Buffy stood frozen on top of the tower. She had somehow managed to reach Dawn, but once she had cut off her bonds, her sister had pushed past her and jumped into the portal. As Giles had predicted, once Dawn's blood had run out, the portal closed and silence came crashing down.
She stood there, numb, until the tower creaked and shifted ominously beneath her. Buffy briefly thought about staying there until the tower fell, taking her to death and peace. But then Giles called out to her and she found herself climbing down. Once on the ground, Giles wrapped his arms around her and murmured, "Buffy, I'm so sorry." Her friends stood a bit further away, their relief and joy at her survival evident.
Buffy hated it, but she was relieved too. It was over, which was all she wanted.
"Giles, we have to get the others to the hospital. Will you do it? I don't want to leave--" her voice broke on the last word, "her."
"Of course. I'll be back as soon as I can."
Xander asked, "Are you sure you don't want anyone to stay with you, Buff? You shouldn't be alone."
Buffy assured them she'd be fine and they left. She made her way over to her sister's body. It lay in a crumpled heap. Spike crouched in the shadows nearby. He looked as if he'd been crying.
"I'm sorry," he said. "I told you I'd keep her safe."
I'm not sorry, Buffy thought, and felt ashamed.
"Spike," she said suddenly. "Keep an eye on them for me. I...just look after them, okay?"
"Yeah, I've been doing a bang-up job of that so far," he replied bitterly.
Buffy looked at her sister's body one last time, and walked away. "Wait! Where are you going?" Spike asked. She didn't answer. She had no idea. But she knew she had never felt so free since she became the Slayer.
TBC