Rebuilding

Ch 16 – Life Stuff

Ms. Portlynn, a short and plump African-American with a no nonsense attitude in a sharp maroon business suit and skirt sat with her arms resting on her desk. She looked across at the three people on the other side of the desk with an air of disappointment.

Giles could feel his feathers roughing a bit at the implied judgment in her body language. Clearly, she didn't think much of their parenting skills and Giles thought they'd been doing an admirable job, considering the circumstances.

Alison had been through this before countless times in her career. You had a good, smart kid and then something horrible happens and they just spin out of control. Well, she wasn't about to let that happen to one of hers. The only way to get a troubled teen back on track was a little tough love. And she obviously wasn't getting it from her sister and godfather.

"I'm sure we all understand that Dawn has transgressed," Giles stated. "However, I fail to see how threatening us does any good."

"Dawn is my sister," Buffybot emphasized. "I can take care of her."

"I'm sure that's so. And I'm not saying that we are removing her from the home," Alison stated diplomatically. "I'm not even suggesting that I am going to report her situation to the authorities at this time. I'm simply stating that if she continues to choose to skip school, the truancy office will take action."

"It's just been a rough time," Dawn said.

"Which is no excuse," the principal said bluntly. "Your mother was a lovely woman and we miss her dearly, Dawn. But this isn't the behavior she would have expected from you."

"I agree," Buffybot nodded with another incongruous smile. This was quickly (a little too unnaturally sudden, in Dawn's estimation) turned to a frown as she addressed Dawn. "I believe that our mother would be very distressed to find you shirking your responsibilities. Giles?"

"Uh, uh, yes. Yes, I'm sure she would be, as am I. But now that we are aware of the issue, I'm sure that Dawn knows she will be monitored far more closely."

"I'm afraid the damage has been done," Ms. Portlynn said with regret. "I've received enough complaints about her performance, when she decides to attend class, that I'm afraid there simply isn't enough time left in the school year for her to pass her current grade."

"Surely you're not suggesting she be held back," Giles blanched.

"I can't do that! I'll look like the town idiot," Dawn complained.

"What do you suggest to resolve this conflict," Buffybot asked the principal.

"I'm afraid I must recommend that Dawn attend summer school. With hard work and focus, I'm sure she can join her peers in September."

"Uh…" Dawn tried to object, her eyes wide in horror.

Buffybot talked over her, "Wonderful!"

With a huge smile, she turned to Dawn, "You'll have more time to accumulate important facts and figures."

"N-now, let's not be hasty here," Dawn tried again.

"I believe that summer school is an appropriate action," Giles offered to the principal. "Will they begin immediately after the year's recess?"

"Uh, n-now wait a minute," Dawn stuttered with a look of growing panic on her face.

"Classes for the summer session begin one week after graduation day. This year that will be June 18th with the last class being held on…" she flipped through a desk calendar, "… August 24th. Then regular classes are scheduled to begin on September 3rd, so she will have a week there to rest and gear up for the new school year."

"That'll blow my whole summer," Dawn exclaimed.

"Dawn, this will be a far more valuable use of your time than hanging around at our house," Buffybot insisted. "Knowledge is power," she grinned widely. (1)

"I-I'm sorry, Dawn," Giles sympathized. "But you did bring this on yourself."

"This just sucks," she said.

"Dawn, you know school policy about language," Alison warned.

"Sorry, ma'am."

"I have a very good feeling about your continued education," Buffybot smiled.

I hate you, Dawn thought without any real malice. She knew Buffy would probably be insisting the same thing. That didn't make it any fairer. You could at least look regretful like Giles, you stupid bucket of bolts.

"Fine," Dawn said aloud but she was thinking, September 1st I turn sixteen and I am so not going to be here on September 3rd.

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At the mall site, the outer walls were being put in place and Xander was going over another budgeting report for the developer. His mind wandered for a minute to Spike and he sighed.

I miss him in bed, too, Hyena whined.

You should have thought about that before freaking him and pushing me aside.

If you weren't so selfish with the body, I wouldn't have had to.

Uh, this is MY body… so yeah, I'm selfish with it. Why don't you join Commando? Don't you have someplace to 'fade away' to?

Hyena growled at him, but she slunk away into his subconscious.

Grabbing the phone, he dialed up Willow's cell phone and waited for her to pick-up.

"Hello," her voice, sounding wore out as she always seemed to these days, came over the line.

"Hey, Wills… how you doing?"

"Oh, hi Xan! I'm fine... just working on getting caught up on some coursework. Things have kind of slid and they're threatening me with some incompletes… the bastards," she said hotly.

"Sorry. I know you guys are stretched, but I was calling to see if you can watch Dawn tonight at home? Pretty please?"

"Uh, yeah… of course. I mean, it is her house. Why, what's up?"

"Oh," Xan said slyly, "I was just planning on a night in."

"Ooh, something romantic-like," Willow exclaimed before sighing, "Geez, I can't remember the last time Tara and I had a romantic evening."

"Well, if you will do this for me tonight, we'll take her for the rest of the week and you and Tar can do the domestic bliss deal, okay?"

"Sure," she said with a smile in her voice, "In the meantime, I've got to get back to work. I still have your special project to look into."

"Any hints, yet?"

"Sorry, Xan. I don't know why those personalities didn't disappear the way they should have. Tara has some ideas on how to make her go away, but I'm not comfortable telling you all the details, for obvious reasons."

"Yeah, best to keep it mum. Even when I can't feel her moving around, I'm pretty sure she's listening in on everything. Any idea how close we are to trying something?"

"Mmm… maybe a month. There's this thing with some stuff and it takes that long to ferment it properly," Willow said.

"So you're going to get me liquored up?"

"No," she laughed. "It's just a potion… no alcohol. Wow, I don't think I've laughed since…."

There was an uncomfortable silence of several seconds over the phone.

"It's okay, Willow. We're allowed to be happy again," Xander pointed out.

"Uh, I really gotta go," Willow said to him and disconnected.

Xander sighed. I thought that Buffy's death was going to hit me or Spike the worst next to Dawn and Giles. I didn't realize how tough this was on Willow.

Across the town at the U.C. campus library, Willow closed her stinging eyes tightly. In front of her was a book on the ancient Egyptian rituals and rites involving the Underworld. She'd read the same page three times already and couldn't remember what it had said. Her mind kept returning to Buffy's torment. Just that morning, she could have sworn she'd heard her voice just as she was waking up screaming for help.

I'm sorry Buffy, she thought while holding back tears, I-I shouldn't be laughing… not 'til you're home.

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Between her own classes, Tara used the time waiting for Giles in her dorm room to type up what Spike had reported from patrol. He'd found a decomposed body of a man with the throat torn. It was likely the father of the first missing family and it broke Tara's heart when she thought of the missing children. So far, there'd been two more families that had been abducted. That made another two fathers, three mothers and a total of five children… all missing. It seemed that somebody had little use for the men, but what in the world were they doing with the women and children?

Her answer was less than two miles away at the abandoned castle of the bed and breakfast. Vanessa looked down at Gladys, Tammy and Rachel along with their kids; Terry 1, Terry 2, Nicky, Jamie and Tess. All of them sported fangs and yellow eyes and were currently biting into one of two dead stray dogs.

"You will be my army," she said, while they mostly ignored her in preference for the warm blood they were consuming. That's alright; they'll listen when the time is important.

"Tonight, you'll find the mysterious red-head," Vanessa said. "I want to know what Spike is playing at, not biting her. It just doesn't make sense," she shook her head in confusion.

"No, Spike always kills. He's no better than any of us. And yet…," she sighed. She'd been puzzling over his accompanying the girl around town without attacking since she'd spied on him. And it still stung a little that she meant so little to him, he hadn't even detected her presence. It was galling, really.

"Well, he won't be ignoring me much longer," she whispered.

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End Chapter 16

(1) A shout out to WaTchers: The Virtual Series at