Wow. I didn't realize lunch could be so confusing. Just to be clear, it is lunch time, noonish, a time when crazy vampires shouldn't be able to wander around and everybody should be safe.
Warnings and disclaimer in Chapter one. Enjoy.
"Buffy?" Spike quickly stepped over to the door which Giles and Joyce still could not open. Without thinking he simply raised his foot and bashed it in. Whatever magic was keeping them trapped inside broke. He gathered Buffy to his chest and stepped across the threshold.
"Spike," Giles held out his arms. "Give her to me." He moved to hand her over when her head rolled and her bloody neck was bared. He sniffed deeply, his eyes gleaming for a moment as he lowered his head to her neck.
"Spike!" Joyce ordered in her best Mom voice. A few seconds later he lifted his head. His whole body was shaking as he handed her over to her Watcher.
"You'll need to call the Doc," he told him as Giles cleared the counter with a swipe of his hand and laid her on it. "I stopped the deep bleeding from Dru's fangs, but can't do anything about the tears on her throat unless you want me nuzzling her until he gets here."
"No!" Giles said abruptly, already applying pressure with a hand towel that was nearby. Joyce already was on the phone with Ben. She hung up just as Spike turned to her.
"You need to stake me pet," he said as he advanced on her. "I can't control myself. I want nothing more than to shag her or suck her dry right now. None of which would be good for her. Promise me luv."
"Spike," she said, deliberately putting down the wooden spoon she grabbed. "I promise I will stake you if you can't control yourself." He nodded, opening his shirt to make it easy for her. "But you just proved to me you can."
"But I can't," he argued, picking up the spoon and putting it back in her hands. "I want to turn her so badly right now. I want to eat you so badly, just because you have her scent. You, Niblet, the kids. I don't trust myself right now."
"Then trust me," she said, putting the spoon down again. Spike nodded before stiffening. He smiled as he fell toward her. She caught him instinctively before noticing the tranq darts in his back. Looking back, she saw Gunn and Wesley each lower a rifle. Fred was already making her way toward Buffy. Giles looked up when he saw her out of the corner of his eye.
"She needs blood," he said, stating the obvious but too shocked to notice.
"Do you have any?" Fred asked as she peeled away the towel to get her first look at the wound. Giles nodded his head.
"Yes," he said as he lifted the frail girl into his arms and headed out of the kitchen. Fred followed him, leaving Joyce with the others.
"Should we stake him?" Gunn asked, frowning at the thought. Joyce shook her head.
"Let's put him back in the basement," Wesley suggested. Gunn nodded and hoisted the vampire over his shoulder. "Sshhh. It's okay," Wesley cooed as he picked up Billy from his highchair. The baby quieted immediately and Joyce realized that the twins were screaming the entire time. She reached over for Alex. Nancy immediately passed her over. As soon as she was in Joyce's arms she quieted. "I'm sorry it took us so long to get over here," Wesley told her. "We watched everything unfold, but no matter what we tried we couldn't get out of the house."
"Until Spike broke the doors down," she added. Wesley nodded. She glanced at the back yard. The unnatural cloud cover was gone, leaving the area bathed in sunshine. She handed Alex to Wesley, who quickly adjusted his grip on Billy in order to hold both of them. She grabbed the wooden spoon again and hesitantly stepped to the door. Taking a deep breath, she slowly stepped through the hole Spike had left. She took a few more steps until she was in the center of the porch. Gripping the spoon tightly she spun around, trying to see any sign of the crazy vampire. Convinced it was safe for the moment, she returned inside. She took Alex back, hugging the girl tightly. Everyone jumped when the doorbell rang unexpectedly. Joyce quickly rushed to answer it when she saw Ben and Abby on the other side.
"We brought everything we thought we might need," he said as he carried several cardboard boxes through the doorway. Abby greeted them as she raced in.
"Bedroom or hospital room?" she asked as she grabbed the various blood packets and got them ready.
"Hospital," Joyce said. Abby nodded and sped out of the hallway.
"What happened?" Ben asked. Joyce shuddered.
"Vampire," she said in a quiet voice.
"In the middle of the day?" he asked. He studied her intently when she didn't answer right away. "Sit down before you fall down," he told her, recognizing the signs of shock. He looked up when Wesley entered the hallway. "Make sure she drinks something," he told him, waiting only long enough for Wesley to nod before hurrying down the hallway. Wesley maneuvered Joyce into the living room, sitting her down on the couch before handing her a bottle of water. He noticed the others in the kitchen slowly follow them in, then glanced up when Ethan groaned.
"Did anyone get the number of that bus?" he joked as he pulled himself to a sitting position. He then paled as he remembered what happened. He moved to get up, but only succeeded in rising about halfway before he collapsed again, his hands cradling his head.
"It's okay," Wesley came over and put a steadying hand on his shoulder. After a few minutes he helped Ethan into a sitting position.
"Is Buffy?" he asked, holding his head again.
"She's with Giles," Wesley told him.
"Did you do this Ethan?" Joyce asked in a deadly tone.
"If I did, do you think I would have given myself a concussion trying to undo it?" he asked. "I would have been on the other side of the bloody barrier." He gingerly felt around his head at the bump he knew he would be getting. "How many times do I have to say this. I like your girl. I'm not here to hurt her." Joyce simply turned her head. Wesley pointed to the bottle of water she held loosely in her hand. She took a dutiful sip. Eventually Giles numbly joined them in the living room.
"Rupert?" she asked. He had blood on his hands and shirt and he stared at it for a moment before focusing on Joyce.
"She's unconscious," he told her. "She lost a lot of blood. Thankfully we were able to replenish some right away, and Ben and Abby brought more when they came. They're tending to her now. Fred is assisting."
"When can I see her?" Joyce asked.
"Ben said he would come out and talk to us as soon as he can," Giles told her. She nodded and began sipping the water again as Gunn entered the room.
"We have a problem," he said, speaking mainly to Wesley but loud enough that the whole group heard.
"With Spike?" Wesley asked as he put the baby on the ground. Billy had cried himself to sleep. Joyce passed off Alex to Nancy who lowered herself until she was sitting next to Billy. Ethan forced himself to stand, swaying slightly at the change of elevation, before joining the group as they headed downstairs.
"Not with Spike," Gunn said cryptically. "He's secured. I just am not sure how he got unsecured to begin with." He led them to the basement. The first thing they noticed was Spike chained up in the corner, still unconscious.
"Why isn't he in the cell?" Giles asked.
"That's a good question," Gunn said as he moved over to the cell door. "A better one is how he got out." He pulled on the door, which was still locked.
"What?" Giles asked as he moved forward to examine the cell. The chains Spike wore were still inside the cell, the manacles firmly locked around wrists they no longer contained.
"Magic," Ethan said calmly holding his hands over the bars.
"That's the only explanation that makes sense," Gunn said, obviously giving this more thought than the others. "If he broke out we would see some sign of damage, but there's nothing. I think the same spell that kept us inside the houses took him outside."
"This isn't the work of a coven," Ethan said as she studied the room. "I can track this."
"Do it," Giles said as he headed toward the far wall. The keys to both the cell and the chains were dangling on the hook, right where he left them.
"Is that how Buffy got out?" Joyce asked as he opened the door and together they moved the vampire back inside. "The door was still bolted, higher than she could reach, and the windows on the upper floor don't open enough for anyone to crawl out of, even if she could."
"It's highly possible," Wesley agreed as they finished securing the vampire. "Most likely the same person that blocked the sun enough to let Drusilla wonder around during the day. A terrifying thought."
"Why?" Joyce asked.
"Because it would take an exceptionally strong witch or warlock to do this," Giles told her. "Not only did they overcome nature, they overcame our own defenses." They closed the cell door once they were done and stood back as Ethan began chanting. Giles studied his former friend intently when suddenly a symbol started to glow on the back wall. He quickly opened his notebook to a blank page and drew the symbol. Ethan lowered his arms, then collapsed into the bars. Gunn and Wesley were there to pull him upright. "I suggest we take this back upstairs," Giles said, studying the symbol intently. They all nodded, returning to the living room just as Ben came looking for them.
"She's very lucky," he told them as they sat down. "She lost a lot of blood, which we are slowly replenishing. She needed thirty-seven stitches in her neck to repair the damage."
"Buffy was pulled away rather forcefully while Drusilla was feasting," Giles told him. Ben nodded.
"That would explain the damage. Luckily nothing vital was injured. She'll probably have a nasty scar on her neck, but hopefully that is the extent of the attack."
"Hopefully?" Joyce asked, catching onto his little slip. He sighed.
"She's still unconscious," he admitted. He raised his hands at their immediately worried look. "This is normal," he assured them. "Even if she was at full Slayer power I wouldn't expect her to bounce back from something like this within an hour. She's responding well to her treatments. Her pulse and blood pressure have stabilized and she's getting some color back. You know how she is. She'll wake up when she's ready."
"Does she need to go to the hospital?" Joyce asked. Ben sighed, thinking deeply. They both knew she hated hospitals, but at the same time if it was serious enough Joyce would admit her.
"Not yet," he said after a few minutes. "I'll stick around for a few hours and see how she does." Joyce nodded as Abby came out of the room.
"Did you want to take the extra supplies back Doctor?" she asked. Ben shook his head.
"Leave them here. I noticed they were starting to run low on gauze and sutures."
"The extra blood?" she asked.
"Leave it," he said. "Having blood on hand definitely saved her life. It might have been too late if they had to wait for us." She nodded, anticipating that response. Giles and Wesley took the boxes they brought and started putting the extra medical supplies away, ensuring everything that needed to be refrigerated or under lock and key was properly stored. Abby followed, making sure everything was safe and secure before excusing herself and leaving the house.
"Can I see her?" Joyce asked, even though it was technically her house. Ben nodded and led the way to the hospital room. Fred saw them coming in and quietly excused herself.
"I have her on a saline drip, antibiotic drip, and several blood drips," he explained unnecessarily.
"You put her in a gown," Joyce said as she reached over and grabbed a pale hand.
"Just her top," he told her. "We had to remove her shirt in order to access the wound." The two of them stood there in silence for a moment before Ben spoke. "How was L.A.?"
"The checkup went fine," she told him. "They were still waiting on test results when we came back. They said they would keep you informed every step of the way."
"They have," he confirmed. "The initial tests are very promising. But the hospital wasn't what I was talking about." Joyce sighed and closed her eyes before looking at him. "She was underweight before and now it looks like she has lost another five pounds at least."
"She hasn't been eating," Joyce admitted, looking at her unconscious daughter.
"Since when?" he demanded.
"A few days since your last checkup." Ben growled as he made a notation in his notebook.
"Any idea what brought this on?" he asked.
"Ethan," Giles answered from the doorway. The two turned, not realizing he had joined them. Giles pulled off his glasses and began polishing them. "Ethan showed up a day after her last checkup. Since then she hasn't been eating or sleeping. Joyce thought taking Buffy to L.A. would free her from him."
"Free her?" Ben asked. "Interesting choice of words."
"Ethan has admitted that he did some initial work for The Ring," Giles told him. "We think she might see him as a Master."
"And conditioned to obey," Ben finished the disturbing thought. "Has he done anything to support that thought?"
"Nothing," Giles told him. "He has done everything we have asked of him. He claims he's here to help."
"And you believe him?" Joyce asked evenly.
"At first no," he admitted, "but his behavior since has slowly been changing my mind." He turned to Joyce. "If I thought he had or would hurt Buffy I would have dealt with him before now."
"You'd go all Ripper on him?" Joyce asked.
"In a heartbeat." Giles smiled softly. After a minute Joyce responded in kind. They turned to look at Ben, who had been watching their interaction curiously.
"Taking her to L.A. didn't help, did it?" he asked after a few minutes of silence. Joyce shook her head.
"It almost made it worse," she admitted. "Before we left she kept trying to go to him. Once we left it's as if she realized she couldn't get to him and she almost shut down. I could barely get her to do anything. She wouldn't sleep. I couldn't get her to eat anything. I even tried tomato juice, but she just took a couple sips before ignoring it."
"And now that she's back?" he asked.
"I hoped that he would be gone by now and she would think he was never really here," Joyce admitted. "Other than that I don't know. We only got in this morning and haven't really spent any time with Ethan."
"That's not true," Giles said suddenly. "She went to him and he got her to sleep. For over five hours." Joyce closed her eyes at what he said.
"Maybe it's true?" she asked Giles, looking at him wishfully. "Maybe he's here to help?"
"Maybe," he admitted, unwilling to concede the point but unable to ignore the evidence.
"Well see if he can get her to eat something," Ben said, "because if she continues to lose weight I'll need to admit her and either force feed her or put the feeding tube back in. And I don't think she'll like either of those options." They nodded and Ben left the room, leaving the family together.