Title:  Life Support
Author: lostgirlslair
Fandom: Buffy The Vampire Slayer
Pairing:  Giles/Xander
Rating: R/FRM
Summary: PWP!
Feedback and Concrit adored: lostgirlslair AT yahoo DOT com

Disclaimer: All things BtVS and AtS belong to Joss Whedon and various corporate entities.  I am neither.

Big, huge thanks to mireille719, for the fabulous beta magic!  This was written for soft_princess, to a prompt left over from the AU round of maleslashminis.  I promised her a story, it's . . . pretty late, but it's here now!  *G*  I hope you like it, sweetie!

----------

Giles sat in his small cabin, his foot tapping against the bed as he tried to read.  He'd already been over the same sentence three times, and still he had no idea what he'd just read.  Finally, he dropped the book on the bed and sat up, scrubbing his hands over his face.

The ship seemed quiet.  Well, no, his crew seemed quiet: no voices in the corridor outside, no footsteps.  The ship was never really quiet.  Giles laid his hand against the wall and closed his eyes, feeling the rattle of the engines and the hum of the life support systems.  The sounds, more vibration than anything else, brought a small smile to his lips.  The ship hadn't run so smoothly in an age, and Xander was the reason it did so now.

That thought brought him to another: it was time he headed to the engine room.  And even if it wasn't time, he couldn't wait any longer.  Xander had pulled him aside after dinner and whispered that Giles should meet him, when everyone else had gone to sleep.

There were a few possibilities as to why they were meeting in the engine room, of all places.  Giles was anxious to find out which of them was true, though he rather thought he already knew.  Xander had been nervous, hadn't met his eyes, and Giles thought the young man had finally decided to end their . . . He wasn't even sure what to call it.  He hadn't ever planned for it to happen in the first place, but they'd both been up late one night, the others all tucked into bed.  They'd been arguing, he remembered, over whether or not Xander actually needed some part or another.  It was an argument they'd had at least a dozen times before.

"You've got to be kidding!"  Xander bit his bottom lip, and Giles couldn't pull his eyes away.  He knew he shouldn't be thinking about it, but he had the urge to lean in and lick--He pulled his eyes up to meet Xander's frustrated gaze.

"Wait for the next system.  You'll get a better price, and you'll know for certain the part didn't get yanked out of a ship that still needed it."

Xander gaped at him, but his eyes revealed his smile.  "You're worried about where the part came from?"

"There are a lot of raiders in this system, and many don't particularly care whether the ship's crew is willing to sell or not."

Xander's eyebrows rose, his lips twitching in a small smile that pulled at things inside Giles' gut.

Shaking his head, Giles pushed the thoughts aside, all too aware of what might happen in the next few minutes.  He finished dressing but left his boots where they lay.  He didn't want to wake anyone, and you could hear the sound of booted footsteps in any of the cabins.

He ducked his head out to make sure he was the only one up and about.  All the cabin doors were closed, but that didn't mean much.  Willow could be up late, working on the best route to the Juno docks--she'd been worrying about it the last few days--and Buffy did sometimes get restless, wondering through the corridors at night to make sure everyone was safe.

Things looked quiet, so he padded down the corridor, checking to make sure no one was in the hold.  Not that anybody normally would have been, but Giles found himself taking whatever opportunities presented themselves in order to delay just a little longer.  Strange, since he couldn't seem to sit still when he'd been in his cabin.  He couldn't help but think about all that had come before, while wondering if it . . . if this thing between Xander and he was about to end.

It had come as quite a surprise to Giles, really.  One moment, Xander was looking at him with that smile and the next . . . The next found Xander's tongue brushing against his, the warm slide of a hand against his side, another hand curling around his neck.  The hot press of Xander's body sent them a foot back to collide with the wall.  They hadn't even paused.

Giles’ hands came up, one tangling in Xander's hair while the other rubbed along Xander's jaw line, the feel of stubble beneath his palm sending jolts straight to his cock.

When Xander pulled away--because Giles could have suffocated that way and died a happy man--he'd grinned, the kind of goofy grin that only people of Xander's disposition could manage.

"I knew you weren't as tightly wound as you act," Xander had said, the last of it muffled when Xander started nipping at the corner of Giles' mouth.  "Of course," he said, pausing, his lips still against Giles' skin, "I don't think anyone's as tightly wound as you act."

Shaking his head at himself, Giles stiffened his spine and headed for the engine room.  One way or another, he needed to get this over with.  It wasn't as if he hadn't had a life before Xander came on board, but now the thought of him leaving--and he would, wouldn't he, if he'd come to his senses?--made Giles' stomach tight.

He took a deep breath as he reached the door, another as he stepped inside, eyes scanning the room to find Xander . . . apparently sound asleep sitting against the engine casing.  How anyone could sleep through the vibrations Giles couldn't imagine, but the sight made him smile.  He knelt down, reaching out to lay his hand on Xander's shoulder.

Xander's eyes popped open before Giles had even touched him.

"You're late," Xander said, stretching and giving Giles that grin.

"I wanted to make sure everyone else was asleep," Giles said, something inside him relaxing as Xander took his hand and laced their fingers together.

"Well, you succeeded."  Xander tugged on his hand, pulling Giles down until their faces were no more than inches apart.  "I thought we should celebrate."

"Celebrate?"  Giles had no idea what Xander was talking about, but that was hardly unusual.  With Xander's mouth so close, Giles found it difficult to concentrate on the words coming out of it, a fact which Xander enjoyed exploiting.

"Yeah," Xander drawled, and Giles couldn't draw his eyes away from Xander's lips as they moved.  Xander's tongue flicked out, licking along his full bottom lip, and Giles sucked in a silent breath.

"Right," Giles said, though Xander hadn't actually clarified.  Just then, it really didn't matter.  "Celebrate."  Xander's mouth tilted in a grin, and he dove forward.

His mouth was warm and perfect.  His teeth scraped over Giles' lips, the fingers of one hand working beneath Giles' shirt while the others dug into his shoulder.  Giles groaned, pulling Xander up onto his knees, pulling them closer to one another.  Xander broke from their kiss, moaning as their bodies came into contact.  He arched his back, pushing his hips hard against Giles'. 

Leaning in, Giles bit along his jaw line, his hands sliding down to squeeze Xander's arse.  Xander groaned, tilting his head back to expose more of his throat to Giles' nipping bites.  Xander's hands slid between them, tugging on the fabric of Giles' shirt.

Some part of Giles' mind said they shouldn't be doing this.  They were in the engine room, where anyone could walk in.  True, it wasn't likely, this late into the night.  Giles held on to that last thought, it was all that kept him from stopping.  And then Xander was kissing him again, and Giles didn't have a single thought to worry about holding onto.

Xander stood, pulling Giles to his feet as well, and they were kissing again, Xander pushing him back.  Giles felt the casing of the ship’s engine behind him and Xander pressed up tight against him.  The engine's hum vibrated through his body as Xander's mouth worked down his throat, as Xander's tongue flicked out, darting along his skin in tickling licks.

Xander's hands were busy between their bodies, unbuttoning Giles' shirt and pushing it off his shoulders, down his arms.  Giles tried to stifle a groan, his fingers coming up to thread through Xander's hair.  His grip tightened as Xander's teeth scraped over his collarbone and lower.  His lips closed briefly over Giles' nipple, and Giles' other hand darted up to Xander's shoulder, squeezing tight.

Xander chuckled against Giles' sternum, nipping at any skin he could reach as he slid to his knees.  He circled Giles' navel with his tongue, and Giles sucked in a breath, sliding his fingers up into Xander's hair.  Xander grinned at him, his smile wicked, and Giles bit the inside of his cheek, trying to keep some vague semblance of control.

A moment later, he wasn't certain why he even bothered to try.  Xander opened Giles' fly without a fuss, and then Xander's lips closed over the head of his cock and Giles arched against the engine, feeling its vibration in every bone of his body, though it was a pale, pale sensation next to the ones Xander caused.

Xander's lips slipped down the length of him, and Giles pushed the fingers of one hand deep into Xander's dark hair.  His other hand gripped Xander's shoulder and was probably the only reason Giles hadn't sunk to his knees yet.

Xander's tongue pressed and rubbed and teased, and Giles had trouble remembering that he had to be quiet, that he didn't want to wake the whole ship.  He couldn't take his eyes off Xander, couldn't stop the low moan that pushed its way from his throat.

Xander's eyes flicked up to him, Xander's teeth scraping lightly along his cock.  Giles bit his lower lip to cut off a groan, his hips pushing against Xander's hands.

"Dear God, you look--" Before he could finish, Xander took him deeper, pressing his nose to the crisp hair at the base of Giles' cock.  Giles knew the noises he was making were too loud, but he couldn't stop himself.  His head banged against the engine casing, but he barely noticed.  His fingers tightened in Xander's hair, his muscles strained so tightly that his body was rigid.

Xander swallowed around his cock, and Giles only barely managed to stifle his groan as orgasm rushed through him, sparking along his nerves, making his skin prickle.  His knees went weak, and it turned out that Xander actually was the only thing holding him up.  Xander pulled away a little, and Giles slid down the casing of the engine until he was sitting next to Xander on the floor.  Xander's grin spread practically from one ear to the other, and Giles couldn't help but laugh softly at the sight.

"What are we celebrating?" Giles finally asked, though the way he brushed his fingers down Xander's sweat-damp chest may have made it harder for Xander to answer.  Xander arched into the touch and let out a soft, whimpering sort of sound when Giles tweaked his nipple.  "I'm sorry?" Giles said, grinning as his fingers slipped lower, drawing teasing circles along Xander's skin.  "I didn't quite understand that."

Xander's eyes focused, and he seemed to be trying to answer.  Giles could see it in his face.  Of course, whatever he'd been meaning to say, it disappeared as Giles' fingers slipped lower, brushing through crisp hair and then up along the hard length of Xander's cock.

"What was that?" Giles asked again, though this time his lips were pressed to Xander's ear, his fingers tracing circles on the inside of Xander's thigh.  Xander opened his mouth, but the only sound was the heavy panting of his breath.  He swallowed, licking his lips as he tried to find words.

Giles slipped his fingers inside Xander's trousers and pants, wrapping his hand around Xander's cock, stroking far too gently.  Xander made another small sound in the back of his throat, his hips arching forward to get more friction.  Giles kept his grip light, and Xander squirmed against him.

"What was the question?" Xander blinked at him, and Giles grinned.

"What are we celebrating?"  Giles whispered the words against Xander's mouth and then kissed his way along Xander's jaw and throat.

"Oh," Xander said, his hips still pushing forward with every heartbeat; his breath gusting against Giles' ear.  "We, uh, we've been doing this for a while and neither of us is dead yet?  Seemed--" Xander didn't get any more words out; Giles' hand tightened around his cock and Xander bit back a groan instead.  He didn't seem able to speak at all as Giles stroked faster, harder, nipping at Xander's collarbone and neck and ear.

One of Xander's hands closed around Giles' bicep, the other pressed so hard against the floor that his arm shook.  His eyes closed, his head laid back against the engine casing, his body moving with each stroke.  Giles couldn't quit staring.

"Good celebration," Giles commented against Xander's cheek, chuckling as Xander gave a low groan and came, thrusting up hard into his hand.

They collapsed against one another, Xander's lips pressing a soft kiss to Giles' shoulder.  Xander's soft "Mmmhmm," was nearly lost under the engine's vibrations.

They sat there, quiet.  Giles knew they needed to get dressed, needed to go to one of their cabins, before they were caught in their post-coital lounging.  He started to say that very thing, but Xander spoke first.

"It's been a year."

Giles blinked, unsure exactly what Xander meant.  "I'm sorry?"

"Since I came on board."  He shrugged, as if it weren't all that important, but the timbre of his voice belied the action.

"Has it been that long?"  Now that he thought about it, Giles knew that it had, it just hadn't occurred to him, before.  One sometimes lost track of time, when the sky outside the windows was so often black.

"I like it here," Xander said.  Giles heard more, though, heard a hundred questions unasked and unanswered.  For a heartbeat, he wasn't sure what to say.

"The ship's never run better."  Giles squeezed Xander's hand.

"Good."  Xander turned his head, shooting Giles a grin.  "I'd hate to think some other mechanic could do it all just as well."

"Not a chance," Giles replied with a grin.  "We should go back to my cabin and . . . discuss ways to make the ship run even more smoothly."

"Discuss, huh?"  Xander's eyes were bright with the laughter he was so clearly suppressing.

Giles have a shrug, grinning.  "Well, I do plan for lips to be involved."

--------------

Request :
The pairing you want: Giles/Xander
The setting/scenario you want: Giles is the captain of a spaceship and
Xander is his mechanic -- Xander seduces Giles in the engine room. Can
be established relationship, but no one else on the ship knows about
them.
Two things you don't want: Plot, life or death situation.
Preferred maximum rating: FRAO