Disclaimer: Some of these scenes are directly from the show.

Chapter Three: Initiation

After Jeffrey's burial, Lamont walked up to Joyce. "Okay," he said. "It's time for you to join us."

"I thought I already agreed." Joyce said.

"Yes, but you need your marking." Lamont told her and showed her his tattoo.

Joyce sighed heavily. "Fine." She said, "I never thought I would get a tattoo."

Stan got the tattoo supplies out and made a space for Joyce. Joyce walked over to him and sat down. "What does the tattoo mean?"

"It means that you're one of us," Lamont explained. "An orphan vampire, but you still have us."

Stan started to work on Joyce's tattoo. It was just two lines. Eden revealed her tattoo to Joyce and said, "We all have one."

"Will Jeffrey get one?" Joyce asked and Lamont nodded.

"You guys are my family. I found you." Lamont told her. "We stick together and no one can touch us. Not even your daughter."

"She'll find us eventually." Joyce said.

"That's it, all finished." Stan said and cleaned up the supplies.

"We'll be ready for her if and when she comes." Lamont told Joyce.

"I call her." Joyce said. "I want to turn my daughters, not kill them."

"You plan to turn both of them?" Lamont asked.

Joyce nodded. "Yes, I do," she said. "Then we can all be together. No one can stop us."

Lamont grinned and said, "Then we better go find them."

Meanwhile, at the Summers' house, the girls and Giles were cleaning up after dinner. Buffy wondered where her mother was. Hopefully, her mother was not killing anyone. She still couldn't believe that her mother was a vampire. What was she going to do? Buffy wondered. She knew what the right thing to do was, which was to end her. Her heart told her something else though. Her mother almost seemed normal. Giles walked into the kitchen and started to help with the dishes.

"Giles, you don't have to help. You cooked." Buffy said.

"I like to cook. Helping you two out makes me feel useful." Giles said.

Dawn entered the kitchen with dishes. "Wanna clean out the garage on Saturday?"

"How tempting." Giles said.

"Dawn, if there are any dishes in your room let's have them now please before we have to name them." Buffy said.

"Hey, I was like five then." Dawn said and left the kitchen.

Giles walked over to Buffy's side and asked, "How is she doing?"

Buffy looked at him and said, "It's hard for her to believe that mom isn't mom anymore."

"And you?" Giles asked.

"I'm okay. Losing her was hard enough, but losing her to a vampire…" Buffy said. "We still don't know who turned her and why."

"Maybe someone was watching you." Giles said. "Someone we don't know about."

"Maybe." Buffy said. "I still don't know what I want to do."

"Buffy, you know what the right thing to do is." Giles argued.

"I know, but she looks so normal…" Buffy argued back.

"She's not normal and you know that." Giles said and sighed heavily. "I'm sorry, I know she's your mother and she's a vampire now, but you know what you have to do."

Buffy nodded. "You're right. I have to end her. It's the right thing to do."

"What's the right thing to do?" Dawn asked and handed Buffy the dishes.

Buffy took the dishes and said, "We have to end mom. She's not our mother anymore."

"No!" Dawn yelled and almost broke the dishes. "She's not dead, she's back. I thought I lost her, but she's here…She's really here. I need her."

"Dawn, what was once your mother no longer exists…" Giles told her. "She's a demon. There's no such thing as a good demon."

"Dawn, I don't like it either, but it's what I have to do." Buffy said. "Who knows what she's been doing all this time. What if she hurts someone? Or killed someone?"

"If mom and I found out you were a vampire, we would let you live." Dawn said. "Why can't we do the same for mom?"

"You know why." Buffy said. "This isn't easy for me, Dawn. It's mom."

Dawn sighed heavily. "I know…"

It was the end of the conversation. Dawn was still upset. Her mother had come back to her, but Buffy and Giles were right. Her mother was a demon. If she could just talk to her mother again…Maybe she could reason with her. Maybe Dawn could get her mother to stop killing…Maybe Dawn could get her mother's soul back. She had to do something. It was her mother…Dawn looked at Buffy and Giles. Giles and Buffy finished with the dishes and Dawn went to her room. She was still upset, but in her heart she knew what she had to do.

Dawn had to find her mother. Before Buffy did. She had to find her and convince her to move back with them. Dawn didn't care that her mother was a vampire. She loved her mother no matter what form she came back in. It was her mother…The person she loved the most. She loved her sister, but she loved her mother too. This was not easy for Dawn. She missed her mother terribly and Buffy was talking about destroying her?

There had to be another way. There had to be something else that Dawn could do. Dawn was so upset that tears dropped down her cheeks. She sniffled and hugged a pillow. She missed her mother. She wanted her home. Dawn decided then that she was going to get her mother's soul back. With or without Buffy's help. Giles and Buffy continued to talk in the kitchen.

"I was thinking that we could return to our normal training schedule." Giles suggested.

"I don't know," Buffy said and walked away. "I don't know about that."

"But you've mastered so much." Giles argued.

"And you were great with everything, but I don't know if I like what it's doing to me." Buffy told him.

"Doing to you? What do you mean?" Giles asked.

Buffy sat on the couch. "I feel like I can hardly love anyone."

Giles sat down next to her. "What do you mean?"

"Love feels strange to me." Buffy said. "What if being the perfect Slayer means not to be loved at all?"

"Love? Buffy, I don't think-" Giles sighed heavily. "At a time like this, you're bound to feel emotionally numb."

"I know my mom is gone, but I don't know if she knew how much I loved her." Buffy said and stood up.

"She knew," Giles said. "I promise you, she knew."

"I don't know." Buffy said.

"How serious are you about this?" Giles asked and Buffy sat back down.

"Serious to the amount of ten." Buffy said.

"There is something in the Watchers' diaries." Giles said. "A quest."

"A quest?" Buffy repeated and Giles nodded.

"It'll take a day or two, but you might be able to find some answers." Giles said.

"I can't leave Dawn." Buffy said. "Not while Glory and my mom are out there."

"Sure you can." Dawn said and sat down in between them. "What's the deal?"

"There's a quest in the desert that might help your sister figure things out." Giles said.

"I'm not leaving you Dawn." Buffy said.

"If you have to go learn, I think you should do it." Dawn said.

Buffy smiled and looked at her. "Dawn, I love you."

The two sisters hugged each other. While Buffy was out, Dawn was going to do her own research. She was going to figure out how to return their mother's soul back to her. Dawn went to hang with the gang. Giles and Buffy drove to the desert.

While Buffy was on her quest, half the day went by and the orphan vampires slept. Once nightfall came, Jeffrey rose. He was welcomed into the family. Stan gave him the same tattoo he gave Joyce. Lamont walked over to Joyce and asked, "You ready?"

Joyce nodded. "Yes."

"Let's go out and find someone for you to turn. For practice." Lamont said and grinned.

Joyce smiled. "We'll have an even bigger family."

"Exactly." Lamont said.

Lamont and Joyce went into town. They walked around, pretending to be a couple. Joyce spotted a young man that was playing the guitar for tips. She watched him for several minutes. Lamont nodded in approval and Joyce waited for the young man to be alone. Once the young man was alone, Joyce pinned him against the wall and turned into vampire mode. She ripped open her wrist and forced him to feed on her blood. Lamont watched from afar.

The young man struggled, but Joyce was stronger than him. Once her blood was in his system, Joyce fed from him and killed him. Lamont and Joyce took him back to the building and buried him. They had no idea what his name was, but now he was a part of the family. Meanwhile, Dawn was determined to get some answers. She talked to Willow and Tara at Xander's apartment. Xander and Anya were out patrolling for Buffy.

"I want you to curse mom like you did with Angel." Dawn told the girls.

Tara looked at her, concerned. "Dawnie, I think it's best to let your mother go."

"I can't." Dawn argued. "I need her and she's back. There has to be a reason."

"It's too dangerous." Willow said. "I don't know if it'll work."

"We have to try." Dawn insisted. "Please?"

Tara looked at Willow and shook her head. Willow looked at Dawn, her heart was torn. She would do anything for her and Buffy. She wished she could give them their mother back, but she wasn't sure if the spell would work. Willow thought about it. What if she could give Joyce her soul back? Would the Summers family be able to reunite?

Author's Notes: Should I give Joyce a soul? What do you guys think? I hope you like it!