That night, Dawn dreamed. Random thoughts and images flowed through her mind, but three main things prevailed: Spike, the necklace, and a strange feeling she couldn't place.
She dreamt of Spike, of his seductive voice taunting her the way he taunted Buffy. His face whirled around her, and out of nowhere, the necklace appeared in his hand and he twirled it in his fingers, grinning at her. He said something, but she couldn't make it out, and then he faded into the gray fog that surrounded them both. As she dreamt, a giddy feeling of power swept over her, and she felt connected to everything, like she controlled everything.
While she was experiencing this, suddenly she was back at the Bronze, dancing with Robert. She looked at him, and to her surprise, he kissed her. After a while she tried to pull back, but he wouldn't let her. Frightened, she pushed him away but when she looked at him, it was Spike looking back at her. "Wait," she said, but no words came out. He walked away and was swallowed up by the thick gray mist, and Dawn was left cold and alone...
Dawn slowly opened her eyes and sat up, shaking. She wiped her forehead, it felt clammy and cold. It wasn't so much the dream that left her scared, but the strange feeling it left in her stomach. Sighing, she lay back down and glanced at her clock. Seeing that is was only 5:30, nearly two hours after she had fallen asleep, she squeezed her eyes shut. After several minutes of tossing and turning, she knew she wasn't going to get anymore sleep.
She padded slowly down the stairs and walked into the kitchen, blinking as she opened the refrigerator, feeling a little better as the blast of cool air hit her. After pouring some orange juice, she went to the living room and sat down, staring at her pile of presents.
When she had finished her juice, she left the empty glass on the coffee table and carried all the gifts up to her room, where she put most everything away except for the spell book from Willow. This, except for her mystery necklace, was by far her favorite gift. It, to her, was a sign that someone recognized the fact that she was growing up. The book looked very old; it was bound in leather and was a musty brown color. The first page was blank and was yellowed and crisp. Dawn turned it slowly, afraid that if she jerked it too hard, it might break.
To her dismay, she saw that the book was written in some type of foreign dialect. She flipped the pages hopefully, but despite a couple pictures, the entire book was filled with the same strange writing. Dawn paused, about to set the volume aside, but for some reason, she didn't. It intrigued her. She began to study the symbols, which resembled hieroglyphics, only curvier. After about a minute she found she could understand most of it, and it didn't seem at all strange to her. Excited by this discovery, she began to read, not stopping until Buffy called her to breakfast several hours later.
She hurried downstairs and grabbed a slice of the toast Buffy had made. "That was some party last night," Buffy commented. "Way more than a few people," she said, referring to Dawn's comment the night before. "So...who was that cute guy?" She sat down across from Dawn.
Dawn looked up, surprised. "You thought Robert was cute?"
"Cute? Dawnie, he was hot. For a high school guy, anyway..."
"Yeah...Lindsay has a huge crush on him, but he's dating this one girl on the volleyball team, or wait, I think she got kicked off...but anyway, I can't stand her. She flirts with all the guys, and she thinks she's better than everyone."
"Oh, reminds me of Cordelia," Buffy laughed. "And he doesn't care?"
"No, well, he's the same way...you saw the way he was dancing with me!"
"Like you didn't like it, Dawnie," Buffy teased. "I saw your face."
Dawn blushed. "Yeah, well, at least I'm not Ms. Uber-slut," she muttered.
"So, who do you have a crush on?" Buffy asked.
Tensing up, Dawn replied, "No one. The guys at my school are all losers."
Oh, don't I remember how that was..." Buffy said.
They finished their toast in silence and Dawn got up and went to her room. She shut the door, picked up the spell book, and sat on her bed to read, not coming out for the rest of the day.
* * *
Dusk set in and Spike woke, his vampire senses telling him it was time to feed. He got out of bed, put on his clothes, and climbed up the ladder, shrugging into his black leather coat. He didn't feel like eating, so he decided to go out for some fun, instead.
Just as he was about to walk out the door, there was a knock. Puzzled, he reached to open it. No one ever knocked. Pulling open the door, he saw Dawn standing there, wearing fitted jeans and a t-shirt that bared her navel. He still wasn't completely used to noticing her this way.
"Well, well, a visitor..." he said in a low voice.
* * * * * * * * * * * *
I hope you guys liked this chap too! I've gotten nothing but positive feedback, so thanks. I think you'll all like the next chap very much...or at least, I hope you will. So, review!!!