Summary: Dawn jumped off the tower in the Gift and disappeared. Seven years later Buffy finds her sister reborn as Kylie Shines.
This is a one-shot crossover with the Michelle Trachtenberg movie, The Circuit.
Pairings: None
A/U: Set after Chosen
Disclaimer: The Circuit is owned by ABC Family (which is owned by Disney) and Joss Whedon owns Buffy.
The Circuit
"I'm sorry ..." Dawn said,
Buffy shook her head. "It doesn't matter. Nothing –" she said as Dawn made a break for it and ran back toward the end of the platform. She grabbed Dawn, pulling her back toward her as she maneuvered herself around her sister so that she could block Dawn's way. "What are you doing?"
"I can end this," Dawn said.
"No!" Buffy said.
"I have to jump. The energy –" Dawn stated knowing what she had to do.
"It'll kill you!" Buffy said.
Dawn nodded. "I know. Buffy, I know about the ritual! I have to stop it."
"No!" Buffy yelled.
Dawn sighed as she looked at her older sister. "I have to! Look at what's happening!" she said as a rift opened and a huge dragon flew out. "Buffy –"
"I don't care! Dawn, I won't lose you –" Buffy said.
"You have to! You have to let me go! Blood starts it, and until the blood stops flowing it'll never stop. You know you have to let me ..." Dawn said as Buffy looked at her in despair. "It has to have the blood ..."
Buffy began to cry as Dawn kissed her on the cheek.
"I love you, Buffy. I will always love you." Dawn said. "I need you to promise me that you will live, for me."
Buffy nodded, "I promise. I love you too, Dawnie."
Dawn stood there a moment memorizing her sister's face. And then she ran toward the edge and dove off the platform. As she did so time came to a screaming halt as two figures, one male and one female, appeared.
"It was supposed to be the Slayer that jumped," said the female.
"Yes," said the male. "And we must reward the sacrifice that the Key has made."
"Send her back in time and give her to a family? Bury her memories?" the female said. "Till the day she and her sister are reunited?"
"Yes," the male said.
The two figures disappeared as time resumed. Dawn fell down, into the portal and with a flash of white light she vanished.
The moment Buffy reached the base of the tower she she looked for her sister's body, but she did not find it. She then looked up at the sky at where the portal had been just moments before. "Stay safe, Dawnie. I will find you somehow."
Seven Years Later …
It had been seven years since Dawn had jump and five years since Buffy had closed the Sunnydale Hellmouth. During all that time Buffy never stopped trying to find Dawn, but all the leads proved to be dead ends. That was till she heard Xander yell for her from the common room of the headquarters of the International Slayer's Council.
"What?" Buffy asked as she raced in and Xander motioned toward the TV which was showing a news conference about some car race. "I'm not interested in watching a car race, Xander."
"Just look," said Xander as he motioned toward the TV again. "I think you will like what you're going to see."
Buffy sighed and looked towards the TV as the camera panned over several people standing around a podium. It landed on a face Buffy recognized instantly. A face she had not seen in seven years. "Dawnie?" she asked her voice sounding small and almost childlike. Seven years her sister had been missing and there she stood. "Where?"
A week later …
"The best driver won today," Al Shines said.
Kylie looked up at her father and smiled. "I've missed you."
"I know," Al said. "I'm starting my own team."
"Really?" Kylie said as she nodded her head. "So you're looking for drivers then?"
"You interested?" Al asked.
"Al," Robin Cates said as he slapped Al's back. He looked towards Kylie as he smiled. "Congratulations, darling. You got a spot on the Cate's Racing team."
"Thanks, darling, but I think I just got a better offer." Kylie said.
"But you have a deal," said Robin.
"Yep," Kylie said as she pointed toward the words Team Shines on her father's tracksuit. "Team Shines." She and Al turned and walked away from Robin, smiling. "I want top billing."
"Age before beauty," said Al.
"I just won a race," said Kylie.
"And I won a hundred races before that," said Al.
"Oh so that's how it's going …" said Kylie.
"Dawn …" said a voice behind Kylie and Al.
Kylie wasn't sure why she turned around, but as she did she looked at the blonde that had said that one word. And then the strangest thing happened, memories began to flood her mind. Memories she knew should not have been hers, but were. "Buffy?" asked Kylie.
Buffy smiled and ran into Kylie's arms. "I never thought I would see you again, when you jumped off that tower. You just disappeared."
"Kylie," said Al. "Whose this?"
"My sister," said Kylie as she smiled.
Al looked at Buffy and Kylie with confusion. He knew he had only one daughter, Kylie. "What?" he asked.
"It's a long, complicated story," said Buffy.
"Why don't you explain it to me," said Al. "Because last I knew I only had one daughter, Kylie."
"It's like this. Seven years ago, before the destruction of a little town in California, called Sunnydale. There was a Hell God, named Glory. She wanted to get back to her home dimension and so she sought this magical Key. The Key was molded and shaped out of my blood and DNA to become my sister. Through a series of events Glory got a hold of my sister and used her blood to open the portal between dimensions. My sister knew the only way to close the portal was for the blood to stop flowing for her to be dead. So she did what she thought was right and jumped off the tower. As she passed through the portal she vanished into thin air. I have spent the last seven years looking for her."
"That's quite a story, Ms. But that kind of thing is not possible," Al said.
"Oh it's possible, dad," Kylie said. "For I'm Dawn Summers, but I'm also your daughter Kylie Shines. When I jumped into that portal, I was given a second chance at life and so I was given to you and my memories of being Dawn were buried deep within the back of my mind. When Buffy called out my name just now, causing me to turn around and look at her. The memories were unlocked."
Al looked at his daughter and he could see in her eyes that she believed ever word of what she and the blonde were saying. And that is when something happened to make him believe as a redhead suddenly appeared out of nowhere to stand beside the blonde.
"Dawnie?" asked the redhead.
"Hey, Willow," said Kylie as she wrapped her arms around her sister's friend.
Al looked at Willow whom had not been standing there seconds earlier. And then he looked at Buffy and Kylie and nodded as he came to the realization that what they had said was real. That Kylie had at one time in a previous life being Buffy's sister. "So what should I call you now?" asked Al. "Dawn or Kylie?"
Kylie smiled and hugged her father, "I'm Kylie now, and I'm your daughter. But Buffy is also my sister, okay?" Al nodded. "In a way that makes her your daughter, also."
Al looked at Buffy as a smile played on his lips and he nodded. "Buffy Shines, has a nice ring to it don't you think?"
Buffy smiled and nodded, "Yeah I guess it does," She said as she looked at Kylie. "That's if it's okay with you Da… Kylie."
"You can still call me Dawn if you want, Buffy," said Kylie. "We'll just consider it a nickname, now."
"Okay, Dawn," said Buffy.
"So," Al said. "Are we going to make this a family affair? Kylie is going to be racing for me. Are you going to race too?"
"Buffy, behind a wheel!" said Kylie. "Not happening."
Buffy sighed. "I get into one little accident with Mom's car and I have to live it down the rest of my life."
"Well did you ever get your license?" asked Kylie.
"Actually, she did," said Willow.
"Yeah," said Buffy. "Having a license made it easier when I was chasing down leads on your location."
"Well then I guess, Dad's offer is on the table. Shall we make it a family affair?" asked Kylie.
Buffy looked at her sister and Al and smiled. "Why not," she said.
Al smiled and helped Buffy, Kylie and Willow up into the back of the truck moments before it drove up in front of the fans in the bleachers. He watched as Buffy and Kylie looked at each other, smiling as as they both took a hold of Kylie's trophy and hoisted it up.
To Buffy and Kylie the trophy symbolized not only Kylie winning the race, but it also symbolized their reunion and their new start with each other.
One Year Later …
Over the coming months after Buffy's reunion with Dawn/Kylie, she had trained and got the licenses she would need to race professionally. Al had in turn hired Willow as their public relations director. Willow had already created for them a website that Al was very happy with.
Buffy stood next to her race car thinking back on the last year as she waited for the start of her very first race. She looked over at Kylie who was two cars up from her, who was also going to be racing that day as well. The press had labeled the race not only as a race between competitors but a race between sisters. Which had drew crowds all by itself as the fans wanted to see Kylie's mysterious new sister. She waved at Kylie who smiled and waved back before giving her thumbs up. She returned the gesture and both sisters knew they were wishing each other good luck.
"So Buffy, you ready?" asked Al as he walked up to Buffy.
"As much as I can be," Buffy said as she looked up at the man who had in the last year come to be like a father to her. "Just out of curiosity who you going to be rooting for, me or Dawn?"
Al looked over at Kylie and smiled. "Kylie," he said. Despite the fact that Buffy continued to call Kylie, Dawn. He never used what was now considered to be his daughter's nickname by her sister and their friends from Sunnydale. "It's mostly because this is your first and you shouldn't expect to beat her your first time. She has races under her belt and a win on top of that, which you don't have yet."
"I know," said Buffy. "I don't really expect to. Hey go tell Dawn good luck for me, anyways."
"I already did," said Al as he looked at the woman that stood before him, who had come to be like a daughter to him. "Just before she asked me to tell you the same."
Buffy smiled and turned and gave Al a quick hug. She then looked at the race that stood beside her and smiled. She still legally went by the Summers name. But out here on the track the name that adorned her tracksuit, and the car itself, said Buffy Shines.
"Good luck," Al said as he stepped back with Buffy's pit crew. Buffy slowly got into the car and strapped herself in. She looked over at Al who was going to be her crew chief for this race and he gave her a thumbs up as she returned the gesture.
"RACERS START YOUR ENGINES!"
