Author's Note: Brain melting from too much accounting work! Ack!

I might need to start posting these stories in smaller sections. I'm completely stumped as to how Dawn's going to get out of the situation I've put her in, in the story I'm writing now, and I seem to be running out of time/brainpower to write the solution.

Or maybe I'll just hope I figure something out when I get there, and if I don't, I'll take a posting break.

Oh, well!

Enjoy this story, though. I really like it.

The Realm of the Celestial Toymaker.

Next thing Alison knew, she was somewhere completely different. A graveyard. At night. Surrounded by fang-toothed vampire-looking monsters.

And there, beside her, staring open-mouthed… was…

"Seo?" Alison cried.

"Alison?" Seo cried, back.

"How did you…?" Alison began. Then noticed the vampire sneaking up on Seo, from behind. "Hold on." She aimed the vaporizer gun, and shot at the vampire.

Lucky shot, this time!

The vamp vanished into midair.

And the gun in Alison's hands promptly disappeared.

"No xenotech allowed!" taunted a voice booming around them. "Against the rules!"

Then the vampires sprung at them.

"Run!" Seo shouted, yanking Alison along with her, as they fled from the inhuman monsters. Raced out of the cemetery, down the streets, their feet thudding against the pavement faster than Alison could even register.

"Vampires," Alison muttered, "disembodied voices, and a graveyard." She shook her head. "You really know how to pull off a brilliant rescue plan."

"I was trying to get him to release Aunt Dawn!" Seo insisted, as they turned another corner. "I didn't think he'd snatch you up, too!" Her eyes rested on a house, half-way down the street. "There! That's it!"

"What's…?" asked Alison.

But they were already darting up the steps and throwing themselves through the front door before Alison could even finish her question, Seo slamming it shut and locking it behind her.

She slumped against it, trying to catch her breath. "Should be safe in here," Seo said. "Vampires need to be invited in."

Brilliant. And if there were vampires, that meant they weren't even in the right time period. "When and where…?" Alison began.

"Buffy?" came a voice from behind Alison.

Seo's eyes snapped open. Her breath catching in her throat, as she stared.

Alison turned. To discover a woman, standing there, someone with short, curly blond hair, kind hazel-brown eyes, wearing a gray sweater and looking as if she owned the place.

Except… she wasn't a woman. Not really.

"Are you girls okay?" asked the not-woman. She walked forwards, the visible joints in her arms and legs bending with every step. Her voice lowered to a whisper. "Or is this about one of those embarrassing Slayer things Moms aren't supposed to bring up?"

"You're a doll!" cried Alison, pointing at her. Shook her head. "What is this? Disneyland gone mad? Revenge of the animatronics?" She looked back at Seo. "Where…?"

Then stopped. As she noticed that Seo had gone very pale. Was almost shaking.

"Grandma," Seo breathed.

The woman blinked. A little surprised. "No, it's Mom, sweetie," said the woman. "Not 'Grandma'. Don't you remember, Buffy?"

Alison looked between Seo and the doll-looking woman. Buffy… Grandma…

Oh.

Now it was all making sense to Alison. Everything — or nearly everything. The vampires. The people with American accents. The California weather…

"Someone's created an animatronic Sunnydale?" Alison guessed. "Some sort of… Disneyland of the future. Created by the Slayer Institute. Except the animatronics all think you're your mum. Which…" She stopped. Shook her head. "No. Wait. You don't show up on machines. If these were robots, they wouldn't see you."

"They're not robots," said Seo. "This is the realm of the Celestial Toymaker. A multi-dimensional entity. He turned my aunt into a doll, and will only turn her back if I win his game."

"Game," Alison repeated.

Seo gestured around herself. "This," she said. "This world. It's a real-life version of a game I used to play, as a kid. Dressing up as Buffy and staking cardboard vampires, defending a pretend Sunnydale from pretend monsters."

Oh.

Oh!

That made a lot more sense.

"You used to play that you were your mum?" Alison asked.

"I… she… she was a very interesting person!" Seo insisted.

Seo's grandmother turned to Alison, a warm smile on her lips. "Are you staying for dinner, Alison? I'd be happy to cook for one more."

Alison ignored her, laughing a little under her breath. "Well. I suppose that explains how you suddenly developed a fashion sense," she said. "And learned to put on makeup."

Seo looked down to discover she was now wearing… an elegant white tank-top, along with a designer-looking denim jacket, and a pair of black jeans.

Raised up her hand to her face, and realized… there was makeup on it. Just light splashes, but enough to make her look a lot more snazzy and stylish than usual.

"And this… is your grandma?" asked Alison, pointing at the woman. "Never met her, before. She still in California?"

"She… died," Seo said. "When I was a baby." Her eyes still fixed on her grandma. "I never even really met her."

Alison grimaced.

"Of course I'm not dead, Buffy," said Seo's grandmother. "You know I'll always be here for you."

Alison ignored her. "Wait a tic," she said. "What are we doing hiding in here? I thought the only way to get your aunt back was to win the game."

Seo nodded.

"And if you're pretending to be Buffy the Vampire Slayer," said Alison, "wouldn't that mean… to win the game… we have to slay the vampires?"

Seo turned back to Alison. Eyes lighting up. "You're… you're right!" she said. Laughed. "Oh, that's brilliant! Of course we can win the game. We just have to slay those vampires!"

There was something about the way Seo said it that made Alison… a little… uneasy.

But she didn't have time for unease, as Seo grabbed her by the hand and dragged her through the house.

"Mom's room!" she said. "Let's find some weapons, then get out there and win the game!"

The vampires were scattered across the town of Sunnydale, now.

Alison held a crossbow, Seo armed with a stake, both sneaking around the town, looking out for the vampires that had cornered them in the cemetery.

"Not a lot of people in this town," Alison remarked.

"Probably just the people who need to be," Seo agreed. "Like…"

A scream, from not far off.

"…the damsel in distress," Seo said, as she and Alison sprinted towards it.

There, in an alleyway, they found a vampire grabbing up a teenage girl, fangs extended. Or… all right, the doll-equivalent thereof. The teenage girl was screaming, trying to push the vampire away, but the vampire was not deterred for long.

Seo froze, the moment she saw the teenage girl. Then backed away from the scene, her hands shaking. "Cordelia…"

"Buffy, help me, you stupid idiot!" shouted Cordelia.

But something about Cordelia seemed to make Seo even more frightened than the vampires. More frightened than Alison had ever seen her.

Fine, then.

"Oi!" shouted Alison, advancing forwards. "Bella Lugosi wannabe! Hands off!"

And released the arrow.

But the recoil from the shot made the crossbow jolt in her hands, and the arrow flew down into the ground. Harmlessly.

The vampire dropped Cordelia, turning his full attention on Alison.

"Right," said Alison, dropping the crossbow. "Shows you how much you learn taking lessons at a Renaissance Fair." She backed up, wishing she'd gotten more combat training. Or was armed with a weapon she knew how to use!

The vampire advanced on her, and… nearby… all the other vampires appeared. Emerging out of thin air, glowing yellow eyes all hungrily fixed on Alison.

"Oh, that's just cheating," said Alison. She glanced back at Seo. "Does this Celestial Toymaker of yours believe in playing by the rules, or…?"

She stopped.

Seo had disappeared.

"Seo?" asked Alison. Suddenly feeling a little less self-confident than she'd been, a few minutes ago.

The vampire who'd been threatening Cordelia lunged at Alison, but never made it. Was picked up and thrown across the street, slamming into a brick wall.

"Snuck up from behind," said Seo, as all the vampires turned to swarm her. She winked at Alison. "You're right, you know. Turns out… they might not be androids. But they have a bit more trouble seeing me than they should."

The vampires charged, and Seo began to flip, fly, and kick her way through them. Ramming them in the chest, throwing them into one another, staking them through the heart — although it took her several tries to figure out where the heart actually was.

Alison, meantime, ran to help the Cordelia-doll. That was what Seo's mum used to do, right? In order to 'win' her little skirmishes? Kill the vampires, and save the humans?

Cordelia was chewing Alison out.

"…no way I'm going to be caught dead hanging out with a geek like you," said Cordelia. "I mean, seriously? Oxford? You're, like, Miss Tea and Crumpets or something. But more nerdy. And…" Her eyes widened, fixed on something over Alison's shoulder, and she screamed, pointing.

Alison turned. Saw the vampire rushing her. No time to get out of the way.

Hope this worked.

Waited as he raced towards her, closer… closer…

Then jabbed out, striking at just the right pressure point with two fingers, and jerking his arms around to squeeze at a second pressure point, along his back. The vampire froze, immobile, beneath her touch.

Then turned to dust, as Seo's stake impacted from the other side.

"Where'd you learn that?" asked Seo, staring at Alison. "It's brilliant!"

Alison sighed. "I've been trapped in the 70's for the last month," she said. Shrugged. "Amazing how much you can pick up when you're paying close attention."

"Trapped in the 70's?" said Seo. "How…?"

A vampire rushed her, from behind, and she ducked out of the way, flipping it over her back and then pinning it against the back wall, where she staked it in its chest.

"Left side, Seo," Alison reminded her.

Seo cringed. Tried again, and the vampire turned to dust, beneath her.

Seo glanced around herself. "That's all of them," she said. Then grabbed up Cordelia, slamming her against the wall. "Time to deal with you."

"What?" shouted Cordelia. "What the hell's gotten into you, Buffy?"

"Uh… Seo?" said Alison, putting a hand on Seo's shoulder. "I think she's supposed to be one of the humans. You know. The ones we don't hurt."

"That why she wants to kill me?" Seo snapped.

"The only thing I want to kill about you is any popularity you have at school!" Cordelia said. "God, Buffy. I can't believe I used to think you were cool!"

Seo examined Cordelia, carefully. Then, with a sigh, put her down.

"I'm watching you," Seo warned.

Cordelia scampered away.

"What was that about?" Alison demanded, hands on her hips. "No. Let me guess. This is Sunnydale in the past, so… you've met Cordelia as an adult, in her own future, and she winds up trying to kill you?"

"Something like that," Seo muttered. She looked at the area surrounding them, now completely vampire-free. Her face creased into a deep frown. "No more vampires."

"Suppose that means we've won," said Alison. She turned to the sky. "So where's our reward, then? Ready to let us out, Mr. Celestial Toymaker?!"

The landscape rippled around them. Alison's head suddenly spinning…

And, next thing she knew, she found herself sitting down at a table in the center of a circular library, facing a young-looking, doll version of Giles, pacing around in front of them.

"Unfortunately, it seems the hard part isn't over, yet," said Giles. "I've gotten news that the evil vampire, Sergeant Duckie, is still planning to continue the Festival of WeemyWobbly. Your patrol, last night, seems only to have made him more determined to let Hell consume this world. We must stop him."

Seo shrunk back, in her seat. "Oh, no…"

"Wait, I thought we'd won," said Alison. "What's going on, here?"

"What's going on, Alison, is that Sunnydale will shortly be overrun by an army of pure evil!" said Giles. He took off his glasses, pinched his nose. "And it's up to you and Buffy to work out a way to stop it."

"That isn't how to win the game," Seo said. She shuddered. "Defeating the vampires never stopped the game, back when I was a kid. And the Celestial Toymaker is taking the rules and game-play from my mind."

"What?" said Alison. She leaned over the table, towards Seo. "So how do we win?"

Seo said nothing.

Alison felt a chill run through her. "Seo…?"

"The game was open-ended," Seo admitted. She dropped her head. "It didn't ever end, Alison. I just kept adding in more twists and turns and scenarios, every time I played it. The only person who ever ended it was Dad… when he cut in and wrapped things up, so he could send me off to do responsibilities or lessons or that sort of thing."

"An outside voice of authority," Alison realized. Suddenly understanding the worry that had gripped Seo, when she'd first arrived. "Which… in this case… would be the Celestial Toymaker."

Seo nodded.

For a few moments, they said nothing. Both taking this in.

"I'm sorry," Seo said, very quietly. "I'm so sorry, Alison. We're trapped in this game forever."