Chapter 7

Willow took off the emerald pendant necklace draped around her neck and sat it on the table next to a white pillar candle. The jewelry held no sentimental value and worked perfectly for this little test run if things went awry. Which it wouldn’t. Or at least that’s what she kept telling herself.

With a single word and the snap of her fingers, the candle lit. Its blaze danced in the afternoon sun shining through the front window of the Magic Box. Only hushed tones from passersby penetrated the barrier to the outside world, all signs of life in the shop presently at the table or the basement working on an online order. Conditions were perfect to give this a go.

Clearing her throat, Willow took a pinch of ground foxglove from a small bowl and recited the handwritten translation with precise words. “Contegerent chlamyde” She sprinkled the powder over the necklace. “Igitur evanescunt ex oculis.”

[Cover under the cloak, disappear from sight]

The pendant shone with a faint yellow light, and slowly faded from sight before popping back into view. Willow growled and looked upward. “For goddess sakes, what happened this time?” She blew out the candle and pulled her laptop out, ready to find a source to fix this.

To be honest, she was sick and tired of these trials gone wrong. For over a week, she had been experimenting with different spells, hoping to find the same high to course its way through her body and mind as it did when Buffy came back. The resurrection spell continued to compel her to push the barriers of magic. Something inside screamed for release. Since then she’d been working on the cloaking spell and a few others with mixed results.

After the first trial, Willow had fallen into a rhythm of translation research and herbal combinations. Tara started showing concern after her third all-nighter and told her to slow down. What was it she kept saying? It will happen naturally if you let it. Willow shrugged off her advice. If there was one thing she was sure of, it was practice and persistence made all the difference.

Which led her back to the problem at hand. What was out of the mix? The incantation must be correct, or the object wouldn’t have faded, leaving the herbal component to review. What she needed was a stronger powder, or maybe a root to use as a catalyst.

Willow’s fingers tapped the keys of her computer, and Mrs.Veronica Mills, help for the Witch on the Go web page popped up on her laptop screen. With questions about powders, roots, or gems, this was her first stop to formulate the right ingredients. After referencing the effects of her last attempt, she decided a mixture of salt and iron powder might increase the chemical reaction necessary to power the cloak.

Carrying the bowl, she walked back behind the counter and sat it down to be cleaned later and grabbed a clean one. Both the salt and iron powder sat right behind the cash register, and she took a pinch of each one from its glass canister. With her fingers, she mixed the grains as she walked back to the table.

She sat the bowl down next to the translation and relit the candle. With the same determination as before, she began. “Contegerent chlamyde” She sprinkled the powder over the necklace. “Igitur evan…”

The basement door slammed shut. Willow turned toward the noise instinctively for just a moment, but it was enough. A slight slip of the tongue on the last word and it was wasted. The pendant didn’t even fade, let alone disappear.

Willow growled to herself, flipping an irritated glare at Anya. This was typical. Anytime she decided to work on something important; she was always interrupted. Times like these begged for a place of her own to practice without interruption. A place kind of like Buffy’s training room would be perfect for her. Well, outfitted with the right tools of the trade, of course.

It caught her as funny that a magic shop had its downfalls. With a never ending stock of supplies and reference material, it should be the Holy Grail for a witch. And in ways it was for her. It was here she expanded her knowledge and tested out spells just as she was now. But if an interruption here and there stopped progress, was it the right fit?

Anya continued her trek to the counter, her disturbance unnoticed as pulled out the day’s receipts and shuffled through them. She hummed to herself, her head bobbing to a silent beat. Willow decided now was the right time to replenish supplies with her distracted with her favorite activity.

Casually, she walked around the counter and took a pinch of salt and iron once again. Anya didn’t twitch or move to notice what she was doing, completely enwrapped in her world.

It was only when Willow sat, that Anya chose to pay attention. “I saw that you know. Taking without paying, some would call it stealing.”

An immediate reply bubbled, but Willow refused to voice her opinion. No, she didn’t want another twenty-minute argument over this again. This time, she was going to try a different approach.

“So in your silence, you’re admitting your guilt.”

Willow looked down, trying her best to keep her calm. There was something about Anya that triggered a part of her that she couldn’t keep composed. One comment or a frown could set her off quicker than anyone she’d ever known. This time was no different. “It’s not stealing. I’m experimenting with a new spell.”

“Still you’re taking inventory without paying. Seems like I should get some kind of compensation since I can’t sell it to a customer now.”

“I thought we’d been over this already with Giles. He said that if the supplies were minimal, and it was something to help Buffy, I didn’t have to pay. Besides, I wouldn’t have needed more if you hadn’t of slammed the basement door.”

“Oh excuse me for trying to keep this business up and running. The purpose of this establishment is to turn a profit, not to fund whatever magic experiment you’re working on now.”

“You know…”

The front door bell rang, and Xander stepped through the entrance in his work boots and a flannel shirt.

“Hey, Ahn. Willow,” he said. His shoulders were slightly hunched, and his voice seemed tired.

Willow smiled at him, thankful for the interruption. If he hadn’t disturbed the beginnings of a fight between her and Anya, who knows how what this might have escalated to. Thankfully he was here just in time.

He took the steps down to the showcase, promptly taking post against the glass. He seemed upset about something. Willow wondered if the stress of his job was getting to him or if it was the fight from yesterday with Buffy. He’d been upset with Buffy, taking Spike’s side over his. He couldn’t understand what was going on with her. And the truth of it neither could she.

Buffy was different since Willow brought her back from the hell dimension. She’d been reserved and kept to herself at first. Almost like a lost puppy. The gang decided to let her ease into things, but that approach seemed to make things worse. Anymore their encounters with their best friend were hostile at best. Willow assumed it was Buffy’s way of coping, letting all the misery out into the fold.

Willow couldn’t begrudge her for it. Sure, she was concerned and wanted to help her friend, but something told her to leave it. Right now she would stick with the plan, and let Buffy tell them what she needed.

“Everything okay, sweetie?” Anya asked as she walked over to her boyfriend.

“Everything’s fine. Just beat. The GM for this project is driving us hard with these deadlines. I can’t wait the week to be over.” He rubbed his face and released a deep breath. “I at least talked to Buffy this morning. She said she’d go and see Jensen about the opening down at the donut shop.”

Relieved, Willow smiled at the news her two best friends were talking again. After their fight yesterday, she didn’t know what to do for either of them and left them both be after Tara’s warning to let it go. It was so hard to listen, every fiber in her being pushing to fix the situation herself. A spell could fix this; she knew it. But something deep down kept her from jumping from the ledge. The only thing she could do was to support them both the only way she knew how. She would be there when they were ready.

“Do you think she’ll go?” Anya asked.

“At this point Ahn, I don’t know. But I tried at least.” He shook his head, looking dejected.

Anya wrapped her arms around Xander and kissed him. The kiss started out slow and increased in intensity. Xander grabbed Anya’s waist, pulling her closer.

Willow turned away from the couple and back to her text, not wanting to observe the display of affection. If only she had something to plug her ears, she could continue without distraction.

Anya pulled away from him, her cheeks pink and eyes shining. “Well, I know what might make you feel better. We still have that new French maid costume we haven’t tried out yet. Maybe we can..”

“Other people are sitting in this room; you know,” Willow bellowed.

Xander blushed, looking away from his friend. Willow didn’t even reach Anya’s radar. Instead of arguing with her, Anya kept her attention on him and kept her voice low. After a few whispers here and there, Anya spoke. “Willow, I need Xander to help me bring up some… Oh whatever, we are going to have sex. Will you watch the counter for me?”

Not wanting her to speak any longer than needed, Willow nodded her head and quickly looked down at her notebook.

“Consider that your payment for the supplies,” Anya replied as they shuffled off to the basement.

Thank goddess she didn’t elaborate, or I might not have kept that turkey sandwich down. With the store surprisingly slow on Halloween, Willow figured she could at least get twenty minutes of quiet time before Xander and Anya returned. If she were lucky, the store would stay empty, even if Anya complained about it.

Somehow Anya determined the Halloween holiday would be like Christmas shopping and had stocked up on supplies. Apparently, she guessed wrong, and most people were busy putting the finishing touches on their costumes, or making a last minute candy run. Besides, most serious witches like Willow didn’t fall into the cliché of doing magic just because it was a magical holiday.

Once the pair disappeared down the hallway, Willow returned to her incantation. She wasn’t even through the first three words before the bell chimed.

Cursing her luck, she looked up and saw a man with long blonde hair and pale skin glide through the doorway. He went straight for the shelving by the candles and incense, scanning the merchandise. A statue on the top shelf caught his attention, and he reached up and grabbed it without any effort, his tall stature equipped for the task. He turned the item around in his hand and examined the price tag. The statue went back to its spot.

Being the good friend that she was, Willow got up from the spell she was so eager to cast and walked over to the customer. If she wanted to get back to it anytime soon, she needed to get this guy what he wanted and out of here.

He looked at her as she approached and smiled.

“Hi. Something I can help you with?”

“Let’s hope so. I’m looking for a book.”

“Any in particular?”

His smile widened, revealing dimples in his cheeks. “Seidr and Norse Shamanism.”

Willow’s eyes widened, interested in the unusual request. She couldn’t say that there was typically any interest in the genre. From what she’d gathered, the practice had died out centuries ago though fragments of the art evolved into modern magic practices. Norse gods were still a source of power though they were known to be quite difficult to pull from. Something about a warrior’s strength kept most from the attempt.

Willow motioned him to follow her, and she walked past the research table toward the bookshelves underneath the balcony. Only the dangerous texts were located up the metal staircase, out of the hands of twitchy fingers. The shelf in front of her held beginner how-to and history reference books with newer and older bindings mixed according to origin and title.

She scanned the shelf, finding the book in question in its proper spot and picked it up. The leather binding seemed fragile, one swift move away from falling apart. It's gold lettering and edging engraved with a hint of red speckles causing the words to pop. But that wasn’t what caught her eye. The intertwined snake eating its tail in the center pulled at her mind, teasing her to look closer.

Apparently, it held her attention too long because he began to cough. She looked up to see a smirk lining his face.

“Here you go.” She nervously handed the book over with a weak smile. “We don’t get very many customers looking for sources on Norse magic. You’re lucky we had it in stock.”

He flipped through the pages, examining it. Once satisfied, he looked up. “It seems it's my lucky day, Ms?”

“Rosenberg. Willow Rosenberg.”

“Thanks for your assistance then, Willow. I’m Jordyn”

“No problem, Jordyn. Now, if you can follow me to the register, and I’ll get you checked out.”

Willow started toward the register as her mind questioned this particular purchase. Something about it pulled at her curiosity, and the need to know more was overwhelming.

“Are you big with Norse mythology or…?”

“Well, I guess of sorts. I practice magic through shamanism.” His voice stayed in place. Willow turned and saw him at the research table, examining her notes. He flipped the page, continuing to read like he had permission to intrude.

“Are you working on a cloaking spell?”

“Yeah, how did you know?”

“Your Latin is straightforward. Have you had much luck with the iron and salt?”

“Still in the practice stage. Didn’t get the chance to try it out before you walked in.”

He smiled, and his eyes lit with excitement. “Well, then let’s see it.”

“You mean now?”

His eyes rose with expectation and waited. Willow wasn’t sure how to take this man. A part of her wanted to ignore his request and get him out the door. But the other half was intrigued, and slightly excited someone might be interested in something she was working on.

Willow took a seat at the table and motioned for him to sit.

She lit the candle and said the incantation, then sprinkled the mixture onto the necklace. She repeated the words without any difficulty.

The necklace faded away. Willow smiled, proud that the spell had worked. Then the pendant popped back into place.

She frowned. “I guess it still needs work.”

“It seemed everything was in order. Maybe your approach needs some work.” He waved his hand over the necklace. A faint red glow emitted from his hand, and the necklace disappeared.

Willow’s eyes widened, mouth gaped open. “How did you do that?”

Jordyn laughed. “Magic, of course.” His dimples more prominent as his smile deepened.

“You know what I mean! No witch or warlock can just wave their hands like they do in the movies. You had to have done something. Did you whisper the spell?”

“No. I simply willed the necklace to disappear. No spell was needed.”

“How can you say that?”

“I practice magic through a form of Norse shamanism.”

“What, like channeling Freija or other Norse entities?”

He laughed. “Not exactly.”

Willow frowned, wondering what this guy was talking about. Every witch or warlock drew their power from the universe. The more powerful spells required an extra boost from a mystical power, but only those strong enough were able to summon it. Without those rules, anyone could do magic.

Before she could question him any longer, he shook his head and began answering her unspoken question.

“I don’t draw power from foreign energy. I draw it out from within.”

Willow remained silent, trying to figure out what he meant. Instead of letting the silence linger, he continued.

“Most don’t have the talent, you see. Only a truly gifted witch or warlock can tap into that kind of power.”

Willow sputtered. “How is this even possible? I’ve never read anything about it in a book or online.”

“Oh, you won’t find this written in any book or online blog. It’s passed down from generation to generation. Usually kept within a family, my mother taught me.”

Willow couldn’t believe her ears. This guy had to be lying, giving her a load of crap to try and impress her or something. There was no way this kind of magic existed without word getting out. Things like this just didn’t stay a secret. At the very least, some legend would exist about such a talented witch or warlock.

Seeming to understand her skepticism, he nodded. The room went eerily quiet; a faint red light emulated from his hands, seeping in thin tendrils to the lit candle. Its flame danced around Jordyn’s power, flaring brighter until the red energy attacked.

Sparks shot upward, almost reaching the ceiling before Jordyn waved his hand. In a circular motion, he pulled the sparks together until it morphed into a bright window. From Willow’s viewpoint, she could see the Magic Box but it was moving at a fast pace. Almost like fast forwarding a movie. Anya moved about like she was on the drug speed, working with customers, stocking shelves and cashing out the register for the day. The lights dimmed, and darkness descended.

Jordyn flicked his index finger, and the room was illuminated again. The pace picked up, even faster than before. Willow watched what looked like a Scoobie meeting, then blending into normal business. The days turned to weeks then to months with the quickening pace of the rise and fall of the sun. Until the room sat still.

Questions rolled through her mind, but only the obvious popped out of her mouth. “How are you doing that?”

“My magic is timeless,” he shrugged.

She shook her head, not believing what she was seeing. This was a parlor trick meant to fool those around you that what they were seeing was real. This couldn’t be more than fast-forwarding a DVD.

“That’s a neat illusion you’ve created.”

He smiled at her then stood up from his chair. He walked over to the shelves behind him and picked up a small wooden statue of Athena. He examined the price tag on the bottom before he threw it into the window. The statue landed on the floor next to the showcase. Willow tilted her chair to see away from the window and saw nothing on the floor.

Wide-eyed, she turned her attention back to the window and watched the statute collect dust, completely undisturbed. Days continued without any encounters with the Scoobies or any other humans. The place was abandoned. What caught her as weird was the store remained the same as if one day no one returned. Inventory collected dust and spider webs weaved over every surface until the building began to shake. Ceramic urns, containers full of herbs and roots fell first, smashing into shards. Next, the shelving tumbled to the ground. The floor cracked, and the statue fell through the opening into the earth as the roof crumpled. The entire building fell into a giant black crater.

Jordyn waved his hand, and the window vanished. He gazed at her with a satisfied look on his face.

Mouth gaped, she gawked at this mystery man. A flood of questions overwhelmed her, the mechanics and the physics of how this could be possible. A view into an alternate dimension seemed like the most reasonable explanation, but how could he have achieved it without even the slightest twist of the lips. The overachiever in her screamed for her to investigate, to find out how he managed to pull off something of this magnitude.

“Who are you? And how is that possible? Your lips didn’t even move.” Her voice softened as her eyes wandered off. The possibilities this opened. To cast a spell without an incantation or herbs completely changed the game. No more being pushed into a corner when everything was on the line, she could step from behind and help. The way she always wanted to.

“Look I’m a witch just like you. Well, a warlock, that is. I could see the suspicion rolling off of you and thought it would be better to show you. Sometimes you just need to see to believe.”

“But I still don’t understand. How can you pull that much energy out of yourself and still be upright? I get nosebleeds when drawing too much from the universe.”

“Explaining is not that easy. It more of teaching a thing.”

Not satisfied with his response, she knew she was going to need to push if she wanted answers. “Then you need to teach me.”

He laughed. “And give my family secret away just like that? Because you want to know? It doesn’t work that way.”

“Then tell me how it works then. What do I need to do?”

“Sorry to get your hopes up, but this isn’t something I can share with just anyone.”

“Then why show me at all? Did you need to show off and brag? Is that what that was? A haha I’m better at this than you.” She snapped at the end. Her anger was rising with this game he was playing with her.

“Calm down,” he said, raising his hand to keep her from interrupting. “It wasn’t a show at all. I saw your frustration with the cloaking spell, and I wanted to give you hope. That there was so much more to magic than a simple incantation.”

“You certainly pulled that off. Now I don’t even know where to start with something of that magnitude.”

He tapped his finger against his mouth, looking at her thoughtfully. “Well, maybe there is something I could do.” He leaned in. “If I’m going to do this, then there needs to be a test. I’m not going to reveal secrets to just any witch. I need to know you have potential.”

Willow leaned forward. “What kind of test?”

“Meet me at the Expresso Pump at six and you will find out.”

“Deal.” The reply was immediate. There was no thinking about this. She knew she had the potential to be great; she just needed that little push to send her to the next level. Maybe this was the opportunity she was looking for.

~*~*~*~*~*~*~

“Dawn, have you seen my polka dot button down?” Buffy yelled while she stood in front of her closet pushing around a row of sweaters, button downs and silks. Surely it was tucked out of view. But after checking the hamper and the piles of discarded garments lounging on the floor, she was about to give up and look for something else. Well, unless one little sister had snatched it without asking.

“Is it the white one with black polka dots?”

“Yeah, that’s the one.”

There was a pause followed by shuffling then something slammed into the wall. Buffy growled, stomping out of her room and down the hallway to Dawn. She wondered if it was time to start locking her door if she wanted to keep her wardrobe intact. Maybe it was time to return the favor and start raiding her closet for a change. That would be a new one.

Leaning against the doorjamb with her arms crossed, she watched her little sister mutter to herself as she tossed shirts, pants, and shoes out from under her bed. A few of those items banged against the wall, barely missing a picture of a Hello Kitty.

In a cloud of cotton came the shirt in question flying toward her. She snatched it up before it had a chance to touch the ground. “And what is my shirt doing in your room?”

Dawn jumped, banging her head against the metal bed frame in the process. She rubbed the back of her head before turning toward Buffy with a sheepish smile. “It looked really good with a pair of black leggings. It made my legs look super long.”

“They are long.” Giving her disapproval face, she went on. “I thought you weren’t supposed to take my clothes without asking.”

Dawn bit her lip and looked away.

Buffy shrugged, perplexed by Dawn’s weird behavior. “What?”

With a low voice, she responded. “You weren’t around to ask.”

Her stomach dropped, a coldness that wasn’t there before caused her to shiver. She rubbed her hands over her arms and tried to push her nightmare way. “Oh,” she replied with a quiver to her voice.

“Sorry.” Dawn looked up through her eyelashes with pleading eyes. “I should’ve put it back. I guess I forgot.”

Buffy took a deep breath and ran her hands through her hair. As much as she wanted to crumble into herself and hide in her misery, she couldn’t allow herself. Not after everything that happened. She refused to let a reminder bring her to that point again. Whether she wanted to or not, it was time to break free of this black heart and fill its gaping hole. And she needed to start with one of the few people in her life that seemed to care.

She pulled Dawn into her arms and stroked her head gently. “It’s okay. Please don’t hide things from me, no matter how much you think I want to be all avoid-o girl. I promise I won’t hide from you either. Okay?”

Dawn looked up and smiled. “Okay.”

The embrace warmed her, and she couldn’t help but return her smile. “Now how about we finish getting dressed before we’re late for the movie?”

Dawn nodded with a child-like giddiness and Buffy could help but laugh before giving her one last squeeze.

Once she slipped away from Dawn, the easy smile fell away as she returned to her room to finished dressing. A numbness that was all too familiar slithered back but this time she wasn’t allowing it. Tonight was going to be the start of something new.

After adding the finishing touches to her outfit, she stood in front of her full-length mirror and struck a pose. Pulled over the button down was army green sweater with a black outline of a star and a pair of ripped skinny jeans. Now all she needed was her pair of black ankle boots and to finish curling her hair.

While she sat down at her vanity, she couldn’t help but feel a little guilty about what she was doing. It wasn’t a coincidence that she picked the movie time that started right at sundown. The way she figured it, it was best to avoid him. Well, unless she felt like getting a few punches in. But somehow that didn’t make her feel as good as it once did.

Dawn hollered the time from down the hallway and Buffy picked up the pace. The movie started in thirty minutes and with her no driving policy they needed some extra time to make it on time.

She finished styling her pink curls and lightly sprayed her hair, giving it one last look. Satisfied with the result, she unplugged her curling iron and put her hair products back in their proper place. Movement reflected from the mirror catching her attention. She turned and glanced at Giles standing just inside of the doorway.

Their eyes met, and he gave her a hesitant smile. “You and Dawn are going out?”

Her jaw clenched as she reached down for her boots, keeping her face hidden away as she took a calming breath. His tone held a hint of uncertainty that helped lessen the lingering resentment she still held from the other day. But just a little. She was in no mood to let him rain on what was supposed to be a fun night out with her sister. Better to just let him get his lecture out and be done with it.

She took a seat at the head of the bed and pulled one of her boots on. “Yeah they’re showing classic monster movies at Sun Cinema tonight,” she replied keeping her voice casual.

Giles looked down, obviously choosing his words. “And do you plan on patrolling tonight?”

She shrugged. “Probably not. If something happens, then I’ll make an appearance. But isn’t Halloween supposed to be my one day off a year anyways?”

“Well, I do suppose that is correct, yes. But it seems that hasn’t worked too well in the past, has it?”

She really couldn’t argue, what with her stellar history with the holiday. It was just as bad as her birthday. “That’s true.”

He looked somewhat relieved at her agreement and took a seat on the bed next to her. “Maybe you should do a quick patrol and see a later showing then just to be safe. I..”

“No!” Dawn stood in the hallway with her arms crossed, her signature pout on showcase. “Then there will be an excuse for us to miss the movie altogether. Besides all the other years when all hell broke loose, a patrol didn’t stop it from happening. Just let things be for once.”

His mouth tightened, pronouncing the wrinkles around his mouth. “Now Dawn don’t you think that is a little…”

“What, naïve?” She huffed. “No, I don’t. Buffy’s not a child anymore, Giles. Shouldn’t it be up to her to decide?”

Taken aback by her assertiveness, he sputtered. “Well, yes. But it isn’t out the question for me to simply suggest given the evening’s history.”

“Dawn..” Buffy raised a hand for her to stop. All she needed now was a faceoff between her watcher and sister, even if she did agree with her.

“What about what’s good for her? Have you thought about that in all of this time? She’s only been back a few weeks. Let her get used to things first. Or are you too stupid to see..”

“Dawn that’s enough,” Buffy yelled, her hands gripping the side of her head. She couldn’t let this carry-on. One more comment like that and her secret would fly from Dawn’s lips faster than money at a Victoria’s Secret sale.

Buffy stood and sauntered over to the doorway, standing in front of Dawn. “Listen, Giles does have a point. Things do usually come crashing down tonight. So I will patrol.” Dawn started to whine, but Buffy held her hand up. “But after the movie.” She turned her attention back to Giles. “Now if anything happens before, then you know where to find me.”

Giles nodded, a ghost of a smile touching his lips before disappearing. “Very well then. I guess I will leave you both to your evening.” He walked over to the girls, and took Buffy’s shoulder in his hand for a moment and left them alone.

Buffy sagged against the doorway as Dawn bounced on her toes with a huge grin on her face. That little episode went a lot better than she anticipated. She at least thought he would put up a fight, but she guessed he couldn’t refuse her compromise. Was he coming around and seeing things for what they were?

For that moment with his hand on her shoulder, she almost felt like things were back to normal. Like he was here to support her, but with everything that had happened in the last few days she couldn’t get her hopes up just yet. Even though she wanted that back.

Dawn grabbed Buffy’s hand and propelled her down the stairs, both of them yelling goodbyes to Giles. They slammed the door behind them and rushed down the porch onto the sidewalk. Dawn seemed to skip along, her happiness apparent as Buffy sped up her pace to keep up with her long-legged sister.

She shook her head, a smile tugging at her mouth at the promise of their night but before it could go on, there was something she needed to address. If this new found relationship between them was going to work, she needed to make it crystal clear that Dawn’s lips had to remain sealed.

“Don’t you think that little display was too much?”

Dawn rolled her eyes and huffed. “No, if anything it wasn’t enough. Buffy, he doesn’t have any right to tell you what to do.”

Oh, this again. She thought they had worn out this conversation this afternoon, but it looked like Dawn was still determined to make her point. “He’s my watcher. It’s what he does. But that’s not what I meant.”

“Then what did you mean?” she said with her jaw clenched.

She exhaled and tried her best to sound serious without sounding bitchy at the same time. “Next time watch what you say. I don’t want you accidently giving anything away. It’s mine to tell.”

Dawn stopped abruptly and crossed her arms. “I’m not stupid you know. After everything, I would’ve thought you knew me better than that. But no, get mad at the person that actually has your back right?”

Buffy leaned her head back, looking up at the stars while grinding her teeth. She counted to five and turned her attention back to her sister. “That’s not what this about and you know it.”

“Maybe so, but I’m right. He doesn’t have the right to rule you. And neither do the others. Just like this morning when they told you to go and talk to Xander’s friend about a job opening. Was that something you wanted to do or did you do it because they told you to?”

An immediate denial formed on her lips, but Dawn’s gaze kept her from forming the lie. Buffy knew she was right. It was their insistence that had finally broken her, and she complied. But she did need help figuring out this finance thing. It wasn’t like there was any money coming in and with little experience and a limited college education she had to rely on any connection she could. Instead of arguing, she went with the truth.

“We need the money Dawn and we need their help.”

Dawn threw her hands in the air. “Are you kidding me?”

Buffy froze in place and stayed silent, unaware of what she had said to make her this upset.

“Yeah we need money because of them. If they hadn’t been so stupid to pay off all the hospital bills and blow through mom’s money, then we would be fine. Janice’s mom said we should’ve arranged a payment plan with the hospital, and then we could have continued living off of the insurance money until things got settled. But it’s not like anyone asked me.”

“Janice’s mom?” Buffy shouted. “What are you doing talking to her about our finances?”

“I do have people that care about me outside of your little group, ya know? She was worried about us after mom. She wondered what was going on with me after… you were gone and instead of revealing anything about you, I blurted out the money thing.” Dawn frowned at her. “Sorry didn’t really think about it.”

Some of the tension drained out of her. “Next time keep our family stuff within the family. I don’t want you accidently letting Janice’s mom onto anything else.”

Dawn snorted. “Oh, the awesome family we have now, huh? Don’t get me wrong I love them too, but they aren’t acting like much of a family except for Tara and Spike. They took care of me when the others only tolerated me. Janice’s house was a nice escape when they couldn’t be around.”

She forced herself to maintain eye contact, the pain emitting from her words struck her like a physical blow. God, she was so selfish. Not once had she considered how hard everything had been for Dawn. Losing her mother and her sister in the course of a few months would be more than most adults could handle. But she was still able to keep going.

“Buffy, I don’t understand you defending them. All they seem to do is take away your choices, and you always take their side no matter what. But you’re wrong this time. Why can’t you see that? You should be pissed at them. God knows I am! You defend them over and over no matter what and they shit on you. Then the one person who is always there, you treat like garbage. Wake up. You’re backing the wrong horse.”

Thoroughly put in her place, Buffy whispered. “Well, what horse should I be backing then?”

Gently, Dawn grabbed her arm, and Buffy looked up with defeated eyes.

Dawn spoke with gentleness. “You should bet on yourself. Now is the time to take a chance and make your own decisions. The others can tell you what they want you to do, but only you can give them power. It’s time for you to decide.”

Buffy looked down at the ground, letting quiet take over. She didn’t have anything to say. Everything she said was right.

Rather than coming to the same conclusion herself, it was her baby sister telling her it was time to grow up and take a stand. How pathetic was that? After fighting vampires, demons and hell gods for years, she should be able to make her decisions. And if anyone had a problem with it, then it shouldn’t matter. But it was so much harder than it sounded.

It was easier to run away. But could she do that again? So far it had only made things much worse.

“I mean really. You’ve been bitching about Spike all day. What’s your deal with him anyway? He’s only trying to help,” Dawn said.

Warmth filled her cheeks at the mention of his name. She turned away from her sister and hurried away from the personal question.

“He betrayed me. I trusted him, and he immediately went behind my back.” She yelled hoping it was enough to drop the subject.

Dawn scurried after her, catching up with her pace in a couple of steps. “Oh give me a break. He did the right thing, and you know it. It’s just easier to be a bitch to him than give him a chance.”

Buffy picked up her pace, refusing to answer. Let alone look at her.

“You know I’m right. You just don’t want to admit it. Look, I get it. You’re mad that he told me, but he should’ve. Can’t you see that he’s trying to do something good? He’s changed.”

There was no doubt he was different. At first the subtle changes weren’t so easy to see her caught up in adjusting. The pull she felt was natural like it had always been this way before. Without realizing it, their relationship had morphed from one of distrust and murderous thoughts to an actual friendship. Maybe it was more, her mind teased. She shook off the thought, not ready to analyze her feelings any further.

“Listen, I hear you. But you have to understand my hesitation. We have a history and not a good one. I can see that he’s different, but in the back of my mind I wonder if it’s just a front or a game to him.”

“It’s not a game. If it were, he wouldn’t have stuck around and watched my back. God knows he didn’t have to protect everyone; Xander included.”

Buffy held her hands up and surrendered. “Okay, okay. You’ve made your point. It’s not a game. But still it’s hard for me to get over old ways.”

“I guess you’re going to have to try harder.” She teased with a big smile on her face.

“I guess so,” Buffy replied without a second thought about how big that statement was.

Dawn nodded, satisfied.

Buffy smiled. “When did you get so insightful? Are you sure you’re my teenage kid sister?”

“Haha,” she smirked. “I’ve always been observant. It’s one of the perks of being ignored in a group of people with superpowers. Well, you’re busy with the big picture, I notice the little things.”

Leaving the seriousness behind, they joked the rest of the way to the theater making it to the edge of downtown with time to spare. The main drag was filled to the brim with adults and teenagers ready to find their Halloween fun.

Following a group of twenty-somethings, they made their way to a short line formed at the theater ticket box. Dawn was distracted, telling a funny story about a kid in her chemistry class when Buffy noticed Willow walking down the sidewalk with someone she didn’t recognize.

Dawn raised her hand to get their attention, but Buffy pushed it down. She still felt too raw from the tension with her friends to engage even in small talk right now. She didn’t want the drama tonight. Instead she wanted a quiet evening with her sister, even though she was curious who the guy was.

“Buffy, what…”

Buffy held her index finger to her mouth. Dawn’s eyes rose in question, her arms crossing in defiance. But yet, she stayed quiet. Willow passed by completely engulfed in conversation with a guy with pale skin and blonde hair. Buffy didn’t recognize the man, but something about him felt familiar. Something stirred deep inside. And not in a good way.

The pair passed by unaware of Buffy or Dawn.