Thanks for the catch Diaz. You are awesome. It has been fixed. As for Joyce and Buffy, they will be coming back soon. How long can I drag on a weekend trip to L.A. anyway. As for Dru. Hmmm... Maybe the scooby gang should research that.
Warnings and disclaimer in Chapter 1. Enjoy.
The dinner was strained. Their guests picked up on the atmosphere, even if they didn't know what was causing it. They tried socializing after dinner, but her grandparents gave up after an hour and went to bed. Hank and Nancy followed them shortly after, allowing the Scoobies to talk and discuss what happened.
"And nobody has any idea how she got onto the property?" Wesley asked again. Giles shook his head as he picked up another book.
"For the last time," Dawn said as she threw her book onto the table heavily. "We don't know. I pulled up to the gate and put in the code when they attacked. I screamed and Xander and Anya came running, distracting Dru and Darla long enough to get past the gate."
"We thought we were safe," Xander took up the latest explanation, "but then she just waltzed right passed the boundary line. She lunged and would have gotten us if your group hadn't been there."
"We just froze in shock," Anya admitted, as she leafed through her own book. The fact that she was actively researching showed just how scared she was. "She kept saying her Childe gave her access. Could she mean Spike?"
"I don't know," Giles admitted. "A vampire does not need an invitation to enter the home of another vampire or demon, but I have no idea how our situation applies. I've never heard of a vampire cohabitating with a human before and have no idea how it would affect the invitation requirements."
They looked up as Gunn and Fred entered.
"She's still out there," he said dejectedly. "We keep seeing her from a distance, but as soon as we close in she's gone. It's like she's toying with us."
"As a cat toys with the mouse," Xander said. "Until the cat becomes hungry."
"I don't know how she got past the property line," Fred said as she unloaded her weapons, "but we saw her trying to get through one of the windows. However she has her access it doesn't stretch to the house."
"So we should be safe inside," Giles commented.
"We should set up a watch just to be safe," Wesley added. Everyone agreed and settled in for a long night.
Dawn sighed as she heard her grandparents come down the stairs. The previous night had been long and stressful, especially since Dru spent the majority of the time looking through whatever windows she could find. She made no attempt to hide once the doors had been locked for the night, and only left when someone approached with a cross. Worse though, had been her grandparent's attitude the next morning.
"I'm not sure what's going on here," Irene told her husband as they climbed down the stairs in a loud voice that carried into the kitchen. "What kind of cult they have here, but it's not normal."
"Yes dear," her grandfather answered unenthusiastically as they entered the kitchen, but her grandmother wasn't done.
"They all stayed over last night," her grandmother continued. "In and out of every room at all hours of the night. And that blonde one kept opening the door and watching us sleep." Andrew paled and turned back to the stove. He was especially susceptible to Dru's thrall, but thankfully everyone kept him out of trouble.
"He was sleepwalking," Dawn defended him. "Sometimes he has these episodes. It's dangerous to try to wake him up during these fits."
"Hmph," Irene said as she strutted over to the island, the rest of the family following behind her. "And I suppose that girl dancing outside in the moonlight was sleepwalking also?" she asked, deliberately ignoring the breakfast Andrew made for them. Instead she reached for a bowl and the cereal.
"Mom," Nancy tried to pacify her, but Irene held firm.
"No," she insisted, turning to her son. "I understand now why you had to leave. Something is wrong here. Whatever Joyce got herself into, it is unnatural." She turned to Dawn. "I wish it wasn't too late for you, but I get the feeling you have been brainwashed by whatever that cult leader has been preaching to you. Is it that Mr. Giles?"
"Grandma!" Dawn was outraged. "Giles has never done anything except be here for each and every one of us. Which is more than I can say for you."
"Me?" She raised her hand against her heart in false surprise. "I have always been there for you."
"Like the time mom almost died and I couldn't get a hold of anyone?" Dawn burst out. Her outburst caused the group to go silent.
"Joyce almost died?" Hank asked quietly. Dawn nodded.
"I tried calling you," she told him, her eyes starting to tear as she thought back to that horrible time. She turned to her grandparents. "I tried calling you too. I tried calling everybody. I was all alone and none of my family answered my calls."
"What about Buffy?" Hank asked. Dawn wiped at her eyes.
"Buffy was busy," she said stiffly, "but at least I knew that. I knew what she was doing was important. And as soon as she was done she came to me. They all did." She turned back to her grandmother. "This cult we have here. It's called a family, though I understand why you'd be confused."
"Dawn!" Hank warned, but instead of backing down he got the brunt of her anger.
"No! You don't get to come here and tell us what is wrong with our lives. You lost that right when you abandoned us."
"Dawn," Nancy tried to break in, but Dawn was on a roll now.
"For years and years you didn't give us the slightest thought. You haven't got the slightest clue what we've been through. You were gone when I needed you the most. When Buffy did. You don't get the right to waltz back in here and have everything forgiven. You haven't earned it." Hank sighed.
"You're right," he said quietly. "I haven't earned any forgiveness, especially from you." He glanced out the window at the lightening sky. "Is it safe to leave?"
"Yes, but wait," Dawn said as the fight drained out of her. He turned to her.
"You're right Dawn. I need to earn my place in your lives." He walked to the door with Dawn following right behind him.
"I didn't mean it like that," she said. "I didn't mean you needed to leave. You just need to give me space and time to cool down."
"No Dawn. I don't belong here." The door opened unexpectedly just as he turned to leave.
"I heard shouting," Joyce said as she stared in shock at the man standing a few inches from her.
"Joyce," he whispered, taking a few steps back. Dawn looked around him at her mother, who had the same look of shock on her face.
"Hey Mom," she greeted awkwardly. "Guess who stopped in for a surprise visit. Surprise." Joyce looked from face to face as Giles joined them in the hallway.
"Joyce," Hank whispered again before looking behind her. "Where's Buffy?"
"In the car," she said, looking to Giles. "I finally got her to sleep."
"I'll go get her," he said quickly. He almost ran out of the room. He was quick, but she still noticed the faint outlines of weapons underneath his jacket. She turned back to Dawn.
"What's going on?" she asked. Dawn sighed heavily.
"A lot," she said as she led her mother back into the living room. Hank followed uncertainly behind them. "Oh, by the way, dad knows."
"What?" Joyce asked.
"He and aunt Nancy kinda saw Spike in full game face mode," Dawn explained. "Giles talked to them about it, but I'm not sure how far it got."
"Unfortunately not very far," Giles said as he entered the room again. Buffy was cradled in his arms, looking around sleepily. Joyce sighed in frustration.
"What part of 'I finally got her to sleep' did you not understand?" she asked as she took back Buffy. She sat down on the couch, cradling her daughter against her as she tried frantically to get Buffy back to sleep. Buffy, for her part, was trying her hardest to stay awake.
"I am sorry," Giles apologized, "but time was of the essence. We are in the middle of a situation here." He was staring at Buffy in concern as she struggled to keep her eyes open.
"With Hank?" Joyce guessed. Giles sighed and moved so they could both see the man in question.
"Oh God!" Hank paled once he got his first good look at Buffy. "Oh God. Oh God." He kept repeating over and over as he backed himself into a corner, his arms circling his body as he started rocking in place.
"Hank!" Nancy came in, drawn by her brother's frantic pleas. She stopped dead at the first sight of her niece. Buffy kept looking around for the source of the new sounds she was hearing.
"It's okay," Dawn hurriedly assured them, glancing between them and Buffy. She frowned when she finally took in Buffy's gaunt form. "I take it this weekend wasn't the stress free time you hoped it would be?" she asked her mom. Joyce merely glared at her.
"Dawn," she warned and Dawn sighed before turning back to her family.
"Okay, so I know she doesn't look that good right now, but she's okay. You can stop freaking out, or at least freak out somewhere else so that mom can get Buffy to sleep. Okay?" Nancy nodded and together they managed to get Hank out of the room. Once they were gone Joyce turned to Giles.
"Tell me that's all I missed." Giles rubbed his eyes.
"I wish I could," he admitted, "but as tragic as a surprise visit from your in-laws is, it is the least of our concerns." He was about to say more when her mother in law came around the corner.
"Joyce? I thought I heard your voice. Now perhaps my son can finish this foolishness he insists on and we can…" She stopped cold when she saw them.
"Irene." Joyce forced a smile onto her face.
"Oh God," Irene asked, the haughty mask she usually wore fell away at the sight of her grandchild. She rushed over, all but pushing Giles out of the way as she knelt next to the couch. "What happened?" She raised her hand to touch Buffy, but then seemed to think better of it. Instead she put her hand comfortingly on Joyce's shoulder.
"A series of bad days," Joyce told her.
"Is there anything I can do?" Irene asked. In that moment she was transformed from the haughty bitch to the kind, caring woman Joyce knew she could be. Sadly, Joyce shook her head.
"I just need some peace and quiet to get Buffy to sleep," she said. "Why don't you go have some breakfast. I'll join you soon." Irene nodded, and gave Joyce's shoulder a squeeze as she slowly got to her feet. She shot Giles a death glare as she left, but he simply smiled at her. Once she was gone she turned to Giles. "She really isn't too bad once you get to know her."
"I'll take your word for it," he said as he came back over to the couch.
"She takes family very seriously," she continued, "and she has a very traditional view of marriage. She was quite opposed to Hank and I divorcing. She believes a stable family was more important for the children then having either one of us happy. When we were officially divorced, she offered to let us stay with them until I got back on my feet, but I brought the girls here instead. She's never been able to get over that."
"Well she certainly hides her concern well," Giles guffed. "If I didn't know any better I would have sworn she was from the Council with her lack of human emotion." Joyce smiled before turning serious.
"Now what's going on?"
The mood was definitely strained in the dining room. Andrew had made another excellent breakfast, but none of their guests seemed to have much of an appetite. After about an hour the sun had fully risen. The crystals finally were clear. Dawn and the Scoobies rushed to go about their day, taking Willow and Andrew with them to the stores when they left. Wesley, Gunn, and Fred retreated to Giles's place where they could unwind and talk amongst themselves. Joyce spent most of the morning with Buffy, trying to get her to sleep. Eventually Giles took over and Joyce went into the kitchen for some breakfast.
"What happened to her?" Nancy asked. The family was gathered around the island, unnaturally quiet and watching the living room intently. Joyce sighed and reached for a cup of coffee.
"What didn't," she said quietly as she sipped the bitter brew. She picked up the plate Andrew had left for her and popped it in the microwave to warm it up. As it was warming she looked at the concerned faces of her family. "Do you remember hearing about a prostitution ring in New York City that was broken up about a year ago?"
"Oh God," Nancy exclaimed, putting her hands over her mouth. "She wasn't."
"She was," Joyce confirmed. She glanced over at Hank, but he was rocking back and forth, staring down at his hands. The chirping of the microwave caused all of them to jump. Joyce moved to get her breakfast.
"She couldn't have been mixed up in that unholiness," Irene insisted. "She was here with you all this time."
"No she wasn't," Joyce corrected her as she started to eat. She put down her fork as she looked at her ex-husband. "She went missing about four years ago. The police detectives think she was abducted by The Ring around that time and forced to perform for them."
"Perform?" Irene asked before her eyes widened. "Why didn't you tell us any of this before?"
"When?" Joyce asked angrily. "You made it perfectly clear you wanted nothing more to do with me when I made the decision to come here. You tried with the girls for a bit, but you haven't spoken to either of them for over five years. And you think you were going to be the first ones I called when she didn't come home that night?"
"Joyce," Hank interrupted her quietly. She turned to face the man she once loved, only to find him cowering in the corner like a wild animal. "When she didn't come home. Was it different?" She paused for a moment, trying to make out what he was asking her. Finally, she nodded her head. He lowered his. "I'm sorry," he told her.
"There was nothing you could do," she said, reaching out to put her hand on his arm. He flinched slightly, then allowed the contact. She held it there for a few minutes before retracting and eating again.
"Is there anything we can do?" Nancy asked. Joyce shook her head.
"I have all the help I need," she told them. They looked up as Buffy wheeled herself in. Nancy gasped as Irene choked back a sob. "Buffy?" Joyce asked, rushing from the island to kneel in front of her daughter. Buffy opened and closed her mouth a few times before simply pointing to the refrigerator. "Are you hungry?" Joyce asked. Buffy nodded. "Let's see if I can find you something." Buffy nodded as she followed her mother around the kitchen, stopping when she saw the new arrivals. They stared at her in shock and she stared right back. "Here you go," Joyce said as she grabbed a yogurt from the fridge and tore the top off. She grabbed a spoon and knelt next to Buffy's wheelchair. "Open up." Buffy opened her mouth and ate the spoonful of yogurt Joyce fed her.
"Oh God," Stephen whispered as the family watched the scene in shock. Buffy turned to stare at him curiously.
"Buffy," Joyce admonished when Buffy's attention shifted from her breakfast to the strangers. She looked to her mother and opened her mouth for another spoonful. As she slowly ate she turned to watch them again. "Do you remember your grandparents? Or your Aunt Nancy?" she asked between bites. Buffy stared at them for a few minutes before shaking her head. "What about your father?" Joyce asked quietly. Buffy simply shook her head. "That's okay. They remember you. They came to see how you were doing."
"What happened to her?" Hank asked as he stared at her intently. Buffy stared right back, to the point where everything else disappeared.
"She was injured," Joyce said as she tried to get Buffy's attention again. When she finally succeeded Buffy glanced at her for a minute before turning her attention back to Hank. Joyce sighed and stood up, eating the spoonful of yogurt herself. "She was in a coma for seven months. She has several psychological and physical problems we are slowly overcoming from her experience. She's also paralyzed from the waist down."
"You've been handling this all on your own?" Nancy asked. "You could have called."
"You could've as well," Joyce countered. "Besides I'm not by myself. I'm sure you've met everyone if you've been here more than a few minutes."
"Children themselves," Irene dismissed. "You need family during these troubled times."
"They are hardly children anymore," she said tersely, "and they are more family than you are."
"Joyce," Hank whispered, his eyes never leaving his daughter. "Are the kids hers?"
"No," she said defensively. "They are mine. I adopted them."
"Joyce," Irene said, but stopped when Buffy suddenly turned her head to the side. A few minutes later she was wheeling herself out of the kitchen. "Clearly you need help," Irene continued. "She looks like a famine victim."
"She's just having a few bad days," Joyce said, plopping down on a chair and finishing her cold again breakfast. "She's been having nightmares which means she hasn't been sleeping which is throwing everything off. She just needs a bit of time."
"She needs more than time from what I'm seeing," Irene insisted. Joyce sighed and opened her mouth to respond when Giles stumbled into the kitchen yawning loudly.
"Excuse me," he said when he finished yawning. "Long night," he explained as he put some water to boil for tea. "Did Buffy come in here? I got her to sleep then must have dozed myself."
"She just left," Joyce said as she rinsed her plate in the sink. "I thought she was going to find you."
"Perhaps we just missed each other," he said as he grabbed cups and teabags from the cupboards.
"It's not like there's anyone else she would go to in the house right now," Joyce continued. Giles nodded then froze. "Rupert?"
"Ethan," he hissed. He stood quickly, Joyce following him out of the room.
"He's still here?" she asked as they quickly headed to the library. "The whole point of going to L.A. was to get him out of the house.
"Something came up," he said as he quickly scanned the library. "He was just here."
"Where would he go?" she asked. He thought for a minute.
"He was very interested in the children." Joyce growled and led the way up the stairs to the nursery. The twins were sleeping contentedly in their cribs. She smiled softly at them before stepping back into the hallway.
"Any other ideas?" Giles shook his head before cocking it to one side.
"Listen," he said quietly. She did and heard the faint sound of someone reading out loud. They looked at each other before approaching Buffy's bedroom. They opened the door quietly, only to be shushed by the figure on the bed.
"And so they lived happily ever after. The end." Ethan looked down at the girl in his arms and smiled. He shifted her carefully so he could crawl out of bed without waking her. Joyce blinked at the sight, but didn't make any sound as Ethan carefully put the book of fairytales on the bedside table before joining them in the hall. He checked on the twins quickly before turning to Giles. "We still have work to do Ripper," he said as he passed them and headed downstairs.
"How?" Giles managed to get out before following him. Joyce took a minute to check on her daughter before joining them in the library. "If you did anything to her Ethan."
"I told you," Ethan smirked at them. "I like your girl. I'd never do anything to hurt her." He picked up a book and started reading. "Now I believe we were trying to find a way to save your vampire."
"Right," Giles said as he took his seat at the table. Joyce just glared at Ethan.
"If I find out you hurt her in any way you'll wish you were still locked in that cage," she promised. Ethan smiled. Joyce rolled her eyes. "I'll be with Buffy. The nightmares usually start within a few minutes."