Title: Unreal reality

Setting: Set after the battle with the first, 6 months prior. Cleveland Ohio

Characters: Buffy and Dawn. Will be adding multiple characters in through out the story.

Description: The Summers girls are both having horrible nightmares. Dawn's about Glorificus the hell-God and Buffy about the first evil. Are they just nightmares or is some big apocalypse in the making? You'll have to read to find out!

Chapter 1.

She was running, running, running until she felt like her heart would explode in her chest. Something; No some one was chasing her. Her tennis-shoes hit the ground making light noise on the gravel beneath her but she paid no mind, she just kept running. Where was she going? She wasn't quite sure, but she was going somewhere. She had to get away. Dawn Summers had been through quite a lot since she came to be. She just so happened to be the vampire slayer's younger sister, only she found out that she really wasn't. Really she was just some key that was used by a she-bitch God named Glory to get to a hell dimension.

She was the key.

"My Key. Come back here. I need my key!" a voice shouted behind her. Oh now, she knew what she was running from. Glory was back and she was seeking vengeance. She'd get her key. Dawn just kept running. She ran as fast as her lengthy-legs could carry her. "Help me!" the young brunette shouted. "Help! Someone! Please?" she cried out desperately, but no one heard her. No one but Glory, who laughed maliciously in the background. "No one can hear you key! It's only you and I. I really don't know why you're bothering to run. You know I'm going to catch you." the hell-bitch said in a sing-song voice. "Oh Dawnie, you're so sweet. You think I can't catch you."

Dawn didn't pay any attention to what Glorificus was saying. She ran as fast as she could until she tripped over something and went face-first into the ground. She yelped as she felt a sharp pain make its way through her arm, but she got up. She went to run again, but something grasped her arm very tight and lifted her up off the ground. "Told ya I'd catch ya."

"No! No! Nooo!" Dawn shouted as she slept, the nightmare causing her to flay around in the bed like a fish out of water. Buffy heard her sister screaming and was up out of her comfortable bed in an instant and into Dawn's room. She carefully touched her little sister trying to wake her up.

"Dawnie, it's okay. It's a night-mare. Wake up!" she said in a soft voice, but when that didn't work Buffy grew a little impatient and worried.

"Dawn! Wake up!" Her younger sister still flayed in the bed. Her arm shot up and she grasped Buffy around the neck. "No. I don't wanna be the key! I am not the key!"

"Dawnie." Buffy shook her again. "Wake up! It's just a nightmare." The young brunette stirred out of her sleep to see only her sister in the room. Her sister the vampire slayer, who could handle anything; especially a nightmare.

"Oh Buffy. It was awful!" the younger girl said in a whisper. Tears escaped her eyes like a waterfall and she clung to her strong sister, who in turn rubbed her back comfortingly.

"Dawn. You know it was just a nightmare. Glory is gone."

Dawn sat up, quick as a cat and avoided her sister's concerned look. She averted her eyes and looked at the wall. "It wasn't about Glory. Why do you assume that?"

Buffy Summers blew out a breath and rolled her eyes. "I heard you shouting! Why do you think I came in here like I did?

Dawn recoiled. "I uh." she started to say but her older sister interrupted.

"Glory is gone Dawn. I killed Ben. Glory was Ben. Remember?" the woman tried to encourage her sister.

"I know - but isn't it possible she could come back?" Dawn asked in a hushed voice. She was panicking now. She tried to be strong. She didn't want to seem like the little girl she was back then. She was 18 now, not some meek little child.

"No Dawn. I've told you this many times. Glory is gone and she'll always be gone. That's it." she said as she ran a finger through Dawn's long brunette locks of hair. "Go back to sleep. I'm always here. I'll always protect you. You know that."

The comforting words of her sister made Dawn yawn. She felt safe with her sister around. She always had. She lied back down on the bed and wiped the dry tears off of her cheeks. She had to be up for school in a few hours so she really needed to try and sleep. "Thanks Buff." she half yawned.

Buffy smiled at this and got up off the bed, stepping half-way out of the room. "Welcome Dawn. I love you."

"You too." was all Dawn could manage before she lulled herself back to sleep and began snoring softly once again.

_._._

Buffy Summers, the vampire slayer sat up in her room, her rather large room. Every since their move to Cleveland Ohio, things had been a little different. The scoobies had split up and she hadn't heard from either one of her best friends in a little over 3 days now. Xander had been shipped off to Africa, Willow to some other location that Buffy wasn't even sure of anymore, because she'd become so busy training the new young slayers, that she couldn't keep up with anything.

They lived in what seemed like it would have been a mental institution a while back, but now it was homey. Pictures and paintings lined the walls. The new council had set her up very nicely, but this wasn't what she imagined it would be like after the fall of Sunnydale. She wanted her life to be different. She almost wanted to give up on being the slayer at all now. They had thousands of slayers around the world now didn't they? They had Faith Lehane- the former dark slayer as well.

What was the point?

"The point is" Giles had started over the phone one evening. "The point is that you are the most qualified trainer because you have been the slayer for over 8 years."

"What about Faith? She's just as good as me Giles." Buffy huffed in the phone, sounding a little more childish than she intended to.

She could imagine Giles cleaning his glasses on the other end of the line. "Buffy. I've informed you enough times now; Faith is training as well. She is in Los Angelus; training there."

Buffy huffed and ran a hand through her blonde locks. "Oh, and I get the hell-mouth? Why me Giles? Why couldn't she get the damn hell mouth?"

"Oh Buffy, you and I both know that you're the best one to handle such a situation." That made Buffy beam, and she dropped the subject.

"Okay Giles. Well I guess I better get back to work or whatever you call it."

Giles chuckled and shook his head. She would always be the same Buffy Summers, no matter how many new apocalypses she averted. She was older now, more skilled but that didn't change who she was deep down inside.

No matter how many times she played the conversation with Giles over in her head and tired to make herself feel better, she couldn't. She missed her friends to be quite frank, and she was tired of training. She just wanted to sleep for once. All the girls were always so chatty, staying up all hours of the night and even shutting her door and covering her head with a pillow didn't drown the noise so she didn't even bother some nights.

The petite blonde blew out a breath and sat up in her bed, forgetting sleep period. Maybe she should go patrol. She hadn't really been out to patrol on her own in quite some time. It didn't take her long to decide and she hopped out of the bed and slipped some clothes on, not forgetting of course to slip one stake in her back pocket, one in her hand, and her dagger in her pant leg, just in case.

She slipped out the door quiet as a mouse, knowing that the girls were safe. She was given 30 girls. She didn't even know half their names, but she was trying to learn. It wasn't in her job description to get to know them. It was her job to train them to be better slayers, and that she was doing.

Her boots clicked on the gravel underneath her as she walked. She was sure to keep her eye's peeled out for any sign of any mayhem going on around her, but it was quiet. She walked past a bar and saw two girls making out and rolled her eyes. It wasn't any different here than anywhere else. Here though, she felt lonely, more lonely than she'd ever felt in her whole life. Her sister was there, yes. Her former newbie slayers were there, but her friends weren't. Spike wasn't. Everything was just so different now and the slayer wasn't fond of any of it.
_._._

Dawn Summers groaned as her alarm sounded in her ears. It felt like it had only been an hour that she'd gotten back to sleep after the awful nightmare she woke up from ended. She threw her arm around until she hit the alarm clock off the nightstand, hoping that would make it shut up, but no it kept going off. BEEP BEEP BEEP. "Damn it!" she cursed out loud and threw the covers off of her, getting up out of bed to turn it off. The sunlight shone bright in her window and she rolled her eyes. Another beautiful day in Cleveland Ohio, she thought to herself blowing out a frustrated breath.

The younger Summer's girl found her way to the shared bathroom and groaned when there was already someone in there. "Come on! I've got places to be. Some of us have to go to college!" she shouted to the door. "Oh don't get your panties in a twist, college girl. I'm coming out." She raised an eyebrow as she saw just who was coming out of the bathroom.

"Sorry. I hardly slept last night." she apologized to the thin red-head. She'd gotten to know a few of the new girls and this was one that she particularly cared for. Her name was Alexandra, but she was called Alex for short. She was very petite and very light on her feet. They also called her 'Clumsy' and 'annoying' behind her back, but Dawn found herself to grow quite fond of the girl. "It's okay Dawn." Alex said in a hushed voice. "Why the lack of sleep?"

Dawn flushed a bright-shade of red. "Nightmares."

Her friend put a light hand on her shoulder. "It's okay Dawn. I have them too. We all do, but it was just a dream. Everything is okay now."

Dawn rolled her eyes and blew out a breath. "I know, but I'm just so exhausted. College is harder than I expected."

Alex nodded her head in agreement. "I was in college, before I was called to be a vampire slayer." she murmured. "It's still quite weird." she finished in a British accent.

Dawn felt sorry for those girls. The life they knew was left behind once they were called as a slayer. They left their family, their friends and the life they knew behind them and all to be a vampire slayer. Dawn rolled her eyes mostly to herself. She didn't see what the big deal was anymore. There were so many of them. What made them so special now?

"I gotta go Alex, but I'll catch up with you later." Dawn said as she rushed into the bathroom, the door clicking shut behind her.

A knock sounded at the door before the young woman was even dressed. "Hold on a minute!" she shouted to whomever it may have been.

"Dawnie, it's me. Can I come in?" her sisters voice sounded.

She reached out and un-locked the door and opened it for Buffy, who stood there, bags under her eyes. Geez. It looked like she had the same problem as Dawn and got little to no sleep.

"Geez Buffy, You look like shit." Dawn chuckled.

"Oh thanks Dawn. Really nice." the blonde said sarcastically, punching her sister on the arm.

"Ow!" Dawn complained. "Slayer strength, remember?"

Buffy laughed at this, but quickly recoiled and shut the bathroom door behind her. "Ugh it's been a night." the blonde complained.

Dawn nodded. "Don't I know it." she agreed. "Did you patrol last night?"

Buffy nodded. "Yeah, but it was quiet out there. Kind of makes me think something is going on right under our noses that we have no idea about."

Dawn sighed and shook her head, while throwing on her clothes and light make up. "Isn't there always?" she asked sarcastically.

Buffy nodded once more. "Yeah, but I think it's something huge this time. There is always at least two or three vampires out there a night. I'm beginning to think they are up something."

Dawn nodded. "Aren't they always?" she asked again, chuckling.

Buffy shook her head and walked over to the toilet to sit down. "I'm so tired lately. This training the newbie's thing wasn't what I excepted it to be ya know?"

Dawn agreed. "And this college thing is way more than I expected." she groaned, with a en eye roll to follow.

"Been there." Buffy laughed.

"The professor in Psyche 101 says that I'm like his best student." Dawn beamed, proud of herself.

Buffy smiled to her younger sister, her eyes lighting up a bit. "That's great Dawnie. Mom would be so proud of you."

Dawn's mouth turned into a frown and her eyebrows grew in a line when the older Summer's woman mentioned their mother. "I miss her so much." she whined.

"Me too." Buffy said in agreement, before walking over and placing a hand on her sister's shoulder. "I miss her too, especially now. It's so different here."

Dawn sighed and threw her arms around Buffy's neck, hugging her tight. "I know. It's so lonely. No Mom. No Willow. No Xander. And I even miss Faith." she chuckled at the last name.

Buffy did as well, and pulled away from the hug. "I kind of do too." she said.

"Sorry, Buffy I gotta run." Dawn said as she looked down at the time on her watch. "I'm gonna be late."

Buffy frowned at this. Her sister was leaving her. Everyone else had already left her and now she only had the newbie slayers. Maybe she should try and at least learn their names, she thought to herself.

"Okay Dawn. Have a good day." she told her younger sister, before exiting the bathroom.

Dawn did the same shortly after, and headed to the campus, which was only a couple blocks from where they stayed. This was going to be one long day.

"Oh Buffy, you look so tired, have you been getting any sleep?" Joyce Summer's asked from the corner of the slayer's room where she was standing.

_._._

"Mom?" Buffy questioned out, not sure what she was seeing. "I must be dreaming. You can't be here. You're dead.

"Oh honey, but I am here. Don't be so impolite. Come give mommy a hug." Joyce said opening her arms to the very stunned Buffy.

"No mom. You're not here. This isn't real." She pinched herself a couple of times trying to wake herself up. This had to be a dream. Her mother was dead. She'd found her body, lying on the couch almost 3 years prior. "You're not here." she said mostly to herself.

"Oh Buffy Summers, You're so smart aren't you honey?" Joyce said in her gentle-motherly voice.

"Why are you here mom? What's going on? This can't be the first again.. We defeated the first when we took them down almost 6 months ago and blew Sunnydale up." Buffy stated matter-of-factory.

"Maybe so, but I think you know what's going on here Buffy." Joyce said.

Buffy shook her head. "No, it couldn't possibly be. Be destroyed you."

Joyce threw back her head and cackled. "Maybe you 'thought' you destroyed us, but here we are!"

She suddenly transformed into someone else. Someone she thought she'd never see again. Tara.

"Please, you have to warn Willow." the first said in the shape of Tara, only it really seemed like Tara and she was fighting to win over the first. She was fighting to take form, but the first evil was too strong and she couldn't quite get through.

"You helped her Tara. You helped us win. Thank you." Buffy was referring to when Willow did that spell and made all the slayers a hundred times stronger than they already were, but Tara vanished and it soon turned into someone else.

"Slayer." The Master whispered through ugly, jagged, bloody teeth. "I told you, you'd never beat us." He laughed out loud.

No. No. No. No. This couldn't be happening. It couldn't. They destroyed them. This had to be a dream. Wake up Buffy. Wake up.

"Buffy." a far away voice sounded. It felt like the voice was miles away. " ." the voice sounded closer this time and then she felt hands shaking her. "Buffy wake up."

She threw her fist out, but someone caught it before it hit their face. Buffy opened her eyes to see one of the newbie slayers sitting there. Brittany? She thought her name was, but wasn't quite sure. "Oh thank God. It was just a nightmare." she mostly said to herself.

The young slayer ignored her. "Everyone's waiting in the court yard. It's time for our training." she stated.

Buffy yawned and smiled. It was just a nightmare. The first isn't back. Glory isn't back. Those are just nightmares too. Time to get up Buffy, and get to your day to day routine. The first was destroyed. You destroyed it. Willow destroyed it. Spike destroyed it. No more Sunnydale, no more first evil. Get it together Buffy.

"Be right there" she paused. "Brittany right?"

The girl beamed, proud that Buffy finally knew her name. "Yeah." she said as she jogged out of the room and made her way to the court-yard.

"Here we go." Buffy said to herself as she headed in the same direction.

A/N: Thanks for reading. Reviews are always welcomed. Thoughts? Ideas? Anything. Thanks again. More to come.