Continued from Leaving.
We sat in silence. There was nowhere for us to go. We had no car and Giles couldn't walk. His leg had a break somewhere around the knee and Willow had taken to making him feel more comfortable. He drifted between sleep and consciousness, though each time I thought he was awake, he would look at me, apologize and then drift back into the darkness around him. I stood guard, waiting for more demons to just appear out of nowhere and attack us. Isn't that what the others had done? There had been no warning and it was rather odd that they had all banded together. In my experience, demons didn't fight with other types of demons. Seclusion of the species was sort of their 'thing' but since the attack, I was starting to have second thoughts about that myth.
"We have to get him to the hospital." Xander knelt beside Giles. His hands shook and I knew that Xander was scared. Giles had to make it. There was no choice about it. I couldn't lose anyone else. It was ironic that we were the only ones left; the original four. It always seemed to be the end of the world. This time, I had stopped that from happening, but yet the fate of the slayer left me hurt and almost helpless once again. Would the pain ever stop, or would there be more just waiting for us to walk right into the trap?
"Willow, is there anything you can do? Is there a spell or something… anything?" I stared at her, watching her eyes scan him.
"I could try and heal the wound until we get help, but I would need supplies and I don't think we can salvage anything from the wreck." She stood up and looked out at the road. We hadn't seen a car coming since the gas station, and, right now, it was crucial that we get to a hospital. "I can try to summon help. Maybe if I concentrate, a car will drive by." Willow stood in the middle and bowed her head. The air stilled for a moment. So far, this was the best plan, though we had no idea how far the next car would be. If we didn't hurry, Giles could die.
I sat by the nearest tree and closed my eyes. I could feel my heart pumping in my chest. My blood was hot, despite the chill of the wind. Soon, Xander sat down next to me. "You need some rest, Buffy. I can keep watch."
I looked at him but was ultimately too tired to argue. So much had happened in the last two days. Rest was something I just hadn't had time to do. Now, it seemed, would be the best time for it.
"Buffy, wake up." Xander shook me and I jolted awake. Instantly I was on my feet and ready for the fight, except there wasn't going to be a fight. Xander pointed to the headlights coming down the road. For the first time in what seemed like forever, I smiled.
"We have to make them stop."
Willow was already on the side of the road, flagging them down. Slowly, they came to a stop in front of us. We were lucky enough to get an elderly couple in minivan. There was enough room for all of us. They turned the van around and began speeding toward the next town. It took about two hours, but before long we were at the hospital, waiting.
"How long have we been here?" Xander paced the room, clearly worried but also visibly tired.
"Xander, maybe you should rest? We will wake you up if we hear anything." I made him sit in one of the bigger chairs, meant for people who would be waiting for a while, and we would be. He agreed and soon he was drooling on the arm.
"What are we going to do now?" Willow sat curled up on the floor by Xander's feet. She looked up at me, waiting for me to say something important. I had nothing, though. I had no advice to give her and I had no idea what we would do now. Everything that I had stood for not five hours before had crumbled down around me. Had we been one second off of any of it, we would all be dead. But something had been out there with us. Whether it was some god that Willow prayed to or an angel watching out for me, it had failed me. Dawn was dead. Anya was dead. Every potential slayer, made strong by Willow's spell, was dead. Faith was dead. Robin was dead. Sunnydale was destroyed. Spike was gone and now Giles was unconscious inside of a strange hospital. We had nothing.
"Are you Buffy?" A doctor walked up to Willow. He was young and held a clipboard. I turned and walked over to them.
"I am." I said.
"My name is Dr. Mallery. I would like to speak with you." He looked around me, studying the shape of our outfits, hair and dirty faces. He noted Xander, asleep in the chair and then turned back to me. "The man that you brought in, is he of relation to you?" I looked at Willow. She watched me. I didn't know if I should lie or not. "Please, it could be useful."
"No. He is a friend of the family, but he has no one else."
Dr. Mallery sighed. "I am technically not supposed to tell you anything, but because we know nothing of this man and you are all he has, I will add an exception."
"Thank you."
"I am going to ask you some questions and I beg that you tell me the whole truth." I nodded. "What is the man's name?"
"Rupert Giles."
"Who are all of you and what is you relation to each other?"
I sat down. "First, can I ask how you knew my name?"
"The man whispered it a few times." He looked at me, waiting for my answer.
"I am Buffy Summers. This is Willow Rosenberg and Alexander Harris. We are all really close friends, including Giles."
"Ok." Dr. Mallery wrote down something on the paper, but returned to the conversation quickly. "Do you always refer to him by his last name?"
"Yes. At one point Giles was out high school librarian."
"What kind of work does he do now?"
"Well," I paused. What was he doing? I couldn't necessarily tell the doctor that he returned here from England to help us battle the first evil and kill a hoard of terekon vampires, while at the same time extinguishing the hellmouth. "He had moved to England a while back, less than a year, though. He had come back a couple months ago."
"Why did he come back?"
"He was just visiting."
The doctor looked up at me. "Visiting there or here in the United States?"
I paused, again trying to come up with a likely answer. "I am unsure. Giles had moved up there for a while, but he had returned for a visit. I don't know what had happened in England and I am unsure if Giles had planned to move back."
Again, Dr. Mallery jotted down notes on the clipboard. "I have one final question for you to answer." I nodded. "What happened to you all?" His brown eyes met mine and he held my gaze with intensity. I sighed and stood up again. He stayed sitting. I faced away from him, only looking at Willow.
"We were heading to Ohio. That is where we are going. I have someone up there that wanted me to move there. Giles was coming along for the trip, although I didn't know if he was going to stay. There were a lot of us. Some just wanted to go for a road trip but us three, and a few more, were going to stay. My sister…" I stopped, trying not to cry. It hurt saying her name. "We were all in a school bus when the bus crashed. We are the only ones that survived."
The doctor was silent for several seconds. I didn't know what to say so I turned to look at him. He was studying all of us with a sad expression. "And your sister died?" I nodded. He thanked us and then walked away. I stood for a few more minutes before crashing into a chair.
"Do you think he will call the police?" Willow asked.
"Probably."
I watched as Dr. Mallery talked to the nurse at the desk. Soon, he was on the phone with someone, probably the police. He turned to look at me before returning to the closed door that Giles had disappeared behind. Before long, though, he returned, walking straight for us. This time, his hands were empty.
"I believe you can see him now." He said.
