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indriSUMMARY: Giles and Ethan, the electric Kool-Aid funky Satan groove year, in the early seventies. Rated M. Spoilers to Band Candy. Acknowledgements and disclaimers.
62.
Rupert really enjoyed the applause. He'd played through a set not too dissimilar to what he played at the hotel restaurant. He'd started off with an audience of just a couple of people, but a crowd had gathered round since then: not just his friends and Diedre's family, but most of the other guests too. Mrs Page kept having to explain to people that he wasn't paid entertainment.
Mrs Page thanked him. Some random guest brought him some beer. Randall bowed.
"It was a pleasure," Rupert said, beaming. He packed away his guitar and started on his beer. It seemed to be the beer part of the evening. Or perhaps they'd run out of wine.
"Of course, that was carefully selected for your audience," said Randall. "I would like to see what you could do when unrestrained."
"Um," said Rupert, because he didn't think he rocked out much harder than that under any circumstances.
"Is Diedre coming back with us, or is she staying over?" Tom wanted to know.
Randall glanced over to where Diedre was saying farewell to departing guests. "She looks tired, so I think she'll be coming with us."
"If she's tired, would she not be better off staying here?" said Tom.
Randall shook his head. "She finds this place tiring. You should get her bag."
"When do we leave?" asked Rupert.
"Half an hour. We'll get a ride to the station."
"I've got a car," said Stan. "I drove."
"That was quick," said Adrienne.
"What was quick?" asked Louise.
"Him buying a car."
Rupert decided to look for Janine. He'd rather hit it off with her that afternoon and she'd stood nearby throughout his impromptu concert. She was talking with Diedre's brother though, so he had to hover for a bit before he caught her eye.
"I was wondering," he said, "if you had a phone number," which came out a little blunter than he'd wanted, but she didn't seem to mind.
"You sing well," she said, as she rummaged in her pocket book for a pen and piece of paper. Rupert liked the fact that she had pen and paper with her at all times. She wrote out her number.
"We don't have a phone," he said, "but of course you must know where I live as I'm in the same house as Diedre, just on the floor above."
"It must be hard starting out as a musician," she said. "You must be very dedicated."
"Yes," he said. "Yes, I suppose I am."
He put the piece of paper in his wallet and waved her goodbye. Then he wondered whether her comment about his dedication was meant as a compliment, or as a warning that he might not be financially stable enough for her to properly consider.
Diedre came up to him then. "Well done," she said. "My mother approves of you. I think that means we're allowed to get married."
Rupert looked at her.
Diedre said, "Randall's looking for Ethan and then we'll be ready to go. You haven't seen him, have you?"
"Not for a while, actually."
He saw Diedre's cousin though, the one who'd gone to school with Ethan: he was just shaking hands in goodbye with Diedre's father. On a sudden impulse, Rupert strode over, catching up with him just before the front gate.
"Hello," said Rupert, extending his hand. "I'm Rupert Giles."
"The singer," said the man, giving a curt nod. "Gerard Gibson."
"Look, I heard that you went to school with Ethan, and I wondered--"
"Stay away from him," said Gerard. "He's evil." And then he headed out the gate without saying another word.
Rupert stood there, astonished, for a moment, but then he heard his name shouted across the lawn. It was Diedre.
"We've found Ethan," she said. "Come quickly."
He was lying near the back door. Louise was bent over him -- remarkable given her condition -- checking his pulse and rolling him onto his side in a businesslike fashion. "I think he's just drunk," she said.
"We've got to go in ten minutes," said Tom. "Are we going to be able to get him on the train?"
"He's not going in my car," said Stan.
"I'll drive him," said Louise, "if I can have two strong blokes to carry him."
"Rupert and I will go with you," said Randall.
Rupert was not entirely happy with this, but said nothing, now that he'd been volunteered. Louise went to bring her car around to the back, so they didn't have to carry Ethan past the remaining guests.
"I'll tell my parents that he's fallen ill," said Diedre. "I'll pass on your thanks for the party."
"Thank you, Dee," Rupert said.
He and Randall sat on the ground next to Ethan. Rupert leant over to check the position of his head and whether he was in danger in swallowing his tongue. He was breathing OK but smelt strongly of something rather stronger than wine or beer. Rupert looked in the nearby bushes and found a bottle of spirits.
He sat back down, giving Ethan a long look. He didn't look evil, just rather ill.
Rupert said, "I spoke to Gerard Gibson tonight."
"Gerard Gibson is an asshole," said Randall, which rather seemed to preclude other conversation.
Louise came back at last and they carried Ethan to her car, which unhelpfully was a mini. She pulled a tarp out of the tiny boot and spread it over the backseat. "He's going to throw up or piss himself at some point," she said. "So, who else wants to sit in the back?"
Randall and Rupert took turns. At intervals, Louise stopped the car so they could haul Ethan out onto the roadside to throw up or relieve himself. He was semiconscious by then but either unable or unwilling to talk. The whole trip took hours longer than it should have. It was one of the most wretched car journeys Rupert had made in his life.
When they got home, at two or three a.m., Louise went to run a bath while Randall and Rupert carried Ethan up the stairs. Once they got him into the bathroom, Randall said, "I can take it from here."
Rupert was very grateful.
Downstairs, he and Louise found Adrienne and Diedre in the kitchen. Adrienne was lighting them cigarettes on the gas ring. "I've made toast and tea," she said.
"Louise, you should stay here tonight," said Diedre. "It's very late already."
"Can she have your room tonight, Ripper?" Adrienne asked him. "You've got the new mattress. You can sleep with me if you like or on the couch in the attic."
"Ah, OK, yes," said Rupert.
"Thanks very much for helping," Diedre said to Louise. "Beyond the call of duty."
"It was your birthday party," said Louise, shrugging. "And I deal with worse every day at work."
"Has he done that before?" asked Rupert.
"Once," said Diedre. "Randall won't tell me why."
"Randall's good to look after him like that," said Louise.
"They've known each other for years," said Diedre. "And Ethan's a good person to know when you're in a tight spot."
Adrienne flicked her ash into a saucer. "I moved out of here once--"
"You don't have to say anything," said Diedre.
"--and my flatmate's boyfriend tried to attack me. I knew the police would be useless, so I came back here. Ethan knows some excellent hexes." She looked at Diedre, "And you all cast them very well."
"Hexes?" Louise asked.
"I'd better go and get my room sorted out for you," Rupert said to Louise.
It didn't take much to get his room into shape, as he wasn't really using it that much, except as a music practice room. He changed the sheets and gave the floor a quick sweep. Then he helped Randall carry Ethan up to Ethan's room.
The lights were off downstairs when he returned. Diedre must have gone back to bed. Adrienne had her lamp on, but was fast asleep when he came in; she stirred only a little as he sat down on the mattress. He took his jeans and shirt off but kept his underwear on because he wasn't really sure where he was with her.
She made the situation rather clearer the next day, when she woke him before helping him off with the rest of his clothes. They had sex a couple of times and Rupert reminded himself that Ethan was a diversion from Adrienne and not the other way around, besides which neither was a proper relationship so it would be quite all right for him to ring Janine in the afternoon. And then he fell asleep again until it was time for him to get ready to go to his Grins rehearsal.
He headed up to his room for clean clothes. Louise was long gone and the used sheets had been folded up neatly and left on the chair.
On the way past, he knocked quietly on Ethan's door. Hearing no reply, he opened it slightly. Ethan was asleep on his side on the mattress and Randall was dozing nearby on a beanbag. Rupert let them sleep.
63.
The long shadows in the room suggested it was late evening. Ethan still wasn't feeling well.
Randall was sitting in one of the shadows. He was in a different set of clothes from when Ethan had last been awake and it looked like he had shaved. He passed Ethan a glass of water and some more painkillers.
"I'd offer to kill him for you," said Randall, "but he's Diedre's blood kin. We could hex him for you though."
"I don't really think that would help," said Ethan, "or I'd have done it myself years ago." And he swallowed the aspirin.
62.
Rupert really enjoyed the applause. He'd played through a set not too dissimilar to what he played at the hotel restaurant. He'd started off with an audience of just a couple of people, but a crowd had gathered round since then: not just his friends and Diedre's family, but most of the other guests too. Mrs Page kept having to explain to people that he wasn't paid entertainment.
Mrs Page thanked him. Some random guest brought him some beer. Randall bowed.
"It was a pleasure," Rupert said, beaming. He packed away his guitar and started on his beer. It seemed to be the beer part of the evening. Or perhaps they'd run out of wine.
"Of course, that was carefully selected for your audience," said Randall. "I would like to see what you could do when unrestrained."
"Um," said Rupert, because he didn't think he rocked out much harder than that under any circumstances.
"Is Diedre coming back with us, or is she staying over?" Tom wanted to know.
Randall glanced over to where Diedre was saying farewell to departing guests. "She looks tired, so I think she'll be coming with us."
"If she's tired, would she not be better off staying here?" said Tom.
Randall shook his head. "She finds this place tiring. You should get her bag."
"When do we leave?" asked Rupert.
"Half an hour. We'll get a ride to the station."
"I've got a car," said Stan. "I drove."
"That was quick," said Adrienne.
"What was quick?" asked Louise.
"Him buying a car."
Rupert decided to look for Janine. He'd rather hit it off with her that afternoon and she'd stood nearby throughout his impromptu concert. She was talking with Diedre's brother though, so he had to hover for a bit before he caught her eye.
"I was wondering," he said, "if you had a phone number," which came out a little blunter than he'd wanted, but she didn't seem to mind.
"You sing well," she said, as she rummaged in her pocket book for a pen and piece of paper. Rupert liked the fact that she had pen and paper with her at all times. She wrote out her number.
"We don't have a phone," he said, "but of course you must know where I live as I'm in the same house as Diedre, just on the floor above."
"It must be hard starting out as a musician," she said. "You must be very dedicated."
"Yes," he said. "Yes, I suppose I am."
He put the piece of paper in his wallet and waved her goodbye. Then he wondered whether her comment about his dedication was meant as a compliment, or as a warning that he might not be financially stable enough for her to properly consider.
Diedre came up to him then. "Well done," she said. "My mother approves of you. I think that means we're allowed to get married."
Rupert looked at her.
Diedre said, "Randall's looking for Ethan and then we'll be ready to go. You haven't seen him, have you?"
"Not for a while, actually."
He saw Diedre's cousin though, the one who'd gone to school with Ethan: he was just shaking hands in goodbye with Diedre's father. On a sudden impulse, Rupert strode over, catching up with him just before the front gate.
"Hello," said Rupert, extending his hand. "I'm Rupert Giles."
"The singer," said the man, giving a curt nod. "Gerard Gibson."
"Look, I heard that you went to school with Ethan, and I wondered--"
"Stay away from him," said Gerard. "He's evil." And then he headed out the gate without saying another word.
Rupert stood there, astonished, for a moment, but then he heard his name shouted across the lawn. It was Diedre.
"We've found Ethan," she said. "Come quickly."
He was lying near the back door. Louise was bent over him -- remarkable given her condition -- checking his pulse and rolling him onto his side in a businesslike fashion. "I think he's just drunk," she said.
"We've got to go in ten minutes," said Tom. "Are we going to be able to get him on the train?"
"He's not going in my car," said Stan.
"I'll drive him," said Louise, "if I can have two strong blokes to carry him."
"Rupert and I will go with you," said Randall.
Rupert was not entirely happy with this, but said nothing, now that he'd been volunteered. Louise went to bring her car around to the back, so they didn't have to carry Ethan past the remaining guests.
"I'll tell my parents that he's fallen ill," said Diedre. "I'll pass on your thanks for the party."
"Thank you, Dee," Rupert said.
He and Randall sat on the ground next to Ethan. Rupert leant over to check the position of his head and whether he was in danger in swallowing his tongue. He was breathing OK but smelt strongly of something rather stronger than wine or beer. Rupert looked in the nearby bushes and found a bottle of spirits.
He sat back down, giving Ethan a long look. He didn't look evil, just rather ill.
Rupert said, "I spoke to Gerard Gibson tonight."
"Gerard Gibson is an asshole," said Randall, which rather seemed to preclude other conversation.
Louise came back at last and they carried Ethan to her car, which unhelpfully was a mini. She pulled a tarp out of the tiny boot and spread it over the backseat. "He's going to throw up or piss himself at some point," she said. "So, who else wants to sit in the back?"
Randall and Rupert took turns. At intervals, Louise stopped the car so they could haul Ethan out onto the roadside to throw up or relieve himself. He was semiconscious by then but either unable or unwilling to talk. The whole trip took hours longer than it should have. It was one of the most wretched car journeys Rupert had made in his life.
When they got home, at two or three a.m., Louise went to run a bath while Randall and Rupert carried Ethan up the stairs. Once they got him into the bathroom, Randall said, "I can take it from here."
Rupert was very grateful.
Downstairs, he and Louise found Adrienne and Diedre in the kitchen. Adrienne was lighting them cigarettes on the gas ring. "I've made toast and tea," she said.
"Louise, you should stay here tonight," said Diedre. "It's very late already."
"Can she have your room tonight, Ripper?" Adrienne asked him. "You've got the new mattress. You can sleep with me if you like or on the couch in the attic."
"Ah, OK, yes," said Rupert.
"Thanks very much for helping," Diedre said to Louise. "Beyond the call of duty."
"It was your birthday party," said Louise, shrugging. "And I deal with worse every day at work."
"Has he done that before?" asked Rupert.
"Once," said Diedre. "Randall won't tell me why."
"Randall's good to look after him like that," said Louise.
"They've known each other for years," said Diedre. "And Ethan's a good person to know when you're in a tight spot."
Adrienne flicked her ash into a saucer. "I moved out of here once--"
"You don't have to say anything," said Diedre.
"--and my flatmate's boyfriend tried to attack me. I knew the police would be useless, so I came back here. Ethan knows some excellent hexes." She looked at Diedre, "And you all cast them very well."
"Hexes?" Louise asked.
"I'd better go and get my room sorted out for you," Rupert said to Louise.
It didn't take much to get his room into shape, as he wasn't really using it that much, except as a music practice room. He changed the sheets and gave the floor a quick sweep. Then he helped Randall carry Ethan up to Ethan's room.
The lights were off downstairs when he returned. Diedre must have gone back to bed. Adrienne had her lamp on, but was fast asleep when he came in; she stirred only a little as he sat down on the mattress. He took his jeans and shirt off but kept his underwear on because he wasn't really sure where he was with her.
She made the situation rather clearer the next day, when she woke him before helping him off with the rest of his clothes. They had sex a couple of times and Rupert reminded himself that Ethan was a diversion from Adrienne and not the other way around, besides which neither was a proper relationship so it would be quite all right for him to ring Janine in the afternoon. And then he fell asleep again until it was time for him to get ready to go to his Grins rehearsal.
He headed up to his room for clean clothes. Louise was long gone and the used sheets had been folded up neatly and left on the chair.
On the way past, he knocked quietly on Ethan's door. Hearing no reply, he opened it slightly. Ethan was asleep on his side on the mattress and Randall was dozing nearby on a beanbag. Rupert let them sleep.
63.
The long shadows in the room suggested it was late evening. Ethan still wasn't feeling well.
Randall was sitting in one of the shadows. He was in a different set of clothes from when Ethan had last been awake and it looked like he had shaved. He passed Ethan a glass of water and some more painkillers.
"I'd offer to kill him for you," said Randall, "but he's Diedre's blood kin. We could hex him for you though."
"I don't really think that would help," said Ethan, "or I'd have done it myself years ago." And he swallowed the aspirin.
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Date: 2011-09-06 01:32 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2011-09-06 08:20 pm (UTC)It's been a while since I've read BtVS and even longer since I've read your fic and I wanted you to know I'm really enjoying it. Giles is one of my favorite Buffy characters and I'm finding this history, and the way he's veering between callous disregard of those around him and caring too damn much about the world at large is fascinating. I also love how terrible he is at suppressing his education and intellectual curiosity. I feel this is rather shallow feedback but I saw that you aren't getting a lot of comments and figured it would be better to say something, especially since this story is easily the best thing I've read in recent memory. I keep on thinking I want to pick up that book about magic in 1970s England again and then realizing it's on the computer and the published fiction I'm reading at the moment just isn't as well-written or interesting.
"Halfway There" completely got and kept my attention as well and has led me to contemplate a S7 rewatch, something I've never done since the original airdates, even though I own the DVDs. I had some... issues with it at the time.
I'm definitely going to keep reading, and even if I don't manage to comment regularly, please know that I am very appreciative. Thank you!
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Date: 2011-09-14 01:51 pm (UTC)I have many issues with S7, which is why I wanted to write Halfway There. Well, that and I was stressed out from work myself...
no subject
Date: 2011-09-07 12:58 am (UTC)