Warnings and disclaimer in Chapter 1. Enjoy.


"Giles," Anya greeted when he stepped through the door to The Magic Box. "You came to help me close up?"

"Not quite," he said, knowing the shop wouldn't close for another few hours. "Dawn came home from school and I took the chance to make my escape."

"You left Dawn alone with Ethan?" Joyce demanded as she came in from The Gallery.

"Andrew is still there," Giles said apologetically as he followed her into her office. "I know that's little consolation, but I did convince Ethan to give me back the key to the cell."

"How did you do that?" Joyce asked as she headed to the small couch in her office. Buffy was already there, laying on the couch as her mother obviously tried to get her to sleep. Joyce lifted her daughter up and slid behind her, pulling her daughter back into her lap and slowly stroking her hair. Her eyes slowly started closing, though she was fighting it.

"I calmed down to the point where he didn't fear for his life," he grinned. She returned his smile. "How was she today?" he asked quietly. Joyce sighed and looked down at her finally sleeping daughter.

"She kept trying to leave," she admitted. "She won't eat. She won't sleep. I'm at my wits end." She looked at him hard. "Why does she keep trying to go to Ethan?"

"I don't know," he admitted. "I'm assuming it's some sort of conditioning response, especially if she thinks he is one of her Masters. But I haven't the foggiest idea how to break her of the habit."

"I was thinking," Joyce started timidly, before glancing down to make sure her daughter was asleep. "Dr. Hansen has been asking Ben to schedule a follow up appointment down in L.A. He's been hesitant, but they've really been pushing these last few weeks."

"When did he tell you this?" Giles asked.

"At her last check up," she told him. "Maybe it would be a good idea to go." Giles was quiet for a long time.

"Are you concerned for her health?" he asked carefully.

"No," she shook her head, "at least not like that. Ben is doing a great job, but it never hurts to double check, especially now."

"Because of Ethan," he said knowingly. He sighed heavily, understanding exactly why she was saying this. "A follow up wouldn't take much more than a day," he reminded her, "even in L.A." She shrugged.

"So I'll turn it into a long weekend in L.A. Will that be long enough to get rid of Ethan?"

"I'm not sure," he told her. "I'm not even sure why he's here." Buffy started whimpering slightly, her body shifting in her sleep. Joyce soothed her back into a peaceful sleep. "I'll figure it out."

"You always do," Joyce smiled reassuredly before easing herself out from under her daughter. Buffy slept on, though she whimpered slightly at the change of position. "I'm going to call Ben," she said. Giles nodded, shifting his sleeping Slayer enough to slide under her. He soothed her back to sleep as he settled into the couch. Joyce smiled as she picked up the phone. A few minutes later she hung up. "They can get us in the day after tomorrow."

"Did you want to take anyone else?" he asked. She thought about it for a moment.

"No," she said after a minute. "I think it will be hard enough with just Buffy." He nodded. "Are you good to watch her for a while? I've got a lot to do if I want to leave so soon."

"We'll be fine," he nodded. "This is surprisingly comfortable." As if agreeing Buffy shifted, sighing contentedly. Giles smiled down at her fondly. Joyce watched them for a minute before turning back to her work. Willow helpfully brought Giles a book and he happily read throughout the early evening, Buffy sleeping soundly on his lap. Even engrossed in his book, he knew immediately when her dreams shifted into nightmares. "Buffy," he soothed quietly, unprepared when her eyes opened unexpectedly. She shifted away from him, caught up in her latest nightmare, but he held tight. The commotion brought Joyce racing in, but she stayed by the doorway and watched Giles handle the situation. He continued to soothe her until she regained her bearings. "Good evening," he greeted when she turned her face to look at him. She smiled brightly, looking around the room before she reached out to pick up the book he put down.

"Maybe not that one," Joyce said, moving to intercept her. She took the book and placed it on her desk. Ever since they caught Spike reading to her, they discovered she loved to curl up with someone and have them read out loud. Since then she always had two or three books in a pocket of her wheelchair. As much as she loved books though, Joyce thought she might object to the book Giles was reading, the latest edition of a demonology index he just got from the Council. "Let's try this one instead," she said, grabbing one of her books from her chair and handing it to Giles.

"Little Women," Giles groaned, but reached for the book. Buffy pulled herself up until she was leaning against his side instead of over his lap while he opened the book to the indicated page. He put his arm around her and she laid her head on his chest then he started reading. They were both content for the next few hours.


"Excuse me?" Tara looked up from the counter to see the elderly couple entering the shop.

"Can I help you?" she asked, smiling brightly as she moved from behind the counter and the piles of paperwork she had been working on.

"I hope so," the elderly woman said. She moved toward the counter after giving the store a cursory glance, while her husband examined the displays a bit more intensely. "I'm looking for the proprietor of this establishment."

"The p..proprietor?" Tara asked, stuttering slightly. Not from nerves; being welcomed into this group that loved and respected each other helped her overcome her fear of strangers years ago. This stutter was from fear. The last few years when things came looking for Joyce it was usually some demons looking for revenge on the Slayer and taking the next best thing; her mother's life. These two looked completely normal, but you never could tell around here.

"I'm sorry, but the proprietor is not available at the moment," Willow said, catching her stutter and moving to the other side of the counter with her girlfriend. "We would be happy to pass along a message." The elderly woman opened her mouth to say something else when they were disrupted by Dawn coming through the side door. She was in mid conversation with someone in The Magic Box as she was looking behind her as she approached the counter.

"I see it," she called over her shoulder as she approached the counter. "I don't know how it got mixed up with mom's things. Even I can't pretend it's art. Excuse me," she mumbled when she realized there were potential customers in the store. She quickly reached for her notebook, her hand freezing just a few inches from it when she realized who was there. With wide eyes she turned to the elderly couple. "Grandma. Grandpa. What a surprise."

"Hello Dawn," the elderly woman smiled briefly before noticing the baby in her arms. "And who is this?"

"This is Billy," she said, hugging the baby tightly. "And this it Tara and Willow," she introduced them quickly. "Guys, these are my grandparents, Irene and Steven Summers."

"Nice to meet you," Tara said politely while Willow's gaze kept flicking between Dawn and the two elders. "We'll just be in the office," she told them, throwing a concerned look Dawn's way. Dawn simply nodded, watching as Tara grabbed Willow's hand before making a quick escape. Dawn sighed before turning back to her grandparents.

"Is he the reason you did not graduate last year?" her grandmother asked critically, nodding to the baby.

"No," Dawn said, taking a deep, steadying breath before confronting her grandmother. "The reason I didn't graduate last year is because a few years ago our High School was destroyed. The administration focused on the Seniors, while it was decided the Freshman class would just retake the year."

"Oh," her grandmother sounded appropriately chastised. "Why didn't Joyce tell us."

"We had a lot going on here," Dawn said simply. She closed her eyes, allowing the memories of her mother sick as Glory tried to destroy their lives to wash over her momentarily, before forcing it back in the corner of her mind. She forced a smile on her face as she opened her eyes and faced the elderly woman. "What brings you by?"

"We were looking for your mother," Irene told her simply. "We drove by the house, but there was nothing but an overgrown field with the charred remains of a house."

"Yeah," Dawn told her. "We don't live there anymore. We had trouble with," she paused for a minute before shrugging, "rival gangs on PCP."

"We knew she owned the store and thought we would try here," her grandfather added, stepping up and giving her a quick hug.

"Well it worked, kinda," Dawn said, "cause you found me, but you missed mom. She's out of town for the weekend."

"And she left you alone," Irene said disapprovingly, "with this young one."

"Well," Dawn started, unsure how exactly to explain the situation without actually explaining it. She was distracted when the door opened again and her Aunt Nancy walked in followed by another. "Dad?" she asked in a whisper.

"Dawn," he whispered, coming over to give her a big hug. She froze, unable to process what was happening. He pulled back and Dawn stood there in shock. She glanced over at the door, unsurprised to find Giles and Anya standing in the doorway, watching the scene unfold.

"Dad," she managed to get out. "You look… different." He gave her a small, self-depreciating smile. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to check on Buffy," he started, shifting nervously from side to side before remembering who he was talking to. "And you and your mother of course."

"Well, you just missed both of them," Dawn said, shifting Billy slightly out of nerves. Hank saw the baby and reached out a shaking hand, stopping just short of touching him. Dawn subconsciously pulled Billy closer. "She went with mom out of town. They should be back in a few days, depending on how things go."

"What things?" her aunt asked. Dawn opened her mouth uncertainly and closed it again, looking at the group behind her helplessly.

"If it is only a couple of days we can wait," Irene said, glancing at her son intensely. He had started rocking back and forth, mumbling to himself quietly. "I'm sure there is a hotel around here where we can spend a few nights."

"No!" Dawn shouted, causing the family to jump. "It's just, you don't need to go to a hotel. You can stay with us."

"We don't want to impose," Steven said gently.

"It's okay. We have plenty of room. And that way when mom and Buffy get back you can see them right away." Her grandmother gave her a small, forced smile.

"I suppose we can see you home and then decide," she said. "At least then we'll know where you are when we visit." Dawn forced a smile on her face.

"That would be great," she forced out. Her grandfather nodded.

"We'll just go get the car," he said, indicating the family to follow him. "We weren't sure where the store was exactly so we parked at the end of Main Street." The others nodded as they followed him out. Dawn waved until the door closed, then her hand fell limply to her side. She turned to the gang gathered around the doorway, unsurprised to see Tara and Willow join them as soon as the shop door closed. "Hey guys," she said too cheerfully as she grabbed her notebook and headed back into The Magic Box. She could feel their eyes on her as she put the notebook into her backpack.

"So that was your father?" Giles asked. He was trying for casual, but it came out a bit strained.

"Yeah," Dawn told them as she closed up her school books. She looked up abruptly when she realized what she said and looked into Giles's eyes. "I mean, that was Hank. And his parents and sister."

"You're not close?" Anya asked with her usual bluntness. Dawn sighed.

"Hank tried, at least at first." Giles nodded, remembering the early days when Buffy and Dawn still spent summers and weekends with their father. "Mom never tried to keep Hank or his family out of our lives, but as we grew older he tried less and less. His family kinda followed suit. I think the last time we heard from them was Buffy's graduation, and that was a congratulatory phone call."

"And now you're inviting them to you home," Anya frowned. "These people are complete strangers to you and you're inviting them into your home?"

"They're still family, even if they are completely selfish bastards," Dawn told her.

"What about your houseguest?" Giles asked. Dawn frowned.

"Can you stay with him?" she suggested. He raised an eyebrow. "Not that I don't love having him there, but they are family and I don't want them to have to stay in a hotel. And I know mom would agree with me."

"I understand," he relented. "I can stay for a few days." They watched as she packed up her things. "We'll be over for dinner." Dawn nodded, knowing they would all show up just to make sure she was okay. She also knew that she only needed to say the word for Giles and the rest to run her family out of town. That thought caused her to smile.

"Okay," she said, juggling the baby for a minute before Willow stepped up and took him. They looked up as a car pulled up to the curb. Dawn took a deep breath before leaving the store.

"Are you ready to go?" her aunt asked, rolling down the window so they could talk. "What about your baby?" Dawn rolled her eyes.

"First, he is not my baby. Second, everybody here has helped take care of him. He'll be fine."

"Of course," her grandmother announced. "Whenever you're ready." Dawn nodded, grabbing her backpack before getting into their car. She climbed into the backseat next to her aunt. They chatted casually as Dawn directed them toward the house, a feeling of dread settling in the pit of her stomach.