Chapter 1

Sunnydale, California 2000

"So, Buffy, why are we going shopping at night again? No offense, but I have to admit that this is one of your more insane sisterly get-togethers." Dawn frowned and bit her lip as she thought. "I would say it was your most insane, but there was that time we went to New York for Christmas with dad, and you took me swimming. We nearly got hypothermia and mom—,"

"Alright, alright, so I don't always have the best ideas," Buffy interrupted, mock glaring at her younger sister and cutting her off quickly before she finished the story. "But, forgive me for being blonde, why is going out for a night of shopping a bad thing?" Dawn sighed exasperatedly and shook her head.

"Earth to Buffy, in case you didn't notice, this is Sunnydale, and it's located right over a Hellmouth. Going out at night is pretty much the same as walking around with a neon sign over your head that says 'Vampires, free meal here!'"

"Oh, right," Buffy muttered sheepishly.

"And here I thought you were the Slayer," Dawn teased, flipping her hair. Buffy grinned, and began to tickle her sister ceaselessly, causing Dawn to burst out laughing as she tried to get her to stop.

"Umm, excuse me," an accented woman's voice interrupted them. The two girls sprang apart as if on fire and turned to the girl, breathing heavily. "Sorry, but did I hear you say something about vampires?" The two sisters glanced at each other quickly, and then looked back at the young girl. She was relatively tall, somewhere between sixteen and twenty, with long dark brown hair that was sort of curly, and hazel eyes.

"Vampires?" Buffy asked innocently. "Why would we talk about vampires? We were talking about empires, weren't we Dawn?" The younger girl nodded enthusiastically, but the other girl looked unconvinced.

"Empires, huh? Well, that's great that they can all eat free meals here then, isn't it Slayer?" She smirked at the sisters' shocked faces. "Relax, I just figured you two could help me find my friend. He's about this tall," she said, holding her hand a few inches above her head, "with blue eyes, really blonde hair, tends to have a really bad attitude, likes to wear this really dumb black duster?" She looked at them hopefully and Dawn frowned, thinking.

"Sounds like Spike," she said, looking at Buffy carefully. The other girl looked at them curiously. "Spike is a…friend of ours," Dawn explained. "You almost described him exactly."

"Really? Are there a lot of people around her like that?" She looked crestfallen. Buffy shook her head.

"Not really. So, umm…?" Buffy looked at her questioningly.

"Oh! How rude can I get! Sorry, the name's Fleur." The sisters nodded and introduced themselves before going on.

"So, Fleur, is this guy…He your boyfriend or something?" The French girl grimaced in disgust.

"Pardon?" She babbled in French for a second before shaking her head slightly, still frowning. "Sorry, umm, no. He's not my boyfriend. He's more my…father, in a manner of speaking." She froze and bit her lip, then shrugged. "Actually, now that I think of it, I remember where he is now. Thanks for your help, Buffy, Dawn. I'll look you guys up while I'm in town." She quickly waved and ran off, disappearing into the shadows. Buffy frowned.

"Huh, it may just be me, but something about her just doesn't feel right. I mean, she practically described that worthless creep of a vampire." She shuddered.

"Hope you weren't meaning me, Slayer?" Buffy groaned and rolled her eyes, not bothering to be nice.

"Spike, just the vamp I was wishing to stake." Dawn shook her head at her sister's antics. Those tow just didn't get along. Although, it could be that one was a vampire, and the other was the vampire slayer. "There was a girl here a second ago. She pretty much described you minus the fangs, said she was looking for a friend of hers, practically her dad," the blonde stated, eyeing him.

"What'd the bird look like?" he asked, lighting a cigarette. Dawn grinned.

"Well, she's a bit taller then me, around Buffy's height, with curly brown hair, really long and dark, hazel eyes, and is standing right behind you." Spike turned around quickly and stared in shock at the sight in front of him.

"It can't be…" he whispered. Fleur grinned.

"Hello William. Or, would you rather me call you daddy?"