A/N: Thanks for the reviews! I'm glad you're liking my story. :)
Fool Me Once
Chapter 8
As silently as she could, Buffy made her way back up the stairs, her feet padding softly on the carpet as she opened her bedroom door slowly. Closing it and then moving to turn the light on, a voice from behind her startled her out of the distracted state she was currently in.
"Have fun, Buffy?"
The Slayer gave her sister the most exasperated look she could manage before saying, "Why are you in my room, Dawn?"
"Waiting for you," the brunette answered, with a tone that suggested just how obvious her answer was. "Took long enough, didn't you?"
Rolling her eyes, Buffy pulled off her sweater, tossed it haphazardly behind her, and began searching through her drawers for some pajamas. As much as Dawn's tone was of the light and flippant variety, Buffy was perceptive enough to know when there was something on her mind. In an equally casual tone, she said to the younger girl, "So you here for a late-night visit, or is there something you need to ask me?"
"Am I real?"
"What?" The question had been so straightforward, something so completely not Dawn's style, that Buffy couldn't help the word from slipping from her mouth. She turned to face her sister, who was now sitting on her bed with her face in her hands. "Dawn, what…"
It was time. She couldn't tell her sister anything otherwise without being unfair to the girl, and as much as she wished she could keep her duties and repercussions of being the Slayer away from her family, it was impossible. Listening to hear whether their mother was making any noise, Buffy sat herself down next to Dawn and placed her hand gently on her arm, pulling her hands away from her fearful face.
"Buffy?" Dawn asked, her voice full of fear and vulnerability.
The Slayer took a deep breath and began to speak. "Dawn… Some of the things I'm about to tell you may be confusing, but I know that you'll be able to understand. I just…" Her voice trailed off for a moment when she felt a lump forming in her throat. "I just need you to let me explain everything before you ask any questions… And even then, we still have a lot ourselves."
Dawn was blessedly silent and attentive; it surprised Buffy that she wasn't completely wigging and pressuring her to hurry up, but then again, in another situation she may not have been treating her sister her age. Apparently, the girl was more mature than she or their mother had given her credit for. "I promise that I'll listen, Buffy. Just… just tell me now."
"Okay." Another deep breath. "Dawn, you are my sister. You are real. You're just… new." She paused to organize her thoughts, then continued. "Five months ago, these monks, they were trying to protect something really important from Glory," she explained. "What they were trying to defend is called the Key. They knew that they needed someone strong to take care of it, so they sent it to me—they sent you to me, Dawn. They made the Key into a human, into my sister."
Tears were shining in the younger sister's eyes when Buffy stopped for a moment. "Only five months? But what about all the memories we have?" Horror manifested on Dawn's face. "Oh god, they never happened…"
"They did, Dawn," Buffy said quickly. "At least to us—all of us. We remember having you Dawn, and we love you. We really do."
"Buffy," Dawn sniffled, wiping her streaming eyes with the sleeve of her sweater. "Is that why those crazy guys… and mom… they said I shouldn't be here?"
"Dawn, you are supposed to be here—you're so important, and there is no one else in this entire world that I would take care of like this." By now, tears were falling from Buffy's eyes as well, but she ignored them, instead reaching out to wipe away her sister's. "I love you, Dawnie. Mom loves you. We all do, and I promise… I won't let anything hurt you."
The two sisters shared an embrace then, Buffy silently stroking Dawn's hair while she sniffled against her shoulder. They stayed that way for a few minutes until the younger girl quieted down; Buffy nudged her gently and they pulled apart. Hesitantly, Dawn gave her sister a smile and said, "Thanks, Buffy."
"It's no problem, Dawn," she answered, standing and pulling the other girl to her feet. "But tonight has been not the most restful, and you need to get to sleep."
"Wait."
"What is it, Dawnie?" Buffy asked, more than ready to answer any other questions the girl may have about her origin.
"Do you like Spike?"
"What?" Yet again with the incredulous 'what-ing.' The question was completely out of nowhere, and it took Buffy a moment to realize that she was staring at her now giggling sister with a slack-jawed look on her face. "Um… what?" Great way to evade the question, Slayer, Buffy thought to herself, mentally slamming her head into her nightstand.
Dawn was full-out laughing as she said, "Oh you so do, Buffy."
"I do not!"
"Do too! Why else did you take forever coming up and walk into the room with that big dopey expression on your face?"
"I was… thinking about class!"
"So which class makes you blush like you just did something naughty?"
The conversation had certainly moved onto easier subjects—for Dawn, at least. Buffy rolled her eyes and gave her little sister a look that clearly said 'Aren't you supposed to be young and uninformed about naughty things?' "There were no 'naughty things' been done, if that's what you were wondering."
Dawn's raised an eyebrow and said simply, "But you still haven't answered my question… Do you like Spike?"
Almost automatically answering with the 'of course not!' that came from her history with the vampire, thinking back on the past week and the time they'd shared together—the opening up, the comfort he gave her, the… connection…
"Oh my god," Buffy moaned, her face sinking into her hands in an action mirroring that of her sister before. "I like Spike."