Chapter 1: The Son and the Slayer

Rupert Giles was sitting in his library thinking. Around him, the children known as the Scooby gang stood arguing and yelling at their scapegoat for when things went wrong: Wesley.

Wesley, for his part, just stood and took the abuse both verbal and the slap Buffy had given him not ten minutes ago. But this time, Giles was fed up. It was not Wesley's fault the children had not listened to him. Giles sighed and saw Dawn sitting watching with big, frightened eyes. She liked

Wesley and seeing her sister verbally abuse one of the few people who actually saw her and not Buffy's little sister was upsetting her.

"Why didn't you warn us Wesley?" Buffy shrieked.

"I did," the younger man said. Well, he was younger the Giles at any rate. Older than the children but younger than Giles.

"It was a crappy warning!" Buffy yelled and Giles finally had enough. Enough of how they treated the by an enough of the attitudes. His father would not tolerate the way they treated Wesley and Giles wouldn't anymore either.

"Buffy, really," Giles finally snapped as he felt a migraine coming on. Really, these children were going to give him an ulcer. "Yelling at him because you did not listen to his warning and Willow got caught will not change the fact that you screwed up this time."

"But, Giles," she whined. He shook his head.

"Enough, Buffy," Giles said. "All of you enough. He was right! All you had to do was listen to him and none of this would have happened. You may not like him Buffy but you need to realize he does know things you do not."

"How do we get Willow back?" Oz asked. "Besides the box and giving it up. How do we do it?"

"I don't know," Wesley said sighing. He looked at the box and weighed its worth and the worth of its contents against that of a young girl's life and for the first time it seemed made a choice not Council based.

"Trade," he finally whispered. "Trade it for her. It isn't worth it."

"Wesley?" Giles asked quietly as the young man looked away from the group. He knew Wesley had just signed his own death warrant with the council but he appeared to be willing.

"It is not worth a child's life, Giles. Father and Travers be damned it is not worth it. Now, call and set up the trade. I'll tell father I lost it. He'd believe it of me."

"But, Wesley," Giles began. The young man shook his head and walked away towards the stacks. It hit Giles how tired Wesley looked. Buffy gave a derisive snort a she looked around.

"So, she began, "How do we go about setting this trade up?"

"That isn't important right now," Giles said quietly.

Buffy stared at him in shock.

"He's just condemned himself to hell for you, Buffy. For on of Your Friends who was as mean to him as everyone else was. He'll do this for you and it will cost him everything because they will fire him and exile him. He will lose everything. I'm tempted o to tell you all to go to hell but I won't. We'll get her back. But right now, I have a young man who is in need of help."

"But Giles," Buffy whined. "How will we get her back?!"

"I think if you sit down and shut up a moment Giles can tell you how once he finishes the other thing he ash to do," a German accented voice said from the doorway. Giles' head snapped around and his face lit up.

"FATHER!" He cried and ran to him.

Everyone stared as the man enveloped Giles in a tight hug and then walked around looking at their plans.

"Won't work," he said softly.

Giles grinned as Darius moved pieces and everyone stared, as the plan was now complete and would be successful.

"Do as the younger man said," the man told them. "Set it up."

"Who are you?" Buffy asked snidely.

"I'm his father," the man said pointing to Giles. "My name is Darius. And I am Ares' Right Hand."

Chapter 2: The Father and the Demon

"Who what now?" Xander asked as Darius ignored the children and focused solely on the box. Nothing the Scoobies had been able to do could hurt whatever was in it and Darius stared at it long and hard. Everyone stared as things began screaming inside it and smoke rose from it. Giles chuckled.

His father was using that one particular gift: The gift of Fire. Darius could not only control and manipulate flames that already existed; he could create them as well. And Giles watched as he stopped after a moment or so.

"Mustn't kill them all," he said. "The mayor has to think he's won."

"How can you tell you didn't?" Xander asked. Giles watched Darius shrug. He looked up as Wesley left his office where he had gone to call his father and tell them the box was gone. He looked miserable as he left the room slowly.

"Giles, could I borrow 20 dollars?" he asked. Giles handed it to him wondering what it was for.

"Oh, the hotel room tonight. I'm not sure what I'll do after tonight but I have to sleep somewhere."

"You can stay with me," Darius said offhandedly. "For as long as you need to. Lords above know the house I bought is certainly big enough."

"Father?" Giles asked. "This isn't a visit?"

"Mmm, no," Darius said. "I left. Tired of things so I left."

"What did the asshole do?" Giles asked. He knew there was only one reason Darius would have left France. He'd left Holy Ground once before to raise Giles himself but they had not left France or even Europe.

"He went through my personal things," Darius answered. "Then told me to choose between he who has never been there when anyone needed his help and Ares who has never failed to answer if I have truly needed him."

"Stupid bastard," Giles muttered. Wesley had the deer in headlights look and Darius chuckled.

"I do not bite, young one," he said. "You have given up all that you had to save someone who was nasty, rude and a real bitch to you. I will give you a new place and time to find out who you are. Now, is there anything you want from your old place?"

"I have nothing," The younger man said. "Everything was the council's bar my sketchbook but that was....destroyed by my supervisors."

"We'll get you new things then," Darius said. "Now, anything else we need to arrange? Rupert, where is Ethan? I sent him here months ago."

"He's been sick," Giles whispered. "I have him at my place but I want him someplace better."

"What?!?!" Buffy demanded at the same time as Darius spoke.

"We can move you as well. You, young lady. What is your name?"

"Dawn," she said.

Darius nodded.

"Ask your mother if you can help me get these two moved in. Not you, child, you are her sister, not her mother. Is the trade set up?"

"They were hedging," Buffy said. "Like they were trying to hide the fact of something but I'm not sure what."

"The fact they no longer have Willow," Angel's voice spoke.

Everyone turned and stared as he came in. Or at least, it looked like him. But then who was that behind him walking with Willow between them and Spike behind.

"Angel," the one who had spoken said. "I'm guessing they don't know?"

"Uh, no, Angelus," Angel said. "I my have neglected to mention we were separate now."

"ANGELUS?!?!" Buffy screamed in shock.

"What?" he asked calmly as he took a seat. "What'd I do?"