A/N: Any OOC moments are intentional since there wasn't a lot of his childhood and "pre-Maris" background revealed on the show.

1-Lock

He stood at the closed door, feeling completely helpless. His hand poised on the doorknob, he turned it slowly. But he knew that the effort was pointless. It didn't budge. He couldn't continue to be angry, nor could he blame Daphne. If he were in her position, he would lock the door, too.

Damn, how could he have been so stupid, lashing out at her for no reason at all? She was just trying to be the loving, wonderful person she'd always been. And yet he'd done just that, and worse... much worse.

It was just a restaurant, (a very bad restaurant at that; or so he liked to think. However, he'd never be able to find out for himself, for he'd never set foot in it, much less glance at it. The act would prove to be too painful.) But it had an absolutely stellar reputation. And so when he'd finally after months of trying, managed to secure a reservation, he couldn't wait to tell Daphne. "It will be our night." He'd told her, after giving her the news. "And you can order anything on the menu, anything at all. No price is too high."

After thanking him appropriately (with kisses of course!), Daphne had been unable to contain her excitement. "I can't believe this is really happening!" She'd exclaimed, as though he had told her that he was flying her to Italy for a plate of spaghetti. "Don't worry about a thing, Niles, I'll take care of everything." He tried to protest, but her words were so sweet that he didn't dare hurt her feelings. And so against his wishes (for he wanted to be the one who made the preparations), she did just that; took care of every element, even making the effort to Google the directions online and print up scores of maps and detailed instructions on how to find the coveted restaurant on their state-of-the-art computer.

"Here we are, Sweetheart." She announced happily as she handed him the countless sheets of paper. "Now I just need to get dressed."

He smiled, looking her up and down. "You look lovely, Daphne." He replied. It wasn't a lie. In her above-the-knee cotton dress in a pleasing shade of grey, she looked beautiful. But it was clear that she felt otherwise. How wrong she was.

"Don't be silly, Niles. I look dreadful! I just wore this to lunch with me girlfriends! It's hardly appropriate for dinner at a fancy restaurant with the sexiest, handsomest man in the world."

Overcome with love for her, he pulled her into his arms and kissed her passionately. And after many, many kisses, they pulled back, breathless.

"Perhaps… we should leave for the restaurant… soon and continue this when we return." she said, barely able to speak.

He almost melted from the kiss that followed.

"I'll get changed." She said, winking at him as she headed up the staircase. He gave his own appearance a once-over. In his grey suit and burgundy tie, he had to admit that he looked absolutely horrid. Why, the tie wasn't even pure silk!

Without hesitation, he bounded up the staircase only steps behind her and headed for his enormous closet. It was there that he found the perfect ensemble; a navy blazer and khaki pants. A printed (pure silk of course) tie completed the look. When he glanced into the mirror, he had a flash (could it have been a vision?) of another night; a night long ago, when he'd been too afraid to ask Daphne on a date.

He'd stupidly invented a fictitious woman named Phyllis and confessed his even more fictitious love for her to Daphne. The angel that she was, Daphne graciously offered to come over and help him make dinner for his date. Phyllis of course, never arrived (not in the intended way of course), but Niles would never forget the fun that he and Daphne had in the kitchen chopping vegetables. And in the end, they'd had their romantic dinner. He never imagined that she'd look so beautiful under the flickering candlelight, but as he stared at her from across the table, an aria playing in the background, he knew that it was the best night of his life.

However, it wasn't the dinner, or the fun they had that he'd remember the most. It was the look on Daphne's face when he'd gone upstairs to change into his blue blazer and khaki pants. "Oh… Don't you look handsome?" she'd said. He'd never forget those words as long as he lived. She'd said them many times after that night of course, but that night was a turning point in their relationship; albeit a small one.

Never did he dream that just a few years later he'd be married to the woman he loved so deeply.

"I'll be ready in a few minutes, Darling and then we can go!"

Her words broke into his thoughts bringing new ones. He couldn't wait to see what she'd chosen to wear. He glanced into the mirror once more and adjusted his tie. It might have been considered snobbish, but he had to admit that he looked good; really good.

"Okay, I'm ready."

He looked up and the sight made him breathless. The coat hanger for his navy blazer fell to the floor with a thud and bounced against the wall. But he made no effort to pick it up. He couldn't take his eyes off of the vision before him. "Daphne…"

"Do I look all right?"

"No." He said looking her up and down. When her smile disappeared, he gasped. "No, I-I mean yes. Yes… I mean…"

She looked as though she might cry. "Well, which is it?"

"You're absolutely breathtaking."

Her smile returned and her cheeks flushed as she smoothed the sides of her sleeveless coral chiffon dress. The bodice was pleated and draped and the skirt flowed graciously down to her knees. He'd never seen anything more beautiful. "Niles…"

"No, really Daphne. You're stunning."

She kissed him softly. "And you are incredibly gorgeous, my darling. Shall we go?"

He offered her his arm and together they made their way to the car en route to the restaurant. But that's where things began to crumble.

Daphne insisted on driving; a fact that made him uneasy. He loved her unconditionally of course but when it came to his priceless Mercedes, he felt uncomfortable in the passenger seat. Although she was a good driver and he trusted her with his life, he didn't count on her terrible sense of direction. Despite the detailed sheets of printer paper in his hands that he absently shuffled through she made a right turn when she should have made a left. Oh why hadn't he spent the extra money and bought the car with the on-board navigation system? He made a silent vow to trade it in as soon as possible for model with better features; even if the cost was sky high. It would have saved him from this disaster of a trip.

"Daphne, what are you doing? We're heading away from Seattle!" Niles shirked, trying to stay as calm as possible. But it only got worse from there. He watched helplessly as they traveled in circles down I-5, heading in the opposite direction.

"No we're not!" She replied. "The directions said-."

"I DON'T CARE WHAT THE DIRECTIONS SAID, DAPHNE! CAN'T YOU READ THE SIGN? IT SAYS PORTLAND, FOR GOD'S SAKE!"

She put her hand over her ear, keeping one hand on the wheel, but just barely. "Stop screaming at me, Niles! I'm not deaf! I can't concentrate!"

"I'm not yelling, I'm- Watch the road!"

"Yes you are! Stop screaming! You're making it very hard for me to drive!"

"You call this driving? You're going to kill someone! And get us killed in the process!"

"Niles, stop it!"

He forced himself to calm down, but it wasn't easy at all. And the result was moderate.

"Okay, fine. Just… get off of at the next exit and we'll turn around, okay? We've got to find this place! The reservation is in twenty minutes!"

"I can't, Niles! There are too many bloody cars and they're all going too fast!"

"It's not that hard, Daphne! Put your turn signal on and when you see an opening, go!"

"No one is letting me over! I can't see, Niles! It's too dark!"

Finally he saw a clearing wide enough to accommodate ten SUV's. "Go, Daphne go! You're going to miss your-."

She swerved into the lane but when they narrowly missed hitting an eighteen wheeler, she veered back into the original lane, almost hitting another car in the process.

Horns were blaring, drivers were gesturing (rudely) and Niles' patience was wearing thin.

"What's the matter?" She asked, angering him even further. She had no idea what she'd done, or the mess she could have created in the middle of the freeway. A few minutes later she managed to make it to the next exit. Niles should have been relived but when she turned in the wrong direction (again), a shouting match ensued unlike none they'd ever had before.

The screaming and yelling continued, escalating until they were no longer arguing about the topic at hand, but about things that had nothing to with the missed reservation at the esteemed restaurant. In his anger, Niles had torn into Daphne about anything and everything, even criticizing her driving, comparing it to when he'd tried to teach her to play the piano.

By the time Daphne successfully pulled the car into the Montana parking garage (hours later), she was sobbing uncontrollably.

And still, Niles went on, his rage controlling his hurtful, piercing words. The reservation was lost, his chance at showing his wife a romantic evening ruined. It could be months before he would be able to get another reservation, and even then it would be a gamble. Once he gave them his name, they were sure to be annoyed. After all, the restaurant didn't think highly of those who took reservations for granted.

They entered their apartment and Daphne refused to look at him. She flung off her new shoes, watching them bang against the wall (which would surely leave a mark and require extensive repair) and then ran up the stairs.

From his place by the fainting couch, he could hear the master bedroom door slam. As it rattled the pictures on the walls and the shelves of priceless antiques, he was livid, wanting to scream at her even more. But suddenly he was drained.

He slumped into his plush chair, the one that he and Daphne had snuggled in after she'd agreed to become his wife. And it was that memory that reduced him to tears; lots of them.

He cried until he was spent, and then he cried even more. When he was certain that there were no more tears left (or so he hoped), he bounded up the stairs and headed for the master bedroom.

Now he stood, trying the door again and again. But of course she would not answer. "D-Daphne?" He said hoarsely.

Silence ensued.

Knowing the risk that he was taking, he went to the hall closet and grabbed the step stool, placing it in front of the door. Over the door frame lay a small key, used only for emergencies. He grasped the tiny key into his hand and carefully inserted it the lock, turning it slowly. The click told him that he'd achieved success.

Even more quietly, he returned the key to the door frame and the step stool to the closet. And then he opened the door just a crack.

"Daphne, sweetheart, I'm very sorry. So very sorry. I-." he stopped short, his eyes moving around the room.

Something was amiss.

He stepped further into the huge room. "Daphne? Where are-."

His heart warmed at the sight of her, lying on the bed. Still wearing her stunning chiffon dress, her head rested on her plush pillow. And when he moved closer he saw that she was sound asleep.

He smiled and kissed her cheek, pulling the comforter over her body. She snuggled deep within it, turning onto her side, a contented sigh from her sweet lips. She was dreaming, and he guessed that she wasn't dreaming about him, but about something pleasant. At that moment he vowed to do whatever he had to make it up to her. He'd tarnished their loving relationship, a relationship that had taken more than six years to build the foundation for and even more to get to this point. He wanted to apologize until he had no more words left, and then find new ones to continue his plea. But he didn't dare wake her. He couldn't.

He loosened his tie and unbuttoned his blue dress shirt mid-way, pulling it from his pants. And then after turning off the lights, he draped his blue blazer over the chair and climbed into bed with her.

As though sensing his presence, she snuggled against him, an act that brought tears to his eyes. He didn't deserve this. He didn't deserve the love that only an angel could give. And yet he wanted it more than life. He wrapped his arms around her, content to have her silky hair in his face. After taking a whiff of her perfume and shampoo, he whispered into her hair; "Daphne I'm so sorry for the things I said, the way I yelled at you, for hurting you so deeply. I love you so much and I'll do everything possible to…" his voice broke and he began to cry quietly, his chin resting on her shoulder. "I love you so much."

"I love you too, Niles. I'll always love you." She said sleepily.

The words made him feel as though he could fly and he kissed her cheek, drawing her even closer. He'd apologize again in the morning, but tonight this was enough.

~TBC~

Forty nine more chapters will follow. Please leave reviews as they are very much appreciated. Thank you for reading.