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"Um, if you don't mind, I'm just going--go and watch them manhandle him into a vehicle." The *secret detention facility in Nevada* and *rehabilitation* bit made it very hard for Giles to keep his composure. Yes, Ethan *was* a pain in the arse, but Ethan was *his* property and he didnt' care at all for the thought of someone picking around in Ethan's head. Nor did he care for the idea of Ethan getting Chipped, much as Spike had been.
He stood behind the shield of the sparse shrubbery in the yard, and held out his left hand.
"Key, to me, from your resting place called,
To free my Ethan from his thrall."
Giles passed his right hand--his Power hand--over his empty left palm. The air shimmered.
"Do as I bid, heed my plea,
Little key, appear to me."
The air over Giles' left palm turned smoky gray, and then the smoke coalesced into a small handcuff key.
Ethan heard the muttered couplets, and was silently berating Ripper for using such a simple conjuring spell. The derision stopped as soon as he felt the weak surge of magic, and he turned to lock eyes with his old friend.
Rupert just smiled, and still behind the shield of shrubbery, the handcuff key dangled and spun over Giles' hand.
Then Giles pursed his lips and blew outwards. The key disappeared.
And reappeared in Ethan's left hand. Ethan clenched the key tightly in his fist, concealing it from view, and never broke his eyes from Ripper's. "I'll be seeing you, mate."
Giles just gave a quiet, mysterious smile. "I'm counting on it."
The End
"In spite of my rage, I'm still just a rat in a cage."
--Bullet With Butterfly Wings, Smashing Pumpkins