Growing Up

by anna2

Dawn must deal with a life altering event plus a dangerous demon seeking the power of the Key. Set a few years after Season Six and spoilers are contained within for Buffy AND Angel. Crosses over with A:tS.

Title: Growing Up

Rating: PG-13 for some cursing and adult themes

Distribution: This site and anyone who asks nicely.

Disclaimer: I only own the characters that you don't recognize such as the Olsen's. Everyone else belongs to Mutant Enemy, FOX and the God that is Joss. I mean no harm and will put everyone back when I'm done playing with them. Please don't sue me.

Disclaimer Two: I stole the 'monster face' idea and 'daddy's picture' bit from Cynamin because I adore her work and couldn't resist. Go read her great story "Hopeful Season" at http://www.landofdenial.com/fic/Cynamin/season.html to see what I mean.

Feedback: I crave and thirst for it! And it will make me write more. Please take just a few moments to tell me what you think of my work. No flames please, I already know how to criticize myself.

Challenge for my readers: Tell me if some of the original characters names look familiar.

Author's notes: I know I gloss over some things but I don't feel I can't do justice to those situations. I don't fully have a handle on all of the characters or emotions. I'm doing my best.

Author's notes 2: I'm reloading this because I found typos after it was posted. I didn't to anything to the plot, just fixed a few mistakes. To everyone who left me nice reviews, THANK YOU!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



Part One

The stick was blue. Not a maybe it is, maybe it isn't blue; it was Very Blue. A dark line that stood out against the white background. Dawn felt her stomach contract and she leaned over the toilet, vomiting until her throat burned. After the spasms passed she straightened up to brush her teeth and re-apply her make-up. The she buried the test in the garbage and went to eat her breakfast. She had to leave for school soon.

"Are you okay Dawn?" Buffy looked at her sister worriedly. The younger girl was pale beneath her make-up and her eyes looked red. "I thought I heard you getting sick."

"No, I'm fine." Dawn smiled unconvincingly and reached for the milk. Her stomach contracted at the smell, but she forced the wave of nausea down. Buffy gave her one more suspicious look, and then headed into the bathroom to brush her own teeth.

She walked back into the kitchen a few minutes later with an odd look on her face. She held a small object in her hand, which she laid on the table without a word. The dark blue line stared up accusingly at Dawn, who simply gulped.

"Is this what I think it is?" Buffy asked quietly. She was struggling to keep her voice even. "Is it yours?"

Dawn took a deep breath, quite possibly her last and slowly nodded. "Yes. It's mine."

Buffy closed her eyes for a minute to compose herself. "How far along?"

"About a month. I'm not really sure."

"Who's the- who's the father?" Buffy could hardly believe she was having this conversation with her baby sister. Her sister, who was barely a month past her 17th birthday.

"I don't know." Dawn nearly choked on the words as she said them. It was her worst nightmares come true.

The dam broke. "How can you not know?! How many guys have you slept with in the past month?" Buffy yelled, then caught herself and lowered the volume.

"No, it's not like that," Dawn protested. Oh god, how was she going to explain this? The truth was her only option. "I went to a party about a month ago. I told you that I was sleeping at Lisa's house. I got drunk, went off with this guy and-" She let her voice trail off there, not wanted to add sordid details.

"Did he force you? Were you raped?"

"No. Nothing like that. I wanted to. I just don't know who it was. I was pretty wasted and when I woke up he was gone. There were tons of people there from a bunch of different schools and I didn't know many people."

"Were you a virgin?"

"That's none of your business," Dawn snapped.

"Oh yes it is," Buffy snapped back. "As of right now everything in your life is my business. In the last five minutes I've found out that my sister has been lying to me, been drinking, is pregnant and has no idea who the father is! So you don't get to pull the privacy card."

She was right. Dawn knew it. She also knew that if Buffy thought she was lying, she get Willow to cast a truth spell on her. The truth was coming out one way or the other. "No, I wasn't a virgin. Kevin and I were- you know- before he moved."

Buffy closed her eyes and let out a low groan. How could this be happening? Dawn was a senior in high school, she was in line for several scholarships, she was a candidate for valedictorian and it was almost time to mail in her college applications. And now she was pregnant. "You're going to be late for school."

"What?" That was the last thing Dawn expected her sister to say.

"School. You know, the place where you spend six hours day getting state-mandated education. You're going to be late." Off her sister's look she clarified herself. "You still have to go to school. We'll talk tonight. And I'm going to make a doctor's appointment for you."

"Okay." Dawn stood up slowly and began to gather her books. Halfway to the door she stopped and turned. Her sister was still sitting at the table, staring into a cup of coffee. The expression on her face was unreadable. "Buffy I-"

"Don't." Buffy raised a hand and cut her sister off mid-sentence. "We'll talk tonight. I really need to think right now and I need to not be near you while I do."

Part Two

After Dawn left, Buffy cleaned up the kitchen and wandered into the living room of the small apartment. The house on Revello Drive had been sold years ago, after Tara and Willow had moved out. The expenses of a house were just too much for Buffy to keep up with, and both girls had agreed that they didn't need all that space for just two them. Most of the money had been used to pay bills, with enough left over to live on while Buffy finished her degree in business at the University. She had taken over her mother's gallery downtown and made enough to support them comfortably. The last three years hadn't been easy but they'd survived. And now this.

Buffy felt like such a failure. Until this morning when she accidentally knocked over the bathroom wastebasket, she'd had no idea what her sister had been up to. The pure shock she'd felt at seeing that positive pregnancy test hadn't abated one bit. Obviously she didn't know her sister at al. Was this how her mother had felt when the slaying secret had come out? That you had to be an idiot for not noticing that your child was leading two lives? Dawn had slept with her boyfriend, had been drinking and partying for god knows how long (Buffy didn't for a minute believe that that was the first time Dawn had lied about where she was going) and now she was pregnant. What else had she been up to? Drugs? Gangs? All the ugly possibilities that Buffy had always dismissed as 'not my sister' came roaring back. Getting to her feet, she headed for Dawn's room.

Slowly, then with rising speed she began to rummage through drawers and in the closet. She wasn't even sure what she was looking for as she looked under the bed and lifted the mattress. Her frantic search revealed nothing except some candy wrappers and Dawn's diary. Without a twinge of guilt Buffy began reading the book. Maybe this would give her some insight into Dawn.

Half an hour later Buffy closed the book, reeling from what she'd read. Dawn had lost her virginity at 15, to her boyfriend Kevin. Buffy wasn't really upset with that revelation, considering her own past. That old saying about those in glass houses was echoing in her head. She just wished that Dawn had been older. Dawn and her friend Lisa routinely went to wild, unsupervised parties and got extremely drunk. The partying had been going on for over a year. The baby's father wasn't even Dawn's first one-night stand. Buffy was horrified at the things she'd read about her sister. And even more horrified at the emotional distress driving Dawn's behavior.

The lost of their mother three years ago had nearly destroyed both girls. Dawn's kidnapping, Buffy's death, and her subsequent resurrection hadn't done anything to help their fragile psyche's either. Both of them had seen a therapist for over a year to help them cope. Buffy had honestly thought that Dawn had dealt with her issues and moved on. Her boyfriend Kevin had been instrumental in helping Dawn deal with what were big abandonment issues. And then his father had been transferred to Germany last year. The relationship was unable to survive the strain of the distance and they had broken up. Buffy double checked the dates and realized that was when the drinking and partying had started. Unable to stand another blow to her emotions, Dawn was instead trying to lose herself in alcohol and men to ease her loneliness.

Buffy knew all about the gut-wrenching pain that never really went away. Had her life been any different, she might have dealt with her problems the same way Dawn had. But her responsibilities to her sister, her friends, the world itself had made that impossible. With the exception of a couple of summers away from Sunnydale, one brief bout of catatonia and her death, Buffy had dealt with her pain by simple moving on from it. She didn't have the time or energy to do anything else. Suddenly she was grateful for her burdens. A blessing in disguise, they had kept her from losing herself completely.

Closing the diary, Buffy put it back where she had found it and started cleaning up the mess she'd made in her sister's room. She knew Dawn would figure out she'd been in there and had gone through her things but Buffy didn't care. She'd meant what she'd said about Dawn having lost all rights to privacy. Buffy had trusted her, and Dawn had broken that trust. When the room was clean, Buffy went for the tool kit. Within a few minutes the windows were nailed shut and the lock on the front door was changed. You now needed a key to open the deadbolt from either side. And Dawn would only have the key to get in.

At 2:30 that afternoon Buffy was waiting outside the high school for Dawn. The younger girl came down the steps slowly, chatting to one of her friends the whole way. As soon as she saw her sister's car she said goodbye to her friend and walked over. The expression on her face was one that could only be described as doomed.

"How was your day?" The slayer asked as her sister got in the car.

"Fine. I'm not really sure what happened though. I kind of spent the entire time on autopilot. Where are we going?" Dawn was a little suspicious. What was going on?

"You have a doctor's appointment in ½ an hour."

"Okay." The rest of the ride was silent as each girl was lost in her own thoughts.

Dawn was surprised to see not her pediatricians building, but an unfamiliar building instead. "Where are we? I thought I was going to see Dr. Heppner.

"Dr. Heppner is a pediatrician. You have to see an obstetrician when you're pregnant. Come on, we're going to be late."

Part Three

The exam was quick and the results were conclusive. Dawn was definitely pregnant, at least a month along. She and baby were both in good shape. Dawn was given pamphlets regarding abortion, adoption and teen parenting, along with a prescription for pre-natal vitamins and instructions to be back in a month if she elected to go through with the pregnancy. The ride back to the apartment was completely silent.

As soon as they got inside Dawn headed for the bathroom to throw up, while Buffy went to start dinner. As soon as she stopped getting sick, Dawn went to her room. She had every intention of crying until she ran out of tears. She shot back out again a few seconds later and headed for the kitchen. "Were you in my room?"

The look that Buffy shot her made Dawn stop in her tracks, all her indignant protests dying on her lips. "Sit down Dawn. We need to talk."

"Are you mad at me?" The absurdity of the question made both girls giggle.

"I don't know Dawn. I don't know what to think about all this. This morning you were my baby sister, 17 years old and heading for college in a year. And I know I find out that it's all been a lie. You've been running wild for over a year, doing God knows what, and now you're pregnant. All those times you said you were at a friends house, when I trusted you and gave you freedom I thought you'd earned, it turns out that you were at wild parties getting drunk and having one-night stands with complete strangers. You don't even know who the father is. God Dawn what were you thinking?!" Buffy exploded. "You could have caught something, HIV maybe! I can't believe that you didn't get pregnant before this! Do you have anything to say for yourself?"

"I'm sorry. I never- I mean I- I didn't-" Tears welled up in Dawn's eyes and she fought to keep them from falling. "I don't know what's wrong with me. I know this stuff is stupid and dangerous. I know I've blown my entire future and that you probably hate me now." The last words came out in a mournful wail as Dawn collapsed into sobbing heap.

"Oh Dawn." Buffy put her arms around her sister and rocked her like a baby. "I could never hate you. You're my sister and I love you. I will never stop loving you, even though I'm so mad right now that I'm seeing red. There is nothing you could ever do that would make me hate you."

"I'm so sorry."

"Dawn look at me." Sniffling, the brunette raised her head to look her sister in the eye. "You messed up big time and there is no getting around that face. But we will fix this. You are not the first person to find to get into this situation and you won't be the last. All things considered, this isn't even the worst thing that could have come from you having sex. At least you didn't set some soulless monster loose." Buffy was silent for a minute as she squashed painful memories. "So the question now is: what do you want to do to fix this?"

Dawn looked down and was quiet for several minutes. "I don't want an abortion. Beyond that I don't know."

"Okay. We have a starting place. That's good." The control freak in Buffy was starting to kick in. "I want you to know that I will support whatever decision you make. However I have some terms that are non- negotiable. First, you are going to start seeing Dr. Golden again." After Buffy's return, both girls had begun seeing a therapist. Angel had given her the name of a psychologist in LA who was aware of the supernatural. Being able to talk to someone without dodging the truth had been immensely helpful for the sisters. "Second, you're grounded in every sense of the word. You can go to school, the gallery, the magic shop and here. That's it. You've been lying to me for a long time and it's going to take a very long time to earn all that trust back. You're to come to gallery every day as soon as school ends. If you help out, I'm willing to pay you as long as you bank at least ¾ of your paycheck. You need to start saving money. If you don't want to work, then you can stay in the back and do your homework. The third condition is that you do absolutely everything the doctor tells you do to in order to have a healthy pregnancy. Diet, exercise, vitamins, everything. Have I made myself clear?"

"Yes. Can I go lie down? I don't feel so great." Dawn didn't look so great either. Her eyes were bloodshot and her face was very pale.

"Go on. I'll call you when dinner is ready."

Part Four

The next three weeks passed quickly, with both girls adjusting yet again to a new way of life. Now that she knew Dawn was pregnant, Buffy couldn't believe she hadn't figured it out earlier. Dawn was throwing up every morning, sleeping constantly and was extremely moody, although she made great efforts to control it. According to her doctor, Dawn was a textbook expectant mother in her first trimester.

"Buffy can I talk to you?"

"Willow! What are you doing here? Aren't you supposed to be at work?" The witch had dropped by the gallery quite unexpectedly, which delighted the slayer. The last few weeks had been so crazy that Buffy had hardly seen her friends.

"That's kind of what I wanted to talk to you about. What's going on? Are you mad at us, or something? We've hardly seen you for almost three weeks." After Buffy's major meltdown a few years ago following her resurrection (not to mention the revelation that she had not been in Hell), Willow had been much more careful in how she treated her friends. She also drastically scaled back her use of magic.

"No Will, I'm not mad at you guys. I've just been dealing with yet another twist to my all-too-weird life. Although this one is actually one the milder and more normal ones."

"Buffy what are you talking about?" Sometimes Buffy could put Willow's prize-winning babble reflex to shame.

The slayer glances around the shop to be sure no one was listening in. Her two employees were both in the back, unpacking a new shipment of South American pieces, and there were no customers at the moment. "Dawn's pregnant."

It took a few seconds for the impact of the statement to sink in. Willow's eyes went wide and for a second she looked as though she were back in high school again. "She's- she's- What?!"

"Pregnant. Almost two months now." Buffy sat down and told Willow the whole story. The redhead grew paler and paler as she listened.

"She's barely 17! She's way too young to be doing that kind of stuff."

"Uh, Will? Me and Angel, You and Oz, Xander and Faith? Any of those names ringing a bell?"

"Fine, so you, me and Xander were all about the same age when we started- I can't even say it! We were mature for our age, Dawn's just a little girl," Willow protested. She just couldn't believe that little Dawnie was having a baby.

"She's most definitely not a little girl. She stopped being a child when she found she was mystical energy formed into a person, the lesson was driven home when she was kidnapped and reinforced by the fact that she's having a baby. Not to mention when our father walked out on us, when Mom and I died and when Kevin left." Buffy started pacing around, a sure sign that her stress level was shooting through the roof. "I don't understand it either Will. But what's done is done. She's pregnant, she's not having an abortion and all I can do now is support her."

"She's keeping the baby?"

"We've established that she cannot live with an abortion and I can't say I blame her on that one. We've all seen so much death over the years that I don't think she can even fathom being the cause of more. But I know she's considering adoption."

Buffy sounded so uncertain about that last remark Willow decided to press a little further. "What do you want her to do?"

"I want none of this to have happened. But since I can't have that, a part of me wants her to keep the baby." Off Willow's surprised look she continued, "I know it makes no sense, and that logically adoption is really the best solution. But I keep thinking about what my mom would do and say if she were here. And I think I know. She'd yell until her voice gave out, then Dawn would get the silent treatment for two or three days. And then Mom would tell Dawn that she loved her and that she'd support her no matter what. And then she'd get all excited about her first grandchild. Dawn's son or daughter. My niece or nephew." Buffy smiled softly at that last.

"You want to be 'cool Aunt Buffy' don't you?" Willow knew her best friend much too well.

"Kind of, yeah. I'll never have kids of my own so being 'cool Aunt Buffy' would be really nice. And something in me really doesn't like the idea of giving away a baby. But I want Dawn to make this decision on her own. She's the one who has to live with it, and I don't want her to feel pressured in any way."

"You can be very wise sometimes."

"Benefits of slayerhood. Lousy hours, no pay, constant near-death experiences and the occasional brilliant insight." Both girls burst out laughing.

"I need to get back to work. Those programs won't write themselves. You want me to keep the Dawn thing to myself?"

"If you don't mind. She'll tell everyone when she's ready. Or when someone asks why she's getting fat. Which ever comes first."

As it turned out, Dawn's pregnancy would be revealed for entirely different reasons.

Part Five

Buffy was on patrol about a month and a half after her conversation with Willow when the demon attacked. It had been a slow night, only three vamps had been dusted and none took much effort. She swept the last cemetery quickly, wanting to get home and go to bed. She had sent Spike back to his crypt a while ago, claiming that he was getting on her nerves. The real reason was that she wanted to stop by her mother's grave. Just as she stopped and read the familiar headstone for the zillionth time, green and scaly arms grabbed her from behind and jerked her off her feet. One arm was wrapped like a steel cable around her arms, pinning them against her waist. Struggling was useless, even with her slayer strength. Before she could draw breath to scream, she felt a knife blade at her throat. The demon pressed down slightly, drawing blood. At the pain in her neck and scent of her own blood in air, Buffy began to kick and struggle as best she could. The demon's hide was like metal. And then suddenly she was free, falling through the air to land on the ground. Her head slammed against the gravestone. The demon leaned in for the kill as the world went black around her.

Spike approached Joyce's grave cautiously. He knew the slayer had been planning on coming by earlier and he didn't want her to think he was intruding. They had finally settled into a strange but comfortable friendship over the years and he didn't want to jeopardize that. They'd even moved past their embarrassing liaison from when she had just returned. However he did have some flowers that he wanted to leave before they wilted. As he drew closer, he saw the figures near the grave. Scenting blood in the air, he broke into a run. Three vamps were circling around the fallen slayer like sharks, arguing over who got the first taste. Spike dusted all three in short order and turned his attention to Buffy. She was bleeding from a cut in her neck and her right ankle looked pretty swollen. Cursing under his breath, he picked her up and headed for the emergency room.

The first sensation Buffy became aware of was a headache. The second was the smell of the hospital around her. Bits and pieces of what had happened started to come back to her and she sat up carefully.

"Welcome back to the land of conscious." An acerbic British voice greeted her from the side of the bed. "What did you tangle with this time?"

"Spike? What time is it?" Her throat was a little raspy and she could feel a bandage around her neck. "Am I in the hospital?"

"It's about 3 in the bloody morning, and yes you're in hospital. I found you knocked out and bleeding by Joyce's grave. You're lucky I came along, there were some vamps about 30 seconds away from turning you into an all-you–can-eat buffet." He handed a glass of water, which she gulped greedily. "You want to tell me what nasty thing a) got the drop on you, b) knocked you out, and c) left you alone after rendering you helpless?"

"I don't know. It came up behind me, grabbed me. It was really strong and yanked me right off my feet." She looked down to see her right ankle encased in a cast. "I tried kicking it, but it might as well have been made from metal. Is my ankle broken?"

"Yeah. The doc said it wasn't too bad though. Should be good as new in about 6 weeks. For you, more like three days. You also had a slight concussion, which has since healed, and it took 10 stitches to close that cut on your neck. The doctor also said to tell you not to worry about the bill; the hospital is underwriting all your care. Apparently one of their bigwigs is grateful to you for stepping in when 'gang members on PCP' were mugging him. The denial powers that humans possess are astonishing." He reached out to steady Buffy as she swung her legs over the side of the bed and reached for the crutches that had been placed there. "Where do you think you're going?"

"I just don't want to be in bed. Am I still in the ER? Or have I been admitted for 'observation'?"

"The ER. The doc's here are familiar with your unique medical history and saw no point in admitting you for injuries that you'll be healed of in a few hours. In the case of that ankle, a few days. Something to be grateful for I suppose. Now are you going to tell me what happened?"

"I'm trying to remember." She frowned for a minute as she remembered just what had happened. "Oh shit!" Dropping the crutches, she ran for the door. Even with the cast on her foot Spike was hard pressed to catch her.

"What do you think you're doing? Do you want to get tossed into the loony bin upstairs? The docs are only going to ignore so much." The vampire caught the slayer just before she burst into the waiting room and hauled her back into her room, forcing her to sit down. He was beginning to regret not calling Willow or Xander to the hospital. "What's the matter?"

"Dawn. The demon is after her. It wants the Key." She got up and began pacing around the room looking for her clothes, oblivious to the cast on her foot or the hospital gown she wore. "It grabbed me, cut my neck and then let me go. It said it wanted the Key and that I wasn't it."

"The damn thing spoke English?"

"Yeah." She furrowed her brow as she tried to remember just what the demon had said. "It grabbed, cut me, I think it smelled my blood or maybe tasted it, then just let me go. Before I blacked out, I remember it saying, "You are not the Key. You are not the one I seek. But you know where it is. You carry the essence of the Key."

"Bloody hell. This is just great. It's three years ago all over again." Spike was several shades paler than usual. "Get dressed. We need to get out of here. I'll go call the Scoobies and tell them to head for your place."

"All right. Tell them to try not to alarm Dawn though." Spike headed for the door to give Buffy some privacy. "By the way, where are my clothes?"

Telephone consultations with the rest of the Scooby gang resulted in the conclusion that a meeting could wait until morning. Spike insisted on staying at the apartment for the rest of night and Buffy acquiesced. It actually made her feel a little safer. Dawn was less easily persuaded to go back to bed and insisted on staying up until Buffy pointed out that she needed rest in her condition.



By 7 am the Scooby gang was gathered at the Magic Shop and busily combing through old book as they had so many times before. The task was easier than it use to be, as they were all very familiar with their research materials and knew what to look in and what would be a waste of time. After about 45 minutes, Buffy went to get breakfast.

"How come Dawn gets bagels and orange juice, while the rest of us get coffee and doughnuts? Not that I'm complaining," Xander asked between bites of jelly doughnut. His one-year old daughter Sarah was perched on his lap and she giggled as she poked at the red jelly smeared around her dad's mouth.

"I'm just not in a sugar mood," Dawn replied quietly. The truth was, she was dying for one of those chocolate iced doughnuts but both her doctor and her sister forbade all junk food to her now. Caffeine was also on the forbidden list, right under cigarettes (not a big deal, she didn't smoke and Spike wasn't allowed to around her) and alcohol (no longer an issue).

"Never thought I'd see the day that Dawn Summers turned down chocolate. Or coffee for that matter. I thought you need your daily four shots to get your eyes open in the morning."

"I'm trying to get healthier, that's all." Dawn prayed that Xander would shut up soon. Her already tenuous hold on her temper was slipping and she was fairly certain that she was going to start screaming soon.

"Okay, but think of the goodness you're giving up." Xander waved a cup of coffee in her direction and made a show of how good it smelled.

"I don't want the damn coffee!" Dawn screamed, then jumped to her feet and ran out the back. Sarah started crying at the sudden noise while the rest of the adults stared at each other in stunned silence.

"What was that all about?" Anya asked. Dawn never screamed, and certainly never over something as trivial as coffee. Sarah was still sobbing pitifully and reached up for her mother. Very reluctantly (she wanted to hear what was obviously juicy gossip) Anya took her in the back to calm her down.

Buffy traded a glance with Willow. They knew why Dawn was on edge. It was time tell everyone else. "It's not you Xander. Don't take it personally. She's been pretty crabby for awhile."

"Then what is it? The last person I saw that pissed at me over coffee was when Anya- OH." Something clicked in Xander's head and he knew exactly why Dawn so moody. "Who's ass do I need to kick?" he asked in a flare of anger.

"What? Would someone please tell me what's going on? Is something wrong with Dawn?" Tara asked quietly.

"She's pregnant."

Part Six

Tara volunteered to go look for Dawn, while everyone else kept up the demon search. After the stunned silence had worn off, Buffy had patiently answered questions, which was a difficult thing because she was trying to preserve Dawn's privacy at the same time. She did however assure both Xander and Spike that should they ever figure out who the father was, they were welcome to beat the crap out of him. In fact she'd help them. After the shock had worn off, attention had turned back to the problem at hand. Unfortunately since the current problem involved Dawn's safety, she had to found and brought back to the shop. Tara said she'd do it. She wanted to talk to Dawn in private anyway.

"Dawn? Are you okay?" Tara approached the younger girl carefully. Dawn was sitting under the tree by her mother's grave, sobbing as though her heart would break. It was exactly where Tara had expected to find her.

"Did they send you to haul me back and apologize? Cause I won't go." Dawn made a half-hearted attempt to be rebellious but it fell flat.

"I'm not here to haul you back. We're just worried about you. No one's mad at you for yelling. Xander was being annoying." Tara sat down next to Dawn but didn't touch her. "He totally had that coming."

"No he didn't. I shouldn't have yelled like that. I bet I really scared Sarah." Dawn wiped her eyes and took a few deep breaths. "Did my sister say anything about why I ran out?"

"Yeah. She told us what's going on. Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. At least as much as I can be. It's not enough that I'm pregnant at 17, although that's my fault; now some demon is after the Key again. Why can't life ever be simple?"

"Because everything would be way too boring that way." Dawn didn't seem too inclined to run off again, so Tara risked putting an arm around her shoulders. Dawn didn't pull away. Instead she relaxed a little to lean against the blond.

"I wish my mom was here. I know she'd be so angry with me but I still want her. I have all these questions and no one to ask. Buffy's never been pregnant and I don't want to ask Anya. I'm afraid of the answers I'd get." From the second she'd announced her pregnancy Anya had also described every symptom of it in graphic detail. After Sarah was born, the gang had to hear all about the delivery. Not one of them wanted to get Anya back on that subject of conversation.

"What kind of questions?"

"Just stuff. Like, is it normal to feel so fat when I'm not even four months gone yet? Why am I so weepy? Will labor hurt really bad? Things like that." Dawn sighed and reached out to touch the headstone. "I miss her so much. I keep thinking about what she'd say if she were here. She'd be mad, but happy too. She always wanted grandkids. After Buffy spilled about the slaying secret and we got use to the idea that she would probably never have kids, she used to say I was her only hope. That's another point in my theory that she could tell the future. I always thought that growing up. She always seemed to know when I was up to something or if something was going to happen. Like the night before she died, she came into my room and we talked for a long time. She was in such a good mood because her date had gone well. It was almost like she was saying good-bye. When I left for school that morning, she hugged me harder than usual. At least I think she did. I'm not sure. Everything seems so confusing about that time. I can't remember what's real and what's not. After she died, for a long time I use to make up these scenarios in my head where I got to say goodbye to her. Or where I was able to save her. Like I had the flu that day and was home to call 911. Stuff like that." Dawn was babbling now. The mix of hormones and stress was really doing a number on her thought processes.

"Oh Dawnie." Tara hugged her close. "Your mom is still there, in your heart. As long as you have your memories of her, she'll never truly be gone."

"I know. But sometimes it's not enough. Buffy's great and I'm so grateful that I have her, but sometimes I really need a mom." Tears were beginning to leak down Dawn's face again. "Like now."

"I know it's tough Dawn. I've been there myself. I wish I could tell you that one day all the hurt will go away, but I can't. Sometimes you have to take all this bad stuff just so you can have all the good stuff that comes with it. I mean, you'll always remember your mother and part of that is the pain of her being gone." Dawn didn't say anything, just continued to cry quietly. Tara remained quiet for a while as well, wrestling with a decision. "I want to tell you something okay? I don't know if it'll help but maybe it will."

"What do you mean?"

"When I was 16 years old, I was raped on my way home from school. I didn't tell anyone because I was so ashamed and the person was never caught. I never wanted to tell anyone what had happened to me, because I thought it was my fault somehow. I had figured out that I was a lesbian about a year before that, and I got it into my head that the rape was my punishment for being gay. It took me a very long time to work past that feeling." Dawn's mouth was hanging open in shock as Tara talked. She knew that Tara hadn't had it particularly easy growing up but she'd never though that something that horrible had happened to her. "In the end I had to tell my parents about the attack because I was pregnant." She took a deep breath as she relived the awful memories. "My dad was so angry. Not at me, at the person who attacked me. He actually grabbed a gun and went charging out of the house. It took Mom and Donnie hours to talk him out of the car and convince him that it wouldn't help me to have him acting like that. And then he started crying."

"My family use to be really close. Dad didn't buy into that 'demon blood' stuff, even though both Mom and I practiced magic. He actually though that our abilities were something to be proud of. When I came out, they both said that they loved me just as I was. And when I told them that I wanted to keep my baby, that she was my child and I loved her no matter what, they said they'd help me and support me. And when I was seven months pregnant, I lost the baby. For about a day I didn't feel her move at all. When I went to the hospital out of fear, they couldn't find a heartbeat. Labor was induced that night and I gave birth to a perfect baby girl who had died when the cord wrapped around her neck. There was nothing I could have done to prevent it or change what happened. Her name was Emma. She's buried back home in Tennessee. And two weeks after I got out of the hospital, Mom died. She was trying a spell to ease my pain and it backfired horribly. That was when Dad began to hate magic. When he began to believe that Mom and I were tainted by the blood of a demon. We were all hurting so much that we couldn't support each other. I dove further into magic as a refuge and as a way to remember my mother. Dad and Donnie both saw magic as the source of all the hurt. And me as well, because the spell that killed her had been to help me. I hated that year. As soon as I graduated, I headed as far from home as I could. I haven't been back since."

"How horrible." Dawn couldn't believe her ears. She'd had no idea about Tara's past. The brief meeting with Mr. Maclay three years ago had left her with a bad impression of Tara's family. "I can't believe you survived that."

"Sometimes I can't believe it either. It seems like some crazy, mixed-up dream. But then I'll see the picture of Emma that's in my wallet, or I catch a glimpse of myself in the mirror and think for a second that it's my mother, and I know that it's all real. And you know, I don't carry a lot of regrets about it."

"Why?"

"Because if my mother hadn't died or I hadn't lost Emma, I'd never have come to Sunnydale. I'd have stayed in Tennessee to raise my daughter. I'd never have met Willow or you or Xander. I wouldn't have the amazing family that I have now. I honestly can't say whether or not I'd be happy, because that's just one of things I'll never know. Life happened and I had to make choices. The choices that you make in this life shape that life. What if you had stayed home that day? What if you called 911 and they didn't get there in time? You'd have to live with the memory of your mother dying in front of you and there was no way you could help her. You can't live your life by 'what ifs'. It'll eat you alive inside." Tara was crying slightly now, the memories were still painful. She'd sobbed for hours the night she'd told Willow about Emma. "What I'm trying to say is that even the most painful, hurtful things can be good in the end. Like when you feel that baby kick for the first time. I can't describe how wonderful that feeling is."

"Really?" That was one of the things that Dawn had been wondering about. What would it feel like to have a person moving around inside her? So far all she felt now was tired, cranky and sick.

"I promise. Anything you want to know about being pregnant, I'll do my best to tell you. It's a very scary thing, especially when you're young." Tara got to her feet and helped Dawn up. "Let's head back before Buffy calls out the cavalry. She was pretty worried about you."

"Can I ask you something?"

"Sure."

"Am I a horrible person if I consider putting my baby up for adoption? I don't know if I can be a good mom and it's not fair of me put Buffy in the position of helping me raise this baby. And there are so many couples out there that want children and can't have them. It seems so selfish of me to want to keep it." Dawn had been mulling over adoption since the doctor told her she was pregnant but the idea of giving up her child seemed so repugnant to her.

Tara stopped walking and turned around. "I don't think that's a horrible thing for you to consider. In fact I think it's a very brave choice. I thought a lot about adoption when I was pregnant. In the end I decided that I couldn't go through with it."

"I'm just thinking about it now. I haven't decided anything." Dawn wrapped her arms around herself. She was suddenly cold.

Part Seven

Despite their efforts, the Scooby Gang was unable to find anything about the demon that attacked Buffy in the their resources. Willow's on- line search was similarly unsuccessful. In desperation, Buffy faxed Giles a description of the demon and asked him to take it to the Council. The archivists there were now looking as well, but had yet to come up with anything. Giles had offered to fly back to California, but Buffy had told him there was no real point. He couldn't do anything they weren't already doing and he was their contact to the Council.

Two passed after the initial scare with no sign of the demon and everyone began to relax a little. Spike stopped sleeping on the Summers' couch, although the wards that Tara and Willow put up remained. Buffy was still very, very wary of Dawn going anywhere by herself and for once the younger girl didn't complain about her older sister's protectiveness. In fact she was terrified of being alone at night, and had begun having nightmares again. The therapist, Dr. Golden, said it was normal and that the best thing for them to do was simply stay with her until the demon was caught. So Spike and Buffy alternated patrolling, one staying with Dawn while the other patrolled with the group. It left them both exhausted but there was nothing to be done. On the plus side, the vamp population was taking a huge hit.

"I swear, I've breathed in enough vamp dust over the years to give me a black lung," Buffy coughed. "Where do these things keep coming from?"

"I don't know Buffy." Willow reached down to help Buffy to her feet. It was just the two of them tonight. Tara had plans she couldn't get out of and Anya had to stay home with Xander. He and Sarah both had the flu. "Is someone recruiting?"

"I don't think so. Most of these guys aren't local. Besides, you said the death rate around here hasn't changed drastically."

"I know. If anything, it's gone down. The coroner's office only reported three deaths due to blood loss last week and two to animal attack. That's definitely below normal. Maybe there's some vamp holiday coming up that we don't know about."

"I thought we had all those pegged. Between Giles, the musty old books and Spike we've got the dates for every major vamp party for the next 100 years. There's nothing on the calendar until St. Vitegeus and that's six months from now. It's not the full moon either." Buffy sighed and sat down on a park bench. "I'm beat. And it's only 11:30."

"We've been out here since 6, and you've dusted seven bloodsuckers. You have a right to be tired. I'm tired and I didn't spend all day on my feet either."

"Yeah, well it's a living. You have computers and I have art." Buffy wanted nothing more than to kick off her shoes and get someone to rub her feet. "I don't even like art most of the time."

"Don't let Angel hear you say that. After all the time he spent teaching you everything he knew about art so you could run your mother's gallery, he'd be very upset to hear you don't like it."

"Well you don't like computers when you've had a hard day. How many times have I heard you say that you never want to see a keyboard or a disk again?"

"Fine, so we're both cranky misses. Let's finish sweeping this park and head home." Very reluctantly both women got to their feet. The playground was the last stop on their list. One quick walk-through to be sure that there were no undead tourists in the area and they could go home.

They were circling the last bend when the demon appeared. As he had the last time, the hulking behemoth managed to sneak up on them. Willow was knocked to the ground as it grabbed Buffy.

"Where is my Key slayer? You have my Key."

Screaming and struggling, Buffy fought to free herself. "I don't know what you're talking about!"

"I smell the Key on you. You are close to it. I want the Key by the next full moon or you will die."

"IGNIS INCENTE!" Willow's cry momentarily distracted the demon and it turned in time to see the hurtled fireball coming at its head. Buffy took advantage of the distraction to wrench herself free. The ball of fire hit the demon's face. It roared in pain and lurched off as Willow raced to her friend's side. The witch's eyes were still black with the dark magic she had channeled.

"Are you okay?"

"I'll live. Your timing really doesn't suck Will." Buffy groaned and rolled over onto her back. "Oww!" The slayer's right wrist was very tender to touch and swelling rapidly. "I think that damn thing broke my wrist."

"You want to head to the hospital and get it X-rayed?"

"Yeah. I don't need it healing funny." She hauled herself to her feet and helped Willow up. Willow was breathing hard now as the gravity of what she'd done sank in. She'd used dark magic again, after swearing that she'd never again manipulate those kinds of forces. What had she done? "Willow? Are you okay? You look like you're about to pass out."

"What have I done? I channeled magic for harm. How could I have done that?" The witch was hyperventilating now. Buffy quickly understood what she'd meant. Two years ago, not long after Buffy had returned from the dead, she had finally blow up at her friends and spilled the truth about where she'd been. The revelation that she'd ripped her friend out of heaven, and Buffy's subsequent major breakdown had been the turning point for Willow. She'd finally been able to see what Tara and Giles had been talking about, how irresponsible and dark her magic use was becoming. For a very long time, she hadn't used magic at all. She had promised to never touch dark magic again, which ruled out using magic to fight. Only in the last six months has she begun doing the simple and harmless spells she'd started out with.

"Willow it's okay. Really. You didn't have bad intentions there. All you were trying to do was protect me."

"No. I wanted to hurt that demon. It's one thing to protect; it's another to want to hurt. I shouldn't have done that. And worse, I did it without thinking. I acted on pure instinct."

"As it is my wrist is broken. If you hadn't tossed that flame ball at him, who knows how badly I could have been hurt? I know you don't want to go over to the dark side again but I really think it was okay this time. You just need to relax and- RUN!" Buffy screamed and yanked Willow to her feet as the demon came at them again, roaring in anger. Both women took off, racing across the park as fast as they could for the relative safety of the street.

They lost the demon fairly quickly as they darted down the streets and side alleys of Sunnydale. They finally stopped outside the back door of the Magic Box. Buffy rooted around for her key while Willow caught her breath. As soon as Buffy got the door unlocked they ducked inside. Willow slumped down against the wall, still panting. "I don't think I should be doing magic again anytime soon. Not until I can truly control myself, and my impulses. I thought I could, but I can't.

"Will you're upset right now. I think you should calm down and get some sleep before you make any major decisions." Buffy bolted the door and started flipping on some lights. "It looks like we lost him for now, but I don't want to go back out there."

"I agree. I don't want to leave until there's sunlight outside. How did that thing manage to sneak up on us both? Is it the same one as before?"

"In the disgusting flesh. I'm going to give Spike a call and tell him I won't be home. We're going to have to have a meeting in the morning and re- discuss our strategy here. That thing is a serious danger." Buffy didn't wait for Willow to replied as she went for the phone. Hopefully Spike was still up. He got so cranky when woken unexpectedly.

"Hello? Do you have any idea what time it is?" Spike had not only been sleeping, but enjoying a very pleasant dream, one that involved Harmony, manacles and a lot of holy water and crosses.

"Spike? Is everything okay there?"

"Slayer? What's going on? Where are you?" Spike was instantly fully alert.

"I'm at the shop with Willow. We got attacked in Weatherly Park and ran here. It was the same demon from two weeks ago. It said that if I don't turn over the Key by the next full moon, it'll kill me."

"Bloody Hell!" Spike yelled, then immediately lowered the volume. Dawn had finally fallen asleep not half an hour ago and he didn't want to wake her. "Then you're really not going to want to hear this."

"What?"

"Whatever Harris and his kid have, Dawn has it too. She started throwing up after you left and she didn't stop until about 45 minutes ago. She can't keep a thing down and she's running a fever."

"Great. If Dawn has the flu, then I'm going to catch it as well. And since Willow is here with me, that means she and Tara are probably going to get sick, not to mention Anya'll catch it from her bunch. We're at DefCon 1 and there's a flu outbreak to deal with. Perfect. Not to mention Will is having a magical panic attack right now."

"What'd the witch do now?" Willow's dark side jaunt had left Spike very wary of her magic skills and he hadn't been happy in the least when she started doing spells again.

"Tossed a fireball at the demon to get to back off. Unfortunately she channeled dark magic to do it. She's wigging about it," Buffy sighed, and then winced in pain when her wrist bumped against the wall. "And I think my wrist is broken. In the morning I'll go get it X-rayed. I don't want to risk leaving here. Willow and I'll stay the night, which means I need you to stay with Dawn."

"Not a problem pet. As soon as the sun's up, we'll head for the shop through the tunnels."

"Thank you Spike. Tell Dawn I love her, and I'll see you guys in the morning." Buffy hung up and went to find Willow.

The witch was in the training room, setting up a couple of cots she'd found in the basement. Buffy gratefully collapsed onto one. "Did you talk to Tara on the cell?"

"Yeah. She said she'd be here first thing in the morning. This is one of those times when it'd be nice to have a car instead of walking everywhere. You think there's any food in the fridge?"

"Just the mashed and pureed stuff the Anya feeds Sarah. Maybe some bottles of water. Are you getting hungry?"

"Starving. I had a sandwich before we left and that was hours ago." Willow went over and started looking through the mini-fridge. "You want anything?"

"You have any spells to take the sting out of this wrist?"

"Oooh, peaches!" Willow stood up triumphantly, clutching a jar of strained peaches. "These don't look too bad." She found a spoon and returned to where Buffy sat. "What did you say about your wrist?"

"Do you know any spells to take the edge off? I'm very much aware of the fact that I broke my wrist and I'm really not liking it."

"I totally forgot about that. How bad is it? Should we make a run for the hospital?"

"No. It just aches a lot."

"The closest I could come is a healing spell, but the bones have to be set properly first. You could lose the use of your wrist and hand if something went wrong."

"I think I'll just live with it." Buffy did a double take. "Are you eating baby food?"

"I'm hungry, okay? What's the big deal?" Willow mock glared at her friend for a second, then turned back to her quasi-meal. "It's better than nothing. It was this, or those disgusting teething biscuits that Anya insists on feeding her child. No wonder Sarah's developing Xander's eating habits. Do you have any idea how much sugar is in those things?"

"She's going to grow up thinking that Ho-Ho's and Twinkies are the equivalent of fruit." Buffy lay down on her cot and closed her eyes. It had been a very long day. "Good night Will. I'll see you in the morning."

Part Eight

The morning brought no easy answers to an increasingly uncomfortable dilemma. Buffy was sporting yet another cast on her wrist, with orders to keep it on for at least a week. She was a bit unnerved by the fact that the doctors at the hospital were all familiar with her special healing and seemed to think nothing of it. Dawn was in the back, curled up on one of the cots and trying to sleep in-between bouts of nausea. Spike had carried her most of the way to the shop. As predicted, Anya had the flu as well and Tara was running the shop in her absence. The news that the demon was on a deadline and threatening lives was not welcome in the least. Neither was the phone call nor accompanying fax from Giles, saying that the Council archivists had tentatively identified the demon as a very dangerous breed committed to bringing Hell to earth.

"It's called Mok'tala. They were thought to be extinct in the 19th century. The last mention of one was found in the Watcher Diaries. A slayer was killed by one in 1886, but not before she fatally wounded it. Her watcher found both bodies the next morning." Willow grimaced, remembering Giles description of what the demon had done to the slayer. She was very glad that Buffy hadn't been the one to pick up the phone. "Unfortunately, there were no marks on the demon to tell us how it was killed. And there isn't much about Mok'tala in the archives. Just it's extremely hard to kill, very focused on getting what it wants and committed to the destruction of the human race. Their entire lives are dedicated to bringing back the Old Ones."

"Did they find anything about weaknesses?"

"No. Mok'tala's have an impervious hide. No weapon can pierce it. It's like a shell of armor. That's why your ankle broke when you kicked it. The slayer that was killed was also a practicing witch, so there might be a spell that can be used against it. But they didn't find anything specific."

"Great. I don't suppose Giles had anything to say that might be thought of as good news." Buffy was seriously worried now. The Mok'tala situation was eerily reminiscent of Glory and her reign of terror.

"Actually yeah. The Mok'tala are all business. They don't go after people just because. It only went after you because it sensed a connection to the Key. Remember, it ignored me until I threw fire at it. It won't go after the rest of us like Glory did. Or any innocent people."

"At least we have that." Buffy stopped pacing for a second and sat down. "Did they have anything else useful to say? Like how to track them or how he's tracking the key?"

"No. There really wasn't that much there. Until a confirmed sighting in the 14th century, the Mok'tala were thought to only be a myth. But then one tried to bring about apocalypse and the whole 'myth' thing kind of had to go out the window."

"Bloody terrific." Spike had until now been very quiet. The idea of some new threat that he couldn't do anything about had him about as scared as he'd ever been. "So what do we do?"

And then Buffy said something she never though would come out of her mouth. "I don't know. I have no idea how to deal with this thing." The silence following her statement was deafening.

"I might have a solution, at least to keeping the niblet safe. I know of a nest of Fallon demons in LA that owes me favor. They're very loyal and completely peaceful towards humans. They're skilled with magic too, and might know of a way to shield her from however the Mok'tala is tracking her." Spike had actually been considering this option since Buffy's call the night before, but he hadn't wanted to say anything unless they were desperate. He was pretty sure that they had reached that point.

"Do you trust them?" Buffy reply was completely unexpected. Spike had thought she'd turn down the idea of sending her sister to demons in an instant.

"Yeah, I trust them. I'd never brought it up if I didn't. They know Soul Boy too, if you want to check them out."

"I'm going to. Thank you Spike."

Part Ten

After phone calls to Angel to double check that the Fallon demons could be trusted, Buffy made the hardest decision that she'd ever made in her life and sent her sister away. It only took about a day to make all the arrangements and by nightfall the Summer's sisters were on their way to Los Angeles. Dawn had slept almost the entire day in the back room and hadn't really woken up until that evening, after all the plans were in place. She was uncharacteristically quiet throughout the trip home to pack and hadn't argued at all about being sent away. She simply huddled in the back of the car, her arms wrapped around her stomach. At her last doctor's appointment she had heard her baby's heartbeat through a special stethoscope and had fallen completely in love. All thoughts of adoption had flown out of her head. The thought of something happening to her child was overwhelmingly terrifying. And at the same the worry for her baby had done her some good. She had the well being of another person to focus on now, instead of herself. The depression and numbness that had been overwhelming her for nearly a year was rapidly vanishing. She had to stay strong for the baby's sake. Wallowing no longer had a place in her life.

"Are you okay Niblet? You're awfully quiet back there." Spike was in the passenger seat next to Buffy and the silence was beginning to unnerve him. The only sound in the car since they'd left was the three heartbeats of the car's other occupants. He'd thought about turning on the radio but decided against it. Music just seemed wrong right now.

"I'm fine. Just tired." Dawn sounded so young and scared it nearly broke her older sister's heart. "How long until we get there?"

"About an hour and a half. Why don't you try to sleep? The time will go a little quicker if you do and you'll probably feel better." Buffy was striving to keep her voice even. She felt like she was going to burst out crying at any second. This wasn't like when Dawn went to camp last summer. Then, it had only been for a month and Dawn had been leaving to go have fun. Now she was fleeing for her life and they had no idea when it would be safe for her to return.

The ride seemed to take much too long and pass much too quickly. Before Buffy knew what was happening, they were pulling up in front of a non-descript house in an upper-middle class neighborhood, about 20 minutes from downtown LA. It was a lot like where they had lived before moving to Sunnydale eight years ago. Dawn let out a little moan and stirred as the car stopped moving. "Are we here?"

"This is the place. Fallon demons can pass for human so they tend to live among them." Spike reached out and steadied Dawn as she swayed on her feet. She was still feeling the effects of the flu she'd caught. Tara and Willow had done a healing spell so she could travel comfortably but the virus was still working its way out of her system. Hopefully it'd be gone by morning. "I did a favor for this clan a few years back and they don't forget their debts. They'll keep you safe Niblet." Dawn managed a weak smile at Spike's reassurance.

The trio was about halfway to front door when if flew open and a middle-aged woman came flying out to meet them. "Come in, come in! You must be exhausted from your long drive." Before Dawn could comprehend what was happening, she found herself wrapped in a motherly embrace. "You poor thing, having to sit in the car for that long and in your condition. I'll bet William here didn't even stop once to let you stretch either." The woman sent a look in Spike's direction that was half teasing and half chiding.

"William?" Buffy muttered under her breath with an amused look in the vampire's direction. She was unable to see his reaction though, due to the fact that woman was now hugging her.

"This is just such an honor to meet you my dear. I can't tell you how happy we are to look after your baby sister. I'm Willa Jean Olsen, the head of the clan. And you must be Buffy Summers. You can call me Willa Jean. Let's get you all inside and get Dawn into bed. It's nearly midnight and she needs her rest." Before anyone could argue, Willa Jean had herded them all into the house.

"Harold! Go out and collect Dawn's things from the car." A man about Willa Jean's age came down the stairs and nodded to them, before heading outside.

"That's Harold, my husband. There're five of us all together. My sister Michelle lives with us, and then there're our two children. Nicholas is 10 and Alyson is 16. I sent them out to friend's houses so you can settle in without a bunch of people staring at you. Michelle's up in her apartment, you'll meet her in the morning. She was widowed a few years back. She and her husband were attacked walking home one night and if a stranger hadn't of interfered she'd be dead too." She looked over at Spike as she said this. He merely shrugged and flashed a grin at her. Buffy made a mental note to get the story out of him on the way back to Sunnydale. It would be a good distraction.

Harold came back in a few minutes later with Dawn's two suitcases and promptly took them upstairs. Willa Jean took note of the exhaustion on Dawn's face and the mounting anguish on Buffy's. "Why don't I show you girls where Dawn'll be staying and let her settle in a bit? William told us a little about you so I did my best to fix up a room for you. We can change anything you like to make you more comfortable." Willa Jean was guiding the girls up the stairs while she talked. Spike stayed behind to go over the security arrangements with Harold. The Olsen's may not have looked it, but behind their sweet demeanor were strength and fighting skills to rival a slayer's, and an intense loyalty to those they felt needed it. Dawn would be as safe with them as she could possibly be.

"This is your room Dawn." Willa Jean opened up one room and ushered them inside. Dawn gaped in amazement. It was beautiful. "Nicholas is across the hall and Alyson is next door. They're both so excited to have you here. Alyson's dying to have someone to talk to about all those teenage things that I 'just don't understand', and Nicholas is convinced that you'll be an improvement as far as older sisters go. He and Alyson are simply incapable of getting along." Willa Jean went over to where Dawn's two suitcases stood against the wall and hefted them onto the bed. "I'll bet you're exhausted Dawn, so we'll leave you to get changed while I talk to your sister. Make yourself at home. We'll worry about unpacking in the morning. The bathroom is that door in the corner." Willa Jean nudged Buffy back into the hallway and closed the door behind them.

"Poor thing's so overwhelmed by everything. She's so pale. Has she been ill?"

"She's getting over the flu. Did Spike tell you about the-"

"That she's pregnant? Yes he did. Don't worry Miss Summers; we'll take good care of both her and her little one. You did bring her medical and school records with you? It's very important that she be able to live as normal a life as possible."

"I have them right here. Do you really think it's a good idea for her to be attending school right now? Her high school in Sunnydale is willing to let her do home study so she won't fall behind."

"She'll be fine. Alyson is also a senior and I'll arrange for them to have their classes together so Alyson can act as bodyguard. And I mean that seriously. Alyson is well aware of her responsibilities to her clan and she won't shirk them. She's been training with me since she could walk, and she's better with magic than I am. She's extremely responsible and I trust her fully. I wager in a fight she'd give you a run for your money. Dawn will be fine here. And it will be better for her mentally if she can live her life as normally as possible. William told me some of what the two of you have been through the last couple of years and the last thing that child needs is to feel as though she's in horrific danger, even if that is indeed the case."

"Do you know of Angel Investigations, over on the west side?" In order to fend off Angel's insistence that Dawn come stay with the Fang Gang, Buffy had agreed to let him at least look in on her sister. She was fairly certain that someone from AI would be dropping by the Olsen's everyday.

"Yes I do. Angel has been quite a help to us on occasion. Lovely young man."

"If anything happens, to me or to your family, see that Dawn gets to him. He or one of his co-workers will be coming by to check on Dawn. She knows all of them, but if something makes you nervous call him or me to check it out. I told him that once a week would be fine, but with him it'll be more like once a day. If it starts bugging you, I'll get him to back off. A few of my friends will come down as well. If Dawn doesn't know them or feels uncomfortable in anyway, don't let her go. I'll call her as often as I can, but I don't know how this demon is tracking me and I don't want to come down here too often in case I lead him right to Dawn."

"That's a wise choice dear." Before Willa Jean could say anything else the door opened and Dawn stepped out dressed in her nightgown.

"I wanted to say good-night." She stepped over and hugged her sister as hard as she could. "I'll be okay Buffy." Dawn made a concerted effort to keep her tears from falling and failed miserably. "I love you big sister."

"I love you too kiddo. And remember I'm only a phone call away. Angel or someone from AI will be by to check on you, and I know Xander and Willow will try to come. I'll call you when we get back to Sunnydale, okay?"

"Okay." Dawn sniffed and leaned into the hug a little harder. Buffy held her close and mentally cursed whatever fates made her send her sister away to strangers just so she'd be safe. She finally had to let Dawn go though. She could feel her falling asleep on her feet.

"Okay, this is it." Buffy reached into her purse and pulled out an envelope. "There's a calling card in here, along with an ATM card. Your account had five hundred dollars in it and I can put more in if you need it. I know you're going to be needed new clothes soon and I don't want to put that burden on the Olsen's. When you come back, we'll go baby shopping. If you need anything and can't get a hold of the Scoobies or me, call Angel. His card is in there too, along with Cordelia's home number and cell phone. I want you to behave yourself and do everything that Willa Jean and Harold tell you to. You're a guest in their home and I want you on your best behavior. And do your homework. Don't let your grades slide. Take your vitamins and stay on your diet. You have to stay healthy. No missing your doctor's appointments. Make sure you get plenty of sleep and exercise." Dawn took the envelope, and then dove back into her sister's arms. Buffy held her close and rocked her a little. "I love you Dawn."

"I love you too Buffy." Dawn kissed her sister on the cheek, and then fled back to her room. Even with the door closed, Buffy could hear her sister's sobs.

"I'd better go. It'll just be harder on her for me to hang around." Buffy headed down the stairs and into the living room where Spike was waiting.

"Dawn settled in all right?"

"Yeah. She's sleeping now. We'd better get going. It's three hours back to Sunnydale and I don't want to risk the sun coming up on you." Buffy turned to Willa Jean and Harold. "Thank you so much for doing this. I know it's not going to be easy integrating another teenage girl into your house, especially when she's pregnant."

"Honey it's absolutely no bother. We love having young people around. Your sister will be fine." Willa Jean accepted the paperwork Buffy turned over and started herding the slayer and vampire towards the door. "You'd best get on your way. It'll hurt more if you linger. Dawn'll call you in the morning. I promise we'll take good care of her."

Part Eleven

Spike drove back to Sunnydale. Buffy was too much of a mess to drive properly. She managed to contain her tears until they'd pulled out of the Olsen's driveway, then she'd broken down sobbing. Spike didn't say anything. He had no idea how to comfort her. By the time they'd reached the freeway, she was sleeping. The stress of the last few days was catching up with her and her body was demanding much needed rest. When they reached the Summer's building, Spike didn't bother waking her up. He simply carried her inside and laid her on her bed. She moaned a little, but didn't wake up. After pulling off her shoes and covering her with a blanket, he closed the door and headed for the kitchen. It was 4 in the morning and he wanted to get back to his crypt before the sun rose. He left a note telling her where he was and took off. It had been a rough night.

Part Twelve

Dawn woke up the next morning slightly disoriented. She didn't recognize the bed she was in or the room around her. She saw her suitcases in the corner and bits and pieces of the night before came filtering back. The decision to send her to a clan of Fallon demons that Spike knew. Packing her stuff and saying goodbye to the gang. The trip down. Saying goodbye to her sister. Dawn felt tears welling up in her eyes but before she could start bawling, her stomach gave a familiar heave and she leap out of bed and hurried into the bathroom. She just made it.

"Oh dear." Willa Jean came in and gently pulled Dawn's hair back while the younger girl vomited into the toilet. "You poor thing. Morning sickness is the worse. With Alyson I threw up for the entire 16 months. At least for you it's only nine." Dawn finished throwing up and flushed the toilet. Willa Jean handed her glass of water to rinse her mouth, which Dawn gratefully accepted. "Feeling better?"

"Yeah. I'm fine now. Thank you."

"Are you hungry? I have breakfast ready downstairs. After you eat, we'll see about getting you unpacked. Alyson and Nicholas will be back this afternoon and they're both looking forward to meeting you." Willa Jean headed for the door. "Just come downstairs as soon as you're dressed."

Dawn nodded at the closing door and turned her attention to picking out clothes. Her shape had changed a lot in the last month and she had to wear her loosest stuff now. She settled for a turtleneck and overalls, an outfit she'd been wearing a lot lately. She put her dirty clothes back into the suitcase and made her bed. She was a guest in the house and she was determined not to be a burden. She also took the opportunity to explore her room a little bit. It was very pretty, done in light purple with white wicker furniture. There were a couple of Matisse prints on the wall, and some books stacked on the desk. Further inspection showed the desk was stocked with school supplies, and the books were the kind of romances that she read voraciously. The closet was empty, save for a bunch of hangers and a shoe rack.

Downstairs Willa Jean was dishing up pancakes and bacon to Harold, and a woman Dawn assumed was Michelle.

"Now I was told you like pancakes. Grab a plate and help yourself honey." Willa Jean motioned for Dawn to sit down. The food smelled so good that she was hard pressed not to start gobbling.

"Hi Dawn, I'm Willa Jean's sister Michelle." Michelle could have been Willa Jean's twin, except for the fact that Willa Jean was a blond and Michelle was a red head. "It's very nice to meet you. Did you sleep well?"

Dawn shook the proffered hand and reached for the platter of pancakes. "I slept very well, thank you." Harold smiled at her but remained as silent as he had the night before. Dawn remembered the Spike had told her that females were the dominant gender in Fallon society and that men were pretty quiet as a result. Harold wouldn't speak until he had something very important to say, and even then he'd defer to his wife.

Willa Jean waited until after Dawn had eaten a good portion of her breakfast before she brought up the subject of school. "Alyson attends a private high school and we'll be registering you there as well. She's a year younger than you, but she's already a senior. She managed to skip the second grade. I'm going to arrange for you two to have the same classes. You'll be safer that way. I'm also going to do a protection spell for you that will keep everyone with harmful intents from coming within 10 feet of you. The only other thing is that I don't want you to leave the property without Alyson, Michelle or myself escorting you. The only exception is the friends that your sister mentioned last night. I know that sounds very smothering but it must be done. You're too precious to risk."

"Okay." Dawn didn't argue. The whole thing was just so overwhelming. And she was scared. Not for herself oddly enough, but for her child.

"As soon as you finish eating, why don't you go unpack your stuff. Alyson should be home by then and you two can figure out something to do." Dawn nodded and finished her food. The only thing left was the big glass of milk that she didn't want to touch. However calcium was on the 'must have lots of' list that she wasn't allowed to skimp on. Dawn took a deep breath and downed the milk, praying that this time it'd stay down. Apparently the baby didn't like dairy products. A wave of nausea rose in her throat, but she managed to keep from throwing up.

There wasn't that much for her to unpack. Half her clothes didn't fit anymore so she left those at home. Her toiletries went in the bathroom and she lined up a few books on the desk. Her disc man and cd's went on the bedside table, next to a few framed photos. Her favorite was one of her with her mother and sister at the beach. It had been taken right before her mother had died. They had taken a picnic to the beach to celebrate Joyce's recovery. It had been too cold to swim, but they had good time anyway. Buffy had found the picture on an undeveloped roll of film about a year later. They each had a copy of it.

The other pictures were one of Buffy, Willow and Tara, taken at Xander and Anya's wedding, one of the happy couple themselves and one of Dawn with her friends at their junior prom. The last was one Dawn had taken of the entire Scooby Gang, just before Giles had gone back to England after his last visit. Anya had just had Sarah, and they were gathered in front of the Magic Box. Anya had wanted to show her daughter just what Mommy did to earn money. No one had realized Dawn had taken the picture until the flash went off. She preferred to take pictures that way. It seemed more real than posing people and demanding smiles.

"Is that your family?"

Dawn spun around, clutching the picture of the gang to her chest. "Who are you?"

The teenager smiled at her. "I'm Alyson. You can call me Allie. Are you Dawn?"

"Yeah. Sorry for yelling. You startled me."

"I didn't mean to. Man, you're really pretty. I'm going to have so much fun picking your brain for make-up tips." Allie flopped down on the bed and looked around. "What do you think of the room? I know it's kind of bare now, but after we get back from the mall this afternoon it won't be. Mom said I was to make sure you got everything you needed to make this place yours. Posters, curtains, stuff for the bathroom, anything."

"I don't know. I don't have that much money and I have to get new clothes soon," Dawn replied cautiously.

"Don't worry about that. I have Dad's credit card. He'll never notice what I spend." Allie jumped up and headed for the door. "Are you about done unpacking?"

A wave of nausea rose in Dawn's throat and she bolted for the bathroom. She was vaguely aware of Allie standing in the doorway as she puked up her breakfast. It wasn't until her stomach was completely empty did the nausea finally fade. Shakily Dawn stood up and rinsed out her mouth.

"Yikes. Is that from being pregnant?" Allie asked curiously.

"Yeah, just one of the perks." Dawn glanced in the mirror and grimaced at the vomit trailing down the front of her clothes. "Darn it. Now I have to change. And this is my only clean pair of overalls too."

"I have some khaki ones that might fit you. Be right back," Allie offered. She was back in a flash with the clothing. They fit perfectly. After dropping Dawn's clothes in the washing machine, Amy wheedled car keys out of her mother and the two girls took off for the mall.



Part Thirteen

When Buffy finally woke up the next morning, her first thought was that the apartment was much too quiet. The familiar sounds of Dawn moving around, playing music and talking on the phone were gone. After lying in bed for a moment to recall the events of the night before, Buffy reluctantly got out of bed and headed for the kitchen. She desperately needed coffee.

After gulping down three cups of the worst coffee she'd ever tasted, Buffy got dressed and called Dawn. A very cheerful Willa Jean told her that Allie had taken Dawn to the mall in order to get her mind off things. The girls would be back in a couple of hours and she'd be sure to have Dawn call. Willa Jean also assured Buffy that Dawn seemed to be doing just fine so far. The reassurances didn't go far towards soothing Buffy, only seeing her sister fine and the demon dead would do that, but they kept her from jumping out of her skin altogether. After taking a cursory swipe at cleaning the apartment, she went down to the gallery. If she didn't do some actual work soon, the place would collapse. Besides which, the paperwork piled up on her desk would be a good distraction.

Part Fourteen

Dawn had never in her life met such an enthusiastic shopper as Allie. She darted from store to store, looking through everything from music to clothes, chattering all the while. It had been ages since Dawn had gone shopping, gossiped and simply hung out like the 17-year-old girl she was. All of her friends had been freaky around her since she'd told them she was pregnant. And she never had time to go to the mall anymore. She spent every afternoon and all her weekends working at the gallery. She was determined to save up as much as she could for when the baby came. Poking through the huge mall with Allie was the most fun Dawn had had for a long time.

"Dawn, come here! This dress would look so adorable on you." Allie's voice cut through Dawn reverie bringing her back to the present. At Allie's insistence, the girls had stopped in a maternity shop to look for clothes for Dawn. "This color is you!" Allie was holding up a pretty, light blue jumper for Dawn to inspect. "At least try it on."

"I don't know. I was just planning to get basic's. Pants and stuff like that. I mean, big shirts are sold everywhere and will cover me pretty well."

"Just try it on. You need at least one nice thing and you can wear it to school on Monday." Rather than argue with Allie, Dawn took the dress and headed for a dressing room.

Allie was right; the color was terrific on her. And it felt terrific to wear something that comfortably accommodated her swelling stomach. The only drawback was that she now looked pregnant. Until now, her baggy shirts had been sufficient to hide the bulge that was becoming more prominent by the day. "You were right. It does look good. But I am not paying $70 for one dress that I'm only going to wear for five months."

"You're right. You're not paying that much money for a dress. I am. Call it a 'new friend present'." Allie refused to hear any protests from Dawn and the older girl gave in. She felt more than a little tongue tied in Alyson's exuberant presence.

When they left the mall several hours later, each girl was toting several bags. Allie had decided that she needed to drastically update her wardrobe and that Dawn needed to personalize her room at the Olsen's. They had gone into nearly every store at the mall to find just the right posters, curtains, a lamp and bathroom accessories. In addition to all of that, Allie was lugging her new clothes and Dawn had purchased some stuff for herself as well.

"I'm not going to ask how much you managed to spend today Alyson," Willa Jean said when they walked in the door with their purchases. "It'd probably give me heart failure."

"Don't worry, I didn't max anything out. And a bunch of this is for Dawn's room, plus I used my own money for most of my clothes." Allie shrugged off her mother's questioning and headed upstairs.

"Dawn, your sister called right after you girls left. She wanted to make sure that you're okay. And then a Cordelia Chase stopped by to check on you. You might want to give both of them a call."

"Okay. Thank you Mrs. Olsen."

"I told you, call me Willa Jean. Mrs. Olsen is my mother."

After calling both Buffy and Cordelia and assuring them that she was fine, Dawn set to work unpacking all the stuff she'd bought. Rather, Allie unpacked and spread it around with Dawn suggesting where stuff should go. Allie was of the opinion that since Dawn was pregnant, she should be taking it easy. Dawn wanted to protest that she felt fine, but decided it would simply be easier to go along with it. It was kind of nice having people fuss over her. She mentally promised not to take advantage of it.

The girls were sitting in Allie's room later, munching on popcorn and comparing life stories when the door flew open and a young boy ran into the room. "Is she here? Is that her?"

"Nicholas! Out now! You know you're suppose to knock!" Allie was on her feet in an instant and hauled the boy towards the door. He broke free and ducked back to stare at Dawn.

"Are you Dawn?"

"Yeah. You must be Nicholas." Memories of being the despised younger sibling were still fresh in Dawn's memory. She resolved to be nice to the youngest Olsen. "Nice to meet you." She held out her hand, which Nicholas shook eagerly.

"I'm Nicky. Only Mom and Allie call me Nicholas, and then only when I'm in trouble. You want to come see my dinosaur project? I built five of them out of paper mache for school."

Allie swatted her brother and pulled him towards the door. "Go away Nicholas. Dawn doesn't want to see your dumb dinosaurs."

"They're not dumb! And quit pulling my hair!"

"Nicky how about I come see your dinosaurs a little later? Allie and I are in the middle of something right now." Dawn had honed her peacemaker skills two years ago after Buffy had come back and the gang was falling apart, and she hadn't forgotten them.

"Okay. I'll see you at dinner." With that Nicky disappeared. Allie plopped back down on the bed and grabbed a handful of popcorn. "Sorry about him."

"Don't worry about it. I think he's cute. I remember what it's like the be the little sibling who's always in the way."

"Well you'll get sick of him pretty quick. He's loud and rude and completely obnoxious."

"I think that's the universal definition of younger siblings. I know that's how Buffy use to describe me. He is kinda loud though. I thought Fallon guys were suppose to be pretty quiet, like your dad." Dawn crunched gulped down another handful of the popcorn. She didn't know what it was lately but she couldn't get enough of the stuff.

"It's a puberty thing. He'll settle down when he's 16 or so. All Fallon's do. Until then, they're just like human guys except less horny. Or so I've heard." One constant bone of contention between Allie and her mother was that Allie wasn't allowed to date human boys. She knew why but that didn't mean she liked it.

"Oh." Dawn stood up and stretched. Her back was hurting a little and she was exhausted. "I'm going to go lie down and try to nap before dinner."

Even back when Willow and Tara were living with the Summer's sisters, Dawn had never really experienced a noisy, crowded family meal the one she sat down to with the Olsen's that night. Somehow even when they ate together, everyone seemed to be lost in their own little world. Here, everyone was talking at once, passing food around, refilling drinks and enjoying each other's company. Dawn didn't talk that much, choosing instead to simply eat her food and soak up the atmosphere. After dinner Willa Jean flat out refused to let her help Allie with the dishes, so Dawn went back upstairs to her room. It had been a long day.

Part Fifteen

Buffy never fully adjusted to having Dawn gone. She still walked into the apartment every night expecting to find her there. There was always an email or letter or message on the answering machine, but never Dawn. It was unnerving. The only thing that kept her sane was the fact that Dawn loved her life in LA. She had rapidly settled into to school there and was doing wonderfully. Allie had gone to great lengths to include Dawn in all her activities and the two girls were becoming quite close. Allie's friends were Dawn's friends as well, which was good. Most of Dawn's friend in Sunnydale had gotten very cool towards her when she told them she was pregnant. Something that Dawn found amusing was their fascination with her pregnancy. Most of Allie's friends were Fallons as well and Fallon females didn't become fertile until their mid-20's. They found the idea of someone their age having a baby to be wonderfully interesting.

Life in Sunnydale was much less fun. Buffy was patrolling every single night but there was no sign of the Mok'tala. However there was an increase in vampires due to the approach of some vamp holiday. She was averaging around 8 stakings a night, and Willow's computer forays into the morgue database were turning up an increase in vamp deaths. It was getting to the point where she was going out just before sundown and not returning home until sunrise. Her assistant manager at the gallery was beginning to wonder why she was falling asleep on her desk so often. It didn't help that the only help she had was Spike. Willow had been sent on a two-week business trip to Seattle, Tara was in the middle of her thesis for her MBA, and Anya's stomach flu wasn't going away and she was beginning to drop hints that it wasn't the flu. Buffy didn't want to go near that one. Plus, Xander's construction crew was in the middle of one of their biggest jobs. He needed to sleep nights, not prowl the streets of Sunnydale looking for the undead. Real life could be a real pain.

The night of the full moon found Buffy staying in from patrol. There had been no sign of the Mok'tala since Willow had tossed the fireball at him, but she wasn't taking any chances. Spike had insisted that he could handle patrol that night and that they couldn't risk her dying. Again. So she stayed in and tried not to go insane from boredom. Her body and mind were conditioned to be hunting now, as she had nearly every night for the last eight years. She itched to be doing something. She had to settle for paying the bills for the month. Somehow, massively depleting the checking account for water, rent and insurance didn't quite measure up to hunting hell beasties. Around midnight she put the checkbook away with a groan and went to bed. She had just fallen asleep when the phone rang.

"Hello? Do you have any idea what time it is?" She snarled into the receiver. The first time in weeks that she could sleep at night and this is what happened.

"Buffy? Sorry to call so late." Dawn voice floated across the line, sounding slightly guarded but overjoyed at the same time. Buffy was instantly awake.

"Dawn? Is something wrong? What happened?"

"Calm down, nothing's wrong." Dawn had to bite her lip to keep from laughing out of sheer delight. "I just had to call and tell you this. The baby kicked. I felt it move for real."

"Oh wow! Really? What did it feel like?" Buffy sat up and switched on the light. There was no way she was sleeping now.

"I had just finished my homework and I felt this flutter, like bubbles bursting inside me. It's so incredible Buffy. You wouldn't believe it." Dawn was happier than she could ever remember being. "I can hardly believe it. There really is a person in there."

"What did you think? You were getting fat for no reason? Of course there's a person in there."

"I know that. I just mean it feels more real, that's all. There it goes again." On her end of the line, Dawn clapped her free hand against her stomach trying to feel the flutters. Unfortunately, the movements were still too faint. "This is just too weird."

"I wish I could be there with you." More than anything, Buffy wished that her sister could have told her this personally. That all Dawn would have had to do was come into her room rather than dialing a phone from 100 miles away.

"Any news on the Mok'tala front?"

"None. No sightings at all. Spike made me stay in tonight because of the full moon. Something about how the third time will not be the charm if I die again." Buffy joked easily now about her death. She had to in order to stay sane.

"Well here's hoping he's big check in the slay column soon. I know you're running yourself ragged patrolling. Will you please try to get some rest? Take a few days off from work if you have too." Dawn could hear the exhaustion in her sister's voice and felt guilty for the nine millionth time in her life.

"I'm fine Dawn. And what do you know my patrolling schedule? Whom have you been talking to anyway?"

"Willow, Anya and Spike have all managed to tell me how much you've been patrolling. If you don't want it known how hard you're working, I'd suggest that you make a better effort at concealing it."

"Did Anya tell you that she thinks she's pregnant again?"

"Yeah. She also said that I wasn't allowed to mention it to Xander. Something about how he turned purple last time."

"Yeah. I thought that Anya was going to take up her demon ways again when he went non-verbal for an hour. He'll probably take it better this time."

"You want to put money on that?"

"No way. I just finished paying the bills; we can't lose anymore for at least a week. Speaking of money, how is yours holding out? You need anything?"

"No. I'm hardly allowed to spend what I have. Willa Jean won't let me contribute for anything and Cordelia and Fred have taken me shopping twice for maternity stuff. I had to fight just to pay for half of it."

Buffy let out a groan. "You're not taking advantage are you?"

"Of course not. How can you even ask that?"

"Because when I was your age I'd have leapt at the chance for someone else to foot the bill for my shopping sprees. I'm hoping you have more sense than I did."

"Of course I have more sense. And yes, I keep trying to refuse and pay for stuff myself but no one will let me."

"Keep that up okay?" The sisters chatted for a few more minutes before reluctantly hanging up. It was late and Dawn had school in the morning.

Part Sixteen

"Dawn hurry up! We're going to miss the movie!" Allie knocked on Dawn's door in frustration. There was no reply. "Are you okay in there?" She thought she heard a moan in response. Suddenly worried she pushed the door open. Dawn was curled on her bed, clutching her belly in pain. "Dawn! What's wrong?"

"It hurts. Something's wrong Allie." Dawn looked up at her friend with tears in her eyes. "The baby."

"Hold on. I'm going to get Mom." Allie raced out the room to find her mother. Dawn was only seven months pregnant. It was much too early for the baby to come now.

Willa Jean looked Dawn over carefully, trying to mask her worry. The doctor had told her that teenage girls were at a higher risk for premature labor but she had hoped it wouldn't happen to Dawn. The last few months had gone so smoothly up until now. "Sweetie we're going to take you to the hospital and get you checked out. Try to relax, okay?" Without waiting for an answer she picked Dawn up and carried her down to the car. Allie trailed behind them, remembering to grab Dawn's medical info for the doctors and scribbling a quick note for her father. He'd taken Nicky to a baseball game.

As soon as they got there, Dawn was whisked away to be examined. Willa Jean and Allie had to stay behind in the waiting room. Both women simply sat in shock, wondering about what could have happened and praying that Dawn and her baby would be okay. After living with them for three months, Dawn was part of the family and they were looking forward to the birth as much as she was. After what seemed like hours, the doctor finally returned.

"Mrs. Olsen?"

"Yes." Willa Jean was on her feet in an instant, with Allie right behind. "Is Dawn okay?"

"She's going to be fine, along with the baby. That pain she was having is from an infection in one of her kidneys. We've got her on antibiotics and we're going to admit her over night for observation. More for the baby than anything else. The OB wants to keep an eye on the fetal heart rate and make sure the infection hasn't spread to her uterus. It's a remote possibility but until we get the infection under control it's better to be safe than sorry. Plus we gave her a mild painkiller and again we want to be sure it doesn't affect the baby. If you'll follow me, I'll take you upstairs to the maternity ward. Willa Jean and Allie both breathed sighs of relief.

It was nearly an hour later before they were allowed up to see Dawn. She on the maternity floor, hooked up to an IV drip of antibiotics and a fetal monitor. She was staring intently at the readout from the monitor when the Olsen's came in.

"Oh darling, how are you?" Willa Jean immediately started fussing over Dawn. Allie hung back a little.

"I feel better. They gave me something to make it stop hurting and they said I could go home tomorrow." Dawn was in much better spirits than she had been a couple hours ago. "Did you call my sister?"

"Yes I did sweetie. She said she'd be down here tomorrow. Apparently she's in the middle of something and can't get away until then." Out of deference to Dawn's already fragile mind-set, and the presence of a nurse a few feet away Willa Jean did not mention that what Buffy was in the middle of was the disappearance of several children and the thought was that it was related to a vampire cult. Or that most of AI was on their way to Sunnydale because Cordelia had had a nasty vision about the kidnapped children being turned and attacking a Girl Scout campout. Only Fred had stayed behind, in order to look after Connor.

"Something really bad is happening isn't it?" Dawn was very perceptive and knew that only something slaying related would have kept her sister in Sunnydale.

"Yeah. I'm sorry honey. She'll be here as soon as she can."

"It's really okay. I mean, I'll only be here tonight and I know whatever she's in the middle of is probably more important than this." Dawn turned her attention back to the monitor parked by her bed. "Look at that. It's the baby's heartbeat. It's going so fast but the doctor said that it's normal." She was utterly entranced by the monitor, to the point where she didn't notice a nurse drawing a blood sample from her elbow. "I think the doctor is going to do an ultrasound later. I can get a look at the baby."

"That'll be exciting. Are you going to fine out if it's a boy or a girl?"

"I want to be surprised." Dawn yawned, then blushed. "Sorry. I'm really beat. And it think the medicine is making me groggy."

"We'll let you get some rest then. I'm going to go speak to the doctor about my being able to stay here tonight."

"You don't have to do that. I'm a big girl Willa Jean. I'll survive one night on my own," Dawn said pleadingly. She really didn't want to be babysat.

Willa Jean looked unsure. "I don't think that's a good idea sweetheart. I know you don't want to be watched over every second, but your sister sent you to us for a reason. Your safety is a big issue."

"Can Allie be the on to stay then? I hate feeling like some helpless little kid all the time." Dawn didn't mean to sound so cranky but the words flew out of her mouth before she could stop them. "Sorry. I didn't mean to sound so rude."

"It's alright." Willa Jean pursed her lips and thought for a moment. "I'll ask. If the hospital says it's all right, then Allie will stay with you. But if they say it's not, then it's going to be me. Leaving you here alone is not an option."

Dawn nodded. She knew when to argue and when to shut up. This was one of those times to shut up. In her months of living with the Olsens she had learned that there were certain things that Willa Jean would hear no argument on and Dawn's safety was one of them. She was never allowed out of the house without an escort, not even in the backyard. Allie or Michelle or Willa Jean was always a few feet away, unless she had gone with one of the Fang Gang. Dawn had learned to treasure the times she had to herself.

It turned out that overnight visitors had to be adults, which meant Allie was sent back to the house to collect overnight supplies for her mother and Dawn, while Willa Jean fussed over Dawn. Dawn finally escaped by falling asleep. By the time Allie got back she was practically in a coma.

Part Seventeen

"My God! You're huge!" Buffy stepped into her sister's hospital room the next morning and her jaw dropped in shock. She hadn't seen Dawn in person since the night she'd brought her to LA and she'd been just over three months pregnant and barely showing then.

"Thanks Big Sister. I really need to hear that, especially right after the nurse made me get on the scale." Dawn mocked glared at Buffy for a moment and then smiled. She knew she looked like a big pink whale and that it was a shock to her sister. Dawn had just grown use to how her shape had changed. "How's everything in Sunnydale?"

"Good." Buffy attempted to hide the cast on her left wrist and failed miserably. "Last night was a little exciting, in the really not good sense." She sat down next to the bed and looked over her sister. Willa Jean slipped out to give then some privacy. "I forgot what it was like to be fighting as part of a big group again. I'm so use to just Spike and maybe someone else that it seemed strange to have a ton of help."

"It was weird seeing Angel again wasn't it?" Dawn was too perceptive for her own good. "And just how many broken wrists does this make? Two this year alone?"

"Yes, it was weird to see him. It was even weirder hearing him reading a bedtime story over the phone. The pictures he had of Connor were very cute. The kid's lucky he looks like his dad."

"He's great. A little rambunctious but really sweet." Dawn and Connor were good friends, having met several times. She like having someone to practice her fledging parenting skills on and he liked having a grown-up around who'd read him Hop on Pop seven times in a row. His father, aunts and uncles all refused to read a book more than twice in the same sitting. "Fred brings him over occasionally. He loves it when I read to him."

"That's what Angel said. He's definitely his father's son." Buffy looked a little wistful then changed the subject. "So, are they letting you out today?"

"Yeah. My OB wants to check me out before I go and do an ultrasound. I was supposed to have a check-up tomorrow anyway. I've got another couple of hours before they'll release me."

"You feel up to doing some baby shopping while I'm here? I'd love to get some stuff for my niece or nephew."

"I feel pretty good. Certainly good enough to go spend a couple hours at the mall." Dawn grinned at her sister. "Shopping is a good thing that will help me feel better faster."

"That's an Anya quote isn't it? Did she tell you? It's for sure. She's due in January."

"Yeah, she called a few weeks ago. That's great. Amy or James here will have some company their own age."

"You've decided on names already? I've got to kill this demon so you can come home. I'm so out of the loop." Buffy pouted for a moment but didn't look to put out.

"Amy Kristine Summers is the only definite one. I'm still debating about boy's names. James happens to be this week's choice."

"As long as you don't name it Hank, I'll be happy. Not that I get a say in it or anything." Buffy grinned to ward off the flash of anger she felt towards her father. He hadn't attempted to contact the girls for nearly two years. She had no idea if he was even still in LA. "So tell me the truth: how are feeling?"

"I'm ready to get this pregnant thing over with," Dawn replied vehemently. "My back hurts constantly, I'm always sweating, I have to pee all the time, I keep having these weird cravings and my hormones are out of control. Either I'm happy or crying or angry and my mood switches in an instant. The slightest things set me off and I hate it. Not to mention that the baby never settles down unless I'm moving. Right now I think it's tap dancing." She grabbed her sister's hand and pressed up against her stomach. "Feel that. It's impossible to sleep when you have someone inside you doing cartwheels all night."

"But?"

Dawn grinned. Her sister knew her far too well. "I love it. There's a person inside me, you know? I'm actually growing another human being. There's something really cool about that that makes all the other stuff just a minor inconvenience." Before she say more, her doctor came in with an ultrasound machine.

"Hi Dawn. How are you feeling this morning?"

"Just fine Dr. Tate. My back doesn't hurt at all and the baby's been very active all morning. Have you met my sister? Buffy this is Dr. Tate, my OB. Dr. Tate, this is my sister."

"Nice to meet you Miss Summers. Well Dawn, everything on the chart looks good. The fever is gone, your blood pressure is back in the normal range and your latest blood work shows the antibiotics are working. I think we'll kick you out when we're done here. You're going to stay on the medication for the next couple of weeks but other than that you're good to go." The older woman smiled as she put the chart back down and started fiddling with the machine. "I just want to do a quick ultrasound before I let you go. Do me a favor and expose your belly for me." Buffy looked away while Dawn arranged her clothing so that the enormous belly was visible. It looked like Dawn had swallowed a beach ball. She shivered when the doctor spread the conductive gel over her belly. "That's really cold."

"Sorry sweetie. Now let's take a look here." Dr. Tate began moving the transducer slowly over Dawn's stomach, stopping every now and then to take a closer look. Dawn and Buffy both squinted at the blurry, grainy, black-and-white image on the screen but couldn't really make anything out. "Everything looks very good here. The baby's size looks to be just on target for 32 weeks, the placenta is in a good spot and everything looks completely normal. Look here-" she pointed to a spot on the screen that resembled a fish breathing. "That's the baby's heart. And here's the head and the spine. Would you like to know the sex? The baby's in a good position to tell."

Dawn glanced over at her sister who shrugged. "Might make it easier if we know to buy pink or blue stuff."

"Go ahead and tell me."

"You have a healthy baby girl who should make her appearance in about 8 weeks." Dr. Tate printed out a picture of the baby and handed it to Dawn, who was now crying. "Here's a little souvenir. I'll go get started on your discharge paperwork." She handed Dawn a towel to clean up with and left.

"It's a girl! I can't believe it, it's really a girl. I kept thinking she was and she really is." Dawn was clutching the picture as though it was made of gold and wouldn't take her eyes off it. "Isn't she beautiful?"

"Gorgeous. I can't wait to meet her in person." Buffy helped Dawn stand up, mindful of the flimsy hospital gown she wore. "You have any clothes stashed around here? Or are you planning on leaving in a hospital gown that gives the world a lovely view of your butt?"

Dawn spun around, clutching the back of her gown. "Out! I can dress myself. Why don't you go find Willa Jean and tell her I can go home? But don't tell her about the baby, I want to do that myself."



Part 18

Willa Jean was delighted to hear that the baby was a girl and immediately began to mentally drool over the baby clothes she was planning to buy. She also agreed that it was a good idea for Buffy to take her sister out for the day. It had been so long since they'd seen each other and Buffy would have to return to Sunnydale that night. The demon was still on the 'no-show' list but there was a massive increase in the number of vampires using the town as a restaurant. Skipping a night of patrol would be signing the death warrants for several people.

"So where do you want to go first?" Buffy asked as soon as the hospital had vanished from sight. "Any particular stores in mind?"

"There a second-hand furniture store not far from here that I want to go to. They have a bunch of baby stuff. I've got some clothes but none of the big supplies. I hate to ask the Olsen's to store this stuff for me but since you're here, you can take it back home with you." Dawn twisted in her seat in an attempt to calm the baby down. She was currently kicking her mother's bladder as hard as she could. "Quit it in there!"

"I was looking at your room the other day and I think a crib and maybe a small dresser will fit in there. If you clean through your stuff and make some space in the closet, you should have all the room you need for the baby. You want me to go ahead and get it as set up as possible?"

"Sure." Dawn fell quiet for a second. "Will I be able to come home by the time the baby's born? What if she's born and the demon is still out there? What happens then?"

Buffy bit her lip and sighed. She'd been thinking the same thing for the last few weeks. "I don't know. Bringing you back with a newborn might be more dangerous than bringing you home pregnant. Right now, as long as you're safe, the baby is safe. As soon as she's born though, that's a whole other person to protect who can't help herself at all. Not to mention she can't be left alone either. I was talking to Angel yesterday, about what he figured out when Connor was little. He got lucky in that Fred was around. Having her baby-sit wasn't taking away muscle that could be crucial in a fight. I don't know what we're going to do if the baby comes while your here but we'll figure it out. We always do. Is this the place?"

"Yeah."

Buffy parked the car and both girls headed for the entrance. Dawn had been there once before and knew exactly what she was looking for. The crib she had her eye on was dark cherry wood, polished to a high shine. There was a matching dresser who's top could be used as a changing table and a small rocker for feeding the baby. The clerk said the whole set had only been used once. The couple that had sold it to them had adopted an infant that the mother had reclaimed a week later. They sold the furniture as an unhappy reminder.

"It's nice Dawn. Are you sure this is what you want?"

"Pretty sure. It kind of matches my furniture at home and it's all in really good condition. I'll have to get a new mattress and bedding of course. It doesn't come with that stuff." She turned to the clerk. "I'll take it. Can you pack it up now?"

"No problem miss."

"What else do you need since the furniture is done?" Buffy was very excited at the prospect of baby shopping.

Dawn smiled. It was nice to see her sister all happy about something. "Stroller and car seat are next on the list and unfortunately I can't get those second-hand. Safety features keep changing and older ones aren't safe at all."

"Sounds like you've done your research. I hope you've been paying that much attention to your schoolwork. If you get a full scholarship, you'll be able to go to school in the fall like you're suppose to."

Dawn winced slightly when she saw the full price for the furniture and reluctantly handed the clerk her credit card. "Of course I'm keeping up with school. I'll never be able to provide for her if I don't get a degree and a good job. I am making plans you know. UC Sunnydale has already accepted me and they're making nice scholarship offers as well. They also have day-care on campus. I won't have to pay a really expensive sitter. And I obviously won't be living in the dorms. All I have to worry about is books."

"Sweetie you know I'll help you out right? I'm not planning to throw you to the wolves financially."

"I know. But I want to do as much of this on my own as possible. You're already paying my medical bills, buying my clothes and keeping money in my account, and I don't want to be a burden. *I* messed up and got pregnant, and *I* elected to keep the baby. Which means she's my responsibility."

Buffy sighed. Dawn was too mature for her age sometimes. "We'll discuss it later. What do you say we get some food and go down to the beach? It's a gorgeous day outside."

"That sounds great."



Part Nineteen

It was nearly dark when Buffy pulled out outside the Olsen's house. After spending a couple of hours at the beach, the girls had gone to a few baby shops for more supplies. Both had to struggle not to buy every cute pink thing she saw. As it was, the backseat was bulging with bags of baby stuff for Buffy to take back to Sunnydale and the trunk was full of the disassembled furniture, neatly packed in cardboard boxes.

Buffy insisted on walking Dawn to the door, which Dawn rolled her eyes but acquiesced to. It was a good thing she did. As she put her key in the lock the door swung open. It was barely attached to the frame and had been nearly ripped from the hinges. With a growing sense of dread, Dawn stepped inside looking for the Olsens.

The house was deserted and there were signs of a struggle everywhere. Furniture was tipped over, a bowl of pudding had been dropped in the kitchen and one of the windows had been smashed. The back door had been forced open as well. Dawn raced upstairs, praying she'd find someone there. The upper rooms were untouched excepted for the phone off it's hook in Michelle's apartment. As soon as Dawn replaced the receiver, the phone rang. She snatched it up in a second.

"Hello?"

"Dawn? Thank God! Are you alright? Did they hurt you?" Alyson was babbling anxiously on the other end of the phone. "Talk to me Dawn!"

"Alyson what's going on? I just got here with Buffy and looks like downstairs has been ransacked. No one's here. Where are you?"

"I'm at Alexis's house. I was on my way home. When I saw what was going on, I hid. They've been taken. Someone had Nicky by the throat and was holding a silver dagger to his heart. Mom and Dad and Michelle were all being restrained. They weren't struggling, they just- they just got in the van. That was three hours ago." Alyson bit back the sobs that were welling up in her throat. "I got the license plate from the van but I don't know what to do with it. I can't call the police. Whoever took them knew what we were. The police can't help us."

"Stay there Allie. Buffy and I'll pick you up in a minute and we'll fix this. We're going to get everyone back." Dawn hung up, not bothering to wait for a reply. She tore back downstairs to find her sister.

"The Olsen's were kidnapped about three hours ago. Allie saw what was happening and stayed back. She's at a friends house, another Fallon named Alexis. They live a few streets over. We have to go get her." Dawn headed for the door, Buffy in her wake.

During the brief ride over Dawn filled Buffy in on what Allie had told her. The dagger to Nicholas's heart scared her the most and explained why the Olsen's hadn't put up a fight. Nicky wasn't a mature Fallon and stabbing him with the silver would kill him, poisoning his system slowly and as painfully as possible. There was no reversing the effects. He'd die within three days, of symptoms similar to the Ebola virus. It was a horrid way to die. The mere threat of silver poisoning would be more than enough to keep Willa Jean and Harold compliant.

Allie was in tears when they arrived. She had watched her family being kidnapped and there was nothing she could do about it. And worse, she was still free while they were captive. For once Buffy didn't wait until they were buckled in, she simply threw the car in reverse and headed for the Hyperion Hotel. They needed help and fast.



Part Twenty

The Hyperion was similarly deserted. The lobby was trashed and cloaked in darkness. Dawn hit the lights and stumbled forward. Someone had to be here. But no one was. Three of them felt their hearts sink as they began searching for clues to the disappearances. It wasn't until nearly 20 minutes later that Dawn remembered Connor and his hiding spot. She raced over, praying he'd be there.

As soon as the little boy had been old enough to learn, Angel had taught him to crawl in to a hidden cupboard at the back of the janitor's closet at the first sign of danger and to stay there until someone came for him. He had toys there, along with a blanket and a lamp to keep him calm. He also knew to stay quiet until he was retrieved. Dawn awkwardly knelt down to open the secret door and vise grip on her heart ease slightly a the sight of the sleeping toddler. Conner was curled up on his favorite blanket and had one pudgy thumb shoved in his mouth. Gently she slid him out so she could pick him up. He stirred slightly as she stood up. "Dawnie?"

"Shh Connor. Go back to sleep." Carefully balancing the little boy on her shoulder she made her way back where Buffy was comforting a near- hysterical Allie.

"Want Daddy." Dawn tensed, bracing herself for tears but luckily Connor just shoved his thumb further in his mouth and fell further into sleep.

"He was in his secret spot. They send him there when the fight come here." Dawn gratefully handed Connor off to her sister and sank down onto the couch that had just been turned back upright. "Thank God he's safe."

 

Buffy stared at the child in her arms. She'd seen the pictures that Angel had shown her but it still took her breath away at how much Connor looked like his father. As she watched he stirred and woke up again. "Picture."

 

"What sweetie?"

 

"You're Daddy's picture. The one I'm not allowed to touch." He stared at the slayer for a moment. "You're pretty like Aunt Cordy." With that he went back to sleep. Buffy carefully laid him down on the couch beside Dawn. He curled up into a ball and began to snore.

"We have to do something!" Allie burst out. "Where is my family?!"

"Allie I know you're upset but you have to calm down. You'll wake Connor up. Both of you come with me so we can talk." Buffy led both girls back to Wesley's office. She could still see Connor but hopefully they wouldn't wake him from this distance.

"No one is answering the phones in Sunnydale. All the homes, the Magic Box, everywhere. No one is answering and when I called Xander's crew they said he didn't come back after lunch. I think it's safe to assume that whoever took your family Allie is also holding ours. And we're going to get them back." Buffy looked downright dangerous as she said this. "First thing we're going to do is call Giles and see if the Council found anything else on that damn demon. Dawn how well do you know your way around here?"

"I know where Connor's room is and I know where the weapons are kept."

"Good. Go pack up some things for him and point me towards the weapons. We're going back to Sunnydale. I'm betting they're somewhere near the Hellmouth and I don't want to stay here for too long in case they come back. Allie do you know any locator spells?"

"Y-Yes. Mom's been training me as a witch since I was born." The younger girl was no longer sobbing but still looked fairly distraught.

"That's great. We're going to need your help. You need anything for it, or is this one of those chanting things?"

"I just need to be really calm. Give me a minute."

While Dawn went up to Connor's room to collect stuff for him, Buffy called Giles to see if there was any new info on the demon. Allie found a quiet corner and began to meditate. She had to regain her inner peace if the spell was to work. After about 20 minutes she felt calm enough to try. Gathering her strength, she reached out and touched the magic, asking it for the location of her family. There was no response. She tried again. This time her spell threw her backwards. Something out there was preventing her from contacting her family.

"Yes! Score one for the good guys!" Dawn came back downstairs with Connor's bag to hear her sister cheering. "Giles came through for us. He found a spell that will probably kill this thing. All we have to do now is find it. Allie, how's that locator spell going?"

Allie got to her feet shakily and came back towards the office. "It's not. I can't use magic to get close to any of them. I tried telepathy, locator spells, soul binding. None of it worked. Something is blocking magic from them, like a wall. That can't be good."

"It's not. That means Willow, Tara and your family are really helpless. They can't touch their powers. Do you have any idea what could be causing it?" Buffy picked up Connor and headed for the door.

"The only thing I can think of is a Bloodstone. It looks like a garnet and it's about the size of a person's fist. It radiates a power blockage for about 500 feet in all directions. They're really rare and you have to smash it to destroy it. Unfortunately, they're harder than diamonds. I've never heard of anyone successfully destroying one. You have to a pretty skilled magic user to even activate it. And you have to able to get along without your magic once it's in place. Or have hired muscle to protect you. That's why they aren't used very often. What are we going to do about a car seat for him?" Allie changed the subject abruptly and pointed to Connor.

"What?" Buffy asked in confusion.

"Connor. He's way too little to ride without a car seat."

"I can help you with that." Gunn's voice startled all of them. "What the hell is going on here?"

"Gunn. Are you okay? Are you hurt?" Buffy laid Connor down on the seat of the car. He woke up and seeing his unfamiliar surrounding, began to cry.

Gunn reached over and picked the little boy up. "Why you crying mini- monster?"

"Bad things took Daddy away. I want my daddy." He buried his face in Gunn's shoulder and continued to sob.

"Someone tell me what's going on. I can see from here that something went down and it looks like all my co-workers are missing." Gunn shifted Connor a little and rubbed his back. "You gotta stop crying there. How's it going to look when Daddy comes back and you're all tear streaked? You gotta be brave now. Come on now, how 'bout showing me your monster face?"

Connor stopped crying at Gunn's soothing words. Then he wrinkled his forehead, bared his teeth and let out a squeaky little growl. Gunn jumped back in mock fright. "You're worse than your dad! Better hope no bad guys come near you, they'll be frightened away forever." Connor grinned at this, then growled some more. Buffy and Dawn bit their lips to keep from laughing at the sight of the toddler trying to imitate his father's vamp face. As soon as Connor was happy again, Gunn set him back in the car and turned to the girls.

"Where is everyone? I left for a couple of hours to run a few errands and when I come back, the little one is crying, Buffy's got her war face on and my friends are gone. Not to mention the hotel looks like it's been through a war. Again."

"Short version is that everyone we care about has been kidnapped by the demon that's after Dawn. I'm pretty sure they're in Sunnydale since this thing is trying to reopen the Hellmouth. All the witches are powerless due the use of a Bloodstone and we're the only one's left to get them back. Dawn found Connor in his hiding spot and we weren't about to leave them behind. The good news is that we found a spell that will most likely kill this thing once and for all. The bad news is that we have to get near it first and destroy the Bloodstone. That means finding them, wading through all the minions and crushing something that's harder than a diamond." Buffy continued to toss various weapons in the car as she talked and Gunn automatically moved to help her. "I'm borrowing Angel's supplies because I don't want to risk going back to Magic Shop or our apartment for mine. I'm afraid I'd be walking into a trap."

"Smart thinking. So it's just us to get them back. A slayer, a Fallon, a pregnant girl, a three year old with a wannabe 'monster face' and me. I hope you don't mind me saying that I don't like those odds."

Buffy turned to face him, meeting his eyes for the first time. "I don't like them either but there is nothing I can do about it. We can't just leave them. This thing is ruthless and I'm afraid he'll start hurting them."

Part Twenty-One

The streets of Sunnydale were eerily deserted as the small group made their way towards the burned-out high school. Connor and Dawn had been left at a motel a ½ hour outside of town, with instructions to not leave their room until someone came for them. Allie had triple sealed every entrance to the room including the air vents, along with beefing up the spell protecting Dawn and duplicating it for Connor. Along with the contribution of some weapons, they were as safe as they were going to be. Buffy, Gunn, and Allie continued on into town, planning as they went.

It was nearly midnight when they pulled up outside the ruins. For some reason the high school had never been rebuilt. The shell had never been demolished either. A new high school had been built on the other side of town and the property containing the old one was abandoned. Allie sucked in her breath at the sight of the destruction.

"Dawn wasn't kidding when she said this place got blown to Hell." A mournful look passed over her face but vanished a split second later, replaced by a wicked grin. "Wish I could have seen it. Must have been awesome."

"It has its moments. Are we ready to roll?"

"Yep. Are we sure this is going to work?" Gunn replied as he handed out the weapons.

"It's going to work because I don't want to consider failure. You guys hear me? Failure is not an option. Allie, go ahead and try a spell. Let's get some sense of the Bloodstone's range." The younger girl nodded, closed her eyes and began to chant. A light flared over her head and knocked her backwards.

"We're inside the limits, which means they must be somewhere nearby."

"Let's try the library first. That's were the Hellmouth is," Gunn suggested. Buffy nodded her consent and led the way in. Gunn followed her, with Allie behind him. They found the first few guards within moments of entering the building. Four burly vamps stood directly in their path . A few minutes later four piles of dust lay in their place, with slayer having not broken so much as a sweat.

It took them nearly an hour to make their way to the center of the school, where the remains of the library and the entrance to the Hellmouth lay. Various demons lay dead in their wake, along with twenty or so vampires that had been dusted along the way. The number of guards was considerable and if they had been deployed better, there was little chance the rescuers would have had in reaching their family and friends. However, nearly all of the hired muscle was just that: stupid demons that were hired for their strength rather than their brains. Buffy and Gunn managed to make short work of the small groups they encountered. Just outside the library they paused to gather their wits. Allie was the smallest and they sent her to try to look in and get a feel for what was going on. She came back to report that everyone was there except Nicky and Sarah. They were all tied up, separate from one another with just enough space between them so that talking was impossible without a guard hearing them. She saw the Bloodstone in the center of the room, surrounded by 20 or so large demons. The Mok'tala was there as well. Allie had seen it speaking to Angel who looked fairly distressed at whatever it was saying.

"Remember the plan. I'll start on the guards while you two start turning people loose. Try to get Angel, Spike and Allie's family first; we're going to need all the muscle we can get. As soon as we can we'll destroy the Bloodstone. Allie, as soon as you feel the magic come back, start the spell. Hopefully it'll kill that damn thing once and for all. Don't try to join the fight unless you get attacked first. Everybody clear?" They nodded and Buffy stood up. "Nice and stealthy guys."

One by one they crept in, careful to remain out of the line of sight of the room's occupants. Once they were in, Gunn and Allie carefully hefted the knives they carried and slipped into position to begin freeing the prisoners. Buffy took a deep breath, leapt into the center of the demon group and began kicking ass.

Buffy managed to decapitate three demons with one sweep of the sword she carried and jumped out of the way as their bodies hit the ground. One after another the hell beasts fell, as the slayers got into their work. Spike joined them a few minutes later, followed by Willa Jean and Michelle. Finally all that was left was the Mok'tala and the Bloodstone. Buffy ran for the stone. The Mok'tala couldn't be touched until the stone was destroyed. Out of the corner of her eye she saw her friends getting up one by one as Gunn and Allie sawed through the ropes that held them.

The demon was heading for the stone and Buffy beat him there, snatching it up and retreating to the other side of the room. Praying her idea would work she hefted the stone, reared back and threw it at the demon as hard she could.

"Damn!" Gunn whistled at the beautiful curve that Buffy had lobbed straight at the Mok'tala's head. "She ought sign with the Dodgers."

The Bloodstone sailed through the air, the faint light glinting from garnet surface in an ironic display of beauty. Just as Buffy had hoped, the stone hit the demon with a loud CRACK and shattered against its skull.

"The only thing harder than the Bloodstone is the hide of the demon controlling it," she breathed. The magic was back; she could feel the air crackling around her as it rushed into the room. "Allie NOW!"

Allie began to chant under her breath the spell she'd spent the entire ride memorizing. The Mok'tala realize what she was doing and turned in her direction. With a scream, Willa Jean launched herself at the demon. Harold and Michelle were right on her heals. Buffy had never seen Fallon's in their demon form and never cared to again. The resemblance to vampires was downright creepy. Their foreheads became even more ridged and their eyes glowed bright red. No fangs though, which had to be a plus. Willa Jean screamed out a spell in her own language, which bounced off the Mok'tala's hide and hit her instead. She crumbled to the ground and lay still as death. Allie's face went even whiter at the sight of her mother collapsing but held her ground and continued to chant. She was weakening though as the powerful spell sapped her energy. Seeing this, Willow and Tara grabbed her hands and lent their strength to her. Lightning crackled around the women in an impressive light show. Buffy herded everyone else to the other side of the room. Giles has warned her not to let non-magic users get to close as the spell took effect. Allie uttered the last words of the spell and fell into Willow's arms completely unconscious. The lightning formed into one large energy ball and flew into the demon's chest. The Mok'tala screamed, an unearthly noise that threatened to deafen every person in the room, then imploded in a flash of light. A shockwave from the powerful magic raced outward, knocking them all off their feet and into unconsciousness.

Part Twenty-Two

No one stirred until nearly an hour later. Anya was the first to wake and immediately began looking for her daughter. Not seeing her, she began calling her name in a panic, which woke everybody else up. That prompted the Olsen's to look for Nicky and Angel to look for Connor. The vampire relaxed somewhat when Gunn explained the little boy was completely safe and that Dawn was taking care of him. The demons must have used some form of magic to give off the illusion that they had captured Connor along with the rest. But Nicky and Sarah really had been taken and were still missing. Their parents had been told that if anyone tried to resist or escape, their children would be killed. That had been enough to keep them all quiet. Everyone began to fan out and search the ruins.

Allie found them ten minutes later in what use to be Snyder's office. A couple of vampires were guarding the entrance and she took them out easily by tossing a few fireballs at them. As soon as the last one crumbled to screaming dust, she ducked inside, praying that her brother was all right.

They were fine. Nicky had Sarah on his lap and was busy telling her fairy stories. Alyson nearly burst into tears in relief.

"Allie!" Nicky clumsily shifted the baby and tried to stand up. "You're here!" A frown creased his face for a moment. "Did they get you to?"

"No. I'm fine, so are Mom and Dad and Aunt Michelle. They didn't get me. Are you okay? Are you hurt? What about the baby?" She hugged her brother close, mentally swearing that she'd never fight with him again.

"I'm fine and so is Sarah. Those goons out front didn't bug us as long as she didn't cry. So I've been telling her every story I could think of for the last five hours. My throat hurts." Nicky handed Sarah over to his sister and got to his feet. "Where are Mom and Dad?"

"Around here somewhere. Let's go find them and return Sarah to her parents. They're about worried sick."

Five minutes and one locator spell later, Sarah had been returned to a sobbing Anya and Nicky was being checked over by his parents. To his great disgust, Willa Jean could not be prevented from hugging and kissing him until he was having trouble breathing. Then his aunt and sister joined in. By the time they got done with him, Nicholas looked to be on the verge of throwing up.

As soon as she could, Buffy took Angel over the motel she'd left Dawn and Connor in. Allie went along as well, so she could undo the spells on the room. Dawn nearly fainted with relief as seeing her sister safe. Connor merely leapt into his father's arms and started babbling about how much fun he had with Dawnie.

Part Twenty-Three

It seemed strange to walk into her room at home, when she'd spent the last four months in Los Angeles with the Olsen's. At least now she could help her sister get all the stuff arranged for the baby. Dawn hated the thought of Buffy having to all of that when it wasn't even her kid.

"Is it creepy being back here?" Dawn had been so engrossed in her thoughts that she didn't hear her sister come up behind her.

"A little. I've been gone for so long that just plain weird being here again." Dawn lowered herself on to her bed with a slight groan. "God my back hurts. This kid had better appreciate everything I've been through for her."

Buffy sat down next to her sister and put an arm around her. "I think she will at some point. So, tough question time again. Do you want to come home now, or go back to LA with the Olsen's and finish up the school year there? You only have a month left before you graduate."

Dawn bit her lip and thought about it. She missed Sunnydale terribly. As much as she was enjoying LA she wanted to come home. But she had to be practical. Who switched schools a month before they graduated? And truth be told, she was happier at the school in Los Angeles. When she'd told her friends in Sunnydale that she was pregnant, they'd all turned their backs on her. She never wanted Buffy to find out about the rumors that had been going around before she left. She was afraid that Buffy hurt someone if she ever found out. At least in LA she had friends. Actually, she was pretty popular. She was also one of the valedictorians. If she came home now, she'd lose that spot. Some small town mentality still existed in Sunnydale and there was no way the administration would let her stand up as the best student in school when she was eight months pregnant.

"I think I need to go back and finish school down there. It's stupid to transfer a month before graduation."

"That's what I though you'd say. But I didn't want to assume in case you felt like I was throwing you out."

"I'd never feel like that unless you pick me up and toss me out the front door."

"Well you're staying here tonight at least. No one wants to drive back now, not to mention that fact the LA dwellers don't have their cars with them. Xander will take you and the Olsen's back in the morning and Willow will drive everyone else back tomorrow night."

"Where is everyone staying until then?"

Buffy groaned slightly. "The Olsen's insisted on taking a hotel room and the Fang Gang went to the mansion. Good thing Angel's kept the place maintained all these years. Willa Jean and them will be here in the morning though. I insisted on at least feeding them breakfast. I wanted to put them up for the night but they said no." She stood up and stretched. "It's late and I'm tired. Goodnight little sister. Love you."

"I love you too."

Part Twenty-Four

The next month passed fairly uneventfully. Dawn returned to Los Angeles and threw herself into her last month of school. Buffy managed to come and see her every weekend, and surprised her one Wednesday night at the combination baby shower/birthday party Willa Jean and Allie threw her. As expected, Dawn graduated with honors as the class valedictorian. The entire Scooby Gang came down to see the ceremony. And three days later Dawn came home for good.

"I can't believe I'm home, for real this time!" She cried out as she dropped her bag onto her bed. Buffy was getting the rest of the stuff from the car. "And my room is no longer mine." She stared at the baby furniture that had been placed in her room. She knew Buffy had arranged it for her of course, but it was still a bit of a surprise.

"Well considering you're already sharing your body, I don't think you'll mind sharing your room," Buffy said as she carried two more suitcases in. "This is the last of it. I think you're going to have to go through your old clothes and store some of it elsewhere if you want to fit all this stuff in. Plus you still have to fit in the last of the baby stuff."

"All right." For just a moment, Dawn sounded like she was 15 again and whining about having to clean up her room. Awkwardly she knelt in from of her dresser and began to weed through her clothes. Would she ever fit into them again? It seemed like forever since she'd been skinny and she was fairly certain the weight would never go away. Was their any point to keeping this stuff?

"Yes there is. That baby will come out at some point." Buffy cheerfully answered her sister unspoken questions. "Now stop moping and start unpacking. That kid is due in three weeks and she's coming home to a clean room."

"Yes you majesty," Dawn rolled her eyes and set to work. Was it too late to back to the Olsen's?

In the end two bags of clothes went to Goodwill, a few more boxes found their way into the hall closet and Dawn's room was full to bursting once all the baby things had been put away. Buffy sent out for pizza while Dawn curled up on her bed and swore she was never moving again.

"So what's left on the list of things needed?" Buffy asked once Dawn had inhaled half her dinner.

"The car seat and little stuff like diapers and bath supplies. Can you give me a ride to that baby superstore tomorrow? I want to get this stuff now. The last thing I need is for this kid to come early with no diapers at home."

"Probably a smart idea. I'll take you down there tomorrow. And you start work the day after that."

"Work! What do you mean work?" Dawn spluttered helplessly.

"Paperwork at the gallery. What you were doing before you left. Nothing hard and you can stay off your feet. But I don't want you sitting around here with nothing to do all day." She smiled cheerfully at the black cloud spreading across Dawn's face. "And aren't you the one who said she didn't want me paying for everything? The you wanted to take on as much responsibility as possible for the baby?" Dawn muttered something under her breath but didn't argue. The small part of her brain that wasn't hormone drenched said her sister was right and managed to keep the rest of her brain in line as well.

Part Twenty-Five

"Buffy!!!" Dawn ear-splitting screech echoed through the apartment and jerked her sister awake. They had just gone to bed an hour ago. Buffy raced into to Dawn's room, convinced that her sister was dying at the very least.

"What is it? What's wrong?" Dawn was huddled on the floor, surrounded by a pool of liquid.

"My water broke," she moaned. "I woke up and had to go to the bathroom. As soon as I stood up, all this liquid came gushing out and I think I started to have contractions." Even as she spoke, another pain ripped across her swollen stomach. She moaned and tried to keep from crying out. As soon as it passed, she unsteadily got to her feet and nearly fell in the process. Buffy caught her before she hit the floor and lowered her onto the bed.

"I'm going to get dressed and take you to the hospital. What do you want to wear?"

"Clothes. I really don't care what. I just want to get there and fast." Dawn closed her eyes and sighed. It was really happening. Somehow she'd convinced herself that the baby would never be born, and that she'd just stay pregnant forever. The fact that she was actually in labor was a real shock to her.

"I'll be back in a minute. Where'd you put your bag?"

"It's in the closet. Could you be sure to put my toothbrush in?" Buffy nodded and pulled the backpack out of the closet. Dawn had packed two days after she got home, claiming that all the books said to be ready three or four weeks before the baby was due. It was probably the first time in her life that she'd planned ahead by more than two hours. Buffy also fished out a dress and shoes for Dawn to wear, then when to change her own clothes. Ten minutes later they were on their way to Sunnydale General.

Part Twenty-Six

"I hate this," Dawn announced darkly once she was settled in bed. Her contractions were coming eleven minutes apart and the doctor had said she was nearly four centimeters dilated. Too soon for an epidural, which mean Dawn just had to grit her teeth and bear the pain for at least a couple of hours. She had also been hooked up to a fetal monitor, which meant she had to stay in bed. All in all, she was not happy in the least.

"I don't blame you. It'll be over soon though, and you'll have a gorgeous baby girl to show for it."

"She's going to be an only child because I'm never, ever doing this again. Never!" Dawn replied vehemently, then groaned as another pain hit. "Not ever!"

For the next six hours Dawn kept up a running commentary on how she hated men, she was never going near one again and that if this kid didn't get out of her soon she was going to reach in and pull it out herself. It was a relief to everyone around her when the doctor finally said she could have an epidural. She fell asleep shortly after, leaving her sister to welcome the break. It was nearly five in the morning now and Buffy was exhausted.

By 9 am Dawn was fully dilated and pushing with all her might. Unfortunately, the painkillers were beginning to wear off and the doctor wouldn't give her more, claiming that by the time they took effect the baby would have been born and there was just no point to it. She then ducked out of the way when Dawn tried to punch her.



"On the next contraction push as hard as you can until I say stop," the doctor called out, much too cheerfully for Dawn's taste. The scathing retort on the tip of her tongue was never heard though, as the pain came and she screamed. She was vaguely aware of her sister propping her up. All she could feel was the overwhelming pressure to push and get this child out of her. The ripping, pulling pain seemed to go on and on for eternity. Dawn screamed until her lungs felt as though they would burst. Finally the contraction passed and she relaxed.

"That was terrific. The head's almost out. Get ready to push again, just like that."

"I can't," Dawn moaned. "I'm too tired."

"Yes you can cause here she comes!" Dawn didn't have timed to argue. Her entire body was now focused on delivering the baby as quickly as possible. She gave in to the pressure and pushed until she saw stars. She didn't even hear herself screaming or the doctor telling her to stop pushing.

"There's the head, now relax for a second." Dr. Tate quickly suctioned the infant's mouth and made sure the cord wasn't around the neck. It wasn't. "Push again, nice and easy this time." Dawn did as she was told and the rest of the baby's body slithered into the doctor's outstretched hands. "It's a girl!"

Tears poured down Dawn's face as the baby began to cry. She sounded like a kitten mewling. The cord was quickly cut, and then the baby was wrapped in a blanket and handed to her mother. "She's so beautiful!"

"You did it Dawnie. I'm so proud of you." Buffy was blinking back tears as well as she kissed the top of her sister's head. The baby was still wailing, but was beginning to taper off as Dawn cuddled her close. "She's gorgeous."

Dawn opened her mouth to answer, but grimaced instead. "That hurts!"

"Sorry sweetie, that's the afterbirth coming. Relax for a minute and the discomfort will pass." Dawn sighed and tried to do as the doctor said but the cramping was getting worse, not better. She tried to stifle a groan but couldn't. A nurse gently took the baby from her arms as the doctor frowned and took a closer look. "Dawn I want you to give good hard push again when I say so. Now!" Dawn gave it the last of her strength, groaning with the effort. "And again!" The pain and pressure was back, even worse than it had been before. Dawn began to scream again. Was there no end to this misery?

"Dawn you won't believe me when I tell you, but you've got another baby coming. One more push and it's out." Dawn could hardly believe her ears. Twins? The shock alone was enough to propel her into her final effort and her second daughter came screaming into the world

"Another girl!" This baby was much louder than her sister had been. Dawn could hardly believe her eyes. TWO babies! A nurse set the first baby back in her arms, then handed her the second. The older one had quieted, but the younger was still screeching. Dawn stared at them, then looked at her sister. Buffy's mouth was hanging open in shock.

"Oh my God!" Dawn turned to look at her daughters again. Both had brown hair and milky blue eyes. They felt like they weighed about the same, but only the scales would tell for sure. "No wonder I got so huge."

"I don't know how we missed this," Dr. Tate said in rueful amusement. "You had an ultrasound two months ago which only showed one. I only heard one heartbeat every time I checked you. Talk about surprises." Dawn didn't answer her. She was too absorbed in her babies. Even as she tried to nurse one, she was yawning and her eyes where beginning to close. One of the nurses gently picked up the babies and transferred them to their isolettes.

"Where are you taking them?" Dawn asked, then yawned again. God she was tired! She's never felt so drained in all her life.

"Down to the nursery, so we can get them cleaned up, measured and run all the standard tests to be sure they're healthy. We'll bring them back in a little bit," Dr. Tate replied. Dawn nodded, then closed her eyes and dropped off to sleep. She never even felt the nurses cleaning her up or changing her into a fresh gown.

Part Twenty-Seven

"So what are you going to name them?" Buffy asked later that afternoon. Dawn had slept until nearly two o'clock and had demanded that her babies be brought to her the second she awoke. She was now holding one, while her sister held the other.

"Well I had Amy Kristine all picked out for the first one but I have no idea about a second name." Dawn looked down at the baby in her arms. "What do you think your name should be little one?" The baby simply yawned in response.

"Okay, you'll leave it up to me." She looked at the baby for a second, studying her features.

"How about naming her after Mom?" Buffy suggested hesitantly. "Another Joyce Summers."

Dawn was quiet for a minute, mulling the suggestion over in her mind. "Joyce. Joyce." She looked again at the baby. "Do you like Joyce?" The baby let out a tiny snort. "I'll take that as a yes. All we need now is a middle name." Dawn thought for a second. "I really want to name her after either Willa Jean or Allie. But I can't decide which."

"How about calling her Joyce Olsen Summer's? You still name her after Willa Jean and Allie but don't have to worry about choosing," Buffy said as she switched the baby she was holding from one arm to the other. She had never held a baby this young in her life and she was just praying she wouldn't drop her.

"I like that. Joyce Olsen Summer's. Joy for short, because that's what she is. A joy." Right on cue, the baby began to cry, which got her sister started. "Oh no, what have I done?"

Epilogue

"Amy, Joy come here right now!" Dawn sighed in exasperation. She was finally moving out of her sister's apartment into her own house and the girls picked this day to run off. As if she didn't have enough to do today. "I mean it girls. I'm counting to three! One…two…two and a half…" Right before she got to three, two five-year-old whirlwinds came running up to her.

"Here we are Mommy," Amy tried to jump on her mother while Joy attached herself to Dawn's knees. Dawn couldn't help but grin as she disentangled herself and started strapping the girls into their car seats. This was the last load to be moved. As soon as she pulled out of the apartment complex, Dawn would officially be on her own. No longer would she have her sister nearby to help with the twins or the household chores. The thought was terrifying and exhilarating at the same time.

All too soon the car was unloaded for the last time. Dawn congratulated herself again on finding the perfect house to rent. The girls had their own rooms and finally, so did she. That more than anything made the day's hassles worth the trip. Once everything was inside, the furniture was arranged and the basic necessities unpacked, it was time for dinner and everyone began to head back home. Buffy was the last to leave and it was evident how hard it was for her to leave her sister behind.

"Honestly, we'll be fine Buffy," Dawn reassured her sister for the millionth time that day. "We had to move out at some point. Are you telling me that you're not going to treasure the peace and quiet of not having the dangerous duo around all the time?"

"You're right, I know but it's still hard. You just wait until they grow-up, then you'll see what I mean." Buffy gave her sister one last hug, then called over to the twins that she was leaving. As they came hurrying over to say good-bye, she jumped again at how much they resembled their mother and grandmother. Joy looked just like her namesake, with curly blond hair and bright blue eyes. She had her grandmother's eye for art as well. She love drawing and painting and looking at pictures. Some of her mannerisms were the same as well. It was almost as though Joyce had been reborn. Sometimes the resemblance was downright painful for both Buffy and Dawn, but they hid it well. Neither one wanted the little girl to feel as though they resented them.

Amy looked a lot like her mother with straight brown hair and lighter blue eyes. She behaved more like her aunt and loved nothing more than wrestling and roughhousing. The time-out chair at her pre-school was practically reserved for her. She was a sweet, caring, smart little girl though that everyone adored. Both girls had bits of their father in their looks, whoever he might be. Dawn had run over and over the possibilities in her mind but still couldn't come up with a name or face. She'd deal with that when they were older though.

It took forever that night to get the girls into bed. Neither wanted to take a bath, and they started screaming when they realized their beds were in separate rooms and neither contained their mother. They'd shared a room with each other and Dawn for their entire lives and the change was too much of a shock. She finally got them settled in Amy's bed and when to get a drink before turning in herself. At least they'd be at a friends' house the next morning, which would give her some time to get more of the boxes unpacked and go to the grocery store. She also needed to look into getting some second-hand lawn care items and cleaning supplies. She was exhausted just thinking of the tasks that lay ahead.

Tired as she was, Dawn didn't fall asleep easy that night. Her mind was too busy thinking about all that had happened in the years since the twins had been born. Looking back, she still couldn't believe she'd survived at all, even with her sister's endless and patient help. Caring for twin infants and going to school full time had been harder than she could ever have imagined. If one of them was sick they couldn't go to day- care, which mean arranging for a sitter or missing class. And babies got sick a lot. Colds, coughs, fevers. You name it, they had it. Amy had been a colicky baby and would scream for hours on end, making her sister cry as well. Dawn quickly began accustomed to existing on two hours of sleep at a time. And once they got mobile! She'd lost count of all the things they'd broken, got into, swallowed and ruined. Buffy had to put a padlock on her bedroom door to keep them out of her weapons. For some reason Amy was fascinated by the stakes her aunt kept, even though the little girl had no idea what they were for. Which was another talk that Dawn would have to deal with when they were older. She'd probably have to use Spike as a prop to prove she wasn't insane. The girls adored him, but simply thought he was allergic to sunlight. That was what Sarah and her little brother James thought as well, and what Willow and Tara were planning to tell their son David when he was old enough to ask. At three months old, all he cared now about was his next meal and clean diaper.

But she had done it. She'd gotten her degree in business and marketing on time and with honors. She had a new job with the city and had finally been able to move out of the apartment she shared with her sister and into a rented house near the elementary school. Both girls would start kindergarten in a few days. It had been tough and hard and scary and exhausting but she had done it. She'd actually grown-up and was making a life for not only herself, but her daughters as well.