The days after the Halloween attack Dawn found herself staring at Connor more and more. They were in the same gym class and when he ran, she couldn't keep her eyes off him. His motions were carried though like flowing water and every time he past her, her breath was caught in her throat.
Kassandra's words floated back to her, "It's pretty, but everything has its imperfections." She shook her head and tried not to think about him.
At the end of the day, Dawn headed down the basement. After Halloween night, she had grown used to the talking again to Spike. Although some of his ramblings didn't always make sense at first, they always did in the long run. Making sure she didn't see anyone, she slipped down the stairs, but someone was watching her. A few moments after Dawn slipped down, Connor followed.
"Bit, how are you doing?" Connor heard the voice that had instructed him to go upstairs on the 31st of October.
"Spike, I have a problem," Connor heard Dawn lament.
"Would it have to do with the bloke that's standing round the corner?" Spike asked, and then stuck his head out. "No use in hiding duck," he said to the surprised Connor.
Dawn gasped when she saw Connor sheepishly trail behind Spike. Anger welled up inside of her, but before she could get a word out, Spike was already talking to her.
"Bit, when he saw you leave with the bloody pouf Dale, he followed you. He just wanted to make sure you are all right. Now why don't you kiss and make up?" Spike told them.
Connor and Dawn looked over at each other. Connor shrugged and took as step towards her. Leaning down, he kissed her softly on the lips, earning a slight gasp from Spike, "No like that! I just wanted you two to be all friend-like. Not friendly!" he exclaimed.
The two jumped apart once Spike voiced his opinions. They had been caught up in the moment; forgetting that he was even present. "Sorry," Connor mumbled.
Spike's face broke out into a huge grin, confusing the hell out of Dawn and Connor. " I like you boy, I don't know why I like you, but I do. And when I find out why I do, I'll promptly start disliking you."
Connor cocked his head in confusion and Dawn laughed. "In Spike speak, that means you are good enough for her, but don't become to frisky," she translated.
"No sir! What does frisky mean anyway?" Connor asked, somewhat confused.
"If you aren't going to do it in the middle of the school, don't do it," Spike grumbled. Dawn laughed when Connor had a taken-aback look on his face. She said good-bye and pulled the still confused boy up to the first floor of the new Sunnydale High School.
Even though it had seemed that they had been in the basement for a long while, it had only been ten minutes at most. They found Kit and Carlos already waiting with Kassandra at Dawn's locker.
"You two look happy," Dawn greeted both Carlos and Kit.
The two of them shared a small smile, "We've decided to hook up," Kit said. Whatever the reaction she was expecting, wasn't the one she got.
"Finally! Ever since the first day of school there has been sickening amount of sexual tension," Dawn breathed a sigh of relief.
"You shouldn't be talking amiga. You and weapons boy over there have been in the midst of some sexual tension yourself," Carlos mimicked her.
Dawn made a face, "Your voice was too low. And we don't have any sexual tension, do we Connor?" she asked. Connor just nodded his head, agreeing with her.
Both Kit and Carlos looked at one another while Kassandra's face broke out into a huge grin, "Welcome to the family!" she cried.
Dawn just grinned back, "We're not getting married or anything. Besides, " she looked at her watch, "we've only been going out for the past ten minutes."
The group of friends walked out of the school and walked by the construction site. Dawn turned and waved to Xander and Buffy, something she did not normally do. And Xander even remarked on this fact.
"Well she looks happy," he said, looking at the school's floor plans, checking for the fourth time to see if there was anything supernatural, save for the little hellmouth under the library.
"Don't talk Xander, I don't need that image burned into my brain," Buffy told him, trying desperately to figure something, anything, out.
Principal Wood had told her about the disarray of the gym and several students had come to her to hell about the strange things that had happened that night. Buffy couldn't figure it out, but Dawn hadn't said a word.
Shrugged, Buffy went back to the plans. "Something doesn't feel right, something's in the air."
Xander looked at his friend. "Not so tactfully changing the subject, I think Willow is finally starting to move on."
Buffy smiled and thought of her other best friend. "Look I should go and check in with Principal Wood and then I have to go research," Buffy bid goodbye to her friend and then went back into the school.
"Ms. Summers, can I talk to you for a second?" Principal Wood stopped Buffy in the hall.
"I was just coming to see you. What can I help you with?" Buffy turned to her boss.
"Look, both you and I know that this town is anything but ordinary. There's something to come, and neither of us know what it is. But know this, there are unexpected allies that you must find for yourself before you even think you can stand a chance," Principal Wood put a comforting hand on Buffy's shoulder. "You can do it."
"Thank you Mr. Wood," Buffy smiled and turned away, walking to her office and checking to see if she had any new messages.
Returning home, she checked the answering matching. There was a message from Angel and after listening the extremely short message comprising of "Call me ASAP at (643)-252-5592" she vowed that she would follow the instructions after a short nap.
The week passed quickly for Buffy and she soon forgot all about the message she had received from her old boyfriend, that is, until he called her again, only this time Angel talked to Buffy himself.
By the tone of Angel's voice, he was distraught, but he was trying to hide it, at which he failed. Finally Buffy lost patience with the master vampire and demanded to speak to someone who could explain the whole situation to her.
Quickly Angel was off the line and was replaced with a woman named Fred who explained the tale to the confused slayer.
Buffy was taken a back when the tale was finished, "So let me get this straight, Angel and Cordy love each other, but this guy Connor, who is Angel's teenage son that lived in a Hell dimension for three months, although it felt like fifteen years to him. When Angel was going to meet Cordy, Connor intercepted Angel and put him at the bottom of the ocean, at this time Cordy was made a higher being. Skip over the summer and Angel come back, kicking his kid out, and finding Cordy. He brought her back and now wants me to help him find his son so they can be one big happy family."
"Yeah, that's about right. Angel wants you to be on the look you," Fred told the blonde slayer.
"I'll try. It's just that…things are hectic around here," Buffy sighed and bid good-bye, hanging up the phone.
Looking at the clock, Buffy realized that it was 5:00 PM already, and Dawn was still not home. Once again picking up the phone, she called Dawn's cell phone.
"Hello?" a breathless Dawn answered the phone.
"Where are you?" Buffy asked.
"Over at Kassandra's. I'll be back before curfew, promise. Sorry about not telling you though, but it's been rather interesting afternoon," Dawn told her sister.
Buffy gave her consent and hung up. Falling onto her bed, she sighted. "B," the voice of her inner self, which sounded a lot like Faith, "she's growing up. It's time to step back and let her grow. You can only protect the babe so much before you smother it."
Sighing again, Buffy say back and fell asleep. She awoke a few hours later to rambunctious voices downstairs. "Dawn?" she questioned as she walked down the stairs.
"Huh? Oh hey Buffy," Dawn looked up from the position of sitting on a guy's chest. Buffy recognized him as the boy Mr. Wood had her talk to a few days before. "Buffy. That's Kassandra and this is Connor," she introduced the two faced that Buffy had not met before. "They're cousins," she clarified.
"That's nice," Buffy commented. "Why are you sitting on his chest?" that threw Dawn for a loop and she blushed.
"No reason," she whispered as she slid off Connor.
Buffy wasn't convinced, "Well at least he's better than that vamp you were sucking face with last year," she then made her graceful exit.
Dawn's face grew even redder, " I didn't know okay?" she muttered as the rest of her friends gave her strange looks.
Connor wrapped an arm around his girlfriend, "I'm sure you didn't. But you don't have to worry about me. Vampire demon free," he smiled, but his eyes didn't.
Inside he grimaced, 'I may not have a vampire's demon, but I'm the bastard son of two vampires.'
Kassandra interrupted Connor's thoughts announcing the fact that she was ready to go home, and she was about to. Connor offered to go with her, but with a knowing smile she refused, "I can take care of myself cousin," then quietly she slipped out the front door and walked down the street.
As she walked Kassandra's thoughts turned to her past. She thought of the looks Dawn and Connor shared. She had shared them once, with a boy not much older than she, by the name of Kevin. He was a good-looking boy, sandy colored hair, and twinkling eyes.
Then of course times came to pass and times changed. Life was not set the way they wanted it to be, and Kassandra lost her love and her only hope to happiness.
The trip down memory lane ended when she came to her frond door. Opening it, she saw the mess that her friends had left. As she cleaned up, the doorbell rang and she went to go get it.
"Hey, my car broke down and I was wondering if I could used your phone," the sleazy man asked.
"I'm not going to let you in vampire. One of your kind already killed me, I will not go though that again," Kassandra then closed the door.
Again, another chapter, and no one except Shadow Maker and Melikochan had replied, thanks Kay and Mel! Well here's the third part, please review, pretty please? I'll love you forever and ever if you do!
PS-I know this little Halloween thing was a little late, but I left my house at 7:45 and didn't come home until late….so nah!