Disclaimer: Buffy, the Vampire Slayer, and Angel are property of Joss Whedon, Mutant Enemy and the WB. Not mine, please don't sue.
Chapter 12: Displaced
With a sudden shriek Dawn lunged at Spike, throwing her arms around his neck.
Well, Connor thought. That's going to make this rescue damn near impossible.
Spike slowly moved to hug her back. After a moment, Dawn pulled away.
"You did it. You really did it anyway." She said, tears in her eyes.
"Dawn, maybe you shouldn't stand so close to him." Connor cautioned, trying to get her out of the way. He didn't trust Spike, and he didn't like the way she was disregarding the potential danger.
"Had to, 'Bit." Spike whispered. "Didn't want to be alone." He chuckled hysterically. "Now I'm never alone." He spoke in a strangled voice.
Dawn's hand reached out towards Spike's chest, and Connor tensed.
"I'm sorry to break up this Kodak moment, but what the hell are you talking about?" Connor asked, startling Dawn into dropping her hand before it reached the blond vampire.
"Don't you get it?" Dawn asked, her eyes never leaving Spike.
"Apparently not, Dawn, or I wouldn't be asking." Connor snarked, trying to squelch his uneasiness at the amount of attention Dawn was giving to Spike. She replied by sticking out her tongue.
"He's got his soul, Connor." Dawn said, after her moment of juvenile behavior had passed. Connor looked at her, disbelieving. She turned Spike around so that they were both facing Connor. "Look. Look at him, at his eyes." Dawn insisted. "He's got his soul."
*
Buffy stared at the doctor as he finished his explanation of her condition. She signed the form in front of her, and handed it back to the doctor, who sighed. Angel re-entered her room, carrying a cup full of ice chips.
"There you are." Buffy said, trying to relieve the awkward silence. "Is Dawn here, yet?"
"Not yet. The gang is still trying to reach her on her cell." Angel answered, staring between her and the doctor.
"Well, Mrs. Angel, I'll be back in a few minutes to check on you. I'll send in a nurse to adjust your i.v." The doctor spoke up, excusing himself.
"I'll be right back." Angel told Buffy, rushing out after the doctor. He nearly ran from her room, and quickly caught up with the doctor. Whirling the man around, he grabbed him by the collar. "What's going on, Doc?" Angel ground out.
The doctor carefully extricated himself from Angel's grasp.
"It's not looking good Mr. Angel." The doctor replied, adjust his mussed lab coat. "I suggest you calm yourself."
"Be more specific." Angel virtually growled.
"She's getting tired." The doctor began, rubbing a hand on his forehead. "She's also started to bleed-we're worried about a possible hemorrhage." He continued.
"Do something about it!" Angel shouted, his voice echoing in the hall.
"She won't let me." The doctor was resigned.
"What are you talking about?" Angel was taken aback.
"I told her that if things keep going the way they are, we'd have to do an emergency D&C." The doctor replied. "She refused that course of action." He explained, waving the form that Buffy had signed only moments ago. "She even went as far as to sign a release." He finished.
Angel could do nothing but stare at him.
"I know that you and your wife thought you'd never have a baby, but please, try to talk some sense in to her before its too late." The doctor advised, before walking away.
Angel slumped down on a near-by bench in shock.
*
Spike cackled suddenly, pointing at Connor and breaking the moment.
"It's the son!" He cried out.
"What?" Dawn asked.
"The son. The son of an Angel and a Devil." Spike continued, laughing gleefully.
"Hey!" Connor replied, offended.
"What's so funny about it?" Dawn wanted to know.
"Nothing." Spike said calmly, before bursting into another round of hysterical laughter.
"Look, Dawn. I hate to break up this touching reunion we've got going on here, but we're running out time." Connor said. "Spike, it's been...real, and I'm sorry I hit you with my jeep, but we're going to go now." He continued, pulling on Dawn's arm.
"We can't just leave him here, Connor. Look at him!" She exclaimed in protest.
"What?" He said, surprised.
"We hit him with the jeep!" Dawn cried.
"He's a vampire! He'll heal!" Connor shouted back.
"That's just like you." Dawn retorted.
"He was just fine while we were fighting, Dawn." Connor pointed out. "Which, by the way, is interesting that he could do that, don't you think? What with his chip and all?" He asked, inwardly smirking at catching her up. He didn't like her attachment to this vamp, no matter if he had a soul.
"The chip..." Dawn trailed off, looking at Spike.
"Fireworks." Spike whispered, demonstrating with his hands.
"That settles it, Dawn." Connor jumped in. "We're leaving him here." He demanded.
"Connor." Dawn protested.
"Look, do you want to help Buffy or babysit Senor Psychopath?" Connor shouted. "We've gotta go now, Dawn."
Spike grabbed Dawn by the shoulders, making her cry out in surprise. Connor's grip tightened on his stake.
"What's wrong with Buffy?" Spike asked, seeming lucid for the first time in the last few minutes.
"She's in trouble. We're trying to fix it." Dawn explained.
"What kind of trouble?" Spike asked intently.
"It would take too long to explain, Spike." Dawn replied sadly.
"How are you going to fix it?" He demanded to know.
"The Oracles." Connor interjected, pulling Dawn from Spike's grasp. "Happy now?" He questioned Spike, taking Dawn by the arm and starting to walk away.
"You don't know what you're doing." Spike laughed sardonically.
"You don't know what you're talking about." Connor sneered.
"Do you have a gift?" Spike asked.
"A gift?" Dawn repeated as if she was hearing it for the first time...which she was.
"Do you know the incantation to get inside the gateway?" Spike demanded.
"Incantation?" Dawn's voice was shrill.
"Do you even know where the bloody hell you're going?" He shouted at them.
"We'll be fine." Connor snarked.
"Not if we can't even get inside, Connor." Dawn pointed out.
"What, I suppose you know the way?" Connor jeered at Spike. A slow smirk spread over the blonde vampire's face, and his gaze drifted towards a manhole cover on the concrete ground of alley.
*
"So if Dawn cast a spell to alter her memory and something went wrong..." Xander trailed off as they all stared at each other.
"Didn't Connor find her unconscious?" Anya double-checked.
"Connor's in on this too, somehow." Willow said. "I'm sure of it."
"What exactly did Dawn say?" Lindsey asked Willow, holding her close.
"She said this wasn't her world...that she wasn't herself until the memory spell." Willow began.
"She asked Connor when he became 'him'. Connor said he was able to change everything." She finished.
"When did he do that?" Lindsey wanted to know.
"When he came out of the portal...from Quor-toth I suppose." Willow said slowly. "Nearly a year after our own portal mysteriously closed without Dawn dying. " She put together.
"Woah." Xander said, stunned.
"This goes back that far?" Anya asked. "To that night with Glory?"
"It makes sense." Willow said. "The memory spell took her back to that night with Glory, and something happened to the spell that inadvertently changed what happened that night.
"So how does Connor fit in?" Lindsey questioned.
"Oooh, I know." Xander began. "He lied about finding Dawn unconscious, and accidentally interrupted her while she was doing the memory spell the other day. Dawn was in the memory of that night and his arrival messed things up." He finished proudly.
"It's a good theory, Xand." Willow said gently. "But not likely." His face fell. "The spell couldn't have been done a few days ago." She pointed out. Three confused faces met her gaze. "This is the product of everything that Connor claims he changed. He couldn't have interrupted the spell here, because this here may not have existed before the spell was cast."
"Woah." Xander said again.
"I'll second that." Anya agreed.
"I guess the big question is...what do we do about it?" Lindsey asked. Willow sighed.
"I think that's where Dawn and Connor are right now." She said, staring off in the distance. "Doing something about it."