Title: Sarmatian Ladies

Author: Jmaria

Rating: PG-13 - R

Disclaimers/Spoilers: Joss owns the Buffy crew, Bruckheimer, Franzoni, & Fuqua own this incarnation of Arthur & his knights

Summary: Moving Day

A/N: Okay, so it's been a month between this chapter and the last. Well, there was the whole back to school nonsense, and working like a psycho for the past three months for money that was spent faster than it was earned. Sad, but true.

8. Dust in the Wind

"The Goddess keep you safe, make her forget you. Make her forget you. Leave you here. My bonny, my Mordred, my boy from the sea."

- The Wicked Day, Mary Stewart

Dawn stared in shock at the blue and pink decorations that were strewn around her apartment. Images of happy little babies slipping out of their nappies and storks bringing various bundled babies on balloons and streamers made her giggle. Then there was the image of a pissed off Kennedy shaking the butt of her dagger at Dawn, which made her burst out in a fit of laughter.

"You're so damn lucky you're pregnant, otherwise I'd forget you're the sister of a slayer and kick your butt." Kennedy said grumpily, tossing the dagger on the counter.

"Well, since I am the sister of a slayer, you'd think you all would have known not to sneak up on me." Dawn retorted, setting her bag on the chair by the door. "Plus, I've got all these crazy maternal instincts now, and people popping up from behind my furniture has almost never equaled anything good."

"Speaking of those kick-ass maternal instincts, we're so not accepting that e-mail as sufficient announcement." Kit said, crossing her arms.

Dawn had felt a little guilty about that e-mail. Both of them had been alerted by the Council when she'd gone missing, but Dawn had been so busy grieving and coming to terms with the fact that she was pregnant that all she could do was send them an e-mail saying she was safe and expecting. Seeing as she considered Kit and Carlos as her closest friends, an e-mail really was a shitty way to tell them.

"There was grief and guilt going on at the time. I wasn't in my right mind," Dawn said, trying to keep from smiling.

"You have a -" Kennedy started to say snippily, but thought it over at Rona's nudge.

"Very funny," Dawn said, her eyes landing hungrily on the sheet cake that read Baby Summers. "Is that chocolate?"

The Fox, the Lion, and the Wolf had all but disappeared from the face of the earth. The Raven paced in thought in the cell that the Lord of Death had thrown her into. As if the fool could get her to give him the location of the Lion. The thick iron lock sprung open, and Morgana immediately reached for her weapon. A tall, lithe female strode into the room. She smiled predatorily at the younger woman. Her hair was graying around the edges, and her gaze calculating.

"So you are the famed Lady Raven." She spoke as she circled Morgana. "Funny, I'd have thought you to be taller."

"Being taller does not ensure a long life, my lady." Morgana backed herself away from the woman, her heart thundering in her chest.

"She is not so impressive, my lady." The figure Morgana had seen in the chambers days earlier emerged now. Her auburn hair hung in a fashion that was decades -if not centuries - older than the lady she spoke to now. "Lady Raven's stature bears little reflection of her Amazonian heritage."

"Is she truly of the Amazons, mother?" A younger voice asked, close at her mother's heals. "Grandmother, is it true?"

"You dare bring Jessamina here?" The older woman cried, scooping the girl into her arms. "You are a greater fool than I had thought, Europa."

"Cease your prattling, Leticia." Europa snapped, her hands fisted at her sides. "I wanted my daughter to see this visionary."

"Visionary? Then the rumors are true, she possesses some power." Leticia said breathlessly.

She was a beautiful child, and it was no surprise to see her parents features in the small form. Morgana looked away. It was almost too heartbreaking to see the child's fate roll out behind her eyes. She would be chosen, and she would fall.

"I possess the healing gifts that all Sarmatian women learn, I am no visionary. Get the child from my sight. If you wish to threaten me, do not use children to do so."

Europa had no concept of what she was asking Morgana to foresee. But she sent her daughter away just the same. Morgana blinked, as Europa's past and future slid comfortably in her daughter's place. She allowed herself to feel pity for the woman for a moment.

"Well, herald of the future, what do you see?"

Europa tugged hard on Cordelia's shoulder. The Highest Beings had summoned them, all because of her meddling. Europa was nervous. She didn't like being in Their presences without fair warning.

"Quit yanking my arm out of my socket, psycho." Cordelia snapped. "What's your damage?"

"We have been summoned by the Highest Beings all because of your stupid interference in the Key's path." Europa felt bile rise in her throat.

"What?"

"You decided to play Matchmaker and returned the lost knight to the mortal realm. The knight you so carelessly released back into the world was meant to stay dead. He was destined to face mortal peril and evil, in order to restore balance to the world. His death was meant to distract the Dark knight from the future queen and his child was to take his place and bring peace. Instead, your insistence on hurling this knight back into the world could prevent the Key from going on and conceiving the right child."

"Yeah, because I'm the one who was there from the beginning. You can't predict love. Whose to say this kid, the kid Dawn's carrying now isn't the Chosen one to unite all mankind?"

"The Powers, you twit. Your arrogance and mortality disgust me." Europa spat.

"Yeah, well yours pisses me off. Where do you get off acting like you give a shit about Dawnie and the baby? I act like a person with feelings and I'm disgusting? Well, look in the mirror super bitch. Your superior-than-thou shit is wearing thin. I might not have the universe's greatest track record with people, but it's gotta be better than yours. You've probably never even been in Dawn's place. She's got not only her life, but the life of her child and her friends on the line with your prophecy. The kid deserves her happy-ever-afters when she can get them." Cordelia shouted, yanking her arm back.

Cordelia marched down the corridor. If all the powers were as dumb as this chick, Cordelia was gonna have to knock em all down a peg or two.

Tara had left moments ago, and his mind still reeled with the innovations his world had made in the last sixteen hundred years. Dagonet stared up at the night sky. He was a simple soldier, and he would soon be in a world that no longer did anything simply.

"Nothing is as it ought to be," he said to himself, closing his eyes as he imagined Dawn's smiling face. She was surrounded by a gaggle of women and a man. He clenched his fist. But the man moved to one of the other women, and Dagonet's fist loosened. Dawn's hand strayed idly over her belly. His heart filled with joy. His child slept there, safe in the tightest of embraces a mother could offer her child. Dawn's head rose slightly. She stared directly at him, her smile faltering for a second. Her lips formed one single word.

Dagonet?

His eyes snapped open in confusion. Had he truly seen her? Had she seen him? Dagonet did not have much time to ponder these questions, for he was no longer alone.

Dawn's eyes glazed over, and for the second time in two months, she passed out.

Rome

Lanyon Fairview shifted the backpack on his shoulders. Rome hadn't originally been on his lists of places to hit, but that dream had unnerved him. It had lit a fire under him, one that he wasn't particularly happy to have lit. He hailed a cab and in very bad Italian told the cabbie where he needed to go. The cabbie, a young woman of about twenty who looked oddly familiar, drove like all the devils in hell were chasing her. Lanyon struggled to keep his lunch down as she handled the sharp curves. She chattered on in fast and abrupt Italian, pausing only to yell at the drivers that cut her off.

He was more than thrilled when she came to an abrupt halt in front of his hotel, even though his head had smacked painfully into the divider. Lanyon gave her the fare and thanked her. She smiled, a small secretive little smile that sent shivers down his spine. He knew that smile, had seen it dozens of times before, but couldn't place it.

"Ciao!" she called out, her tires squealing as she speed out into traffic. She had shouted something else that sounded nothing like Italian, but Lanyon couldn't hear it.

He turned to make his way into the lobby of the hotel and found himself face to face with a petite blond woman. He felt his mouth go dry. She stared at him for a second, blinking a few times. She was in her twenties, a few inches shorter than he, and had on the tiniest tank top he'd ever seen. Dark dress slacks and matching boots finished off the ensemble. He couldn't see her eyes, as they were hidden behind a pair of designer sunglasses.

"Excuse me," she said politely stepping around him, her accent giving her away as American.

"Sorry about that," Lanyon fought the urge to blush, something he hadn't done since primary school. He hefted his bag onto his shoulder and started forward. Then he read the sign on the building. "Damn, miss?"

"Yes?"

"I'm sorry to bother you, but is this the Eliseo hotel?"

"No. You're miles in the wrong direction." The woman smiled, pulling off her glasses. "This is a private residence."

Lanyon cursed under his breath. That silly cabbie had been babbling in Italian and he had nodded along every few seconds, but he'd just assumed she knew where she was going.

"But I'm headed that way, I could give you a lift," the blonde said, nodding towards her car.

"You'd offer a ride to a complete stranger? I could be a rapist or an axe-murderer."

"I think I could handle you," A smile played on her lips. "I'm Buffy Summers."

"Lanyon Fairview. And I'm not a rapist or axe-murderer. I'm a journalist."

"I'm blissfully unemployed," Buffy replied.

"How's that working for you?"

"Well, pretty good. I go out, dance, and pick up strange and stranded men."

"Sounds like fun."

"Nah, it's kind of a drag."

In the vast corridors of the Powers That Be, a young woman dressed in a cab drivers clothing shrugged off her disguise. She slipped beside Merlin who looked more and more annoyed.

"Has Europa come yet?"

"No, she's behind the newest Liaison," Merlin nodded slightly to the brunette visionary who stood just inside the doorway looking annoyed. "You cut it close."

"I figured I had plenty of time, what with Europa being too distracted by her charge to notice me skipping down there."

"Good plan."

"I try."

"Did he recognize you?"

"A bit, but he couldn't place me. He got the dream and followed it," she whispered, a small smile playing on her lips.

"And?"

"I meddled like I like to do. I purposely took him to the wrong place."

"Which was in turn the right place?"

"Yes."

"Be careful, Morgana."

"I always am, Father."

Dawn felt shaky for the rest of the night, and well into the morning. Carlos looked like he wanted to do something, but didn't know what. When morning came and what with the cake having been slaughtered by midnight chocolate cravings, her friends dutifully helped her pack up the last of her things into the cardboard moving boxes. Then the slayer girls hefted all of the boxes down to the moving van.

It was quarter to ten when the knights arrived. Dawn was surprised to see all four of them there. Her friends were practically drooling over them. Well, Carlos and Kennedy were drooling over Gwen.

"So, are you ready to go?" Gavin asked, wrapping an arm around her shoulder.

"Yeah. I think that's the last box."

"Are Vi's things packed up?" Garrett asked from the doorway.

Vi's eyes widened in uncertainty. Dawn blinked, Gwen frowned, and the other guys looked confused. Vi cleared her throat.

"Why would my stuff need to be packed up?"

"You're coming with us, right?"
"No."

"Vi's taking over my floor and apartment while she's here for her six month slayer studies program."

"Oh. I just thought she'd be coming with us, because you'd brought her with us -"

"I was just security," Vi blurted, her cheeks burning bright red.

"Right." Garrett coughed. "Wait, is Willow coming then or not?"

The room went quiet. Dawn would have killed him then and there if it weren't for the small fact that she'd be short a knight if she did.

"Willow is, Vi isn't," Please don't bring up her exes, Dawn thought to herself. "She's going to set up protection circles and wards."

"So, we should get going if we want to get to our first stop tonight before nightfall," Gwen piped up.

The knights left her with her friends to say one last good-bye. Tears streaked down her cheeks, the reality of it all sinking in. Hormones were hell. She climbed into the car with Gavin and Gwen, waving frantically at her friends. They waved back, watching until the car was gone from their line of sight. Kennedy whirled on Vi.

"Girl, you better start spilling your guts."

"What?"

"Well, one - start with why Willow's really going, and two - what's up between you and the Frat boy," Kennedy grinned.

"I'll never understand chicks," Carlos groaned as they trooped back upstairs.

A/N: that's all for chapter 8.