Title: One Wish
Author: Rari

(notes and disclaimer with part one)

One Wish: Part 2

Buffy crouched there for a while longer and then slowly rose. She didn't hear anyone else in the bathroom. She opened the door slowly and then headed over to the sink. When she saw herself she started to cry again. Her dress was torn in several places. There were bruises on her arms and shoulders and her hair was a mess. Her eyes were red and puffy and her mascara had run down her cheeks. The door opened up and she shrank into the corner, terrified it would be them, coming after her.

She let out her breath when she saw a couple of young girls walk in. One of them looked at Buffy. "God, what happened to you?" Buffy just shook her head and they both ignored her after that and entered stalls. Buffy reached for a paper towel with shaking hands and after wetting it started wiping off her mascara. She ran her fingers through her hair and tried to quell the panic that was still coursing through her. No matter how much she tried she couldn't stop feeling it. It consumed her. She couldn't go back out there. She was afraid to go anywhere. Not after this morning, not after what had just happened.

One of the girls came out of the stall and looked at Buffy, torn between wanting to help and not really wanting to be bothered. Her conscience won out. "Can I get you something?"

Buffy shook her head and then she looked up. "Do you have a phone?" Her voice came out thick and hiccupy.

The girl nodded and reached into her purse. She handed it to Buffy but then pulled it back. "Local?"

Buffy nodded and the girl handed her the phone. Buffy sat on the small couch and dialed Giles' number. She prayed for him to be home. Finally he picked up. "Hello?"

"Giles?" She took a long shaky breath.

Giles' eyebrows furrowed. "Buffy? Are you all right?"

"No." She started to cry. "Can you come and get me?"

"Of course. Are you hurt?" She didn't answer; her cries were like a fist around his heart. "Buffy, are you hurt? Do I need to call an ambulance?"

"Just come and get me. I need you."

"Where are you? I'll come right now."

"At the Bronze. I'm in the ladies room." At the girl's impatient look Buffy whispered. "Hurry." She disconnected.

"In the ladies room? Why…" Giles heard the dial tone. He finished his sentence to the room at large, "…don't you meet me outside?" He hung up the phone and quickly grabbing his keys and a coat he ran for his car. He couldn't understand what could have upset Buffy so much if she wasn't hurt. On his way he'd made up half a dozen scenarios, each one worse than the last so by the time he'd gotten to the Bronze he was a nervous wreck.

He impatiently paid a cover charge and then headed for the restrooms.

***

Ethan watched Giles cross the bar. He had watched Buffy being attacked while he ate his nachos. He'd been waiting for her to come out of the bathroom, hoping there'd be more of a floorshow. When he saw Giles his eyes lit up. This was perfect. She'd called her knight in shining armor, and here he was, ready to save her.

Except he wasn't going to be quite what she expected. He got up and throwing some money on the bar he headed out. His work was done. Giles would get Buffy alone and then he'd try and rape her. He wouldn't be able to help himself. It didn't even matter what she did. She could kill him or she could fight him or she could let him do it to her. Either way it would destroy her. And it would certainly destroy them, and that was as good as destroying her. He stepped out into the cool nighttime air and took a deep breath. He grinned and getting in his car, he drove off.

***

Giles stopped a girl coming out of the ladies room. "Is there a young blond girl in there?"

"You mean the one who's a basket case?"

"Y..yes."

"Yeah, she's in there."

"Is there anyone else in there?" The girl went back in to check. She came back out and motioned for him to enter, grinning. "The coast is clear."

Giles nodded at her and he entered feeling as if he was invading enemy territory. When he saw Buffy he was overcome with a thousand different emotions. The strongest one was desire. She was huddled on the couch. He could see that her dress was torn and he could see the curves of her breasts. His eyes took in her thighs and all he wanted to do was kneel at her feet and spread her legs. But part of him saw Buffy. His heart tightened at the look on her face. She was miserable and frightened. There were several bruises on her and he could see scratches as well. His anger grew as he walked over to her. With all the intense emotions warring within him, somehow it was easier to separate them out. He sat down next to her, emotions in check. "Buffy, I'm here. What happened?"

She jerked back at first when she heard a man's voice but when his accent registered and she saw that Giles was sitting there she threw herself in his arms. He held her, forcing himself to hold his hands still. He knew his control was tenuous at best. He took long deep breaths and tried to focus on his anger, on her pain.

The longer he held her the harder it got. Giles tried to move away from Buffy but she had him in a death grip. Sweat started to form on his forehead. His voice was rough when he spoke. "Buffy, tell me what happened."

She just shook her head and pressed closer against him. "Just hold me." He tried to put some space in between them but she whimpered. "No, don't leave me."

He blew out a breath and continued to will his hands to stay still. Without thinking he dropped a kiss on the top of her head and then bit his lips to keep from following up that kiss with a hundred more. A couple of women walked in and flashed him a surprised look. He gasped with relief at the distraction, smiling apologetically to them. They grinned and moved to the stalls. He blushed as he listened to them pee. "Buffy, let me take you home."

She shook her head. "I can't go out there."

"We can't stay here." He tried to think but his brain felt like mush. Too much of it was occupied by how she felt, what he wanted to do. He stood, too quickly for Buffy to stop him. Giles took off his coat and put it over her shoulders. "I won't let anything happen to you." He hoped that was true, that it wouldn't be he who did something to her. He tried to think again. He knew there was something important he needed to understand but it was just beyond his reach.

Giles looked down at Buffy and then crouched down beside her. He was almost lost as he gently touched her knee. His mind supplied the pictures, pictures of him wrenching her knees apart, pulling her hips to the edge of the couch, thrusting inside of her with his tongue. He could feel her heat. But a piece of him managed to stay sane. He stood and walked away from her. He didn't know how he could help her, not when he was like this.

He turned around to look at her. There was no one else but him. He'd get her home and then he'd keep his distance. He walked to her quickly and pulled her up. He stood holding her close to his side not giving her a chance to say no again. When he pulled her outside into the hallway she moaned and buried her face completely in his chest. He looked around and decided to brave the emergency exit. He wanted to get outside, hoping that the nighttime air would help cool him off.

He was relieved that the alarm didn't sound when he pushed the door open. The outside air did help to clear his head a little. He began to direct Buffy over to his car. He passed a man on the way. The man smiled. He directed his question to Giles. "Hey, buddy, want to share her?" Giles' eyes opened wide. Buffy called out Giles' name. He could hear the fear in her voice. Giles pushed past the man but he was insistent. "Come on, we can both have a good time."

Giles' need to get Buffy home barely overrode his anger that this man was daring to take Buffy away from him. At the look in Giles' eyes the man took a couple of steps back. Giles felt a yank and turned around to see another man tugging on Buffy, trying to pull Buffy away. Buffy clutched Giles even tighter. Giles winced at the pain. He knew he'd be bruised by morning but right now the pain kept him focused.

There were men on both sides of them. One of them opened his mouth to speak. Giles didn't wait. He was sure he didn't want to hear it. He lashed out and punched the man laying him out cold. Giles turned to the other man but he was momentarily distracted looking at the man on the ground. Giles picked Buffy up, holding her in his arms.

He reached his car and bracing Buffy against the door he dug for his keys. She had her arms locked around the back of his neck. He opened the door and tried to place her in the seat but she wouldn't let go. He tried to reason with her. "Buffy, let go. You're safe now. I can't shut the door if you don't let me go." He could smell the scent of her hair. Her lips were so close to his. He closed his eyes and spoke more harshly than he meant to, feeling a bit desperate. "Buffy, you have to let me go."

She let go, startled at his tone. After making sure she was all tucked in he shut the car door. He let out a deep breath and shook himself out as he walked to his side of the car. As he got in he realized that there was another man approaching Buffy's side of the car. He hit the door lock button just as the man tried to open her door. Buffy recoiled from the door and Giles had to avoid sitting on her as he entered the car.

When he finally got the car started she moved back into her seat. He drove to her house and parked in the driveway. She hadn't said a thing the whole way home. She was trembling, her head against the window, an occasional tear running down her face. He got out of the car and walking around, opened her door. She made no move to get out. He bent down and wrapping his arms around her again he lifted her from the car.

He used his own key to let them in and he carried her upstairs to the bathroom. He put the lid down and then he sat her on the toilet as he started running a bath. As the tub started to fill he sat on the edge of the tub and looked at her. She was just sitting there, looking at the floor. He took in her bruises and her torn dress. His brain had slowly started functioning again. He was starting to put two and two together and was able to imagine what had happened to Buffy, based on what was happening to him and seemingly every other man she came in contact with. He felt slammed by anger again and he was grateful for it. He called her name. "Buffy."

She lifted her eyes to him but didn't speak. He hesitated. He felt so out of his element. He tried to ask. "Were you…did someone…" He let out a noise of frustration and ran his hand through his hair. He felt tainted by his own feelings. It made him feel as if he had no rights here, no right to be consoling her, to be concerned about her. He took a deep breath and tried again. "Buffy, were you forced by anyone?" He couldn't even say the word rape. Saying the word felt almost as bad as the action.

Buffy shook her head, just barely. Her eyes began to tear up and her body started trembling even more. She sent him an anguished look. "There were so many of them, I couldn't stop them. They would have, they wanted to." She started to cry and Giles allowed his anger to wash over him again and he wrapped his arms around her, pulling her head to his chest. When his desire for her started growing overwhelming he turned back to the bath and shut off the water. Walking to her bedroom he brought her back her bathrobe.

He put his finger under her chin and lifted her face. "Buffy, I've drawn a bath for you. I'll be downstairs." At her small nod, he spoke again. "I don't understand what's happening yet but I'll figure out what it is, and I'll stop it. I promise you." He gestured to the bath with one of his hands. "Can you manage?"

She nodded and stood, and his jacket fell off her shoulders. Giles left the room quickly, practically running down the stairs. He headed for the scotch but then changed his mind. He figured imbibing in anything that might lower his inhibitions would be a disastrous mistake. He sat on the couch trying to get his equilibrium back.

The distance helped. He felt as if his brain had fully switched back to on. He began to pace as he thought furiously. It was obviously some sort of spell, some sort of sex spell that was viciously directed at Buffy. He stretched his neck out first to one side and then to the other. Then he rolled his shoulders. He couldn't remember ever feeling this tense. It clearly affected men, made them want her, and he was no exception. He'd been able to control it so far but he wasn't sure he'd be able to continue. He'd already come so close to giving in to it. He needed to find a woman to sit with Buffy so he could get away from her until he was able to put a stop to it. Getting up he headed for the kitchen, reaching for the phone.

He tried Willow first but there was no answer. Then he recalled that she and Tara had left this morning for a long weekend excursion. He cursed softly. He dialed Xander's number, supposing that even Anya would be a better choice than him to sit with Buffy. Again, there was no answer. He left a message asking her to call Buffy's immediately. That it was urgent.

In the meantime that left him to watch over Buffy. He knew he should probably leave but Giles was hesitant to do that. Suppose someone came to the door and Buffy opened it. Suppose someone saw her through the window. After the way he had responded to her Giles wasn't willing to discount any horrible possibility. He couldn't leave her alone.

Giles started trying to think of who could have done it and only came up with two possibilities. The first, and he desperately hoped he was wrong, was Willow. Not intentionally, but as a side effect of some spell gone terribly wrong. Giles wished he could get in touch with her. The second possibility was Ethan, but as far as Giles knew, Ethan was still locked up courtesy of the U.S. Military. Other than that, Giles was drawing a blank.

He glanced up the stairs, hoping Buffy was all right but knowing that he couldn't go check himself. Not if there was a chance that she was naked. Just the thought of it made his shirt collar tight. He ran a finger between the cloth and his neck and then unbuttoned the top button, loosening his tie. He forced himself to think about the problem at hand. Unfortunately all his thoughts kept cycling back to Buffy. He headed towards the refrigerator for something cold to drink.

Before he got to the kitchen there was a knock at the door. Giles pursed his lips trying to decide whether he should answer it or not. He heard Spike call Buffy's name. Giles sighed and opened the door.

Spike tried to enter but Buffy had clearly not invited him in since an uninvite spell had been performed. Spike rammed against an invisible barrier. He scowled at Giles. "Get Buffy."

Giles shook his head. "No, I can't."

"Why the hell not? Where is she? Go get her so she can let me in."

"I can't, Spike. Or at least not until I determine if the spell works on vampires too."

"What spell?"

"Someone's put a spell of some sort on Buffy and …let's just say that…that is to say….she can't…" Giles blew out a breath, uncomfortable discussing the subject.

Spike looked annoyed. "Watcher, spit it out."

Giles heard some movement upstairs. He looked at Spike. "Stay there."

Spike rolled his eyes. "Well I can't exactly come in there, can I?" He yelled up the stairs at Giles' back. "You bloody jerk." He sat on the stoop.

Giles stopped before he hit the landing. He called out Buffy's name. "Buffy?"

Buffy walked out of her bedroom wearing light blue flannel pajamas with fleecy sheep all over it. She was holding Mr. Gordo. She looked like she was about ten years old. Giles' body didn't care. The fact that he knew it was a spell helped keep him where he was. He smiled at her. "Spike's here." As her eyes widened Giles held up his hand. "He can't come in. I thought it might be worthwhile to see if vampires are affected by this…" He waved his arm in the air, "…whatever it is. But I won't ask you to see him if you don't want to."

She looked at him, her eyes trusting. "You'll be there?"

He couldn't meet her gaze, not with that implicit trust shining out at him like that. He nodded. "Yes."

She thought for a minute and then nodded her head. She started heading towards Giles and he quickly turned wanting to keep a few feet between them. He saw a quick flash of hurt in her eyes but he kept moving.

Spike heard them coming down the stairs and he stood and faced the door waiting for his invitation. When he saw Buffy he morphed into his demon face and slammed himself against the barrier. He threw himself at it repeatedly, yelling at Buffy to let him in. He was almost spitting in his frenzied need to get at her. Buffy stared at him horrified. Giles turned to her. "Go upstairs Buffy. I'll take care of Spike." Buffy needed no further urging. She ran upstairs, back into her bedroom, and back under the covers.

Once Giles felt his own body start to calm down he lifted his head to look at Spike. Spike was back in his human guise looking confused. He glanced at Giles. "What the hell was that?"

"That was the spell."

Spike looked appalled. "Jesus." He looked down at his hands. "I would've…"

Giles cut him off. "I know." He was equally appalled, just thinking about what might have happened to Buffy if she'd gone patrolling.

Spike looked at Giles, at his clenched hands. "Is she safe with you?"

Giles wasn't sure how to answer that. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath. "I'm all she's got. I'm trying to keep my distance." He opened his eyes and looked at Spike. "I need to find Anya. Willow and Tara are out of town. Buffy needs someone to stay with her and it shouldn't be me, it shouldn't be any man." He moved a little closer to the door. "Spike, I need you to find her. Bring her here, without Xander. I'll need you to go by the store and pick up some spell books. I'll make you a list. Then I need you to see if Ethan is in town."

Spike held his hand up. "Excuse me? Do I look like an errand boy? This is gonna cost you."

Giles was in no position to argue. He reached for his wallet and pulled out all the money that was in there. Giles was relieved to pay Spike, actually. Spike didn't fool around with money. If someone was paying Spike to do something, he did it, because he wanted to be able to come back for more. Giles counted it and handed it to Spike. "There's a hundred dollars here, that's all I have."

Spike nodded. "Make me your bloody list then. I haven't got all night."

Giles headed for the kitchen for the notepad he'd seen lying there. He brought it back in and sat on the couch. Spike rolled his eyes. "Is this going to take long?"

Giles glared at Spike. "It won't do me much good if you don't bring me what I need. If you'd stop interrupting me I could finish." Spike sat on the stoop again, lighting up a cigarette. Giles finally finished the list and stood. "Spike, find Anya first." He reached into his pocket and pulled out his key ring taking off the key to the store. He handed that to Spike. "Don't take anything else."

Spike made a disgusted noise. "Right, like I'd want any of the junk in there." He made as if to head off and then he turned back to Giles. "Watcher, if you do anything, if you hurt her, I don't care how much it hurts me, I'll kill you."

Giles met his gaze, his eyes filled with pain at the thought of the possibility. "I'll want you to." Spike held his eyes for a minute, gave a brief nod and then headed off into the night.

End of Part 2