Thanks for the reviews. They always make my day. As for everybody's reactions, I think they have all been doing this so long that they take their cues from their parents, Joyce and Giles in this case. They're not worried unless their parents are worried. And since Joyce and Giles got their worry out of the way last chapter, and are definitely in clean up mode when the kids get back, the kids are also in clean up mode. I'm sure that everyone went to check on Buffy at some point when they heard of the attack, but it's mundane enough to not make the cut in my book. It's background noise, just like the in-laws reactions. And speaking of the in-laws. They're back!
Enough ramblings. Let's get this chapter started.
Warnings and disclaimer in Chapter 1. Enjoy.
"Joyce?" Joyce looked up as Irene timidly stood in the doorway to their hospital room. Joyce waved her in. "Nancy told me there was an attack," she said as she looked around the room, her curiosity getting the better of her. Joyce nodded as she turned back to the bed. She was in the middle of changing the linens when her thoughts drifted. "Is Buffy okay?" Irene asked as she stepped up and grabbed hold of the fresh sheets. Joyce looked up, startled. Irene smiled and between the two of them they soon had the bed made.
"She's fine," Joyce said as she gathered up the soiled linens. She placed them in a basket but made no move to take them out of the room. "She's upstairs in her room," Joyce told her as she tidied up the room.
"What happened?" she asked as she held a bag for the trash Joyce was picking up. She looked up abruptly when she saw the remnants of IV and blood bags. Joyce sighed.
"Buffy doesn't do hospitals very well," she explained as she grabbed the bag and cinched it up tight. "Ben, our family physician, helped us set up this room. He comes here whenever Buffy needs medical attention." A little simplified, but Joyce thought she explained the room quite well.
"The benefits of a small town," Irene agreed. Joyce took the bag outside to the dumpster, surprised when Irene followed them. "What happened?" she asked again.
"It was an animal attack," Joyce said, giving her the same excuse she had heard so many times since moving here. "Buffy was outside enjoying the sunshine when it attacked. I rushed out and scared it away."
"And the door?" Irene asked, her eyebrow cocked.
"The door was sticking," Joyce answered honestly. "You know how it is. When your child is in danger nothing will stand in your way." Irene nodded. Joyce turned to go back into the house when Irene grabbed her arm. Joyce stopped and turned, regarding her cautiously. "Was there something else?" she asked quietly.
"Yes," Irene said, letting go of Joyce and taking a few steps away from the house. Joyce followed her. "I want to apologize for my behavior," she said, once she was sure she wouldn't be overheard. "I'm sure Dawn will tell you how judgmental and disproving I was, if she hasn't already. I just never expected your life to be so rich and full. And I realized I could have been a part of it and chose not to. I was angry and disappointed, mostly at myself, but I took it out on all of you. I'm sorry."
"But," Joyce said tiredly. Irene looked down for a minute before looking her in the eye.
"But are you sure you haven't bitten off more than you can chew?" she asked. "I mean it's noble, looking after a stranger's children, but are you really sure it's the best for you? For them? Especially considering the situation you find yourself in with Buffy? She needs her mother right now."
"Buffy's situation?" Joyce laughed hysterically. She took a few steps away before turning back. "You have no idea what Buffy's situation is. You only see what you want to see." She stormed back, stopping just a few inches from her former mother-in-law. "I will take care of Buffy. I will take care of the twins."
"You need help," Irene argued.
"I have help," Joyce countered. "It's called a family. And unfortunately, you choose not to be part of it." Joyce returned to the house, Irene reluctantly following her. She saw Stephen, Hank, and Nancy watching from the living room and angrily rushed past.
"Oof." She looked up to find that she had run into Andrew.
"I'm sorry," she said, quickly backing up a few steps. She took a deep breath to control her anger.
"That's okay," Andrew grinned, oblivious to her bad mood. Joyce smiled fondly at him.
"Was there something you needed?" she asked. His optimistic attitude had mostly chased her anger away.
"I was going to tell you dinner will be ready in five minutes," he said. "Per your request, I prepared some broth for Buffy."
"Thank you Andrew," she said. He stood there watching her. "Was there something else?"
"Yes," he said, handing her one of the baby monitors. "She's starting to stir."
"Thank you," she said. He bowed and made his way to the living room to announce dinner. She took the monitor and turned the volume all the way up as she made her way to the stairs. She could hear the rustle of blankets being moved and quickened her pace. "Buffy?" she said quietly as she approached the door to her room. She approached the bed, noticing Buffy's eyes moving quickly underneath her eyelids. "You're having a nightmare," she said, reaching out to touch Buffy's shoulder. The light touch was enough to wake up her daughter. Buffy opened her eyes and looked around in confusion before focusing on her mother. "It's okay. I'm here."
Buffy raised her hand to her neck, her fingers brushing against the bandages. Joyce let her explore her wound for a few minutes before grabbing her hand. "You're okay," she said, smiling brightly at her daughter. A few minutes later Buffy returned the smile weakly. Satisfied, Joyce stood up and began rummaging through Buffy's closet. She picked out a cute blouse then turned back to her daughter. "I'm sure it's not what you would have picked, but I don't think you want to go down to dinner wearing a hospital gown."
Buffy looked down at herself before letting Joyce change her clothes. Once she was done she moved Buffy to her chair and wheeled her down to the dining room. The others were already gathered and to her surprise they were waiting for her. She nodded to her in-laws as she pushed Buffy to her usual spot at the head of the table.
"Anya took the twins," Giles told her when she looked for them. "She didn't think there would be enough room for everyone."
"She's probably right," Joyce said. While the table was normally large enough for their extended family, their spots were taken by Hank and his family. This wasn't a problem, except they also had Ethan and for some reason Fred with them as well.
"I can leave if you need me to," Fred offered. "I was just talking with Mr. Giles and have to admit the thought of a home cooked meal was too tempting to pass up."
"That's okay," Joyce said. "We can scrunch."
"Dinner is served," Andrew announced as he brought a plate of ravioli in from the other room. Dawn went to help him and soon the entire meal was on the table.
"Aren't you joining us?" Dawn asked when Andrew bowed and turned to leave.
"I would but Anya invited me over for a movie night," he said proudly. "We're gonna watch that new Meg Ryan film."
"Have fun," Joyce called out as he left. Everyone began dishing up their plates except Joyce, who focused on the bowl of broth Andrew had left near her. "You need to eat something Buffy," she said as she picked up a spoon and dunked it in the broth. Buffy tried to turn her head, but Joyce grabbed her chin and forced her to look at her. "Buffy!" she said warningly. Buffy reluctantly opened her mouth and Joyce thrust the spoon in. She tipped the spoon and unloaded the broth. Buffy swallowed instinctively, but was able to spit out most of the broth when Joyce removed the spoon. "Buffy!" Joyce exclaimed as she grabbed a rag and began cleaning up her daughter. Buffy took advantage of the situation and looked around the table, her gaze landing on Ethan.
"She is still quite fixated on me," Ethan remarked. Joyce rolled her eyes before loading up the spoon again. She moved Buffy's head again and forced the spoon back in. This time she held her hand over her mouth as she withdrew the spoon.
"Swallow," she ordered. Buffy tried to shake free, but she was still too weak to break Joyce's grip. After a few minutes she swallowed. Joyce moved her hand. "You have to start eating or Ben will have to put you back into the hospital," Joyce told her as she prepared another spoonful. "You don't want to go back do you?" Buffy shook her head. She reluctantly let another spoonful in, but it still took a few minutes of Joyce's coaxing before she swallowed. Giles turned to Ethan as Joyce cleaned up the broth that trickled from her mouth.
"I don't suppose you have any idea why she's acting this way?" he accused. Joyce looked up at the question and realized nobody was eating. They were all watching her.
"No idea," Ethan whispered, his eyes never leaving the two of them. Joyce looked pointedly at Dawn, who quickly got the message and started her own dinner. The others followed suit. Joyce looked back at Buffy. She picked up the spoon again, but Buffy still was fighting her. Fifteen minutes later she had managed only three more spoons of broth and Joyce was getting more and more frustrated.
"Buffy!" Hank snapped in annoyance. "Do as your mother tells you." Her reaction was instantaneous and not what anyone expected. She froze completely, every muscle seizing up. She looked to him with pure terror on her face.
"Buffy?" Joyce asked, her annoyance out the window at this latest development. Buffy's eyes quickly darted her way before focusing on Hank again. Slowly her body began to tremble, until violent shivers were racking her slim frame. Everyone looked between Hank and Buffy as they slowly overcame their shock. Ethan was the first one up. He pulled Hank to his feet, pulled his right arm forward, and pushed his long sleeve up.
"Interesting tattoo," he said as he moved enough for Giles to see it. "I have a similar one myself." He rolled his sleeve up until his tattoo was showing. Giles and Joyce looked between the two men, understanding showing on their faces.
"Hank!" Joyce ordered, her voice seething with anger. "Downstairs now!" She left the table, not even bothering to check to see if he was following her. He silently rocked back and forth for a moment before following. As soon as he was gone Giles moved over to Buffy.
"Buffy?" he reached out slowly, watching carefully for any sign she was uncomfortable with him. He gently took her hand in his. She tensed at the contact, but didn't pull away and neither did he. "It's okay. You're safe," he repeated over and over again. They could hear raised voices coming from the basement as the argument escalated. Giles reached over and shifted Buffy's head until she was looking at him. As soon as she recognized him she flung herself into his arms. Her shaking hadn't stopped, and the argument downstairs was getting more and more heated. He made a quick decision and hoisted Buffy into his arms. "I'm taking her to her room," he told Dawn. She nodded and started picking at her food again as he quickly left the room. Twenty minutes later a fuming Joyce rejoined them. She stopped at the table, glaring at Ethan, before realizing they were missing.
"He took her up," Dawn said as she ate.
"Of course," Joyce said angrily. She turned to head upstairs when Dawn reached out and grabbed her arm.
"Mom," she started, looking up at her. "You need to calm down. You know Buffy can always tell your moods."
"Right." Joyce took a few deep breathes before returning to her chair. She finally dished herself some food, not even noticing how it was starting to turn cold. Dawn watched her carefully as she started to eat.
"Giles will sort her out," Dawn tried to reassure her. "He always does."
"It should be me," she whined, her anger disappearing as she talked to Dawn.
"She's growing up," Dawn said gently. Joyce laughed until Hank rejoined them. She glared at him, but he uncharacteristically remained passive, head bowed as he slowly finished his dinner.
"I'll leave," he said as he pushed his clean plate away. Joyce shook her head, her anger warring with her common sense. Common sense won, but not by much.
"No," she told him harshly. "It's dark and not safe." He nodded.
"Then I'll leave in the morning," he said. Joyce nodded her head.
"Don't come back," she said as she strode from the room. Dawn followed her.
"Where are you going?" she asked as Joyce grabbed her coat. "Are you going to do something stupid?"
"No sweetie," she said, pulling Dawn close. Dawn wrapped her arms around her mother for a quick hug, trying to get her calmer. "I'm just going to go crash movie night. I need to see the twins."
"Drusilla is still out there," Dawn reminded her. "She can get past the property line. She can attack anyone who leaves this house."
"I'd love to see her try," Joyce said darkly. Dawn sighed. She glanced at the crystals, both of which were still clear.
"Promise me you'll be careful," she said, temporarily flopping their roles. "If you don't think it's safe it's okay to spend the night there. Giles and I can handle everything here."
"Dawn," Joyce sounded exasperated. "Who's the mother here?"
"That's kinda what I'm asking myself," she grinned. Joyce returned the smile before becoming serious.
"I just need to get away before I do something I'll regret," Joyce told her. Dawn nodded.
"From Hank," she said. Joyce looked at her tenderly.
"We'll talk later," she promised.
"I'll hold you to that," she said as she walked her mother to the door. Dawn flipped on the lights then frowned and hit a second switch. The small porch light was drowned out as powerful spotlights lit up the entire front area. Minutes later the spotlights flipped on from Xander's house and soon after Willow's house. The effect had the whole area as brightly lit up as the noonday sun.
"A bit of overkill don't you think?" Joyce said as she opened the door and stepped out.
"So sue me," she said. Joyce reached out and gently cupped her chin before she started the trek across the yard. Xander saw where she was heading and opened the door, standing on the porch with a crossbow loaded and ready to go. She could see Willow and Tara looking out of their window, but that didn't explain the sense she had that something evil was watching her. Shivering, she sped up, barely acknowledging Xander as she passed the threshold. He waited long enough to watch Dawn close her door before following Joyce in. Seconds later the spotlights were turned off, nearly simultaneously. Dawn returned to the dining room only to find everyone's eyes on her. She realized they must have seen the spotlights and gotten curious. "We really don't like the dark," she said simply as she sat down. She had really lost her appetite but realized nobody had eaten much and hoped they would follow her lead. It worked, kind of. After about ten minutes she realized everybody, including her, was just pushing their food around their plates. "I guess everyone is done with dinner," she said as she stood up.
"Let us worry about the cleanup," Ethan offered. She gazed at him evenly. She knew none of the original Scoobies trusted him, Giles especially so, but he was being so charming. She nodded reluctantly.
"I've got homework still anyway," she said. She glanced at her grandparents, who had surprised her and offered to help clean up, then back to her father. Hank was still at the table, oblivious to everything around him, his eyes focused on Buffy's wheelchair. "I better take that up," she said, moving the chair and breaking him out of his trance.
"I'm so sorry Dawn," he told her. "So sorry." Her eyes narrowed suspiciously, but she simply nodded and pushed the empty chair away. She stopped at the library and grabbed the books she needed to read for English class before she pushed the chair over to the lift. A few seconds later she was on the second floor and approaching Buffy's room.
"Giles?" she called out quietly.
"Dawn," he responded quietly. He had Buffy against his chest, his arms wrapped protectively around her as they lay on the bed, their legs entangled. It looked like he was trying to cocoon her body with his. But it was working. Her shudders were becoming less and less pronounced.
"Mom went over to Xander's," Dawn told him quietly as she pushed the wheelchair to its usual place next to the bed. He looked up at her and she couldn't help the gasp that passed her lips at the fear in his eyes. Their normally stoic father figure looked absolutely terrified.
"Everyone else?" he asked her as he looked back at Buffy.
"Don't know," she said abruptly, "don't care. They're leaving in the morning."
"They're your family, Dawn," Giles told her gently. She huffed.
"You're my family," she countered, stepping up and putting a hand on his shoulder. He looked up and gave her a small, reassuring smile. He placed his hand over hers, holding it gently for a minute before pulling away. He refocused on Buffy while Dawn began putting her books on the dresser before pulling an oversized chair next to the bed.
"What are you doing?" he asked as she pulled out a spare pillow and blanket from the closet and started making herself comfortable.
"I still have some reading to do," she explained as she sat down, pulling her legs underneath her. She pulled the blanket around her and got comfortable. "I figure I can read here as well as anywhere else." Once she was settled she looked at Giles, who was watching her tenderly. She was happy to see some of the fear had left his eyes.
"Thank you," he told her quietly. She nodded.
"I'm here for both of you," she told him. He smiled as he refocused on the still trembling girl in his arms. Dawn watched for a minute before opening her history book.