Okay, so I just got home from Synchro Nationals (figure skating) that was in Colorado Springs (our team came in 10th...which is about what we were expecting)...and I've just finished writing C34, so I'm passing C24 on to you all. Sorry it's taken me so long! I haven't really felt like writing, so every time I opened the document I just reread and tweaked what I had. It was very annoying. It would really help if I knew peeps were reading. Lol.

Chapter Twenty-four
The Power of Sleep

The morning found them tangled together under Buffy's sheets. Tom awoke first and it took him several moments to remember where he was. When it finally dawned on him, he stiffened—then forced himself to relax so as not to awaken the girl in his arms. She was dead weight there, telling him she was still out cold.

Moving slowly, he maneuvered himself out from under her, then rolled to his side and pushed up onto an elbow so that he could examine Buffy's lax face. It was well on its way to being completely healed, he realized. Most of the cuts had mended themselves and the bruise on her left cheek that had been livid the night before had faded to yellow and was only slightly visible. All in just a few hours.

"Amazing," he whispered as he reached out and pushed the fringe off her forehead. The cut there was not totally healed, but Tom could tell that it would be soon. She was truly remarkable!

Falling onto his back, Tom sighed and stared up at the ceiling. It was hard to believe that, in just ten days time, his life had been turned completely upside down. He glanced at the girl and frowned, his mind going to all the reasons why this could never work. She was, after all, not permanent here in his time. Eventually, she'd have to go back, leaving him alone. No one every stayed in his life. Nothing was permanent!

Angry now, Tom looked away from her, taking several deep breaths to calm himself. He wished he could hit something... hex someone, he corrected! And then he was angry that his first thought was to use physical violence. Was he not a wizard with unlimited power at his hands?

Frustrated, he sat up abruptly—then glanced at Buffy to make sure she'd not been disturbed. Seeing her still peacefully sleeping, he sighed—then smiled down at her. He could not help himself.

Sighing again, he forced himself to redirect his thoughts. He needed to stop being such a doe-eyed hormonal Muggle girl and remember that he was a powerful wizard who couldn't afford such frivolities. What would the Slytherins think of his behavior—and his summer dalliance with Buffy Summers? Part of him didn't care, but a larger part wished he could curse them all for thinking they could think anything about him.

This brought his mind to his wand—the true instrument of a wizard and his most treasured possession. He'd not thought about it once since he'd arrived at the Fairweather home and that infuriated him.

Getting up, Tom left Buffy's room to go find his bag.

~oOo~

Once outside Buffy's bedroom, Tom went up the stairs and peeked into the kitchen. Finding no one about, he entered and started up the steep kitchen stairway. At the top of those stairs, he looked into the room where the sisters had told him to put his belongings. They'd made a bed for him on the leather sofa—which he'd yet to use. Seeing his bags, he entered and went to them—belatedly seeing Sophie sitting on the outside terrace smoking.

When she noticed him, she grinned and waved at him, then put out her cigarette, opened to terrace door, and came inside.

"Tom! Sorry. Nasty habit," she said as she waved at the smoke and slid the door closed. "Is Buffy home?"

He nodded, then sent a glance at his bag. He didn't have any desire to converse with Sophie Fairweather at the moment, he just wanted to secure his wand—feel its magic—and then go back downstairs to Buffy.

"Is she all right?" the blonde asked.

Picking up his bag, Tom looked at the woman and nodded. "Yes. She's still sleeping," he evaded—but he didn't fool her.

"Oh. Hmm. What happened?"

"Happened?" he repeated.

She rolled her eyes. "Don't play games," she said.

Tom sighed. "She came home just before dawn...a bit worse for the wear."

Sophie frowned.

"But she looks fine now," he said quickly. "She is...a quick healer."

"Well yes. She's a Slayer," she said as if that explained it all.

It really did explain everything, but Tom was unaccustomed to seeing anyone heal so quickly—without the benefit of magic—and he'd hated seeing Buffy return home practically broken.

"You don't seem surprised," he said.

Sophie shrugged. "I've never met a Slayer before, but I know of their abilities. Sort of. I mean, being the sister of a Watcher..." She shrugged again as she let her words trail off. "Slayers are made for this."

Tom looked down. "It shocked me. I didn't expect her to come home looking as she did," he said quietly. "And I didn't expect to wake up to her looking almost normal again."

Sophie looked at him sympathetically. "Sounds like it was bad."

Tom stared back at the blonde. He had no words for what he'd seen. He'd never seen a girl beaten up so badly.

Sophie frowned. "Is she all right? Do we need to get a doctor?"

Tom shook his head—and used the Slayer's words. "She's fine."

"You're sure?"

Tom shrugged. "She looks to be. Besides, what would we tell a doctor about how she received her injuries?"

Sophie frowned. "Good question. I suppose we could call Edna and Rupert and have them bring someone in."

Tom shook his head. "Buffy would hate that."

"True," Sophie said.

"She really does look much better," Tom said

"Did you stay with her?"

Tom frowned, then gave the blonde a clipped nod. "She asked me to," he said in explanation.

Sophie nodded. "That's good. I'm glad she wasn't alone all night."

Tom snorted. "She's not been home long, Sophie," he said, looking up at the clock on the wall. It was just before eight o'clock. "Only about four hours."

Sophie glanced at it too, nodded, then cocked her head. "Mr Dumbledore will be here soon."

"Yes. I should probably wake Buffy," said Tom. "Professor Dumbledore will want to start right away. We'll need to take Buffy to Diagon Alley to purchase her school supplies." He frowned, wondering if Dumbledore would really allow him to accompany them today. He'd been asked to stay at Wools, which he hadn't done. Dumbledore knew he wouldn't though. But maybe the old man would request he stay behind.

Sophie nodded. "All right then. Go and check on our slayer," she said with a smile as she waved her hand dismissively. "The kettle's on in the kitchen, if you'd like some tea."

Tom nodded back and hurried back downstairs.

~oOo~

When Tom arrived back in Buffy's room, she hadn't stirred a bit. In fact, she appeared to have fallen into a deeper sleep than she had been in—if her breathing was anything to go on. Standing at her bedside, Tom watched her. Her mouth was slightly open, her front teeth showing—and her eyes twitching a bit. It looked like she was dreaming.

What was she dreaming about? Was it about home? She didn't talk about them much, but he knew she missed her family and friends. Did they miss her? Of course they did! Or, was she dreaming about that vampire she'd told him about? Angel. Tom hated that Angel fellow!

Shaking himself out of his musings about Buffy's dreams, Tom looked at the cut on her forehead. Had it healed more in the short time he'd been upstairs? Leaning over her, he studied it, then nodded. It had healed some more! He was sure of it. It was remarkable! She was remarkable!

Tom was still leaning over the girl when she groaned, then mumbled something unintelligible. Blinking, he straightened up and backed away—he didn't want her to think him a creep, which she would if she woke up to find him staring at her—then took his bag and went into her bathroom, his mind on showering before she woke up.

~oOo~

In the bathroom, Tom turned on the shower, then went to the same cupboard where he'd found a towel for Buffy a few hours ago and retrieved one for himself. There was a stack of them in there, he'd noticed—as if Vin and Sophie had a regular queue of homeless adolescents coming and going from their guest room—all white and extremely plush. Even at Hogwarts there weren't towels this nice—and certainly not at Wools. This made Tom wonder if magic was involved. He almost laughed out loud at the thought, because this was Vin and Sophie Fairweather! Of course there was magic involved! While he hadn't seen them using their magic, he could feel it in the very walls.

Frowning, because he'd allowed himself to become distracted again, Tom tossed the towel down, then stripped and got into the shower. The water was already hot, which was nice...as it never truly was at Wools. At Hogwarts he could have a nice hot shower, but he always had to share them with the other Slytherin boys. And, when he got out of them, the dungeons were chillingly cold, taking away any warmth he'd gained in the hot water.

Sighing, he quickly cleansed his body, then washed his hair—using Buffy's shampoo—then just stood under the stray. Showering here felt very different than using the communal showers at both Hogwarts and Wools. It was so private, even though Buffy was right there in the next room.

While standing there, he thought about the bathtub he'd been told was upstairs. He'd never used one—there wasn't one at Wools—but this was nice too.

After a time—longer than perhaps he should have taken—he reached out and turned off the water, then frowned at his towel that was across the room, wondering if he could summon it without his wand. If he could, would the Ministry know that he'd used magic? He was always so afraid to break the underage magic laws, but...he'd heard talk from some of the purebloods that they often used magic in their homes, under the supervision of their parents.

Of course, this wasn't his home and the sisters weren't his parents. It was a fact, but one that was easy to forget when they'd accepted him so freely. Holding up his hand, Tom focused on the towel, concentrating on his magic. At first nothing happened, causing him to consider giving up.

Glaring at the towel, Tom huffed—then curled his fingers and growled, then jerked his hand toward his body, which caused the towel to fly in his direction. Catching it, he grinned, his dark eyes flashing with victory.

While he dried off, Tom couldn't help the pleasure he felt at his success—until he realized he'd used magic outside of Hogwarts. Would he be punished for the infraction?

Sighing, Tom hung the wet towel up and dressed, putting on clean under clothing, then dressing in the clothing he usually wore when going to Hogwarts. It wasn't anything nice, but it was better than his Wools attire. It would have to do.

~oOo~

Back in Buffy's room, Tom could see that she was stirring—her position had definitely changed—and that the cut on her forehead was hardly visible, the yellowed bruise now completely gone. The word remarkable came to mind again, but this was something even more. Tom was astounded by the healing power of a slayer.

While he stared at her, she opened her eyes and smiled at him. "Hey," she said sleepily.

"Good morning."

Yawning, she squirmed and stretched while still lying down, then smirked at him. "You were watching me sleep." It was a statement, not a question—it was so obvious he'd been watching her.

Feeling embarrassed, Tom ran a hand through his hair. He had towel-dried it, so it wasn't dripping, but it was still quite wet. "No!" he denied automatically—then, "Well yes, a bit." He glanced away to compose himself.

Buffy grinned. "Am I pretty again?" she asked.

Tom snorted and looked back at her. "I believe we've already covered this," he said, refusing to repeat what he'd said about her looks.

"Just checking. Didn't want to go upstairs and have Vin and Sophie totally freak out on me," she said. "I see you've showered."

Tom nodded. "I thought I would while you were still asleep. I hope you don't mind that I used your shower."

Buffy shook her head. "Of course not. It's not my house."

"No, but these rooms have been given to you while you're here."

"I totally don't mind, Tom," she said.

He nodded his acceptance.

Throwing back her covers, Buffy got up and stretched again—causing her already short nightgown to inch up further. Tom stared at her for a moment, wondering if she was intentionally trying to torture him, then glanced away. Buffy didn't seem to notice his visual perusal—or his embarrassment—so probably not. Not this time anyway.

"I suppose I should get ready," the blonde said. She looked at the clock and frowned. "I don't have much time before Professor Dumbles arrives."

Tom nearly laughed at what she'd called their professor and decided this was probably going to be a thing with her—nicknames—but only smirked, then looked at the clock and realized he'd been in the shower for a while. "Yes. He will."

"What to wear..." Buffy said as she started to go through her clothing. Grabbing a red button up blouse and a dark skirt, she turned toward Tom and held them up in front of her. "How's this?"

Tom shrugged.

Buffy rolled her eyes. "Don't get too excited, Tom," she teased. "I'm not overly either. I mean, the clothing here in this time is... blech!" She made a face of disgust and pretended to shudder—then grinned. "You should see the cute tops I have at home. Cotton is way comfy. And the shoes. I have great boots! But...beggars can't be choosers, you know? I can't walk around in the my prom dress...or naked, can I?"

Coughing at her choice of words, Tom covered it up by cocking his head and studying her choice of outfit. It was nice. Much nicer than anything the girls at Wools wore and right up there with what some of the purebred girls were wearing these days—if they wore anything Muggle, that is. And significantly nicer than the little boy outfits he'd seen her put on for slaying. But seeing Buffy's choice made him wonder just how much the sisters had purchased for her. So far he'd not seen her wear the same thing twice.

"Come on, Tom," the blonde interrupted his thoughts. "Yay or nay?" She shook the outfit and posed for him.

"Oh. Er. It's nice," he said.

Frowning, Buffy lowered her hands so that the articles of clothing dangled at her sides. "Is that a yes?"

"It's very...red," he said.

Buffy looked at the top and shrugged. "I look good in red," she said. "It looks nice with my hair."

Tom nodded—then smirked. "And green would look nice with your eyes."

"Hmm. I don't think we bought anything green," she said. "It'll have to be red today." She watched him standing there. "Okay now...scoot, so I can change."

"Yes. Of course. I'll just...go," he said, then turned abruptly and walked out.

Buffy watched him go, laughing a little, then closed her door and got ready for the day. She wasn't thrilled about the upcoming intense studying, but she was really excited about today's trip to that crooked alley place with all that wizarding stores, because...you know... shopping!

~oOo~

When Tom reached the kitchen, both Vin and Sophie were there. Once again, they were sitting at the table having tea and chatting. Sophie was laughing about something he hadn't heard, but it looked like they were waiting for him.

"So. How is she?" Sophie asked the moment he walked into the room.

Vin eyed him curiously. "You look distressed. How are you?"

He stopped short, not expecting an interrogation—or concern for him. "Buffy is...fine," he said with a shrug. "I'd say she is just about perfect."

Sophie looked relieved—then eyed him. "Don't evade."

"I am not important here," he countered.

Vin snorted.

"Nonsense!" Sophie barked. "Neither of us believe that."

He glared at the blonde—causing her to roll her eyes.

"Sit," Vin said, gesturing at the seat he usually sat in and pushing a cup of tea at him. "Tell us about last night."

Taking his seat, Tom shrugged. "Not much to tell. I waited up for Buffy to come home. I was... angry with her for running off without telling me," he ground out—then shook his head. "But then, when I saw her...she looked dreadful."

Vin and Sophie exchanged a glance. "We're not surprised. What Buffy does..." Vin started, shaking her head and tsking.

"It's... horrific," Sophie finished.

Tom frowned. They spoke of horror and yet they seemed so calm. "Aren't you troubled by all this?"

"Of course!" they said in unison.

"It doesn't look like it!" the dark-haired boy burst out. He felt frantic. Out of control even—and he hated that! Hated all these strange feelings. Hated that he cared! Sighing, Tom forced himself to calm down. "I don't like this," he whispered. "It's dangerous...for her." He stood up and started pacing. He could feel his quiet control slipping in his frustration, but he couldn't help it. He needed to get it out. "How do the Watchers just... watch?! And not even try to help. They order their slayer around and they do nothing!" He stopped and looked at the sisters, who were still sitting at the table staring at him, clearly surprised by his outburst.

"The Watchers don't have the physical prowess to do what Buffy does, Tom," Vin explained.

Sophie nodded. "Their work is more... behind the scenes."

"It is 'She who is embued with the strength to fight the evil,'" Vin said.

"And 'They who direct and watch,'" said Sophie.

"It is the way it has always been done," Vin finished.

"That's absurd!" Tom burst angrily. "They send a girl into battle!" he yelled. "She's only fifteen!"

The sisters glanced at each other again. "She claims to be sixteen, yes?" said Vin.

Sophie nodded vigorously. "Yes. Adamantly."

Tom resisted the urge to roll his dark eyes—they were so easily distracted. "I don't care how old she is!" he hollered, out of control now—then sighed and tried desperately to calm down. "She's just a girl."

Vin sighed. "Why do you think we stay away from our sister's world, Tom?"

"Besides the obvious...that we're too pretty to be Watchers," Sophie teasingly put in, grinning.

Tom stared at the blonde. Her response was ridiculous, but the brunette chortled at it anyway, then smiled sadly. "We'd never survive the loss of a slayer, Tom. If we'd joined the Council—"

"And when she goes back?" he snarled, cutting the dark-haired witch off. "What then? Hmm? You're going to lose her then. We all are!"

"Yes, we are well aware and...our hearts will be broken," Sophie replied sullenly.

Vin nodded. "We are already heartbroken, Tom," said Vin. "But she'll be going back to her other life, the one she had before finding her way here, so it won't be as final as death."

"Unless she goes back and is killed there, by that... bastard thing!" Tom burst, feeling more and more frustration.

Sophie giggled.

"The Master," Vin corrected, smiling at his mistake—but, was it one?

Tom waved his arms. "Whatever!" he ground out. "Does it really matter? Does that thing even have a name? What sort of powers allowed it to assign itself the name Master? Master of what exactly?!"

Vin shrugged. "We don't know, Tom," she whispered. "He's very very old."

"Master. Chief. Ruler. Lord. The evil ones always want to be called something high and mighty. Who knows how they come about their silly titles," Sophie said.

"He had a name once...so very long ago," Vin said. "But, over time, it's been forgotten by most."

Tom sighed. "So, she goes back to this ancient vampire?" he says. "And dies? Then what?"

"We don't know. And we can't think about that. If she goes back, it's where she's supposed to be," said Sophie.

"And if she dies when she gets there...or sometime later...it was meant to be," Vin added sadly.

Tom just stared at the sisters. Despite their different hair color, they looked identical at the moment. Both trying desperately to keep their hearts out of this—and failing completely. They looked broken. He knew the feeling.

"But for now, we will enjoy the time we have with Buffy," Sophie said. "What else can we do?"

Tom didn't know what else they could do. It seemed there was nothing to do. Aside from hoping she could stay. He knew it was selfish on his part, but deep down he knew that, if he could keep her here, he would—even though he knew she'd choose to go back to her time, back to her family and friends, if she could.

"Gotta say, I'm feeling the love in the room," came a voice from the behind them. It was Buffy, of course, and she'd obviously heard some of their conversation. How much, they didn't know. She was standing there in her red blouse and short black skirt, a grin on her unmarred face—which told them she was amused by their words.

Tom eyed her. It looked like she'd altered the skirt a bit. Ripped off the bottom of it to make it shorter—above her knees and...much more Buffy—but still respectable. And charming. He could see that her legs lacked bruises, which was a good thing. And goodness, was she tanned! And the boots she was wearing...were those military? Where'd she get those?!

"Buffy!" Sophie burst, bringing Tom out of his musings. "How are you?"

Buffy shrugged. "Good now, thanks!" she said as she moved into the room. On her way to the table, she grabbed Tom's hand and dragged him with her.

It didn't take much to pull him. At her touch, his anger and fear seemed to melt away. At least the part of it that made him want to rant and rave—and punch holes through walls. He didn't understand how she could do this to him with just a touch. One second he was going on like a lunatic, the next he was as serene as could be—both completely out of character for him! It was like magic. He laughed to himself at that. Magic. His whole world—the world that mattered to him—revolved around magic.

"Last night though. Eesh!" Buffy exclaimed, making a face as she plopped down into a chair. "I should totally know better. I do know better! Should have done more reconnaissance... some recon," she corrected herself, "before entering a bombed out building." She rolled her eyes at her very rookie-esk mistake. "Instead, I played it like a total newb!" she said, rolling her eyes again. "Which I am sooo not."

Tom frowned, then looked at the sisters. "Did either of you understand that last bit?"

Sophie laughed.

"Not a bit," Vin said.

"Newb. Short for newbie. A beginner who is inexperienced in a profession or activity, but who is willing to learn...not to be confused with noob, also an inexperienced individual... or under-talented hacker or gamer who lacks the determination to learn," she rattled off, then frowned at their stares. "Oh. Doing it again. Never mind."

"Yes, because that last bit makes even more sense," Sophie quipped with a grin. "What is...a gamer?"

Buffy frowned. "Yeah. Um. Never mind?" she repeated.

"You really ought to be more careful, Buffy," Vin lectured.

Buffy sighed. "I know. Believe me, I know. It sort of goes with the territory, as you know, but...yeah. I hear you."

"What happened?" Sophie asked.

"I heard noises near...well, I have no clue. Some building. It was a mess, totally crumbling down." She gestured wildly, sort of miming a bombed building. "When I got closer, I heard talking and then...whimpering. When I realized there was a human inside with vampires, I didn't stop to assess how many there actually were." She shrugged. "It was a young woman. They were playing with her. And arguing amongst themselves. A couple of them wanted to make a meal of her, but one wanted to turn her." She shrugged again. "Neither was an option to me, so...I snapped. Unfortunately, I didn't know there were others. I managed to free the woman and... that was when the others arrived. None of them were pleased that I'd spoiled their fun, so...they beat me up! Then I killed them, of course. In the end, the beating was worth it. Woman alive and free...multiple vampires slayed." She grinned and rubbed her hands together like she was dusting them off. "All in a day's work."

Vin shook her head. "You are ridiculously blasé about all that, Buffy," she said with a shake of her head. "It's very frightening."

"Um. Sorry?" Buffy said, with a questioning tone.

Sophie snorted. "It's hard to take you seriously when you respond like that."

Buffy shrugged. "Can't help who I am."

"She has a point," Vin said with a nod.

Sophie shrugged. "True."

"If it makes you feel any better, I wasn't worried for myself. It's all adrenaline when you're in the middle of it," Buffy said. "I've been in scrapes like this before and as you can see..." She shrugged again. "I'm fine and dandy."

"It really doesn't...make us feel any better," Sophie said, shaking her head.

Tom huffed. "I hate it!" he said bluntly. "You shouldn't go out alone."

Buffy rolled her eyes. "I'm not new at this, Tom," she said. "I'm actually quite good."

"I know...and yet you returned bruised and bloody and ready to collapse," he said.

Buffy looked down. She knew she'd scared him. He wouldn't admit it, but his frustration was obvious.

"She's fine, Tom," Sophie said.

"With all respect, Sophie, you didn't see her!" Tom hiss-whispered.

"That's...fair," said the blonde woman, nodding. "To be honest, I'm glad I didn't."

"So...Mr Dumbledore should be here soon," Vin put in, as if just to be saying something—or cut off what they were arguing over—then took a sip of her tea.

Everyone nodded.

"Are you coming with us?" Buffy asked, glad to shift the conversation away from Tom's upset. She could see that he was really pissed off.

Vin glanced at her. "Do you want us to?"

Buffy shrugged. "Well, sure," she said. "I girl should have her aunties with her for shopping." She grinned—causing the sisters to smile back.

"Then, of course we'll go," Vin said.

"Besides, someone has to pay for everything you'll need," Sophie snarked.

Buffy's eyes rounded. "Oh my god! I never considered that," she said with a frown. "You two have already spent a small fortune on me." She glanced down at her boots. They'd appeared in her room. One of the sisters had seen her eyeing them and bought them for her. She hadn't owned any combat boots at home, but they were super popular in her time and...well, they felt familiar. Like home.

Vin waved a hand dismissively. "It's no matter, Buffy," she said. "We have so much more than we could ever spend. Our parents were very well off."

Sophie nodded. "It's our pleasure."

Still frowning, Buffy nodded. "I could...get a job to, you know, try to earn some money to pay you back," she offered.

"Nonsense!" Sophie burst.

"Let us spoil you, dear," Vin said. "It makes us happy."

Sophie nodded. "Besides, who else would we spend our money on except ourselves? This should make Edna much happier," she said with a laugh—causing Vin to snort.

Buffy smiled, then gave a little nod. "Okay. Thank you."

~oOo~

At nine sharp the front bell chimed. Dumbledore had arrived.

"I'll get it," Buffy said with excitement as she bounced out of the room.

The other three just nodded—the day was about to begin.

~oOo~

Okay...like the old Blockbuster saying, "Be kind, please rewind," I've made up this...

Here's your cue, please review!