Thanks to the reviewers:

Misty midnight: Thanks for reading and reviewing, I'm glad you like the story.

Gigi 13: Thanks for reading and reviewing, I'm glad you like the story.

A big thanks to Matt for beta-ing this story for me.

A/N: This story focuses on Buffy's memories of Dawn; the ones that we would've seen on TV if Dawn had existed then. So basically, it's Dawn put in the scenes that were shown and some 'missing scenes'. It may not make total sense if you haven't seen the episodes on TV, but I'm trying to get around that.

CHAPTER 2: WELCOME TO THE HELLMOUTH

"Buffy? Dawn?" Joyce Summers called up the stairs.

Buffy sat up in bed. "I'm up Mom!" Next door, she could hear her sister saying something similar.

"You don't want to be late for your first day of school!" Joyce Summers called.

Buffy sighed and muttered to herself, "No, wouldn't want that."

"Buffy, get moving! It's your fault I have to go to a new school so don't make me late!" Dawn's voice yelled through the walls of their new house.

Buffy groaned. It wasn't like she was looking forward to starting again either. But just cause she had a 'little incident' at her old school she was automatically to blame for having to start over in a new town...which in a way she was if you were to look at everything from her mom and sister's point of view.

Dawn poked her head in her sister's room. "Buffy!" She whined. "I don't wanna be late! Stupid pyromnac."

"A what-nac?" Buffy questioned.

"Pyromnac. Someone who keeps setting fire to stuff. Like you." Dawn said with a nasty sneer in her voice.

Buffy laughed. "That's pyromaniac you dummy! If you're gonna insult someone, get your words right!"

"Yeah, well, I'm not the one who burnt down the school." Dawn huffed storming out of the room and leaving her sister to get ready for school.

An hour later both girls were sitting in their mother's car on their way to their new school. Buffy was going to be dropped off first.

"Have a good time. I know you're gonna make friends right away, just think positive."

Joyce gave her eldest daughter a thumbs up and Buffy nodded.

"Yeah right! Who's gonna want to be friends with a freak like her!" Dawn scoffed.

"Dawn!" Their mother scolded before turning back to Buffy. "And honey?"

Buffy looked back at her mother in question.

"Try not to get kicked out?" She pleaded.

"I promise."

"Good! 'Cause I am so not moving again if you decide to set fire to anything else." Dawn proclaimed. "Pyromaniac." She added under her breath, getting it right this time.

"Dawn!" Joyce snapped and drove off with her youngest daughter leaving Buffy to the fate of Sunnydale High.

x♥x

Buffy was standing in front of her mirror holding outfits out in front of her and then tossing them onto the bed. She held up a shiny black outfit and peered into the mirror.

"Too skanky." A voice called from the doorway.

"Don't you knock?" Buffy asked calmly tossing the black dress aside and holding up a delightful blue floral number.

"Nope... Too Jehovah's." Dawn commented offhandedly.

Buffy groaned in frustration. "I used to be so good at this."

Dawn snorted. "That's a matter of opinion."

Buffy ignored her sister's comment. "So, how'd you like your new school?"

Dawn wrinkled her nose. "It's okay, I guess."

"Uh-huh?" Buffy said distractedly.

"It's just this town, it's so dead!" She moaned.

"What?" Buffy yelped.

Dawn gave her a look; a look that clearly said 'you're such a freak'. "There's nothing here. The mall is tiny there's like, ten decent shops; and there's only one Starbucks in the whole town!"

Buffy grinned, thinking of her potential friends. "So I've heard."

"The people are okay though. There's this girl in my class, Janice, she has to show me around and stuff."

"Mmm. That's nice." Buffy commented, only paying half attention to her little sister's chatter. She held up a navy blue ensemble.

"To geeky... Actually, now I come to think of it, it's perfect for you."

Buffy turned to glare at her sister who smiled sweetly back. "What? I'm only trying to help! Anyway Janice said that this town is haunted."

"W-What?"

"Yeah, how cool is that? There are, like, all these mysterious deaths and loads of grave yards and they're all nearly full! Janice is going to take me to one soon, she promised."

"Dawn, I really don't think that's a good idea." Dawn had her sister's full attention now.

"Why not?" The youngest Summers replied indignantly.

"Because it's not safe; what if it really is haunted? You could get hurt." Buffy said concerned.

"You can't tell me what to do, you're not Mom; you're just my freaky big sister who thinks she's so cool and so popular but you're not." Dawn ranted.

"Dawn-" Buffy started.

"No! It's your fault we have to move here and now you're telling me I can't even go out when I want to? You're such a bi-ach!"

Dawn was saved from her sister's response by their mother entering the room. "Hi, hon, Dawnie."

"Hey." Dawn said tightly.

"What's wrong?" Joyce said immediately.

"Nothing." Her youngest daughter said sullenly.

Joyce looked to Buffy for an explanation. "It's nothing, Mom, sister stuff. Right, Dawn?" Buffy said, daring the little girl to say otherwise.

Dawn nodded. "Mom, if I wanted to go out with my friend Janice, would that be okay?"

"Sure honey." Dawn smirked at Buffy triumphantly and Joyce observed the scene before her.

Outfits littered on the bed, hair pulled up in a fancy twist, make-up all over her counter. It was all too familiar.

"Are you, uh, going out tonight?" She asked, even though knew the answer.

"Yeah, I'm going to a club." Buffy said with a smile.

"Oh. Will there be boys there?" Joyce questioned, trying to sound like she didn't really mind either way, but failing miserably.

"No, Mom. It's a nun club." Buffy said patronizingly.

Dawn giggled from where she was sitting and her mother gave her half a glare before turning back to her eldest daughter.

"Well, just be careful."

"I will." She assured her holding up another outfit and looking in the mirror.

"You know, I think we can make it work here. I've got my positive energy flowing. . . I'm gonna get the Gallery on its feet . . . Oh, uh, we may have found a space today." Joyce said happily.

"That's great." Buffy exclaimed.

"Yeah! That's cool, Mom!" Dawn said warmly, her earlier sulk forgotten.

"That school is a very nurturing environment which is just what you need. What you both need."

"Well, actually. . ." Buffy started while Dawn just smiled.

"Oh, not too nurturing. I know, you're sixteen, I've read all about the dangers of over-nurturing."

Buffy went to her bed and laid out a couple of outfits.

Joyce watched her daughter rift through the contents of her closet. "It's hard. New town and everything. . . It is for me, too."

"And me!" Dawn injected.

"I'm trying to make it work." Joyce took Buffy's hands in hers "I'm going to make it work."

"I know. Me too."

"Oh, you're a good girl, Buffy," Joyce cupped her daughters cheek fondly; "you just fell in with the wrong crowd. But that is all behind us now."

"It is. From now on I am only going to hang out with the living."

They let go of each others hands, and Buffy picked up her dresses.

"I mean, lively. People." Buffy corrected.

Buffy headed back to her wardrobe with an awkward look on her face.

"Hmm. Okay. You have fun." Joyce said before leaving, soon to forget her daughters abnormal behavior.

"Your acting weirder than usual." Dawn said flippantly from Buffy's bed. "Hanging out with the living? What's that all about?"

"Get out, Dawn." Buffy held the door open and Dawn stomped out and back to her own room.

Buffy held up another outfit, a blue shirt and black trousers. She nodded at herself in the mirror. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad...

x♥x

Buffy rummaged through her wardrobe. Wouldn't be so bad! Already her three kind-of friends had been attacked, one of them getting killed and she had met a tall, dark and handsome stranger who had warned her of some kind of harvest. Now she had to prevent an apocalypse and she hadn't even been in town for a week!

She pulled out a leather jacket. Joyce entered the room. "You're going out?"

Buffy put on her jacket; "I have to."

Joyce watched her daughter carefully. "I didn't hear you come in last night."

"I was really quiet." Buffy assured her mother, hating all the lying that came with her job or calling or whatever.

Dawn walked into her sister's room. Buffy and her Mom were arguing again. Just like they did in LA before they moved. She stood quietly by the door and listened to what they were saying.

Joyce was getting annoyed. "It's happening again, isn't it? I got a call from your new principle. He says you missed some classes today."

'Missing classes? Already? Oh great; Buffy was gonna get kicked out of school again and then we'll all have to move.' Dawn thought silently.

"I was running an errand." Buffy lied.

"We haven't finished unpacking and I'm getting calls from the principle!"

"Mom, I promise, it's not gonna be like before, but I have to go."

"Buffy!" Dawn pleaded. It was happening again, just like in LA.

"No." Joyce said firmly.

"Mom?!" Buffy couldn't believe it.

"The tapes all say I should get used to saying it. No."

"This is really, really important." Buffy tried.

"I know. If you don't go out it'll be the end of the world. Everything is life or death when you're a sixteen-year-old girl." Joyce joked, not knowing how right she really was.

"Look, I don't have time to talk about this-

"Buffy, you've got all the time in the world, you're not going anywhere. "Joyce interrupted. "Now, if you wanna stay up here and sulk, I won't hold it against you. But if you wanna come down, I'll make us some dinner."

Joyce left the room to prepare dinner leaving the two sisters behind her. Buffy leant against her wardrobe door.

"I can't believe she did that." Buffy muttered to herself. "Dawn; go."

"Why? You're not going anywhere, are you?" Dawn asked suspiciously.

"No, I just... want to be alone."

"Liar."

"Dawn, get out!" Buffy commanded.

"No; I'm not gonna let you leave!"

Buffy started pulling a big purple chest out of her wardrobe. "Dawn, you have no idea what you're talking about."

"I know that you're going to sneak out and that you were ditching classes. I don't want to move again Buffy." Dawn whined.

"We're not going to move, but this is really important. If I don't go then people could get hurt." She opened the chest to reveal various knick-knacks; notepads, pictures, dolls. "Dawn, please don't tell Mom."

Dawn scuffed her feet on Buffy's carpet considering what her sister was asking. "Okay. But if you get caught, then you're on your own."

"Gotcha. Thanks Dawnie." She hugged her sister briefly before ushering her out the room. She waited until the door was properly closed and then lifted the top shelf off her chest to reveal a false bottom. The slayer took out bottles of holy water, crosses and stakes and put them into her sports bag.

"Dinner!" A muffled voice called. She went to the door and listened. She heard Dawn thundering down the stairs and the clink of cutlery, but nothing else.

Buffy opened the window and climbed out, chucking her bag to the ground. Time to stop the Harvest.

Downstairs, Joyce was totally oblivious to her daughter's defiance. "Do you think I should go and check on her?" She asked Dawn.

"No!" Dawn exclaimed. "I mean, no. She's pretty mad. Umm, maybe you should let her sleep on it and talk to her in the morning?"

Joyce ruffled her daughter's hair affectionately. "When did you get so smart?"

Dawn grinned and gave a sigh of relief. If Mom found out that Buffy had snuck out, then things would be unbearable around the house and she didn't want that.

x♥x

The next morning, Dawn burst into Buffy's room. "You're back!"

"Well duh, where else would I be?" Buffy said, wincing as she sat up. The fight last night had been harsh!

"So where did you go? What did you do?" Dawn questioned, excited about her sister's adventure.

Normally she would have told her little sister to get lost, but Buffy owed her one this time so... "You know, the usual. I saved the world from evil." Buffy quipped.

"Yeah right. You couldn't save the world if your life depended on it...which I guess it would... But still, yeah right!" Dawn retorted. "What did you really do?"

"I went to the bronze." Buffy said truthfully... well, she did.

"That's it?" Dawn exclaimed. "You snuck out to go to some club?" Buffy nodded and Dawn sighed over dramatically. "Sometimes I just don't get you!"

"No;" Buffy replied softly. "You probably don't."

x♥x♥x♥x♥x

NEXT CHAPTER: Angel

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