CHAPTER TEN: ONE GOOD DAY
"Hullo pet," the brown haired man said to her, smiling softly at her.
She smiled back, a little confused as to why she was seeing him again.
"Where am I?" she asked.
"Between life and death," he replied. "Again."
She wracked her brain, trying to remember what had happened. "Court. Did…do you know if Court's dead?"
William nodded and held out his hand to her. As soon as their palms made contact, a million images flashed before her.
The fog descending, Court almost defeating her on the stairs when he had broken her hand and tried to drain her blood; Angel and Spike defeating the vampires, Xander, Tara and Anya getting the sacrifices out of the warehouse; Court shooting the crossbow and wounding her stomach, and eventually she saw herself fall.
"Yhiddy killed Court for betrayin' 'im. Looks as though Yhiddy won't be back in the human dimension again either. Too risky."
Buffy nodded and went to take her hand away from William's. He kept a hold of it and grinned at her.
"Not so fast pet. You've got some choices to make," he said.
She looked at him sceptically, unsure of what to expect. "Like what?"
He smiled and motioned to the right. A door appeared in front of them, a plaque above it saying 'Eternity'.
"You can go in there, or…you can go back home. Be with 'im."
"The Powers are giving me another chance?" she asked incredulously.
He shook his head. "No, see, you're not dead pet. But, you can fight to keep living, or…you can let go and…you remember how peaceful it was, right? With me and yer mum."
She shook her head. "I can't forget. It was beautiful there," she said a little wistfully.
He hesitated a moment before kissing her gently. "You know, I fell in love with you the moment he laid eyes on you. I was so afraid that he'd kill you and…it frightened me that I could become so attached to anyone. But you love him."
She nodded and gently kissed his cheek. "You're a big part of him too Will. He can't escape you, just like you can't escape him."
"I know."
"Oh, and by the way, I'm still pissed off with you," she said angrily. "You said you'd come back with me."
He shook his head gently and smiled. "I wish I could have come back with you luv, but…that's not my world anymore. And even though he and I are so similar…we're not the same people."
"I hated you for it. When I got back," she admitted softly.
"I know. I was watching you the whole time. He loves you, you know. They all do."
She nodded and let go of his hand. "I have to go back."
He smiled gently and put a gentle hand to her cheek. "I'll be waiting here for you."
He wiped an errant tear from the corner of her eyes and smiled at her.
"Tell mom I said hi," she said softly.
She stepped back and watched as he smiled one last time before turning and walking through the doorway. She closed her eyes and opened them again, somehow not surprised to find herself standing in front of the Powers That Be.
"Back again Slayer," The First commented.
She shrugged a little and looked at the four of them. Each of them wore almost identical smiles.
"If you don't stop dying to save the world we may have to give you a very stern talking to," the Second chastised lightly.
"I'll try to refrain from any other apocalypses for the time being then," she replied.
The Four of them laughed and the First took a step towards her.
"You know what it means to choose to go back, do you not?" he asked.
She nodded. "I know what it means. I know I don't have a lot of time left, but…I want to have what little I do have left."
The First nodded and took her by the hand, leading her past the other Three.
"I should not be warning you of this, but…you only have another two years. You'll be the oldest Slayer on record, but…it is destined that you will die. I can't tell you when exactly but…I sense that you are holding back on something life altering. If I may suggest that you take a chance and enjoy what you have."
She nodded and smiled at him gratefully. "Thank you."
He nodded and let go of her hand. "You're welcome. Now go. Live and enjoy it. We'll meet again soon."
He opened a door and motioned for Buffy to go through. She did so, closing her eyes to guard herself against a blinding light. She felt the world spinning, and it stopped, leaving her lying on her back.
Confused, she opened her eyes, her eyelids struggling to open properly. It was then that she realised that she was in a hospital bed, her body exhausted and her mind running rampant.
She tried to shift her position and groaned with pain. She stopped trying to move and instead just closed her eyes to wait.
~*~
Spike sat out in the corridor wringing his hands. He couldn't sit still, and it was becoming quite an effort to remain seated. Spike looked up sharply as he heard a small, pained groan coming from inside Buffy's room.
He was on his feet in an instant and nearly in the door when he heard a nurse call out to him.
"You can't go in there!"
Spike glared at the young nurse who held his ground. "You can't go in there sir," the nurse repeated.
"She's awake!" Spike cried.
The nurse looked sceptical, having heard about the young woman who had been nearly beaten to death. Of course, this was Sunnydale, and stranger things had happened, the nurse thought.
He opened up the door and walked in, seeing the girl still lying there, her eyes closed.
"Sir, she's not awake," the nurse said.
Spike looked around the door at the prone form of the Slayer on the bed. He saw her struggle to open her eyes, and, pushing past the nurse, he raced to her side, taking her uninjured hand gently.
"Buffy," he whispered.
She opened her eyes to see Spike with tears forming. She smiled softly and went to speak, but was stopped by a tube down her throat.
The nurse looked amazed as he saw the young girl open her eyes. Without another word, he retreated from the room in search of a doctor.
"You're in hospital luv," he whispered. "Don't try and speak. You're pretty badly hurt."
"T'others?" she asked, her throat aching as she tried to get the word out.
"They're all fine. We won, pet," he said.
She smiled and nodded, her eyes closing once more.
A doctor entered the room and saw Spike sitting protectively at Buffy's side.
"You say she just woke up a few minutes ago?" the doctor asked the nurse beside him.
The nurse nodded and handed the doctor a clipboard with the details of Buffy's injuries recorded on it.
"Are you certain?" the doctor asked incredulously, scanning down the list of multiple injuries that the young girl on the bed had endured.
The doctor looked at Buffy who opened her eyes again weakly.
"Takes a helluva lot more to kill a Slayer," Spike whispered in Buffy's ear. She gave a gentle smile and tiredly squeezed Spike's hand.
"One…good…day," she replied slowly.
Spike almost cried at the remembrance of that conversation.
"Never a good day pet. Not with you gone," he said.
The doctor watched the exchange between the young couple, smiling as he saw the love and affection there, even if he couldn't hear what they were saying.
"It seems, Miss Summers, that you've come out of the woods. We'll have to keep you here a fair while longer though, you've sustained rather extensive injuries," the doctor explained.
Buffy nodded her understanding and turned to smile at Spike.
"Stay?" she asked quietly.
Spike nodded and gave the doctor a meaningful glare. "I'm not going anywhere pet."
~*~
Giles opened the door hastily and saw Spike sitting there watching over the sleeping Slayer. Spike put a finger to his lips indicating for the Watcher to remain quiet. A doctor hovered by Buffy's bedside, checking her chart, in awe of the rapid improvements in the young woman's body.
Spike stood up, placing a gentle kiss on Buffy's forehead before taking Giles out into the hallway.
"She woke up about an hour ago, but…the doctors are still pretty worried about her," Spike explained.
Giles nodded, not entirely unworried for his Slayer either. "How did she seem?"
"Alright. She asked how the others were. I told her everyone made it out alright," he said.
"Thanks to her," Giles said.
Spike nodded his agreement. "How's the Nibblet?"
"Understandably upset. Still blaming herself. She cried herself to sleep. I woke her up just after you called, told her that Buffy was sleeping naturally now. God, it was awful," Giles said taking a seat on one of the plastic chairs. "But, she smiled and rolled over. She was sleeping a lot better. Xander's there with her."
Spike nodded and took a seat next to the Watcher.
"She wouldn't have coped if Buffy had died again," Spike commented.
Giles removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes.
"I doubt any of us would survive her dying again. So soon."
Spike sighed, hating to think so negatively, but knowing that it was also a rational thought. "I dunno how we're gonna get through the next time."
Giles looked at him sharply, appalled that he could even suggest such a thing. After a moments consider however, Giles knew that Spike was right. No matter how hard it was to think about, Buffy was still the Slayer which meant that she came with a limited lifetime.
"It won't be easy," Giles said.
Spike shook his head. "It never is though, is it?"
He growled a little and threw his hands down in frustration. "In some ways, I wish she hadn't come back. She…her death was so…it was the death of a Slayer, a true Slayer. It took a bloody hellgod to defeat her, and even then she didn't have to die. Sacrificing herself for the bloody world. Always had to go out with a bang," Spike said.
Giles smiled a little at Spike's description of Buffy's death. What would have been painful a few months ago, he know looked upon with pride. Buffy had overcome fear and had managed to put everything and everyone else first for one final time.
"I don't think she'll be able to top that one."
"I highly doubt it."
The door swung open and both men looked up to see a doctor come into the hallway.
"Are you here with Miss Summers?" he asked.
Giles and Spike both nodded, wearing identical expressions of concern.
"She just woke up a moment ago. I told her she had two visitors and she requested that you both be sent in. But, please remember that I am bending the rules for you here, so please, do not get her wound up. I'll have to ask both of you to leave if she becomes overly anxious. If her healing continues at the rate it has been, she should be home in about two days."
Spike and Giles nodded and in one fluid movement, they were on their feet and walking towards the door. Spike stepped back and allowed Giles to enter first.
Giles smiled at his Slayer as he saw her sitting up in bed. He moved to her bed and hugged her gently, brushing away a stray piece of her hair and tucking it behind her ear.
"Oh, my dear girl," he whispered. "I think you're perhaps trying to give me a heart attack."
She smiled at him and hugged him back. "Didn't mean to scare you Giles. Just one of those days."
He pulled back and placed a hand on her cheek, smiling at her fondly. "You seem to have far too many of them for my liking."
She grinned and placed her hand over his. "Don't worry, I'm done with the heroics."
"Well, thank god for that."
He stood up and moved away so that Spike could sit beside her on the bed.
"Nice to see you again luv," he said softly, whispering into her ear as he pulled her closer to him.
She smiled and kissed him gently. "I love you."
He smiled, almost feeling his heart beginning to pound in his chest. She made him feel alive!!
"I love you,' he replied, gently kissing the tip of her nose.
Giles smiled as he sat himself down in the chair. Spike may not have been his ideal choice of a boyfriend for his Slayer, but he knew that she would never find anyone as loyal as the blond vampire. And he knew that he would have to give her his blessings no matter what.
He wanted her in his life, and for that to happen, Giles knew that Spike would be attached to that package. Perhaps, that package would even be a little longer than expected, seeing as he had someone to keep her safe.
"So," Buffy said when the silence became more tangible. "When can I get outta this hell-hole?"
Giles smiled at her choice of phrasing. "After what you saw earlier, how can this possibly compare?"
Buffy grinned at her Watcher. "This place is far scarier than that factory. It's way too sterile in here."
Giles laughed a little and watched as Spike squeezed the Slayers hand gently.
"Doc said you'd be outta here in about two days. But only if you're good," he teased a little.
Buffy pouted, earning her a grin from both her Watcher and the vampire. "Two days? That's like a lifetime," she whined.
Giles just rolled his eyes good-naturedly.