Threads: Insomnia (Part 4)
Oct. 22nd, 2010 11:12 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
akainagiThreads: Insomnia (Part 4)
Author: AkaiNagi
Rating: PG-13
Genre: X-over with Stephen King’s Insomnia. AU: does not adhere to season three cannon i.e. Faith, Angel’s return, etc.
Summary: Buffy returns from Phoenix carrying a curse, one she must face alone. But when she disappears again, will anyone, even her Watcher, keep faith in her?
As fall advanced into winter, and as the last of her sleep dwindled down to nothing, Buffy had to face the fact that the answer wasn’t going to come from Giles, or books or home remedies. She was on her own. And on a seemingly ordinary school day in late November, she began to realize just how alone she truly was.
Despite their hard-won privilege as seniors to leave campus for lunch, they found themselves in the school cafeteria in deference to the cold, rainy winter weather.
“So whose turn is it to Buffy-sit tonight?” Cordelia asked with her usual tact.
Oz raised his hand. “Guilty as charged.”
Buffy sighed. “I’ve got to talk to Giles about this Buddy-system. I just think its way not necessary anymore.”
“Why,” Xander asked. “Did you make a breakthrough in the sleep department? Catch any good Z’s lately?”
Willow chimed in. “I thought you looked better. Not that you looked bad!” she added hastily. “You just look more rested, I mean.”
“Yeah,” Cordy agreed. “You don’t have those gross bags under your eyes anymore.”
Buffy rolled her bagless eyes. “Thanks Cordelia.” She played with the only marginally edible food on her Styrofoam plate. “I just think I have the slaying down. Giles was worried I was off my game, but I’ve been staking vamps left and right.”
“Yeah,” Xander agreed. You definitely had your Slayer A-game on last night. You dusted … what? … four?”
“I counted five the night before last,” Willow added.
While they were wrong about her sleep returning (in fact it had disappeared completely around mid-November), her patrol record spoke for itself. The soul-crushing exhaustion she had suffered with for months had disappeared with the last of her sleep. In its place was a kind of hyper-vigilance … no, that wasn’t quite right. It was a kind of awareness. As the Slayer, her senses were already heightened, but now it was like someone had cranked them up a notch further. It was like she knew where the vamps would be before they appeared. Lights seemed brighter, smells seemed sharper, reality felt more real.
She hadn’t shared this with anyone, even Giles, letting everyone think that the improvement in her condition was the result of her insomnia resolving.
On the day that Giles had, with the air of a man who had failed in his duty, informed her that his search for an insomnia cure had turned up no leads, she had decided that she would bear up under this bizarre curse as best she could. She was tired of worrying her Watcher and endangering her friends by dragging them on patrol every night.
“I’ll talk to Giles after school. I’m feeling better. I think it’s time to graduate to solo patrolling.”
“Amen!” Cordelia exclaimed. “What?” she asked when all heads turned her way. “It was a drag, admit it! My eyes were getting circles.”
Before anyone could comment, the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch. And as Buffy got up from her seat, she had the most peculiar feeling in the pit of her stomach. Like the feeling you get when the elevator starts going up. A sensation of rising. The feeling was so disconcerting that she had to close her eyes for a moment to steady herself.
“Hey, Buff?” Xander asked. “You okay?”
Buffy opened her eyes.
Her first thought was that the world was on fire.
Colored light radiated from the mass of people in the crowded cafeteria; each person glowing like a small sun. Buffy stood there dumbly, her mouth slack.
The Scoobies crowded around her, each of them suffused with their own particular aura. Willow, surrounded by a brilliant burnt-orange light, leaned into Buffy, her face a mask of concern.
But Buffy barely saw Willow; she was so overwhelmed by this new world she had been thrust into. Not only did everyone in the cafeteria have an aura, but each person had a colored ribbon of light rising from the top of their heads. They made Buffy think of balloon strings minus the balloon. A whole sea of them filled the cafeteria, wafting back and forth gently as if by an invisible breeze.
She reached up to touch one, mesmerized, but she was distracted by the golden glow that surrounded her own hand. I’m gold, she thought, her amazement mounting with each new discovery. My aura is gold. She waved her fingers in the air and watched them leave a faint gold trail through the air.
Suddenly, Willows hand on her shoulder added a new and disturbing dimension to the experience. She could feel Willows concern. It was so strong it nearly bowled her over. She jerked away, closing her eyes reflexively against the rush of stimuli. She squeezed her eyes shut as hard as she could and bore down with her mind. She pictured in her mind an elevator sinking.
She opened her eyes slowly.
The cafeteria had returned to normalcy. No auras. No balloon strings. Nobody else’s emotions intruding into her consciousness.
Her friends looked at her expectantly. Even Cordelia looked worried.
“Sorry,” Buffy said lamely. “Stood up too fast.”
The group looked skeptical. “You sure you’re okay?” Willow asked. “You totally spaced on us.”
“Fine! I’m fine. Just got dizzy for a minute there.” She forced a smile.
Reluctantly, they all dispersed to their classes. The last to leave was Buffy, trying her best not to look as shell-shocked as she felt.
~*~*~*~
Buffy stood outside the door of the library, her thoughts waging battle. Should she tell Giles about her experience in the cafeteria? Wouldn’t it just cause him more worry? But then again, he might be able to shed some light on this aura business. No pun intended.
On the other hand, he surely wouldn’t let her go back to patrolling alone if he thought she was hallucinating bright lights and balloon strings. And she desperately wanted to let her friends off the hook. Aside from the inconvenience to her friends, it was taxing for Buffy, worrying about their safety every night.
That cinched it. She would wait on the aura conversation. Today’s focus was on getting her solo slaying privileges back. Perhaps today’s light show was a one-time event anyway.
Somehow, she doubted it.
She pushed open the doors of the library to find an empty room, not a Giles or a Scooby in sight.
“Giles,” she called.
“The answer is no,” the familiar voice replied from between the stacks.
“What?? I haven’t even asked yet!” Buffy exclaimed indignantly.
Giles emerged from the shelves, making his was down the stairs. “The others were already here. They told me you had an episode in the cafeteria today. How did Cordelia put it? Ah, yes, she said you ‘went all freak-show-like.’” He gestured to a chair. “Care to tell me what the freak show was about?”
Buffy ignored the gesture. “Giles, it was nothing. I just got a little dizzy, that’s all. I’m glad they care, but the gang is overreacting.”
He looked at her skeptically. “Willow said she thought you were hallucinating.”
“Willow’s a worrywart.”
“Well then so am I,” Giles said. “Did you have a vision?” he asked bluntly.
“God!” Buffy exclaimed, losing her patience. “It was nothing! Nothing, okay?”
Giles was clearly taken aback by her sudden vehemence.
Buffy sighed. “Look, I’m sorry. I’m a little testy, okay. It really was nothing. Giles, I just want to get back to my old routine. I slay better solo, so can I ditch the entourage, already. Even the gang admits I’ve got the slaying down. You’ve seen so yourself.”
“Are you sleeping again?”
“More or less,” Buffy replied.
“Which is it,” Giles countered, his own patience wearing thin. “More or less?”
“Dammit Giles, when are you going to trust me to do my job?” Buffy growled.
“When you stop lying to me,” Giles said stonily.
That hit Buffy a little too close to home. He was right. He was her Watcher. He was devoted to her welfare. He deserved better than to be snow jobbed. The proof that she was in the wrong made her even angrier. Buffy picked up her bag and stormed towards the door.
“Buffy,” Giles called after her. She stopped without turning around.
Giles’ voice was flat. “I shall be patrolling with you in the future. I’ll see you at the cemetery at the usual time.”
Buffy’s echoing footsteps were the only answer.
Author: AkaiNagi
Rating: PG-13
Genre: X-over with Stephen King’s Insomnia. AU: does not adhere to season three cannon i.e. Faith, Angel’s return, etc.
Summary: Buffy returns from Phoenix carrying a curse, one she must face alone. But when she disappears again, will anyone, even her Watcher, keep faith in her?
As fall advanced into winter, and as the last of her sleep dwindled down to nothing, Buffy had to face the fact that the answer wasn’t going to come from Giles, or books or home remedies. She was on her own. And on a seemingly ordinary school day in late November, she began to realize just how alone she truly was.
Despite their hard-won privilege as seniors to leave campus for lunch, they found themselves in the school cafeteria in deference to the cold, rainy winter weather.
“So whose turn is it to Buffy-sit tonight?” Cordelia asked with her usual tact.
Oz raised his hand. “Guilty as charged.”
Buffy sighed. “I’ve got to talk to Giles about this Buddy-system. I just think its way not necessary anymore.”
“Why,” Xander asked. “Did you make a breakthrough in the sleep department? Catch any good Z’s lately?”
Willow chimed in. “I thought you looked better. Not that you looked bad!” she added hastily. “You just look more rested, I mean.”
“Yeah,” Cordy agreed. “You don’t have those gross bags under your eyes anymore.”
Buffy rolled her bagless eyes. “Thanks Cordelia.” She played with the only marginally edible food on her Styrofoam plate. “I just think I have the slaying down. Giles was worried I was off my game, but I’ve been staking vamps left and right.”
“Yeah,” Xander agreed. You definitely had your Slayer A-game on last night. You dusted … what? … four?”
“I counted five the night before last,” Willow added.
While they were wrong about her sleep returning (in fact it had disappeared completely around mid-November), her patrol record spoke for itself. The soul-crushing exhaustion she had suffered with for months had disappeared with the last of her sleep. In its place was a kind of hyper-vigilance … no, that wasn’t quite right. It was a kind of awareness. As the Slayer, her senses were already heightened, but now it was like someone had cranked them up a notch further. It was like she knew where the vamps would be before they appeared. Lights seemed brighter, smells seemed sharper, reality felt more real.
She hadn’t shared this with anyone, even Giles, letting everyone think that the improvement in her condition was the result of her insomnia resolving.
On the day that Giles had, with the air of a man who had failed in his duty, informed her that his search for an insomnia cure had turned up no leads, she had decided that she would bear up under this bizarre curse as best she could. She was tired of worrying her Watcher and endangering her friends by dragging them on patrol every night.
“I’ll talk to Giles after school. I’m feeling better. I think it’s time to graduate to solo patrolling.”
“Amen!” Cordelia exclaimed. “What?” she asked when all heads turned her way. “It was a drag, admit it! My eyes were getting circles.”
Before anyone could comment, the bell rang, signaling the end of lunch. And as Buffy got up from her seat, she had the most peculiar feeling in the pit of her stomach. Like the feeling you get when the elevator starts going up. A sensation of rising. The feeling was so disconcerting that she had to close her eyes for a moment to steady herself.
“Hey, Buff?” Xander asked. “You okay?”
Buffy opened her eyes.
Her first thought was that the world was on fire.
Colored light radiated from the mass of people in the crowded cafeteria; each person glowing like a small sun. Buffy stood there dumbly, her mouth slack.
The Scoobies crowded around her, each of them suffused with their own particular aura. Willow, surrounded by a brilliant burnt-orange light, leaned into Buffy, her face a mask of concern.
But Buffy barely saw Willow; she was so overwhelmed by this new world she had been thrust into. Not only did everyone in the cafeteria have an aura, but each person had a colored ribbon of light rising from the top of their heads. They made Buffy think of balloon strings minus the balloon. A whole sea of them filled the cafeteria, wafting back and forth gently as if by an invisible breeze.
She reached up to touch one, mesmerized, but she was distracted by the golden glow that surrounded her own hand. I’m gold, she thought, her amazement mounting with each new discovery. My aura is gold. She waved her fingers in the air and watched them leave a faint gold trail through the air.
Suddenly, Willows hand on her shoulder added a new and disturbing dimension to the experience. She could feel Willows concern. It was so strong it nearly bowled her over. She jerked away, closing her eyes reflexively against the rush of stimuli. She squeezed her eyes shut as hard as she could and bore down with her mind. She pictured in her mind an elevator sinking.
She opened her eyes slowly.
The cafeteria had returned to normalcy. No auras. No balloon strings. Nobody else’s emotions intruding into her consciousness.
Her friends looked at her expectantly. Even Cordelia looked worried.
“Sorry,” Buffy said lamely. “Stood up too fast.”
The group looked skeptical. “You sure you’re okay?” Willow asked. “You totally spaced on us.”
“Fine! I’m fine. Just got dizzy for a minute there.” She forced a smile.
Reluctantly, they all dispersed to their classes. The last to leave was Buffy, trying her best not to look as shell-shocked as she felt.
~*~*~*~
Buffy stood outside the door of the library, her thoughts waging battle. Should she tell Giles about her experience in the cafeteria? Wouldn’t it just cause him more worry? But then again, he might be able to shed some light on this aura business. No pun intended.
On the other hand, he surely wouldn’t let her go back to patrolling alone if he thought she was hallucinating bright lights and balloon strings. And she desperately wanted to let her friends off the hook. Aside from the inconvenience to her friends, it was taxing for Buffy, worrying about their safety every night.
That cinched it. She would wait on the aura conversation. Today’s focus was on getting her solo slaying privileges back. Perhaps today’s light show was a one-time event anyway.
Somehow, she doubted it.
She pushed open the doors of the library to find an empty room, not a Giles or a Scooby in sight.
“Giles,” she called.
“The answer is no,” the familiar voice replied from between the stacks.
“What?? I haven’t even asked yet!” Buffy exclaimed indignantly.
Giles emerged from the shelves, making his was down the stairs. “The others were already here. They told me you had an episode in the cafeteria today. How did Cordelia put it? Ah, yes, she said you ‘went all freak-show-like.’” He gestured to a chair. “Care to tell me what the freak show was about?”
Buffy ignored the gesture. “Giles, it was nothing. I just got a little dizzy, that’s all. I’m glad they care, but the gang is overreacting.”
He looked at her skeptically. “Willow said she thought you were hallucinating.”
“Willow’s a worrywart.”
“Well then so am I,” Giles said. “Did you have a vision?” he asked bluntly.
“God!” Buffy exclaimed, losing her patience. “It was nothing! Nothing, okay?”
Giles was clearly taken aback by her sudden vehemence.
Buffy sighed. “Look, I’m sorry. I’m a little testy, okay. It really was nothing. Giles, I just want to get back to my old routine. I slay better solo, so can I ditch the entourage, already. Even the gang admits I’ve got the slaying down. You’ve seen so yourself.”
“Are you sleeping again?”
“More or less,” Buffy replied.
“Which is it,” Giles countered, his own patience wearing thin. “More or less?”
“Dammit Giles, when are you going to trust me to do my job?” Buffy growled.
“When you stop lying to me,” Giles said stonily.
That hit Buffy a little too close to home. He was right. He was her Watcher. He was devoted to her welfare. He deserved better than to be snow jobbed. The proof that she was in the wrong made her even angrier. Buffy picked up her bag and stormed towards the door.
“Buffy,” Giles called after her. She stopped without turning around.
Giles’ voice was flat. “I shall be patrolling with you in the future. I’ll see you at the cemetery at the usual time.”
Buffy’s echoing footsteps were the only answer.
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Date: 2010-10-23 09:01 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2010-10-23 03:17 pm (UTC)