Dawn IV

Previously Parallel time.

She was trying to focus on researching the Hades son deal or Osiris or whatever, but it was boring the hell out of her. Many days had passed and Dawn could swear she had read every single book on the house on the subject. Still no progress. She wished Spike was there to keep her company, but her sister was out training and Giles had said it was not safe for the vampire to be left unwatched. So Spike was out being grounded and babysitted by Wood, a man which he hated. Dawn smiled at least she could make fun of her brother when he returned. Usually, she was glad to hit the books, she loved learning. However, despite the usual stuff, Hell god, Keeper of Darkness, kidnaped his wife, master of death yada yada yada... they had not made many progresson Hades. To her the only thing cool they had found was the three headed dog that belong to Hades... She frowned, tiredly. Sitting at the table Anya, Andrew, Xander and a couple of potencials had their noses deep into the research. Maybe it was okay if Dawn took a break, she really needed a break. Dawn's mind wandered back to Spike. He had said his family, the Stuarts were decendants of Kings and Queens.

The blue eyed girl looks sideways at the rest of the research party, then turns her eyes back to her notebook. Dawn had thought he was joking, but she types the name and there it was –The Stuarts, their sigil and history... from Scotland to England and even before that. Dawn snorted, it was weird to think of Spike as a member of a long lost royal family. Spike, the bloody fucking prince. She was yearning for when he got back so she could make fun of him. Dawn frowned her eyes at the screen, did this mean some how that she herself had blue blood runing through her veins? She tried searching more about the Stuarts and managed to find registry of William Stuart: born in 1850, under Queen Victoria's rule. There was a funny picture of him, dressed out like Giles that made her laugh out loud. Xander heard her, his head picked out of his book and he glaced at her screen. She had no time to cover it, the boy was already making fun: "Hey, what is that? Spikey playing Randy?" Xander grabs her notebook away from her as he says:- "It says royalty? Spike can't be royalty." Dawn frowns and tries to take the notebook away from the git as she says: -"Well he is... and so am I by extension, so I comand you to give it back".

Xander looks at her at laughs loudly: - "Yeah right.'' He turns to Anya and says: - "Do you believe this shit? Spike told Dawn that they are royalty. He even built a site, look." He showed Anya her notebook as Dawn kept hitting his large back, trying to get her notebook and screaming: -"Give it back, give it back!" Willow arrived just when Dawn had jumped onto Xander's back. The witch used her stern voice to order them to stop as Anya held the notebook and said: -"It looks leggit." A girl stepped in right after Willow and the witch said: -"This is a very nice way to meet a new guest. What are you guys doing?" Dawn looks at her feet and hears as Xanders apologizes: -"Sorry, Wills. What you got there another potencial slayer?" Dawn raises her head to see Willow nod and says: -"She just got attacked by bringers. Me and Faith rescued her." Xander weezes his way out of trouble saying: -"Well, let's get you settled then. A bath is just what you need." Dawn glares at him as he passes by her. Damn it, now she is left to explain. Willow is staring at her and Dawn says: -" What? He started it, he grabbed my notebook."

Anya hands her notebook back and says: - "Is this true?" Dawn nods, because not talking meant less trouble. She is confused when Anya patts her back and adds: - "Well, that can be the way then." Willow frowns, approaches them and says: -"What? What is in the notebook Dawn?" Stupid Andrew intervenes saying: -"Apparently, Spike and Dawn have blue blood." Dawn stares as Willow's eyes widen, yet she does not understand so she asks: -"What way? What are you guys talking about." Anya rolls her eyes while saying: -"About using your royal blood to contat Hades, you kinda slow for a potencial Queen. I am glad you have no kingdom." The ex-demon leaves to go to the kitchen. Dawn looks bewildered at Willow. She is glad as Xander rejoins them and repeats the question: -"What?" Willow shrugs and says: -"Gods relate to human Kings and Queens. Some even say queens and kings are descendants of Gods themselves. It means... It means that with some blood from Dawn, we could probably summon Hades." Dawn growls What is it with people wanting to use her blood to do weird things.

Anya comes back from the kitchen drinking apple juice and adds: -"But with the inbreeding and all, being a Kings descent it pretty much means nothing these days." They all frowns at Anya, but she continues: -"Well, Like you Dawnie. You could be the great great great great great great grandaugther of a King, that by his turn was the great great great son of a God, but by then it would not mean so much. Not with that much human blood in between." Willow interrupts her: - "But still it could work... I mean Hades won't be so mad, if you are the one to call... That is if you do have royal blood in your veins." Dawn nods and agrees: -"I say let's do it." Xander intervenes and says: - "This is madness, we should just wait for Spike to get back and make him do it." Just then Giles speaks: -"We can't wait for Spike. We will do it now. Are you up for it Dawn?" She had not noticed the watcher was there standing at the hall listening to what they were saying. Dawn nods once again, it soothes her when Willow says: -"We just need some candles, salt, a recepient and a bit of her blood." Xander seems worried as he says: -"What if she doesn't have kings blood? Spike is a liar."

Anya rolls her eyes and says: -"It is not like we can find another way, Xander. We have been researching for weeks. This is the only way, besides anything goes wrong we throw Andrew in as a tribute." The young girl feels panic start to rise as people start moving to get stuff for the ritual. She turns to Giles and asks: -"Where is Buffy?" The watcher does not look at her as he answers: -"She went to get Spike." Dawn wishes her brother and sister were there with her and hopes they get home soon. Anya handles a knife to her as Willow starts chanting and making the circle of salt around her. All the potencials are looking at them from the safe distance of the kitchen. Willow puts a recipent in front of her and nods at her to go ahead. The candles are already lite and Willow is muttering nonsense by the time her sister arrives. Dawn waves at Buffy from inside the circle, where she stands with a silver knife. She can not speak during the ritual, Willow told her. So Xander is the one left explanning: -"Seems that little Spike has royal blood, meaning Dawn has royal blood, meaning Osiris/Hades/what not will not be bothered with her calling to him."

Dawn smiles at her sister shocked face and it helps to muster her courage. She cuts her hand and lets her blood fall to the recipient. Outside the circle, Buffy exclaims: -'What the fucking hell!? Stop." Dawn had never seen her sister cuss like that, she snorts as Xander patts Buffy in the back and says: -"Yeah, my feelings were the same". They can not stop. Dawn tries to focus on the ritual, the recipiente is full of her blood, so she begins her pray: -"Blood of Kings to open gates. Hear me! Keeper of darkness. Blessed be your Kingdom, master of all our fates! Osiris come beforth, head my prayers. Hades, guardian of the underword, grant me grace of your divinity." Dawn looks around and nothing happens. She can see Buffy is screaming at Giles, but she can not hear what her sister is saying. Suddenly, all the flames of their candles extinguish. Dawn notices there is a great big ball of fiery flames floating in the center of her living room right in front of her. She gasps at it and tries to back away, but at her back Willow says: - No, stand inside the circle Dawn.' She does not know why she can hear Willow and not Buffy and the rest of them.

Dawn tries to stays still as a thundering voice comes from the fire: -"You summed me again, witch". Dawn looks around and then to fire she steps a little closer and says: -"Sorry. It was me." The voice inside the fire laughs: "You have the blood of a king you say, but where is your kingdom?" Dawn looks at Willow, she does not know what to say. She jumps a little as the scary voice continues: -"Well, you summoned, now speak child. The blood of Kings I can see it is there, but very faint... Speak, so I can know your lineage!" It is an order, Dawn knows. Yet she exitates on answering. She looks to Willow once again. The witch is saying speak... JUST speak. Dawn does not want to, she does not know why... but she needs to, so she puffs her chest out and says: -"I am Dawn, the key of the universe, sister half to the slayer line, half to the Stuart line." Dawn did not know why the words came in such fashion. She was just glad they did, she smile at her sister. Buffy now was looking at her with daggers in her eyes. Dawn tried to focus on the less dangerous fiery ball. The voice within the fire seemed calmer and softer as it stated: -"Dawn, where is William? Why it ain't he that calls?"

Dawn looks to Willow and shrugs. The witch mutter for her to be quick. Right, she has to ask him something. Dawn tries to think what is it... is there in the back of her mind somewhere. Her eyes grow larger as the firy ball begins to take shape. She can not think straight it frightens her. She looks to Willow, but she can not hear what the witch is saying... When she looks back there is a man standing in front of her ... a strong muscled man with curly black jet hair, a well trimed bearded and striking blue eyes. He stands too tall above her staring down at her. Dawn looks away from his eyes and says: -"Hades forgive me. I called upon your grace to ask a question which fled my mind at your presence. My sister figths the First and the beljoxas eye said it can only be defeated..." She is amazed when the God finishes her sentence saying: "By my son I know." Did Hades just smirk at her? Dawn sighs and says: -"So can you talk to him? Can we talk to him? Which son is it?"

Hades laughs at her, puts his hand on her head and messes up her hair. Dawn stares at him angrily as the God says: -"You do resemble him a lot." The black robes he wears glaze through the floor as he turns away from her. It reminds her of Spike's coat. Dawn is desperate as she says: -"Wait, you did not answer me." The God looks over his right shoulder and smirks at her: -"Yes I did. Tell my son that when the time comes, I will be waiting for his call." Dawn panics as Hades figures start to turn into fire again. She did not get that answer, Dawn screams: -" Wait! Who is your son!?" She wimpers as the voice from the fire ball says: -"Do not call other Gods, you have only half his blood, not hardly enough." Then puff he dissapears out of thin air. In an instant, her sister is grabbing her arms, shaking her and asking: -"Are you out of your mind? You okay?' Dawn doesn't care, she says: -"I am fine, Buffy." Then she turns, smiles at Willow and says: - "That was awe-someeeee! He was so big. Did you see the size of him?"

Xander is the one to answer: - "We saw nothing just a big fiery light". Giles squints his eyes at her and ask: -"You don't mean... You didn't see hades himself, did you?" Anya just smiles saying: - "He is a cutie isn't he? What? Everybody says so. Nerver saw him myself, but.." Dawn looks at Willow and knows she saw him too. She ignores the rest of them, goes to the witch and says: -"You saw him right? Did you see he messed with my hair? I did not get the answer he gave me... He kept asking why Spike hadnt been the one to call and said that I look like Spike... So I think it will work right, if spike calls?" Willow remained silent just staring at Dawn. Buffy was the one to speak saying: -" You are in so much trouble... all of you. Couldn't you wait for me and Spike to get here? Why would it work with Spike?" Before her sister can continue the questioning, Dawn says:- "Well is because he has kings blood, isn't that right Willow?" The with closes her mouth, than opens again, then closes once more before saying: -"Well, I don't... Yes... I don't think... the reason... Oh God, he looked just so much like Spike. You know... Spike with lots of black curly hair and the eyes."

Willow was now baking up and sitting down on the couch. Then it hit Dawn too, blue eyes -you look like him - where is William? Spike was HADES son! What the hell... her brother had some explaining to do. Giles seems to have got it too as he frowns and says: -" You can not mean that Spike could possibly be a son of Hades. Let alone the one we are looking for" Dawn beams up at the watcher and says: -"Thats exactly what she is saying and it makes sense. Hades said he wanted William to call, then he said that when the time came he would be for his son call. And he total smircked at me." Aaaah, Dawn was so excited she could have screamed, but Giles did not seemed thrilled as he said: -"Well, then we are fucked. Spike is gone." It seems that her heart is stabbed and Dawn stutters: -"Wha-at.. What do you mean g-gone?" Buffy steps foward and asks: -"He did not come back home?" Dawn tries to hold back her tears as she shakes her head negatively. Her sister is looks at her and says: -"Don't worry, I will bring him home." At their back, Giles calls: -"Buffy, I..." Her sister interrupts him by saying: -" He's alive. Spike's alive. Wood failed."

The sentence confuses Dawn, when was her brother ever alive or in danger of being not alive. Xander voices her questions: -"Alive? So Spike is not dead anymore or..?" Giles interrupts Xander by saying: -"Buffy, I understand your anger, but you still need to learn..."Dawn is in shock when her sister reponds at Giles: -" No, I think you've taught me everything I need to know." Buffy turns to Willow and says: -"I need to go get Spike, before he gets into any more trouble. You sure that he is Hade's son?" Willow nods and says: -'He is. I think that is why the First was after him so bad. It knew Spike could beat him, it wanted to break him" It made some sense to Dawn, but it still worried the youngest Summer girl. Dawn gulps as Xander asks: -"Why did the First not Kill Spike than? I mean it had him for quite a while..." Buffy winces and Anya answers saying: -"Silly, silly boy... who ever be stupid enough to kill the son of a God, let alone a son of Hades." Dawn sighs and asks: -"So he isn't in any danger then?"

Willow shakes her head and answers: -"I don't know... but Buffy, on the way back... me and Faith rescued a girl, she was running away from bringers. Seemed pretty scared..." Dawn frowns Faith, she hates that girl. She listens as Buffy says: -"Is the girl alright? where is Faith?" Willow answers: -"She went patrolling." Dawn can not understand why are they talking about Faith, when they need to get her brother back. Dawn protests saying: -"Enough about Faith... What about Spike?" Buffy sighs, heads for the front door, while saying: -"I am on it". Giles protests: -"Buffy, wait..." but her sister doesn't listen and is out the door in na instant. Dawn crosses her arms over her chest and says: -"So Giles, care to explain? Where is my brother I thought you said Buffy was out to get him..." The watcher takes out his glasses, starts to clean them and Dawn knows that he has screwed up. She hopes her brother is okay.