Title: Outburst
Prompt:Counseling/Therapy
Medium: Fic
Rating: PG 13
Warnings:
Summary:Giles tries to get Buffy to talk to a council therapist to help cope with her stay in a 'hell dimension', and the truth comes out in a very ugly way.
"You wanted to talk with me?" Buffy asked curiously as she stepped into the Magic Box, immediately spotting Giles at the table. Anya and Xander were talking animatedly behind the counter while Willow and Tara hovered near the books, blushing and flirting unashamedly with each other. Part of Buffy thought the couple was cute. The other, more predominant part of her didn't care, and was too busy hurting to find it in her to be happy for them.
"Ah, yes." Giles said, interrupting her thoughts. She took a seat at the table across from him and watched as he nervously cleaned his glasses, "I've been meaning to bring this up for a while, now, actually."
"What, is it another apocalypse?" Buffy asked casually, "You look kinda jumpy."
"No, no, its nothing earth shattering." Giles soothed, placing his glasses back on his face and looking at Buffy with worried eyes, "I've been thinking recently, and I-I've decided that you need to talk to someone."
Buffy looked at her watcher in confusion, her nose crinkling and her eyebrows pushing together slightly. "About what?"
"A-About w-where you were…while you were…" he trailed off, and Buffy felt her heartbeat skyrocket as fear overtook her. How did he find out about Heaven? Oh God, he was going to tell everyone now, wasn't he? He was going to treat her like a child again, and –
"What do you mean?" Buffy managed to ask, a bit too casually. Giles coughed nervously and resisted the urge to fiddle with his glasses.
"Buffy, you spent months in a-a hell dimension." Giles said, not noticing how her stance relaxed, "Th-That isn't something you get over by yourself. I believe that if you were t-to talk with someone then you could finally find peace."
Buffy stared at her watcher for a long time, and it was then she noticed everyone was trying to listen I without making it appear to obvious.
"You mean you want me to, what, go to therapy?" Buffy asked incredulously, "Look, I'm sorry if I'm wrong, but I highly doubt a therapist could understand anything I have to say, even if they live in Sunnydale."
"Th-They don't live in Sunnydale, actually." Giles said, "I-I'm talking about a council therapist. Th-They are aware of the, ah, darker side of life and could be able to help you."
There was silence for a moment. "You think that I'll talk to a counselor when I won't even talk to my friends about it?" Buffy asked, "What are you, stupid?"
"I most certainly am not!" Giles snapped, glaring down at his former charge, "Sometimes, talking to someone can help."
"I am talking to someone. Can I leave now?" Buffy asked impatiently, tapping her foot, "I'm not talking to a stranger. I can't even believe that you would try and ask me about this! Do you even know me at all?"
"I-It sounds like a good idea, Buff." Xander offered softly, "I-I mean, spending months in an untold hell could be hard on anyone – I mean, you remember what Angel was like after he came back."
"A-And who exactly are you talking to?" Willow piped up, "You haven't been to any of us. We worried."
"I'm leaving." Buffy said shortly, standing and grabbing her jacket from the back of the chair. Giles stood up from his chair suddenly, forcing the chair back and sending a horrid scraeching noise through the air.
"I can't let you walk out of that door, Buffy!" Giles said firmly, "You've been through some serious trauma, a-and you need help to get over this! You need to start living again, not this walking around you seem to enjoy so much! I-It isn't healthy, and I can't stand by and watch you do this!"
Then everyone began talking at her, demanding she try and see reason, telling her that she was being immature, and trying to dispel any notions that they thought she was crazy. The cacophony of sounds just got louder and louder until it felt like her head was going to burst. They didn't even notice the training room door open and an anxious Spike walked in, Dawn walking behind him with the vestiges of a happy smile on her face.
"I wasn't in hell!" Buffy screamed, suddenly silencing the room. She stood with her back to everyone, shaking as tears built up in her eyes and clutching her head as if she had a headache.
"Wh-what?" Xander asked in confusion. Tara and Dawn seemed to be the only ones who realized what her statement implied, and Tara just let out a broken whimper and held a hand over her mouth as her lunch rolled around in her stomach,
"Oh, Goddess." Tara whispered.
"Of course you were, Buffy." Willow said condescendingly, "You jumped into a hell portal – its only logical…"
"My body was still there." Buffy said softly, her voice echoing in the still room, "If I had been in a hell dimension, my body would have been gone. I-I was in heaven. A-Anf you – I can't do this."
She headed towards the door and was surprised when a familiar form stepped in front of her, resting his hands gently on her shoulder.
"Hey, pet, calm down." He said softly, his voice soothing in comparison to the shrieks of her friends. She looked up with glassy eyes and saw Spike looking gently down at her, "As much as I hate the wankers, you can't just leave them without explaining yourself."
"Spike, please, take me home." She whispered. Spike paused for a moment, before nodding and placing a gentle arm over her shoulder.
"Oi! Get your hands off of her!" Xander said angrily.
"Shut up!" Buffy snapped, startling everyone again. She glared at her friends with such hatred that, for a moment, they feared for their safety. "You leave Spike alone, Xander. If any one talks to him like, like he's nothing ever again, then I'll be gone, and you'll be left at the hellmouth. Alone. And I will take Dawn with me."
The Scoobies were once again shocked into silence, while Dawn hurried up to her sister and took her free hand gently into hers.
"I'm so sorry, Buffy." Dawn said around the tears. "I would never wish this on you. No matter how much I missed you."
Buffy smiled weakly at her sister, "I didn't know you were in here. I didn't want you to find out like that."
"Spike caught me sneaking around." Dawn admitted with a blush, "He was bringing me here when we heard."
"Spike?" Buffy whispered, looking at the vampire with tired eyes, "Take me home?"
"Whatever you want, pet." Spike agreed, "Whatever you want."
And the trio walked out of the door, leaving Buffy's friends behind them.