Chapter 12

"Did you see that Alastor?" Dumbledore said, seemingly to no one. A man wearing a pork pie hat stepped out of the shadows and approached the three. Buffy raised her stake again, and he laughed.
 "I did, Albus," Mad Eye Moody replied, stepping into a pool of light that came from the neon sign of a shop opposite them. "Most impressive." Harry and Buffy gaped at this unexpected arrival.
 "Alastor and I felt it would be necessary to have more protection for Harry," Dumbledore explained, noticing their expressions. "He arrived a few minutes before us, and will be staying with us." Harry and Buffy accepted and collected up their belongings.
 "We've got to go to Giles' house right?" Buffy asked Dumbledore as they began walking down the street, which was practically deserted. Dumbledore nodded, looking around in interest at the Californian town.
 "What time is it here?" Harry asked curiously, "It was seven when we left so it must be about….." He trailed off expectantly.
 "Approximately five past eleven on Friday night," Dumbledore replied. Harry raised his eyebrows.
Buffy led them through Sunnydale, not one pausing for any of them. She was now desperate to see her friends, it was so strange to be in Sunnydale again and see people that she knew littering the streets.

After ten minutes they reached the stairs down to Giles' house, and Buffy could no longer wait, running down them. She hammered on Giles' door and almost instantly it flew open.
Giles stood on the threshold and gazed at his slayer. She smiled at him, a tiny smile loaded with meaning. He pulled her in to a tight hug, and she hugged him back, crying against his chest and making his sweater vest damp. He let her go, and held her shoulders.
 "It's so good to see you," Giles said, a little misty eyed himself. He brushed away her tears, and moved so she could enter the room. Buffy walked in and almost immediately was hit by two thumps, sending her falling backwards onto the wooden floor.
 "Hey guys," she said happily, hugging Willow and Xander. They helped her up and grinned at her happily. Cordelia and Oz stood a little way off.
 "Hi Buffy," Cordelia said. "It's good to see you finally back, do you know I've broken two nails doing your job while you were off gallivanting in Europe." Buffy laughed.
 "Good to see you too Cordy," she said, still laughing. "And you, Oz." Buffy nodded at him and he nodded back with an enigmatic smile. Behind her Giles was ushering Harry, Dumbledore and Moody into his apartment.
 "Albus, Alastor, so good to see you, it's been what ten years?" he said absentmindedly. "And you must be Harry Potter, nice to meet you." He shook Harry's hand, and Harry stood awkwardly feeling somewhat separated from this scene. Buffy, noticing this, went over to the Hogwarts visitors.
 "Guys," she said, addressing Xander, Willow, Oz and Cordelia. "This is Albus Dumbledore, headmaster of Hogwarts, Alastor Moody, an Auror with the Ministry of Magic and Harry Potter, my friend from Hogwarts." Xander was gazing in awe at Moody and his spinning blue eye, which was currently fixed back at Xander.

 "Sit down, sit down," Giles blustered. He fetched a pot of tea from the kitchen and poured out for everyone. Buffy picked up the cup and drunk a deep gulp, tea being something she'd acquired a taste for when she was at Hogwarts. An awkward silence fell over the group, something Buffy hadn't expected.
 "So you guys have been slaying?" she asked politely.

 "Only until the new slayer arrived," Willow replied. "But we were getting pretty nifty at it, if I do say so myself, which I do." Buffy smiled briefly.
 "What's the new slayer like?" she asked.
 "She's alright," Willow admitted. "Not like you at all, more….slutty…..and kind of wild." Buffy raised an eyebrow. She drunk some more tea and silence fell again.
 "What's school been like?" Giles said, breaking the silence.

 "Good," Buffy said smiling, "Not like Sunnydale High, kinda fun actually. I've been learning magic." 
 "Wow, can you turn us all into frogs or something?" Xander asked the disbelieving tone in his voice apparent. Promptly, Moody raised his wand and transfigured his into a toad. Toad-Xander sat on Xander's chair and croaked once, before Moody transfigured him back. The scoobies were all taken aback, except for Giles.
 "That was wicked cool," Xander exclaimed. "Make me a bee this time!" Moody raised his wand, but lowered it at a look from Dumbledore. Buffy drunk some more tea, then she burst out:

 "Can I go see my mom?" she asked, having wanted to since she arrived. Giles smiled gently at her.
 "She said she would be waiting for you." Buffy got up, putting her tea cup on the table. She turned to leave, and then turned back to the others.  

 "Xander, Will, will you come with?" she asked uncomfortably. "I need some moral support." They nodded and got up. The three left, leaving the others to get acquainted.

Once again, walking down the street, awkward silence fell. Willow broke it this time.
 "Can you turn us into toads too?" she asked. Buffy smiled, glad for the conversation.

 "No, I'm nowhere near human transfiguration. Even Harry isn't that far yet, and he's been learning since he was eleven. I'm doing ok though, turns out slayers have a lot magic in them."
 "Can't be worse than me," Willow shrugged. "My one spell and it didn't work." Buffy didn't answer and looked at the floor, and they continued walkin in silence. Suddenly Buffy stopped, and Willow and Xander stopped, looking at her bemusedly.
 "What is with you guys?" Buffy said, annoyed. "I though you'd be happy to see me, but y'know you're not." Xander and Willow exchanged glances, which infuriated Buffy even more.
 "Well, you left without a word to anyone," Xander answered, in a cool voice Buffy had never heard him use to her before. "Left us to wonder whether you were even alive, left your mom to panic, and us to take care of your job. Yeah, we're happy to have back, but that doesn't make us forget the fact that you left in the first place." Buffy gaped at her.
 "Oh I'm sorry," she said sarcastically. "That I wasn't much of a people person at the time. Yeah, let's all blame Buffy; it was her fault this happened in the first place."

 "Buffy, that's not what he meant," Willow said calmingly, casting a warning look at Xander. "It's just that we were scared about you."
 "Well I didn't have the greatest time!" Buffy yelled. "I didn't leave just top go on vacation, that's for sure. You thought your spell went wrong, but it didn't. Angel got his soul back, but it was too late. I had to kill him, give him up so I could be the slayer and save the world, again. And then I have to come and tell you guys about that, because if I don't I'm being selfish! Forget it; I don't need this from you. I thought you were my friends!" Angrily brushing away the tears that had fallen during her outburst, Buffy stormed off, leaving Xander and Willow standing in the middle of the road together.

Furiously pacing, Buffy reached her house in a short time. Hr anger left her as she gazed at the house that had been her home for the last two years. Gingerly she walked up the steps and placed her finger on the doorbell, taking a deep breath before opening it. It opened and her mother stood wordlessly in front of her. She opened her arms and Buffy flew into them, hugging her mother with all her strength.

 "Woah, I have ribs Buffy," Joyce said, and Buffy released her gently.
 "I missed you," Joyce said softly, and Buffy saw a tear slip down her mother's cheek. She reached up and brushed it away.
 "I missed you too," Buffy answered sincerely, "But I'm here now." She entered her home, closing the door behind her, and followed Joyce into the living room. They sat on the sofa.
 "Where have you been? What were you doing?" Joyce demanded immediately.
 "England," Buffy answered. "I told you. At Hogwarts."
 "But before that, where did you go?" Joyce persisted.

 "LA," Buffy answered, a note of impatience making its way into her voice.
 "Why?" Joyce asked. "Why didn't you write?"
 "Well you were exactly forthcoming with the welcoming me home," Buffy snapped. She recomposed herself. "Look, I needed to get away; there was nothing for me here. As far as I knew, you couldn't care less about me, and didn't want me home."

 "Well you should have come home, you should have talked to me," Joyce insisted.

 "Right, because that worked so well the first time. I told you that I was the Slayer and you completely freaked. Admit it," Buffy answered.
 "You just threw it at me and expected me to accept it," Joyce protested angrily. "What was I supposed to do, rejoice in the fact that my daughter was as strange as people had told me?"
 "This is why I left," Buffy said in a controlled voice.

 "I missed you Buffy," Joyce admitted. "Every time the doorbell rang, I ran to it, hoping it was you. And you didn't write, no word nothing."

 "I didn't think you wanted to know," Buffy said honestly. "You told me not to come back, and so I didn't. I can't stop being the slayer just because you say so."

 "It does explain a great deal," Joyce said, with a smile. "The late nights, blood on your clothes and the burning down the gym,"

 "I was full of vampires," Buffy said quickly. They laughed.

 "What have you been doing in England?" Joyce asked, changing the subject, and letting Buffy know that the matter was closed.
 "Learning magic mostly," Buffy said conversationally. She showed her mother her wand.
 "And you can do spells with that?" Joyce asked, trying to be the understanding mother.
 "Yep," said Buffy proudly. "Not many, but I'm learning. Soon I'll be able to do more."
 "Soon?" Joyce said suddenly. "What does that mean?"
 "Well generally it's thought to mean close to the now," Buffy replied playfully. Joyce's face didn't smile.

 "You're not going back?" she said incredulously. "But you've just come home, you can't go back."

 "I was back for a visit," Buffy reminded her. "I never said I was going to stay."

 "You're not leaving again," Joyce raised her voice. "This is your home, and I'm you mother. Doesn't that mean anything to you?"

 "Of course it does," Buffy said through gritted teeth. "But I have to go back to Hogwarts. I'm doing good there, I'm finally dealing and healing, and I've got to stay to look out for Harry. Part of the slayer-gig, taking care of important people, and helping them get rid of their big bad. They can use my ability, and Sunnydale has a slayer now."

 "How can you be so selfish?" Joyce exclaimed angrily. "You obviously don't care about anyone but yourself." Buffy laughed disbelievingly and mirthlessly.
 "You don't know the first thing about me," she said darkly. "You don't know what I've been through; you've been so busy pretending it's not happening. I have to go back; I have to do my job. Maybe I don't want to and maybe I do, it's not a decision based on that. All Sunnydale holds for me is bad memories, and friends and family who chew me out for things they don't understand."

 Buffy got up, and once again stormed out, leaving her mother open mouthed.