Title: none yet
Author: Kate R.
Rating: R
Pairings: None decided yet.
Summary: Too much stress and Giles has a stroke. Too much abuse and he has a heart attack.
Disclaimer: Not mine, they belong to Joss
Untitled Giles Angst
by Kate R
He was tired. He was dead tired. He'd felt like this for some time but had no time to rest. Not that he could rest. Too much depended on him. Too much was needed from him. He was trying now to get Xander's checkbook balanced with the spending his parents demanded n him. He didn't see away around it but one. He called the bank and transferred some of his money to Xander's account to cover the boy. That would alleviate that problem. He sighed as he looked at the list of things they needed him to fix.
He sighed heavily.
One down, 400 to go.
He started on Buffy next. She wanted this and she wanted that. He sighed making decisions and trying his best to find answer to all her troubles. So many things that were life and death to her, so many things he was expected to fix.
Willow was nearly as bad. She wanted things he had no way of giving her. He'd bought them all the best things they wanted for Christmas. He tried to show them love and to be the parent she and Xander did not have. He did his best but it was never enough.
"Giles!" he heard as his front door was banged open. He sighed and looked at his Slayer and her little sister. "I need you to watch Dawn for me. Mom had to go out and I have to go out with my friends. I Need some down time."
"Of course, Buffy," he said wearily. He pointed Dawn to the television as he continued to work after Buffy slammed her way out of his home.
He was working on more things when he became aware of Dawn watching him.
"Yes, Dawn?" he asked. "Something you need me to fix too?"
"Nuh-uh," Dawn said. "Why do you have to fix all this stuff? I mean, it isn't your responsibility."
"It's better for me if I do it, Dawn," he said softly as he worked. He was so tired and he had so much yet to do.
"Can I have some food?" Dawn asked about three and a half hours later.
Giles looked at her and seemed to realize time had passed because he got up and went to work on making Dawn some dinner. He was in the kitchen when Dawn spoke again.
"Uhm, Buffy said she wanted me to tell you she forgot to use protection when she was with Riley the other night so she may be pregnant."
Giles froze hearing that and it was too much. Pain shot up his left side before it went numb. He fell to the floor unable to move and Dawn ran in hearing the crash.
"Giles?" She asked. "GILES!" Dawn was by his side gently lifting his head. He met her gaze fearfully as his vision started to grey out. "Hang on, Giles," she whispered. "Please, hang on."
Dawn scrambled to the phone and called 911. She stayed by Giles' side until he ambulance arrived and she rode to the Hospital with him.
She watched as Giles was wheeled into Emergency and then, she walked to the phone banks numbly. She called her mother first. Telling her where she was and that she thought Giles had had a stroke. Then, she swallowed and called the other person who needed to know.
"Hello?" his voice said on the other end of the phone from where he was in LA."
"Spike?" she asked.
Part 2
Joyce Summers arrived at the hospital to find Dawn sitting by herself in the waiting room. She grabbed her younger daughter in a tight hug and felt Dawn crying.
"B-Buffy s-said to t-t-tell him," Dawn sobbed. "I'm s-sorry, mommy. I didn't know it would cause this."
"What did Buffy say to tell him Dawn?" Joyce asked.
"A-about the not u-using p-protection and s-she m-m-might be p-p-p-pregnant. Giles was getting me s-some dinner and he...he j-just fell and he went all grey and I…I'm s-sorry m-mommy. I'm s-sorry."
"It's not your fault, Dawn," Joyce said gently. "I promise you baby, it's not your fault. You didn't know what it would do and why did Buffy leave you with him?"
"She w-wanted to go to the b-b-Bronze. She said she n-needed d-d-downtime. He was trying to make all the problems on the list they gave him go away. He's tired mom. He was so tired and stressed and this didn't help and he had a stroke. I know he did. He had a stroke."
"Oh baby," Joyce whispered. Dawn cried against her mother's shoulder apologizing for ruining the meeting and Joyce soothed that fear away too.
Telling her younger daughter that the meeting wasn't as important as Giles' health was. Dawn cried for a while longer and then the doctor came out.
"Mr. Giles had a severe stroke," the doctor said. "However, thanks to this young lady being with him we got to him in time to give him drugs that can help if given within an hour. He should make a full recovery but he will need rest after this. He will need a time of no stress and no worries being laid on him. He's sleeping now. He's on oxygen to ease the burden on his body and I do not want him woken for any reason."
"Okay," Dawn whispered. Joyce nodded and sat with Dawn.
A few hours later is seemed Buffy had finally decided to check her messages because she came in and went to see Giles immediately. She slipped into his room bypassing everything else in her determination to get to Giles and make him get up.
She found him lying in a hospital bed with an oxygen tube taped to his mouth and IV's in his arm. She growled. No, she wasn't buying this. Giles was fine. This was just an act. A way to get out of doing his work. "Wake up, Giles," she growled shaking him. "Wake up, now!"
His eyes opened blearily and he had trouble focusing. When he saw Buffy and realized he was in the hospital, his face showed fear.
"What are you playing at?" she asked. "There is nothing wrong with you. Get up!"
He struggled trying to get away from her but he found to his terror, he could not move his left side. He met her eyes and he knew what was coming. He knew it.
The slap rocked his head to the side and he looked back at her slowly. Tears leaked from his eyes as he again tried to get up. His body still would not respond. The second slap left a bruise he knew. He tried to turn his head away but she grabbed him and me him look at her.
"This is your fault, Giles," she said as she shook him. "You know this is your fault. You had to do this, didn't you? You had to get sick. It's your fault. It's all your fault!"
He felt tears sliding down his face as he nodded. He cringed as he felt the rush of air that would precede another slap only this one never landed. Something caught her hand and stopped the strike.
"What the hell do you think you are doing?" Angel's voice growled. He winced as his face registered the pain.
"He better get up," Buffy snapped. 'He'd better get up right now or he's going to regret it later. I'll make him sorry he played like this. I'll make him rue the damn day!"
Giles felt fear shoot through him as he struggled more frantically to move and then he felt a pain in his chest. Cold, constricting pain. He locked eyes with Angel and his fear showed as Angel shoved Buffy away and hit the call button bringing doctors. Angel knew what was happening. Giles was having a heart attack. He stayed in the room holding Buffy by the scruff until Giles was stabilized and sedated so he'd rest and then he dragged Buffy out by her hair and the scruff of her neck. The doctor was telling Joyce about this latest trouble and Joyce watched as Angel shoved Buffy into a wall so hard she bounced off of it. By now the other two idiots had arrived as well and Angel glared them all into silence at the comment about to come from Xander's lips.
"Buffy," Angel growled. "I am telling you right now to stay out of his room. If you go in there again I will have you banned from this hospital."
"By what right?" she asked hotly.
"Parental right," Angel growled as his eyes flashed gold.
"Something I recently discovered about the Watchers is that they sent women into the past to get pregnant by men there since the stock was so much hardier. Anyway, I learned someone slept with me as Liam O'Rourke. Before I was turned. Her name was Elisabeth Giles. She came back here and had a son named Rupert. Rupert grew up and became the man you call Giles. And I swear, Buffy, if you ever, ever cause my son a heart attack or stroke again, I'll attack your heart. I'll rip out and step on it!"
END PART 2