’d like to go" Giles insisted. "Please" Buffy smiled at his concern. She found it very sweet, and it hard to deny him this simple thing.

"When do you want to go?"

The bell on the door rang, and they both looked over as Anya swept into the store.

"How about now?" Buffy shrugged.

"Ok, but I don’t know if you’re prepared for Keegan. She’s like Ms. Calendar to the power of 10"

Giles looked around the gym. It was definitely not what he’d envisioned. When Buffy said she was working at a gym, he’d been sure it had been one of those pristine places where the beautiful people worked out. Instead, this was the sort of place he’d patronize.

Buffy led him toward the office and knocked briefly on the open door.

"Come" a strong female voice answered. Buffy pushed open the door and he was struck by the woman behind the desk. She had sharp features with crystal blue eyes, her sun streaked hair in a ponytail.

"Keegan? I’m sorry to bug you, but my friend, Giles wanted to meet you and check the place out" Buffy said. Keegan appraised the man standing behind Buffy. Definitely an improvement over the boy she’d come in with earlier. This one had potential. A lean body, a fighting stance and a light in his green eyes that said that if Keegan was up to no good or caused Buffy trouble, she would surely regret it.

Keegan liked him immediately.

"Hello Giles" she said, holding out her hand. Giles shook it firmly.

"I hope we’re not bothering you. I was just curious about where Buffy would be working" <An English accent. Better and better../../gt; Keegan thought. She was a sucker for English accents.

"Of course not. I understand completely" she said. "Buffy is quite the fighter. Not many people can take me down"

"Giles trained me" Buffy offered. Keegan raised an eyebrow.

"Really? Did you want a job too?" she asked. Giles laughed and shook his head.

"I’m gainfully employed, thank you very much"

<Giles laughed../../gt; Buffy thought. <When was the last time he’d laughed like that?> Buffy couldn’t remember. <Obviously it’s been entirely too long../../gt;

Keegan took them on the tour of the gym, which consisted of her standing in the middle of the room and saying "That’s the boxing ring, the weights are there, and there’s the workout floor"

Keegan was not a stupid woman. You didn’t live as long as she did if you were. She had immediately caught the sparks flying between her new employee and her friend. <They have no idea../../gt; she thought as Giles laid his hand protectively on Buffy’s shoulder. <This could get quite interesting../../gt;

"Um, I wonder if we can speak to you, privately" Giles asked after the makeshift tour. Keegan nodded and led them back to the office, gesturing to the couch across from her desk. Keegan perched on the edge of her desk, as Buffy sat. Giles, however, remained standing.

"What is it you’d like to talk about?" she asked. Giles cleared his throat.

"About Buffy’s hours…" he began. Keegan held up a hand to stop him.

"Buffy was very up front that her mother was ill, and that often emergencies arise that will require her to miss work" she said. "I have no problem with that as long as she gives me a call" Keegan smiled. "I am here all of the time, since I live upstairs, so I can take over" Giles was stunned into silence. He looked at Buffy, astounded by her foresight. Buffy gave him a blinding smile, pleased with herself.

"Yes, well, alright then. Thank you" Keegan nodded.

"I’m just thrilled to have someone as skilled as Buffy working here. I think it’ll be a great experience for her" she told him as they moved to leave. Buffy left the office first, giving Keegan a chance to grab Giles by the arm. "You’re a good man, Giles. You’ve got quite a girl there" she added. Giles simply nodded and left to catch up to Buffy.

<My girl../../gt; he thought. <Not that I’d raised a fine girl, but that I had one. Good Lord, she can’t possibly think… Not if Riley was here earlier../../gt; Giles shook his head to clear his thoughts. He knew that that train of thought would only lead to madness and a cold shower.

Buffy was positively skipping with joy when he caught up with her. He started when she linked her arm through his.

"So, whatcha think, Watcher-mine?" she asked. Giles smiled down at her. <I think Riley is a lucky bastard>

"I think that you’ll do very well there" he said. Buffy stopped and looked into his eyes.

"Can I tell you something?" she asked seriously.

"Of course" he assured her with equal seriousness. Buffy shifted nervously.

"Riley’s mad that I got the job. He’s upset because Keegan took him down 3 times in 5 minutes and I took her down in 10" <Riley’s a prat../../gt; Giles thought. "But here’s the thing, Giles. I don’t care. I think he’s being a big baby about the whole thing" Giles sighed. He’d have to tread very carefully.

"I’m sure his ego is wounded. It’s one thing to be beaten up by a girlfriend who has super strength, another to have a total stranger do it" he offered. Buffy looked at him for a moment. <He thinks Riley’s a big baby too../../gt; she realized.

"Yeah, that’s it" Buffy wondered what Giles really thought about Riley. Hell, she wondered what she really thought about Riley. She couldn’t stand to be touched by him lately, yet she couldn’t seem to be near enough to Giles. <Oh, weirdness. Definite weirdness../../gt;

The two of them walked silently, arm in arm back to the Magic Box so Buffy could share her good news with the gang and Giles could assure them that no evilness was currently lurking.

Buffy liked Keegan. There was no two ways about it. Keegan was pretty cool. Aside from the self-defense classes, Keegan had expanded Buffy’s duties when she found out Buffy had weapon skills. Keegan herself was an expert with a sword and taught Buffy some new tricks.

Keegan had offered the gang free memberships to the gym, which they’d started to use. Even Giles. Buffy often came in for class to find him lifting weights and discussing philosophy with a brute with the name of Bull. No one messed with her friends, not after they’d seen Buffy at work. Keegan had laughingly told her that several of the men were afraid of her.

Riley refused to come. He was still sulking over his quick defeat. In fact, he refused to have anything to do with Keegan. He told Buffy that something wasn’t right about her. Buffy waved away his concern.

Buffy wondered about Giles coming to the gym. They still trained at the Magic Box. There were things that they just couldn’t do at the gym. Yet, he was still at the gym several nights a week. <Maybe he’s coming to see Keegan> she thought, watching him bench press an impressive weight. That particular idea did not sit well in Buffy’s stomach. She watched Giles sit up and wipe the sweat off his face with the bottom of his shirt. The movement revealed the impressive washboard abs he’d developed. The feeling in her stomach moved downward.

For a moment, her thoughts flickered to the memory of her mother’s opinion of Giles’ sexual prowess. <He’s a stevedore../../gt; Buffy had actually been curious enough to look up what a stevedore was. Blushing, she concentrated on the task at hand.

Buffy was teaching a class of college women how to defend themselves against an attacker. Her classes were quite popular and she had a full room tonight. Giles watched as she demonstrated a particularly nasty technique, one that would be quite painful to any attacker. <I certainly didn’t teach her that one../../gt; She moved with such grace through the class, correcting movements, and offering advice. <Beautiful as always> He stood and watched for a moment longer, until he had to move or stand like a fool.

<Oh, this is pathetic../../gt; Keegan thought, watching the two of them, mooning over each other. <Why is she still seeing that loser, Riley? How can she not see how much she loves Giles? And how much he loves her?>

Keegan had listened as Buffy had told Willow about Riley and his steadfast refusal to accept her job. She and Willow discussed it often as they worked out. Buffy couldn’t figure out why he was so upset, and poor Willow, she didn’t have any answers. And always, the subject turned to Giles. Giles this, Giles that, Giles said.

<Time for a gentle nudge../../gt; Keegan decided, as Buffy ended her class. The girls milled about as they gathered their things and spoke to Buffy, thanking her for a great class. Keegan wound her way through the crowd to where Buffy stood, wiping her face with a towel.

"Buffy. Wonderful job as always" she said. Buffy glowed at the compliment. "I wondered if I could have a word with you in my office" Keegan requested. Buffy nodded and silently followed her to the room. Keegan gestured for her to sit as she shut the door. Buffy sat on the couch with trepidation. Keegan sat on the other end.

"I’m not firing you" she assured Buffy. A look of relief crossed Buffy’s face. "It’s about Riley"

"Riley?" Buffy was confused. As far as she knew, the only time Keegan had met Riley was when they’d come to apply for the job. Keegan continued.

"I couldn’t help but notice that he never comes here. And, well, I’d be lying if I said that I haven’t overheard you and Willow discussing him" Buffy blushed. Keegan patted her hand. "Don’t be embarrassed. You’re young. You should be discussing boys with your friends"

"It’s just…" Keegan waved her hands in the air. "I don’t want this to be a sore point between you two, and if there’s anything I can do to make up for kicking his ass, I’d be glad to do it"

Buffy stared at her. This woman who, by all accounts, was a total stranger, was willing to apologize for something that was not her fault.

"Thank you" Buffy stuttered. "But, I think his ego is wounded more by the fact that I was ‘better’ than him then the fact you beat him" Buffy stood, suddenly restless. "Riley just can’t seem to accept that even though he’s commando guy, he’s not perfect at everything. He wants me to be all strong but hide behind him, wringing my hands when things get tough"

"It seems to me that he doesn’t know you very well" Keegan observed. Buffy shook her head.

"I know. He looks at me and sees this teeny tiny girl, and he puts me in a box. But I don’t fit in that box, and he gets mad at me because of that"

Outwardly, Keegan’s face was calm and understanding, inside, she was mentally rubbing her hands together in glee. <Now or never, old girl../../gt;

"Buffy," Keegan began cautiously. "I know that we don’t know each other very well, but I consider you a friend as well as an employee. I don’t want to overstep my bounds, but… it seems to me that you don’t need a boy to protect you. You need a man who understands you and who you are and accepts everything about you. You need a man who will stand beside you, not in front of you"

Keegan stood. "Please, I don’t want to meddle. <Liar> I just know that this is something that’s really bothering you. I’ll just shut up now"

With that, Keegan left the room, leaving Buffy staring in thought. Inside she was cackling in glee. <One down. One to go../../gt; Strolling through the gym, Keegan made her way through the weight machines, greeting people as she went.

"Hey Giles" she casually called as she approached. Giles looked up from the weights he was returning and smiled.

"Keegan" he greeted. "Buffy had quite a full class this evening" he said, commenting toward the now empty exercise floor. Keegan nodded. <You would know, you stared at her the whole time../../gt;

"She draws quite a crowd" Keegan bounced on the balls of her feet. "A couple of guys have asked when she’s going to teach a class for them. I suspect they’ll be more of them taking the class because she’s teaching it than to learn any fighting techniques" Giles looked down at the floor.

"I’m sure you’re right" he managed.

"Who knows," Keegan continued innocently. "Maybe she’ll meet someone to replace that whiner, Riley" Smiling, Keegan walked away, satisfied that she’d planted the seed in Giles mind.

Someone to replace Riley. The words echoed in Giles’ mind. On one hand, Giles was relieved to learn that he was not the only one who didn’t like Riley. However, he doubted that Keegan’s reasons were the same as his own. He doubted that Keegan lay awake at night, imagining highly inappropriate scenarios with Buffy. Of course, in this day and age, he supposed it was possible. After all, he’d have never imagined Willow and Tara together. But seeing Keegan flirt in the gym, he found it highly unlikely.

What Giles wouldn’t give to be the new man in Buffy’s life. Since Buffy had graduated from high school, his feelings toward her had gradually changed, until one night he’d woken in a cold sweat with the realization that he’d fallen in love with her.

He’d tried to drown the knowledge in alcohol, with Olivia. Nothing had worked. He’d finally come to accept the fact that he’d have to be satisfied to love her silently and be her friend.

No longer in the mood to lift, Giles left the gym and made his way home. Maybe he could find an interesting demon to take his mind off the depressing thought of having to welcome another man into Buffy’s life.

"Hey babe" Riley leaned down to kiss Buffy on the lips. Instead of the passionate greeting he’d been expecting, he got an absent peck. He frowned when he realized that she hadn’t changed from the gym. "We’re not going out?" he asked.

"No, I have to patrol" Riley pouted, which grated on Buffy’s nerves

"We haven’t been out in ages" he said. Buffy put her hands on her hips.

"I can’t blow off patrolling" she told him.

"If you hadn’t been so late, we could’ve gone out earlier. Before you patrolled"

"I wasn’t out" Buffy pointed out. "I was working. At the gym" Riley turned and threw the clothes he’d been folding on the bed.

"I don’t see why you have to work at that place" he sulked.

"Well, mostly because I get paid to do what I like and am good at it" Buffy retorted. Buffy decided that she was sick of Riley’s attitude.

"You could do something else" he muttered. Suddenly, the whole situation became clear to Buffy.

Riley didn’t give her that flyer because he wanted to help her find a job. He never thought she’d get the job. The gym was not the type of place she’d hang out. It was a "guys" gym. He thought he would be a shoe-in for the job, thereby proving once and for all that he was bigger, better and stronger. And now that his plan backfired, he couldn’t handle it.

"Tell you what, Riley," Buffy said, cocking her head. "I’m going to go patrol. When you can act like a man instead of a whining boy, you let me know" Buffy strode toward the door, stopping as she opened it. "Oh wait, that’ll never happen. Never mind"

Buffy slammed the door as she left, muttering under her breath as she stomped toward one of the cemeteries. She didn’t even pause in her tirade as she dusted a vampire that leap out from behind a tree. He was pathetically easy to kill, and Buffy was looking for a fight. Her Slayer hearing picked up what sounded like swords clashing. Perking up at the prospect of a battle, she ran toward the sound.

Buffy could sense the vampires before she saw them. <A lot of them from the feel of it../../gt; They seem to be gathered around a clearing in the forest, watching something. Buffy staked two of them silently, curious as to what they were watching. No one noticed the missing vamps. They were too busy cheering the people in the clearing.

In the middle of the clearing, illuminated by a stray street lamp, were two people dueling with swords. Dueling was not the proper word. Trying to kill each other was a more appropriate description. There was nothing civilized about what Buffy was watching. The lamplight glinted off the swords as they slashed and plunged. Buffy gasped as she realized that one of the combatants was Keegan. She didn’t recognize the man she was fighting.

Over the cheers, Buffy could hear the voices of the adversaries as she began to make her way around the circle, dusting vamps as she went.

"You know you can’t win, McPherson. Even if you do, the vampires will take you. You might as well give up, because either way, you’ll lose" the man taunted. Keegan snorted.

"Oh, yeah, that’s gonna convince me. Let me stop right now and let you take my head" Buffy snickered at Keegan’s voice. She wondered if that’s what she sounded like in battle. Buffy’s breath caught as one of the vampires darted into the clearing to attack Keegan from behind. Keegan twirled, sliced off it’s head and blocked her opponents slash all in one smooth movement.

"No one interferes" she told him. "It’s between us" Her opponent had been distracted by the attack, and Keegan used this to her advantage. She slashed at his knees and brought in to the ground. With one swift movement, she cut off his head.

There was silence for a moment. Keegan thrust the sword into the ground and yelled

"There can be only one!"

A bright glowing light emanated from the headless body on the ground, surround Keegan. Bolts of lightening shot from the sky, surrounding her. She spasmed as they struck her.

The vampires began moving in as the lightning subsided. Keegan had collapsed, obviously spent by the fight and whatever had just happened. Buffy rushed in, grabbed the sword from the ground and started swinging.

"Back off" she told the mob. Two of the vamps fell to the sword. One vampire, who was obviously the leader, grinned.

"The Slayer" he growled. "A two for one" Pissed, Buffy tossed a stake into his heart and turned him to dust.

Buffy knew they were in trouble. Even with the vamps she’d dusted, they were still grossly outnumbered. Buffy was killing vampires as fast as she could and there were still more to take their place.

"Keegan, can you stand?" she asked the prone figure behind her. Keegan groaned and struggled to her feet.

"Buffy!!" Buffy looked up to see Giles running toward them, the gang in tow. <How the hell did they know?> she wondered, taking out a couple more vamps. Their attention divided, the vampires became confused unsure of where to attack.

Anya clocked one with her baseball bat, beating him to the ground so Xander could stake him. The moving wall of vampires in front of Buffy suddenly turned to dust, and a bunch of number 2 pencils landed at her feet. Buffy laughed, looking up at Willow and Tara. Giles was staking vampires left and right, working his way toward her.

Within moments, the vampires were defeated. The remaining few had turned tail and run when they realized that they were now on the losing end of the battle.

"Buffy!" Giles came over and pulled her into a bear hug. "I was so worried about you" Buffy returned the hug, rubbing her cheek on his jacket.

"I was a little worried, myself" she told him.

"Is she ok?" Willow asked, motioning toward Keegan. Keegan was having a hard time standing. Xander held her up.

"I’m ok. It takes a little while for the effects to wear off" she told them.

"What the hell was that?" Buffy demanded. "And am I going to have to bury that guy?" Keegan laughed.

"Leave him. Derek would be horrified to become some statistic in a little ‘po-dunk town’ as he called it. Therefore, we’re going to leave him to be a statistic" she said. Keegan gestured toward the street. "We should probably head back to the gym. I’ll explain everything there"

Keegan’s strength seemed to have returned, and she took her sword from Buffy as they began walking. Giles still had his arm around Buffy, and Buffy found that she liked it. However, the gang was watching, so she pulled away. Hurt flashed across his face before he covered it up with a careful mask.

"How did you know I was in trouble?" she asked him. Giles shrugged.

"I didn’t" he admitted, embarrassed. "Xander decided we needed an ‘old fashioned cemetery get-together’ I believe he called it" Buffy smiled.

"Yup, Xander is ‘key guy’ once again" Xander said proudly from the front of the group.

"Well, I was thrilled to see you, no matter what brought you there" Buffy told Giles softly. Giles smiled. Buffy loved to see him smile. Reaching up, she brushed at the ash that covered him. Underneath his shirt, she could feel toned muscle. She slid her hand slowly down his arm. Giles stopped suddenly at her touch.

"You’re covered in vampire dust" she explained, haltingly. Giles swallowed and nodded. Without a word, he started walking again, a little faster to catch up with the group.

Buffy stood rooted to the spot, watching him go, immobilized. <What the hell was that all about?> she asked herself. Buffy ran to catch up to the group. She kept pace with Giles, watching him out of the corner of her eye. He stared straight ahead, never looking at her.

Keegan led them to the third floor of the gym, to her living quarters. It was very nice, filled with very old, elegant looking items. Giles immediately picked up a vase sitting on a pedestal.

"This is a Ming vase. First dynasty!" he exclaimed. He moved to the wall. "This is a Van Gogh" he said, examining the picture.

"He was a nut case" Keegan said absently. "Couldn’t let go of the past and move on. Drove me nuts" The gang stared at her. She gestured to the living area. The group sat on the couch, arranging themselves in couples. Tara at Willow’s feet, Anya on Xander’s lap, and Buffy and Giles next to each other.

Keegan looked at their expectant faces, took a deep breath and launched into her story.

"I am Keegan McPherson, of the Clan McPherson. I was born in 423 AD, as close as I can figure by the current calendar. I was a Celtic warrior, in what is now Ireland and Scotland"

"You were a warrior?" Willow asked. "They let you even though you were a woman?"

"The Celts were one of the few cultures that enabled women to fight and be leaders" Giles supplied. Keegan nodded.

"You were born in 423 AD?" Xander asked.

"Shhh" Anya shushed him. "This is interesting"

"I was a great leader. I was the Xena of my time" Keegan grinned. Xander leaned forward.

"Did you wear one of those cool leather outfits?" he asked. Anya elbowed him in the stomach and shushed him again.

"Ignore him" she told Keegan. "We do most of the time. Please continue with your very interesting story" Keegan smiled as she picked up the thread of her tale.

"I fought battle after battle, a great warlord. One day, I went into battle and didn’t come back alive. I was killed by the ax of a rival clansman. My people brought my body back for a ceremonial funeral, as was befitting a person of my stature" Keegan took a deep breath. "As they prepared the funeral pyre, I woke up"

"Wait, you were dead, and then you weren’t?" Xander asked. Keegan nodded. Xander leaned over to look at Buffy. "Sounds like you" Giles ignored him.

"That must not have gone over well with your clan" Keegan shook her head.

"They thought I was a demon and cast me out. I wandered for years, living off the land, joining a clan when I could. Until one day, I met someone like me. Her name was Rachel. She was currently a noblewoman. She sensed me as her carriage rode by. She took me in, cleaned me up, taught me how to act, read, and trained me. She also taught me what I am"

"And that is…?" Buffy prompted.

"I am immortal"

For a moment there was complete silence as the group absorbed her statement. Finally, Willow raised her hand.

"Um… immortal as in ‘never die’?" she asked, hesitantly. Keegan nodded.

"Just for the record, I’m not a vampire or a demon of any kind. I am human… just with a slightly longer life span"

Strangely, this statement seemed to boggle everyone’s minds.

"You know about vampires?" Buffy asked.

"And demons?" Giles added. Keegan rolled her eyes.

"Please. I am one thousand, five hundred seventy nine years old, give or take. Do you know how many vampires and demons I’ve run across?" Keegan demanded. Once again, the group was dumbstruck. <But wait… there’s more!> Keegan thought.

"And I also know, that you, my dearest Buffy, are the Vampire Slayer. A spankin’ good one from what my sources inform me" All the color drained from Buffy’s face.

"How did you know? How long have you known? Is that why you hired me?" she demanded. Keegan laughed.

"Of course that’s not why I hired you. I had no idea you were the Slayer when I hired you" Keegan assured her. She stood and wandered around the room. "However, I’d be stupid not to notice that there is unusual vampire activity around here, and, well, truth is, the grapevine is ripe with tales of your victories" Keegan smiled, that smile that shone with approval. "Even Derek had heard you were here"

Keegan stood and wandered her living room, touching things here and there.

"I came to Sunnydale to because…" Keegan trailed off. "Let’s just say I needed some alone time" Smiling sadly, Keegan picked up a picture sitting on a shelf. It was a photograph of herself, a man on either side of her. One had dark brown hair slicked back into a neat ponytail, the other was younger looking with wavy blonde hair.

"Is that your boyfriend?" Anya asked in her typically blunt way. Keegan gave her a watery smile.

"I guess you could say Duncan was" she said. "Richie was just a good friend"

"Was?" Willow whispered. Keegan smiled at the picture.

"Richie was killed" she said softly. "It was an accident. But that doesn’t make him any less dead"

Buffy watched Keegan studying the picture. Pain, sorrow, sadness all radiated from her. Reaching over, Buffy took Giles’ hand. She wondered if this is what he would be like when she died.

"And Duncan?" Anya asked. "What happened to him?"

"He sent me away before he killed me too" Tears streamed down her face. Keegan touched the faces in the picture, then shaking herself out of whatever she’d been thinking, she put it back and wiped the tears from her cheeks.

The gang looked at each other. They couldn’t imagine what she’d gone through, one friend killing another.

"But enough of me" Keegan said brightly, trying to lighten the dark mood. "I appreciate you saving my life, Buffy" She smiled. "Immortals can’t become vampires, but it doesn’t make getting drained of blood any more pleasant"

Buffy stood, recognizing this as the signal to leave. The others stood as well and began to file from the apartment, saying good-bye as they went. Buffy, still clutching Giles’ hand, turned as she reached the door.

"I’ll see you tomorrow" It was half statement, half question. Keegan nodded, her eyes bright with unshed tears.

"Same time as usual" Keegan confirmed. Buffy gave her a smile and left. Once the door had closed, Keegan turned back to the picture of her, Duncan and Richie as more tears began to stream down her face.

The gang was unnaturally quiet as they made their way along the sidewalk. Buffy still had a tight grip on Giles’ hand. He’d looked at her quizzically, but after one look at her face, he decided not to question it. Buffy looked almost as distressed by Keegan’s story as Keegan had herself.

"Well…" Xander started.

"That was very sad" Anya said at the same time. Everyone nodded. Anya tugged on Xander’s arm. "We need to go home and have sex to reaffirm that you’re alive and not going to kill me" she said. Xander blushed, but allowed himself to be dragged away.

"We should better go too" Willow suggested, her fingers laced with Tara’s. They made their good byes, leaving Giles and Buffy alone, still hand in hand.

"Walk you home?" Buffy asked softly. Giles gave her a smile.

"If it will make you feel better" he acquiesced. They walked silently for a while.

"Giles, when I die…" Buffy began. Giles stopped in his tracks, pulling her to face him.

"Don’t talk like that" he said forcefully. "You’ll be the first Slayer to reach old age if I have anything to do with it" Buffy reached up and caressed his cheek.

"Giles," she began as Giles covered her hand with his own and kissed her palm. "we have to talk about this" Buffy shivered as the sensation of his lips on her hand.

"You’ll be the oldest Slayer ever!" he declared. For a moment, they stood there, just staring into each other’s eyes. Slowly, Giles began to lean down. Buffy’s lips parted in anticipation as he drew closer.

"Buffy!" Giles and Buffy jumped apart at the sound of her name. Buffy turned to find Riley running down the road toward them.

"Shit!" Buffy muttered under her breath. Freeing her hand from Giles’, she set both hands on her hips. "What do you want?" she demanded of Riley as he came to a halt in front of her.

"I’m sorry, Buffy" he told her, breathing heavily from the run. "I was being childish earlier" Buffy raised an eyebrow at him.

"Yes, you were" she said, not bending an inch. Riley reached out and took one of her hands from her hip, holding it between both of his.

"Please forgive me, Buffy" he said, kissing her hand, much as Giles had done moments before. Buffy fought the urge to pull her hand away and wipe it on her jeans.

Standing behind Buffy, Giles watched this display and fought the urge to roll his eyes. He wished he could see Buffy’s face. He’d been so close to kissing her. <God, what had he’d been thinking?> he asked himself. Giles knew exactly what he’d been thinking. He’d been thinking about how very much like Keegan he’d feel if Buffy died or sent him away. And unless he was very much mistaken, Buffy would have kissed him back. <Damn Riley and his timing!>

"Well, I’ll leave you two to work things out" Giles said, uncomfortably. He turned to walk away. Buffy whirled around. Giles’ head and shoulders were slumped, his hands shoved into his pockets.

"Wait, Giles!" she called after him. Riley began to drag her in the other direction.

"Let him go, Buffy" he said. "He’s right. We have a lot to talk about" Buffy yanked her hand from his grasp, and ran after Giles, tugging on his arm.

"Hey, wait" she said softly. Giles smiled at her, almost sadly it seemed.

"Go" he said, motioning to Riley. "We’ll have plenty of time to talk" Buffy searched his eyes, for what she wasn’t quite sure. Finally she nodded.

"We’ll finish our conversation tomorrow" she vowed. Standing on tiptoe, she brushed a kiss on his cheek. "It’ll be ok" she whispered before turning back to Riley.

Giles watched the couple walk away. He smiled when Buffy refused to take Riley’s hand, brushing past him and leaving him to trail behind her. He dearly hoped that Riley ended up sleeping alone tonight.

"But, babe…" Riley said, as he scurried to catch up with Buffy.

"Don’t ‘babe’ me!" Buffy said, stopping suddenly. Her abrupt halt caused Riley to actually pass her. "I’m tired of your constant whining about Keegan, and my job, and how I’m not paying enough attention to you" she told him. "You are a grown man, damn it!" Buffy stomped her foot. "My mother has been sick with some sort of brain tumor, and you have the nerve to be upset because I’m trying to help out"

"But…" Riley interjected. Buffy held up a hand to stop him.

"But nothing" she said harshly. "It’s over, Riley. I don’t have the time or inclination to bow to your every whim" Buffy turned on her heel and stalked away, leaving Riley staring in astonishment at her retreating back.

:: On To Part Two ::