"Buffy! Stop! You guys are embarrassing me!" Dawn said.

She, Buffy, Angel, and Joyce were at a fair at the Sunnydale Ranch and Bull Riding Arena. Buffy had just turned 20 and things were perfect. Buffy remembered this day as if it had just happened a day ago. Joyce was smiling and laughing as Buffy picked on Dawn like all sisters do. Angel watched Buffy with loving adoration and Joyce was happy with the decision that Buffy had made to marry him. He was the perfect man for Buffy.

"Come on Dawnie! This looks fun!" Buffy said.

"Yeah, well, not for me! Look at this! All my friends are here and then here's my family!"

"Mom, was I ever this bad about my family being around me?"

"Worse!" Joyce replied.

"Oh I so was not! Angel tell her!"

"I'm going with Joyce on this one." Angel said.

"Traitor. You're supposed to be on my side." Buffy went to punch him and he caught her wrist, pulling her closer for a soft kiss.

"Oh my God! Get a room!" Dawn squealed.

Buffy and Angel laughed as they continued on through the fair. A clown juggled little bowling pins while a creepy mime guy pretended to be stuck in a box. The games were going in full swing. Screams of laughter and joy and terror could be heard from some of the rides. The smells of popcorn and cotton candy and corn dogs surrounded them. The fun house was all the rage. A man stood outside the door yelling at the top of his lungs telling people to come see a whole new world.

"Come on mom! Let's go!" Dawn said.

"I don't know Dawn." Joyce said. "Those mirrors creep me out."

"It's ok Joyce. I'll stay out here with you." Angel said. "Mirrors don't really hold any appeal for me. You know, since I can't see myself in one."

"Wimps." Buffy said as she and Dawn headed into the fun house.

Dawn ran into the fun house with Buffy right behind her. When they entered, a thick blanket of fake fog greeted them. Then they were in a huge maze of mirrors. As they started to walk, Buffy looked over and Dawn was gone. She looked around and caught a flash of her walking in one of the mirrors. Buffy tried to follow, but she ran into a mirror. She laughed at herself and put her right hand on a mirror. Giles had once told her that in a labyrinth, it was always smart to use the right hand rule. Keep your right hand on a wall at all times and it was supposed to lead you out. She wasn't sure if that was true, but it was sure a great time to try it.

"Dawn?" Buffy called.

She heard a giggle and saw her sister run by her in the mirror. Buffy rolled her eyes and went after her, keeping her right hand up. When she rounded a corner, Dawn pounced. The two girls went down in a fit of laughter. It was the first time Dawn had laughed since she had found out she was the Key. Buffy was near tears. She grabbed hold of Dawn's neck and hugged her tightly.

Then, Buffy saw her hugging Dawn and Angel on the floor in the door of the Summers' house. It was just after mom's funeral. It had been Buffy's breakdown. The next image she saw was kissing Dawn good bye on the tower just before she ran and leapt off to her death.

Now Buffy looked over at Dawn held captive in the arms of two demons. Angelus was stretched beneath her, enjoying the torment in her face. The battle around her was still raging, but it had slowed down. Angel kept looking over at her to make sure she was all right. A thousand images of him went through her head. The first time she'd met him in the alley, their first kiss in her bedroom, all the kisses after that, her first time with him, kissing him just before she shoved a sword through his heart, all the times they had said "I love you" to each other, her and Angel's wedding a little over a month ago. She remembered the conversation she and he had had before she went off to fight Glory.



"Angel, do you have any idea how much I love you and how grateful I am that you stayed?" Buffy asked as she sat on their bed.

"I have a pretty good idea." Angel said quietly, understanding why she was asking. "I don't know if I can let you go."

"I know. Hey, I might make it through this. We all might make it through this. If we don't, always know that I love you."

"Buffy, there's nothing in this world to make me doubt that. It's me I have doubt in. If I loose you.. It'll be more that I can bare."

"I know. And I know that you'll go on without me. Because you know you have to.. For Dawn."

Angel kissed her forehead. "So grown up."



Buffy looked at Willow. The red head had grown up so much. She had gone from the shy little nerd to the powerful witch that was battling right along side the Slayer and Angel. Memories of Willow buzzed through her head. And then there was Xander. He was so strong and so smart. He never let himself see it though. Buffy wished him luck and with one final glance at Dawn and Angel, she stood up off of Angelus.

"Ah, so we've finally made a decision?" he asked.

"I'll go. If you hurt Dawn, or any of them, I'll kill you slowly." Buffy said.

"I know."

"Before I do, answer me one thing."

"Fine."

"Why Dawn? Why did the people you work for want her more than me?"

"Supposedly she's a future higher being that's going to be a major part in stopping the apocalypse that they've been planning for a thousand years. Haven't you noticed it yet?"

"Noticed what?"

"The visions she's been getting? They don't hurt her, but they drain her energy because she's just starting out. You see how pale she is? That's not from blood loss."

"She was the Key."

"More than that. Apparently, the Powers have had bigger plans for her all along. Now are we done talking? I need to get out of here."

Buffy looked over at Angel as he staked a vampire. "Go."

Angel looked over, feeling a change in Buffy. She looked at him, apologizing to him through her eyes. "Buffy, no!"

She looked away as Angelus put his hand on her back and led her into the bedroom. Angel tried to follow, but five more demons attacked him. Buffy allowed one tear to fall as Angelus picked up a cell phone.

"Hey. It's me. Yeah, the job's done. I'm waiting now." He hung up and looked at her. "Don't worry lover, I was just calling for our ride."

Suddenly, a portal shimmered into being in front of them. Through it, Buffy could see the mansion. Spike and Dru sat in the living room. There was a young boy chained to the wall. He was pale and sickly looking. Multiple puncture wounds covered his body.

"Is that how it was?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah. I always make sure the place is clean before a dark ritual." Angelus smirked.

The doors burst open and Dawn walked in with the two demons still attached to her arms and a vampire behind them.

"What is this?"

"Sorry lover, orders." Angelus said. He looked at the vampire. "Do it."

"Do what?" The vampire moved towards Dawn. "You said you wouldn't hurt her!"

"You should know better Buff." Buffy tried to run to Dawn's aid, but Angelus grabbed her and pinned her against his chest. "This is always the fun part. I knew I would break you someday."

Buffy watched, eyes wide as the vampire sunk its teeth into Dawn's neck. Dawn let out a scream and tried to jerk away, but the demons held her in place. Buffy sobbed and struggled for all she was worth, but it was no use. Angelus was somehow stronger than she was at the moment. He had one and covering her mouth so she couldn't scream for one of her friends to come help. Slowly, Dawn's eyes closed as the last of her blood was drained from her body. Buffy collapsed in Angelus' arms. He held her like Angel would, trying to give her fake comfort.

Angel burst through the door and attacked the vampire that had just killed Buffy's sister. Willow magickly threw Angelus away from Buffy and into the wall. He tried to move, but invisible chains held him in place. Buffy fell to the floor sobbing. Gunn ran over to her and picked her up.

"Come on Buff, we gotta go now." He said.

Buffy shoved him off. He bounced against the bed and hit the floor. Buffy ran over to Dawn's lifeless body. "Dawnie wake up. You're not dead. You can't be dead. Please Dawnie! WAKE UP!"

The fighting stopped as the Slayer screamed for her sister to wake up. The last of the demons fled the room. Angelus was pinned to the wall, watching in silence. Willow walked over to Buffy and tried to put her hand on the Slayer's shoulder, but Buffy threw her hand away from her. Angel walked up and wrapped his arms around her. Together they silently cried over Dawn's body. They held onto Dawn for what seemed like hours. Xander had gone to call 911. The paramedics came within no time. Dawn was put on a gurney, a white sheet covering her face.

"NO! Don't put that over her face. She won't be able to see me!" Buffy said.

Angel held her tightly. He cried openly, a sob escaping every now and then. "Shh baby! Please." Buffy struggled to go after Dawn, but to no avail.

Willow sent Angelus back to his dimension with a soul before the paramedics had arrived. Buffy was in no condition to even care if he was staked or not.



Five days later, Buffy and Angel finished packing their belongings. Dawn's funeral had been yesterday. True to their vow, Buffy and Angel had stopped slaying. Their friends had tried to get them to go out, but they wouldn't listen to any of it. It was now the middle of the night and Buffy and Angel were leaving Sunnydale for good. They weren't selling the house, or any of their stuff. They just packed up a few of the essentials and left a note on the front door.

Angel drove them to LAX and they took a flight to San Francisco. They stayed there for about a month until Willow had called to try and bring them back. She had found them magically and then decided to call. Wanting to forget everything about Sunnydale, Buffy and Angel had packed again and headed to New Orleans. They lived there for about three months before Willow finally found them again. Buffy apologized for everything and explained that they didn't want anything to do with Sunnydale anymore. Before they had left New Orleans, Buffy and Angel had had a spell cast to block their whereabouts. This was their final move for two years.