Chapter 7: Tony Learns the Truth

*****Where We Left Off*****

Tony looked at Buffy. "I need to know what the hell you aren't telling me. I can't keep my daughter safe. I can't keep your sister safe if you don't tell me everything," Tony said. He pointed to the giant snake. "That is not normal." He pointed to Buffy. "You are not normal."

"If you know everything, you might not want me here anymore," Dawn told him. She sat on her bed, hugging her pillow, the dead snake by the open window. Angel and Gunn began dragging it out of the room.

Tony deactivated his suit and stepped out of it. He went and pulled Dawn into his arms. "Sweetheart, I promise you, there is nothing that will make me not want you to be here. Having you in my life has been the best thing that has ever happened to me," he assured her.

"Really?" Dawn asked.

Buffy was trying to pick up glass from the window, debating on what to tell Tony. Yes, he did seem to really love Dawn, and he did seem committed to her. However, if he knew the full truth, would he freak out? He didn't seem the kind of man who would, but Dawn would be devastated if he did.

"Truly," Tony assured her. "I love you."

"I love you, too," Dawn said. "But I'm not real."

"What does that mean? Of course, you are real. I am touching you," he said.

"I used to be this ball of energy—a key," Dawn told him. "These monks used magic to make me human. They made me out of you and Buffy, somehow."

"I made a baby with your sister? I think I'd remember that," Tony said, grinning.

"No!" Dawn exclaimed. "I'm not explaining this right." She looked at Buffy.

Buffy sighed in resignation and decided that there was no way she could explain away the giant snake because Tony was no fool. He wouldn't accept anything but the full truth. Of course, he could reject their truth and try to keep Dawn from Buffy. However, that wasn't necessarily a bad thing since Buffy's life was so dangerous.

"In order to know the truth about Dawn, you have to know the truth about me and my life," Buffy told him. "In order to know that truth, you have to be willing to suspend some of your faith in science. Do you think you can do that?"

Tony gave her a considering look. He thought about the fact that a giant snake had somehow crawled up his tower and gotten into the room to attack his daughter. It wasn't normal, and he knew her sister wasn't normal.

"You're not a mutant," he guessed.

"No, I'm not. What I am can't really be explained through science because there's nothing natural about me," Buffy admitted. "I'm a vampire slayer. What I am is supernatural. Long ago demons used to walk the earth. They eventually made vampires."

Dawn said, "Giles says it like this: The world is older than we know. It didn't begin as a paradise. For untold eons demons walked the Earth. They made it their home and their hell. But in time, they lost their purchase on this reality. The way was made for mortal animals, for man."

Buffy interrupted. "When did you hear his speech?" she asked.

"Oh, he told it to me, and then I read it in the slayer handbook," Dawn told her.

"Why didn't I ever get the slayer handbook? I'm the freakin' slayer!" Buffy protested.

"Girls, you're getting sidetracked," Tony admonished.

"Angel, come here!" Buffy called out.

"Why do you need Angel?" Tony asked.

"Because he's the best one to convince you of what I'm saying," Buffy said.

"Okay," Tony said. He knew that her ex knew more about her life, and he and Gunn didn't seem at all shocked by the giant snake they had just dragged out of his daughter's room. Maybe he could shed some light on things.

"Anyway, as Dawn was explaining, eventually, vampires spread on the earth, hiding amongst humans. They can't go out in the sun. They have no reflection in mirrors," Buff said.

"Are they allergic to garlic?" Tony asked, snickering.

"That's a false rumor," Angel said, stepping into the room with Gunn. "I guess you are going to read him in."

"We kind of have to," Buffy said, gesturing to the broken window.

"Yes, I guess the giant snake is a lot to explain," Gunn said, grinning.

"Normally, when a vampire is made, the human dies and a demon takes over the human body," Buffy said. "Like a possession except you can't get the human back. Angel is the exception. He is a vampire whose demon Angelus was particularly vile. A gypsy clan cursed him with a soul. One moment of happiness, and he loses his soul."

"Seriously?" Tony asked.

Angel nodded and showed Tony his vampire face. Ever the scientist, Tony made Angel stand in front of Dawn's mirror and observed his lack of reflection.

"Oh, crosses—vampires are highly allergic to them," Dawn added. She picked up her cross necklace off her dresser and held it up to Angel, who immediately flinched.

Tony approached Angel and examined his fangs and bumpy forehead. "Do all vampires look like you?" he asked.

"For the most part," Angel said.

"Yes," Buffy said.

"The yellow eyes is the demon?" Tony asked.

"I suppose," Buffy answered.

"Yes," Angel said.

"Do they give you better night vision?" Tony asked.

"Yes," Angel said.

Then he asked twenty more questions before Buffy stopped him. "Tony, Angel and vampires have nothing to do with what is happening with Dawn," Buffy interrupted.

Tony realized he was letting himself get sidetracked. "Okay. Tell me the rest," he said.

"Dawn didn't exist until last October," Buffy told him.

Tony scoffed. "That's insane," he said.

"It's true," Buffy said. Then she proceeded to tell him about Glory and the monk and the night she found out about Dawn's true existence.

Tony was having a hard time wrapping his mind around what Buffy was telling him. Okay, he saw that vampires were real. Angel was there, and there was proof. That the couple wasn't together was also now explained. His daughter's DNA, though, matched his.

"I have a DNA test that tells me that she is my daughter," Tony said. "Your story doesn't make sense."

"I don't know everything, Tony. I just know that I have a super strong hellgod—did you get that part—hellgod—who wants to use Dawn's blood to open a door to get home," Buffy said. "According to Giles, my watcher, it won't just open up one reality but all realities, destroying this world and all other realities."

"But she is human, and she is my daughter," Tony stated.

"Yes, and she is my sister. They sent her to me and you to protect," Buffy said. "The monks wanted the key to be kept safe, so they made it human. I think they created a human body from two protectors, and then placed the key essence inside Dawn. That's what makes sense to me."

"So, my memories of being with your mother are false?" Tony asked.

"Yes, just like all my childhood memories with Dawn and all her memories of Hank are fabricated," Buffy explained.

Tony looked at Dawn, who was looking down at her hands, clearly worried about his reaction. He put his arm around shoulders and took his other hand to lift her chin up. "Dawn, I don't care what your origin story is," he told her. "I am just really glad the universe saw fit to bring you into my life because I know that my life is so much better with you in it."

"Really?" Dawn asked, afraid to believe him.

Buffy fell a little bit in love with Dawn's dad in that moment herself and was very grateful to him. She looked at Angel, who was also smiling at Tony in approval. The man was just amazing with Dawn, and Buffy had definitely made the right decision by going to him and bringing him into her life.

"Completely," Tony told her. "I never knew that being a father would be so fun. I suspect it's only because of you."

Dawn hugged him, relieved. "You're pretty great, Dad," she said.

"So they keep telling me," he said, grinning.

Everyone laughed, releasing the tension.

"What's the plan?" Tony asked.

"The plan is you keep Dawn safe," Buffy told him. "Glory has the ability to mind suck. So far, she seems completely invulnerable. Only Willow has been able to hurt her."

"Willow, the extremely smart best friend of yours?" Tony asked, puzzled.

"Willow, the very powerful witch, who went to a very dark place when Glory mind sucked Tara," Buffy said grimly.

"That's what happened to Tara?" Tony asked, looking a bit sick.

Buffy nodded. "Yes. Willow managed to hurt Glory with her magic, and so far, that's the only thing that I have seen harm her," Buffy shared. "A building fell on her. A bus hit her, and she is like the freakin' Terminator. She keeps on comin' after me."

"Okay," Tony said. "She's very strong. She wants Dawn's blood to go home."

"So, do you think the snake was sent to find Dawn?" Gunn asked.

"Most definitely," Angel said.

"Then we need to move her," Tony said. "I'll send her to Europe."

"You can't send her anywhere. You must go with her. Protect her, Tony," Buffy said.

Tony nodded. "Of course," he assured her. His mind began thinking of places he would go, rejecting most of them before finally settling on a location that would work. "I'll work out the details."

"The snake died here, so Glory shouldn't know anything, right?" Gunn asked.

"I hope so," Buffy said.

"Well, we won't take any chances," Tony said.

"What about my studies?" Dawn asked.

"I'm paying Dr. Jackson a lot of money," Tony told her. "He's single. I am sure he will be happy to travel with us to Europe on my dime."

"Do you think he should know what's happening?" Dawn said. "I don't want to lie to him."

"Do you think he can handle the truth?" Buffy asked.

"He did get laughed out of academia for writing a paper theorizing that the pyramids in Egypt might have been landing pads for aliens," Tony pointed out. "He is clearly someone open to strange ideas."

"Aliens are not the same thing as demons," Buffy argued.

"But still," Tony countered.

"That's your argument?" Buffy asked.

"I think you can trust him," Angel offered.

Buffy looked at him in surprise. Angel didn't trust as easily as she did. "Why?" she asked.

Gunn snickered. "Seriously?" he asked. Buffy frowned, so he answered for Angel. "The man oozes so much goodness and trustworthiness that it's practically bleeding from his pores."

Angel nodded. "I wouldn't have said it exactly like that, but Dr. Jackson makes Angelus very annoyed," he said. "Only really good people have that effect on him. You can trust him."

"See!" Dawn exclaimed, flashing both men a grateful smile.

"Okay," Tony said. "I will try to give him a version of the truth."

"What would that be?" Dawn wondered.

"That your sister is a superhero, and some whack job believes your blood can open up portals to another world," Tony said. "The whack job is basically much stronger than even me in my suit, so we are trying to hide you. Is it important that he knows all the details?"

"I guess not," Dawn agreed with a shrug.

"He is a really good man, though, Dawn. I cannot imagine that he would care one bit," Buffy told her. She hugged her sister. "I guess you should call someone and get the window fixed."

"Oh, I'm sure JARVIS already did," Tony said with a dismissive wave of his hand.

"Of course," JARVIS said, sounding offended.

Buffy shook her head. "That is just so creepy," she said.

"JARVIS isn't creepy. He's like the coolest thing ever!" Dawn gushed.

"You didn't live through Willow's Moloch experience the way that I did," Buffy said. "Computers that are self-aware will lead to badness. They will either be soulless and think they know better than humans or some demon entity will possess them, and then they'll build a robot body and try to kill you."

"You have a vivid imagination," Tony said with a snort.

"It's not my imagination," Buffy replied. "That last thing actually happened to Willow. The hellmouth, where we live, is a gift that keeps on giving."

"Except the gifts are crappy, and we can't return them," Dawn added.

"I am thinking that my daughter should never live on a hellmouth," Tony said, looking at Buffy.

Buffy nodded. "You are probably right," she said. "Maybe, though, you can move back to Malibu when this is over, so I can see her more easily until she turns eighteen?"

Tony felt a huge weight lift off him as he nodded. "I can definitely do that!" he agreed. He couldn't wait to tell Pepper the news! Dawn was going to live with him forever or as long as he could put off college. They could do a lot online these days. . .

*****The Next Day*****

Daniel wasn't exactly sure how it happened, but once Tony found out that he did have a passport, he was on a plane with him and Dawn. He was told to pack enough clothes for an extended European stay.

"Can we stop in Egypt and show her the pyramids?" Daniel asked.

"Sure," Tony said.

After that, Daniel was excited to pack, throwing in his photo album of his last Egypt trip to note any changes.

Tony decided Egypt was as good of a destination as any. They would spend five days there since it was a place he hadn't been before. Then they would go to Spain before heading to other continental European locations. If he kept on the move, it would make it harder for anyone to track his daughter's location. Once he had her and Daniel some place discreet, he would travel back to the U.S., which should throw Glory off the trail completely if she ever managed to link Dawn with him.

Gunn and Happy were both going on the trip with them. Happy had the foresight to have Gunn get a passport as soon as he was officially on the payroll. At the time, Gunn thought it was a ridiculous request, but he had done it. Now, he was glad that he did so. Cordelia was green with envy when he called and told her that he was going globe hopping with Dawn as part of her personal security. Angel was going back to Los Angeles for two weeks to work on some of their cases. Then he would take a plane to the final European destination when Tony would leave, returning back to the States. Tony was already commissioning a plane with special ultra-violet glass windows, so Angel could fly without going up in flames no matter the time. Buffy agreed that it was the best plan.

Although it was for a very scary reason, Dawn was excited to be going to other countries.

"You are going to love Egypt," Daniel told her. "Let's start working on your hieroglyphics."

"Yes, because every future CEO needs to know that," Tony snarked.

"Hey, you never know when she might need a secret code to keep your super-secret new designs in so your competitors can't steal them," Gunn teased.

He was joking, but Tony's eyes lit up. "Now that's a really good idea! Teach me, too!" he enthused.

Gunn laughed. Tony Stark was such a trip. Who knew a billionaire could be so freakin' cool?

*****Sunnydale*****

Glory screamed in rage, throwing a shoe at one of her minions. "This is not okay! I did the spell. The snake was released. I should know exactly where my key is! What happened?" she shrieked.

"We don't exactly know, your wonderfulness!" Dreg said.

"We are looking for a spell to trace its trajectory now," Gronx told her.

"Good. I need my key! There are only a few weeks left. I can't be stuck on this stupid planet another year! I'm not gonna last!" she wailed.

"We will find it, oh beautiful one!" Dreg assured.

"Yes, we will!" Gronx echoed.

"You better or I will commence with the pain!" Glory threatened. "That witch really screwed me up. I need another person to eat."

"Right away!" Dreg said, going to fetch her someone.

"I love my minions," Glory said, appeased. If they would only fetch her key, she would get home.

That slayer wouldn't keep her key from her for long. The witch and the witch's lover were dead ends. Maybe she would just go through all her friends one by one. Eventually, someone would tell her where the key was.

*****To Be Continued*****

I know how this will end. Not sure if I will get to the ending in one more chapter or two. Either way, this story will not be long like "Welding a Family". Reviews and comments are always appreciated. Thanks for reading!