Disclaimer: I may be able to claim Lia and her friends as mine, but in general? No claim.
A/N: Sequel to Innocence Rewrite. Sorry, I meant to post this at the beginning of the week, but I've been insanely busy, and then I went and spent all my free time watching Bones. (Guilty expression.)
Things you likely want to know - this is set 17 years after an AU season 2. A lot of things are different; I'm hoping most of this is self-explanatory, so when you see something that doesn't agree with canon, just go with it. Most of the changes I've thought would be direct consequences (in chain-reaction manner) of my alternate season 2. Plus season 7 just plain didn't happen, because the potentials annoyed me and I liked Sunnydale. Author's prerogative.
Okay, on to the story.

Damphyr

Lia was having one of those days. That is, the kind of day when she wanted nothing more than for everyone to leave her alone so she could curl up and die in peace. Well, perhaps curling up and dying was a bit of an exaggeration, but she was having worse usual PMS and was definitely feeling miserable. And why wouldn't this damn class just end? She allowed herself to zone out as her Algebra teacher droned on. For some odd reason, the last class of the day always seemed like the longest. Add that to it being her math class, and the period was downright interminable.

She snapped out of her thoughts as her bag began vibrating, and quickly pulled out her cell phone. She habitually kept her phone set on vibrate; not getting busted by her teachers for having it on it class was more than worth the inevitable teasing from her friends,

The text message was from Dawn. It read simply, "Magic Box after school. Prophecy research awaits." She sent a quick reply of "k, thnx," back to her sister, but groaned inwardly. Why do I have to have work today of all days? Surely I deserve a break from sacred duty on account of cramps.

She laughed in spite of herself at the thought. Like that was ever going to happen. She'd been a Champion since her supernatural powers kicked in at 11, despite her parents' efforts to protect her, and faced her first apocalypse at 14. She knew as well as anyone else that destiny stops for no one and nothing. She was lucky it was just research tonight. She didn't even have to patrol; surely she could manage a little bookwork.

Lia considered for a moment the utter freakishness of her life. She was herself some kind of supernatural Miracle Child, her twin sister was a dimensional key and aspiring witch, her mother was the Slayer (well, one of two actually, but that was totally beside the point. Anyway, Aunt Faith and her friends just added to the general weirdness), and her father was a vampire with a soul. She'd been immersed in the supernatural for as long as she could remember, and a warrior herself for the past six years. It seemed a bit surreal at times, certainly, but she generally liked the gig. She'd never really wanted normality. This was her world. She wouldn't have it any other way.

"Miss Summers?" This time it was her teachers voice that interrupted Lia's wandering thoughts.

"Yes?" She looked up and forcibly dragged her mind back to the torture that was Algebra II.

"Problem 59, Miss Summers," Mr. Arden prompted.

"Oh, right." She flashed her best "I-really-am-listening, honest" smile, and looked down at her homework. "Uh, x is equal to either 4 or 9?"

"Correct."

Lia breathed a sigh of relief, and glanced up at the clock. Ten minutes left until I'm free of this place. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat, willing time to go faster. Not that it did any good. Dawn could probably actually do it. I doubt she would do so though. I think she's received Aunt Willow's lecture on frivolous and excessive use of magic a few too many times, she mused.

Practically as soon as the final bell rang, her best friend of 12 years, Katelyn Sorel, met her at her locker. "Hey Lia. What's up?"

"Off to the magic box. Dawn says there's a prophecy afoot. Care to join us?" Lia replied casually.

Her friend appeared to consider for a moment, "I dunno. Would there be any doughnuts in it for me?" she asked lightly, well aware of Scooby research party traditions. She knew all about demony stuff; when they'd first met, Lia had been too young to fully understand the importance of keeping the supernatural world a secret and Lyn was too young to disbelieve her stories.

"Depends," Lia replied. "You driving?" She was only half-teasing. She was decidedly not in any mood to walk all the way over, and not above using bribery to get what she wanted of her friend.

"Sure," the other girl agreed. "Just give me a minute to grab my stuff and then we can go."

Lia gave her a grateful smile. "Thanks, Lyn. I feel like Hell today." As if to emphasize the point, and wave of particularly bad cramps tore through her, causing her to wince in pain.

"No prob. I know how that is. But seriously, girl, you need to learn to drive," Lyn commented.

Lia rolled her eyes. "I know, I know. But Mom says that since she didn't get her license till she was 18, that ought to be good enough for me too. Never mind that I'm nothing like she was at my age. If I did even half the things she did then, I'd be so totally screwed." She sighed. "You ready to go?"

Katelyn nodded.

"Oh, wait." Lia stopped abruptly. "I'd better tell Dawn. She'll kill me if we go without her. She pulled her cell out again, and texted her sister, "Dawn! Get your ass over here. Lyn's driving us to the Magic Box."

"Be right there," Dawn texted back, and true to her word showed up a minute or two later.

"So," Lia asked as they all piled into Lyn's car, "How come you got advanced notice of the research party?"

Dawn gave her a "what-are-you-an-idiot" kind of look. "6th period, silly. I just had programming class. Jenny told me."

"Oh, right, of course," Lia said, exaggeratedly slapping her forehead. "Sorry, can't think today."

"Obviously," Dawn teased. "I think you got a problem with your brain being missing."

Lia shot her a death glare. "And I think you got a problem with watching too much TV."

"Well, how can I resist quoting the awesomeness that is Firefly?" Dawn asked innocently.

Lia pretended to consider for a moment. "Well," she said slowly, "it is Firefly… I guess I'll forgive you this time. Anyways, d'you know anything more about this prophecy deal?"

"Well, I heard that the guys in LA found it and sent it here cause it looked Hellmouthy. Don't know anything about it, but it kinda sounds like a guaranteed nastiness sort of thing," Dawn said.

Lyn groaned, "Another apocalypse?"

"Most likely," Dawn sighed. "Tis the season, ya know."

"Oh, naturally," Lyn sighed. "It's May, so we must have an apocalypse."

"Typical," Lia muttered. "Never a quiet moment around here. Well, it just better not come to pass this week, or I'll be seriously pissed off."

"You mean you don't always act like that?" Dawn asked sarcastically.

Lyn looked from one sister to the other. "Uh, guys?" she said. "We're here."

"Again, oh, right, of course," Lia muttered as they got out.

The three girls looked around at the group assembled as they entered the magic shop that had become the general meeting place of the Scooby Gang. Lia saw her parents in conversation with Giles and Jenny, Aunt Anya still working the front counter, and Uncle Xander talking with Aunt Willow and Uncle Oz. Xander and Anya's two children were off in one corner, 8-year-old Sara trying to keep 3-year-old Collin entertained. Diana Osbourne, a quiet redheaded girl who was Willow and Oz's adoptive daughter, walked in through the back door with Myles Cohen, a skinny brown-haired boy whose pointed ears and reddish eyes betrayed his half-demon heritage.

"Whoa, looks like everyone's here," Lyn whispered.

"Shiny," Lia muttered.

"Now look who's quoting," Dawn commented. She elbowed her twin, saying in a singsong voice, "Myles is he-re."

Lia's death glare returned. "I noticed, of course he is, and furthermore, shut up," she hissed. Everyone, with the possible exception of Myles himself, knew that Lia majorly like the half-demon boy. Consequently, her friends were constantly teasing her about him.

Now Lyn was smirking too. "Touchy, touchy."

Lia huffed and threw herself down into the nearest unoccupied chair. "Why is the whole world against me?" she moaned.

"Karma?" Diana suggested helpfully, jumping into the conversation. The petite girl was a year younger than Lia, and another of her close friends. She was generally quiet, but loved to tease.

"See?" Lia said, curling into a ball. "All I want is an aspirin and a hot chocolate, but instead I get apocalyptic research and these buffoons getting on my case all the time." She waved a hand vaguely in the direction of her friends.

"Too be fair," Diana pointed out, "we don't actually know there's anything apocalyptic about it yet. That's just the likeliest assumption, based on how these things usually go."

Lia just glared. "I don't care about being fair."

"So," Dawn said loudly, changing the subject. "What's the what?"

"Yeah," Myles added. "What is this research party for?"

Giles, who was generally recognized as the patriarch and administrative leader of the whole extended Scooby clan, laid out an apparently ancient manuscript on the table. "These are the Manchurian Scrolls. They contain vital information about mystical forces that have been increasing recently. They appear to be critical to our efforts to prevent any cataclysmic occurrences, but still require translation," he explained.

The group set about the task, those who were best with languages attempting to work out the text while the rest looked up references to the prophecies and searched for any related sources they could find. They habitually divided into their own little groups, with the teens mostly divided from the adults.

Lia took an inordinate amount of pleasure in Myles sitting down next to her, despite the fact that he was merely taking his usual spot.

"I don't care if he's from England, that man's first language is not English. It's book-speak," he commented.

Lia laughed, and absent-mindedly fidgeted with her Celtic cross necklace. "Yeah, Giles should not be allowed to explain things. I'm pretty sure that statements could've been boiled down to 'the scroll's important; translate it or we're screwed,' but instead we get to play 'count the big words'."

"I still wanna know if there's an apocalypse," Lyn said.

"I don't really care, so long as it's not this week," Lia replied. "I'm not fighting anything until my body decides to stop torturing me."

"You said that before. Stop playing the suffering card already. You're overdramatic and it's getting really annoying," Dawn muttered.

"I'm with you," Diana agreed. "I've got a Chem test on Friday."

"And you're worrying why?" Lyn asked. "Everyone knows you're frickin' brilliant."

"It's like the definition of Diana," Dawn added. She mimed opening a dictionary. "Diana Osbourne (noun): Small, female, redhead, quiet, brilliant."

Lia smiled at the accuracy of the description. It was funny, she was so much like Aunt Willow it was freaky. No one ever would've guessed she was adopted.

Diana blushed. "I am not! I get good grades; it's not the same thing. And that's because I actually care about school, unlike you slackers. Hence the concern about the Chem test," she protested.

"Naw, you're a genius, Di. Accept it and move on," Myles told her.

"I am not!" Diana exclaimed.

Myles rolled his eyes. "Whatever you say."

"Aren't we supposed to be working on the prophecy thing?" Diana asked, quickly changing the subject.

The tactic worked, and conversation subsided as the teens turned their attention back to the work at hand.