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Chapter Sixteen: Grief

*A/N: You may not like this, but it goes with the story...thanx to my beta for understanding!!!*

Buffy entered the house with caution. It had been eerily quite, and the car was gone. She searched everywhere for a sign of life, and opted for calling Giles’ cell phone, but decided to check and see if her mother was asleep.

She slowly made her way upstairs, and pushed open her mother’s bedroom door. Her mother lay on her side, her back to Buffy. Buffy approached the empty bedside, and shook her mother’s bare shoulder. It was cold.

“Mom?” She questioned. When she received no response, she pulled her mother toward her.

Joyce’s body limply went to her back, her lifeless eyes staring at nothing.

“Mom?” Buffy cried out, putting her hand to her mouth as tears began streaming down her face.

“Don’t touch her.” Dawn’s shaky voice came from behind Buffy. “Why’d you touch her, she was sleeping.” The girl sobbed.

“Dawn, come on, we have to call Giles.” Buffy said, turning to her little sister before she could run to her dead mother.

“What for? Mom’s fine she sleeping. I came upstairs to tell her about my day at school, and she was sleeping.” Dawn was becoming hysterical, as Buffy calmly dragged her down the stairs to the living room.

“Please, stay here.” Buffy begged slightly.

Dawn sat on the couch reluctantly, balling her eyes out, as Buffy went back up the stairs the cordless phone in hand. She dialed 911 first.

“Nine-one-one, what’s your emergency?” A lady asked.

“M-my mother, she’s dead.” Buffy spoke, fresh tears making a trail down her cheeks.

*

Giles entered in time to see the paramedics load Joyce’s body into the van in a black bag. He saw Dawn sitting on the steps in front of the house, crying.

“Where’s Buffy?” He asked, holding back his tears.

“Upstairs.” Dawn replied, sobbing.

“Come inside, Dawn. We’re going to have to go to the hospital for the coroner’s report.” As he spoke, his own tears escaped. Although Joyce hadn’t been looking well since the operation, the doctors were sure that she was going to be fine. It shocked him to hear that his wife was gone.

He found Buffy, sitting on her mother’s bed, the bed he shared with Joyce, her face inexpressive. “Buffy,” Giles spoke softly, “we have to go to the hospital.”

She was unresponsive.

“Is she okay?” Dawn asked from behind her stepfather. She wiped her tears on the back of her hand, her arms across her chest.

“I don’t know. Buffy.” He shook her shoulder gently, and Buffy looked up at him with teary eyes.

“They tried to bring her back.” Buffy said. “It didn’t work.”

Giles offered her his hand, and she took it. Dawn took the other, and they made their way to the car.

*

“I don’t understand how this happens…she was here and I knew her, and now she’s gone.” Anya cried in the middle of Willow and Tara’s dorm room, and when Xander attempted to put his arms around her shaking shoulders, she pushed him away.

Willow cried on Tara’s shoulder, and Xander allowed his anger to get the best of him, and punched the wall. “Ouch.”

Anya looked up at him. “What did you do that for?” She asked, standing up to observe his bloody knuckles.

“Just felt right at the time, maybe help me with my emotions.” He replied.

“Did it work?” Tara asked.

“For a second, but now it’s just ouch.” He stated.

The phone of Willow’s nightstand began ringing, and she picked it up. “Spike! No Buffy isn’t here, she’s at the hospital.” She was oblivious to what happened the day before in New York.

“Is she alright?” Spike asked nervously, through the receiver.

“She’s fine…but you should catch the quickest flight out here. Joyce passed away.” Fresh tears formed in her eyes, and came down her cheeks.

“No,” was the only word that Spike could form.

“Yeah, the doctors said it was an aneurysm. Giles called us from the hospital. Buffy’s in a state of shock, she’s not talking much. Dawn is just crying.” Willow explained.

“I’ll be there before tomorrow.” He hung up the phone.

“Spike’s coming.” Willow said. “Buffy will be better when he comes back.”

*

Riley was sitting with Buffy at the hospital when the Scoobies arrived. She wasn’t speaking to him, only looking forward at nothing.

“Still no response?” Xander asked worriedly.

“Not really. She’ll say something here or there, about Joyce sleeping, or the medics trying to wake her up, or she should have been there, but she saw Spike first.” Riley replied, spitting out the blonde’s name.

“She saw Spike?” Willow looked at Giles for an answer.

“She caught a plane yesterday morning, came back this afternoon a little after Dawn found Joyce.” Giles explained.

“I-I’m guessing it didn’t g-go so well since Spike I-isn’t here.” Tara said.

“I’m not sure.” Giles said.

Xander and Anya were at Dawn’s side, attempting to cheer her up.

A doctor came over and shined a light in Buffy’s eyes. “She’s in a state of shock, you should take her home, and put her in bed. She should be fine after the funeral, and I’ll give you some medication that may help.”

Giles spoke to the doctor on the side, as Willow took Riley’s place beside Buffy.

“I better go. It’s pretty clear that she doesn’t need me anymore.” Riley put a hand through his light brown hair with a sigh. “Call me, and I’ll be at the service.” He said to Willow and left.

“I thought the doctors said Mom was gonna be okay.” Dawn sniffled.

“It was unexpected.” Giles said, sitting beside Dawn. “You’re mother was feeling a bit of pain, but she chose to ignore it.”

“Don’t worry, Dawn. At least she’s not suffering anymore.” Xander flinched at his own words as he knelt before Dawn.

“What about Buffy?” Dawn looked over at her older sister.

Tara stood beside Xander. “She’ll g-get through it, B-Buffy’s strong.”





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