Part 4.

A few miles away....

"Good morning and who do we have here" The young doctor picked up the notes at the end of the bed.

A nurse pulled open the floral curtains, letting a stream of warm sunlight fill the room and gently fall across the patient lying quietly in the only bed.

" Another Jane Doe" The doctor looked up from the notes then over at the girl for the first time.

"Poor little mite, she's been here two years now her condition never changes, she just sleeps. Sleeping Beauty the staff call her......Sleeping Beauty without a prince to wake her up" the womans' eyes filled with pity.

"It says here that she actually died, her heart stopped, heavy blood loss, such horrific injuries" shaking his head in wonder he carried on reading.

" She must have been such a strong young woman to have survived all this or else she has a very important reason to fight, to cling on so hard to her life."

He put the notes back down.

The nurse moved the girls long blonde hair away from her face, smiling affectionately as she gently washed her.

"But, if she never wakes up, what's the point in fighting? And where are her family and friends, I ask you? A young girl like this why doesn't anybody miss her?" she asked sadly.

*****

One week later.

"Angel you're not drinking again are you?" Cordelia asked with concern seeing Angel sitting alone in the office, with a glass in his hand.

Angel looked up from his seat at the table. "Yes, I'm having a drink and no, before you ask, I don't intend getting stinking drunk tonight. I'm just enjoying a quiet drink and evaluating my life, that is what you wanted wasn't it?" he asked quietly.

Pulling out a chair, Cordelia sat down at the table opposite him, hoping he was finally ready to talk.

"Don't you think it's rather ironic? I'm granted my humanity, given back my life but only after the only girl I ever wanted to share it with loses hers. I'm now human and she's…joined up with the angels" he smiled sadly.

Cordelia at once noticed the change in him, he was finally reaching out for closure. "Nope I doubt that, not really seeing Buffy sitting on a cloud all day, playing a harp, she's most probably off kicking some heavenly ass" Cordelia smiled softly.

Angel looked at his friend; a single tear escaped and trickled down his cheek, he made no attempt to wipe it away. Then he smiled and Cordelia noticed a look of peace settle on his tortured face."Yes, she was always kicking someone's ass was Buffy " he whispered.

Then just as quickly the look was gone. Even as a human being, peace was a luxury that Angel wasn't allowed to keep.

Could this poor soul ever find real happiness again, Cordelia wondered sadly. She reached over and touched his hand. "You need to get a job Angel, no more of this divorce crap, Wesley and I can run that side of the agency. Now that you no longer fight demons you need to get out into the real world, meet nice people, start living again. Will you try it please if not for you, if not even for me, will you try it for somebody we both know would want you to, and would get really pissed off if you didn't?"

She waited, her eyes never leaving his face.

Angel looked down at her hand, he appreciated her friendship so much and knew that she always had his best interest at heart. Cordelia was right, he lacked direction.

"You're right, I need to find some purpose again." He looked up, his eyes held hers as he smiled his thanks.

Cordelia sighed with relief.

"Only one problem"

" Now what" her eyes narrowed.

"What on earth can I do?" he asked simply but smiled.

"That's not a problem, there's a great big world out there just take your pick" she laughed.

*****

At that precise moment....

"And how are you this beautiful evening my little sleeping beauty?" the nurse asked. She always spoke to the sleeping girl as she carried out her routine duties.

The girl softly moaned.

Within seconds the doctor came running in to answer the alarm.

"What is it Amy?" he asked, rushing to the side of his patient.

"Dr Andrews, it looks like she's stirring, I heard her moan. Look at her eyes, she's waking up, after all this time sleeping beauty is finally waking up" the nurse smiled brightly…

Part 5

For the next three months the girl known only as Jane Doe 18763 struggled to remember her past with absolutely no success. In the beginning she had been frightened and confused. Those feelings then changed to anger, depression and finally acceptance.

Every treatment used to induce her memory had failed and every failure had left her in intense pain. Yet, despite all this, Jane Doe 18763 was slowly trying to adjust to her new life.

" I need a real name, I hate Jane Doe and I can't keep answering to sleeping beauty" Buffy frowned.

"You're still having trouble with your memory? " the nurse asked as she brushed the girl's hair.

" No, no trouble, just no memory, heads a blank page still. All I can remember is waking up here and seeing you " Buffy smiled sadly After three months she was physically a lot stronger but her memory had made no sign of returning.

"I really do need a name" she sighed.

The nurse looked to be deep in thought for a while then finally offered.

" All right, what about Aurora?"

"Aurora?..... I think I like that, what does it mean?"

"It's the name of sleeping beauty, silly " The nurse laughed and Buffy joined in.

In the early hours of the following morning Buffy sat alone, staring out of the window, practising her new name. She was just happy to have an identity at last. No longer a Jane Doe, she was once again a person with a name, the fact it wasn't her real name didn't seem to matter, it was a start.

A new name, a new beginning and as the sun started to rise Aurora greeted the new dawn a much happier person.

****

"Dr Andrews its been five months now, will my memory ever return?" Buffy asked one afternoon. Every morning she awoke hoping that today would be the day she finally got her life back, only to retire each night sadly disappointed.

" Aurora, we just don't know the answer to that question, if only we knew what caused you to lose it in the first place. My guess is that you received a massive shock, something happened to you that your mind couldn't or wouldn't accept, so it just closed down".

The Doctor felt so sorry for this young woman; there was a sadness about her that touched his heart. They had tried every avenue to find some family, someone who knew her, but all to no avail.

" I just don't understand. I remember how to brush my teeth, plait my hair, hell, I even remembered who the president was. I just can't remember one single personal detail." She felt so frustrated and so helpless.

"In time Aurora, all in good time, there's a great big world out there just waiting to remind you." He smiled but saw the apprehension cross her eyes.

"I'm afraid, I won't know a soul in that world or at least I don't remember knowing a soul. Why didn't anybody miss me?" she suddenly looked like a frightened child.

"The only records we have for you state that you were found lying in the road late one night by a retired doctor. He realised there wasn't time to waste and brought you straight to the hospital himself. There was no I.D on you, the police at the time believed you to be a runaway, possibly involved in a hit and run. They tried but they never came up with any family or friends. So, until your memory returns, I'm afraid we will never know."

"And if it never returns?" Buffy asked the question that had been haunting her for months.

"Then you can start a brand new life, reinvent yourself, become anybody you want to ." He smiled and secretly hoped that she could start a new life and find some degree of happiness.

Buffy nodded but the thought filled her with such incredible loss.

*****

"Look at the size of me I'm getting so fat, I don't want to get fat Xander" Anya sounded angry.

Xander just smiled. It had been a real shock at first learning about his girlfriends' pregnancy, but that had been three months ago. Today he was enjoying the prospect of fatherhood, he insisted on accompanying her to every hospital appointment.

Running his hand over the small swelling of her stomach Xander tried to pacify her. " You're look beautiful fat and, besides, its only a little bump"

" There is no such thing as a little bump, fat is fat and I hate it" she whined.

" Honey didn't you know the fat look is in this year, it says so in all the best womens magazines," Xander replied light-heartedly.

"Please explain what you were doing reading ……………." Anya's voice drifted away as Xander's caught sight of the small blond girl waiting by the elevator with a young doctor.

His head automatically snapped back and he stopped dead in his tracks. But before he had a chance to take a closer look, she was gone. It didn't matter, he would have known that face anywhere she was the chosen one after all.

The one girl in all the world. yada,yada,yada.

Xander took a beep breath and tried to lower his heart beat.

He didn't know how or why but he did know one thing for sure.

Buffy Anne Summers was back from the dead.

Part 6

"And I'm telling you it was her, believe me Giles, Buffy is very much alive. I asked a few question, you're never going to believe what I found out."

Xander typed away at the keyboard while the older man stood and watched. Just a few minutes earlier Xander had almost broken down his door with this crazy story and now he was frantically trying to hack in to the hospital computer.

" Damn it, where's Willow when we need her?" he muttered.

" Xander, I know how much you want it to be true but it's not possible……."

" We're in " Xander cried.

*****

"She has no memory at all?" Giles was still stunned by the news.

After hacking in to the hospital files, Xander had managed to pull up Jane Doe's medical records.

"Look at the date, everything fits. The night this girl was admitted to hospital was the same night Buffy disappeared. All the time we thought she was dead………"

" Buffy was still alive " Giles whispered.

The two men looked at each other and finally allowed them selves to smile, the relief was overwhelming.

Xander looked back at the computer screen. "Look it says here that her heart stopped, she was technically dead"

"Of course, and that would explain why the new slayer was called." Giles nodded, suddenly everything made complete sense.

"Right, now we know where she is all we have to do is get her and bring her home. I'll phone Joyce and Willow"

Xander was so excited he couldn't wait to see Willows' face.

" No wait a moment!" Giles called out slowly. He was still reading the medical notes.

" We have a problem, a big problem."

*****

The Hospital.

"We have carried out every test possible and, physically, there seems to be no permanent damage" The doctor looked up from his notes. Giles saw the concern in his eyes as he continued.

"Personally, I believe this girl has suffered an event so traumatic that it caused her mind to literally shut down. It must have been so painful for her, she not only wiped out that memory, she erased every other personal memory as well. Now the problem with this is we have no idea what that event was, so we have to be very careful not to force her to relive it. She must be allowed to remember only in her own time. You must not tell her anything about her past, is that understood Mr. Giles?" Dr Andrews finally asked.

" I understand perfectly " Giles agreed.

Later that afternoon Giles phoned Xander with the news.

"Yes, I have spoken to the doctor, everything is going as well as can be expected. I need to get a new apartment though and quickly, somewhere between Sunnydale and LA I think. That way there is no possibility of Buffy running into anybody she knows." Giles removed his glasses and rubbed his eyes in an effort to remove some of the tension that was building.

"I'm afraid it's imperative that she has no contact with anybody from her past, that means no family and no friends. I'm not sure how she will take seeing me let alone her mother or best friends. We must take this very slowly."

*****

One week later.

"Good morning Aurora, we have some really exciting news for you, it seems we have found a relative of yours. A cousin has come forward, he has been living in England for many years and has only just realised you were missing, you can finally go home."

Dr Andrews smiled happily at the girl. Buffy stood very still as this new information filtered through. Eventually a small smile started at the corners of her mouth

"I'm going home" was all she could say.

*****

"Hello, it's so nice to see you again " Giles fought back the incredible urge he felt to hug her, he struggled to keep his voice as normal as possible. Buffy just looked at the man standing in front of her. Giles held his breath and waited.

" I'm sorry, I don't remember you" she replied quietly with a deep disappointment in her voice.

Dr Andrews gently squeezed her shoulder. "We spoke about this Aurora, we knew there was a strong possibility this could happen. So, one day at a time ok?" he smiled.

Buffy nodded and smiled back.

"Now remember, Mr.Giles will not be allowed to tell you any important details regarding your old life. Apart from the fact that he hasn't seen you in many years, it would be far too dangerous, you must allow your memory to return on its own. I hope that's understood, now I want you to take care and keep in touch. " The doctor hugged her close. He would miss the tiny girl he had come to care for deeply, there was a deep sadness about her, as if part of her very soul was missing. He doubted the loss of her memory was the only reason for such a sadness, his feeling was that it went much deeper than that.

"I'll miss you too" Buffy hugged him back.

"Big new world out there, just set your mind to start living in it " he whispered.

Go to Part 7