**sniffle** you made Kirsten go home....wahhhh. At least she seems to have averted the event which led to her own seemingly dark existence of the future. And is that the sound of Willow's downfall I hear echoing in the not so distant future?

And check out Oz with the Tara love and Sam's decision to follow his own path. Of course, that his path has led him to the white hats doesn't surprise me. I always knew there was something more to him than what Joss gave us.

Great update, sweetie! Congrats on the very much deserved win!

I have been following this story since it was a baby Book 1 and am passionate about it. The richness, complexity and solidly believable characterisationm that make this so great to read much make it a bitch to write. I am sorry for your pain ... but ... please don't let it slip away. This is one work that I would be truly sad to see slip into the realms of the eternally WIPed. You do good work!

Hells Bells! I can't believe I almost missed an update!

Willow seems to be losing her grip. I absolutely *love* the literal and metaphorical hounds at her heels. It is almost time for Willow to have her come uppance and I am breathless in anticipation.

Jenner is a Vamp after my own heart. His loyalty doesn't automatically reside with his sire, and I can't wait to see his reaction when he finds out that "the girls", in effect are his kin too being from the same bloodline. Great job on weaving in obscure characters.

Awww Dawn. Such a sad, broken girl now. I find myself missing the bubbly Dawn and am missing the father/daughter interaction from the past chapters. *sniffle*

Kirsten and Spike. I just love the way he holds his girls so close to his heart and their interaction this chapter, despite that angst, gave me a warm feeling. Love it.

Favorite Lines:
She answered him without thinking, then blushed darkly. “Yeah, sure Daddy.”

“Keep that quiet.” He shook his head, heading for the stairs and Buffy.

and...

“Really, Anya, must you? She’s hardly going to switch bodies with Wesley or I and I doubt seriously she’s going to harm any of us.” Giles grabbed her arm, peering down into her eyes. “I doubt helping any of us would be her first choice unless she has changed.” He paused once more, saying in a much softer tone, “we have to start trusting her sometime.”

“I still don’t think its very smart.” Her face had softened, responding to his expression. She smiled up at him prettily. “But I trust you, so I’ll try.” *revels in Anya/Giles luv*

Okay Nia, as promised, a review. Late, but not forgotten. Continue to heal. This story is moving along at the exact right pace. Angst, love, hate, domesticity, realism, and fantasy. Why didn't the writers tap YOU??

~Nina~

Excellent story! Also, technically good. Well done!

great chapter

OH so much more of this great story. I am glad that they were able to get to Dawn in time. I just hope that she realiizes that she has a lot to live for. I also hope that Kristin is okay. It was not her fault. Now what on earth is Dru up to. Love Giles and Anya...I hope that Faith will finally be able to open up about all of her dreams. I just don't know what to say about Willow..... aughhhhhh. Well at least she was part of the Hounds... Great update.

Loving the story as always. Just for the record, in California it's a 72 hour hold for psych emergencies, which this would have been. But no worries, artistic license and all. :-)

and the hounds stalk their prey.......cool. gods i hope dawn wakes up soon. its got to be hard on kirsten to have to deal with all of this. buffy is doing well, getting tru it as best she can. i can just see anya flitting around the shop like that.....LOL too funny. hope johnathan can help to put some pieces together. gotta tell ya, you do a fantastic job of portraying dru. its always a treat to see her. angelus is the stupidest vamp on the planet...can't wait to see him go down. can't tell you how excited i was to see that you had posted. hope you are doing ok. *hugs*

I love the tensions inside Order Aurelius. The coming feud should be quite interesting. Another wonderful update.

Thank the gods those nice paramedics got there in time to help Dawn out. Gods help this poor broken child heal. Anya having issues with Faith is so Anya. Giles trying to reassure her in a fashion she deserves, not like that idiot Xander. Gods I hope Jonathan can shed some light on things and have the spell be broken. Loved the hounds stalking Willow and she is too self righteous to notice. Shall be quite the battle to see who gets to Willow first the hounds or Angel. Dru giving out so much information and if they would just pay attention they would see what she is saying. You write such a fantastic Dru. Ahhh now Jenner and Lawson having a talk. Something is going to give here soon and it's going to be big. Great chapter, thanks for posting.

This is so sad, I just love it. I'm also intrigued about the new vampires that you are throwing into the mix. Good chapter and I can't wait to read the next one

Oh wow, that was wonderful. I've still got tears running down my cheeks from it. Man, so many secrets, and the one I'm really waiting for is for everyone to find out what Willow did. Hmm.....and might Jenner switch sides, too? This is going soooo great, and I really can't wait for another!!!

I guess now i know who Kristen's brother is. I love the glimpses of their future. Will you ever write the future story? The moments that led to Kristen making the jump. It would be really interesting to have the full circle.