Psych Ward Blues
by Shyfox
[reviews]
Disclaimer: Characters of Buffy the Vampire Slayer belong to Joss...all other characters belong to me.
Subtext: Yes please.:-)
This is the sequel to Guess who's coming to dinner in my Sappho's Spell series.
The poem is written by my best friend, Mitzi Belyea.
Comments, questions, criticisms are as always welcome at shyfox30@hotmail.com
Psych Ward Blues
by Shyfox
Did you ever wake up in the middle of the night,
And wondered where you were?
You need your one and only that can hold you tight,
And you reach for her.
But she's not with you.
You just wish this trip would end.
You know I've been there.
I don't want to go back again.
--Clint Black and Steve Wariner
Awareness came slowly to the young woman lying on the small, vynal mattress. She reached out blindly for the soft form that should be sleeping beside her, but her hand didn't go very far, as her arm was bound to the bed. Her other arm had been strapped down above her head, and she could feel her feet had been bound to either corner of the bed. She opened her eyes slowly, to discover it did her little good as she was greeted by the darkness around her. Her limbs tightened uselessly in reflex to the unusual circumstances in which she found herself in, but the bonds that bound her didn't allow for much movement. She fought back panic that wanted to arise in her at waking in such an unusual manner, and forced herself to stay calm as she tried to figure out what was going on.
She tried to remember how she had come to be in such a predicament, closing her eyes to shut out the oppressive darkness and letting her mind drift in search of the answers. She remembered kissing Willow before leaving the house...she had let her slaying slack off a bit since she found out about the baby, spending less time out in the darkness killing vampires and more time at home holding her pregnant lover. Giles had let it go for a short while, but he had finally reminded her of her sacred duty to slay vampires, and patrol the night, ensuring the safety of others while she put herself at risk...Okay, so there was a bit of her own sarcasm shining through, but she thought she deserved some at the present moment.
She had patrolled the usual haunts: the old tunnels, the cemeteries...all five of them, the park...the University of SunnyDale's campus, and had dispatched twelve vampires back to hell...all in all a pretty successful evening.
She was heading back home when she spotted a gray van stopping ahead of her in the street. Under the street lamp's glow, she noticed a strange logo on the side of the van. She couldn't make out what it was, so she had gotten closer to get a better look, her curiosity getting the better of her.
The next thing she knew, she heard a loud pop and felt a strange tingling pain fill her shoulder. Looking down, she noticed a dart sticking out of her shoulder. She was irate as she plucked off the offending item. Hearing the van's door opening, she looked up quickly to notice several men jumping out of the van and rushing toward her.
She panicked as she felt a strange dizzy feeling filling her head, and managed to knock the first two for a loop, but whatever they had hit her with was strong and it was affecting her fast. One guy managed to get a hand clamped around her mouth, so that she wouldn't scream, she supposed, and wrapped another arm tightly around her waist, lifting her off of her feet. A second guy grabbed a hold of her actively swinging legs, taking a shot in the groin for his trouble, much to her satisfaction. He groaned dropping his hold on her, but two more were ready to take his place and she was weakening quickly. A dark haze was dropping over her as she struggled to get a good look at her attackers, but their faces were all covered with masks.
She felt them carrying her to their van, the rough jostling as they moved increasing her dizziness as nausea erupted in her stomach. She remembered vomiting on one of them just before she had been tossed roughly into the van, scraping the skin off of the palms of her hands and biting her tongue as she landed roughly on her face. The darkness had conquered her then as she slid into a nice, safe oblivion.
She opened her eyes again, noticing that they had adjusted to the darkness. She was in a small room, not much bigger than a walk-in closet. The bed that she lay on had no sheets and it smelled faintly of old, stale urine. She shuddered at the thought of having to stay on this mattress until her need to pee outweighed her need for self-esteem. She could see a fraction of light coming through a small square that was either a very small window, or a peephole cut into the door so that anyone in this room could be observed from the outside. She didn't notice anyone looking in, so she carefully tested the restraints to see if she could get out of them.
After struggling for several long minutes, she realized the futility of her struggle and let out a sigh of frustration. She felt weak as a newborn puppy, and it angered her. Normally she could break a restraint like that in about two seconds flat. She was obviously still drugged. They probably had plans to keep her that way, too.
*****
Willow woke up the next morning feeling an emptiness wash through as she felt Buffy's empty pillow beside her. She felt an uneasiness start in the pit of her stomach, and she was unable to quell it as she got up and dressed. Maybe Buffy had gotten up already? Willow tried to calm herself, but Buffy usually slept in on the mornings when she had stayed out so late. Their spring classes hadn't started yet, so it wasn't like she had to be to class early. And she really couldn't remember her sneaking into bed last night. Feeling a panic start to rise up inside of her, Willow ran down the stairs, her eyes scanning every room for her wayward lover.
She ran into Joyce when she entered the kitchen, and her green eyes conveyed her panic to the older woman. "Have you seen Buffy? Did she come home last night?"
"You haven't seen her?" Joyce asked, her own worry starting to reflect in her eyes. As Willow shook her head, Joyce fought down her own panic. "Okay, now I'm worried...I mean, I know she's the Slayer and she can handle herself, but..." Her voice drained away as she allowed herself to imagine all of the terrible things that could have happened to her daughter.
"I'm calling Giles...and Xander." Willow said, her voice a little shaky as she tried to keep her growing sense of doom under control. "They can start searching her usual patrol area, and I'll hack into the police system and see if anybody fitting her description was entered into it. Don't worry Joyce...we'll find her." A quiet determination settled over the red head's face, and Joyce was compelled to believe her...just because Willow believed it so much.
*****
The loud clanging of the door opening stirred Buffy from the daze she had fallen into. She turned her head and watched as a short attractive woman flitted into the room. She had a cheerful expression on her face, a clear dichotomy to the atmosphere surrounding them.
"Good morning. How are you feeling today?" Buffy could tell by the nametag pinned to her blouse that her name was Rachel.
"As well as can be expected, considering I'm strapped to a bed." Buffy said, flexing her hands slightly, to emphasize her current condition.
"Well, you were quite a handful last night...started hallucinating and pushing some of the other clients around. It was necessary to restrain and sedate you." Rachel said, offering her a pleasant smile.
"I don't remember that." Buffy said, suspiciously. "Why am I here? What is this place?" She asked, even though she had a pretty good idea.
"You don't remember?" Rachel asked, a small frown crossing her face. Buffy shook her head. "You are in a Crises Stabilization Unit. You tried to jump off a bridge. A lifeguard saved you from drowning and brought you here. You've been here for the past few days."
Buffy shook her head, an expression of complete disbelief crossing her face. Why was the woman making up stories? Did she know why she was really here? Did she know how she came to be here? She decided it might be better not to argue too much, at least until she could figure out where she was and how she could get out of here. "Can you let me up? I really have to pee."
Rachel looked like she was mulling something over in her head, then she stepped forward and released the straps. Buffy rubbed the circulation back into her wrists as she watched as her feet were released. She sat up slowly, still feeling slightly dizzy from the medication that still ran through her veins.
"We will be going down to breakfast soon. You can rest in your room until then." Rachel said, leading the way to Buffy's 'room'. They passed several rooms on their way down the long empty hall. The linoleum felt cold under her bare feet, and she wondered where her socks and shoes had ended up. The room that she was led to was practically bare, holding nothing more than a bed, with bureau drawers built into the frame, and a small bedside table. Buffy sat down on the small bed feeling the vinyl crackle beneath her. Rachel looked at her with some kindness showing in her eyes. "Try to get some rest, Sarah. The bathroom is the next room over." Rachel turned to leave, as Buffy was still trying to sort through what the woman had just called her.
"Excuse me? My name is Buffy."
"Sarah." Rachel said, staring at Buffy strangely.
"My name is Buffy...Buffy Summers." Buffy enunciated clearly.
'Poor Delusional girl.' The nurse thought, sparing Buffy a look of pity. "Okay, Buffy. You want to be called Buffy now, I'll let the other's know, okay?" The woman backed out of the room, giving Buffy a weak smile, and Buffy shook her head in wonder.
"Oh my God, I have got to get out of here."
******