Buffy turned the car off with a sigh. The trip from LA had been nerve racking. She felt the need to fall to her knees and kiss the sidewalk. Moving had been a good decision, with her mother gone Dawn was the only family that she had left. She hoped that Sunnydale would be the beginning of a new life for her. Dawn had started her freshman year at UC Sunnydale a few months ago, after much prodding from Buffy.

Dawn had been hesitant to leave her with all of the legalities that had stemmed from their mother’s passing. Who would have thought that their mom had known of her sickness for years, and prepared for it, so that her daughters would not suffer needlessly.

After talking with the lawyers regarding both Dawn’s and her inheritance Buffy decided that majority of the money should be placed into an account to further Dawn’s education.

At her choice of UC Sunnydale Buffy had a few concerns. Everyone knew that Sunnydale was on one of the hellmouths, but no concerns could sway Dawn’s decision.
So with what was left of the inheritance Buffy decided to relocate to Sunnydale to help watch over Dawn. She bought a little house in a nice ‘burb that was not to far from the school.

At 1630 Revello Drive she hoped to start a new life.

Buffy began unloading the SUV when her cell phone began to ring.

“Hello, yes I made it here in one piece Dawn” her sister knew her too well.

“OK I’m unpacking as we speak, I’ll see you in a few” Buffy smiled, it already felt like home.
Taking more boxes inside, she just stood inside the door of her new home and marveled at the changes the past year had brought. Feeling a hand grab her should she quickly dropped the box and turned. “Dawnie!!” “I missed you so much” “How is school?” “How are your grades?” “Buffy! Slow down, take a breath” she said, hugging me tightly. So taking her advice, I step back and begin to notice how grown up she looks. It seems as if she has grown from a gangly teen to a graceful woman in just a few months. “Dawn, you look terrific! Whatever you’ve been doing here definitely agrees with you.”

“Thanks, sis. Could we move into the house a little? I need to introduce you to someone.”
As requested I move inside and start to push the many boxes aside so that Dawn can bring her guest inside.

As I turn back to Dawn I notice a young man who appears to be Dawn’s age standing behind her with his hands on her shoulders. Looking at him with a smile I wait for the introduction.

“Buffy, this is Conner” “Conner my sister Buffy”, I raise my hand to shake his as Dawn makes her introductions. I notice that he keeps his one hand on her shoulder while shaking my hand, as though he wanted to keep Dawn between us. For what reason I could not even guess until Dawn said “Conner is a hybrid”.

“Excuse me?” I ask. I looked at Conner and back to Dawn in askance.

“Buffy Conner’s father is a vampire - Before you start with the questions can we get comfortable?” asks Dawn So I lead them to them living area that is filled with boxes, and take my seat. Dawn begins with her explanation without further delay. “I will let Conner explain, but I ask that you have an open mind while listening. I know that some things will come as a surprise, but please hear us out”. With that said she looks to Conner, who looks decidedly nervous. “As Dawn said I am a vampire hybrid”

Conner begins. “My father was one of the first vampires with a soul. When he was sired he awoke with his soul still intact, and made it his goal to acclimate humans and vampires. He set out to teach all vampires that they no longer needed to hide in the shadows and feed in secret. He encouraged those who did not have a soul to work hard to acquire one, and become members of society again. He new that with a little work vampires and humans could coexist”. Conner paused in his explanation to look at Buffy, and was a little surprised by the way she was taking things. Though Buffy was thinking along similar lines, she couldn’t help but be a little surprised by the story so far. She was definitely interested in the subject of the vampire/human treaties and how they came about, for reasons of her own that she had not shared with anyone. When the silence became noticeable Buffy realized that she had drifted off into her little world and could see Dawn and Conner looking at her puzzled. “Please continue” she told Conner.

“Ok, my father after laying the ground work for the treaties decided to move here, along with his GrandChilde, to Sunnydale to help guard the hellmouth. He knew that the hellmouth would always attract evil, and wanted to help keep the peace. He met my mother one night while patrolling, he saved her from a demon set to open the hellmouth. He says that it was love at first sight. And they spent years together, and both were very surprised to find that she was pregnant” Conner pauses and takes a deep breath. “My mother died during child birth, dad says that she had internal bleeding that could not be stopped. I never got to meet her, but my father has many pictures”. Buffy looks at Dawn and she could see the tears in her sister’s eyes. Then she closes the distance between her and the young couple and puts her arms around both of them. “Conner, I am so sorry. I know the pain of losing your mother” she says. “We don’t have to continue this right now. I have a feeling that there is a lot more to this story, and we don’t have to finish this all in one day”. Dawn gave her a grateful smile, and hugged Conner. “I knew she wouldn’t completely freak” whispered Dawn to him. “Wait a minute” says Buffy “I still have hundreds of questions, but they can wait for now”. She looks to Conner and says “I would like to meet your father”. Buffy had questions for the man that had helped make it possible for the two species to live together amicably, and also she wanted to know his feelings on the young couple’s relationship.

Buffy cleared her throat and said, “I have a lot of unpacking to do, and I know that you two have to get back to school. Conner could you please call your father and see if he would like to come to dinner one day next week, so that all four of us can speak together?”

“Yes ma’am. I already told him that you were moving here to be closer to Dawn, and he said that he would like to meet you as well. Just let me know what time he needs to be here”. Buffy hugged her sister and Conner as well and told them that she would call them to set up the dinner time. Buffy waved as they walked out the door. Once the door was closed she rested her head against it and could not help but think ‘Dawnie what have you gotten us into’. With a sigh she started unpacking, her mind on the most important task. Finding a job. She knew that she could live off her savings for a while, but she wanted to keep busy.

Tomorrow she would start the hunt for employment.

“Hello?”

“Dad, it me”

“Conner, me boy. What have you been up to? I haven’t heard from you in a few days.”

“Not much” he starts hesitantly. “Dawn’s sister made it into town yesterday and we had the meet and greet”

“Conner, what’s wrong? She didn’t upset you did she? I had hoped that since Dawn was so open that her sister would be as well. I should have known better..”

“DAD! Calm down she was great. In fact she took everything better than either Dawn or I had hoped. It’s just that she would like to meet you. She wants all of us to me for dinner next week after she gets the house in order”

“Oh, well then ok. As long as you’re ok I would be glad to meet her. Just let me know when and where. William can handle things while I’m gone”

“Peaches!! How many times have I told you not to call me William?”

“Conner call me with the details, it seems I have some one to take care of here”

Conner laughs into the phone and mutters something that sounds like ‘Yeah right’
“Love you, Dad”

As Angel hangs up the phone he turns to his grandchilde and says,

“You have asked me to quit calling you William as many times as I’ve asked you to quit calling me PEACHES!!” he finishes with a yell.

“My name is SPIKE. I haven’t been William for over 100 years, dammit!” “Now what exactly am I handling for you? I’m a busy man, ya know?” he finishes with a smirk

“Dawn’s sister has arrived, and she has requested that I attend dinner on day next week. If it falls on a day that I am supposed to be working I’ll need you to cover for me.”

“That can be arranged, you know that I would do anything for the Nibblet. What did Conner have to say about the infamous sister?”

“I didn’t get a chance to get his impressions, due to your interruption. But he says that she was open to the relationship. Though I did get the impression that he was worried about her meeting me” Angel said with a grin.

“Smart boy”

“Hey! I resent that.”

“All I’m saying is that Conner cares for Dawn a great deal, and he wants all parties involved to get along”

“I get along well with others!!”

Spike laughed so hard at this that he found it hard to catch his unneeded breath. “You have never gotten along well with others!”

Not liking the turn of conversation Angel turned to leave and left Spike sitting alone. As he walked away he said, “Tread lightly, Childe”.

“Exactly!!” shouted Spike.

The following morning at the Summer’s House

Buffy awoke the next morning with a gasp as another dream receded. She lay quietly trying to calm her racing heart. The dreams were becoming more and more detailed. She could actually feel the gentle touches that seemed to hold reverence. The touches would go from gentle to demanding, as if her dream man were scared if he let go she would vanish. The man of her dreams always appeared to be hidden in shadows, but the things that he made her feel were all too real. Though she had very little experience with men, none in fact, she knew that she would hold all men to his standard. One word always seemed to stay with her after her dreams-MINE. Dream guy would always say the word to her before she woke. Sometimes in a whisper, sometimes in a roar. Either way never failed to make her feel complete. Wishing she could turn over and return to her dreams Buffy got out of bed with a sigh and headed to the shower to begin her job hunt.

Later that afternoon Buffy felt lost. She had been looking for a job all day and all she received was polite refusals. Apparently her lack of experience was not the best of job references. She did not want to tell people that she had never had a job other than helping her sick mother. That would make her feel that she received the job out of sympathy or pity. And that would not do. While walking back to her car she noticed a small coffee shop on the corner and decided that the caffeine would help her mood. As she stood in line she noticed that there was a woman standing in line who looked as if she were digging for gold in her purse. The red headed woman still had her head down, intent on finding some unknown treasure when the clerk asked

“May I help you?”
“Excuse me. Can I help you?”

So intent on finding her treasure the red headed woman never noticed that it was her turn in line. People were starting to get angry, and the man behind her in line nudged her shoulder. At the nudge the woman looked up in surprise and stammered an apology.

“I’m so sorry!!” “I’ll have a caramel mocha, please”
After receiving her drink the woman quietly moved towards the exit, as she passed by I made eye contact with her and gave her a little smile. She returned the smile and moved outside. I made my way to the counter and ordered my vanilla cappuccino, quickly paying and heading outside. Once outside a quiet voice says,

“Hi, my name is Willow”

I looked up and noticed the young woman from earlier with the brilliant red hair.

“Hi, Buffy Summers.” As I shake her hand I continue “I didn’t realize that coffee was such a hot commodity here”

“This is pretty much the ONLY coffee shop in town, and the only place to hang out during the day other than the Magic Shop. But Giles tends to run us off if the gang gets too rambunctious”.

I look at her questioningly as she pauses for breath, and she grins.

“Sorry, I tend to ramble. I see that you’re new to town. I’ve never seen you before”

“I just moved from LA. My sister is in school at UCS. I wanted to be closer to her. I was walking around getting acquainted with the town, and looking for a job when I saw coffee and my body went on auto pilot.”

“UCS, really. I’m a senior over there. What a coincidence! Job hunting, huh? Well the only place that I know is hiring is ‘About the Blood’

“Beg your pardon?” I choke out over my mouth full of coffee.

“The locals call it AB for short. It’s a bar. My boyfriend, Wesley, works there. It’s kind of a blending bar for humans and vampires. I know that they are looking for a bartender”

“Really? Could you tell me how to get there? I really need a job, but I have no real experience. So options are kind of limited”

“Sure, no problem. I’ll even call Wes and ask him to be looking for you” As Willow wrote directions I could help but to feel like fate had stepped in to lend a helping hand.

“Buffy I wrote my phone number on the back; give me call so that we can get together. You can let me know how things went over at AB. I’ve got to run. I have class soon. Good Luck!”

“Thank you Willow, really. I appreciate it. I’ll call you soon.”

When Buffy pulled up to the address that Willow had given her she could not help but feel a little nervous. From the outside the building looked like an abandoned factory. The kind that you saw in old horror moves-the ones where people went in and never returned.
Taking a deep breath she walked up to the door and was about to knock, when it suddenly swung open. Startled she stepped back quickly and looked up. At first she did not see anyone, but upon closer inspection she saw a very nice looking man with brown hair and eyes. He reminded her of the Marlboro man, the thought made her smile. He noticed her smile and returned it.

“Buffy?” he asked.
Got to love a man with an accent was all she could think. He sounded like her dream man, only a little more cultured.

“Buffy?” he asked again.

“Oh, yes! I’m sorry. Your accent through me for a moment. It reminded me of someone. Are you Wesley?”

“Yes, but please call me Wes. You made quite an impression on my Willow. She’s only known you for 10 minutes and she sings your praises. Please come in”

“Thank you, Wes.”

“Please have a seat. Willow tells me that you are looking for employment. Do you have any experience bartending?”

“No, honestly I don’t. But I am a hard worker and fast learner.”

“Do you understand what type of establishment we run here? Let me explain. We run a bar that is safe for humans and vampires. We serve alcohol and blood. Would this be a problem for you?”

“Are you asking if I’m squeamish? No, I have no problem with blood”

“I am willing to give this a trial run, say two weeks. If at the end both of us are satisfied then the job is permanently yours. When can you start?”

“That’s it? I get the job?! Thank you, thank you. I can start whenever you need me”

“Great. I will let the owners know that the position has been filled. You start tomorrow night. Be here at 4:00 to start training. Ask for Lorne.”

“Thanks again Wes, I appreciate the chance. I’ll see you tomorrow”

Buffy left with a smile on her face. Maybe it wasn’t a dream job, but she would pretty much guarantee that it would never be dull. Wes watched as Buffy left, and he could not help the smile that crossed his face.

“What’s got you so happy?” a voice spoke form behind him.

“I just hired the new bartender. She starts tomorrow”

“She? We never agreed on a female. You know that some times our patrons get out of hand. What happens when we have a woman in the mix?”

“You made me the manager for a reason, correct? Well I see something in her, and I want to see if my hunch is right. Willow agrees”

“Red? How is Red involved? asked Spike.

Wes briefly reviewed Willow’s meeting with Buffy and how she came to apply.

“This is your choice, Wes. I hope that you know what you’re doing.”

“We’ll see tomorrow, Spike”

Wes watched as Spike walked away, and smiled again. If Willow was correct the first meeting between Buffy and Spike would produce some fireworks.

She could feel his hands slowly glide up the length of her legs. Just a whisper, almost like it wasn’t there. She held her breath as she felt him place kisses on the inside of each knee as he slowly made his way up her body. She nearly moaned when he skipped where she ached for him to be. A giggle slipped out as she felt his tongue dip into her belly button. He continued his imaginary trip up her body, Buffy opened her eyes hoping to see her lover for the first time. She could not help but freeze as she saw his face, golden eyes stared back at her. She slowly brought her hands up to trace the ridges on his forehead and slowly leaned up to kiss him, being careful of his fangs. When she pulled back to look at him once again he used the opportunity to bury his face in her neck. With a growl he buried his fangs in her throat and Buffy’s world drifted away in a flash.

Buffy woke with a jerk! She didn’t know if she could survive many more dreams like that one. She felt like her body was on fire, and she could practically feel the pull of blood from her body. For several minutes all she could do was lie in bed and gather her strength. She rolled over to glance at her alarm clock, and with a gasp she hurried from bed.
‘Dammit, over slept’ she thought. Its 12:00 and that leaves me three hours to pick out clothes for work. ‘What does a bartender at a blood bar wear?’ She wondered.

Buffy was in the process of gutting her closet for the perfect out fit when the phone rang.
“Hello?”
“Buffy it’s me. What are you doing?”
“Dawnie, I’m trying to find the perfect outfit.”
“For what?”
“Are you sitting down? OK. I got a job!”
“Really?” Dawn asked in shock. “Where at?”
“Well..” Buffy hesitated “Atabar” She rushed
“Did you say a bar?!” “Buffy you have to be kidding me, have you ever been to a bar?”
“YES!!” Buffy yelled. “I’ve been to a bar.”
“Buffy there are only two bars in town. One is Willie’s, and I know that you wouldn’t even walk through the door of that place without a hazard suit. So that leaves A/B as your new job”
Buffy wondered how her sister’s reasoning process had developed so quickly. Maybe there was something in the water in Sunnydale.

“Dawn, I’ll be fine. A/B was the only place hiring. I met a lovely woman named Willow in the coffee shop yesterday, and she helped me get the job. Apparently her boyfriend manages the bar.”

“Buffy, I know you’ll be fine. I’ll make sure of it”
“Dawn, I’m not 12. I happen to be a grown woman”
“I know Buffy, but you’ve spent the last few years caring for mom. It was like you were in a time warp. You may be 21, but you stopped learning about life at 18.”
“Dawn, this is not up for discussion. I was offered a job and I accepted. You have no need to worry”
“You’re right I don’t. The people there will look after you. I know this because Conner’s family owns the place”

“What?!”

“Conner’s father, Angel, owns A/B. Along with Spike.”

“Angel & Spike?” “Are you kidding me?”

“Nope, looks like you’re part of the family and sooner than you thought. I’ll call Conner and let him know that you’re going to be working the bar. He and I will be there as soon as they open”

“Dawn! You aren’t old enough to be in a bar.”
“Buffy we don’t drink. I just want to make sure that you’re handling everything OK, and make sure the guys are looking out for you.”

Buffy glanced to her watched and noticed the time. Crap! The sisterly Q &A had made her later than she already was.

“Dawn - I have to run. I’m supposed to be there by 4, but I wanted to be a little early. So I could make a good impression.”

“Ok, Buffy. Go, but drive carefully!! I will see you later tonight. I love you”

“Love you, too” yelled Buffy as she ran to her car.


For the second time Buffy found herself standing in front of the building wondering if she had seen it in a horror movie. She could not help but be nervous. ‘Are my clothes ok?’ ‘Will everyone like me?’ and the most important thought ‘Guess I’ll meet Conner’s dad earlier than I thought’. With one last deep breath she knocked on the door.

As the door swung open, she could not help but notice the most amazing blue eyes she had ever seen. She could not seem to form one single thought.

“Luv? You ok?”

Holy crap!! Those eyes and an accent. This man could not be real. The sound of someone clearing their throat caused her to come back to reality.

“I’m sorry! My name is Buffy. I start training with Lorne for the bartender position today. I’m a little early, I hope that’s ok.”

The blue eyed god just smirked as I continued my ramblings.

“I spoke with Wes yesterday, but I failed to ask for the proper dress, I hope what I have on is ok.”

“Goldilocks I..”
“Buffy”
“Buffy, I can assure you that you look just fine” he said with a leer.

Buffy wonder why the look on his face gave her goosebumps. NEVER had she dealt with this kind of situation. This may have been what Dawn had meant, but she was going to have to learn as she went along.

“I’m sorry I didn’t catch your name” she asked as politely as she could.

“Name’s Spike” the name was said as if that would answer all other questions I had.
“Spike? Conner’s Spike?” she inquired with a smile.
“How do you know Conner? He is family, I would have known if you we acquainted with him”
“I don’t really know him that well. I actually just met him yesterday, Dawnie, introduced him to me”
“The Nibblet?” “Her sister?” as the realization came to him he had one thought:

‘Bugger Me’

"I'm sorry did you say Nibblet?" asked Buffy.

"Yes, that is my name for her" replied Spike. "We consider her family here."

"I see" said Buffy. Although she didn't really understand. She knew that she had a great deal to learn, not only about her new job but Dawn's surrogate family.

"Well Spike it was nice to meet you. Could ou please tell me where I could find Lorne?"

"Lorne? Sure he's at the bar. Follow me"

While Spike led her into the bar he could not help but feel a pull to be close to this woman. Even his demon wanted her. Never had both sides of him been in agreement.

Buffy was thinking along the same lines. All she seemed to want was to run her hands along the back of his leather jacket to see if it felt as soft as it looked.

She gasped quietly when he turned suddenly to look at her and she caught the flash of gold in his eyes.

Spike looked at Buffy for a moment, then mumbled

"Lorne is over there" pointing to his right.

As he walked away Buffy couldn't help but wonder what she had done to upset him, and also why the gold color of his eyes facsinated her so.

She was still in her own little world of reflection when she made it to the bar area. She looked up and saw Lorne for the first time and paused in shock. Never had she seen such a beautiful shade of green, and such cute little horns - aw he was darling.

"Hey there sweetcakes, I'm Lorne" he said with a big smile.

"Hi, I'm Buffy." "Wes told me that you were the one to whip me into shape - so to speak I mean. No actual whipping for me." finishing as she ran out of breath.

"It's alright hun, take a few breaths, and we'll get to know one another" patting her on the shoulder.

"Lorne can I ask a question? requested Buffy

"Shoot, kiddo"

"Where can I find horns like those?"

With a wink he replied, "You and I are going to get along just fine"