a/n ok so this is a lot longer than the 2 weeks i thought it was going to be. Sorry. A lot of things happened at once. the quick version of this being new university, ROTC responsibilities, joining the mock trial team, getting a new job, getting into a car accident, breaking old computer in said accident, getting a concussionin said accident, having some mild speech and memory issues, getting a new computer, trying to catch up in school, plus more work. and family stuff. and that my friends is the short version. But i promise I am working on this story. I have a lot of ideas of where I want it to go and some on how I"m going to get it there so please read and review!

The baby shower passed peacefully with out one single major crisis, not even a minor one. The vampires were out and running again, something that Buffy could honestly say reassured her as having them around at least gave the illusion that things might be getting close to normal. Dawn continued to grow bigger and bigger and by the time January rolled around she was a healthy one month plus change old baby.

"Spike!" Buffy called to the general upstairs of the house. She knew he was in Dawns room giving her a bottle but she was in a hurry and didn't want to run up the stairs.

"What?" The souled vampire called.

"I'm heading out for patrol! I should be back sometime around one or two, I have a test at ten tomorrow so I'll make it a short one." She yelled, sadly she had one last final before winter break.

An affirmative sort of grunt came from up stairs. Buffy took this as her cue to head out. She had a lot of pent up energy and needed a good slay tonight. She decided to swing by the cemetery before heading to Willy's to see if anything new came up. After all just because things seemed normal didn't mean they were. Maybe Glory was up to something. Maybe they wouldn't have to call the council.

The Scoobies plus Spike decided to give it until Buffy, Willow and Tara finished their term at University. If they didn't have any new information they would call the council. Give them bits of information, just enough to get answers but try their best to keep the truth about Dawn hidden. Slowly it looked more and more like it would be their last hope. They needed to find something. Anything really by this point.

Buffy only half paid attention as she patrolled. Maybe that's why what happened, happened. Maybe she just had an off night. Maybe this vamp was just a bit quicker but the next thing Buffy knew she was fighting.

The vampire jumped out from behind a near by mausoleum. With out thinking she went into attack mode. Duck, skip to the side, aim strike. At least that's what should have happened.

The vampire dropped into a fighters crouch identical to Buffy's own. For a few moments they circled each other, taking the time to size each other up. Buffy darted in with a lunge feinting to the right before stabbing to the left. The vampire dodged easily before returning with an attack of his own. Buffy dodged with equal quickness. The vampire was not the most skilled she fought, not by a long shot. Spike and Angle out pared him by far. She as a fighter held the upper hand. She could feel herself grin. Not the happy grin she generally wore on her face but a slow, sly predatory grin that came when she knew she was the better fighter. When she knew that she was going in for the kill. For that is what she is, a predator. A lioness who turned other predators into her prey.

She lunged a second time this time kicking his legs out from under him. In the same swift moment she pinned him down with hips much like she did to Spike several months earlier. As she raised her stake to deliver the final blow she felt a searing pain across her stomach. She clutched the area only to feel a hot sticky mass spread across her shirt. She quickly rolled off and away from the vamp trying to access the damage.

A red stain quickly had spread to cover the entire stomac of her shirt. She had no choice left but to get the hell out of there. Clutching her stomach tightly she did the only thing she could. She ran.

She managed to make it to the Magic Shop. Giles was still there to work on some inventory. Buffy stumbled into the store. The red stain grown to cover not just her stomach but also to cover her breasts and large portions of her back.

"Giles!" She cried out to the silent shop, "Help!"

The elderly man hurried into the main room.

"Buffy!" he cried. "Hurry to the back. On the table. Quickly."

He hooked his arm under her shoulder supporting half her weight on his. He helped her up on to the small black medical table in the corner.

"Can you get your shirt off?" He asked as he got the medical kit ready. Long ago when Buffy returned from her summer in LA the pair struck a deal. He would care for as many of her various battle wounds without telling her mother. Her mother worried enough about her daughter as a slayer, she didn't need to know when Buffy was injured.

"No" Buffy gasped in pain. This was by far one of the worst wounds she had ever received. Well aside from dying.

"OK, I'll grab the scissors. It'll probably need stitches." The watcher quickly cut away the fabric of the blood soaked shirt.

"Buffy, I know how you feel about this but maybe we should go to the hospital for this." Giles said as he started to clean the wound already anticipating the answer.

"No. Real hospitals mean real bills which means a real worried mom. She has enough on her plate. Just sew me up." She replied.

Giles sighed and finished cleaning the wound. He carefully threaded the medical needle and put in the minimal amount of stitches needed. He than put a several large butterfly bandages over the wound before wrapping Buffy's entire torso in a white bandage.

After they both cleaned up, Buffy changing into a pair of cloths she kept at the Magic Shop the pair sat around the table, each with a cup of tea.

"So what was it?" Giles asked.

"A vampire." Admitted Buffy.

"You mean a gang of vampires?" Giles clarified.

"Nope, one measly on your own run of the mill vampire. He must have had a knife I didn't see or something. Because one minute I'm making with the stakey and the next he almost shishkabobed me."

"I don't understand." Giles said.

Buffy looked up at him. Speaking slowly she said, "Vampire plus knife equal hurt Buffy."

"No, no, no I understood what you said but was it a super strong vampire?"

"Nope. A normal vampire." Buffy paused, "Giles I don't understand. One vampire, a kinda wimpy one at that, almost killed me tonight how?"

"Well how did the fight go?" Giles inquired.

"He tried to jump me. We fought. I pinned him. Raised my hand to stake and he slashed me. It was all text booky, well minus the stabby part. That not so much." Buffy replied.

Giles thought for several moments before he could speak again Buffy spoke back up.

"Giles, how did… how did the other girls die? What got them in the end? I need to know Giles. A regular vamp almost took me out tonight. I need to be ready. Just in case. I need to know how they died so I don't die that way. Know what mistakes they made. Giles I need help. Now more than ever I cant die. They need me."

She didn't elaborate on who they were nor did Giles ask.

"There might be something in the watchers diaries. We can start to look at least."

Several hours later when the dawn began to crest the horizon Buffy slammed the final journal shut.

"Not one of them!" She exclaimed. "Not one of them tells what happened in the end. Its all fight fight fight and than she's dead. No detailed explanation. Why!" At the end of her mini rant she gave a great huff of frustration.

"Well if those watchers are anything like me," Giles started, "I expect they find it to…"

"Gory?" Buffy cut across, "Death to icky for the British to write about?"

"Well I was going to say painful." Giles responded.

"If only I could talk to someone who was there. Who knew what happened exactly." After she finished her sentence what she said dawned on Buffy.

"Giles! That's it." She exclaimed, "I need you and mom to watch Dawn tonight. Come over to the house." She glanced at the clock, "Crap. I got that test in a few hours. I'm going to grab a nap in back. Come over at about 6-7 that's just after sunset. I need to talk to Spike."

She hurried off to the back leaving Giles with a bemused look on his face. After a moment he realized what the slayer had meant. He smiled to himself. That idea, well it might just work.