Somehow I Got Wrapped Up In This Apocalypse With You
Ginny/Dawn Crossover
Rating: T for now
Summary: Ginny comes to Sunnydale to help an old friend with an apocalypse. Simple enough, right?
AN: I haven't posted on this site in so long, I don't even remember how to do this XD Bear with me!
Chapter 1 -
A loud crack emanated from a dark alley somewhere near an abandoned car dealership. No one, save a stray black cat, was around to hear it. The crack echoed, and for a moment nothing stirred.
Suddenly, a woman emerged from the once deserted back street and looked around expectantly. Out of her strange, hooded, dark purple robes she wore, she produced what looked like a pointed stick. With a few murmured words and a wave of her hand a dim, blue light poured out of the stick she held and landed in a ball on the ground. She called out a specific name, and the light began to move, as if being pulled by an invisible string. The woman followed the light and passed by a once-standing sign that read "Welcome to Sunnydale! Enjoy your stay!" She paid it no mind and continued to follow her light. It was nearing midnight and the streets were completely deserted.
The light led her through the small town to a suburban street with very little light or noise. One of the houses had a porch light left on (the only one on the block), and the woman headed towards it. She reached a small, cement path that led to a few steps and a rather impressive front door. The light on the ground went out - this was the place.
After a few deep breaths, she walked straight up to the door and knocked smartly three times. As an afterthought, she pocketed her stick. The door opened to a cheerfully lit entryway. In the background she could hear multiple voices talking over one another. The person who had opened the door was a teenage girl with long, brown hair and a sarcastically apprehensive expression on her face.
"Can I help you?" the girl asked, annoyed.
The woman took the hood of her robe off, revealing her shocking red hair, and met the girl's eyes. They were a striking shade of green-blue and practically charged with electricity.
"My name is Ginny Weasley. I'm looking for - ?"
"Ginny? Is that you?" A red-headed woman came out from behind the door.
"Hello, Willow. It's great to see you again," Ginny said warmly.
"Please, come inside!" Willow said, grabbing the redhead and dragging her in by her hand. They embraced briefly and soon had the attention of not only the brunette, but a whole score of people. Some stood on the stairs, a few stayed seated in the living room, but most had surrounded Ginny in an almost threatening manner.
"Everyone, this is Ginny Weasley. I met her in London when I was studying with Giles. Ginny, this is everyone. You kinda took me by surprise, we actually just got a few new housemates today." Willow babbled, waving her hand around to everyone.
"I know I should have, er, rang? But I still don't know how to use the bloody things. And I assumed you would shoo my owl if it landed on your window," she explained. She was met with confused silence and a nervous laugh from Willow.
Ginny shifted uncomfortably for a second, suddenly feeling very young and stupid. It wasn't quite the way she had intended to show up, what with time zone differences, and it seemed as if everyone was tense enough as it was without a random girl who only Willow knows showing up with seemingly no explanation. A blonde woman who had been mostly silent since she had gotten there took a step forward.
"Nice to meet you, Ginny. I'm Buffy. Any friend of Willow's is... generally a friend of mine." And with that confusing and foreboding introduction, Buffy led Ginny into the kitchen under the guise of fetching some tea. Ginny sat on a stool by the counter and waited.
"Sorry if this comes across as rude, but if you came here for a visit it's not really the best time for catch-up." Buffy said as she handed Ginny a flowery coffee mug of tea.
"I know. I actually came here to help. Willow and I got to be fairly close while she was in London. I've heard a lot about you and Xander and everyone else, actually. Anyway, I used to have a few contacts here in America, but when things got quiet - I mean dead quiet - I figured things had taken a turn for the worst." Here she paused to take a sip of her tea which was, she supposed, as good as it was going to get.
"I understand if you don't want my help. Looks like you've got enough as it is. But I was born and raised in war. I fought alongside some of the best witches and wizards against the worst of the worst. I don't know much about Muggle life, or this sort of supernatural warfare, but I want to help."
Buffy was silent for a moment, staring at Ginny over the top of her mug. Her eyes darted to the hallway and there was a flurry of movement as everyone attempted to look innocent, as if they hadn't been listening. She set down her cup and crossed her arms, taking a very distrustful pose.
"Do you know anything about vampires?"
Ginny bit her lip. She really didn't. Aside from what she had read in books and scrolls, she had briefly spotted a vampire at a Christmas party she had attended once. Willow had also told her about Buffy being a vampire slayer, the chosen one, and had described vampires to her. She had always assumed that some vampires were allowed in polite company and some were seen, on a political standpoint, as half-bloods and were not to be trusted. But she could see where Buffy was going with this. She was completely out of her element. This was not a fight between humans who believed different things, this was a fight between good and evil. Real evil.
"No," she said simply. It was much easier than trying to explain her jaded view.
Buffy paused and was silent some more. Ginny squirmed in her seat, feeling again like a child in the headmaster's office. She could feel, rather than hear, the collective whispers from the eavesdroppers in the hall. The seconds seemed like hours, and Ginny's heart began to sink. She had only come to help a friend in need - it's what she had been taught to do. And now she was going to be turned away before she was even given a chance.
"Then we had better start training you. You'll start with the other potentials as soon as we crack the code on this whole Spike business. I'm sure you'll have a bit more knowledge or access to knowledge that would help. I'm sure Willow and Dawn will be thrilled. Welcome to Fort Hellmouth," she said, smiling in a sardonic sort of way.
Before Ginny could process the words, she was again surrounded by strangers. This time, however, they smiled and introduced themselves in a rush. Ginny could barely keep up.
"Hey, I'm Xander. Most people call me Z-man."
"No one calls you that. And don't even think about it."
"Hi, I'm Anya. So you're British? If we keep collecting your type around here, people are going to forget where we are."
"Thank you, Anya. Delightful as always. My name is Rupert Giles."
"My name's Kennedy. I'm new here too. So we have that in common."
"Molly."
"Annabelle."
"Hey. I'm Dawn." It was the brunette speaking to her now. She had chosen to wait for everyone to disperse before introducing herself. Ginny smiled at the girl, then looked around inquisitively.
"Where did everyone go?"
"Well, I think Buffy and Giles went to go search for a cave. The new girls are trying to figure out sleeping arrangements with Willow. And I'll bet Anya is torturing Andrew with Xander upstairs."
At this last comment, Ginny raised a single eyebrow. Dawn rolled her eyes and waved her hand flippantly.
"It's kind of a long story. Actually, it's not. I'm just tired. And now I have a house full of hungry girls. Plus one Xander, which counts as about 20 people. Would you mind helping me make dinner?" Dawn pleaded.
Ginny glanced at the bags under Dawn's eyes and nodded. She didn't think she would be getting much sleep anyway since it was only 9 a.m. in London. Converting to this timezone was going to take a while.
Dawn brightened at her nod of agreement and headed for the cupboards. It seemed to Ginny as if, with all this hustle and bustle, Dawn seemed to be left out a lot. Which Ginny completely understood.
The redhead looked around for a moment, then grinned fervently. She whipped out the stick out of her robes and motioned it in the direction of the cupboards. The doors opened smoothly and ingredients began flying out and landing on the counter smartly. Dawn turned and, with a short yelp, stared in shock as previously inanimate object began moving of their own accord. Soon, Ginny had gathered enough ingredients to make a simple Shepherd's Pie. Dawn was still gaping at her and the instrument in her hand.
"Is that - you use a wand?" Dawn asked incredulously, as if she couldn't believe her own eyes.
The sound of Dawn's shout had caused the entire household to clamour into the kitchen with some, namely Xander, carrying weapons. Now everyone was looking at Ginny and her wand. Before she could think of why this would be strange to them and how she could explain herself, Willow stepped out from behind the crowd.
"It's a different sort of magic system they use in Europe. Well, actually, everywhere else. It's almost like the metric system versus the U.S.'s standard system," She said and Ginny nodded.
"I use my wand for everything from simple magic to complicated spells and enchantments."
"Like turning the kitchen into a tornado?" Dawn mumbled.
"Actually, that was mostly simple magic. Just an adaptation of Accio and Wingardium Levi..." Ginny quickly realized she had completely lost her audience. Some began to edge towards the doors, while the others just looked at her with blank faces.
"Sorry, they're not really ones for the magicky talk." Willow smiled apologetically and everyone made an awkward exit again.
Ginny let out a sigh and rumbled her lips. Dawn was in the same position, staring at Ginny with a mix of shock and curiosity on her face. She looked quite like a cat and it made Ginny giggle.
"You should probably warn a person before you do stuff like that," the brunette mumbled. But she kept her eyes on Ginny's wand.
"Sorry, I'm really not used to Muggle dynamics yet. I just assumed that everyone would be used to being around magic, seeing as Willow is a witch."
"Yes, she is a witch. But she also showed us all how incredibly dangerous it is."
"Are you afraid of me?" Ginny asked. Dawn looked down at her feet and didn't reply. The redhead sighed again and mentally kicked herself. There was so much she didn't know about this world. In only a few hours of being here she had already made everyone wary.
"If we manage to live through all of this, hopefully I can show you how wonderful magic is and erase your fear. Now how about we finish making supper?"