Abryxis- Mwa haha. Yes my evilness grows. I think for that chapter I channelled Joss' evilness. Haha. Thanks for the review.

G120- Thanks for review and although I know the storyline was vair sad, I am tres glad you didn't see it coming. Thanks a lot for the well-written emotions and character responses.

Zigpal- Thanks for review and I know it's sad, but like you said, it fit in with the style and theme of the season. A hard year and all that. And well… you will just have to see on both the new baby front and on the darkest before the dawn sitch. Hehe. Also, lest we forget, thank you for claps.

Rabidreject- Almost made you cry? Dammit! So close! Hehe. And yes, Spike did a good deed for Joyce. Thought it made sense since he claimed she was the only one of the group he could half-stand.

A/N: Okay, the screen on my laptop broke. Does technology hate me? Anyway, should have a new laptop soon, curtesy of the High School where my Mom works, teehee, but until then I'm updating at the library so the updates might be a bit all over the place. But like I said, it should be resolved soon.
"Is Mom mad at me?" Dawn asked suddenly as she and Buffy sat together on the sofa only partially paying attention to the low rate film flickering on the television.

"What?" Buffy asked immediately, "No, why on earth would you think that?"

"Because she hardly spends more than minute alone in a room with me…and even then she barely looks at me, before she's gone again"

"Dawn," Buffy began, sitting up so she could talk to her sister properly, "After…after what happened last week…Mom and Giles just…they need to spend a lot of time together, but she is not avoiding you"

Dawn still looked unsure and she wriggled uncomfortably in her seat.

"I think that…maybe she blames me-"

"Blames you?" Buffy asked incredulously, interrupting Dawn, "Why would she blame-"

"Because I'm the reason Glory took her," Dawn explained, "She thought the baby was the key…and if she hadn't been looking for me she wouldn't have took Mom…and Mom and Giles wouldn't have lost the baby"

This confession spoken aloud, Dawn felt she couldn't look Buffy in the eye, afraid that she was going to confirm these suspicions and fears.

"Dawn that is so far out there that-" Buffy paused, frowning at her sister. "You haven't been doin' a bunch of drugs at school have ya?"

"No," Dawn replied, smiling in spit of herself, "Cigarettes don't count do they?"

Buffy's eyes widened in shock and she was about to call for their Mom when Dawn stopped her just in time.

"No! It was a funny!" She insisted and Buffy seemed to relent, "Honest"

"Fine," Buffy accepted, trying to look at her sister with disapproval but there was too big a smile playing at her lips for it to be effective, "So, speaking of, how is school? No zombie people? No Sunnydale High-esque beasties?"

"No," Dawn shook her head, "And no normal problems either,"

"Oh," Buffy said simply, worrying to herself that she had become as Hellmouth orientated as Giles, "I was gonna ask about those"

After that, Buffy's attention was drawn back to the television by an amusing commercial and Dawn was relieved by this as it meant her sister couldn't see the look of guilt on her face. Because the truth was, although she had said school was fine, she hadn't been there at all in a week- her Mom or Giles dropped her off outside the school grounds and once they drove off she headed in the opposite direction.

Giles debated whether to answer the phone or not. He was just about to set out for the Magic Box when it began to ring. To answer or not to answer, that was indeed the question. He could just go now, leave it ringing. He was practically out the door anyway- it was just the same as if he hadn't been here to answer it.

"Can somebody get that?" Joyce called down from her bedroom and Giles cursed under his breath, before heading over to the offending phone.

"Hello? Oh Mrs Stevens, hello," Giles greeted Dawn's Principal over the phone. Sudden thoughts of Glory-related incidents that could have happened popped into his mind, "Is Dawn okay? Nothing has- pardon? What do you mean by 'you wouldn't know'?"

Joyce hadn't quite finished getting ready when the phone began ringing. She was running late for the gallery as it was. It was actually going to be her first day back in a week…and it looked like she was going to be late anyway as the small-sized cast on her wrist was causing her to take longer getting ready. Also she had to take extra time covering up the just-starting-to-heal bruises on her face.

"Joyce!" She heard Giles call up the stairs after answering the phone and after putting in her silver earrings one-handedly she headed out of her room to see what he was calling her for.

"What is it?" She asked as she walked down the stairs toward him.

"That was Dawn's principal on the phone," he informed her.

"Is she okay? Glory hasn't-" She began with question similar to the ones Giles had initially asked, but he stopped her mid-question with a calm raise of the hand.

"Don't worry, she's perfectly fine except for-"

"Except for what?" Joyce interrupted in worry.

"Except for the fact she's been missing school," He finished.

"What? Again?" Joyce thought Dawn had gotten over this type of behavior after she had first found out she was the key. "Missing school? As in she hasn't been to any of her classes?"

Giles nodded.

"Mrs Stevens with one of us, today actually and uh, well, I believe her words were 'preferably as soon as possible'"

Joyce sighed as she walked down the final few steps of the stairs.

"Guess I'm not making it to the gallery today either," She concluded.

"Well, I, uh, I could go if you wish," Giles suggested, but Joyce shook her head.

"No…I mean you are going, but I am as well," Joyce replied and Giles frowned wondering why the two of them were needed for the task, "Dawn is obviously playing up," Joyce continued, "and to perfectly honest I just can't deal with that right now. So my plan involves a 'double whammy'" She smiled weakly.

"'Double whammy'?" Giles repeated, but Joyce was already leading him out the door.

"I'll explain on the way," She told him.

"Dawn, how could you do this?" Joyce spoke directly to her daughter in the Principal's office, "Just miss school like this? What were you thinking?"

Before Dawn could attempt to answer any of these questions, Giles was on her case as well.

"And what of these stories from school that you were telling to Buffy?" He asked, "You were lying the entire time…"

"No," Dawn immediately protested, "Those things did happen at school- my friends said…I just wasn't there to see them"

"Dawn, I-" Joyce began, before breaking off to look at Principal Stevens, "Mrs Stevens I am so sorry about all this, I am appalled at how-" She broke off again, this time turning back to Dawn, "Dawn, why would you do something like this? You know how important it is for you to be in school right now"

Dawn heard the hidden message of 'so we know where you are, but Glory doesn't' in her Mom's words.

"Dawn," Stevens suddenly said, "Perhaps you should wait outside a moment?" Dawn reluctantly started to get up, "Mr Giles, would you like to wait with her? I just need to talk to your wife a moment"

Joyce and Giles shared a look, before he left, leading Dawn out the room and closing the door quietly behind them.

Once the door clicked shut Mrs Stevens turned to look at Joyce with a very sympathetic expression and Joyce had a bade feeling she knew what the woman was going to say.

"Mrs Giles, your marriage to your husband is fairly recent isn't it?"

"Yes…one month ago actually," Joyce replied and Mrs Stevens nodded, taking in the information.

"Mm-hmm…and everything is okay at home? No…problems?"

"What? No, why, what-"

"I just…" Mrs Stevens closed her eyes as if for split-second meditation in an attempt to bring some calm and ease to the situation, "I'm concerned that Dawn's recent change in behavior may have something to do with her situation at home"

"What exactly are you implying?" Joyce asked directly with an even tone. In fact, she knew exactly what the woman was implying, but she still wished for her to say it outright.

"Mrs Giles, I can't help taking note of the bruising on your face and the cast on your wrist and whether it is occurrences like these that are prompting Dawn's obvious cries for attention"

"Mrs Stevens. Rupert has never laid a finger on me or either of my daughters and where I attained these injuries is, frankly, none of your concern"

"Actually, it is," Stevens countered, a little reluctantly, "If myself or any other members of staff believe Dawn's home dynamic to be…'less than comfortable' wee will have to call Social Services,"

"What? You can't do that," Joyce immediately protested, "You don't have the right"

"Yes, we do," Mrs Stevens informed her, "We have the right to do whatever we believe is in Dawn's best interests, but I would truly hate to resort to such drastic measures"

But she would if things didn't improve with Dawn. She didn't say that, but the unspoken words were there, hanging in the air between them.

"Dawn! Don't you dare walk off on me!" Joyce exclaimed as she stormed in the Magic Box after her daughter and the sound of her raised voice caused Anya, Buffy, Willow and Xander, who were sat at the round table as always, to look up.

A split second later, Giles walked in after them, but at a much calmer pace and rather than looking angry like Joyce did, he instead look exhausted. All the way to the store they had been talking to Dawn about the way she had been acting, but it soon developed into just a conversation between Joyce and Dawn which had then escalated into an argument, which, when they had arrived at the Magic Box had culminated in Dawn walking off.

"Why not?" Dawn challenged, spinning around to look at her Mother, "It's all you ever do to me lately!"

"What?" Joyce's confusion caused her to stop shouting.

"What's going on?" Willow asked Giles as he walked over to the group.

"Dawn's been skipping school again," He explained.

"What?" Buffy yelped.

"Please, don't start," Giles, begged as he pointed to where Joyce and Dawn were arguing, "That started off as a quiet talk…her sister 'talking' to her as well may have quite the opposite of the desired effect and land us all in quite a cataclysmic state of affairs"

That said, the group couldn't help returning their attention to the arguing Mother and daughter.

"You're never around," Dawn explained in response to Joyce's simple question of 'what?', "You spend time with everyone else…. but me you can barely look at"

"Dawn," Seeing her daughter's distress, Joyce was no longer shouting, "How can you think that? I haven't-"

"Yes you have," Dawn insisted, "Y-you blame me. For what happened. If Glory wasn't trying to find me she wouldn't have-" Dawn, so very close to tears and unable to say much more, ran past her Mom and out the door.

"Dawn!" Joyce called pleadingly, before running out after her daughter.

"Whoa," Xander summed up the situation in one word.

"Yeah, 'whoa'" Willow agreed/

"I had no idea she felt that way," Giles confessed and all but Buffy nodded their heads in agreement.

"Dawn, please stop," Joyce called as she came out of the store and Dawn stopped walking. Whether this was voluntary or just an instinctive reaction Joyce didn't know or care, just as long as she could talk to her.

"Don't say you haven't been avoiding me…not looking at me," Dawn said before Joyce could get a word in edge-wise.

"Okay," Joyce agreed, "I have…but it's not for the reasons you think Dawn"

"Isn't it?" Dawn asked, sounding incredibly uncertain.

"No, of course not," Joyce said as she walked over to her. She couldn't believe Dawn would even think that- how on earth could she blame her? She was just a fourteen-year-old girl. "That…last week was the first time I ever actually came across Glory. I knew…I'd read of what her abilities are…what she can do, but to experience it first hand is something entirely different. She terrified me Dawn," Dawn remained silent, "and what terrifies me more is that she wants to get to you. After meeting Glory, looking at you reminded me of that fact- that she wants to hurt you. Badly. And I couldn't- I can't bear the thought of her trying to hurt my baby girl"

"Mom…" Dawn started to cry with her Mom as the two of them hugged, but they managed to keep it together. Barely.

"Poor Dawnie, " Tara sympathized after Willow told her the story of what had happened earlier on at the Magic Box.

"I know," Willow agreed, "I think the whole family are feeling pretty much of the sad, the bad and the ugly lately"

"It's understandable," Tara said, "I mean after a loss like that it would be pretty hard to carry on as normal"

"Yeah…I just wish I could help…" Willow said contemplatively, before her expression brightened as an idea formed in her mind, "I could do a spell"

"A spell?"

"Yeah," Willow nodded, "like an advanced healing spell….to help them all overcome it and move on"

"Can you do that?" Tar asked, when what she really meant was 'should you do that'. The healing process was something vitally important to the person and to have magick tamper with it could have serious consequences.

"Yeah, it'll be easy," Willow assured her girlfriend, but she didn't get the response she expected as Tara just looked extremely worried, "What's, what's the matter?"

"It's just these spells you're casting Will…you're becoming so powerful…"

"You say that like it's a bad thing…" Willow looked at Tara, trying to read her expression.

"No, it's not…" Tara told her, "It's just sometimes…it frightens me how powerful you're getting"

"That's a weird word to use,"

"Getting?" Tara asked with a nervous smile.

"It frightens you?" Willow asked. Not letting Tara get away with her choice of words, "I frighten you?"

"No, I didn't mean frighten," Tara immediately told her, standing up, "I meant impress, it I-impresses me"

"Tara, I took Psych 101. I mean sure I was taught by a crazy government scientist who was skewered by her Frankenstein like creation, but I know what Freudian Slip is. Don't you trust me?"

"And then it just blew up into this big argument," Willow explained dejectedly in the Magic Box as she sat near where Joyce and Giles were stood. Buffy was in class at college, Anya was serving customers and Xander was at the table attempting to help Dawn with her homework, but was slowly realizing that with age wisdom did not always come.

"You two don't argue often do you?" Giles asked, but it sounded more like a statement than a question.

"Never," Willow replied, "Until now…"

"Yes, well, ah, at least it's over now," Giles comforted her, but Willow looked anything but comforted by this statement.

"Over? How can it be over? I just found her"

"He means the argument sweetie," Joyce calmed her and Willow nodded, relaxing a little.

"Oh"

"Every couple goes through their first argument Willow," Joyce assured her, "But they get through it and become stronger for it"

"You're sure?" Willow asked, lower lip quivering at the thought that things might be over with Tara.

"I'm positive," Joyce smiled, giving Willow a little hug.

"What was your first argument?" Willow asked, finding herself wishing to compare as a way to make sure things would work out with Tara,.

"Pardon?"

"You and Giles," Willow elaborated, "What was your first argument?"

Joyce and Giles looked across the room at each other, both of them silently going over what their first argument was, before both silently agreeing to tell Willow.

"It was at Buffy's 18th," Joyce explained, "Over the Cruciamentum"

"Oh," Willow said for lack of anything else to say, "That's kinda a lot bigger,"

"Yes, yes it was," Giles agreed as he went to open the cupboard door, thinking of how betrayed Joyce had felt by the Council tradition that had been enforced upon Buffy, "B-but we came out fine didn't we Willow?"

"Yes, marriage does-" Willow began but she was cut off by Giles banging the cupboard door on the head of one of Glory's minions who had been listening in to their conversation.

"Oh my god…is that…?" Joyce said, spotting the demon.

"One of the hobbits with leprosy?" Xander filled in, already getting Dawn up and towards the front door, away from the demon.

"Dawn, uh-" Joyce debated whether to go take Dawn away herself or to send Xander with her daughter while she stayed behind making sure the demon and by extension Glory didn't know where she was. She decided on the latter, "Xander, take Dawn to Spike's. He can, he can make sure she's safe"

"Mom-" Dawn began to protest, but her Mom shook her head, causing her to stop.

"Spike?" Xander asked, sounding sceptical, "Are you sure-"

"You can trust Spike," Joyce said earnestly and Xander reminded of the vampire's kind actions of the previous week, nodded.

"Okay, I'll be back soon," He told them all, sparing one moment to glance at Giles who was dragging the demon to a chair, before taking Dawn out of the store and Joyce was able to turn her attention to what was going on with the demon.

"How helpful?" Giles was saying and although he was doing the innocent action of merely cleaning his glasses, Joyce saw exteme menace in the movement and she saw Anya and Willow were watching him with a wary eye from where they were stood at the counter. Joyce herself had gotten over her fear of any aspect of the Ripper persona a long time ago, but she knew the kids hadn't so much. "What a wonderful oppurtunity for us to talk," Giles carried on and the demon made an attempt to hide his fear.

"I will not betray Glorificus." Slook proclaimed, "I will never talk, no matter what heinous torture-"
"Actually, you're talking quite a lot," Giles interupted in that same menacingly calm tone, "just not about the right things. Tell us why you're here."
"No words shall pass my lips that will bring peril to Glorificus." Slook said dramatically, but Giles wasn't the least bit affected. Without taking his eyes off the demon he pointed to the counter

"Girls," He asked, talking to Anya and Willow, "Get that twine that's on the counter, let's tie him up"

Willow and Anya turned away as did Joyce, to find the twine Giles was pointing out. They vaguely heard some rustling from where Giles and the demon were and a moment later Slook cried out, stopping them in their twine finding task.

"No, no! I'll tell you! Anything! Please! Whatever you want! Just, I'll, anything!"

"What happened?" Anya asked in amazement.

"He changed his mind," Giles said simply and would explain no further than that.

"I'm... I'm supposed to watch," Slook began to explain, "We're watching the Slayer's people ... while Glory fetches the key."

Everyone was immediately alarm and Joyce looked to Giles in panic.

"Glory knows who the key is?" Willow asked, not believing the God could have figured it out.
"Oh god..." Giles breathed, all traces of Ripper suddenly swept away by this revelation.
"We have to call Buffy," Anya announced and Joyce nodded in agreement, though she seemed too stunned to take any action herself.
"Too late. Too late." Slook told them gleefully, "Glorificus will find the witch, and there's nothing you can do to stop her."
"Witch?" Anya asked in confusion at the same time as Joyce, "What do you mean?"
It was Willow that clicked first.

"Tara!" She gasped in horror before running out of the store

"I have to warn the mice," Tara informed Joyce matter of factly, before turning to inform someone else in the room of the same thing.

Giles was inspecting the X-rays on the wall, until he couldn't look any longer and he turned away, shaking his head sadly.

"Are you okay?" Joyce asked Willow quietly in a voice that automatically made Willow give an honest answer.

"No," She shook her head as she clasped Tara's non-injured hand tightly, "I just...how could this happen to her? It shouldn't have- I should have been there to keep her safe"

"Willow, it's not your fault," Buffy insisted earnestly, "You couldn't have known what would happen"

Willow didn't say anything in reply, but just turned to gaze at Tara. Buffy turned around to look at everyone else in the room and saw they were all just as badly effected by what had happened and that they were instantly looking for support in one another. Anya was hugging Xander so tightly that it seemed he was struggling for oxygen slightly, but despite that he was still hugging his girlfriend back. Buffy looked to see her Mom was leaning into Giles and the two were stood together in a way that was reminiscent of the (first) band candy incident. Buffy really wished she had the ability to forget that night.

Looking around at all the couples though, Buffy wished she also had someone she could lean into and look to for support, but found herself, as usual, alone.

"Right," A Doctor broke Buffy's reverie as he walked back into the room, clipboard in hand, "Well, her hand, although severely damaged obviously, should heal just fine, but the cast will have to stay on for a while"

"Of course," Willow nodded with eager understanding, just wanting to take Tara home, subconciously holding Tara's hand tighter.

"But we'll have to keep in for observation," The doctor continued.

"What?" Willow asked, not so much not-believing as not-liking the Doctor's words.

"Just overnight, for observation," The doctor assured her, but this didn't bring any comfort to Willow.

Unable to continue to watch the distress this was causing to Willow., Joyce instead focused her attention on the X-rays, although this was not much better. It was just another painful reminder of what Glory had done. Joyce attention was only draw away from the glowing images when she heard Tara being wheeled out by the nurses.

"Tara, baby!" Willow pleaded, trying to hold onto Tara's outstretched hand as Tara was wheeled away by the nurses out of Willow's sight. Willow went to run after her, follow her out into the hall, but she felt Joyce and Buffy holding her back.

"Willow, it'll be okay, they'll look after her," Joyce assured her and Will nodded distratedly, as though she were only barely taking in Joyce's words.

"It's just one night," Buffy addded, "We can pick her up first thing in the morning- there's nothing you can do now"

"Yes there is," Willow stated determinedly with a look of resolve before she stalked out of the room. Buffy, realizing what her best friend intended to do, was hot on her heels.

"This is bad," Xander concluded, shaking his head in disgust, "Poor Willow"

"Poor Tara," Joyce added, sounding very upset and Giles automatically pulled her into a hug. As he did so he looked intently at Joyce- who was at present talking to Anya and Xander- as he thought over the previous week when she had been taken by Glory. What had happened then had been a tragedy itself, but Giles now couldn't stop thinking that what had happened to Tara could have happened to Joyce. How she had been when the monks' spell had effected her- the mad words she had rambled constantly- had been bad enough. Be grateful for small mercies didn't quite cover it. He held onto Joyce tighter which caused her to look at him with a small smile.

"Well, Willow's gone back to her dorm...cool down, clear her head, that sort of thing," Buffy announced when she came back into the roo, "I'd better go pick up Dawn from Spike's.

"Willow how could you think to go after Glory like that?" Joyce reprimanded as she, Buffy and Dawn brought Tara back to the dorm she shared with Willow.

"Because..." Willow sighed patiently. Joyce acted more like her Mom than Sheila Rosenberg did a lot of the time and sometimes it was really nice. Other times, such as now, it was really aggravating. "You know why," Willow finally decided to say in reply as she made sure Tara was sat down comfortably.

"But she could have hurt you so much," Joyce insisted, "And you wouldn't have been able to lookm after Tara, you wouldn't have been able to be there for her because you'd be dead"

Silence flooded the room as this message hit everyone, most of all Willow who had never considered that aspect before.

"I'm sorry," Joyce said, closing her eyes for a second of calm, "It's just i hate this...I hate it all. I just don't want any of you getting hurt"

"I know Mom," Buffy said with a sympathetic expression and Joyce smiled appreciatively, "And don't worry. from now on we'll be extra, extra careful"

"Good to know," Joyce smiled as she hugged Dawn as if for reassurance. The whole group knew that the promise Buffy had made couldn't definitely be kept, but for now, they were willing to play along.

Suddenly, breaking the moment, the entire wall of Tar and Willow's dorm was ripped off, the sunlight pouring in and blinding them. When they finally got their bearings and their temporairly blinded sight cleared they saw Glory standing there not looking the least bit effected by her refurbishment of the dorm.

"I told you this wasn't over," She said, looking directly at Buffy and Willow.

"Oh look!" Tara exclaimed suddenly, looking up at Dawn with a giddy smile, "Oh pretty! Such pure green energy!"

Joyce, Buffy, Dawn and Willow all exchanged an expression of panic before looking at Glory to see the God was grinning a pleased smile at Dawn. She had found her key.