Hi all! Can you believe we're at the end finally!? It's been a terribly long time to get here, sorry 'bout that. I did my best to update all through the semester and to keep it rather regular. I did fail sometimes, and for that I apologize. I'm happy to say that after that hectic semester, I came out with straight A's =D so I'm feeling pretty good about that. This coming semester is going to be much heavier than I would have liked, and so I am sad to say that it is unlikely that the next installment will be posted until after the semester. I wish I could handle classes and my love of fanfiction, but alas I cannot.

I will be sad to take a break, but I hope to see your names all back when I do return for the next story. In the meantime you may get a one shot or two that show up (because I gotta have my fix somehow). You can also come find me on tumblr (chemicalxwings) and I'd be ecstatic to keep in touch!

Thank you all for reading, it's been so wonderful to stretch my writing legs again, and it's even more wonderful that people have enjoyed it. I love playing with Buffy and Dean and have no intention of stopping anytime soon. I know 90% to 100% of you were here for the romance. I know I did not deliver on them being together in the end, or the Winchester's meeting the Scoobies. Fret not! It's coming! This story was needed to bridge the gap between Purgatory and the story I was excited to share. Think of this as the set up so that in the next story I can dive right in to the juicy stuff. I always take issue with fics that just dive in. It's unrealistic. I like the build up. I like seeing how their relationship started. I've left them in a very good place, and when it comes time to pick up again, there is so much fun to be had! Do not lose faith. I'm impatient to get them together too!

I had hoped that my winter break would be spent writing so that I could share something with you guys, but between being sick and having Dragon Age come out (I have seriously lost my life to this game you guys, it is awful and wonderful all at once) I just haven't had the time. That being said, I do have a sneak peak to leave you with. It's mostly in hopes that it will be enough to bring you back when I do return. It is also to assure you that yes, the pair will be coming back together soon and that the Scoobies will finally come face to face with our beloved Winchester boys. It's still a rough draft, so some editing will still happen on it, but it gives you an idea of how I'm starting it out.

You are all wonderful, and I can't wait to share the next installment with you. I hope your new year is spectacular, and I hope to be writing again soon. Send me messages! I love hearing from people and would love to chat! =)

Sneak Peak:

It felt like it had been forever since Dean had pressed the doorbell. He was getting antsy waiting, and his concern was doing nothing but multiplying while he waited. The last phone call with Buffy had struck an immense amount of fear into Dean's heart. He wasn't sure what was happening, but something wasn't right. It didn't really matter what was wrong, there was no way that Dean wasn't going to be here now. It had been months since they had seen each other and if she was in trouble there was nowhere else Dean would want to be. He was about to hit the button again when the door finally opened. A larger man with dark hair answered the door. The eye patch gave it away; this was Xander.

"Uh, hi? Can I help you?" Xander asked, shifting his gaze between the two men.

"Ya, is Buffy here?" Dean asked.

"Maybe. Who are you?"

"We're, uh, friends of hers. Look is she here or not?"

"Guys, it's okay, they're friends," Buffy said.

By this point more than just Xander had gathered at the door. Willow, Dawn, and even Faith had now collected at the door to see who Xander was talking to. The entire group turned to look back to see Buffy coming down the stairs. She had a tight grip on the railing and it was obvious that she was struggling to keep herself upright. Exhaustion played on her face, making her look older than she should have. It was obvious that she was in pain, and a lump formed in Dean's throat at the sight.

"Buffy, what are you doing up? You should be in bed resting," Willow exclaimed, her voice full of worry.

Buffy rolled her eyes, "ya, 'cause that's what I'm gonna do. Hi Dean, Sam."

"So you know these guys?" Willow asked, obviously skeptical.

Buffy started to nod her head, but the movement proved to be too much for the small blonde. She stopped her movement down the stairs and paused on the step she was one.

"You okay, Buffy?" Dawn asked, concern in her voice.

"Yeah, yeah I'm good. I'll be fine," Buffy said, her voice straining. "Come in guys. It's good to see you."

"Are you sure Buffy?" Willow asked, still not trusting that her friend knew what she was saying.

Buffy nodded in response.

"You heard her sweetheart, she's happy to see us," Dean grinned slyly.

Suddenly an image came screaming into Buffy's head, playing like a movie in front of her. It was that same forest again, twisted and mangled. Dean was standing in front of her, wiping a knife across his jeans to remove blood from it. He looked up at her, a coldness in his eyes.

"You good, sweetheart?"

"Yeah, I'm good. Ya done with the sweetheart thing yet? It's not as endearing as you think," she heard herself snap back.

"Who said I thought it was endearing?"

Another migraine ripped through her head with enough pain to completely blind her. She could feel her knees buckling below her and tightened her grip on the railing. It was too late though, she lost her grasp on consciousness. The group watched helplessly at the bottom of the stairs as Buffy's eyes rolled back in her head and tumble down the last couple of stairs, landing in a heap at the bottom.

"Buffy!" Willow cried out.

Dean dashed past the small redhead, reaching Buffy before anyone else had had time to react. He grabbed onto her quickly, checking her for her pulse. It was easy to find, but her breaths were much shallower than what he was hoping to find.

"C'mon Buff, open those eyes," Dean pleaded, tapping at her cheek hoping to bring her back.

When there was no response he looked up to Xander to see the same concern on his face as what Dean could feel on his own.

"Is there somewhere more comfortable we can take her to?"

"Ya, let's get her back to her bed," Xander said, moving forwards to help.

Dean easily lifted Buffy from the ground, holding her close to his chest. He looked at Xander for directions before heading up the stairs. Xander led him up the stairs towards Buffy's room, casting a glance back to the group to signal that he would keep his guard up. As Dean disappeared around the corner the rest of the remaining gang turned and looked at Sam, who up until this point had been standing in the door quietly.

Sam's eyes shifted amongst the group before raising his hand to wave, "Uh, hi. I'm Sam. That was Dean."

Dawn nodded at him, "hi Sam. Wanna come in?"

Sam nodded, "thanks."

"Would you like a drink or something? We probably have coffee or tea in the kitchen right now," Dawn continued, trying to lessen the awkwardness that hung in the air.

"Uh, sure," Sam stammered, "that'd be great."

Dawn smiled at Sam and led him towards the kitchen, leaving only Willow and Faith in the foyer.

"Since when is B friends with hunters?" Faith asked, leaning back against one of the doorframes.

Willow furrowed her brow, "hunters? You think they're hunters?"

Faith nodded, "I've met enough in my time to recognize 'em when I see 'em. Those two pieces of eye candy are definitely hunters."

Willow thought about that bit of information before her eyes grew wide with realization, "oh! That must be the hunter she worked with a couple of years ago!"

"You knew about them?"

Willow shook her head, "not really. Just that there was a hottie she was getting all smoochie with."

"Huh," Faith marvelled, "B's throwin' down with a human. Guess she's alternating her men and monsters."

Willow rolled her eyes before climbing the stairs as well.

"What? C'mon that was funny!" Faith called after her.

Note: I do not yet have a title for the new story. It is most definitely a work in progress, but I have a couple I am leaning towards. When I have a title picked out I will update this with the title so that you can find it later. Or you could just follow me as an author ;-)

I'm currently torn between Symptoms of the Universe or Salt of the Earth. Though there are others that have been playing in my head. So we'll see. This follow up is going to be much larger than anything I have posted so far, so I'm excited to start into it!