Disclaimer: I own nothing that the BTVS crew made up!

Author's Note: Debating whether to keep this chapter or not. Feedback, please! I'M SERIOUS! PLEASE GIVE ME FEEDBACK! Thanks for reading, and (as always) R&R!

Rock Bottom

Dawn huddled in the bushes bordering the graveyard, surrounded by various shrubs. It was all she could do to gasp for breath between sobs. There was nothing that could happen to make the situation worse. She had hit rock bottom and wasn't coming up any time soon.

Briefly, an image of the mysterious vampire appeared in her head. Through some sick connection, she felt a little zap of electricity go through her body at the sight of him. It was then that she lost control of her body. It happened so quickly she didn't even feel it coming, but before she knew it she was covered in vomit. Her ribs seared with pain as her stomach heaved again. She sat for a few minutes, miserable, until she had no energy left. Lying down on the leaves and dirt, she closed her eyes and tried to sleep.

XXX

When she finally had the strength to pry her eyelids open, Dawn saw that the sky had changed from blue to black. Her hair had fallen into the vomit, and her stomach was weak. Her throat burned with thirst, and there was nothing but bile in her stomach. After nearly ten minutes, she hauled herself up into a sitting position and looked around. While she was sleeping she had rolled out of the bush, and was now clearly visible.

A few feet away there was a jacket, sweatpants, and a shirt , a sandwich, and a cup of water arranged neatly on the grass. Dawn could guess who'd put them there, but she didn't care. Who gave a crap if Spike of Buffy wanted her to come back? She was starving, and she was going to eat any food that was shoved at her.

Half crawling, half dragging herself across the grass, Dawn made her way to the arrangement with as much energy as she had left. When she reached it, she picked up the sandwich with shaking hands and hungrily devoured it. After emptying the cup of water, she stripped down to her bra and underwear, throwing the vomit-covered robe onto the wet grass beside her, and slipped into the comfortable clothes that had been left for her. It was definitely warmer and more comfortable, and for just one moment Dawn had a tiny light of hope; things just might be a little bit better for the first time in three weeks. But then the hope was shattered. Whirling around, Dawn turned to face Buffy, fully clothed once again.

"You—" Buffy cut her off.

"Dawn. Tell me what happened." The Slayer's voice was rough and it cracked when she said her sister's name.

"You slut! I hate you!" Dawn cried. Buffy's eyes filled, but she didn't cry.

"Dawnie, please! You have no idea what—" Her voice was barely more than a whisper.

"I have no idea what you're going through?" Dawn shot back. "Things were so bad you went to Spike for alleviation? Well, it looked like you two were doing a little more than sharing your sins. You—"

"It was the only thing that made the pain go away." Buffy's voice was barely audible. When Dawn saw her face, she looked broken. For a second, she felt bad, but then she took hold of herself.

"If we're talking about painful, I think I have a lot more discussion topics than you." Her tone was as icy as she wanted it to be. "I'm pregnant."