Part 3
Rupert Giles was busy cataloguing some new books delivered that morning when the jingle of bells declared someone had entered his business, ‘The Magic Shop.’ He loved the little shop, he had no choice but to love it.
Since he had been fired from the Watcher’s Council, he had to find a new way to make enough money for the little luxuries in life. Such as food, clothing, bills and the occasional repairs on his apartment after a demon attack.
“Another night, another customer” the Englishman sighed, his voice well-educated and cultured, leaving the cataloguing to one side for, the man exited the stock room and went to greet his customer.
The first sight he was greeted with was of a child completely covered from head-to-toe in black apart from white training shoes that were visible under the edge of the cloak. Large brown eyes peeked up at him from a black face mask while little black gloved hands moved as he crossed his arms over his chest.
Due to the amount of clothing the child was wearing, it was impossible to distinguish if it was a little boy or a little girl. Giles returned the inquisitive stare as he too crossed his arms over his chest and waited for the child to speak, even he or she could from behind that face mask.
“Oh my God, G-Giles? Is that you?”
At the sound of a surprise-filled female voice, Rupert Giles gaze went from the child in front of him to who he assumed would be his mother. A stunning, very familiar young woman with long, wavy chestnut hair gazed at him in both surprise and delight beaming from hazel orbs that caught the light in the shop.
The features of her face were defined by wispy strands of dark hair that flittered around her defiant jaw and cheeks. Hands were clasped over her mouth to stifle the shocked gasp of breath as she stared at him in turn.
The young woman was so familiar and Giles wracked his brain, trying to figure out where he knew her from…
Then recognition hit.
“C-Cordelia?” Giles gaze went wide as he looked once more at the small child still staring up at him with darkening eyes, “Cordelia Chase?”
Dressed in a simple pair of light blue denim jeans, small heeled boots and a light lilac roll neck sweater, she looked far different to how he remembered her. Even her long, chestnut hair had changed in style. It used to cascade down her back in long, luxurious waves that sparkled with a healthy glow when the tresses caught the light.
Now, it reached just below her shoulders and fell in a mass of tumbling thick curls that both softened her features and brought an air maturity about the young woman.
Cordelia swallowed and waited for the anger, judgment and accusations to fall from his mouth at her sudden disappearance from Sunnydale five years ago. “Hi Giles” she stated quietly when her hands were dropped to her sides. “It’s been a while”
Rupert Giles posture changed from surprise and shock to both annoyance and anger as he remembered all of them; Buffy, Xander, Willow, Oz and when he had returned from hell, Angel, try to find out what had happened to her. Now here she was, some five years later showing up on his doorstep looking for all the world like nothing had happened.
Raising his chin up slightly, the man pushed his glasses up higher on the bridge of his nose and regarded the brunette intently. “Where on Earth have you been?”
“Before we get into everything, can I ask a favor please? Can you turn off the lights?” Cordelia pointed to the small child now gripping her leg, “He’s photosensitive”
***
Placing a steaming cup of hot, delicious tea in front of Cordelia and a tall glass of Coca Cola in front of her son, Giles elegantly sat in a chair opposite her and waited to see if the young woman would give an explanation to her sudden reappearance to the Hellmouth.
“I must say” he began when it looked like she wasn’t going to start, “This has indeed come as a surprise”
“Tell me about it” Cordelia had had her fair share of surprises she thought with a wry smile directed at Connor who was, for once, sitting without his protective clothing away from the table with the candle light. He was playing with two stakes and using them as pretend drum sticks.
Nothing had been a bigger surprise than finding out she was pregnant. “Connor, be careful with those, baby”
Connor rolled his brown eyes in exasperation, “Mom, I’m five not some stupid kid who likes to play with bad things”
Both Cordelia and Giles raised their eyebrows as they watched him do exactly that.
“He’s allergic to most light?” the Englishman asked as he sipped his own cup of tea, delighting in the warming liquid as it coated his throat from the inside.
“I am” Connor spoke up smugly, if the nice man had questions then he should be asking him and not bothering his mom.
“Mind your manners, scrat” Cordelia warned, “Giles was nice enough to get you some soda and turn off the lights so you could take your cloak off. Be nice”
Mother and son exchanged a silent battle of wills under the stunned gaze of the ex-watcher. Cordelia’s face seemed to be set in stone as she silently berated her child for using such an abrupt tone with the man who had given him a soda. Connor, on the other hand, had only heard someone talking about him and not to him.
Most people were like that when they found out about his condition. It was like his allergy to light also affected his ability to answer questions for himself.
“Aw mom, alright” the five year old held up his hands in submission, when he saw his mother’s eyes narrow dangerously he knew he was walking on thin ice and so made the decision to get back in her good books.
Turning the most sincere expression he could to the man with the funny accent, Connor apologized. “Sorry sir, I didn’t mean to be rude. Honest”
“Very well, young man” Giles graciously accepted the apology while he bit his cheek, it seemed Cordelia firmly had a tight hold on the boy. “I shall ask you if you prefer, after all you seem big enough to answer for yourself” his theory was confirmed when the dark haired boy shot a giant grin towards the exasperated brunette.
He maybe only five years old but it seemed that the young boy had a mind and will of his own. Much like his mother Giles noted with a wry smile.
“I’m five sir, six in June” Connor supplied as he jumped down off his chair and scuttled closer to his mom and the man while staying safely out of the direct flow of the candle Giles had lit. “My name is Connor Chase, but you can call me Connor”
“Very nice to meet you, Connor” Giles replied with a warm smile at the show of his sudden polite manners, “My name is Rupert Giles, you may call me Giles if you like”
“Giles” Connor tested the name out, “That’s a cool name sir, I mean Giles. Thanks for the soda, my mom only gives me soda and sweets if I’ve been brave or real good like tonight”
“Oh, would you like to tell me why you had to be brave?” the Englishman watched the expressions flow over the young boy’s devilish features avidly, there was something familiar about Connor but he just put it down to who his mother was.
There was so much of Cordelia in the five year old, his big smile and the expressiveness of his face as he spoke candidly about his bravery and reward. Not only was there character traits belonging his mother in him, but there something about the little boy that seemed more familiar than his old charge.
“Then we got to the grocery store and was lit up real good and everything” Connor spoke dramatically, making it sound so very exciting and thrilling. “Then my mom got scared” so he had gotten scared first, mister Giles didn’t need to know that right? “And I had to promise that I would take real good care of her in the store. Um-hmm” he nodded fiercely.
Cordelia couldn’t believe her little monster, she wasn’t the one who’d gotten scared first and she was the one who had promised to make sure he was alright. Shaking her head a little, the brunette watched as understanding closely followed by deeply felt compassion soon flickered over the handsome face of the ex librarian.
“That was very brave indeed, young Connor” Giles commended with an impressed expression that hid the myriad of emotions he was feeling at what the both of them must go through day-to-day. He was beginning to understand why she had ran away from Sunnydale at just seventeen years of age, he may understand but he didn’t agree with it.
Cordelia could have had more help if she had stayed here with people who cared for her. However, remembering the personality of the young woman during high school, it bore no surprise that she hadn’t wanted to stay on where people would have only helped her out of pity.
Not just that, Giles thought with stark realization, the only real friends she would have been able to count on were a witch, a slayer and her watcher and a young man with a heart of gold. Being on a Hellmouth and in the company of a slayer wouldn’t have done much good for Cordelia and Connor.
In hindsight the man could say she had made the right choice in leaving but she could of at least let them know. That was what made him angry, the never knowing if she was alive or dead or worse, turned into something they would have had to kill.
“I know!” Connor bragged with more fierce nodding, “My mom said so and she said that if I promised to eat all my dinner then I could get a giant cake with sauce and cream tomorrow…” he glanced slyly at his mom, hoping she would go along with his words.
“Connor Chase I did not” Cordelia stuck by her guns, cake was only allowed on special occasions like his birthday, Christmas, Easter or as a bribe if he needed to go to the hospital. She had learned that using treats such as cake, the promise of going to a park or having party-like food was a great way to make her son happy if he needed treatment.
If those treats were used too often, then they would be useless when they were really needed. “You know that I said no to the cake, you got sweets because you were brave and I promised, but I said no cake”
Giles wondered if cake was in someway also harmful to the small boy and another wave of compassionate feeling spread from his chest. He admired the way the young mother seemed to be coping but then again, she had no choice in the matter other to cope.
The man decided there and then that he would offer any assistance to her that he could. “If you don’t mind my asking Cordelia” Giles began and interrupted the brewing trouble Connor was about to be in. “I am in need of some assistance in my little endeavor here. As you already know the main nature of the shop, you would certainly be a good if not the perfect person for the job”
“Would that mean I could come in with my mom and play with these some more?” Connor pointed to the two stakes he’d been having fun with before, they made great drumsticks and he could pretend he was rich and famous with a big set of drums.
“You may” Giles directed in amusement at the small boy who seemed quite content to find banging the air greatly exciting. He wondered how and if he had ever played with other children or if his condition prevented such activities.
“Alright! Can I take some home with me please mister Giles?”
“Of course, young Connor”
“Alright!”
Looking across the table at the young mother who was sat watching her son with a saddened expression that told why the five year old found playing with stakes and going to the grocery store as exciting as he did.
Hazel eyes sparkled brightly under the flickering flame of the candle that sat in the middle of the round table. The red-orange glow made with the unshed tears gleam with a fiery glow and accentuated the sadness in her expression. Giles watched as Cordelia became aware of his intense study of her and blinked away the tears that would do nothing to change her son’s life.
“I can’t do that Giles, I won’t be a pity case for you” she stated adamantly with a move of her hand that halted his denials before they begun. “I didn’t come back to Sunnydale for help in looking after Connor, I didn’t come back for pity and sympathy from you”
“Why did you come back, Cordelia?”
“I-I came back because I needed to see if there was anything mystical that could help my son have a better life” and to see if his father was still alive and in town she added silently. “But not for pity and sympathy”
Swallowing the last drink of now cool tea, the ex librarian once again studied the brunette sitting opposite him with a determined look on her face that replaced the sadness of before.
Maybe there was something mystical that could help young Connor’s condition a little. Giles would make it a priority of his to aid in the researching of the condition.
“Cordelia, I am not in the habit of granting pity and sympathy to those who don’t wish for or need it. I am very much in admiration of the strength possessed by your son and yourself. I should imagine it is highly difficult in coping with the intense care he must need on a daily basis and for the sake indulging an old friend, please allow me to help you in anyway I am able to”
Connor instantly liked mister Giles, he had basically told his mom to take help. He wasn’t stupid, he knew it was hard on her. He could hear her crying at night sometimes and sometimes he would go and give his mom a great big cuddle, like she did with him when he cried.
Blinking hard to keep the tears from falling, Cordelia fanned her face in an effort to get control before she embarrassed herself. “Thanks Giles, I swear I won’t let you down… But, you need to understand about Connor’s…”
“No need, seriously Cordelia” Giles waved away her unnecessary explaining. “You may work late afternoons and nights, and I shall set about making it dark so young Connor may accompany you”
“Alright!” Connor yelled happily, he could play with those pointed sticks and pretend he was super cool drummer for a rock band.
“Thank you, Giles. Sincerely” the young mom stated so quietly the Englishman wasn’t entirely sure she’d voiced her gratitude. Cordelia glanced around at the books placed neatly to one side on another table and wondered if the kind man had been very busy before she’d disrupted his life. “Do you need help now or should I…?”
“No doubt you have not been back for very long” Giles stated surely, Buffy or one of the others would have either spotted or heard about the brunette’s return before now. Off the young woman’s expression, he nodded pleasantly “In that case, you are more than welcome to begin work on Monday afternoon if that ties in with your schedule, I shall make arrangements for your son’s needs”
“Thank you again, Giles. I won’t let you down, I promise” checking her watch, she saw it was almost midnight and therefore she had to get home to allow Connor some playtime in the backyard before he went to bed. Not that he would be able to sleep tonight of course, having slept in the car for the majority of their journey the five year old had gotten into a routine of sleeping during the day and being awake at night.
“Well buddy, time to wrap up so we can get you home”
“Do I have to?”
“You do if you want to play in the garden at home before bedtime”
“Aw alright” Connor huffed and his forehead furrowed just slightly, reminding Giles of someone other than Cordelia but he just couldn’t think who. The little boy looked at his mother’s friend and graced him with a big smile, the petulant pout instantly wearing off “Thank you for the soda and for those mister Giles”
“You are very welcome young man” the Englishman graciously responded as he continued to think who the father of Cordelia’s son could be. If she had left Sunnydale because of Connor, then that meant the father was from Sunnydale and most probably didn’t know about his existence.
As if to read the ex-watcher’s mind, the brunette cleared her throat and squared her shoulders in preparation for the questions she knew would have to be answered sooner rather than later. “Not yet Giles” Cordelia told him firmly, “I’m not ready to answer that yet, if ever”
“You know where to find me if you ever need to talk, Cordelia” Giles stood and went to fetch some paper she could jot down her address on. “Would you like to give me your address and a contact number?”
“Sure, Connor get your things and get ready, baby”
***
After seeing Cordelia and her son safely to her car, Giles stood in the street for a long few moments and mused over the last hour or so, wondering if that had really happened. The girl they had expected to be dead somewhere had turned up perfectly healthy on the Magic Shop doorstep with a child who’s condition was very serious.
Though he had now spent many years on the Hellmouth, none of his experiences had prepared him for a shock of this caliber.
Going back inside, the man removed his glasses and sat down in the chair previously occupied by Cordelia Chase. There were so many questions that needed to be answered like where had she been for the last five years. What had she been doing, who was the father of Connor and, most importantly, the exact reason why she run away from everything she’d ever known.
He wondered whether or not he should alert Buffy and the others to her return or if he should let her do it in her own time. Perhaps the interrogation from Buffy, Willow and Xander would be too much for the young mother to handle right now, what with having to cope with her son. On the other hand, could he keep her reappearance a secret and let them go on thinking she was still missing and possibly dead?
It was too late at night to deal with the matter, Giles decided, he would sleep on the decision before making any moves at all. Maybe tomorrow he wouldn’t be the one to break the news to the others, maybe Cordelia would pay them a visit.
Even as the thought entered his mind, he knew the proud brunette wouldn’t because she would expect to receive the third degree and possibly be condemned for leaving without so much as a simple goodbye.
The jingling bell above the shop door sounded and once again announced an arrival into the shop. The bell was quickly followed by a definitely familiar voice he knew instantly as Buffy Summers, his slayer.
“Giles, you still here?” he heard her call out.
“Yes” he responded somewhat tiredly, “Yes, I am in the back room Buffy”
The unusually energetic slayer jogged into the back room, looking for her watcher to tell him how many vampires she’d taken down that night. “Hey” Buffy greeted warmly, “Finished patrol” it was habit that she reported in after each patrol executed.
“The Hellmouth seems quiet for a change, no demonic uprisings or any apocalypse going on somewhere. If I didn’t know any better I’d say the evil of the world is on vacation”
“I’m sure you’re unhappy about that” Giles commented dryly, deciding it would be best to keep Cordelia’s presence a secret for now. “Have you noticed any improvement in your fighting or any changes?”
Buffy shrugged, that was something she didn’t really pay much attention to these days. She had the whole slayer thing worked out now and there wasn’t much point in keeping track of how good or bad her fighting performance was.
“Just the same, though my precision with my kicks are better” she added when she remembered getting a perfect shot at a vampire’s head. “So yeah, there’s improvement”
“Very good, though you still need to practice Buffy. You may have added benefits but those benefits do not make you invincible, you need to be able to defend…”
“As well as I attack” the blonde finished his sentence for him with a smug smirk. “I know Giles, but with everything so quiet these days I think now would be a good time for me to take a little R&R”
“A quiet Hellmouth does not give you grounds to lower your guard,” Giles reprimanded with a stern glance at the slayer in front of him. “However, maybe instead of Faith doing patrol when she feels like it, how about the two of you come to some arrangement? You patrol one night and she the next?”
It would have been a good question if he didn’t know the real reason why she never acquiesced duties to Faith all that much. It seemed Buffy thought Faith couldn’t do as good a job as her.
“Giles, you know as well as I do that Faith is irresponsible and reckless. If defending the mouth of hell was left to her, we would be dining with Satan as we speak.” It was a bit of an exaggeration of course, but the two slayers never really got on with each other despite having a kinship in their calling.
“Besides” Buffy pursed her lips as she prepared to tell her watcher why she didn’t want to give up patrol. “Angel comes with me and it’s the only time we spend together now. I have to take what I can until we get back together”
And so the real reason was revealed to Giles who pretended not to hear it. Instead the Englishman just resigned himself to merely shaking his head and offering the young woman a cup of tea.
God knows he needed one after Cordelia’s unprecedented return from who knows where. The more he thought about it the more dread began to churn in his stomach, he knew what the outcome the news would bring and he knew it wouldn’t be good.
“Giles, you okay?” Buffy broke through her watcher’s deep thoughts.
“Oh uh, yes Buffy. I’m fine, thank you for your concern” he cursed himself for sounding like a programmed robot. “One of those nights I’m afraid” and afraid was definitely how he could describe his feelings.
He was afraid for Cordelia, afraid for Connor and afraid for the reactions they would receive from the young woman in front of him and her friends.
With any luck, Cordelia Chase would give him enough time to break the news to them gently so as not to cause any unnecessary upset or arguments that none of them needed. A final deep sigh concluded his thoughts about the brunette and her son.
All thoughts except for those centering around who on Earth the father of Connor Chase could be. To Giles, the most obvious choice was Xander Harris as he had been the young mother’s boyfriend before she had ran away.
Who else could it be? The only boys he knew of that Cordelia had deeply associated back then were Daniel Osborne, Xander Harris and the boy that had been brought back to life by his brother, Darryl Epps. Daniel Osborne couldn’t be the father as he had been deeply involved with Willow and he highly doubted Darryl had been close enough to the cheerleader before he had died.
However, the physical similarities between Connor and Xander ended at the floppy mass of black hair that dropped down over the little boy’s forehead and eyes. There were no personality traits of the young man and the five year old at all but that could be because Xander hadn’t been a part of his life.
It wasn’t just the lack of traits and appearance similarities, Giles had a feeling telling him that wasn’t right and he’d learned long ago to trust his instincts.
So the question of Connor’s paternal heritage was still very much at question.
