The Scoobies, sans Tara, who was at class, and Giles, who was in England, sat around the Magic Box bored. There was a powerful storm hitting Sunnydale and so there was nothing for any of them to do. Spike and Dawn had already been reprimanded several times for throwing playing cards and small crystals, at one another, inevitably hitting anyone but one another.
"Oh I know!" Anya ran in the back and returned with a pretty pink crystal ball.
"Oooo Are we gonna play amateur fortune tellers? Goodie!" Spike's eyes glinted with sarcasm.
"Oh no!" Anya replied. "This is an Orb of Discovery; it tells you what would have happened if different choices had been made. Basically it is a party favor!"
The gang all got a little excited at that. "So who goes first?" asked Xander.
"Well it will only work once for everyone so whoever is sure that they know what they want to see I guess." Replied Anya.
Dawn sat in the corner next to Spike, she knew what she wanted to find out but didn't want to go first. Willow and Buffy both looked like they were in deep thought.
Xander however knew exactly what he wanted to know. "Hey Anya I want to know what would have happened if Spike had never gotten his chip!"
Suddenly a shimmery wall appeared showing Sunnydale from above. Like in a film the vision narrowed until it focused on the Summers' home. Dawn sat on the steps, knees to her chest rocking and crying, Buffy and Riley stood farther out in the yard. All were wearing black.
"I am so sorry about your mom Buffy." Riley said as he hugged her. "With everything that is going on, especially with your sister, I know this has to be tough."
"Riley, Dawn doesn't even know what she is, how can I tell her now? She is already shattered." Buffy said between sobs.
"How about I take her out for some ice cream and you go in and get some rest. You don't have to worry about this right now." Riley said.
"Thanks Riley." Buffy smiled and went to her sister. "Dawnie, Riley is going to take you for some ice cream while I rest OK?
"OK Buffy." Dawn's voice was shaky with emotion.
"Dawn we will be OK. It will just take time." Buffy smiled and walked inside.
The screen flashed and now Dawn and Riley were walking to the ice cream stand near UC Sunnydale. Suddenly a military van showed up. Riley's face was grim as he scooped up the girl and threw her into it. "Hostile K-1 has been obtained." He spoke into a walkie-talkie.
Suddenly from the shadows Spike jumped the military men. Whipping through them quicker than any of the viewers had seen him kill. Soon the only ones left were Riley and Dawn, who had been handcuffed and gagged by the Initiative soldiers.
"Well, well, captain cardboard. Ya shag the Slayer and then nick baby sis, tut, tut." Spike was still in game face, blood glistening on his fangs.
"L-l-look, you want the kid have her!" Riley mumbled as he tried to get away.
"Oh no, you see Lil' Bit and her mom were good to me, gave me cocoa and invited me in, real sweet girls. Now I came to leave some flowers on Joyce's grave when I saw you walkin' with the Bit here, saw you try to hurt her, take her to your leader or whatever, point is ya not takin' her anywhere soldier boy." Spike moved quickly to the girl and ungagged her. "You OK Bit?"
"Yeah, but Riley is going to get more men and take me away!!" Dawn began crying.
"He won't be takin' ya anywhere Bit, you stay right here I will be right back." Spike dashed away and caught the fleeing Riley.
"Really wanna torture you for scarin' the kid but no time for that!!" Spike grinned before draining Riley almost to death, then snapping his neck.
Spike returned to the military van and freed Dawn. He walked her most of the way home. "Now Bit you listen here, you tell your sister you don't know who it was that freed your scawny ass, ya hear? Don't tell anyone you saw me, yeah?"
Dawn nodded. "Thank you Spike." She hugged Spike tightly then turned and ran to her house.
"Anytime Bit." Spike whispered as he blended back into the shadows.
The shimmery wall/screen dissipated.
"See Spike has always liked me and wouldn't hurt me, chip or no chip!" Dawn piped up immediately, sticking her tongue out at Xander.
"Yeah well, I have been known to be wrong." Xander pouted and went to sit by Anya.
"OK I have what I want to see!" Announced Buffy.
"What if the monks had made Dawn out of Faith instead of me?"
The shimmery wall began then faded.
"Hey why didn't it work?" Asked Dawn.
"Well the only reason it wouldn't work is if the event had taken place like that so I would say that Dawn must have been made of both Faith and Buffy." Commented Anya.
The group sat in silence for a minute until Dawn broke the silence with, "Cool! So I want to go tell her tomorrow!! It will be so cool, she'll totally freak out!!"
The whole group laughed.
"So does this mean my chance to see something is over?" Buffy asked pouting.
Anya smiled a bit condescendingly. "Oh no, if the scene doesn't show anything then you get to go again!"
Buffy smiled happily. "OK then instead I want to see what would have happened to Dawn if Willow hadn't resurrected me."
The shimmer appeared and this time showed Sunnydale being invaded by biker demons. Dawn and Spike had found the Buffybot, but this time it didn't mention seeing Buffy.
"Spike what are we going to do?" asked Dawn.
"We got to get you outta here Bit." He grabbed her hand and led her to his bike.
"But what about the others?" Dawn's voice was shaking.
"I don't give a flip about the rest o' the Scoobies Bit, we need to get YOU safe." Spike got on the bike and Dawn got on the back. It didn't take long for Spike and Dawn to see the remnants of the other Scoobies bodies strewn about the road, all dead. Dawn cried but held tight to Spike as they drove out of town.
The wall shimmered and now it looked as if they were in England. Dawn was lying on a couch in a basement apartment reading when Spike walked in. "Bit you should be in bed by now."
"I'm not tired, besides its Friday, no school tomorrow! You just want to go to bed so you can find some sleazy girl to boink!" Dawn looked up at him from the couch.
"Nah, no boinkin'." Spike chuckled and plopped down next to the girl.
Dawn looked up at him with her intense blue eyes. "I miss them a lot sometimes Spike, I'm glad I have you."
"'Til the end of the world Bit, you know that." Spike smiled and they turned on the TV.
The shimmery wall dissipated again.
"Well that was depressing!" Muttered Anya.
"Why did it stop there?" Buffy and Dawn ask at the same time.
"Oh it will only show up until this time, anything that may have happened in the future wouldn't be shown." Replied Anya.
"My turn!" Piped up Willow. "I want to know what would have happened if Xander and I had hooked up in high school."
The wall shimmered into view.
Everyone watched as Xander asked Willow to a movie. Willow looked shocked then shy and said yes.
The wall shimmered again. Xander and Willow were walking out of the theater.
"Wow I mean could that have been any cheesier?" Willow was giggling.
"Oh I know and the monsters weren't even close!" Xander grinned and took Willow's hand.
"So wow, um this is, wow." Willows smiled shyly.
"Yeah, I mean I can't believe I never asked you out before!" Xander smiled in return.
Suddenly two vampires jumped from the shadows. "Oh look the Slayer's lackeys are out and about without her."
Willow and Xander started to run but were caught in an instant. Before they could even scream one of the vamps had snapped Willow's neck and begun drinking. Xander watched horrified for an instant before the vamp holding him disintegrated into dust to reveal Buffy.
Buffy screamed a war cry before attacking the vamp that had killed Willow. He was dust in seconds. Both Buffy and Xander wrapped their arms around Willow and cried.
The wall dissipated once again.
"Well I'd say it was a good thing your crush was unreciprocated." Said Anya in shock.
"Yeah, guess so." Commented Willow, her eyes huge.
"Come on Spike your turn!!" Dawn elbowed her friend.
"Hmmm, what would have happened if I had saved Bit on the tower." Spike asked.
The shimmering wall appeared again.
Spike and Doc were fighting on the tower but instead of Doc pushing Spike over the side Spike pushed Doc over.
"It'll be OK now Nibblet." Spike untied Dawn's ropes and she flew into his arms.
"You saved me! I was so scared Spike!" Dawn was weeping in his arms.
Suddenly a primal scream shattered their happiness. Below Buffy had begun to lose against Glory. Glory caught the Troll Hammer and threw it.
"You fucking bitch!! I will never get home now!!" Screamed Glory and she punched Buffy threw the chest and pulled out her heart.
"NO!" both Spike and Dawn screamed. They watched in horror as Glory quickly killed all of the Scoobies before she came for them.
Dawn clung to Spike. "Spike, she is going to kill us!"
"Fuck!" Spike looked around for a way to escape, with Dawn but it was too late.
"Well seeing as I can't go home I guess I will just have to take over this little planet." Grinned Glory. Spike pushed Dawn behind him but it did no good, Glory punched right through spike and into Dawn, dusting Spike and killing Dawn.
The wall disappeared.
"Well damn!" Commented Spike. "Guess I shouldn't feel too bad huh?"
Everyone smiled at him, a vampire with guilt, it was so odd.
Spike smirked and turned to look at Dawn. "Looks like it's your turn Platelet, you're the only one left."
"Nah, Anya hasn't gone yet." Dawn said sheepishly.
"Oh, well actually I don't have anything I want to see Dawn. You go." Anya smiled.
"OK, I want to see what would have happened if I had never been made out of the Key." As the shimmering wall appeared everyone held their breathe.
Buffy was fighting someone. It was dark. Suddenly her opponent came into view, it was Spike. "You bloody bitch! Dru left me 'cause o' you!"
Buffy was hurt, blood streaming down her forehead. "Oh boohoo! You killed Giles, Willow, Oz, Xander, and Cordelia! Well not so upset about Cordelia but still! They were my friends you bastard!" Buffy dove but Spike easily sidestepped.
"I'm going to enjoy this." Spike quipped before grabbing the Slayer by her hair and draining her. Smirking Spike walked away humming.
The wall collapsed once again.
"So it's all your fault I didn't bag me my third Slayer Bit!" Spike growled but it was obviously playful.
Dawn looked over at him and giggled. Then stopped. "But that would also mean that the only reason you got all hearts and candy for Buffy is 'cause of me!"
Spike smirked. He knew damn well that it had always been because of Bit that he had a thing for the Slayer and one of these days he would show his Nibblet exactly how much she meant. "Guess so Bit."
No one seemed to be phased by the last image. They hadn't made the connection that Dawn had. She was shocked that they didn't but glad too. If they figured out that Spike only had been drawn into their group because of her, it could cause problems.
"The storm is over, wanna go get some ice cream Bit?" Spike winked at her.
"Sounds like a plan." Dawn grinned.
"Make sure she is home before ten Spike, she does have school tomorrow." Buffy called out as Spike escorted Dawn out.
"She'll be back by midnight Slayer, it is Friday she doesn't have school tomorrow." Spike called back. Though he wasn't all too sure he was going to be bringing his Bit back at all.
Choices, choices…