A/N: Yes, if you read my other attempt, this is a new version of the story
I was *trying* to tell. So completely ignore my previous attempt, as I will
hopefully be able to write this one the way the story was meant to be.
Disclaimer: As much as I wish I had them to command as my own, they all belong to Joss & Co. with the exception of Liz, Michael, Kyle, Adam, and Diana.
Rating: PG-13...basically, if you can watch the show, you can read this.
Spoilers: Eh, I'm trying on incorporating Season 7 events up to Selfless (and at this point, Him as well) , so we'll see just how many plot holes I can come up with.
Feedback: FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, YES! One of the reasons I'm redoing this is because of the lack of feedback in my last attempt. Although I do beg of you, please be gentle in your witty criticisms...I am fragile and bruise easily. :( ....hermit that I am.
Pairings: A/X, S/?, W/T (yes, Tara will return...bwahahahahaha)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Liz put the phone back in its cradle for what seemed like the hundreth time that day. There was no answer at her father's house, and the Magic Box's line was forever busy. She looked at the clock; Dawn should be home from school, but if she wasn't, she was risking either Buffy or Willow answering the phone, and she hadn't spoken to them since the last time she was in Sunnydale.
They didn't call you either, she thought to herself, but it was a false security. She knew she could have easily picked up a phone, even with the tour schedules and being moved around so often. As it was, she barely even visited Cordelia, and they had been living in the same city for almost five months.
She shifted her position on the couch, and looked towards the door. They'll be coming up any minute, she thought, and they'll pretend everything is fine. And then we'll start the same argument again, and I'll go to my room. And then I'll wonder just why it is that I am the one being held prisoner. She winced at the word; these were her friends, had been ever since they were children; she didn't like feeling like they were her wardens. They had always been overprotective of her, and that protection only increased after Michael died. She pulled her feet up under her and hugged one of the pillows, giving a deep sigh. She wanted them to get home so she could go out; there were hundreds of clubs she could go to, lose herself in. She knew they'd insist on coming along; but who cared? Once they were there she could slip away and enjoy herself; besides, Kyle would be too busy getting drunk, and Adam would find some girl to spend the evening with.
The phone rang, startling her slightly; she reached over and picked it up.
"Hello?" she said. Kyle and Adam chose this moment to walk through the doorway; Kyle had groceries in his arms. Silent hellos were exchanged, and Liz turned her attention back to the phone.
"Hello?" she said again, wondering if the caller had hung up.
"Liz?" The voice on the other end was faded, as if coming from far away, but Liz could still identify it.
" Dawnie? How are you?"
There was a hesitation on the other end. "I'm okay," Dawn said. "I just wanted to call and ... talk, you know?"
Liz understood. Dawn had been calling her more and more recently; with their mother gone and Buffy out working or patrolling, Dawn wanted to talk to someone who she felt would listen. She signalled to Kyle, who turned around and took the portable phone from its place in the kitchen. She clicked it on and moved to her room, shutting the door behind her.
"So, what's new" she said, trying to let Dawn tell her whatever she was having problems with on her own.
"Well," Dawn started, "I met a guy. And I thought I really, really loved him, but it turns out that it was a spell; something with his letter jacket. I feel really stupid; I really thought I liked him! And that for once, I had a guy too, you know?"
Liz nodded, forgetting they were on the phone. "Yea, I know."
"But I guess it wasn't too bad...I mean, Willow and Buffy fell for him too, and I didn't do anything half as bad as they did; Buffy was making out with him in the classroom! And Willow tried to turn him into a girl..."
Liz laughed, and continued to listen as Dawn relayed the current Sunnydale news to her; she seemed to be much happier than she had been a few months ago.
Dawn paused. "Are you going on tour again soon?" she asked, almost as if she was afraid of the answer.
"Actually, I'm taking a break from the music biz, Dawnie. I'm thinking I need a little vacation time...maybe spend some time in a small, Californian town, where everyone seems to be a little crazed..."
"Ohmigod, are you coming here? Please tell me you're coming here!" Dawn was shrieking so loud Liz had to hold the phone away from her ear.
"Yea, I'm thinking we might come down for a little while, me and the guys. Hows that sound to you?"
"It's sounds great; I can't wait to tell Buffy! And you can meet Anya, and Spike...and Willow and Xander will be so glad to see you..." her voice trailed off.
"Giles will be happy to see you too." Dawn let her words hang in the air a moment.
"He probably doesn't even mention me, Dawn." Her words were a little harder than intended, but from Dawn's silence she knew she had assumed correctly.
"Anyway, Dawn, I've got to take care of a few things before we can even get ourselves down to Sunnydale, so I'd better go; I'll talk to you soon, okay?" She and Dawn said goodbye after Liz promised that they would be down by the weekend, then hung up.
Liz waited a minute; she could feel Adam right behind the door, could hear the unspoken thoughts of both of them, just waiting for her to come out of her room.
"Well, why not" she said, and she opened the door.
"Didn't your mother teach you not to eavesdrop?" she asked Adam as he retreated back into the kitchen. He didn't evne pretend he hadn't been listening.
"You told her we were coming to Sunnydale." His voice was even, without emotion; Liz knew he erupt in minutes.
"That's right, I did." She matched his tone, but made it clear that pushing the issue was not an option. Adam sidestepped that and continued.
"I thought we agreed to think about going. Not that we actually were!"
"No; you agreed to think about it. I'm the one who decided. I don't care how scared you are; you think I'm not? We're going, and that's the end of it." Beyond Adam, she could see Kyle pour himself a drink and down it.
"No, Liz, it isn't. What happens when they want you dead? When your daddy or, hey, here's a thought, THE SLAYER thinks its time for you to get a room with a six foot deep view?!"
Liz looked at him evenly. "Maybe that wouldn't be such a bad thing." Adam opened his mouth to say something, but they were both interrupted by the sound of glass hitting marble as Kyle slammed his drink down and poured himself another.
"Jesus!" He exclaimed, downing yet another one. "Jesus," he muttered to himself. "Do you enjoy giving us heart attacks? Should one of us stay with you all the time, like, like a suicide watch or something?" His eyes moved towards her wrists; she ignored him, her face feeling hot; instead of responding, she walked past Adam and grabbed the bottle of whatever substance Kyle had managed to bring home and chucked it in the trash.
"What the hell was that for?" he asked, moving to retrieve it. Liz ignored him and muttered a short incantation; flames darted up from the trash for a moment, then vanished, taking the contents with it.
"You know," she said, her voice shaking, "You may be six years older than me, but the two of you act like you're five." She grabbed her coat and made her way to the door.
"Where are you going?" Adam asked, his tone slightly lighter than it had been before.
"Out." Not turning around, she added, "And you'd better pack; we're leaving tomorrow."
Disclaimer: As much as I wish I had them to command as my own, they all belong to Joss & Co. with the exception of Liz, Michael, Kyle, Adam, and Diana.
Rating: PG-13...basically, if you can watch the show, you can read this.
Spoilers: Eh, I'm trying on incorporating Season 7 events up to Selfless (and at this point, Him as well) , so we'll see just how many plot holes I can come up with.
Feedback: FOR THE LOVE OF GOD, YES! One of the reasons I'm redoing this is because of the lack of feedback in my last attempt. Although I do beg of you, please be gentle in your witty criticisms...I am fragile and bruise easily. :( ....hermit that I am.
Pairings: A/X, S/?, W/T (yes, Tara will return...bwahahahahaha)
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Liz put the phone back in its cradle for what seemed like the hundreth time that day. There was no answer at her father's house, and the Magic Box's line was forever busy. She looked at the clock; Dawn should be home from school, but if she wasn't, she was risking either Buffy or Willow answering the phone, and she hadn't spoken to them since the last time she was in Sunnydale.
They didn't call you either, she thought to herself, but it was a false security. She knew she could have easily picked up a phone, even with the tour schedules and being moved around so often. As it was, she barely even visited Cordelia, and they had been living in the same city for almost five months.
She shifted her position on the couch, and looked towards the door. They'll be coming up any minute, she thought, and they'll pretend everything is fine. And then we'll start the same argument again, and I'll go to my room. And then I'll wonder just why it is that I am the one being held prisoner. She winced at the word; these were her friends, had been ever since they were children; she didn't like feeling like they were her wardens. They had always been overprotective of her, and that protection only increased after Michael died. She pulled her feet up under her and hugged one of the pillows, giving a deep sigh. She wanted them to get home so she could go out; there were hundreds of clubs she could go to, lose herself in. She knew they'd insist on coming along; but who cared? Once they were there she could slip away and enjoy herself; besides, Kyle would be too busy getting drunk, and Adam would find some girl to spend the evening with.
The phone rang, startling her slightly; she reached over and picked it up.
"Hello?" she said. Kyle and Adam chose this moment to walk through the doorway; Kyle had groceries in his arms. Silent hellos were exchanged, and Liz turned her attention back to the phone.
"Hello?" she said again, wondering if the caller had hung up.
"Liz?" The voice on the other end was faded, as if coming from far away, but Liz could still identify it.
" Dawnie? How are you?"
There was a hesitation on the other end. "I'm okay," Dawn said. "I just wanted to call and ... talk, you know?"
Liz understood. Dawn had been calling her more and more recently; with their mother gone and Buffy out working or patrolling, Dawn wanted to talk to someone who she felt would listen. She signalled to Kyle, who turned around and took the portable phone from its place in the kitchen. She clicked it on and moved to her room, shutting the door behind her.
"So, what's new" she said, trying to let Dawn tell her whatever she was having problems with on her own.
"Well," Dawn started, "I met a guy. And I thought I really, really loved him, but it turns out that it was a spell; something with his letter jacket. I feel really stupid; I really thought I liked him! And that for once, I had a guy too, you know?"
Liz nodded, forgetting they were on the phone. "Yea, I know."
"But I guess it wasn't too bad...I mean, Willow and Buffy fell for him too, and I didn't do anything half as bad as they did; Buffy was making out with him in the classroom! And Willow tried to turn him into a girl..."
Liz laughed, and continued to listen as Dawn relayed the current Sunnydale news to her; she seemed to be much happier than she had been a few months ago.
Dawn paused. "Are you going on tour again soon?" she asked, almost as if she was afraid of the answer.
"Actually, I'm taking a break from the music biz, Dawnie. I'm thinking I need a little vacation time...maybe spend some time in a small, Californian town, where everyone seems to be a little crazed..."
"Ohmigod, are you coming here? Please tell me you're coming here!" Dawn was shrieking so loud Liz had to hold the phone away from her ear.
"Yea, I'm thinking we might come down for a little while, me and the guys. Hows that sound to you?"
"It's sounds great; I can't wait to tell Buffy! And you can meet Anya, and Spike...and Willow and Xander will be so glad to see you..." her voice trailed off.
"Giles will be happy to see you too." Dawn let her words hang in the air a moment.
"He probably doesn't even mention me, Dawn." Her words were a little harder than intended, but from Dawn's silence she knew she had assumed correctly.
"Anyway, Dawn, I've got to take care of a few things before we can even get ourselves down to Sunnydale, so I'd better go; I'll talk to you soon, okay?" She and Dawn said goodbye after Liz promised that they would be down by the weekend, then hung up.
Liz waited a minute; she could feel Adam right behind the door, could hear the unspoken thoughts of both of them, just waiting for her to come out of her room.
"Well, why not" she said, and she opened the door.
"Didn't your mother teach you not to eavesdrop?" she asked Adam as he retreated back into the kitchen. He didn't evne pretend he hadn't been listening.
"You told her we were coming to Sunnydale." His voice was even, without emotion; Liz knew he erupt in minutes.
"That's right, I did." She matched his tone, but made it clear that pushing the issue was not an option. Adam sidestepped that and continued.
"I thought we agreed to think about going. Not that we actually were!"
"No; you agreed to think about it. I'm the one who decided. I don't care how scared you are; you think I'm not? We're going, and that's the end of it." Beyond Adam, she could see Kyle pour himself a drink and down it.
"No, Liz, it isn't. What happens when they want you dead? When your daddy or, hey, here's a thought, THE SLAYER thinks its time for you to get a room with a six foot deep view?!"
Liz looked at him evenly. "Maybe that wouldn't be such a bad thing." Adam opened his mouth to say something, but they were both interrupted by the sound of glass hitting marble as Kyle slammed his drink down and poured himself another.
"Jesus!" He exclaimed, downing yet another one. "Jesus," he muttered to himself. "Do you enjoy giving us heart attacks? Should one of us stay with you all the time, like, like a suicide watch or something?" His eyes moved towards her wrists; she ignored him, her face feeling hot; instead of responding, she walked past Adam and grabbed the bottle of whatever substance Kyle had managed to bring home and chucked it in the trash.
"What the hell was that for?" he asked, moving to retrieve it. Liz ignored him and muttered a short incantation; flames darted up from the trash for a moment, then vanished, taking the contents with it.
"You know," she said, her voice shaking, "You may be six years older than me, but the two of you act like you're five." She grabbed her coat and made her way to the door.
"Where are you going?" Adam asked, his tone slightly lighter than it had been before.
"Out." Not turning around, she added, "And you'd better pack; we're leaving tomorrow."