Chapter Fifteen - Bleed Through
On a different day, / If I was safe in my own skin, / Then I wouldn't be / Lost and so frightened / But this is today / And I'm lost in my own skin / And I'm so lonely I don't even want to be with myself anymore
I just want to feel / Safe in my own skin / I just want to be / Happy again
--Dido - "Honestly OK"
Buffy, Harry, and Hermione went to Dumbledore's office as soon as Buffy found the note. The rest followed shortly after.
Harry was nervously cracking his knuckles. Hermione had her arm around him and was following a very angry, pacing Buffy with her eyes.
"Giles, find a loophole in this slayers can't kill people rule."
"Buffy, you know better then anyone, there IS no loophole."
"Well find one! Or - give me something I can pummel."
"I'm up for a challenge."
Buffy stared at Faith. "You - you're serious."
"Sure. Fighting will get your mind off of this shit for a while. C'mon."
"I think Faith has a point. Why don't you go train for a while?" Giles said.
Buffy took a deep breath and jumped off of the chair she had finally settled into. She followed them out the door. Unbeknownst to them, Xander and Harry followed.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
"Now that Buffy is gone, there are several things we need to discuss. Possibilities for keeping Dawn alive and Voldemort out of power." Giles said grimly.
"Possibilities? What kind of possibilities?" Angel asked.
Willow opened the same book with the Ritual of Endowment in it to the last page, and said, "A binding spell. We can bind the essence of the key to Dawn so that when Voldemort tries to draw her blood, he won't get any power."
"But is that possible without harming her?" Angel asked.
"Yes. There are two slight problems though - the power lies within a stone that has to somehow come in contact with either Dawn or her blood."
"Why is that a problem?" Anya asked.
Willow stared at her blankly.
"I mean, Buffy's blood is the same as Dawn's blood. Why don't you just ask her?"
"Good lord - she's right." Giles said, disbelieving.
"Why didn't I think of that," Willow said, "because that's where our second problem comes in. Because Buffy gave her life for Dawn, she and Dawn are connected by more then blood. Their very - I don't know what else to call it - souls are connected. If we bind the source of Dawn's power, we bind the source of Buffy's power."
"So you're saying that Buffy w-won't have her slayer strength?" Tara asked.
Willow nodded. "For the most part, yes. There are strengths that she has naturally that won't go away - anything she's accelerated because of training, for example. It may be harder for her to hone and fight though."
"Which could be a problem with the pending apocalypse." Giles said rubbing his eyes.
Angel shook his head. "So, what are we going to do?"
"We ask Buffy for her consent. That's all we can do. For now." Giles said sighing.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Buffy leaned against the wall taking a few deep breaths. The whole time Giles and Willow were explaining the situation to her, she was sparring and knife-throwing with Faith.
"So you're saying that if we do this, I'll lose my slaying abilities? Permanently?"
Giles shook his head. "Only until the stone is destroyed. The stone itself will be bound to you and Dawn, so only either of you can destroy it."
"How convenient." Buffy said, sighing. "This is so frustrating! Damnit!" Buffy kicked the wall.
"Buffy - "
"No! No Angel! I can't keep doing this! I can't..." Buffy swayed on her feet. "I can't..." Her voice faded and she stumbled a little.
"Buffy?"
Their voices were fading.
"Buffy!"
A wave of dizziness came over her and everything went black.
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Buffy was sitting under a large willow tree next to a lake. She looked into the water, but the reflection she saw wasn't hers.
It was Dawn's.
"You're not supposed to be here." Dawn said sitting next to her.
"I know. There's something I'm supposed to be doing."
"Oh yeah. Miles to go before you sleep."
"You sound like Faith."
Dawn grimaced, a look of pain on her face.
"Dawnie?"
Dawn lifted up the white peasant blouse she was wearing to reveal a cut on her abdomen, the same place that her scars were.
"He's coming. Buffy, you can't let him get the key."
"Dawnie, I can't."
"You can. Your powers will be bound, but you'll still be the slayer. All you have to do is depend on Faith."
Buffy grinned sadly at Dawn's play on words. She looked back into the water and saw her own reflection staring back at her. Dawn was standing behind her. She put a hand on Buffy's cheek.
"Return."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*
Buffy woke up in Angel's arms.
"Mmmm..." She groaned groggily.
"Giles! She's awake!" Angel said, and turned to Buffy. "Are you alright?"
Buffy nodded and said quietly, "I have to save her, Angel. Tell Willow to do the binding spell."
"Are you sure?"
Buffy nodded and stood up, a little shaky on her feet.
"I'm sure. He can't get her power. She has to live.
For me."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Willow sat on the snow-covered grass next to the lake. Xander handed her the supplies for the binding spell. Buffy sat cross-legged next to her.
"Buffy, I need you to relax. I want you to close your eyes and listen to my voice."
Buffy did as she was asked.
"I'm going to put you to sleep. The only time you'll feel anything is after the binding is done."
Buffy nodded.
Harry, who was standing close by, put a spell on Buffy so she would sleep. She slumped and was out cold.
Willow took a deep breath and opened the book. She picked up the piece of black chord she was using as a bookmark and began the spell. As she spoke, she put seven knots in the chord.
"Gods of old, I implore thee. Goddesses of the earth, come to use now. Bind the essence of the key to the dawn and the slayer. Bind, bind, bound."
Willow put down the chord and picked up the stone. She put the stone in Buffy's palm. She then cut Buffy's palm above and below where the stone lay. She closed her palm into a fist.
"May the power of blood seal the binding of souls."
She opened Buffy's palm and strung the stone on the chord. She tied three knots as she said, "Bind, bind, bound."
Buffy felt a sharp pain in her chest. Even in her sleep, she cringed.
Willow put the chord around Buffy's neck and put her hand over Buffy's heart.
"Return."
Buffy's eyes fluttered open. Xander knelt down next to her.
"Are you alright?"
"I think so. I feel weird. Tied down almost." Buffy shook her head and held the stone in her hand. "God, I hope this works."
~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~
Dawn woke up feeling groggy and disoriented. She felt as if her body was being tied down by something. Her entire being felt heavy and she had a splitting headache.
That's when she remembered the dream and the binding spell Buffy was going to do. She could only think that what she was feeling was a result of that spell.
Dawn went to rub her eyes, but she found her arms tied tightly behind her.
"Oh, fuck me." She said, struggling.
"This isn't the time nor the place for that sweetheart, but I'm glad you're awake."
"Ron!" Dawn said, almost too happily, continuing to struggle. "This isn't the time to joke. We need to get out of here. If I could just untie this goddamn rope."
"I wouldn't even try. It's not worth the struggle. You still won't get away, not once my master comes."
"Pettigrew!" Ron yelled through clenched teeth. "You lying, conniving piece of shit!"
"Oh, is that any way to talk to the person who holds your life in his hands?"
"Fuck you asshole!"
"Ron," Dawn hissed, "cursing your brains out won't do us any good."
"You should listen to your girlfriend Weasly. She knows what she's talking about."
Dawn's face tuned deathly pale when she heard that voice.
The person stepped out of the shadows and Dawn froze. She couldn't move. She couldn't think.
"Hello Dawn."
Dawn took a few shallow, panicked breaths.
Ron looked from the person to Dawn and back again. One word escaped his lips and Dawn's slight nod was enough to confirm his suspicions - and his worry.
"Glory."
"In the flesh." Glory smiled.
"Well - almost."
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