Sleeping In, part 3 of 13
Title: Sleeping In
Fandom: House/Buffy
Time Frame: Second season House, post-Chosen (no comics) Buffy
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Joss and ME own Buffy. David Shore, etc., own House. I own nothing except the words.
Summary: While Xander is visiting Dawn at Princeton, he falls asleep and she can't wake him up. When he falls into Dr. House's clutches, which will solve his illness first, medicine or magic?
Dawn finally let herself collapse once the door closed. She'd known she couldn't fall apart when she was the only one there for Xander, but now Willow would make everything right.
"Good one on the next-of-kin," Kennedy said to Willow, ignoring Dawn's tears. Dawn wasn't sure if she was glad of that or not.
"Wait," she said, looking up at Willow through watery eyes. "You're not his next-of-kin?"
"No, Giles is, ever since we couldn't find Xander's parents after Sunnydale," Willow said, pulling over a chair and sitting down without letting go of Xander's hand. Dawn was sure that no one outside the room realized that she hadn't used her hands to do it. "But he's in the middle of the Gryptic demon rising and couldn't get here in time."
"Then what did you show Dr. Cameron?"
Willow held out the piece of paper, and Dawn saw it was a poster for a band in Rio.
"Huh," she said.
Willow looked back at Xander. "What have the doctors said so far?"
"Not much," Dawn said, feeling her panic rise again. "The first thing they tested for was African sleeping sickness, but it's not that. And they said that if it had been, and we couldn't wake him up, he'd be in a coma by now."
"He's not?" Willow said. "I thought not being able to wake someone up was the definition of a coma. I mean, he is asleep, right? It's not another catatonic thing?"
"No, he's definitely asleep, and that's apparently the problem," Dawn said. "Sleep is different from a coma, or a vegetative state, or catatonia. And this is just sleep." She looked first at Willow, then at Kennedy, who was standing back a little. "They'll be able to fix this, right? He's...he's..."
"He'll be fine," Kennedy said. "I looked this Dr. House up as soon as you called, while Willow was preparing the teleport spell. He's basically the best diagnostician around; he'll figure this out. Of course, it also seemed like he's basically the biggest ass around."
"I noticed," Dawn said, but she felt a little better and looked back at Willow. Willow looked confused.
"He's just asleep?" she said. She put her hand on Xander's forehead, and he turned a little towards her and made small smacking sounds with his mouth.
"Yeah," Dawn said, smiling a little as she watched them, in spite of everything that was happening. "Snoring and everything. That's why it took me awhile to figure out something was wrong - what?"
Willow had put her head in her hands. "What if this isn't medical?" she said, sounding muffled.
Dawn gasped. "What do you mean? We can't wake him up - you can't tell me that's not normal - oh."
Kennedy turned and made sure the door was shut, then closed the blinds. "You mean it's magical? And he's in a hospital?"
"Oh, no," Dawn said, and put her head down on her arms on the bed. "Oh, no, no, no. I'm so sorry; it's all my fault."
"No, Dawnie," Willow said. "You couldn't have known. I'd have thought it was African sleeping sickness, too; who wouldn't? Besides, we don't know yet."
"Can you tell?" Kennedy said. "Do a spell?"
"Don't need to," Willow said. She held her hands out over Xander's heart and closed her eyes. "Just need to concentrate."
Dawn and Kennedy watched her for several minutes, as her expression got more and more confused. Finally, she opened her eyes again and dropped her hands.
"Well, it's magical...but it isn't," she said.
"You know that makes no sense, right?" Kennedy said.
Willow nodded. "It's weird. There's magic there, but no signature. It's like...whatever did this has left the building. Like it's using his energy, or something, just to keep doing whatever it's doing, but it's stopped doing it. Maybe. I'm not sure." She threw up her hands. "The most important thing I ever need to do with magic, and I'm useless."
"You're not useless," Kennedy said, putting her hand on Willow's shoulder. "At least now we know it's magical, not medical -"
"No, we don't," Willow said. "I mean, maybe magic was used, but now it's medical. Maybe the magic set off a disease or something physical in him. Maybe magic can't solve this. Maybe -"
"Breathe," Dawn said, reaching a hand out to stop the flow of words. "Maybe a lot of things. Maybe the annoying Dr. House will figure out what's wrong. But on the off chance that he can't, maybe we should try to figure out the magic side, huh?"
part 4
Fandom: House/Buffy
Time Frame: Second season House, post-Chosen (no comics) Buffy
Rating: PG-13
Disclaimer: Joss and ME own Buffy. David Shore, etc., own House. I own nothing except the words.
Summary: While Xander is visiting Dawn at Princeton, he falls asleep and she can't wake him up. When he falls into Dr. House's clutches, which will solve his illness first, medicine or magic?
Dawn finally let herself collapse once the door closed. She'd known she couldn't fall apart when she was the only one there for Xander, but now Willow would make everything right.
"Good one on the next-of-kin," Kennedy said to Willow, ignoring Dawn's tears. Dawn wasn't sure if she was glad of that or not.
"Wait," she said, looking up at Willow through watery eyes. "You're not his next-of-kin?"
"No, Giles is, ever since we couldn't find Xander's parents after Sunnydale," Willow said, pulling over a chair and sitting down without letting go of Xander's hand. Dawn was sure that no one outside the room realized that she hadn't used her hands to do it. "But he's in the middle of the Gryptic demon rising and couldn't get here in time."
"Then what did you show Dr. Cameron?"
Willow held out the piece of paper, and Dawn saw it was a poster for a band in Rio.
"Huh," she said.
Willow looked back at Xander. "What have the doctors said so far?"
"Not much," Dawn said, feeling her panic rise again. "The first thing they tested for was African sleeping sickness, but it's not that. And they said that if it had been, and we couldn't wake him up, he'd be in a coma by now."
"He's not?" Willow said. "I thought not being able to wake someone up was the definition of a coma. I mean, he is asleep, right? It's not another catatonic thing?"
"No, he's definitely asleep, and that's apparently the problem," Dawn said. "Sleep is different from a coma, or a vegetative state, or catatonia. And this is just sleep." She looked first at Willow, then at Kennedy, who was standing back a little. "They'll be able to fix this, right? He's...he's..."
"He'll be fine," Kennedy said. "I looked this Dr. House up as soon as you called, while Willow was preparing the teleport spell. He's basically the best diagnostician around; he'll figure this out. Of course, it also seemed like he's basically the biggest ass around."
"I noticed," Dawn said, but she felt a little better and looked back at Willow. Willow looked confused.
"He's just asleep?" she said. She put her hand on Xander's forehead, and he turned a little towards her and made small smacking sounds with his mouth.
"Yeah," Dawn said, smiling a little as she watched them, in spite of everything that was happening. "Snoring and everything. That's why it took me awhile to figure out something was wrong - what?"
Willow had put her head in her hands. "What if this isn't medical?" she said, sounding muffled.
Dawn gasped. "What do you mean? We can't wake him up - you can't tell me that's not normal - oh."
Kennedy turned and made sure the door was shut, then closed the blinds. "You mean it's magical? And he's in a hospital?"
"Oh, no," Dawn said, and put her head down on her arms on the bed. "Oh, no, no, no. I'm so sorry; it's all my fault."
"No, Dawnie," Willow said. "You couldn't have known. I'd have thought it was African sleeping sickness, too; who wouldn't? Besides, we don't know yet."
"Can you tell?" Kennedy said. "Do a spell?"
"Don't need to," Willow said. She held her hands out over Xander's heart and closed her eyes. "Just need to concentrate."
Dawn and Kennedy watched her for several minutes, as her expression got more and more confused. Finally, she opened her eyes again and dropped her hands.
"Well, it's magical...but it isn't," she said.
"You know that makes no sense, right?" Kennedy said.
Willow nodded. "It's weird. There's magic there, but no signature. It's like...whatever did this has left the building. Like it's using his energy, or something, just to keep doing whatever it's doing, but it's stopped doing it. Maybe. I'm not sure." She threw up her hands. "The most important thing I ever need to do with magic, and I'm useless."
"You're not useless," Kennedy said, putting her hand on Willow's shoulder. "At least now we know it's magical, not medical -"
"No, we don't," Willow said. "I mean, maybe magic was used, but now it's medical. Maybe the magic set off a disease or something physical in him. Maybe magic can't solve this. Maybe -"
"Breathe," Dawn said, reaching a hand out to stop the flow of words. "Maybe a lot of things. Maybe the annoying Dr. House will figure out what's wrong. But on the off chance that he can't, maybe we should try to figure out the magic side, huh?"
part 4