darker_london | The beginning (Deirdre, Giles) (Reply)

Deirdre had left Spectre with his family and returned home to hers, sending Juliette away the second she arrived. She was so relieved to see her twins after being separated for two days, and she lavished them with attention and affection before putting them down for the night.

When the twins were asleep, Deirdre stole down to the kitchen for a late night mug of tea. When she wandered back past the front door, there was a knock at it and she stared at it for a moment before realising she should really answer it.

Even if she was in her underwear. That was pretty par for the course for Deirdre.

"Hell...Giles, hi!" Deirdre smiled at her friend, glad that her talk with Spectre had stayed her wrath for the time being. She liked it when Giles came by. An unintended consequence of Deirdre getting pregnant with Giles, is that now she felt emotionally linked to him even if she hadn't meant to in the beginning.

"Deirdre," Giles gave her a small smile and then he stepped inside her house. "You're looking scandalous," he grinned. "Actually, you're looking pretty normal."

"I was gonna say," Deirdre laughed. "You want something from the kitchen?"

"You sound like you're running a cafe."

"Sometimes I feel like I am," Deirdre pointed into the kitchen which had a breakfast nook and kind of did look like a very small and homey cafe filled with contraptions for making the most yummy of foods. "What did you want?"

"Nothing...just to talk to you actually."

"Oh dear." That didn't sound particularly good, but then again, Giles didn't look like he was going to tell her anything bad. And then he said something she rather thought he should look upset for.

"I told my girlfriend about us and she left me." Giles heaved a sigh and then he reached out for Deirdre's hand. "Deirdre, I think I did that with you in LA because deep down I know you're the one I'm supposed to be with."

Deirdre wasn't so sure she believed Giles, but it didn't take much for a demon to read someone's intentions. And she did just that, and found his intentions to be pure, even if his story wasn't quite as pure. Deirdre could tell he hadn't told his girlfriend about their liaison in LA to be honest with her, he had brought it up while he was talking of other things. She didn't know what those other things were, nor did she want to. What she did know, was that Giles wasn't lying about being left by his girlfriend, nor was he lying about feeling like he should be with Deirdre. And while a rational Deirdre might have realised he was in mourning from losing someone he loved; therefore he was attributing a mistake he had made to something deeper to make his loss less senseless, Deirdre was not all that rational in the aftermath of Spectre's disappearance and Quinn's coma. She simply accepted that he believed it, and she believed it too.

"You...want to be with me?" Deirdre asked, breathless.

"I do," Giles nodded. "It just makes sense, doesn't it?! Deirdre...you're the mother of my children, and I should be around more anyway. My relationship kept me away, but I don't want to be away. I really don't. Deirdre, I want to be in a relationship that means something. But I want to do it right, because it has to mean something to you too, and I know you lost...so much. So. In that vein, would you like to go on a date tomorrow night? No pressure. Just two people sending time together?"

Deirdre considered that. A date with Giles. An actual date. Deirdre hadn't had any real romantic inclinations for anyone since losing Kait in September. She had slept with several people, including Milla and Jinx, but it had all been for fun or friendship and nothing deeper than that. And now someone, not just anyone but the father of her children, was asking her to try romance again. Was she really ready for that?

Thomas had said it about his newly regained life. Jump in with both feet and don't look back.

"Okay," Deirdre said, a smile slowly growing on her face. "But I don't want to go out. I want to stay in." Giles looked shocked and Deirdre realised she should explain that. "I want to stay here. With the twins. We can spend time with them and eat take away and when they go to bed we can watch a movie or talk...anything. We went out in LA, even if it wasn't supposed to be a date. And I had a fantastic time until we fucked in the restroom. I don't need the dating experience. I need to know how you are around my...our kids. Because if you can't be around them, this..." Deirdre pointed back and forth between them, "this would be pointless."

Giles didn't look worried, in fact he looked thrilled. "Deirdre...that sounds even better. I'll be here at 6?"

"You'd better be," Deirdre grinned. Her heart rate sped up and she felt the long-forgotten butterflies come to life in her belly. She felt nervous and excited and as she watched Giles walk away back to his car, she felt something else.

Hope.