Author's Note: Sorry about how long this chapter is. But I tried slicing it up, and it just didn't work. For all you who are worried that I'm straying into the realm of cliche, just be assured that I'm trying to give it a new twist. I thought a long time about whether to cut it out, and I think it actually does a pretty good job of revealing things.
And if you're wondering why the First isn't acting more First-y, it's really, really hard figuring out who technically counts as "dead" or "alive" in the Doctor's life. I mean, not just the fact that the timeline's changed, so some of the people the Doctor's killed or seen die never died at all, but there's also the issue of what counts as alive or dead - Rose says she's dead, even though she's not, and then there are a whole bunch of Time Lords who never technically existed in the first place - and then there's the fact that with time travel, some of the people who were dead are actually still alive, and vice versa. For instance, some of the Doctor's companions from the past are long since dead, even though he could just pop back and visit them. Whereas the Doctor was around when Lynda with a Y died, and she hasn't even been born yet! So I decided, screw it! With the Doctor, I'm just going to have him be all Toby-ish instead.
Buffy ran over to the Doctor, leaning across him to check his pulse. It was still there, that same double pulse that she'd felt before, thinner and threadier, but still present. She was about to pull away, to try to patch up the puncture wounds across his body, but the Doctor grabbed her by the wrists, and placed her hands on either side of his chest. She could feel the beating of each heart beneath her palms. And suddenly, Buffy realized what he wanted her to do. She realized why he had called her Buffy.
There was a terrible thud in Buffy's heart, a sort of gnawing disappointment, that extra little something that said, See? This is why you don't get close to people. Because every time you get attached to someone, they wind up dying. And of course this would happen. Of course she would have to kill him. This was what Buffy did.
In the end, she wasn't Elizabeth. She was just the Slayer.
Buffy took her hands away, feeling dead inside. "You're becoming a vampire," she said, flatly.
"Not… that simple," gasped the Doctor. "Revenge. Toby, I… destroyed his body…, so he's decided… to take mine."
"Great," said Buffy. "So, you're not becoming a vampire. You're becoming the Devil Incarnate." She didn't even want to feel any emotions right now. She just kept asking herself why she'd thought this would be any different.
A cool hand took hers, gently, as if trying to lend her some comfort. She met the Doctor's worried eyes. He was dying, being turned evil from the inside out and asking her to kill him, and he was still worried about her. That didn't help. It didn't help at all.
"B-B-Buffy?" asked the Doctor.
Buffy snapped.
She jerked her hand away, got to her feet, and stomped backwards. "Stop calling me that!" she shouted.
The Doctor tried to reply to this, but instead fell into a coughing fit. The sight just made Buffy even angrier.
"You think you can just do that to people?" she demanded. "You think you can just show up in someone's life, tell her that she can be better than she is, that she doesn't have to kill stuff to survive, and then ask her to slit your throat? Because you can't. You can't just give me hope like that and then snatch it away. It's cruel. It's heartless!"
Buffy would have gone on, but the Doctor gave a faint cry, and suddenly clutched his head, gritting his teeth and shutting his eyes. He curled in on himself, shaking.
Buffy rushed forward, chiding herself for losing her temper. She had to stop with this teenage angst stuff. This was her destiny. She wasn't Elizabeth Summers. She was Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Her job, the only way to save the universe, was to kill the Doctor. It didn't matter if she hated doing it. It didn't matter if killing him would hurt her, somewhere deep down inside her soul. None of her feelings or emotions mattered. This was just what she had to do.
How much time did she have left?
The Doctor's skin was growing warm, clammy. He was breaking out in a sweat, and his face was flushed red. He was… running a fever, Buffy realized. Which was weird, because Buffy was pretty sure that wasn't how vampire transformations were supposed to work. Was this some special Devil-Transformation thing? Was he going to suddenly sprout horns and start laughing at her maniacally?
"That's not…" started Buffy. She swallowed, then tried again. "I mean, when do I have to do this?"
"Trying… to fight," said the Doctor, through gritted teeth. "Can't let it…" He curled in on himself even tighter, as the pain spread across his face. "It's strong," he muttered. He cracked open his eyes, looking at Buffy, and she could see the fear radiating through his corneas. He clutched at her, desperately, and it took Buffy nearly a minute to realize that the Doctor was trying to get to his feet.
"TARDIS," said the Doctor.
Buffy stared at him, incredulous. "If you think I'm going to let the future Devil Incarnate have access to a time machine, you've got another thing coming. I'm not letting you anywhere near that thing."
The Doctor looked at her with pleading eyes. "C-cure," he managed to get out, before he doubled up again, clutching his head in pain.
A cure.
Something ignited inside of Buffy, some little spark of hope that had gone out. A cure. Of course. Jack had told her that the Doctor had worked out a way to turn vampires human again. If he was able to do that, he could surely just use the same stuff on himself, to make sure he survived this. Would it perform a full-on exorcism, too, or would it just rid his body of the vampiric element?
"Would that work?" asked Buffy.
The Doctor raised his head, and gave her a weak grin. "Told… you," he gasped. "I'm… brilliant."
The familiar arrogance and sheer stubborn pig-headed optimism of the statement made Buffy feel better. Like she could believe that the Doctor was still there. Like she could believe that this was not really the end. Like she could believe that he might survive this.
She helped the Doctor to his feet, and he leaned against her, as she half-carried him down the bookcase-stage. He kept stumbling, his body seizing up in starts and fits as he made his way, his face growing redder and more feverish with every step. Buffy could feel his double pulse racing beneath her fingertips, as his body tried its hardest not to die.
"You're fighting it," Buffy realized. "The vampirism. Your body's fighting it like it's a virus."
"Regeneration impossible," said the Doctor. "Omega... helped. Gave me some… reserves. A chance to… fight the infection. Not enough." He cried out, nearly falling, but Buffy was quick, and she caught him. "In my mind," he said to Buffy. "Can't… let… him…." He gave a fierce growl, as if trying to fend off a wild animal.
Buffy nearly tripped across Jack's still-dead body, lying in the center of the room. Her eyes suddenly lit up. "Jack!" said Buffy. "He can help you. He's smart, and stuff. He can run back to the TARDIS and get you anything you want."
The Doctor shook his head. "Energy… field… zapped… short-term memory," explained the Doctor. "No time. Must… TARDIS… quickly…"
Buffy gave a last look at Jack, then helped the Doctor out of the room.
They walked slowly, far more slowly than Buffy thought they should, considering the urgency with which her Slayer senses were assaulting her. She remembered what she'd asked Jack, back in the cell. Was this what Omega had meant about the Doctor destroying 66% of Earth's population? Was that Omega's way of warning them about what was to come, about Toby's real plans? Buffy looked ahead, into a bleak future where she would spend the rest of her days trying to stay two steps ahead of an entirely evil entity that was just as fast, quick-witted, and strong as she was. Someone who knew every single weakness of the Slayer, who had seen the way that every one of them was defeated. Someone who knew everything about her, even the way she'd react to situations she'd never encountered in this timeline. He knew everything about everything, Ackerly had said. The past, present, and future. Every legendary lost object, every secret of the universe, he knew. Was that her future, then? Struggling to defend the universe from someone who could crush it so easily?
Except it wouldn't come down to that. Because the moment the Doctor changed, the moment he became a vampire (or the devil or whatever), Buffy would be there. Ready to stop him. And after they had fought, after they had faced off against each other, only one of them would be left standing. Either Buffy would kill the Doctor, or he'd kill her.
No. Cure, Buffy. There's a cure. It's not going to come to any of this. This time, this one time, she was going to save the universe without having to kill anyone.
The moment they emerged into the daylight, Buffy expected the Doctor to shudder away from the sun. But the Doctor seemed completely unaffected by it, as if he didn't even notice that they'd emerged from the building. His pulse was erratic, but both hearts were still beating. All good signs, Buffy thought.
"You're not burning up in the sunlight, yet," said Buffy, trying to be encouraging. She wasn't very good at it. "So… yeah. That's something."
"Won't… burn up," the Doctor corrected. "Ever." His voice was raspy, almost lost beneath the roar of nearby traffic. "One… sun. Body… designed… for two."
Buffy felt her breath catch in her throat. Oh, she hadn't thought about that. The vampires she'd faced had always been transformed humans. The Doctor wasn't human. When he turned, not only would he know her every weakness, but she'd know none of his.
And if he ever got his hands on that thing that could reshape reality, then Buffy would be completely screwed over.
The Doctor took Buffy's hand. The gesture was clearly supposed to be comforting, but because of the Doctor's rapidly weakening condition, it was more of a death-grip than a reassuring pat. "98%," said the Doctor. "Genes are… 98%... similar…" He winced at some great pain inside his head, and Buffy caught him as he nearly crumpled to the ground. "Time Lord… and… vampire," he clarified.
If the Doctor was right, if he had most of the genetics of a vampire already, then everything Buffy knew about vampires wouldn't apply. Sunlight, crosses, garlic… as far as Buffy could make out, none of these would have the least effect on him. Unless the Earth happened to get another sun in the next hour, or Buffy could find some kind of super-mega-cross or something…
Hang on.
Buffy fished out the TARDIS key from her pocket. Super-mega-cross. She remembered thinking that, earlier. She showed it to the Doctor.
He winced away from it, instinctively.
When he realized what he'd done, a sudden raw fear burned inside his eyes, and he reached out for the key, his fingers brushing along its surface as if he were stroking a lover. A lover whose very touch burned him, hurt him. Buffy could see how every discomfort he experienced from the key pained him, emotionally, as if he were watching himself losing those essential pieces of his own personality that had kept him sane throughout the centuries.
He snatched the key out of Buffy's hand, and clung to it, desperately. Buffy could see that the action was not pleasant, but that he felt he needed to do it. As if it were the most important thing in the world.
Buffy found the car that Jack had driven over to the Watchers Council. She kicked in one of the windows, and unlocked the doors, helping the Doctor into the passenger seat. He was still shaking, his eyes closed and his teeth gritted as he tried to fight some fierce internal battle. By now, his skin was even warmer than Buffy's, but he looked as if he were freezing. He was huddled into his suit jacket as if trying to suck the warmth from it, occasionally shivering violently. His hearts were beating far too rapidly. Buffy wasn't sure how long it would be before one of them gave out.
She had to hurry. He wasn't going to make it much longer.
Buffy ducked into the driver's seat, reached for the keys — then realized she didn't have them. Damn. Did she dare to dart back inside, and try to find them on Jack's lifeless corpse? Or, worse, if Jack had woken up, and didn't remember what had happened or who she was, would she risk trying to take them off of him?
But it was out of the question. She couldn't leave the Doctor. She was afraid that if she wasn't there the moment the change happened, the moment he turned, she'd lose her chance to kill him. It was the only thing she could think of, the only advantage she had. That perhaps, the moment he turned, the Doctor would be weak. Vulnerable. If she missed that moment, he'd kill her. Or just run off and get that mega-super-weapon he'd hidden. The one that could shatter the universe and rebuild it from the inside out. Using the Devil Incarnate as the architect. Yeah, Buffy wasn't leaving the Doctor alone for a second.
There was a buzz, and the car sprang into motion. Buffy glanced over, and found that the Doctor had taken out the sonic screwdriver, pointing it at the car. Buffy took a deep breath, then pulled into traffic.
She very nearly swiped the side mirror off of a nearby car as she realized that she was checking the wrong blind spot. Stupid London, driving on the wrong side of the road. Now, where was the TARDIS, again?
"Steel," said the Doctor, suddenly speaking very quickly, very quietly. "Not wood. Steel. Got to be steel. Steel bolt through both hearts. That's the only way it'll work."
Buffy realized, with a sickening feeling in her stomach, that he was telling her how to kill him. That he was instructing her, as if he'd given up himself.
"Black hole would do it, too," said the Doctor. "Or a beheading. Long as it's quick. Advanced regenerative capabilities. I'll be able to regenerate any part of my body at will. Did it… last… Christmas…. Rose…" He began panting again, his breath becoming heavy and labored. He swallowed, and continued, at his previous rapid speed. "Once I'm dead, destroy the corpse, immediately. Anything that's left, anything whatsoever, should be completely immolated. Not one strand of my DNA should survive, or else this will all be for nothing. I've seen the Master pull off this kind of thing too many times. Do you understand?"
"Why are you telling me this?" asked Buffy. "Once you're dead, you can't go back in time and save my life. I'll pop out of existence. Or I won't, and Toby will get through anyways."
The Doctor gave a sudden yelp of pain, and dropped the TARDIS key onto the floor of the car. There was a red mark on his palm, a key-sized red mark, as if the imprint of that key had been branded onto his flesh. One last lingering sign of his old life.
The Doctor crumpled over in the seat. "Buffy," he whispered, desperately. (Her name sounded dry and papery in his mouth.) "Help. Me. Please."
Buffy nodded. She felt her hands clutching the steering wheel a little tighter. "Okay," she said.
The Doctor shivered, violently, then continued in his rapid, soft voice. "The TARDIS and I have a symbiotic link," he said. "So don't rely on her for any favors after I turn. Whatever you do, whatever happens, don't let me leave the planet." He handed her the sonic screwdriver, and she took it, nearly colliding with a car to her left as she accidentally swerved into the lane next to her. She put the screwdriver in her pocket, then swerved back into the correct lane.
"Setting 522 will lock the coordinates for the TARDIS permanently," said the Doctor. "The TARDIS will be able to fly between here and Sunnydale, and that's it."
"If I strand you here," said Buffy, carefully, "I'm dooming this world."
"And if you let me loose, you'll be dooming the universe," said the Doctor. "Once I leave the planet, once I leave this time-zone, you'll never be able to stop me. Every evil thought I've ever had, every vengeful fantasy I've entertained will be unleashed upon the universe tenfold. I'll shatter the laws of time, turn cause and effect upside down, tear open the void to make sure I get what I want. And with the Key, with the power to completely remake the universe… you wouldn't even want to imagine what I could do. A universe where nothing could or would exist without my approval. A universe where my voice would be the final decision. A universe where laws of time would mean nothing, where I could redo anything until I got the result I wanted. Multiple timelines, overlapping timelines. Second chances. I could save who I want, destroy who I want, and I could get it right. I'd know, ahead of time, I'd be able to do things properly. Sift through my personal timeline and fix all of my mistakes. I could stop the War. Bring back all those dead companions. All those lost companions. Rose! I could get Rose back! And with the Key, if I could use the Key, do you understand what could happen? I wouldn't have to keep wandering from planet to planet, helping in whatever small way I could. I could do it all at once. Rebuild the universe the way it was supposed to be. No more Daleks. No more Cybermen. No more Slytheen or Sycorax or Krillitane. No more Rassilon. No more Torchwood. No more Watchers Council. I'd bring back that little baby Time Lord, let her have a life. And all those innocent teenage girls who died, all those Slayers I couldn't save, I could rescue them, too. No, I don't need to stop there. I could make sure they lived the lives they were supposed to. I could make sure nothing ever threatened them again. Spike. The Master. Kakistos. Lothos. Everyone who ever threatened you, Buffy, everyone who ever mistreated you or tried to hurt you. This destiny of yours, I could change that. No more manipulators, no more people controlling you. Giles? Gone! Shadow Men? Out! I could destroy all the Watchers, eliminate every single one of them. There would be no more Slayer, no institutionalized slaughter. I could give you the life you deserve. I could make you an ordinary teenager. You could live past the age of 20. No, not just that. You could live forever. All my friends could live forever. I wouldn't ever have to lose them. I wouldn't have to lose anyone. I could make sure they stayed, make sure they were always there with me. Why didn't I think of any of this before? I've spent all this time feeling sorry for myself, being miserable and alone, but I don't have to do that! Why just stop Rassilon? I could become Rassilon! It could be my Web of Time, my hand causing the rise and fall of empires, my hand creating and uncreating worlds. I could do anything! Rewrite every law of the universe." He clutched at her bare arm. "And you, Elizabeth! I could have you, as well! You'd be right there, helping me. The future, what we saw — it doesn't have to matter anymore, as long as you stayed. And you would stay, this time, I know you would. You'd have to. I'd make sure you'd never, ever leave."
Buffy slammed on the brakes, suddenly. The Doctor was thrown forward, caught by the seatbelt, and he took in a sharp breath.
It was the first breath he'd taken in the last ten minutes.
"Stop. It. Now." Buffy was almost growling, her hands turning white on the steering wheel. "I don't want to hear about your perfect universe. The one where you keep all your so-called 'friends' hostage and wipe out anyone that looks at you funny. The one where no one and nothing could survive unless it met with your approval. I don't care if you're planning to rule the universe, Doctor. I don't care if you wind up with ultimate power over everything. You can't make me be your slave, no matter what. You can't control me like that. It's my life, Doctor. And I refuse."
For a moment there was nothing but silence. Nothing but the angry honking of horns on the road around them, the skid of car brakes and tires nearby, and the rumble of the engine as it echoed through the car's interior. Buffy prepared herself for what was coming next. She was ready for it. This was the fight she'd been waiting for, the fight that would end with one of them dying, the fight that would decide the fate of the universe.
"Left," said the Doctor, quietly, his hand falling back to his side.
Buffy blinked. "What?"
"You're driving on the wrong side of the road," said the Doctor. "It's left in the UK. Not right."
Buffy took a deep breath that was almost a sigh. Okay, not a demon, yet. Good. She must have… talked him down or something. What had Omega said? That he'd listen to her. And the Doctor had. Why? But she couldn't worry about that, now. If she just kept talking to him, the way he'd talked to her back in the graveyard when they'd first met, if she could convince him to stop….
Buffy eased her foot off the brake pedal, and swerved back into the correct lane. She glanced over at the Doctor. His skin was now growing pale, very pale. His injuries were healing far faster than they should have been. His hand still bore the scorch mark of that TARDIS key. He was dying, he was transforming. But he hadn't, yet. He was still breathing. And Buffy could see his chest moving, as his hearts beat.
Heart, Buffy corrected. Because there was only one heart beating, now. The other had shut down.
"No more fantasies about taking over the universe?" Buffy checked.
The Doctor shook his head. Then he cringed, as if at a sudden pain, somewhere so deep inside that it was threatening to tear him apart. "Not going to make it," he said. "You've got to kill me." He looked up at her. "Buffy Summers. You have to. Kill me."
And there was something about the way he said her name — every syllable cold and icy in his mouth, every tone laced with some deep-seated malevolence and hatred — that told Buffy that killing him would be the worst possible thing she could do.
"No," she said, firmly.
"You have to —" He cut off this next plea with a sharp cry, as he held his head in his hands. "Hurts," he whispered. "Every single day. It hurts."
Buffy hesitated. The Doctor was battling this Evil-Devil-Toby-Whatever for his soul and mind. One wrong word, one wrong question from Buffy, and she could destroy his soul forever. Was this one of those things that Buffy should be yelling at him about, or encouraging him about? Or should she just tell him to shut up while she tried to figure out how the hell to get back to the TARDIS?
"What hurts?" she asked, finally.
"She's gone," said the Doctor. His voice was almost a whimper. "I lost her. And it hurts! It hurts so much!" His hands trembled. "I can't ever see her again. I can't ever speak to her again. I burned up a sun just to say goodbye. And I never told her… I never said…." Unshed tears dangled in the bottoms of his eyes. "She told me she loved me. And I'll never be able to say it to her. She's gone, universes away, and there's no chance I'll ever be able to see her again. Why, why, why? Why do I always lose them? I just tried to do it right this time, Elizabeth. I only wanted another chance."
Oh. He must be talking about Rose. The mysterious Rose, the one that Jack was so worried about, the one that was absent, the one person that the Doctor had, actually, fallen in love with.
And that gave Buffy an idea. If moralistic kids books had taught her anything, this would work. It had to work.
"Tell me about Rose," said Buffy.
There was a terrible look on the Doctor's face. One that showed every emotion he'd kept hidden from her before, one that showed every ounce of pain, anger, and desperation. And Buffy knew that he had only kept these things hidden, because if they got out, if they consumed him, he would do something unspeakably terrible.
"She fell," said the Doctor. Buffy could hear the agony and torment in his voice, that terrible, gut wrenching anger, bitterness, and grief that colored every word. "Towards the void. I couldn't reach her. I —"
"No," said Buffy, cutting in, quickly. "Don't tell me about how you lost her. Tell me about Rose, the person."
The Doctor stopped. He said nothing. Then he took a breath. A long, steady breath.
"Rose," he began, and there was something in the way he said it that was beautiful, as if the name itself was enough to give him strength. "She was — no, is — brilliant. Beautiful. Fantastic. Selfless, brave, determined. One of the very best this universe has to offer. I sent her away, I wanted her to be safe. But she always came back. Once even absorbed the time vortex to do it. Imagine that. The time vortex, the power of time itself, and all she wanted to do was help me. Save everyone. Save the world. Preserve time and space. And she's so wonderfully human. Alive and vibrant and caring and just bursting with potential. We battled some of the worst monsters this universe has to offer, and she still always took time to make sure the innocent bystanders were all right. She always took that extra bit of time to reassure the kids, to make sure that those around her were strong, determined, united. She's that smile that lights up your day, that ray of sunshine that bursts through the clouds. The kind of person who could even sympathize with a Dalek."
There was a steady rhythm to his breathing, now. His hands had stopped shaking. A dash of color had crept back into his cheeks.
"And clever, oh, she was so clever," he continued. "Worked it all out before I ever could. Every time. Worked me out, too. Every time I needed her, she was there. Every time I couldn't face the universe alone, she was there. Always beside me, always ready to hold my hand and save the day. She could read everything I never told her, everything I never said. She just knew. She always knew. She saved me… in so many ways. She helped me become… the Doctor, again. Just like you, Elizabeth. Just like you told me, back in Romania!"
Buffy blinked. "Wait, just like I told you wh—?"
But the Doctor gasped, suddenly, trying, desperately to suck at the air. He hit his hand against the right side of his chest, frantically, but his movements seemed weak, feeble. His last heart was no longer beating. Buffy gripped the wheel with her right hand, then thumped him as hard as she could with her left, exactly where he'd shown her his rightmost heart was, earlier. He collapsed onto the car seat, sucking in air desperately.
"Toby," gasped the Doctor. "He's given up on my mind. Started in on my body. If he can stop that completely, if he lets the toxin win—"
"Toxin?" asked Buffy. She felt stupid the moment the question left her mouth. "Oh, the vampire thing."
"—then the mental block falls into place. No conscience. He'll have my mind as well," finished the Doctor. His voice was sounding weaker with every word. He clutched at the car, trying to steady himself. Then he peered out the windshield. "Turn right."
Buffy changed lanes, to do what he said.
"Other right," said the Doctor, as he noticed that she'd just positioned herself to turn left.
Buffy swerved the car across three lanes of traffic, very nearly getting into at least two fatal collisions, and then ran a red light to turn right. Stupid British traffic. It wasn't Buffy's fault if the right-hand turn wasn't actually the easy turn like it was supposed to be.
"Stop!" shouted the Doctor.
Buffy screeched on the brakes, and the car halted, suddenly. The car behind her, none too happy about this, began honking. Buffy turned off the engine. There, to her right, was the TARDIS.
"How'd you know?" asked Buffy to the Doctor.
The Doctor looked at the buildings surrounding them. "The Powell Estates," he said, as if this explained everything.
Then he doubled up, clutching at his stomach area, groaning in pain. "Body's shutting down," he said. "Got to get into the…"
His voice abruptly ceased, as his lungs began to give out.
Buffy darted out of the car, dragging the Doctor along with her. She fumbled under the passenger seat, trying to find the small, TARDIS key he'd dropped earlier, the one that had burned him. It wasn't there. She turned, and noticed that he was holding on, for dear life, to the string that was connected to the TARDIS key. The areas where the key approached his skin were steaming in the damp London air.
"Hang on," said Buffy, managing to yank the key out of the Doctor's hand. The hand dropped, limply, and Buffy heaved the Doctor over her shoulder as she ran towards the TARDIS.
As she approached the wooden box, she thought the Doctor would have an adverse reaction — that the TARDIS would burn him, just the same way the key did, but he didn't respond to the TARDIS at all. What had he said? Not to rely on the TARDIS for any favors, after he turned, because of some… symbiotic link? Maybe she didn't understand what the word symbiotic meant. She'd thought she had, but that would imply a lot of crazy things about the Doctor and his time machine that Buffy was pretty sure weren't true. She resolved to ask Willow about it, the next time she saw her. If there was still a universe left, at that point.
Buffy fitted the TARDIS key into the lock, and the door clicked open. The TARDIS looked just as bright and shiny and impressive as it had when Buffy had first entered it, but the room was not giving her a comforting, reassuring hum the way it had before. No, this hum was worried. It was like a frisson of fear crawling across Buffy's spine. And her Slayer senses weren't helping her, either.
Buffy heard the door click shut behind her, as she hauled the Doctor towards the mushroom-shaped thing at the center of the room. And there, right beside it, was something that Buffy didn't remember from the last time she'd stepped inside the ship. It was an array of test-tubes, all labeled with a skull and cross-bones. As she approached, she could read the label more clearly. It said:
Vamp-Away.
Warning: This Substance is Poisonous to Humans.
Buffy set the Doctor on the ground, beside them, placing one of the test tubes in his hand. But he didn't grab it. The test tube just fell from his hand and crashed onto the floor, splattering itself all across his skin. He was too far gone to do it himself. Too far gone to save him, maybe? No, Buffy couldn't think of that. She had to try. In one last, desperate bid to save the universe, Buffy snatched a vial of Vamp-Away, unstopped it, and poured the substance down the Doctor's throat.
He swallowed.