Chapter Two

They made their way back onto the bus, with Xander taking a seat behind the wheel. Buffy let out a sigh of relief upon seeing him start the engine of the bus, knowing that with him driving they would make much better time to L.A.

She made her way down the aisle and headed toward the back of the bus, with Faith moving quickly in front of her. She watched as Faith made it to the last seat and just like before, plopped her entire body down the length of the seat, closing her eyes instantly. The girls watched as their fearless leader slowly made her way passed them. No one said a word… except for one.

"So Buffy, if Willow's your sister… does that make me your sister in-law or something?" she asked with a chuckle, causing a few giggles to come out of the mouths of the other girls as well. Willow lightly and playfully slapped Kennedy on the shoulder from where she was seated next to her.

"Were you eavesdropping?" Willow asked in a high pitched tone.

"No!"

Willow turned to face her girlfriend and Buffy could only smile at the face she made. It was that typical Willow resolve face. The one that no matter what you did, you couldn't fight.

"Okay so maybe we were listening in! Come on!" Kennedy urged, looking from Willow back to Buffy.

Buffy for her part didn't say anything, she just smiled back at Kennedy and continued to make her way down the aisle listening to Willow and Kennedy playfully bicker, until she reached where Dawn was sitting, and plopped her tired body down next to her little sister.

She surveyed the bus and looked at the girls… some resting with their eyes closed now, others talking quietly amongst themselves. She remembered the head count that Willow had given her. There were 14 new slayers that had survived. Only a little under half had survived. The guilt rose in the pit of her stomach as she remembered the faces of some of them as they hit the ground… their lifeless eyes staring back at her. She shook her head a little, trying to free the negative thoughts from her mind and in doing so, she caught a glimpse of Faith, fast asleep in the last seat on the bus. She then turned her head so she could look at Dawn who was still quietly looking out the window.

Dawn hadn't said a word since Buffy had sat down next to her on the bus. She deliberately was avoiding eye contact with her, in hopes that Buffy wouldn't see what was being hidden behind Dawn's eyes. It wasn't that she didn't want to talk to Buffy, it was more that she didn't know how Buffy was going to react. And the last thing she wanted right now was an angry Buffy, especially if they were on a bus with no where else to go.

Dawn had decided right away that she would just wait until they got where they were going before she said anything. She even considered talking to Willow first. But it was that very thought that was crossing her mind when Buffy had said all those amazing things about her outside when they were stopped. The words her older sister had spoken to her were beyond the nicest words she had ever heard from Buffy… and they made her feel guilty… guilty that she would ever consider confiding in Willow before her very own sister.

So she decided right then and there that she would just avoid Buffy until they got to L.A., where she would have time to think of the best way to explain things to her… and have somewhere to run to if, or better yet, when, Buffy freaked out on her. What she hadn't counted on was Buffy sitting next to her. She was sure that Buffy would fall back to sleep in a seat by herself, or even sit and talk with Giles about what she had planned for the new slayers.

"You alright Dawnie?" Buffy asked, causing Dawn to jerk her head and hit it loudly against the glass window she had been staring out of before. She held her hand to her head and grimaced slightly, before turning to Buffy.

"I'm fine," she said quickly, focusing her attention anywhere but at Buffy's eyes.

"You don't seem fine," Buffy replied. She could tell immediately that Dawn was doing her best to avoid her gaze. And despite Buffy having not been the best sister/mother role model of the century, she knew when Dawn had something she was trying to hide.

"Just tired," Dawn replied again, turning to look back out the window and resting her head against the glass carefully this time. Buffy frowned as she studied Dawn in the seat next to her. She considered for a moment that Dawn was just upset over those that they had lost in the battle, or even that she was worried for Xander or all of them and what was going to happen next. But something inside of Buffy told her it was more than that, and no matter how long she looked at the side of Dawn's head, she couldn't shake that feeling.

"Liar," Buffy said after a couple of minutes. Dawn could feel Buffy's eyes looking at her the entire time she was staring out the window and she tried her best to put on a smile and face her sister.

"I promise Buffy, I am fine," Dawn said, the last word coming out sounding a little more strained than she would have liked.

"Sure, if you define fine as hiding something from me." Dawn just looked down at her hands then and she held them together tightly, knowing that she was not going to be able to get out of this conversation and wait to talk to Buffy until she got to L.A. like she had wanted to. "So spill it Dawnie… what's up?"

"Okay, but before I do you have to promise me that you will sit there quietly and listen… that you will hear me out before you freak out on me," Dawn said as she turned so she could look at her sister a little better on the seat next to her.

"Like I ever freak out on you!" Buffy replied.

"Buffy! You have got to be kidding me!"

"Okay, okay… fine. I will hear you out. So you better tell me what is going on and I would just like to say that if you are pregnant, I take back the promise that I just made," Buffy said very sternly and with the most serious face she could muster.

"Well, I was going to wait to tell you but since you guessed..." Buffy's eyes practically bugged out of her head as Dawn said the words and Dawn could see the steam start to come out of her ears. She realized just a split second before Buffy lost it all together, that Buffy had actually believed her. She smiled and laughed out loud. "I'm just kidding Buffy… relax will ya?"

Buffy bit her tongue and reclined in her seat a little bit. That was the last thing she needed… to find out Dawn had been getting down and dirty with someone before the battle. The thought actually made Buffy want to throw up, so she chose to quickly speak so the thought would vanish from her mind.

"Now that you have officially freaked me out… Dawn what's really going on?" Buffy asked as sincerely as she could. Dawn took a deep breath and held it for what seemed like a century before she finally spoke.

"Okay… well… I think that when Willow did that spell… you know, the one with the scythe? I felt something… I mean in the school… when we were fighting… something happened," Dawn tried to spit the words out but they just wouldn't come.

"Did you get hurt? Are you alright?" Buffy asked suddenly very concerned for Dawn. Dawn held her hand up before Buffy could touch her and shook her head.

"No Buffy, I didn't get hurt."

"So what then… you felt something… what do you mean Dawnie?" Buffy asked now growing more and more worried by the second and still completely unaware of what Dawn was getting at.

"I felt a surge of power rush through me… and all of a sudden… I felt strong. I think… Buffy… I think I'm a slayer now too."

There was a long dramatic pause between the two sisters. They had their eyes locked on one another and Dawn's breathing had become more and more erratic as she let out the words she had been so afraid to say. She knew exactly what Buffy was going to say… this wasn't the life her big sister had envisioned for her. She had always wanted a normal life for Dawn… one that she herself could never have. Dawn had watched Buffy all these years struggle with her calling… with the life that was chosen for her. Buffy for her part, was trying to process, but despite giving a lot of effort, the words just lingered there in her mind, not making much sense at all.

"I'm sorry, I thought I just heard you say you are a slayer now," Buffy said after about a minute passed.

"I did say that Buffy."

More silence. More trying to process. This was not the life that Buffy wanted for Dawn. She wanted her to finish high school, go to college, travel and see the world. Date, get married, have babies, do all those things that Buffy would never have the opportunity to do because she was chosen to be a slayer. She had given up on the idea that she could live a normal life, but that didn't mean that she had given up on that idea for Dawn. She wanted everything for her sister and being a slayer was not in Buffy's life plan for Dawn.

"Buffy? Are you okay? You are turning kind of red," Dawn asked. She had waited as long as she could before she asked the question, but the silence was driving her insane. Buffy let out a breath then, one she had obviously been holding in and the red dissipated from her face.

"Are you sure Dawnie? I mean, maybe you were just all pumped up from the fight and everything… maybe it was… oh what is that chemical your body produces?" Buffy questioned, trying to make her explanation make sense.

"Adrenaline?" Dawn answered for her.

"Yes! That's it! Maybe it was just adrenaline from the fight," Buffy tried to reason.

"I can still feel it Buffy… the power… I can feel all the other slayers on this bus and the ones that are out there in the world. It wasn't just adrenaline Buffy… it was something more."

"But how is that even possible? When Willow did that spell it would have led us to you, showing us you were a potential slayer… it didn't," Buffy said turning more to her sister.

"I don't know Buffy," Dawn said softly. "I really don't know why… but I know I feel it."

"How could this happen?" Buffy asked, putting her hands through her hair and questioning no one in particular.

"You said it yourself Buffy… I am made from you. The monks made me from your blood, your essence. It makes sense if you think about it. So now that I'm a slayer… I was thinking…" Buffy covered her face with her hands and rubbed her temples slightly before cutting Dawn off.

"Don't you understand Dawnie? I wanted more for you. I wanted everything for you! More than a life that was consumed by demons and vampires. You have no idea what it is like to live this life day in and day out! A slayer's life is short… and it's brutal… and you deserve more than that!"

"But what about what I want Buffy?" Dawn asked in a raised voice.

"You can't be serious Dawn! You have no idea of the sacrifices you will make… the pain and suffering you will go through! I want more than that for you," Buffy said. Dawn sucked in a breath and turned to look back out the window. She felt as Buffy put her hand on her shoulder.

"But that's just it Buffy… you want more than that for me. You have my whole life planned out for me. Me, I like being a part of this world. When I was younger that's all I ever wanted was the be a part of the group… be helpful… be one of the Scoobies. But now here is my chance, to be a part of this for real… and I want to take it." Dawn turned back to face her sister then.

"Dawnie…"

"No Buffy! You think I don't know what it's like to suffer? I may have not suffered from being a slayer but I've had my fair share. I watched you jump to your death to save my life… to save the world. I sat in a dark room with the dead body of one of my closest friends who had been gunned down for no reason! Mom died Buffy! Mom died! And if being a slayer means that I can help just one person… just one person not go through the pain of losing a loved one… then it will be more than worth it to me."

Buffy let the words sink in. She used the time to stare directly into Dawn's eyes and watched as images flooded her mind. Images of Dawn following them all around, doing everything and anything she could to be a part of their group. The early days where she always seemed to be around but Buffy always managed to push her to the side. Images of the past few months… watching from afar as Dawn sat going through book after book looking for information that might help with the upcoming battle. The memories hit her all at once. Memories that weren't all real, but still memories that Buffy had of the young woman in front of her.

"Are you sure Dawnie? You sure you really want to do this? Train with the rest of the girls, be a slayer?" Buffy asked, her voice barely over a whisper. Dawn's eyes grew bigger at the question.

"Positive," she replied back. "I mean I want to train and I will train with the other girls… but I want to train with you Buffy. I want to do this and I want you to be the one to teach me," Dawn said and watched as tears formed involuntarily in her big sisters eyes.

"You… you want me to train you? You mean like just the two of us? On top of the other training?"

"Yes… be your apprentice of sorts," Dawn explained. "What do you think?" Dawn expected a long dramatic pause, the kind that Buffy was so good at. She expected to be sitting there on pins and needles waiting for a response. But it didn't take more than a couple of seconds before those tears that had formed in Buffy's eyes slowly dripped down her cheeks and she pulled Dawn close to her in a tight hug.

"I would be honored… and I'm so proud of you," Buffy said into Dawn's shoulder and Dawn relaxed then into the hug. She closed her eyes and hugged Buffy back, sure that there was no way she was going to be able to stop her own tears.

The hug went on for what seemed like forever, each of them clinging onto to one another as though they had finally found each other after years of searching. And in a way it was like that for them both. They finally had a common ground between them. They had always seemed so different, which led to countless fights and bickering as sisters do. But now they were both slayers. They really were the same after all.

"You really are strong," Buffy said with a little giggle into Dawn's ear after several minutes of hugging. Dawn laughed back and they separated, pulling back to look at one another.

"Everything alright you guys?" Willow asked as she kneeled down in the aisle looking at both the Summers women. She noticed the sisters having a conversation, hearing voices being raised and then soften again, and saw Buffy's expressions change from worry, to anger, to fear, to happiness and then to pride all in a matter of minutes. When tears followed, Willow knew she needed to check on them.

"Everything is perfect actually," Buffy said, still looking at Dawn.

"Oh okay, good. Now Buffy, I was thinking about the rooming situation for when we get to L.A…. and we have 14 new slayers…" Willow began.

"Actually, we have 15," Buffy interrupted as her eyes met her best friends.

"15? I did the count twice Buffy and I'm really good at math which wasn't your strongest subject…"

Buffy frowned at Willow's words. Dawn burst out laughing and Willow for her part just sat there trying to figure out what to say.

"Hey! No making fun of my educational skills!"

"I didn't mean it like that, I really didn't!" Willow exclaimed. Buffy's frown turned into a smile and it relaxed Willow.

"I know you were joking Will. But I wasn't wrong about the count either… Dawn is a slayer too."

It took a minute before the reaction came, but when it did come from Willow's mouth, there was no way that anyone on the bus didn't hear it. It was a high pitched tone, one that Buffy had never actually heard before and she didn't know whether to consider it a squeal or a squeak.

News of Dawn's new slayer ability traveled through the bus in a matter of seconds, reaching everyone, who made their way closer to Buffy and Dawn's seat to say their congratulations. Buffy stood as the crowd gathered and caught eyes with Faith, who had been awoken from all the commotion and was seated with her back against the window and legs stretched out across the bus seat.

As Buffy made her way to the back of the bus to sit by Faith, she passed Giles who was muttering under his breath while headed back to his seat.

"Oh just what I needed… another bloody Buffy to train… it will be just like old times," he said under his breath.

"Hey!" Buffy said as she heard him muttering and he looked up at her in passing.

"Of course it will be enormous amounts of fun… really, it's splendid," he responded.

"Come on Giles… you know I'm your favorite slayer," Buffy said with a grin. Giles responded with a bright smile of his own… glad to see Buffy in such good spirits. They said nothing more to one another and Giles headed back to the front of the bus and Buffy made her way to the back.

"So, little sis is one of us now huh? How's that make you feel B?" Faith questioned. She knew that one year ago Buffy would have been pissed to find out her baby sister was going to be a slayer, and she wasn't quite sure if the way Buffy was acting now was a show, or if she really was happy for Dawn.

"It isn't what I imagined for her that's for sure," Buffy replied as she made her way to the seat Faith was in, Faith moving her feet for Buffy to have a seat.

"It ain't that bad B. Besides… she ain't the only one this time around. Maybe she can have a semi normal life like you always hoped she would," Faith said.

"I know, but she's my sister, and I guess I just worry that's all," Buffy said, looking down at her hands.

"Nothin' to worry about B… you said it yourself, she's made from you."

"What does that mean?" Buffy asked. Her tone wasn't mean, more inquisitive. She was still surprised that Faith had been listening to her when she was talking to the others earlier.

"She's made from the best slayer to ever live… she's bound to be a natural," Faith responded, not even thinking about the words before they came out of her mouth and just saying exactly what she had wanted to say. It felt good to be able to be honest with Buffy, and Faith was just hoping that things would continue to be this easy between them.

Buffy for her part was surprised by the words Faith had spoken. She had always thought that Faith was a little envious of how people always referred to Buffy as the greatest slayer. But she had said the words with such truth behind them… such meaning. Buffy couldn't help but smile at Faith and the compliment.

They sat in silence then, side by side, both of them just looking out the window as the dirt and dust rolled by. Each of them lost in their own thoughts… their own worries about what the future would hold. Buffy looked away from the window again, and noticed as Xander glanced at her from the rearview mirror before quickly jerking his eye back to the road when he saw she noticed.

Buffy stood from her seat then, telling Faith she would be back, and headed up the aisle of the moving bus. Everyone had moved to the middle, closer to Dawn so they could be in on the conversation. Dawn and Kennedy were sitting side by side with one another, doing most of the talking. Buffy got to the front of the bus, kneeling down next to Xander as he drove. He never took his eye off the road.

"You knew didn't you?" she asked him despite already knowing the answer. "Why didn't you say anything?"

He looked at her then, just for a brief second before flicking his attention back to the empty road ahead of him.

"Didn't think it was my place Buff… plus, I wasn't sure. It's not like when it happened a big shiny light hit her or sprinkled sparkly slayer dust on her head. But yeah, I kind of thought," he explained.

Buffy took his explanation and didn't say another word about it. Instead, she did her best to soften her tone before saying something else to him.

"I'm sorry," was all she was able to say, but he knew exactly what she meant.

"Don't be. It isn't your fault."

"Are you going to be alright?" Buffy asked. At the moment Xander didn't know the answer to the question she presented to him. He knew that the worst was yet to come. He had done everything since they got on the bus to avoid thinking about Anya's death and tried to instead be useful.

When he didn't respond, Buffy reached out and slowly put her hand on his shoulder. He flinched a little at the touch, but didn't turn to face her, still keeping his focus on the road.

"I'm here if you need to talk or anything," she said quietly. He smiled at her words, but instead of responding to them, chose to change the subject. He knew eventually he would want to talk, but he still wasn't ready right now.

"So… you and Faith huh? How's that going?"

"We've been on this bus for over an hour now and haven't killed each other… that's got to mean something right?" she replied in question to him. His chuckle made her smile. He still had his sense of humor at least.

"You think that she'll stick around?"

"I do… I don't know, there is just something… different about her this time around."

"She has changed a lot from the wild Faith we knew when we were teenagers. But we all have changed I guess right?" Xander asked.

"I guess we have," Buffy responded, a little more quietly than she had been speaking before. She stood up then, giving him one more squeeze on his shoulder before making her way back down the aisle to the back of the bus where she could see Faith was still sitting looking out the window.

As she passed she heard the conversations going on around her. Most of the new slayers were back in their own seats, quietly talking to the person sitting next to them. Kennedy was still sitting next to Dawn, and they were laughing and joking with one another, as if they had been friends for years. Buffy heard Willow and Giles discussing plans for their arrival in L.A. She considered sitting down with them and giving them a further detailed description of just what she had in mind. But instead she just offered them a smile before passing them and making her way back to where Faith was seated.

"Hey," she said as she sat back down next to Faith.

"What a day huh? Big battle, big news with Dawn…" Faith started only to be interrupted by her stomach making a loud growling noise that would have scared a bear.

"Jeez Faith!"

"What? You know that slaying makes me hungry and horny!" Faith responded as she raised her eyebrows suggestively at the blonde next to her.

"Still going on about that huh?" Buffy replied.

"Still denying it B?"

"I never denied it, I just don't talk about it so much," Buffy said quietly. Faith turned then, so her body was facing Buffy more and she could look directly at her.

"I always thought all you needed was a non-fat yogurt to satisfy you after a good fight," Faith smirked. Buffy looked at Faith then, their eyes catching. There was a twinkle in Faith's eyes, one that Buffy hadn't seen in a long time. The last time they had been able to have a conversation like this felt like a lifetime ago. They were both such different people.

"Things change," was all Buffy replied and she wiggled her eyebrows in return. Faith looked stunned for a second, but she recovered quickly and let out a chuckle.

"Yeah… I guess they do."

They sat then in comfortable silence. Again, it was something that Buffy hadn't had with Faith since… well… ever. But in this moment she was completely content sitting next to the brunette as the bus rolled on. She let her eyes close as the sounds of chatter from the girls died out and sleep took over once more.

When she woke, it was with a jolt. She realized pretty quickly that her head was resting on Faith's who was also asleep and that Faith had somehow during their nap managed to get a arm wrapped around the blonde, almost in a protective manner. Buffy sat up carefully, as not to wake Faith and stretched out her tired body. She could tell that she had been sleeping for a good amount of time, as the pain from her wound in her abdomen was gone and there was nothing much more to show than a deep scratch on the surface of her skin. She looked outside and noticed the dark sky, before making her way up the aisle to where Giles was sitting at the front of the bus.

Kennedy was now behind the wheel and Willow moved over so Buffy could occupy the seat across from Giles.

"We should be there soon," Willow said as she looked out the window. Buffy followed and looked once more, suddenly with a feeling of worry washing over her. She looked back just in time to see Faith coming up the aisle and the dark slayer stopped in the aisle just between Giles and Buffy.

"You see that out there?" she asked, pointing out the window. The sky was dark and cloudy and just as they were focusing outside, they felt as the bus came to a stop in the dead center of a roadway.

"What the fuck is going on?" Kennedy asked from behind the wheel. Buffy and Faith looked at each other quickly, and Faith was to the door with Buffy hot on her heels. The Chosen Two charged out the door and down the steps, standing on the pavement side by side.

The streets of L.A. were filled with chaos. Fires burned in every direction and the sounds of people screaming could be heard loudly. They both looked up into the sky one last time, just in time to see a dragon tear through the blackness as it let out a high pitched sound of fury.

They turned so their eyes met once again, both with the same thought on their mind which they expressed at the exact same time.

"Angel!"