Fic: The Spirit of the Calling (Rupert/Buffy - NC-17 or FRAO) - Part 6

[laurtew.livejournal.com]

The Spirit of the Calling - Part 6

Author’s Name: The Library Girl (E-Mail: thelibrarygirl@Yahoo.com)
Fandom: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Rating: NC-17 or FRAO
Pairing: Buffy/Giles
Warnings: Lots of crazy sex.
Season: Takes place at the end of season four.
Word Count for this Section: 5400

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“Okay, so that one up there, to the right, that’s…” Buffy paused, frowning. “Draco? The dragon?”

“Very good, Buffy.” Rupert responded, leaning back on his elbows. “And that one?”

“Hmmm…I think it’s Lupus?”

“Excellent! You are going to do very well on your final.” He was smiling at her. “I’m incredibly impressed. Are you ready to do another circuit of the graveyard?”

Buffy sighed, jumping to her feet.

“Sure, but I don’t think we’re going to find anything. It’s been a slow night.”

“Nonetheless,” he said, pushing himself up. “It’s best to be cautious.”

“Hey, I was thinking,” Buffy said, as they walked along. “Term is over soon and then I have 5 weeks before I’m back for the fall. I don’t suppose somewhere in there we might take a vacation?”

“Who would watch things here?” he asked.

“We wouldn’t have to go for long. Maybe just a weekend. We could ask Wes and Angel to check in.”

When she said it out loud it sounded even more impossible. She sighed.

“Where did you have in mind to go?” he asked.

She looked at him, her eyebrow quirking up.

“I hadn’t gotten that far,” she admitted. “I was pretty sure you’d say no.”

“A weekend away actually sounds nice. If we could get Wes and Angel to help, I don’t see why we couldn’t.”

“Really?” Buffy was practically bouncing. “Where do you think we should go?”

“Anywhere you’d like, love,” he responded with a smile. “Although, I have a certain partiality for Paris.”

“Paris?” Buffy blinked. “Could we do that in a weekend?”

“If we made it a long one,” he said, his smile growing wider. “Of, course, that’s only one suggestion. And only if you’d like to.”

“Yes!” Buffy responded. “Oh, yes I’d like!”

“I’ll put in a call to Wesley tomorrow,” he said, reaching out to take her hand. “I’ll see what their schedule is like and maybe we can work something out.”

Buffy was absurdly happy. She’d been hoping that she could talk him into a night in LA; A few days in Paris hadn’t even been on the map. She squeezed his hand, smiling at him and he actually blushed a bit. Damn, but he was a sexy man. She was just about to ask him what places they were going to visit when she felt a jolt, like static electricity running across her skin. She frowned, turning to look at Rupert, and suddenly they were surrounded.

She didn’t even have to look around to know that there were six vampires moving to circle them. She could feel it, knew it. Buffy went into battle stance, ready to fight. She was going on instinct, no real plan in mind. She shifted her weight, preparing to move.

“If we could coordinate this attack, this would go so much easier.” Rupert’s voice sounded odd, almost echo-y.

“What did you say?” she asked, over her shoulder.

“I didn’t,” he ground out and she could feel him moving, readying to attack.

“I heard you.” Somehow this felt important. “You brought up a plan?”

“But…” The reverberating quality was back in his voice, making him sound like he was down a well. “You couldn’t possible be hearing this, are you?”

“Giles!” Her frustration made her revert to his last name. “Will you stop with the special effects?”

“Buffy, don’t speak, just think.”

What the heck? Buffy tried not to let all this distract her, but there was a huge weird factor going on here.

I’m not speaking out loud.

And then she realized that his voice had a disembodied quality to it. Huh.

Okay, not sure what’s up here, but I’m going to kick some vampire butt now, she thought.

Start with the one to your left. It was oddly comforting to hear his voice in her head. He’s the one paying the least attention. I’ll cross to the front.

Just be careful.

She turned with a speed that surprised even her, hitting the vampire with bone jarring force. He was knocked to the ground and before he could fight back, she’d pulled the stake out of her back pocket and he was dust. She felt something slam into the back of her head and she actually saw light flashes for a second, but then she jumped up, turning in the air and came down swinging, catching the second vampire right across the jaw.

In her peripheral vision, she saw Rupert swing his battle-axe right into the lead vampire’s face. She also saw that he was unaware of a second vampire coming up behind him.

Behind you! she thought.

And then he was turning, bringing the axe in an arc, cleanly taking off the second vampire’s head. Buffy focused all her attention on the vamp she was fighting, sweeping his legs from beneath him, and staking him cleanly.

Somehow she knew the woman was coming up behind her and she flipped, going over her head and coming down behind the vampire. Before the woman could turn around, Buffy had staked her from behind. She turned again, realizing that the only vampire left was the one that Rupert was fighting, the leader of the group. It should have surprised her, but it didn’t.

She moved to circle behind and the vampire turned its attention from Watcher to Slayer. This one had more skill than the others and Buffy had to adjust her tactics. She threw a punch, pulling it at the last second and the vampire leaned forward, attempting to catch her when she was regrouping from the blow. She brought the stake up, but he kicked it from her hand. With a snarl of triumph, it lunged, grabbing for her throat, only to find itself impaled on a stake held by the Watcher who had stepped between them.

Buffy blinked through the cloud of dust, looking around, feeling uneasy.

“What just happened here?” she asked.

“I’m…I’m not sure. I can’t say I’ve ever read about anything like this before.”

She wanted to say so much more, about how this was weird, but kind of cool, about how she was freaked, about how great they had been together, but she found she had no words, distracted by the pulse in his throat. Wordlessly, he nodded, taking her hand and leading her to the car.

She would never remember their first desperate joining in the car or the ride home. She would only recall impressions, feelings, the overwhelming need, tempered by the amazing things Rupert was doing to her body; the sensation of being pulled apart and put back together, all overshadowed by the love she felt for him.

When they entered the apartment, he directed her to stand in front of the couch, where he quickly divested her of her clothing, his hands running over her bare skin, leaving shockwaves in their wake. He stepped back and she watched him, her breath coming in short bursts, as he removed his own clothes.

And then he was there, standing next to her, kissing her with burning intensity. She pressed against him, trying for greater contact and he laid her down on the couch, kneeling in front of her. His mouth and hands were on her breasts and sucking and nipping, setting her blood aflame. Her hips began to move restlessly as her need built and she whimpered at the back of her throat.

He broke off his worship of her chest and urged her to stand. She was slightly confused when he turned her to face away from him and even more perplexed when he directed her to her knees on the couch. His hands on her hips tilted her forward, and then he was burying his face in her sex, inhaling her scent, licking and kissing with abandon. Buffy pushed her hips back against him, gasping and moaning and the heat in her body spiraled up. She was losing herself in this, dimly hearing the enthusiastic noises Rupert was making as he ravaged her. When his tongue entered her, everything went out of focus and her orgasm took her. She was screaming, her hips bucking back against his mouth, riding this pleasure for what seemed like an eternity.

Rupert stopped what he was doing and she felt the sofa dip as he moved behind her, pressing her against the back of couch and entering her with one thrust. His knees were on either side of hers and he leaned forward, his hands going to the back of the couch for leverage. He set a rapid pace and Buffy was soon riding waves of new sensations. She could feel the warmth of his chest flush against her back, his chest hair gently tickling. He was pounding into her, going deep, hitting erogenous zones she didn’t even know she had, sending bolts of pleasure through her, while her breasts were rubbing back and forth over the soft material of the couch cushion.

“Oh, yes, Rupert...” Buffy gasped, grinding back against him.

He shifted his angle and Buffy could feel the edges of something amazing. But it wasn’t enough. She was right there, but she couldn’t reach it.

Rupert seemed to understand and he stilled his movements, pulling out and moving Buffy to the floor. She lay on her back and he entered her again, this position giving him more control. He lifted her hips slightly and picked up a brutal tempo, giving an extra little twist to his hips with each thrust. She arched up, feeling the pleasure building again. She looked up to see him watching her and was stunned at the equal mix of lust and love in his eyes. She could see that he desperately wanted release, but was more intent on giving her pleasure.

His hand went down to where they were joined, rubbing her clit, with his thumb as he sped up his thrusts. Buffy looked into his eyes and suddenly she was falling off that edge, wave upon wave of ecstasy ripping through her. She arched up, screaming his name, just as his body tensed in release.

He collapsed next to her pulling in air. She shifted, moving close to him and he wrapped his arms around her, kissing her temple.

“That was amazing,” she said quietly, turning so that she could play with his chest hairs.

“Every time with you is,” he whispered, and Buffy felt tears prick her eyes.

“God, I love you so much,” she said, her voice catching.

“I love you too, Buffy. I always have and I always will.”

She felt that heat building again and her fingers drifted over to play with his nipples. He sucked in air, his breathing becoming erratic, his eyes closing.

“Buffy,” he said, his voice rumbling against her ear. “What do you say to a nice shower?”

Images of him pressing her against the cold shower tile in a hot steam filled bathroom sent flutters through her.

“I think it sounds like a great idea,” she said.

He helped her to her feet and led her off to the bathroom.

-----------------------------
Buffy walked out of the kitchen, carrying a cup of tea to where Rupert was sitting at the desk, studying one of his big dusty books. He was frowning over a passage and absently biting the end of his thumb. Buffy smiled, trying not to think about how adorable he looked. She set the tea next to him and he looked up, sighing.

“I am finding absolutely nothing,” he said in exasperation.

“Yes, and that’s why Willow and Xander are coming over for a research party,” Buffy replied.

“This shouldn’t be that hard,” he grumped, taking a sip of tea. “But it seems this sort of thing is unprecedented.”

“What about that Watcher diary,” Buffy asked. “The one where you read about what the spell did to me in the first place.”

He picked up a book, glaring at it.

“There’s nothing helpful here. I can only surmise it’s because the Watcher never bedded his Slayer.”

Buffy arched an eyebrow at him and he sighed again.

“I’m sorry, love. It’s just seems like I’m the only Watcher in history that was weak enough to…” He paused when she blinked at him, her eyes wide with hurt. “No, that’s not what I meant.”

“You’re still feeling guilty,” she accused.

“Yes, I am. And I’m likely to until the spell wears off. It’s silly, I grant you, but…”

“I know.” She touched his hand. “Okay, so what did that Watcher do for five weeks?”

“He kept her from fighting,” Rupert answered.

“I’m…he what?”

“He had no way to deal with the ramifications of the battle, so essentially, for five weeks, she wasn’t the Slayer.”

“He can do that?”

“If it was in their best interests, yes. And he wasn’t about to take her to his bed.”

“What about the older Watchers?” she asked suddenly. “Not as in ‘look at the old guy’, but like back when your however great grandfather did this. He was altered for his Slayer.”

“And he didn’t keep records. Or rather I suspect the records were destroyed.”

“I guess that makes sense,” Buffy said. “You wouldn’t want to give the new guys any ideas. But there has to be something.”

“I don’t know,” Giles said with a sigh. His fingers came up to rub at his temples.

“Headache?” Buffy asked.

“A rather bad one, yes,” he replied, closing his eyes.

“You should take a break until the others get here,” she said. “Would you like me to get you some Tylenol?”

“If you wouldn’t mind,” he said, opening his eyes to look at her. “And maybe I will lie down for a bit.”

Buffy went and got the medicine, feeling the barest edges of worry. She told herself that he was tired; she had kept him up all night. It was only natural for him to have a headache. But as she watched him take the pills and go upstairs she felt the first stirrings of unease. She shook it off, going into the kitchen to start dinner.

----------------------------
“So, what exactly am I looking for?” Xander asked, looking up from the Watcher diary he was reading.

“Anything with Slayer magic or the first Slayer…maybe enhanced Slayer abilities or mind reading?” Rupert looked frustrated when Xander shook his head. “I know it’s very broad. I honestly have no idea what the specifics are.”

“I think you’re on the right track with that other Watcher who did that spell,” Willow said. “His Slayer tapped into the same powers that Buffy has.”

“Yes, but it tells us nothing more,” Rupert replied. “And there is nothing about the Watcher and Slayer being able to read each other’s minds.”

“Yeah, but maybe that’s because of how he handled it.” When Rupert looked interested, Willow went on. “He did that spell and his Slayer was linked to the ultimate power of the Slayer line. But then he left it there. He didn’t take advantage of it by…”

Willow trailed off when she saw Rupert’s look of horror.

“Oh! No, not that you took advantage of Buffy…” She stopped, gathering her thoughts. “I meant that this Watcher had a super Slayer, but he wasn’t an enhanced Watcher. You came pre-wired for this. Maybe that’s what you need to get the whole dynamic duo thing.”

“But what of other Watchers, Willow? Back before the Council changed things?”

“You have no idea what things were like then. For all you know, your relative could hear his Slayer’s thoughts too.”

“How do you even know about him?” Xander asked. “Seems to me the Council isn’t big on talking about that time.”

“They aren’t,” Rupert said. “But, my family is proud of our history. Although, I will admit that that particular relative isn’t talked about as much.”

“So, he and his Slayer could have had the same thing going,” Willow said. “But after the Council made the Slayers property, it pretty much eliminated anything like that happening and it destroyed all the evidence. You now have ordinary Watchers and domesticated Slayers. And to get the perfect team, you need more primitive Slayers and the extraordinary Watchers.”

“Well, I am far from extraordinary, Willow.”

“No, but you are,” Willow insisted. “If Wesley was any indication of the average Watcher these days, you are so far above the cut. He wouldn’t make a decision without consulting the rule-book fifty times and he couldn’t even use magic. At least, not at first.”

“Willow’s right,” Buffy said, walking up and putting her hand on Rupert’s shoulder. “Without you, I wouldn’t be the Slayer; I’d have died a long time ago.”

“Now, Buffy, you are exaggerating.”

“No, I’m not. Your magic has saved us all more than once. From casting Moloch out of the internet to saving me from Amy’s mother, to consulting the spirit guides for me, you knew what to do and you protected me. Although, I think your biggest strength has nothing to do with magic.”

“And what would that be?” he asked, smiling up at her.

“Your ability to understand me and adapt.” From the look on his face, it was clear he hadn’t expected that. Buffy went on. “From what I saw of Wes, Watchers have a set of rules they go by and they force Slayers into a preconceived mold. No room for individuality or personalities, no leeway. When they come out, all Slayers should be like Kendra. Could you ever see me like that? Never questioning, doing what I’m told, blindly following all the rules?”

“You make it sound like a bad thing,” Rupert said, laughing.

“I think for me, it would have been,” Buffy said, ignoring his attempt to lighten the mood. “If you had forced me to be Kendra, it’s more likely I’d have ended up Faith. You can’t completely crush someone’s spirit and not expect them to break. You had rules to follow, a mold to shove me into, but you didn’t. You gave me the freedom to be me and to find my own way to make all this work, even though it was so much harder for you and it got you in trouble. So, yeah, I’d say as Watchers go, you are completely extraordinary.”

He reached up, touching her face.

“Thank you, love. I think you’re pretty special too.” He shook his head, looking embarrassed. “And this isn’t getting us any closer to understanding what’s happened. Although you may be on to something, Willow. We should follow that vein.”

“I think I saw some more Watcher diaries on the bottom shelf,” Xander said, getting up.

Rupert got to his feet and stretched.

“Would you get those please? I’m going to make some more tea.”

“Sure thing, G-man.”

Rupert took a breath, looking like he was going to argue. Instead, he shook his head and walked into the kitchen.

Buffy watched him go, then went to sit on the couch by Willow.

“This is good,” she said, looking at her friend. “I hope we’re on the right path. He’s been so frustrated lately.”

“Is he still being guilty guy?” Willow asked quietly.

“More than ever. I swear, you’d think he drugged me or hypnotized me the way he’s acting. Why is it so hard for him to believe that I love him?”

“Because he’s Giles,” Xander said, putting the books on the coffee table. “And from what I know of him, he doesn’t have that great an opinion of himself.”

“And you did kind of do an about face, Buffy,” Willow added. “You were all, ‘eewww, old Watcher’ and then poof!, you love him. Not that I think there was any poofing, but I can see why he might.”

“I guess I can too,” Buffy said, sighing. “But honestly, it was right there, all along. I just needed a nudge to see it. I wanted a normal, nice college guy, when I’m not a normal girl. And why should I settle for whoever comes along, when I could have such a great guy? I just had to stop and see his greatness.”

Willow laughed.

“Yeah, that’s usually how it works,” she said. “You find exactly what you were hoping for in the last place you’d think to look.”

“Can’t say I’d have picked Anya,” Xander said. “But we work. And I’m honestly happy with her.”

“And it doesn’t matter what she used to be or that she can be somewhat off-putting,” Willow added. “Not, that she’s…this so isn’t coming out right.

“No, she’s off-putting,” Xander said with a laugh. “But to me, it’s part of her charm, even if no one else sees it. And that’s Wil’s point, I think.”

“That’s it exactly,” Willow responded. “As long as you two are…”

She was interrupted by a loud crash from the kitchen and the three of them were on their feet, racing in to see what had happened.

Buffy rounded the doorframe to see Rupert on the floor, the contents of the tea tray scattered around him. She was on her knees next to him in a heartbeat, feeling her breath freeze in her lungs. She touched him and he was unresponsive, his eyes closed, his breathing shallow and the real panic set in. Her hand went to her mouth and she swallowed painfully, dimly aware of Willow, kneeling on the other side of him. She was saying something, but Buffy had no idea what.

She shook her head, looking up to see Xander standing just to her right. He was on the phone and Buffy forced herself to pay attention. Rupert needed her and she couldn’t afford to panic.

“He’s breathing,” Xander said, his voice strained. “But we can’t get him to regain consciousness. I’m not sure if he fainted or what. Wil? Is his heartbeat regular?”

Buffy watched Willow put her hand on Rupert’s chest, then nod.

“It is for now. What do we…okay, please hurry.” He hung up the phone. “Someone should be here soon. Until then, we just make sure he keeps breathing and we call back if anything changes.”

“Maybe we should get him to the couch?” Willow asked. “So he’s more comfortable?

“We shouldn’t move him,” Buffy said, finding her voice. “What if he hit his head?”

“Good point,” Xander said. “I’ll go wait outside for the ambulance.”

Buffy watched him run out the door then she looked up at Willow, trying to keep her composure.

“Wil…I…what if…” her voice caught and she looked away.

Willow reached across Rupert and took her hand.

“He’s going to be fine. We won’t let anything happen to him.”

The door opened then everything seemed to happen at once. Willow and Buffy left the kitchen, making room for the emergency workers who followed Xander in. They stood in the hall watching them work and Buffy had never felt so agitated in her life. She wanted to stay calm, holding onto how much she loved him, but when the EMTs lifted his eyelids, shining a light in, and he didn’t respond, it felt like someone had slapped her. Watching them take all his vital signs wasn’t much better. She was dimly aware that tears were running freely down her face when they loaded him on the stretcher and she barely felt Willow holding her hand.

“Buffy,” Willow said, pulling her back from the darkness. “You should ride in the ambulance with him. If he wakes up, you’d be the one he’d want to see.”

Buffy nodded, but made no move to follow the medical workers out the door. Xander took her hand, leading her. She heard him talking to the men as they loaded Rupert into the ambulance, but what he was telling them was lost on her. They were nodding and without saying anything, she climbed in, sitting on the floor of the truck next to him.

It was the longest ride of her life, although she knew the hospital was only a couple miles away. She watched his face intently for any sign that he was waking up or knew she was there. She knew she was still crying, but nothing else seemed important but him.

When they unloaded the stretcher at the hospital, Buffy didn’t even ask; she stayed with him, following them to a curtain in the ER. She sat in a chair next to him, reaching out and taking his hand.

“Please,” she whispered. “I…you can’t leave me. I need you, I love you. Rupert, please.”

She watched him, willing him to move, to open his eyes. She jumped when the curtain was pulled back and a doctor walked in. Buffy recognized him as someone who had treated her a few times in the past. The man was studying the chart, a frown on his face. He looked up and his eyes widened a bit.

“Buffy, isn’t it?” he asked. She could only nod and he looked at Rupert. “And this is your friend, the one who always sits with you when you come here. Well, let’s see what we can do.”

Buffy had learned to trust doctors. Whenever she was injured, they always patched her together, fixing whatever was wrong. Some small part of her was holding on to the desperate hope that this doctor would be able to instantly restore Rupert, finding some shot or pill that would solve everything. A larger part of her was terrified of hearing words like “stroke” or “heart attack” and she sat, biting her lower lip, watching the man work.

Nurses came and went, other people in lab coats took blood and consulted the chart; no one talked to her. The doctor came back and after a minute of talking with the nurses, he turned to Buffy.

“We’re going to do an MRI and a CT scan,” he said. Her panic must have shown on her face. “It’s not that I suspect anything, we just need to be sure.”

“Is he…did he…” She struggled for the words. “Will he…?”

“I’m afraid I don’t know anything yet. We’ll have to see what the tests tell us.” He looked to the side where an older woman stood. “Nurse Wilkins will take you to the waiting room. You’ll be more comfortable there.”

Wordlessly, Buffy followed the nurse down the hall, feeling a painful numbness creeping in on her. The woman stopped in front of a door.

“It’s in there. The doctor will let you know as soon as he finds out anything.”

She turned and walked away, leaving Buffy standing in the hall. She took a breath and went to find a chair.

“Buffy!”

Willow and Xander were already there, sitting in a corner together. She walked over, taking the seat on the other side of Xander.

“Buffy, what did they say?” Willow asked.

“Nothing,” Buffy pressed her lips together, fighting tears. “They have to do more tests. But nothing has changed.”

Xander put his arm around her shoulders.

“He’s going to be fine, Buff. Nothing is going to happen to Giles. He’s super librarian guy.” He was trying to be strong, but she heard the tremor in his voice.

Buffy had no idea how long they really sat there until the doctor came back. It seemed like an eternity, each second stretching out, dragging by. When she saw him walk in, she jumped to her feet.

“How is he?” she asked, fighting the panic.

“I…” The doctor paused. “I still don’t know.”

Buffy frowned.

“We’ve admitted him,” the doctor went on. “But…I honestly can’t see any reason why he’s not awake. There are no brain injuries, no heart abnormalities. I’m a little concerned about his cell count, but it’s nothing dire. All the tests show that he should be just fine.”

“So, what do we do?” Willow asked.

“For now, we admit him, we keep an eye on him. I’ll look into more tests, but…”

Buffy nodded, trying not to give into the despair.

“Can we see him? Can I stay with him?”

“You can all see him, but only one of you can stay with him tonight. Visiting hours are over.”

He led them down the hall. When they got to his room, a nurse came up to consult with the doctor, while Willow, Xander, and Buffy went to Rupert. He looked so peaceful; he could have been sleeping. A part of Buffy was panicked that he’d died while she’d been away, but she could see the soft rise and fall of his chest. She went and sat in the chair next to his bed, watching his face once again. The doctor walked over to them.

“Does he have any genetic issues?” he asked, frowning.

“What do you mean?” Willow asked.

“Something like Cystic Fibrosis or MS?”

“Not that we know of,” Xander said, “Why? Does he have MS?”

“Oh, no,” the doctor reassured them. “It’s just…there’s an issue with his Plasma osmolarity and I’ve only seen this in people with genetic abnormalities.”

“With his what?” Xander asked.

“The balance of some of his cells are off and they’re collecting fluid around them.”

“And what does that mean for him?” Willow asked.

“Well, if it continues to spread, the cells will break down and lose their integrity. But that’s rare. I’ve only seen it in leukemia patients whose plasma counts are off. People with Lyme disease sometimes have this. Or in extreme dehydration patients. But none of these apply to him.”

“Was he like that when he came in?” Buffy asked. “Is that why he fainted?”

“Honestly, it doesn’t seem related at all. I don’t understand any of this.” He frowned. “I’m going to have his blood retested. In the meantime, we’ve got him on an IV and we’ll keep monitoring him.”

“Thank you,” Buffy said.

The doctor nodded and left. Willow turned around, her eyes wide.

“I don’t believe this. He was fine just a few hours ago. How does this happen?”

“Maybe he picked up a virus,” Xander said, shaking his head.

“Wouldn’t they have caught that in the tests?” Willow asked.

“I don’t know. I guess all we can do is wait.” He turned to Buffy. “You going to be okay here by yourself tonight?”

“Yeah, I’ll be fine. You guys go. I don’t want them to kick us all out.”

“Okay,” Willow said. “But we’ll be back first thing in the morning. And if you need us, call.”

Buffy nodded and watched them leave. She settled into the chair, closing her eyes; she was still holding Rupert’s hand.

-------------------
Buffy felt a cramp in her neck and turned, trying to alleviate whatever was causing it, but that seemed to make it worse. She shrugged her shoulders, feeling the spasm move down her back. What the…? And then it all came back. Her eyes flew open and she looked around, noting the hospital bed, all the monitors, Rupert, still unconscious. She sucked in a breath as the panic came back in waves.

The door opened just a crack and Willow poked her head in.

“Good, you’re awake.” She and Xander walked in, bringing a cup of coffee for her. “We stopped by about twenty minutes ago and you were still asleep.”

Buffy took the coffee, nodding at them.

“How is he this morning?” Xander asked, looking at the Watcher.

“No change that I’ve seen,” Buffy replied.

“When’s the doctor supposed to stop in?” Willow asked.

“I don’t know. Maybe I should buzz the nurse.”

She was reaching for the call button when alarms started going off around them.

“What’s happening?” Xander yelled.

“I don’t…”

The door flew open and suddenly there were four or five people crowding in, bringing instrument carts with them. Buffy, Willow, and Xander were ushered into the hall. Buffy stood there, stunned at the rapid change in events. She looked at Willow, biting her lower lip. Two doctors and a nurse rushed past them, going into Rupert’s room and Buffy’s terror ratcheted up another notch. She leaned against the wall, fighting the urge to crumple into a ball.

After what seemed like forever, the doctor came back out. He was shaking his head. Buffy felt a cold fist close around her lungs, she couldn’t breathe, she couldn’t think. No, he wasn’t…he couldn’t. She gasped and the doctor turned to look at her. He must have realized how it looked.

“Oh, no, he’s still alive,” he said and Buffy felt the fist loosen up a bit. “It’s just…his lungs stopped working. We had to put him on a ventilator.”

“You what?” Xander looked like someone had punched him. “Is this from the cell thing?”

“That’s just it,” the doctor said, his voice heavy with frustration. “This is a completely unrelated issue. It’s like his body is just shutting down, system by system and I have no idea why.”

“What can we do?” Willow asked.

“I’m running some more tests this afternoon,” the doctor replied. “Until then, all we can do is wait.”

He went back into Rupert’s room and Buffy, Willow, and Xander stood, staring at each other.

“What the hell is happening?” Xander asked. Buffy could see his hands shaking. “Why can’t they figure this out?”

“I want to know what started this,” Willow said, shaking her head. “I know he had a headache earlier, but to move on to something like this…something so drastic. It doesn’t make sense.”

Alarm bells went off in Buffy’s head. She turned to Willow, her eyes wide.

“What did you say?”

“I said it doesn’t make any sense.”

“No, before that.”

“How does a headache become something so drastic?”

So drastic…more drastic…Mr. Giles, I had hoped you would be reasonable about this. I’d hate to have to do something more drastic.

“Oh, God…” Buffy was shaking, the strength went out of her legs and she slid down the wall. Everything went out of focus and she thought for a moment she was going to throw up.

“Buffy!” Xander was there, kneeling next to her. “Buffy, are you okay?”

“No…” She swallowed hard, looking up with tears streaming down her face. Willow was standing above her, looking beyond concerned. “This is all my fault.”

“I’m sorry?” Xander said, frowning at her. “How do you figure?”

“They did this to him because of me.”

“Who?” Willow’s voice had gone up an octave. “Buffy, what are you talking about?”

“Stay with him,” Buffy said, jumping to her feet, needing to take action. “I’ll explain when I get back!”

She ran down the hall, her mind a whirl.

Part 7 This Way