Title: Songs

Author: Joy

Email: SleepingBeauty2@ziplip.com

The black sedan drove up to Revello drive and parked. Lorn shook his head as he gathered his bag. The place radiated with power and destruction. A thousand fights, arguments, and preparations for battle had happened behind these walls. He could already feel the Slayer's presence and frustration. "Better get this show on the road," he muttered.

Lorn stood on the porch awkwardly as he rang the bell. "Suburbs…"

A teenage girl answered the door with long brown hair. She resonated a perfect C pitch. "Wow… Spike told me what to expect but… Come on in," she said leading him in taking in his attire and appearance. "Your eyes are cool," she said curiously.

"Yeah well, I personally like my complexion. How many people tan Green?" Lorn stated genially.

"Lorn," Spike called, taking his friend's hand, "Thanks for coming."

"Sure… Anything for my favorite Lear."

"Excuse me?" Buffy asked raising an eyebrow.

"I met him at a production of King Lear. He ate the lead of my show so I forced him to go on… And damn, was he good," Lorn stated with a huge grin.

"Guess I know who to come to for help with Shakespeare next time. Buffy was no help with MacBeth. She just kept saying Lady MacBeth got a bum wrap," Dawn said crossing her arms.

"Oh, I like you. You're a firecracker aren't you?"

"Dawn, this is Lorn. He will be by your side for a while. Lorn this is Buffy… the slayer, the love of Angel's life, the twice dead but never beaten, the one and only… Chosen One," Spike introduced.

"You forgot to mention the ever beautiful, longest living and toughest fighting slayer there has ever been, and the love of your undead life," Lorn filled in.

"That too…" Spike smirked.

Buffy stood coolly and shook Lorn's hand. "What an intro…"

"Your reputation precedes you… You're the only human on God's green earth that has ever changed the nature of a demon's heart… in fact two of them. I'd say you've gone down in the annuls of history for a variety of reasons."

"Yeah well… This is Willow, my best friend. She lives with us and helps with Dawn," Buffy said. Dawn rolled her eyes and raised her broken arm.

"I'm going to go clean up," Willow stated and left swiftly.

"Dawn!" Buffy fussed.

"What? She got high on magic, drove into a post breaking my arm and nearly got me killed by a demon. Not so good on the taking care of Dawn front lately, is she?"

"She's sorry Dawn. She's quit magic and is doing her best to do right by you," Buffy reprimanded her sister.

Lorn watched the interaction between the two women and realized they radiated differently then other humans. "Anybody else know you two aren't exactly human?" Lorn asked quickly.

"What?" the sisters said in unison.

"Well… You're the same…but not. How do I put this? Neither of you have a complete human soul," Lorn said calmly.

"Excuse me?" Buffy said incredulously.

"Part of each of you is missing… the part that is missing is in your soul… That doesn't make you demons or anything. It just makes you…"

"Incomplete," Spike finished Lorn's statement.

"How is that possible?" Buffy asked, as Dawn looked sick.

"I already knew I wasn't real…now I don't have a soul?" Dawn moaned.

"Honey," Lorn said putting his hands on either side of her shoulders so he could look her in the eyes. "You have a soul and you are real… just different… I don't want to guess until I hear you sing."

"I have to sing?" Dawn's eyes went wide. "You never said I had to sing," she said turning to Spike seeking solace in his arms.

"Look Bit. Lorn reads peoples and demons auras when they sing. It opens them up to what's inside. Based on the song they chose and how they open their hearts up, Lorn can see what path their on or what path they should be," Spike said stoking her hair. "If it will make you feel better, Buffy and I will sing too."

"We will?" Buffy stated.

"You sing first," Dawn muttered into Spike's chest.

"Alright, but the last time I sang your sister went running away from me."

"Come on William. Show these ladies how it's done," Lorn smirked.

In a few moments Spike gathered himself enough to sing, knowing if he looked at either girl he would crack up over what he was about to do. He chose 'Ain't too Proud to beg' to sing because he could ham it up. Spike was a very good performer, really getting into the song, as he sang to each girl.

"Now I've got a love so deep in the pit of my heart
And each day it grows more and more
I'm not ashamed to come and plead to you baby
If pleadin' keeps you from walkin' out that door

Ain't too proud to beg, yes you know it (sweet darlin')
Please don't leave me, girl (don't you go)
Ain't too proud to plead, baby, baby
Please don't leave me, girl (don't you go)
Baby, baby, baby (sweet darlin')
Please don't leave me, girl"

Spike ended the song on his knees in front of Buffy belting out the Motown hit. Willow watched the show from the top of the stairs before returning to her laundry. Buffy shook her head as Spike got to his feet and said, "See Nibblet, nothing to it."

"Buffy you go… Please," Dawn asked calmly with her best puppy dog eyes.

Buffy rolled her eyes, knowing no one would ever be able to resist the 'Eyes of Dawn.' She began to sing a song their mother sang to them as children to soothe her sister's nerves.

"Summertime and the living is easy

Fish are jumping

And the cotton is high

You daddy's rich

And your mama's good looking

So hush little baby don't you cry."

Buffy had a far off look in her eye as she sang. By the time she was done she realized she was crying… and so was Dawn. Lorn patiently watched the two sisters cling to each other in grief and joy. They both missed their mother. "Go ahead, Dawnie. Nothing to be scared of," Buffy whispered.

Dawn looked at Lorn and then at the others with a curious look. She started singing a Pink Floyd song 'On the turning away.' It had heavy lyrics for a teenager, but it was music Spike had introduced her to and the song somehow reminded her of Buffy. She got to the last part of the song with conviction, and she sang out.

"No more turning away

from the weak and the weary

No more turning away

from the coldness inside.

Just a world we all must share

It's not enough to stand and stare

Is it only a dream that there'll be

No more turning away?"

Lorn looked on with wonder at what he was seeing in the child on her way to being a woman. "Wow… Kid… That was amazing… You don't need me to tell you where you're headed. You know that already," Lorn said to Dawn who smiled brightly. "I think I can shed light on the whole missing soul thing," he commented turning to them all. "Dawn needs another to be complete…"

Buffy cut Lorn off mid sentence. "My sister doesn't need anything or anyone to be complete." Her anger flared off of her in great waves. Lorn soon saw flashes of Buffy's teen years several with his friend Angel. All the pain he had encountered in Angel over Buffy were compounded in the small form of this woman who was her sister's age when she fell in love with the souled one.

"Buffy, calm down. Lorn is just trying to help," Spike said soothingly caressing her shoulder.

Suddenly the front door flew open as Xander waltzed in. "I brought donuts and… Merciful Heavens what is that?" Xander stared at Lorn in all his glory and style.

"That…" Dawn empathized "is my new friend Lorn. Lorn this is Xander. He likes to eat his foot."

"Nice to meet you… You're the one marrying Anyanka, right?"

"Anya," Xander corrected.

"Wicked Demon in her time…You must be something special," Lorn stated smoothly. "You should come to my club reopening. She would love to see some of her old friends. And of course, Spike will be singing," Lorn said with a broad smile.

"Spike…sing. Oh I am so there," Xander stated.

"Thanks a lot mate. Now I'll have the whelp in the audience with demon girl," Spike groaned.

"Oh calm down… Angel's gonna be singing too so you won't be not be the laughing stock… I have to do it for comedic value."

"Peaches singing… Tell me he didn't sing 'Feelings.'"

"No… but he did sing 'Mandy'." Spike busted laughing.

"Hey folks … Can we get back to the reading on Dawn's humiliating singing?" Dawn demanded.

Both demons looked at Buffy who still looked ready to blow a gasket. "I don't think so pet," Spike ventured. "Buffy didn't seemed to like what was being said."

"Well, I want to know," she stated clearly.

"Dawn, I don't want what he says to influence what you do or what you want," Buffy said calmly.

"Pet, just because you don't want her to have to have a destiny doesn't mean she doesn't have one," Spike interjected.

"This has nothing to do with destiny," Buffy huffed.

"Actually you're wrong. Little thing has a whole lot of destiny…that's why she was sent to you to protect her," Spike said firmly.

"Her destiny is done. She is no longer in danger of being used as the key."

"I don't know anything about a key, but your little sister can open wholes between dimensions… let alone touch the Ether," Lorn stated with authority. "She just needs…"

"No," Buffy yelled. "I'm not listening to this… Dawn doesn't need anything. She just needs to be a normal teenage girl."

"But I'm not Buffy," Dawn said gently, "and I'm never going to be."

Buffy couldn't take it anymore and fled the house. "Can we say denial?" Xander groaned. "I'll go after her. Make sure she doesn't destroy any property."

"She's got a temper," Lorn commented.

"You've never seen her on her period," Dawn groaned.