Chapter 7

Dawn snuck back in the house to find her parents still arguing. She just rolled her eyes and headed upstairs to Buffy's room. She unlocked the door and found her sister sitting on her bed and clutching her stuffed pig to her chest, silent tears rolling down her face. Buffy didn't even bother to look up when Dawn walked in and sat on her bed. Dawn decided to be the first one to speak. "Are you okay?" She asked even though she knew there was no way Buffy could be okay. She only shook her head and finally looked up at Dawn.

"I hate him." She said with a harsh tone to her voice and Dawn knew she was referring to their father.

"I kinda hate him right now, too. He's not being fair. You should be able to see whoever you want. Spike seems like a great guy, it's not right for dad to judge him like that." Buffy was surprised as she looked at her younger sister, who seemed so much older than her 13 years.

"You saw Spike?" Buffy wondered and Dawn nodded.

"He was outside. I told him to give you some time. We'll figure something out." Buffy shook her head and didn't look that convinced.

"Dad will never change. He'll never accept Spike. I just don't know what to do." She stated as fresh tears started to fall from her eyes. Dawn moved closer and gave her sister a hug, which Buffy returned. They were like that for a few minutes, when someone cleared a throat in the doorway and they pulled away to see their father standing there.

"Dawn, go to your room." He said and Dawn nodded as she moved away from Buffy and headed to the door. She glared at her father before she walked out. Hank turned his attention back on Buffy. "I want you downstairs. We need to talk." He told her with no emotion in his voice. He then turned and walked away. Buffy wiped her eyes and got up after a few seconds. She headed downstairs and dreaded the conversation that was about to take place.

"Hank, think about this." Joyce was saying when Buffy made it downstairs.

"I have thought about this. It's the only thing to do right now." Buffy wondered what they were talking about as Hank turned and looked at her.

"What's going on?" She asked and Joyce decided to remain silent. Buffy looked at her father and he took a deep breath before he spoke.

"We have made a decision, Buffy. There's a boarding school in Switzerland. It's an all girl school and they are taking students over the summer. I have already made arrangements and you are to be leaving in two weeks." Buffy was beyond shocked now and couldn't believe what she was hearing. This couldn't be happening.

"No, I'm not going to some boarding school. You can't do this." She said in a pleading tone, but Hank wasn't having it.

"This is not a discussion. We're doing what is best for you and that's final." Buffy shook her head and felt more tears in her eyes.

"This isn't what's best for me. This is what's best for you. I do something you don't approve of and you send me away. I'm not going; I don't care what anyone says. I'm not a child anymore; you can't make me do anything I don't want to." Hank glared at Buffy and tried to keep his voice calm.

"You are the one that's always saying you want to get out of here." He told her.

"This isn't what I want. You can't make me go." She said as she ran upstairs, with more tears coming down her face. Hank shook his head as he watched Buffy go and then looked at Joyce, only to see a look of anger on her face. She turned and walked away from him. He decided to let them cool off before he did anything else. Buffy would accept it eventually. She would see that he made the right decision.

Buffy started to pack some of her stuff and put them in her backpack as soon as she made it to her room. Dawn showed up a few seconds later after she heard what happened. She always was nosy. "What are you doing?" She wondered and Buffy turned to look at her.

"I have to get out of here, Dawn. I won't let him send me away. I'm going to see Spike." She explained as she got back to packing.

"Won't that make things worse?" Buffy shook her head.

"He can't possibly make it any worse. I can't stay here another second. I need to be with him." She sounded like a hurt little girl when she said that and Dawn nodded in understanding.

"Okay, I'll tell them that you went to bed early." Buffy smiled and gave her sister a hug.

"Thanks, Dawny. You're a pretty good sister." Dawn smiled in return.

"You're not so bad yourself. Are you coming back?" She said and Buffy shrugged.

"I don't know, I just need to see Spike. I'll figure it out then." Buffy got everything she needed and looked back at Dawn. She gave her younger sister one more hug. "You be good." She told her and Dawn nodded again as Buffy pulled out of the hug.

"Always," she replied. Buffy then grabbed her bag and moved over to the window. She gave her sister one more smile before she climbed out of the window and down the tree. Dawn watched as Buffy made it to the ground and then took off running. She sighed as she headed back to her room. Her parents were back to fighting now and she was surprised that her mother was sticking up for Buffy. Joyce would usually always take Hank's side, always thinking that her husband was right. It sounded like her mother didn't like the idea of her father sending Buffy away. Dawn walked into her room and closed the door. She could still hear the voices, so she decided to put her headphones on. She sighed as she looked to her desk and saw a picture of her and Buffy when they were younger. They used to be closer then, but it looked like they were starting to get close again. Dawn would really miss her sister if she left.