I Wish Sometimes That Could Be Me

Chapter Four:

Dawn managed to make it to her room without alerting anyone and Buffy still wasn't home. She was still this stupid blonde woman. She looked in the mirror and touched her lips. She had just had her first 'legal' drink, in an 'of age' bar, and kissed the man of her dreams. She smiled then growled at the mirror. "Why won't you go back?" She grabbed the edges of the mirror and starred at herself. "I'm done now. I don't wanna be this anymore, come on…I don't want to get in trouble here!"

Twenty minutes had passed and nothing, she rested her head against the mirror and started banging her head against the glass. "Please….."

"Dawn?" A tired Willow was rubbing her eyes as she opened Dawn's door. "The other one was locked and I got worried…." Her voice trailed off as she took in the beautiful woman standing in Dawn's room. "HEY! Where's Dawn!?" Willow's eyes shot black as night and she raised her hands in defense.

"No magicks! It's me, Will! It's Dawn." Dawn moved to the desk and threw herself down into the chair. "Something happened, I turned into you and then this woman. I can't make it go away."

Willow remained black eyed and ready for a fight but she gave Dawn that same deep look Spike did. "If you're Dawn….what's…her favorite season!?"

"Autumn, I'm writing about it….." Dawn motioned towards the English books, then sighed. "But I suppose I could have just read that and guessed."

Willow smiled then frowned when Dawn contracted her answer with a possible loop hole.

"BUT I'm NOT. I'm Dawn, Willow, please…make this stop. Buffy can't know." She looked at Willow and started crying. Her make remained fine, it wasn't running, moving, changing color. Willow scrunched her forehead as she walked forward cautiously.

"Hey…your face..."

"I know, I'm not me, okay."

"No, your make-up it's not like…doing the normal crying thing, it's not even damaged."

Dawn touched her cheeks and she was right. She could feel she was wearing a lot of make-up and it should be running, even water proof smudges a little and there was nothing. "See, it's me, something's wrong." Dawn pleaded with Willow. "Please."

"I don't know what could do this Dawnie." Willow reached and touched her hair, it was very beautiful. The person who Dawn turned into was very attractive and way outta Willow's league. "Hold on, I have a book on glamour and the such, maybe it has something." Willow rushed out of the room and came back quickly after a few thuds and an oaf as she lifted something which hit the floor hard. "Got it."

Dawn sat at the chair, her head down hugging the back of the chair. She peered at willow through her long dolled up hair.

"How long as it been like this?"

"A couple hours."

"Why didn't you come get me when it happened!?"

Dawn blushed and looked away. "You were sick and I was….confident it would go away."

Willow pursed her lips unsatisfied with the girl's answer but was sure she wouldn't get anything better out of her tonight. "And you haven't held any odd objects, seen anything odd, smelt weird…smells, sounds?"

"No, I mean…the necklace is new, and it's odd but in a good way. But I don't think it caused this."

Willow's head shot up. "Where is it?"

"Oh um, I'm wearing it…or Dawn me is, it didn't appear with this….form."

Willow frowned and her mind was clouded with ideas. She then started flipping through the 600 or so pages in the book. Dawn fiddled with her hands, staring at the floor, worrying an second Buffy would come home.

"IT WAS YOU, WASN'T IT! Bloody bitch you are." Spike bellowed as he charged at her.

She rolled her eyes and dropped her stake arm, sighing she let her head tilt to the side as she turned around. "And what annoying thing have I done in your little world now Spike? Cuz frankly I have better things to do than bless you with my presence."

Spike scoffed and waved his arms in the air. "You fucking know exactly what you did. Getting in my face, making me want you, but no it can't be YOU can it. Has to be that one! How you even knew about her..I don't know but…"

Buffy cut him off by punching him in the nose. She smiled to herself. "That always makes me feel better. Now shut up. I don't want you Spike, get that through your bleached head, I understand the chemicals have messed up your brain function but honestly…this…is…getting…old." She gave him a backhanded hit with each pause between words. "I wouldn't touch you, besides punching you, EVER." She finished bluntly. She stretched her hands and rolled her neck. "More hitting now?"

Spike held his nose which was starting to bleed. "Bitch. It had to be you, the smell….." He narrowed his eyes. "The spice…you it's weaker….but her." He stopped talking and sighed. He looked at the sky and muttered something Buffy couldn't make out. "Shoo then Slayer; I've grown bored with your stench!"

Buffy scoffed at him and flipped her stake in her hand and brought it up, threateningly pointing the sharp end at him. "I smell very good Spike, and you leave. I'm patrolling."

Spike growled, wanting nothing to tear her to pieces. He clenched his hands and curled his toes in his boots. Holding his nose in one hand, he stalked off to his crypt. "Bitch is gonna get what's coming to her one day."

Buffy sighed as she shrugged off her jacket and looked around the dark entry way of her house. Everything was quiet. She figured everyone was asleep and ass Spike was following her, she prayed to god Dawn had managed to stay in the house safe tonight. She walked upstairs as quietly as she could not wanting to wake anyone, but she found Dawn's door open and light on, when she walked in to check on her sister she found a strange woman with dark red hair sitting at Dawn's desk and Willow curled up on the bed reading a book.

Dawn looked up and gasped. "Oh god. Buffy."

Willow's head shot around and she chuckled nervously. "Hi Buffy."

Buffy stalked forward a few steps. "Who are you? Where's my sister? Willow?"

"Buffy, well….this...is….Dawn…is….."

"It's me Buffy." Dawn wrung her hands together leaning back onto the desk wanting space from the very pissed off slayer.

"It is Buff."

Buffy turned to Willow, her eyes wide. "What? How? Who? Dawn?"

Xander leaned forward and poked Dawn's nose. Dawn giggled and brushed his hand away. "Xander stop, it's me; I'm just not in my right body."

"Is someone in her body? Did they switch? Is this a Faith like related event?" Anya blurted peering out from a Fashion Magazine.

Giles pinched the bridge of his nose, "I doubt it….Dawn says she was herself one moment it was like a mirage or something overlapped her own form. Is that right on the mark, Dawn?"

"Yup. All marky and stuff." She sat up on the counter top and kicked her feet back and forth. "Willow?"

"What, oh right. I'm almost done reading this, easy fix not a problem." She leaned into Tara and whispered, "easy right?"

Tara smiled at everyone in turn trying to comfort them. Buffy was glaring at Dawn so intensely she doubted the slayer got nor wanted her comforting glance. "It's easy, with both of us, it should only take a few words and blam."

Everyone's shoulders twitched and they looked at Tara. "Well not BLAM, but presto, it's Dawnie again." She chuckled and grabbed Willow's hard, nervous with all the staring.

Buffy walked up to Dawn and narrowed her eyes. "No more jewelry for you."

"BUFFY." She jumped off the counter still at least 5 inches taller than Buffy and much curvier. She stomped her foot. "I didn't know! Willow!?"

Willow looked up and sighed. "Yeah Buff, she didn't know…Spike gave her the necklace."\

"Oh Spike!" Buffy threw her hands in the air and stomped off over to the table.

"Mmh, I love how that sounds." Spike walked in cool and collected, eyeing everyone in the room including the busty red head.

Dawn's eyes widened and she let her hair fall in front of her face.

"Eww Spike, please. What the hell do you want now?"

"Ordered some herbs up from Anya, she said they were in, so here I am….Oh Spike and all." He winked at Buffy before tapping on the counter. Anya smiled as she ran around the counter, to make a sale, regardless if it was Spike; it was money which was of the upmost importance.

Buffy rolled her eyes and Xander made a gagging sound in his throat. Spike chose to ignore the girl at the counter acting like he didn't know her at all. Dawn was extremely grateful; part of her was figuring he didn't. She was dressed differently today, she had put on some of Willow's sweat pants and a tank top with sneakers, and they were tight but fit well enough.

"Oh I think I got it, I need some roots though….Maklah and Rokha roots, same family but one is orangeish and the other is black. I think those are in the basement." Willow went to stand but Dawn shouted she'd get it first. She took off down the stairs and everyone was left with the slam of the basement door, then the thud of her steps.

Spike slid the big bills Anya's way and told her she could keep the change, a bigger smile couldn't fit her face. "Thank you for your exceptional business!" She said fairly loud.

"Right, well, sewers for me….my blanket is slightly too crispy for the trip home." He dumped it in the customer trash and marched off to the door Dawn had just slammed, trying to escape him. No one said bye, and he didn't care. The one person who seemed to care at all was running away from him.

Dawn read different labels, and she was trying to be so focused on not knowing Spike saw her as this, and must know something was up. He hadn't heard the conversation before he entered so she hoped he thought she was just a friend of someone visiting. She hoped…..She had found the black one, but the orange one was escaping her, she crouched down to the lowest shelf and began searching the rows upon rows of roots and eyes and leaves.

"It's right here, love." Spike wiggled the clear jar with the orange root in it, before her face. He placed it on the counter in front of her. As Dawn turned she found him extremely close to him, she laughed lightly and leaned back. "Thanks. I don't know where anything is here; I dunno how this people do this regularly."

"Right. You know Anya has one way to organize and Giles has another, then the witches like to have certain things together. So it's a mess." He took a lock of her hair between his fingers and twirled it. "This color doesn't suit you."

"Ex...excuse me?" She gripped the counter tightly.

He bit his lip and tilted his head slightly. "I mean...it wouldn't suit you. All your fire is inside, shouldn't be out." He whispered so intimately.

Dawn remained quiet, she was so confused. She had hopes he would think it wasn't her but she doubted that now.

He ran his hand down her smooth arm and gazed over her body. His voice was soft and caring, but still had that Spike touch in it. "If you wanted a kiss, pet, I would have given you one. Didn't have to go to so much trouble for ol' Spike." He leaned in and feather kissed her lips being attentive then giving her a little more pressure. Dawn leaned in but as soon as it started it was over. He leaned in to her ear. "You smell so beautiful even this form couldn't cover it, nibblet. Don't do it again….it's not nice to play tricks on a lonely fellow." He stood straight and stepped back. He gave her a small smile and then walked off to the sewer entrance.

"Spike, wait!"

He stopped but didn't turn. " I wasn't trying to…."

"I'm not hurt, Dawn, I'm flattered." He turned his head and winked and then he was gone. Dawn hugged the root jars and ran up the stairs once she felt her face wasn't the color of a fire truck. "Got them!"

Spike punched the slimy wall and growled with everything his demon would release. He looked at his bruising hand and flexed it. "Fucking Summers women will be my undoing." He pleasantly thought back on Dawn, seeing all the intimate looks she would grace upon him, how much she loved being close to him…it was always more than a friendship for her. He saw that now, but knew that friendship was still there and it always had the potential to be more. He never had someone feel that way, want the friend and the lover. It was always one or the other. Buffy didn't want either. He ran his hands through his hair then shoved his hands into his pockets, thumbing the herb bags he stalked his way home. He didn't know what to think about his teenage movie companion any more. "Yep, those women are gonna be my end all."

Willow grinned as she crushed the roots and Tara traced symbols around Dawn muttering words in basic Latin.

Willow was giddy with her spell, she loved creating new things. "See its simple, a glamour, it's old so I wasn't quite sure how to handle it, but easy enough. Though I got to say I'm tired of magical jewelry. I spiced it up with Latin though….cuz it's fun." With a glare from Buffy, she frowned. "It won't fail."

Dawn sighed and stood waiting for some flash or bang, some smoke or floating but there was nothing. Everyone let out a breath they didn't know they were holding and there Dawn stood, herself, her clothing sagged as they were slightly too big for her. Oddly though the make-up didn't smudge, the clothes could change, and Dawn remained in Willow's work out gear. She held the pants up and smiled. "Yay me, as me."

"Home now." Buffy glowered.

"Buffy, it wasn't her fault."

"Right, it's Spike's. Remind me why I didn't pummel him when he was standing here?"

"Because he just thought it was a regular necklace too. Please Buffy don't touch him."

Buffy and Dawn stared at each other a long time. "Fine. He gets off easy, next time, double punches."

Dawn laughed and skipped over to the table to sit by Willow and Tara. Willow looked down at how lose the clothes were on Dawn, she wasn't without her curves but they were still baggy, Willow pouted and looked at Tara who brushed her bangs back and smiled. "You look fine sweetie."

FIN.