High School Sweethearts and Second Chances spn/btvs ch 20
Title: High School Sweethearts and Second Chances (SPN/Btvs)
Author: Noturbaby
Fandoms: Supernatural, Buffy the Vampire Slayer
Rating: PG-13 - R
Warnings: None (eventual het sex between teens)
Pairings: Dean & Buffy Willow & Oz Most BtVS characters make an appearance.
Summary: Adds the Winchesters to Seasons 2 and 3 of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. Buffy's a junior and Dean's a senior at Sunnydale High. At first, Dean doesn't know Buffy's a Slayer. Story deals with dating when part of life is fighting the supernatural.
In Blue Earth with Pastor Jim
(slight smut ahead)
John Winchester rubbed a hand over his face and smiled weakly at his friend. “I don’t know, Jim. She’s not the girl I met in Sunnydale. That girl was,” he paused shaking his head. “Well she was ready to take on anything. She fit the definition of slayer. This girl, she’s,” he looked at Jim, with a loss for words.
“We all get fearful at times and she is practically a child,” Jim began.
“It’s more than that. She’s meek. She used to talk back to her watcher, she even bossed me around.” John smiled slightly for a moment. “Now, part of her’s missing. The only time she seems like herself is when she’s with Dean.” He grimaced. “He can’t always be there for her. He’s got his own responsibilities.”
Jim nodded. “Dean’s a good kid, John. If she needs him as a crutch to get through this, then we have to let him be that crutch.” He looked at John and began to smile. “How bad is it?”
John chuckled, “Bad. Wait. You’ll see.” He helped himself to more coffee. “He reminds of how I was when I first got out of the Marines and couldn’t get enough of Mary. I thought her dad was going to kill me.”
“Well, at least I won’t have to worry about him sneaking out to go see that Thompson girl or the Weaver girl. I think the Weavers got themselves a dog after the last time,” Jim laughed.
Dean was grateful his dad allowed them to take their time to get to Pastor Jim’s. He was craving time to relax with Sam and Buffy. And he still wasn’t liking his dad for using him as bait. But, he had to admit that leaving Buffy with Sam must have been a good idea. Sam seemed to have lost his attitude towards her and Buffy was more relaxed around Sam. “So, what you guys do without me, yesterday?” Dean asked when his curiosity got the best of him.
“Buffy took me jet skiing.”
Dean stopped dead in his tracks and stared at Sam for a minute. “You went jet skiing?” He looked at Buffy. “You took him jet skiing?”
Buffy shrugged, “Yeah, why is that a problem?” She smiled at Sam.
Dean shook his head. “No, just, I’m out in the frickin’ forest, sweatin’ my ass off. And you two are jet skiing.”
“And eating s’mores,” Buffy added.
“And playing Daytona 500,” Sam added with a grin and Buffy nodded.
“You guys suck,” Dean said with a mostly fake frown.
After a couple hours on the road, Dean noticed that Sam was sleeping and Buffy was fighting to stay awake. “Babe, I’ll turn down the music if you need to get some sleep.”
Buffy looked back at Sam then slid over and rested her head on his shoulder. “Poor Sam, I kept him up last night.” Dean kissed the top of her head. “First, we tried to stay up as late as we could, hoping I’d be too tired to dream.”
“Didn’t work?”
“Not so much. Sam was great, though. He tried, but he’s not you. I’m not going to cuddle up to him.”
“I’m sure he wouldn’t mind.”
Buffy swatted his leg, lightly. “ Dean, Sam was, well, he was very nice to me all day. We really did have a lot of fun. But don’t leave me again.”
“Don’t plan to, babe.” Dean turned the music down. “Get some sleep, we’ve got a couple more hours, yet.”
Jim Murphy sat on his porch, waiting. To be honest, he was enjoying the last moments of quiet solitude he’d know until the Winchesters pulled out of his driveway. Sam and Dean could be counted on to bring a certain level of energy to his house. Pastor Jim took a sip of his iced tea and realized he hadn’t seen the boys in over a year. That was too long, he decided; he’d have to make more of an effort to stay part of their lives. They needed some sort of family.
After speaking with Rupert Giles, Jim Murphy felt lucky to be trusted with the care of the slayer. It was obvious to him that her watcher cared a great deal about her, but was unsure how to help her. Jim prayed that his counsel would be enough. He smiled as he heard the rumble of the Impala as it turned onto his street.
Sam noticed how Buffy shifted in her seat as they approached Pastor Jim’s house. “Buffy, Pastor Jim is cool. You’re gonna like him.”
Buffy gave Sam a tight smile. Dean squeezed her hand. “Sam’s right. Pastor Jim’s a great guy. This’ll be good, you’ll see.”
Pastor Jim stood to greet them. “Sam, my goodness, you’ve grown a foot since I saw you last.” He gave Sam a bear hug. “And Dean, finally got the car, I see,” he wrapped Dean in a hug also. “It’s so good to see you.”
“You, too,” Dean pulled back, “Pastor Jim, this is Buffy Summers.”
Pastor Jim took her hand in both of his. “I am honored to meet you Miss Summers.”
“Thanks, uh, you, too. I’ve heard a lot about you,” Buffy tried not to sound as shy as she was feeling. The moment Pastor Jim release her hand, she took Dean’s.
“Well, come on. Let’s get you all settled in, I’ll show you to your rooms,” he led them into the house.
“That’s okay Pastor Jim. We know where to go,” Sam answered.
Jim laughed, “Well, Sam, Buffy is going to take the room Dean usually has and Dean will be bunking with you, in the room your dad usually has.”
“I’m forcing everybody to move around,” Buffy whispered to Dean.
He squeezed her hand. “Don’t worry, babe. It happens all the time,” Dean whispered back. “Hey, speaking of Dad, where is he?”
“He went to get more food. He saw the pathetic state of my kitchen and decided if I was going to be feeding three growing teenagers, I needed more rations,” Jim said laughing. “Sam, I’ll have you know that Marilyn was here today and made sure my computer’s new modem is up and running. But, if it’s not good enough, she wanted you to know that the church is on a, oh what did she call it? A tea line?”
“Awesome, you guys have a T1 cable at the church?” Sam was bursting with excitement as Jim nodded.
“Geek,” Dean coughed. But when he did, Buffy elbowed him making him jump away from her. “Ow, what was that for?”
“Don’t be a jerk,” Buffy said through gritted teeth, pretending not to see Sam’s smile.
That night, Dean kissed Buffy goodnight, very chastely, and went to his room across the hall. “Sam, how bad was it last night?” he asked in a whisper.
Sam shook his head. “Dean, I tried, I swear, but she cried, a lot.”
“Dude, I’m not mad, I’m just glad you were there.”
“Thanks, I wish I could have made her feel better, though. I don’t know what you do, all I did was hug her and tell her she’d be okay.”
Dean nodded, “That’s all I do, kid. You did fine.”
“What is she dreaming about? What did she do?” Sam asked as he crawled into bed.
“She thinks it’s her fault some of her friends got hurt,” Dean answered.
That night when, Buffy screamed, Dean rushed across the hall to her side. “Buffy, Buffy, it’s just a dream.” He pulled her into his arms and held her while she sobbed.
The next moment, Pastor Jim was at her door. “Dean,” he motioned to the door. Dean looked at him, but ran his hand over Buffy’s hair, “Shh, it’s okay.” He kissed her temple before leaving. “Don’t worry,” he whispered to the pastor. “When this happens, I just calm her down. I won’t stay.” Thinking he knew why the man was there.
Jim sighed, “Dean, I need to talk to her, now. Go back to bed.” Jim shut Buffy’s door on a very stunned Dean.
Jim sat on the edge of Buffy’s bed with a notebook and pen. “I want you to tell me everything you dreamt, while it’s still fresh in your mind.”
Buffy nodded and began.
At 6:00am, John was in his sons’ room, “Rise and shine, boys. Let’s go.” He ignored their groans as he walked across the hall.
Sam rolled over and looked at Dean, “Is he serious?”
“He’s dad,” Dean replied as he climbed out of bed and began to dress.
Across the hall, John knocked on Buffy’s door. “Buffy, time to get up. We’re running in 5 minutes, kids!”
Ten minutes later a very impatient John was standing in Pastor Jim’s driveway as Dean, Buffy, and Sam filed out the door. “You kids are getting lazy. Alright 5 miles, then breakfast, let’s go.”
Buffy gave Dean a startled look, but Dean’s only reply was to shrug before he began to follow his dad’s pace.
When they finally returned, John went into the house; Sam collapsed from exhaustion on Jim’s porch; Dean rested his hands on his knees, catching his breath; Buffy hardly seemed winded at all.
Moments later, Pastor Jim called them in for breakfast. He and John exchanged amused glances at the quantity of food the three were able to consume. “Alright, after you guys finish the dishes,” John began, “meet me out in the yard for some more training.”
“Yes, sir,” Dean uttered without a second thought even though both Sam and Buffy glared at him.
“Uh, yes, but Buffy, you will be with me this morning,” Pastor Jim announced. “When you’ve finished here, meet me in my den.”
“Okay,” Buffy smiled.
That morning while the Winchesters practiced various take down methods and proper falling techniques, Buffy answered Pastor Jim’s questions. He tried to keep the questions from becoming too personal, but he took many notes for later questions. That day he focused on how she reacted when she discovered she was a slayer. He completed her history from the beginning to when she left L.A. for Sunnydale. When they met again for lunch, the adults told the kids that the afternoon was theirs to do whatever they liked, earning smiles from all three.
Sam wasn’t stupid enough to try to tag along when Dean announced he and Buffy were going swimming. Once at the beach, lay out their towels and relaxed in the sun. “That, was an excellent choice for a suit, Buffy,” Dean grinned as his eyes traveled all over Buffy once she removed her t-shirt and shorts.
She smiled at him, “Thanks, it’s not like you gave me many options. Most of the other ones would be leaving me nearly naked.”
“Nothing wrong with naked,” Dean said as he took off his shirt. He balled it up and used it as a pillow. “You want me to lotion you up, babe?” He tried to hide his desire to do more than help protect her from sunburn.
Naively, Buffy agreed to Dean’s offer. Of course he started applying the lotion innocently enough, but soon his hands traveled to parts of Buffy that were covered by her small suit. “Dean,” she gasped blushing, “stop, we’re in public.”
“Sorry,” he whispered in her ear before planting a kiss on her neck and she knew he wasn’t sorry at all. Dean stretched out on his towel with his hands behind his head. Buffy lay on her stomach but propped herself up on her elbows and stared at Dean for a few minutes, admiring how good he looked laying there in the sun. He opened one eye, when he felt her staring at him. “What?”
“Nothing,” she breathed.
Dean propped himself up on his elbows. “You sure?”
“Mm-hmm,” Buffy smiled at him in such a way that Dean felt flushed with happiness. When he returned her smile, she leaned over and kissed him, gently at first but soon her kisses became impassioned.
After she pulled back, Buffy laid down, rested her head on her hands. Dean collapsed next to her, groaning, “You’re killing me.”
“Me? What did I do?” Buffy tried to sound innocent.
“You’re wearing next to nothing and kissing me like that. You’re making me want to…you know what you’re making me want,” Dean grumbled.
Buffy looked over at him. “Dean, I want that, too. Just, you know, not here on the beach in front of those kids,” she whispered to him.
Dean looked at the kids, then reached over to tuck a strand of hair behind Buffy’s ear. “Maybe we can get some more alone time later.”
Buffy grinned, “I like the sound of that.” She moved closer to him and kissed his chest. “I miss this part right here.”
Dean chuckled and raised his brow, “That’s what you miss?”
“Mm--hmm,” Buffy smiled. “That’s where I put my head when I cuddle on you.”
Dean snaked his arm around her and pulled her on top of him. He lifted his head and captured her lips in another kiss. His fingers gently made small circles on the small of her back. “I miss all of your parts,” he said into their kiss, planning how they were going to get that alone time they both wanted.
Once again that evening Dean placed a very chaste kiss on Buffy’s cheek before retiring to the room he shared with Sam. After waiting for what seemed like the longest hour of his life, Dean silently crept out the window. Moments later, he crawled through Buffy’s window.
Buffy was a bundle of nerves. She couldn’t believe they were doing this, if they got caught, she was terrified what would happen. But her heart was racing at the thought of making love with Dean. She knew he wasn’t going to have to try at all to get her over the edge. The smile he gave her when he took off his shirt was enough. Her breath quickened and he hadn’t even touched her yet.
Once Dean was in her bed, Buffy lay on top of him, her lips working their way across his chest, then slowly working down his body. All Dean could do was press his head back into the pillow, as she teased him. She rested between his legs and kissed him from one hip to the other. Dean bit his lip to suppress a groan when she passed over his painfully hard erection. She dragged her body against him and he gritted his teeth. “Buffy,” Dean whined barely a whisper. He couldn’t stand the teasing any longer. Buffy met his eyes, he realized she hadn’t meant to be teasing. What he found in her eyes made his breath catch in his throat, he could only stare at her. His fingertips caressed her cheek and she moved to kiss his lips. Dean’s heart was racing for completely different reasons now and his mind was reeling with the understanding that she loved him. He rolled them so that he was over her, and could look into her eyes. “God I love you.” he whispered and dipped his head for another kiss. His kisses were tender and gentle, not demanding like before. He leaned back to look into her eyes, hoping she saw in his the same affection he had found in hers. Although a part of Dean still wanted to jump Buffy’s bones, a surprisingly larger part just wanted her to know how much he loved her. Buffy closed her eyes not sure if she should believe what she had just heard. But when she looked into his eye she knew it was true. She had always been the one to say it first, but now, not only did he say it, the way he looked at her showed her he meant it. This wasn’t the Dean from the hotel room a couple nights ago. This wasn’t even the Dean from San Francisco. This was a Dean that loved her as much as she loved him.
Dean was praying Buffy wanted what he wanted, but he wasn’t going to assume and ruin the moment. His gentle kisses and his hand streaming through her hair were making Buffy crazy, she wanted more. She broke away from him, moving to take off her cami. She lay back down and pulled Dean over her. As she deepened their kisses, again, Dean felt his desire kick into over drive. When he entered her, he stayed still, just holding himself over her staring at her. Buffy leaned up to kiss him and slowly made her way to his neck, while he held still, just buried completely inside her. Buffy lay back down and smiled at him and the spell was broken, she wrapped her legs around him. Dean grinned and began to drive into her until Buffy had to stifle her moans. Buffy’s legs gripped him tighter and Dean felt her clench around him, making him follow soon after.
Laying down next to her, it took Dean a few minutes for his breathing to calm. Kissing his chest, Buffy rested her head on him. “This is what I miss most,” she whispered as Dean wrapped his arm around her. “I love falling asleep in your arms.”
“Me, too, baby, but we can’t do that this time. I actually have to, uh, well, go to my room,” Dean whispered even though his hold on her tightened slightly. “My dad is gonna bang on my door in a few hours. If I’m not there, I’m dead.”
Buffy hugged him tightly, “I’d be pretty dead, too.” She kissed his chest again. “A few hours and I get to go running with you and your dad. Mmm.”
“Mmm? What’s ‘mmm’ about running?”
Buffy smiled, “Being behind you while you run in those cute shorts.” Dean shook with laughter, but pressed his lips together to smother the sound.
After their early morning run, Sam took a swing at Dean. “Ow, what the hell, Sam!” Dean put his hand to his lip and checked it for blood.
Sam took the opportunity to rush Dean. “You’re an asshole,” Sam said through gritted teeth.
Dean had to hold Sam’s wrists to prevent more punches but Sam was able to hook one of Dean’s legs, knocking him off balance. Dean released one of Sam’s wrists to catch his fall. Sam fell on top of him and was able to land a punch to Dean’s gut. No longer holding back, Dean rolled and pinned Sam under him.
John broke up the fight pulling Dean off his brother, “Knock it off, Dean!” Dean scowled and wiped at his lip again. John looked from Sam to Dean. “What the hell is this about?”
Dean shrugged, “He started it.”
Sam went after Dean again. After a couple of shoves, John split them up by sending Sam to the shower. Dean looked at his dad and stormed into the house. John looked up to the sky as if asking why.
Sam ignored Dean as he entered the room after his shower. Dean put down his magazine. “What the fuck, man? Why’d you go after me like that?”
Sam’s only answer is a shrug.
Dean shook his head. “Bullshit. You haven’t gone all karate kid on me in ages. What’d I do?”
Sam glared at him. “You’re a piece of shit.”
Dean rolled his eyes, “Yeah, I gathered I pissed you off. Now, tell me what I did to deserve the beat down?”
Sam flopped down on his bed, “You screwed up my whole summer.”
“What?”
“I was fine down by Caleb’s. Having a good time, actually. Then you and your ‘little girlfriend’ make us have to come up here.”
Dean was confused. “I thought you liked it here. Sorry, man, but you know this wasn’t my idea. Dad said this would be good for Buffy.”
Sam laid back on the bed and crossed his arm, “It be different if you actually cared about her.”
Dean snapped to attention, “What’d you say?”
“I wouldn’t mind being screwed out of a good summer if you actually cared about what happens to Buffy.” Dean was flabbergasted. Sam huffed, “But not Dean Winchester. You don’t care about anybody but you.”
Dean couldn’t believe his ears. “Sam, I care about Buffy.” He was about to go on when Sam interrupted him.
Sam lowered his voice to an angry whispered. “Then why’d you sneak out last night? Where’d you go? Traci’s? Erin’s?”
Dean’s eyes were wide and his mouth fell open. “I thought you were asleep.”
“I’m not gonna tell her, but you’re a piece of shit.”
Dean shook his head, fighting the urge to laugh, “Dude, I snuck out to Buffy’s room.”
“Right, why not just cross the hall?”
“’Cause Pastor Jim’s sleeping with the door open and Dad’s just one door down,” Dean answered in a whisper. “Sam, I wouldn’t cheat on Buffy.” Sam’s skepticism was all over his face. “I wouldn’t.” He shoved Sam lightly. “I like how you’re all protective of her. I guess I better watch my back, huh?”
Sam ignored the attempt at baiting him. “Good, ‘cause she’s nice and wa--ay too good for you.”
“Yeah, I know. Don’t tell Dad about me sneaking out. Tell him we fought cuz of something else.”
“Like what?” Sam was worried. Dean was right, their dad would want to know why he was mad at Dean.
“I don’t know,” Dean shrugged. “Tell him I made fun of your girlie music or geeky computer stuff.” Dean grinned as he got up. “We good?”
Sam smiled and nodded, “Yeah, we’re good.”
That evening, Dean took Buffy and Sam to the VFW for the local softball games. It was one of the few things to do in the small town on a summer night. Dean left Buffy on the bleachers at the VFW ball diamond, while he and Sam went to get refreshments. “Hey, Winchester!” Both Sam and Dean turned.
“Hey, Turner,” Dean answered with a nod to the guy that yelled to him.
After slapping Dean’s hand, the guy turned and looked at Buffy on the bleachers. “So, what’s this? Had enough of our local girls had to bring in out of town talent?”
“Funny, Turner,” Dean responded with a shake of his head. He went to stand in line for sodas.
“Careful, man, if Traci sees you, ya know she’s gonna try something,” Turner lightly punched Dean on the shoulder and walked off.
“He’s right, you know,” Sam added.
“Shut up, Sammy, it’ll be fine,” Dean stepped up to order.
“You better hope so,” Sam said nodding back to the bleachers where he saw Traci talking with Buffy.
“Hi,” the girl said rather cheerfully as she sat next to Buffy.
“Hi,” Buffy replied cautiously wondering why this girl chose to sit next to her.
“You’re new, aren’t you? I’m Traci,” the girl went on with a pleasant smile. She tucked a piece of light brown hair behind her ear.
“Yeah, I’m Buffy, nice to meet you, Traci.”
“So,” Traci drew out, “new in town and already with Dean Winchester.” Buffy’s smile faded. “He sure move fast.” Traci leaned closer. “You seem nice, I hope he doesn’t break your heart like he did to Lilly,” Traci pointed to a lanky girl that was staring at Dean. “You better hope you’re able to keep his attention better than I was, if not, that slut, Erin, will take him outta your bed the same as she did mine.” Traci nodded toward the refreshment stand as she stood up, “You tell him I said ‘hi’.”
Buffy nodded slowly as she turned to look where Traci had pointed. Buffy sank as she saw a tall, curvy, brunette in very short shorts link her arm through Dean’s and whisper something in his ear. Dean had had his eyes on Buffy until then, now his head was bowed as he listened to the brunette. When he looked back up, Buffy was walking away. Dean handed the soda tray to Sam and ran after her.
Dean had almost caught up with her when he heard, “Hi, Dean!” Traci smiled at him from the stands and gave him a little finger wave.
Dean gave her a tight smile and a curt nod, “Traci.” He moved faster to catch up with Buffy. “Buffy, wait!” he called, but Buffy kept walking to the field that served as a parking lot. “Buffy, c’mon, stop a sec.”
Buffy stopped but didn’t turn to face him. She folded her arms and waited for him to approach. “Buffy, where are you going? Why are you leaving?” Dean put his hands on her crossed arms as he faced her.
Buffy only met his eyes for a second, before she had to look away. She wasn’t sure if she was going to cry or hit him. She just knew she wanted to leave. “Baby, come on. What’s wrong?”
Buffy put her hands on her hips, “What’s wrong?!” She rolled her eyes. “What, did you think I’d enjoy finding out you’ve slept with the whole town?”
Dean’s mouth fell open for a minute and Buffy made to walk away. “Buffy, I did not sleep with the whole town. Traci’s a bitch. She’s just jealous that I’m with you, don’t listen to her.”
Buffy raised her brow, “Really, what about Lilly?”
“Who?”
Buffy shook her head, the jerk didn’t even remember the poor girl. “Okay if not Lilly, what about Erin?”
Dean reddened and ducked his head clearing his throat. “Uh, I, uh, well Erin, uh. Who cares? I’m not with Erin! I’m with you.” He grabbed Buffy’s arms, “Buffy, c’mon you know I love you.” He tried to get her to look in his eyes so that she’d know he was being truthful. “Buffy, c’mon, you can’t be mad at me for something that happened before I even knew you. Look, Traci’s just trying to get you mad enough to dump me, ’cause I was a jerk to her.”
Buffy looked at him finally. She sighed, “I suppose you’re right.” Dean felt relief wash over him. Buffy turned looking back at the ball field. “Traci is a bitch.” Dean laughed making Buffy smile. “What did you ever see in her?” She put her arm around Dean and they started walking back to the field.
“She had a cherry ‘69 Camero,” Dean admitted with a shrug. Buffy looked at him then rolled her eyes. “Hey, it’s a totally sweet car.” Buffy swatted him in the stomach and shook her head.
“I think I know what you saw in Erin and I don’t want to talk about it, but I can’t believe you don’t even know Lilly.” They were nearly back at the stands. As they walked with their arms around each other, they passed Traci. They each gave her a one fingered salute without the other knowing it.
Dean looked around and took new seats in the stands. “Sorry, babe, but I don’t know any Lilly, I swear.” He put his hand on his chest.
Buffy was done with the argument, “Alright, whatever.” She shut up as she watched Sam carefully approach carrying the sodas with Lilly in tow. Buffy nudged Dean and nodded at the girl, “Lilly.”
Dean looked at Buffy, then back at his brother with the girl. Sam and the girl sat next to Buffy and Sam handed them each a soda. Then he leaned forward, “Dean, Buffy, this is Lilly Turner. She’s Reed’s sister.”
Buffy and Dean smiled at the girl who blushed and shyly leaned back next to Sam. Dean nudged Buffy. “Trust me, Lilly, kinda young for my tastes.” Buffy just shook her head realizing that she mistook Lilly’s longing look at Sam as a look at Dean.
As they were leaving, Buffy pointed out the posters promoting the Fourth of July Festivities that weekend. “Are we going?” she asked pointing to the sign.
Dean winked, “When have you known me not to go to something with food on a stick?” Buffy laughed as Dean turned to Sam. “Sam, ask Lilly if you can take her to the Fourth.” Sam gave him a look.
“Go on, Sam, it’ll be fun,” Buffy smiled her encouragement and Sam went to catch up with Lilly.
Pastor Jim was sitting on his screen porch looking over his notes concerning Buffy. After spending so much time with the girl, Jim had come to a painful conclusion. Buffy didn’t want to be the Slayer anymore. Her attitude about before, during, and after Sunnydale proved that to him. Buffy repeated her craving for normalcy and told him how this stay in Blue Earth was helping her be normal, again.
He felt conflicted. On the one hand, he had never seen the Winchesters so relaxed and amiable with one another. He was sure Buffy’s charm was the reason for it. She even had way of making John laugh. That morning, Dean and Sam had been showing off for Buffy. Each was trying to demonstrate who could do a handstand the longest, when Buffy joined the competition, outlasting both of them. She had also turned the tackling dummy, used for disarming and defense practice, into confetti. John Winchester could only shake his head and chuckle at her talents.
On the other hand, Buffy seemed in no hurry to go home. Pastor Jim knew she had serious responsibilities waiting for her in Sunnydale. But, all Buffy wanted to do was stay with Dean. Just that morning she had told the pastor that if it hadn’t been for Dean, she wasn’t sure she would have made it through the past month.
John stepped onto the porch careful not to let the screen door slam startle his friend. “Well, Jim, have you made progress? Buffy seems to be sleeping better,” John took a seat.
Jim nodded, “Yeah, I may have helped she get some sleep.” He rubbed his beard and stared out the window.
John noticed his friend’s far away look. “Is there something else wrong?”
Jim looked at his friend and sighed sadly. “You were right, she doesn’t want to be the slayer anymore.” John nodded and looked into his beer. “She’d go right on living here with Dean if she didn’t miss her mother.” Jim put his notes down and stood against the porch support. “If you thought Dean had it bad, Buffy thinks Dean hung the moon.” John chuckled. “I’m not kidding. The girl even likes you.” Both men laughed at that.
“Dean could have done a lot worse. At least he found a girl who can take care of herself,” John said as he took a sip from his beer.
Pastor Jim’s countenance changed as his eureka hit him. “John, Buffy’s not just supposed to take care of herself. She’s the slayer. She’s supposed to protect the world.” Jim was speaking with a passion he usually saved for his sermons.
John lowered his beer taking in the change in the man in front of him. “Jim…”
“That’s the whole problem,” Jim went on talking more to himself than to John. “She sees no reason to be the Slayer with Dean around. She thinks there are others who can do her job.”
John studied his friend, not liking where he thought Jim was headed. “Jim, what are you getting at? You said if she needed a crutch…”
“Dean’s become more than a crutch. In fact, you all have,” the pastor looked John in the eye. “Without a Slayer on the hellmouth, I’m afraid of what could happen. We have to make her want to return to the fight.”
“I couldn’t agree more, but is she ready? And how do we do that?”
“She’s ready. And I think by giving her a reason to fight,” Jim looked out the window. “We need to take away the one thing she’s been holding on to.”
“No,” John’s quick response made Jim turn around. “I’m not asking him to do that.”
Jim nodded, “I will.”
“Jim, Dean will hate you,” John hoped that Jim’s love for the boys would stop him from doing this.
“He’ll get over it.”
John thought about his son for a moment. Dean would do as he’s told, he always did. It was also hard to miss that his son was in love with the slayer. Maybe Jim was right, maybe Dean was making Buffy want to stop fighting. But Dean was a great soldier and maybe that would be enough for Jim.
“What if Dean takes her back to Sunnydale?” John began. “They could work together until she’s 100%.”
Jim was surprised. John normally acted as if his sons’ feelings were secondary to the hunt. He nodded as he thought it over. “What would you have done if you and Mary were in that situation? Even if Mary could take care of herself like Buffy can, what would happen if a demon or anything put her at risk?”
John nodded as he mulled that over in his mind.
“Right, you’d be more worried about her than about the job. That’s how it’d be with Dean and Buffy.” He turned away from his friend. “No, Dean has to leave. She needs to find her reason to fight and return to the hellmouth on her own.”
Chapter 21