Thanks to the Reviewers:
Jazzy: I'm glad you like this story and thanks for reviewing.
Freezyboncoolipants: Thanks for reviewing- hope the update didn't take too long.
Matt: Thanks for reviewing, personally I think he'd keep the guns, they'd be pretty useful in Sunnydale.
Jen Carpe Diem: Thanks for the compliment; I'm glad that there are some people who like my work. Keep reviewing!
Pigeon Overlord: When the reviews keep coming, I'll keep writing! The next chapters nearly finished and I'll be sending it to my beta soon, but I'm back at school so it may take longer in the future. Thanks for reviewing and I hope you like this chapter as well.
A/N: The beginning of this chapter is the end of 'the puppet show', but the rest is Nightmares. There's also been an insert of 'The Pack' as a flashback as it was requested by Zira.
CHAPTER 4: NIGHTMARES
"I don't see why I had to come." Dawn whined.
"You're here to support your sister." Joyce hissed, smiling sweetly at a couple of parents she recognized.
"She doesn't want my support, she said so, and I'm here because you forced me to come." Dawn sulked, plopping down in the seat next to her mother.
"We were only just in time!" Joyce exclaimed, ignoring her daughter's pouting.
"Oh goody." Dawn muttered, but once again she was ignored.
The curtains parted to reveal Buffy staring out at the audience with some kind of bundle in her arms. Giles put on his glasses and looked out as well, as did Xander. Willow was holding a small axe as she nervously glanced out at the audience and there was what appeared to be a slimy body lying on the floor.
"What? I thought they were doing a Greek play?" Joyce asked confused.
"They are... Maybe they are, umm, still setting up. Yeah, the curtains could have opened early and they weren't ready." Dawn lied. She knew that Buffy had slayed something from the moment she saw the demon body and Willow with the axe.
Joyce gave her daughter a funny look before she shrugged her shoulders. "Yes; you're probably right."
Dawn breathed a sigh of relief and settled down to watch the show.
About half an hour later, Buffy, Willow and Xander were doing their act... and Dawn was trying hard not to laugh.
Willow was terrified, anyone could see that. "Oh, ruler of my country, Oedipus, you see our company around the Altar, and I, the priest of Zeus!"
"Ha, ha! They prophesize that I should kill my father. But he is dead." Xander knelt down and woodenly acted grabbing a handful of dirt. "And hidden deep in the soil. But surely I must fear my mother's bed."
Buffy was as bored as Willow was nervous. She walked around Willow to Xander and patted him on the head. "Oh, Oedipus, Oedipus, unhappy Oedipus, that is all I can call you, and all that I ever shall call you."
Dawn couldn't hold it in anymore and her laughter burst out in a snort. Buffy turned and glared at her sister and Joyce nudged her, but now she had started she couldn't stop giggling. Buffy continued to glare for a bit, but she gave up and then rolled her eyes at her friends 'acting'.
"Darkness! And horror of darkness. Unfolding, restless, visitant, sped by an ill wind in haste." Xander (badly) acted. "Madness, and. . .Madness a-and stabbing pain, and, a-and, uh. . . oh. . . oh. . .memory of, uh, ill deeds I have done."
The stage fright had literally frozen Willow. Buffy rolled her eyes again and poked Willow to cue her. Willow, moving faster than anyone had seen her do so, dashed off the stage to the safety of the wings.
Xander and Buffy, left with half a sketch to complete and a massive gap between the two remaining characters, stepped closer together and smiled sweetly at the audience. The members of the audience sat in silence, apart from Dawn's giggling, and Buffy noticed Snyder glaring at her; she was going to pay for this.
x?x
"Buffy! It's time to get up for school... Are you alright?"
"No. Uh, yeah! Yeah! I'm, I'm fine! Oh. . . School! Great." Buffy said as she got out of bed.
"You wanna go to school?"
"Sure! Why not?"
Joyce started to open the blinds, allowing the Californian sun to stream through the windows. "Okay.Good day to buy that lottery ticket. I spoke with your father."
"He's coming, right?" Buffy asked fearfully.
"You're on for this weekend. He'll pick Dawn up first at 3:00 and then come for you."
Buffy sighed with relief. "Good."
x?x
Joyce was driving her daughter's to school. "You're both very quiet today." She looked in the rear view mirror to see Dawn's reaction. Her youngest daughter continued gazing out the window and just shrugged her shoulders.
Joyce turned to look at Buffy who, like her sister, was staring out the other window. "Buffy?"
"I-I didn't sleep well."
"I'll say. I came in to check on you twice. You were yelling in your sleep. Do you know what you were dreaming?"
Buffy shook her head. "Not really. Oh, no, my bag! I-I packed it for the weekend and I forgot it!"
"You and your dad can swing by the house and get your bag. It's not an international crisis."
"Okay. Yeah, I just, uh, had meant to bring it."
Dawn spoke for the first time in the journey. "H-he's still picking me up from school, right? A-at 3:00?"
"Honey, are you worried your father isn't gonna show?"
"No! N-not really. Should I be?" Dawn said nervously.
"He will be here...right?" Buffy asked.
"Well, of course, not! I-I-I just, I-I know it's a hard situation. You just have to remember that your father adores you both. No more than I do, by the way."
Dawn smiled as they pulled up at Sunnydale high school and Buffy got out the car.
"Goodbye." The blond slayer called.
"See ya later."
"Have a great day." Joyce called as Buffy went into school.
x?x
Buffy and her friends were in the library when Hank Summers came, Dawn trailing behind him.
"There you are! I've been looking everywhere. Why aren't you in class?" He exclaimed.
"Dad, what are you doing here? Y-you're not supposed to pick me up till after school. Is something wrong? Dawn, are you okay?" Buffy asked, taking in Dawn's tearful expression.
"Well, I, I need to talk to you." Hank replied, taking no notice of the teary ten year old behind him.
That scared Buffy. "Something is wrong, is it mom?"
"No, no, it's not your mother, she's fine." He lowered his voice. "Could I speak with you for a moment? Privately?"
"Um... sure!" Buffy suddenly remembered the other occupant of the room. "Oh! I'm sorry. Dad, this is Mr. Giles, the librarian. Uh, this is my dad, Hank Summers."
"My pleasure." Giles said politely.
Hank took Giles' hand and shook it briefly. "Likewise."
"Could you watch Dawn? I'll be back soon." She told Giles, confused by a number of things, mainly the fact that her father was totally ignoring Dawn.
Buffy followed her father out while Dawn just watched them go.
"D-Dawn, are you alright?" Giles asked gently.
"H-He said I didn't belong, that I wasn't part of the family." She sobbed.
"Who did? Not your father?" He asked aghast. Who would tell a little girl something like that?
Dawn sniffed. "I don't want to talk about it." She said sullenly and flounced over to a chair.
Giles almost tried to speak to her again, but he didn't know what to say. So instead he picked up a newspaper and tried to read what was written on it.
Giles was still trying to read what was written on the paper when Willow and Xander came in. "Red alert! Where's Buffy?" Xander demanded before seeing Dawn. "Hey there Dawnie; how's it hanging?"
Dawn smiled in reply. She was still a bit wary of Xander, ever since she met the hyena him before she knew monsters were real.
FLASHBACK
"There you are!" Joyce Summers approached Buffy and Xander as they entered the house. "I can't stop now or I'll be late for dinner. Buffy, make sure Dawn's in bed by nine and don't let her get hyped up on sugar again. Bye, love you."
She ducked out the door to go to her business meeting and Buffy watched her go.
"Xander are you sure you're okay to watch Dawnie?" Buffy asked in a hushed tone. Xander hadn't been acting like himself, he'd almost been mean.
"Buff, chill, go patrol. Me and the Dawnmeister'll be fine!" He seemed to be back to normal now...
"Okay. Dawn! I've got too go out, but Xander will stay here with you, kay?"
"I don't need a babysitter!" Dawn yelled from upstairs in her room.
"Yes you do!" Buffy replied. "Do what Xander tells you, bye!"
Buffy shot an anxious look at Xander and headed to the cemetery. Xander watched her go, smiling reassuringly. The minute the door closed, the smile was gone. He lifted his head and sniffed the air.
He sauntered into the kitchen and pulled open the refrigerator. There was a leg of ham in there causing Xander to smile. He was just polishing it off when Dawn appeared in the doorway.
"Eww! Gross!" She squealed.
Xander swung round in surprise, but when he saw who it was, he schooled his features into a friendly look. "Hey there Dawnie."
Dawn backed away. He'd looked so vicious when he'd first seen her and now there was still something off about his behavior. "I-I'm gonna go upstairs...to my room."
Xander had made no attempt to follow her or to stop her.
END FLASHBACK
"Where's Buffy?" Xander asked, his voice snapping Dawn back to the real world. She now knew that Xander had been under some kind of spell, but she was still a little wary of him.
"Uh, she, she just stepped out. Her, her father came by early. He, he needed to talk to her. W.. .where are your other clothes?"
Xander cringed. "Oh, don't I wish I had the answer to that question."
"Xander kinda found himself in front of our class not wearing much of anything." Willow said with a smile.
"Except my underwear."
Willow laughed. "Yeah! It was really. . . bad. It was a bad thing."
"'Bad thing'? I was naked. 'Bad thing' doesn't cover it. It's a total nightmare." He groaned.
Willow's head shot up as something connected in her mind. "Well, yeah Xander! I-it's your nightmare!"
"Except the part with me waking up going 'it's all a dream'. It happened."
"Like it happened to Wendell. That thing with the spiders? Wendell had a recurring dream about that." Willow rambled.
"I-I dreamt that I got lost in the stacks and I. . . I couldn't read. . .Of course!"
"Of course what?" Dawn asked Xander, who was nearly as confused as she was.
"Uh, our dreams are coming true?" Xander tried.
"Dreams? That would be a musical comedy version of this. Nightmares, our, our nightmares are coming true. Dawn; did you ever have a nightmare when you didn't belong in your family?"
Dawn nodded. "Yes" She said quietly.
"Why Dawnie? They love you and they always will." Xander comforted.
"Nightmares aren't always logical, Xander." Giles reminded him. "I highly doubt that you will ever attend a class in that state of undress."
"So, why is this happening?" Willow asked getting the conversation back on topic.
"Billy." Giles stated.
"Well, that explanation was shorter than usual. It's Billy!" Xander exclaimed. "Who's Billy? "
"He's a boy in the local hospital. He was beaten. He's in a coma. Somehow I think he's crossed over from the nightmare world he's trapped in."
"And he brought the nightmare world with him. Thanks a bunch, Billy." Xander said, relying on sarcasm in moments of panic as usual.
"How could he do that?"
"Things like that are easy when you live on a Hellmouth." Giles sort of explained.
"Well, we have to stop it." Dawn acknowledged.
"And soon. Or else everyone in Sunnydale is gonna be facing their own worst nightmares."
There were a few moments of silence while the news sunk in before Giles spoke again.
"Buffy doesn't know this is happening. And given the sort of thing that she tends to dream about, it's imperative that we find her."
"What about me? I'm not staying here on my own." Dawn said as she began to follow them out the library.
"No, of course not...it would probably be best if you stay with me."
Dawn looked a bit annoyed at having to spend time with the librarian, but followed him all the same.
"Probably faster if we split up to look for her." Xander suggested.
"Good idea." Giles agreed.
He and Xander went off in opposite directions, Giles taking Dawn with him.
Willow began to call after them, but they were already gone. "Faster, but ... uh, not really safer."
x?x
Dawn and Giles were patrolling the school corridors when Willow and Xander ran through a plastic sheet and careered into them. "No sign of Buffy?" Giles asked as he pulled Dawn up from the floor.
Dawn looked over his shoulder fearfully. Giles looked round and saw a knife wielding clown running up behind him. They started to run towards the end of the corridor. When they got there Xander stopped.
He punched the clown unconscious saying: "You are a lousy clown! Your balloon animals are pathetic! Everyone can make a giraffe!"
Dawn gave Xander an odd look as they ran outside. Willow stopped suddenly and looked across the street. "Excuse me, but when did they put in a cemetery across the street?"
"And when did they make it night over there?" Xander added.
The group crossed the street and went into the night.
"Whose nightmare is this?" Xander asked.
Dawn gasped as they came upon a gravestone that read 'Buffy Summers, 1981-1997'.
"It's mine." Giles knelt down next to the grave and put his hand on the fresh soil.
Willow and Dawn screamed as a hand reached through the dirt and grabbed him. Giles tore himself away and watched as Buffy rose from her grave.
"Buffy?" Dawn whispered.
"I though I was dead!" Buffy said as she turned to face her friends.
Dawn gasped again. "Buffy; your face!"
Buffy felt her face. "Oh, God! Don't look at me." She said, but her friends couldn't tear their eyes away.
"Buffy, there's a chance that we can make it go away. This all comes from Billy. Now, if, if we can only wake him up, I believe that the nightmares will stop and reality will shift back into place, but we must do it now! I need you to hold together long enough to help us. Can you do that?" Giles asked her.
"Yeah, I think I can."
x?x
The hospital was in chaos. A doctor was backing away from Billy's room, holding his crippled hands and patients were running about. The group paid no attention, though, as they ran into Billy's room.
"Billy...Billy?" Giles shook the young boy trying to wake him.
"That won't work." Billy's astral body was standing by the curtains looking down at himself.
"Billy, you have to wake up!" Giles pleaded.
"No; I have to hide."
"Why? From what?"
"From his nightmare." Buffy replied for him, seeing the monster that haunted Billy's dreams come down the hall.
Buffy began to fight the creature, eventually knocking it unconscious. "Billy, come here. You have to do the rest."
"What is she doing?" Dawn asked, but Giles hushed her.
Billy leant over and peeled back the monster's face. A bright light streamed out and everything went back to normal.
Billy began to stir in his bed. "I had the strangest dream, and you were in it...who are you people?"
x?x
Buffy was waiting for her father outside the school. He drove up and honked the horn before getting out the car, closely followed by a happier looking Dawn.
"Hi!" He greeted his daughter with a hug. "Oh, it's so good to see you. How was your day?"
Buffy exchanged a secret look with Dawn who smiled back. "Fine, you know, the usual..."
x?x x?x x?x x?x
I'm still taking requests of what episode you want to see in this fic, so just put any season two suggestions and how you'd like to see them done in a review or an email and I'll see if I can put it in. I'll put anything in, but if there's not enough material in the actual episode to work with, then I'll do the same thing as I did with this chapter and do a mini flashback.
Next chapter: Prophecy Girl.
Please Review;
Kiara