Chapter Ten: Hank
"Hank," Buffy whispered, finding it odd that she was still afraid of the useless man that stood before her. She could remember when she was younger and in trouble that he had to leave the house to keep from hitting her. Now that she thought about it, Buffy can guess just whom he went to when he left the house like that – one of his women. Spurred on by her anger she lashed out, "Just what the hell are you doing here?"
"I'm the one who should be angry, not you!" her father hissed. "I go looking for you, and find not only your mother dead but the whole town gone. Then some freak tells me that I can find you here. What did you do that you had to be sent to some boarding school?"
"Don't talk to me like that!" she snapped. "Don't ever talk about mom like that again. I called you when she died. You didn't come, but my real father was there. You don't have the right to be angry anymore. You didn't even come to my funeral, what kind of father…" Buffy hoped that he was too livid to catch the last line, because she'd forgotten just how little he knew.
"Funeral? Is that why you're here? Because you've finally gone insane? I always knew you were a mistake!"
"Mr. Summers," Dumbledore's voice was soft, but anyone who knew him knew it was the voice he used right before unleashing a curse. "I won't allow you to speak to Buffy like that. I brought you here so that the two of you could talk, but if you continue to act like this I'll have you removed. She is a grown woman now and as such…"
"She's not a woman, she's eighteen!" Hank fumed, unknowingly digging himself deeper in the hole he started when he'd divorced Joyce so many years before.
"I'm twenty-four dad, and you know nothing about me!" The slayer knew she was close to breaking and with all the stress she had lately, she probably would. "Albus, I can't do this now. Potions should be over, so I'll go and see Severus. Tell him," she pointed to Hank, "tell him whatever you want. I don't care anymore."
The headmaster watched the blonde leave, taking note of how rigid her stance was and the shaking of her shoulders. He'd never imagined that things would go this badly. Feeling horrible for upsetting the poor girl, he felt he had to fix things.
"Mr. Summers, if you would," he motioned to the chair Buffy had previously occupied.
"I want to know exactly what is going on," Hank demanded, still unaware of the danger he was in for hurting a well liked denizen of Hogwarts.
"I shall start explaining from where you stop noticing I suppose. When she burned down that gym, she was doing her sacred duty. Buffy is the Vampire Slayer. There is a nice little cliché that goes with the title but I think that it would only confuse you more."
"What do you mean vamp…"
"Not now Mr. Summers, you're treading on broken ice. If you say one more thing to upset me I shall have you removed and banned from the premises."
Hank snapped his mouth shut, glaring at the elderly man before him. He couldn't understand just what was going on. The man couldn't possibly hurt him, but he held an air of danger that Hank felt around his daughter often.
"As I was saying, Buffy is special. She saves the world. After you and Joyce divorced she was sent to Sunnydale, a hellmouth, to fight evil there."
He proceeded to tell Hank of all the things Buffy'd done – from the Master, to Angelus, Adam, Glory, the First. He explained her deaths, both of them, and how she was brought back from each. Finally he spoke of the battle against Alecto, what little he knew. Watching the emotions swim across her father's face – disbelief, anger, confusion, denial – Albus could see why Buffy hadn't even considered him a safe haven. Hank had never once looked worried, saddened, or upset for anything his daughter had gone through.
"What did she mean her real father?" Hank asked the question that had been bothering him since hearing Buffy say it.
"I believe she was referring to Rupert Giles. He was her watcher as you know, and they grew very close over the years. He was there when you weren't, so she must have seen him as a father figure." Albus knew just how true that really was, he'd seen how they acted around one another on their visits together, but he didn't want to upset Mr. Summers any further.
"Who's Severus?"
"He is one of the professors here. Buffy has become fond of him, probably because he doesn't pressure her to be anything. All those years with everyone looking to her for answers, it must be nice to not have to know everything. Professor Snape had a hard past as well, and therefore can see the pain that most do not notice. I think that he's intrigued by her." Dumbledore was most pleased with that fact, hoping that Buffy would rub off some of her socializing skills on the brooding ex-death-eater.
"I don't want him anywhere near my daughter. I'll be back in a week to collect her from you. She doesn't belong here, with you indulging her fantasies. I'm taking her to an institution where she can get help."
"You'll do no such thing!" Albus boomed, rising to his full height. "Buffy is here and that is where she'll stay. I cannot believe that you think so little of her. You've ignored her presence for half of her life, just continue on doing it."
Seeing that Hank had no intention to do what he asked, he pulled his wand from his robes. He hated to use spells on muggles, but he'd promised Rupert that he would protect his charge at all cost. "Obliviate," he whispered and watched the dazed expression cloud over Hank's face.
"Where am I?"
"Hank Summers, you are in England. I found you wondering the streets and brought you into the school to sober you up. You're from America. You had a wife and daughter, but both died in a horrible car crash. You had best go now, and arrange a flight home."
The amnesiac man nodded, and stumbled from the room. Dumbledore sighed, upset with himself for doing such a thing. His only consolation that Buffy would be better off.
---------------------
Severus had just finished potions with the sixth years when Buffy staggered into his classroom. She was pale and tense, the way Severus used to be after an encounter with Voldemort.
"Buffy what…?"
"Albus invited my father here. He was so angry, and still so ignorant. He just listed my mother's death along with all the other things that had gone wrong, he was really flippant about it Sev. He shouldn't be able to hurt me like this still," Buffy cried.
Snape was at a loss at what to do with a crying woman. Normally he would simply walk away, uncaring and contented. If he couldn't do that, he usually got rid of what was bothering the girl, but he felt that Buffy would not appreciate him killing her father.
"Buffy, what do I…?"
"Could you just hold me Sev? I know you normally… but I always had Giles and now he's not…"
"Shh…" Snape whispered and carefully put his arms around her, in his first real hug.
She buried her head in his neck, tears pouring from her eyes. He only briefly felt uncomfortable with the contact before he tightened his hold on her. And this was how Dumbledore found them when he went looking for the slayer.
------------------------
I know, not as long as DKG's chapters like I promised but it is longer! Thanx to my loyal readers and special thanx to Destiny-Ruler for the master of suspense thing! J
