The End of the World As We Know It

The End of the World as we know it
by Kass Shakespeare
Rating: PG
Spoilers: Up to the Gift
Summary:: During the fight with Glory everybody but Spike and Dawn dies. Spike has to promise Buffy that he will take care of Dawn.
Author's Note:I wrote this before the season finale, so my version of the fight is a little lame compared to the real one. But I guess that's not the most important part about this story. This will maybe be a series if I find the time to write the other parts.

Part 1

It's been a real tough fight, tougher than any other Spike had seen in his whole unlife. He knew it wouldn't be easy to defeat Glory but he could never have expected that it would be like this.
He looked around the big hall. Glory was standing in front of a huge mirror-like portal while the Scoobies attacked her. Even Angel and his gang was there to help Buffy, but as soon as someone got near her, she threw them into the orange light of the portal and into their death. Demongirl, the boy and Cordelia were already dead and Spike tried to move the big concrete piece from his leg, which had crashed above him after Glory had thrown him against the wall.
"Willow!" the Slayer screamed as the Goddess threw her into the light. "No!"
But Glory just laughed and walked over to Tara, who sat in on the floor, terrified and sobbing like a small child.
"And you surely want to join your girlfriend in hell," Glory said and pulled her up. In that moment Buffy rushed towards her but Glory just pulled her hand up and the Slayer flew backwards.
As Spike tried to free himself he looked over to Dawn, who was still tied beside the mirror, witnessing as all her friends were killed one by one. Tears were streaming down her face and she watched in horror as Glory pushed Tara through the mirror.
Angel and Gunn were now attacking the Goddess and Spike finally shoved the concrete off and got up. In the same moment Buffy managed to get up and they both ran to their enemy.
Glory let go of her other two attackers for a second and sent Buffy and Spike flying through the window as if they were light as a feather.
They landed hard in a big pile of garbage and Spike needed a few seconds to realize where he was.
"Bloody hell, Slayer we have to go back," he said and looked for Buffy. He heard a low whimper and found her buried under pieces of wood.
"Come on, we don't have time for that," he said and freed her from the weight which lay above her.
The vampire's eyes widened in shock as he saw a big wooden bar sticking out of her chest. "Oh no, Buffy!" He kneeled down beside her, stumbling over the garbage.
She turned her head to face and immediately screamed in pain as the wood in her chest was moved too.
"Spike," she managed to say as he caressed her cheek, looking deeply concerned.
"I will get help," he said and got up.
"No," she said faintly. "Go and save Dawn."
"Yes, I will do that, but first I call the ambulance for you," he protested.
Buffy took all her strength together and looked deep into his eyes. "No," she said louder.
"But if I don't you will die, luv." He kneeled down again and took her hand into his.
"Spike listen." Buffy started coughing and groaned in pain. He put his hand under her head, holding it up to ease her pain.
"Promise me you take care of Dawn," she said, now stronger.
Spike didn't believe this was really happening. He wanted to protest, wanted to tell her to hold on, but it was too late. The Slayer was dieing and he couldn't help her.
"Swear it, Spike." She coughed again and this time blood came out of her mouth.
"I promise," he said and kissed her forehead. "I swear."
"Thank you." Buffy only formed her lips to say the words, but no sound escaped her throat. And then she closed her eyes.
Spike gasped for air although he didn't need to breathe. This wasn't happening, it was a nightmare. The Slayer, his Buffy, dead.
He cursed himself for not saying that he loved her before she died. He still held her hand as he suddenly heard a loud scream from the building. Dawn was still in there and he had promised to protect her. He would have time for grieving later, now he had a world to save.

Angel watched helpless as Glory pushed first Gunn and then Wesley into the portal. Every time he tried to attack her she send him flying across the room.
He ran over to Dawn and started untying her. Escaping with her maybe was the only possibility. Once the key was away from the portal and from Glory, he would maybe be able to kill her.
"Hey, leave my key alone!" the Goddess ordered and walked over to them. In that moment Spike ran back into the room and attacked her from behind, growling loudly. He pulled her hair and held her around the waist.
"Owww," she screamed but then pushed him away. She was simply too strong. Spike landed on the floor a few feet behind her and got up immediately as Glory was walking back to Angel and her key.
"And now my little key will open the portal completely," she said and smiled.
Angel looked at the mirror and then at Spike, hesitating for a second. But then he pushed her towards Spike. "Take care of her," he said and started running to Glory who was between him and the portal.
"Oh oh," Glory said as she was aware of his plans, but it was already too late. Angel took all his strength together and threw himself together with her into the portal. With a loud noise a flash of light burst from the surface and then the portal exploded into thousands of pieces. Spike sheltered Dawn with his body, preventing the sharp pieces to injure her. She screamed loudly until it was suddenly quiet.
Spike looked up, his arms still around the shaking and sobbing girl. The room was darker and nothing moved. Only the moonlight shone through the broken windows and brightened a part of the hall.
Dawn freed herself from his arms and got up. "Where is Buffy?"
Spike frowned. "We fell through the window and..." He didn't know how to say it. How was he supposed to explain Dawn what happened to her sister when he didn't understand it himself?
"Oh my god!" Dawn covered her mouth with a hand as she saw Giles in a corner of the room. A big piece of glass was sticking out his throat and his eyes were open.
"Don't look," Spike said and laid a hand on her shoulder. Dawn turned around and wrapped her arms around him, sobbing on his chest.
"They are all dead," she cried. "How am I supposed to tell Buffy that all her friends are dead? And Angel too."
Spike didn't know how to say it. No possible words could make it better. "Dawn, Buffy is dead," he simply said.
"What?" Dawn stepped back and looked at him in shock. "No, she isn't. Where is she?"
"We fell through that window..." Dawn didn't let him finish and rushed towards the window.
"No!" Spike ran after her, grabbing her arm but she walked on.
Dawn slowly leaned over the window and her eyes caught the street and then a pile of garbage. She leaned further forward and saw someone's feet and then the whole body.
Dawn was frozen, she couldn't move or speak, she just had to look at the body of her sister. A huge piece of wood had pierced her chest.
"No," she gasped faintly. "No, no, no, no!"
Spike was beside her and slowly pulled her into his arms. He expected her to start screaming and crying but she just glared into space.
"Bring me away from here," she whispered and the vampire nodded.
Dawn closed her eyes as she walked on his side but she couldn't get the picture out of her mind. All they way to the house they didn't say a word. They both didn't know what to say and no words could make them feel better for losing everybody that meant something in their lives.

Part 2

Spike sat in Dawn's room in a big armchair while she was sleeping. Or at least she was lying on her bed, her eyes closed and her knees pulled to her chest, curled up like a kitten. He didn't know what to do. Dawn didn't cry, which wasn't normal. Humans were supposed to cry when someone died. Hell, even he felt tears in his eyes when he thought about Buffy. He still couldn't believe she was really dead. She wasn't supposed to die, not like this, not when her small sister needed her, when he needed her. Part of him hated her for leaving him alone, leaving him with the responsibility for the kid. He felt helpless. He thought he should be used to that feeling when the chip had prevented him from defending his own life in the past one and a half years, but this was something else. He was a vampire and not the babysitter for a human brat. But another part in him told him, that he would have taken care of Dawn even if Buffy hadn't made him promise it. He had always liked the kid and he wouldn't break his promise even if it would be hard.
Suddenly the doorbell rang and Dawn opened her eyes.
"Stay," Spike ordered and got up.
He walked down the stairs and opened the door.
"Hello Mr....Summers?" the police officer asked.
"No, I am not Mr. Summers," Spike answered with an annoyed tone. He knew why the police was here but he couldn't let them see that.
"Is a relative of Ms Buffy Summers here?"
"Just her little sister, but she is sleeping. I am the babysitter," Spike lied.
"Well, then I will have to talk to you." The police officer swallowed hard before he continued. "Ms Summers got killed in an accident. She fell down through a window."
Spike pretended to look shocked. "What?"
"I am sorry sir, but she is dead." The man took off his hat and smiled pitifully. Spike nodded and looked down.
"Are there any other relatives of Ms Summers?"
"No, just her sister, she is fourteen," Spike replied.
"We need someone to identify the body. Maybe you could..."
"Yes, but can we wait until tomorrow. I don't want to leave her sister alone and I will have to prepare her on everything."
"Of course. But you say there are no other relatives? Then someone from the youth welfare department will take care for everything." Spike knew this had to come. Dawn was too young to live alone and they would bring her into an orphanage. And he wouldn't let this happen.
"Okay, I will come to there tomorrow morning," Spike said and the officer nodded.
"I am sorry sir," he said and walked back to his car.
Spike closed the door and wanted to walk back upstairs as he saw Dawn at the top of the stairs.
"Youth welfare department?" she asked with fear in her eyes.
Spike climbed up the stairs and looked into her eyes.
"I don't want to go into a home for children," she almost cried.
"Dawn, I promised you sister to take care of you. I won't let anything bad happen."
"But they will bring me away." She looked at him with her big blue eyes as tears shot into them.
"I wont let them. Pack your stuff, we will leave before sunrise," Spike quickly said and rushed to Joyce's room, trying to find money or something he could sell.
He ran back after he had found some money and jewellery, but Dawn was still standing where he had left her.
"Pack your things. I will go and get Angel's car. We can't take your Mom's, they would track us down," he said and ran down the stairs.
"Go!" he ordered as he headed out the door and Dawn finally went into her room.

As Spike came back it already started to dawn. They didn't have much time to find a place where they could hide the whole day. He ran upstairs to her room and found her packing a bag with her personal stuff. She had a picture with her, Buffy and their mom in her hands and looked at it.
Spike growled faintly. "We don't have time for this." He took another bag and hectically stuffed some clothes in it. Dawn quickly put the picture in her bag as he took her hand and pulled her out.
"Wait!" she said and pulled free. Dawn ran into Buffy's room and grabbed Mr Gordo. Spike rolled his eyes and rushed down with her two bags.
"Hurry up!" he shouted and Dawn finally came down.
Spike ran to the car and threw the bags on the backseat. "Bloody hell, come on!" he screamed as Dawn looked back to the house. She sighed deeply and got into the car and Spike kicked the gas pedal.
In the mirror he could see the first orange light above the horizon and he increased the speed. He was glad he already knew where to hide and soon they saw the ruins of the Sunnydale High.
"What are we doing here?" Dawn asked.
"It's the only place where we can hide. We will leave as soon as the sun is down again," he answered and parked the car behind the ruins where nobody would find it. He took the bags in one hand and Dawn's arm in the other and walked into the building.
He found a place, which didn't look as, messed up as the rest and sat down, leaning against the wall. Dawn just stood in front of him and stared at him.
"I forgot something, I will go back," she said.
"No!" Spike got up again and grabbed her by the shoulders. "I promised your sister to protect you and you won't walk around alone. The police might come back and then they will take you away. Do you want that to happen?"
Dawn frowned and her chin started shaking when she tired to hold back the tears.
"Why do you have to be a vampire?" she screamed. "If you were human we could have had more time to pack everything. Now I don't have my diaries and my favourite shirt and and... I hate you!" she spit at him and started sobbing.
Spike knew she wasn't crying because of the things she had mentioned. He got up and walked towards her but she turned away and sat down in the other corner of the room, crying silently.
The blond vampire sighed and went back to his place. He eyed Dawn from time to time, but she just sat there and glared on the floor, not even moving.
Spike laid down and closed his eyes. Being used to sleep on hard and cold places made it easy for him to fall asleep and he could use some rest before they would drive all night. He didn't know where to go yet but he could think about this later. He only knew it would be far, far away from Sunnydale and not only because the cops could find them.

Part 3

Dawn and Spike left the Sunnydale High School right after sunset. He had found the keys and a business card from Angel's office in the black l967 Plymouth and decided to drive to L.A. Maybe Angel had some money and other stuff they would need and then they could still find another place to go. Dawn hadn't said a single word since her little outburst that morning and Spike was worried. But he didn't have the nerve to think about that, all that was important right now was to find a place where they both would be save.
The ride to L.A wasn't that long, but it was quite annoying having someone on the front seat who didn't talk all the time. Spike turned on the radio and found a good channel that played hard rock. He turned the volume to the maximum as ACDC's Highway to Hell was on and hummed to the music.
Dawn suddenly stopped glaring out of the window and sitting in the car like frozen and turned off the radio.
"Hey, why did you do that? That song is cool," Spike protested but she just shot him an angry look. He rolled his eyes and concentrated on the road. Protecting this brat would be harder than he thought.
As the car got over a hill, Spike saw the lights of the city. It wouldn't take long and they would reach the Hotel where Angel had his office.
Spike knew this city quite well and it wasn't hard to find their goal. He parked the car in front of the entrance and took out the keys to open the door.
"Come on," he said to Dawn, who was still sitting in the car. She just sighed and got out of it.
Spike finally opened the door and was impressed by how big that place was. It already looked huge from the outside, but Spike had expected this to be a foul trick and thought it would be smaller inside.
"Wow, I should have asked peaches how he saved so much money over the centuries." Spike walked to the office desk at the end of the hall and started looking for money or bankcards.
He looked over to Dawn who was sitting on a chair, her arms folded in front of her chest.
"Could you help me?" he asked and she got up to walk to him, still not saying a word.
"Go upstairs and look in Angel's room. Or look in all rooms. Bloody hell, why does he need so many rooms?" Spike opened a closet with file folders as Dawn climbed up the stairs.
Spike cursed loudly as he only found files and useless pieces of paper but no money.
Suddenly the door flew open and a strange man in his mid-thirties came in. He was short of size and wore weird clothes.
"Hello guys! Been quiet here the last few days...not fighting any demons?" he called out just before he caught sight of the blond vampire. He glanced at him and said in a low voice. "Who are you? What are you doing here?"
"Well, I could ask you the same question," Spike replied and eyed the stranger sceptically.
"Well....I...I'm David. David Nabbit...a...a friend of Angel and his financial advisor. And now again...who are you?"
"I am Spike," he answered, still looking this man up and down. "Financial advisor, you say?"
"Spike...yeah...Spike who?" he asked, not taking his gaze from him. "And...where are Angel and the guys?"
"They are dead, got killed in a huge fight with Glory, but I guess you don't know who that is."
David just stood there staring at Spike. Finally he managed to say:
"They...they are dead? You must be kidding...they can't be all dead?"
Spike just shrugged. "Well, yeah, they are, I've seen it with my own eyes. But now I need you to tell me more about your job as financial advisor. How much money does Angel have?"
"Well, you're really coming to terms quickly, aren't you?" he asked, still in shock. "Angel...well, he has a fund I'm taking care of and he still has that lease agreement for the hotel. But I really don't know if I should tell you all about Angel's financial situation. I don't even know you!"
"I said I am Spike, so you know me now." Spike rolled his eyes, he should maybe explain everything to this guy before he would get any information. "See, pea....Angel is dead, the watcher, I mean Wesley, Cordelia and this black guy too. They all died when they defeated Glory, she was a goddess..." Spike told him everything about the fight and the promise he had made to both Buffy and Angel in as few words as possible. "And now I have to take care of her. The cops will be looking for us soon and I need money to get her away from here. A new identity wouldn't be bad either."
David cocked his head throughout the story, then he shot Spike a stern look.
"I don't know if I really should, but I think I believe you. If Angel wanted you to take care of the girl, he probably would have wanted you to have his money. I will pay you everything he got and about this new identity? I think I could pull some strings for you both. Poor little girl...you're really the only one she has left?" His eyes began to glisten with upcoming tears.
"I found 100 dollars," Dawn said as she walked down the stairs. "Who is this?" she asked as she saw David in the hall.
"Oh, you finally decided to talk to me again, that's great!" Spike said half happy, half annoyed. "Well, this is someone who will help us. Say hi to the uncle." The vampire chuckled briefly and patted David on the shoulder.
"Hi," Dawn said, eyeing David.
"Hi!" David replied, looking at the girl remorsefully.
"Okay then," Spike said. "I think the kid and I will stay here until you can manage everything for us."
David nodded.
"Yeah...if it's the one and only thing I can do for Angel now, I'll gladly help the two of you! I'll be back tomorrow," he said and headed for the door.
"Don't call me kid all the time," Dawn said and folded her arms in front of her chest.
"Whatever." Spike sighed. "The best will be when you go to bed now. There are enough rooms up there. I will see if Angel has...had some fresh blood in the fridge." Spike looked around the room to find a kitchen but then he found the fridge right at the reception. "And you order a pizza or something. You have 100 dollars to pay for it." He opened the door of the fridge and found some bags of blood.
"I am not hungry," Dawn replied, remaining in the same position as earlier.
"Well, at least you talk to me again." Spike opened the bag and quickly drank the blood. Dawn made a disgusted face.
"But you should really eat something," he said again.
"I said I am NOT hungry!" Dawn ran back upstairs and slammed the door of one of the rooms behind her.
"Fine then, I will watch TV," Spike said to himself. "Where the bloody hell is the TV?"

Part 4

The next day David came to the hotel and told Spike about Angel's financial situation. There was a lot of money on the bank and in the stock funds, but it wouldn't be enough. For one or two years they could live from this money but then they would have no resources left, so David recommended keeping the hotel due to tax reasons and only paying out a part of the fund so the rest of the money could work for them. Spike decided to stay in town for a while until all those financial problems were solved. He didn't like being in his sire's home but he had no other choice. David was also working on new identities for Spike and Dawn. He asked for names they would like to choose and if they wanted to go as brother and sister or rather father and daughter. There were so many things to decide and this David person seemed to be a big help for Spike. As a vampire he hadn't known about all this stuff, never needed it.
Spike also told David to organize something for the funeral. They wouldn't be able to go there but at least he wanted to know that the Slayer had the funeral that she deserved and was buried beside her mother. David promised to take care of that and then left.
Then another decision was to be made. Where would they go? Spike didn't want to stay in the city of his sire. It was too big, too many people, too much trouble. A smaller town like Sunnydale would be nice. Maybe they should leave California at all, but he also had to ask Dawn, if she would only come out of her room. She had stayed there all night and half of the day.
Spike thought she must be hungry so he ordered a big pizza and some Chinese food in case she didn't like pizza. He took the food and went upstairs, knocking at her door, but he got no answer. After the third knock he still got no reply from her and simply opened the door, but he almost flew back as the invisible barrier prevented him from entering.
"Bloody hell!" he cursed. "Why do I need an invitation?"
"Leave me alone," Dawn mumbled from the bed on which she was lying.
"That won't be enough to invite me in." A low growl escaped his throat. "Soddin' hotels, why do they have extra rules for the rooms?" He looked at the girl who was eyeing him with an angry glare. If looks could kill...
"I brought you something to eat, so invite me in."
"I am not hungry," Dawn replied and turned her head, facing the wall.
"You haven't eaten something since three days or so, you gotta be hungry." This wasn't good, really not. She had to eat.
"But I am not and now get out." This time Dawn's eyes were glistering with anger as she looked at him again. Spike sighed and put the food on the floor of the room, carefully pushing it inside without getting in touch with the invisible wall and then closed the door again. He went to the room next door and made himself a bed too.
The vampire didn't know how to deal with this situation. He had expected her to cry and sob, but she didn't show any emotion only hatred towards him. Maybe she blamed him for the death or her sister, but even then she should cry. How should he be able to comfort her if she wasn't even sad? He felt absolutely helpless again. There was nothing he could do to help her. He could protect her from demons, could find a new home for them, he could do what he had promised Buffy, but he couldn't help Dawn. He was a vampire and not used to such problems. He just hoped that this wouldn't last longer than a few days. After a while she would get over it, same as him. But it would be hard for both of them.
Spike took the bottle of Whiskey he had ordered with the food and swallowed a big amount of the alcohol. He thought about Buffy's last moments again. She wanted him to take care of her sister, him, who she had wanted out of town or six feet deep under ground some time earlier. She had finally trusted him enough to put the life of her sister into his hands. He wondered what could have been if she was still alive. Maybe they could have had a chance together.
Spike took another sip of the Whiskey. Thinking about what might have been made no sense. Buffy was gone, dead, and would never come back. And he missed her. He missed her long blonde hair, which had always smelled like vanilla He missed her big green eyes, even her angry glares.
The Whiskey bottle was almost empty and Spike was lost in memories. He remembered how he first met her in the Alley behind the Bronze, when he told her he would kill her. He remembered how they used to fight and thought he never had a better opponent than her. And then he thought about the spell Red had made and about the time when he had fallen in love with her. He would rather go back to the time when she hated him and tried to kill him and banned him from her house than knowing she was gone.
Spike swallowed the last bit of the Whiskey as tears shot in his eyes. He hated himself for crying over a dead human but he couldn't help it. He had cried when Dru left him, why shouldn't he cry now? Being drunk only made it easier because you could use it as an excuse.
Spike threw the empty bottle in a corner of the room. He was angry, he should have died and not her. His unlife wasn't worth living anymore. He had nothing, no Dru, no Buffy, no abilities to kill because of this chip in his head, nothing he could enjoy. He only had the responsibility for a brat, which seemed to hate him for not dieing in the Slayer's place.
Spike turned around and closed his eyes. A little bit of sleep would make him feel better, only that he would wake up with an headache after drinking so much, but he didn't care.

The next two days Spike spent with organisational stuff. David came over and filled him in about their situation. He also told him that the funeral would be one day later and that a friend had organized everything and would take care of the grave later. Dawn didn't come out of her room all the time and Spike was really worried now. He had found the pizza box in front of her room the other day and luckily there were some pieces of the pizza missing so she had finally eaten something, although it was just a little bit.
Spike had to decide where to go now. He wanted to ask Dawn if she had any special wishes but she obviously didn't want to talk to him so he had to find something on his own. He took a map of southern California and just pointed his finger somewhere while having his eyes closed. As he opened them again he saw his finger resting on a spot about 150 miles east of Sunnydale. Maybe Dawn would open up when they found a nice new place to stay. The best would be if they left the same night.
Spike called David and told him about his plans. Luckily he just got the new ID-cards and birth certificate so he could bring them to Spike. Spike said he would call him again as soon as they found a place to stay so David could send them more money.
Spike went to Dawn's room and told her, standing in front of the closed door, to pack her things. As the sunset over the City of Angels Spike and Dawn drove off.

Part 5

Dawn remained quiet all the time they drove, same as she did two nights before when they left Sunnydale.
"Oh come on, say something!" Spike said a little angry.
"Why should I talk to you?" Dawn said annoyed and continued looking out of the window.
"Thank you." Spike smiled ironically as they drove down the dark country road.
Dawn glared at him, knitting her eyebrows. "Why thank you?"
"Well you said something, not what I expected but you said something."
Dawn just rolled her eyes and let her gaze wander to the right side of the road again, staring at the white stripe which marked the edge of the road.
"Do you know how annoying this is?" Spike asked after a few minutes of silence.
"What?" This time Dawn didn't even face him.
"You. You don't talk, you don't eat. I could be alone as well." It made no sense being nice to her if she continued to be like this.
"And by the way, I think you should talk about how you feel about Buffy's death."
Dawn turned her head quickly. "I DON'T want to talk about it, okay?"
"No, it's not okay," Spike protested. "You don't feel like talking about your sister, okay. But I bloody do."
"Sure, whatever," Dawn replied with the same annoyed tone in her voice.
"It happened four evenings ago and we didn't say a word about it. I know this is hard for you, but I've seen her dieing and..."
"Don't you dare telling me you are sad that she is dead," Dawn spit at him. "You only wanted to have her and if you had realized that you had no chance with her you would have lost interest as fast as you fell for her. You are a vampire, it's not that you could have any feelings."
Spike pulled the steering wheel to the side and stepped on the breaks, stopping the car on the side of the road. He felt like slapping her across the face and screaming at her but he took a deep breath to calm down.
"Don't ever tell me what I feel or not!" he said calmly but with a threatening undertone. "You are the one who doesn't seem to feel anything, you didn't even cry."
"I hate you!" she just said, hey eyes glistering with fury.
"Fine, if you hate me so much then go," Spike said and threw his hands up. "I am not forcing you to stay with me. Get out of the car, hitchhike to the next best town and do whatever you want."
Dawn still glared at him but then suddenly opened the door and got out of the car.
"Gotta teach her what sarcasm is," he mumbled to himself and got out of the car too, running after her.
"Get back into the car!" he ordered.
"You said I could go," she replied coldly and sat down on a rock at the side of the road.
"You know I didn't mean it, don't play stupid now!" Spike was so angry, this kid would drive him insane.
"Actually Spike, I think it's better when we split up. I can take care of myself."
"No you can't. I promised your sister that I would take care of you. Is that how you want to honour her last wish?" He almost screamed, not understanding why she was acting this way.
"How do I know you are saying the truth? How do I know she really said you should take care of me?" Dawn asked and a brief smirk ran over her lips as she saw his stunned face.
"Why the bloody hell should I lie? I didn't want to leave Sunnydale and have to play the babysitter for a brat like you, but I promised the Slayer to do it and I bloody well WILL do it!" Spike grabbed her arm and wanted to drag her back to the car but she yanked herself free of his grip and caused the chip in his head to go off.
"That's it!" he snapped, not paying attention to the pain. He lifted her up, throwing her over his shoulder and pushed her back into the car.
He held his head as he sat back down in the car. "If you don't give a shit about what your sister wanted before she died, fine! But don't expect me to break my promise. You are staying with me!"
Dawn rolled her eyes and sighed angrily. Then she looked back out of the window as Spike started the engine.
"Great, now we're back where we started," he mumbled and drove off.

An hour of silence later they came to a small village. It was much smaller than Sunnydale but it was in the area where he had put his finger on the map. They could stay the night in a motel and look for a better place tomorrow.
Spike found a sign, which said "Rooms" at the gas station and went in after he had locked Dawn in the car so she couldn't run away.
"I need a room for me and my little sister," he said to the man in the gas station.
"Good evening," the man replied and looked to the car. "We have a nice room with two single beds. It's 20 dollars a night. Can I see your ID-cards?"
Spike pulled out the fake ID and crossed his fingers behind his back.
"I need the one of your sister too," the man said, emphasizing the word 'sister' in a strange way.
"Oh, of course," Spike said and handed it to him.
"Oh, okay." The man smiled a little embarrassed. "I had to ask, you know? Sometimes guys come in here with young girls...well, you never know."
Spike just nodded.
"Do you pay with credit card or cash?"
"Cash," Spike replied and put out his money.
"How long are you planning to stay?" the man asked.
"Actually only for tonight because we want to find a nice place to stay."
The man smiled and nodded. "Here are the keys, it's room 13, left side behind the gas station."
Spike took the keys and went back to the car. He drove directly in front of the room and opened the door.
"A nice room with single beds, yeah?" he mumbled. This place was anything else than nice. There were lots of dirt spots on the carpet and the room was very dusty. He saw Dawn's disgusted face from the corner of his eye.
"It's only for this night, we will find something else tomorrow," he told her and sat down on one of the two beds.
Dawn sighed and took the other bed, curling up on it and turning her back to him.
At least she'll sleep, he thought and closed his eyes too. He had nothing else to do but sleeping.

Part 6

Spike and Dawn had to stay inside the motel room the whole day. It was terribly boring and that Dawn didn't talk to him only made it worse. She just sat on her bed, glaring at the ceiling or the floor while he was watching TV. It rained all day so they had at least an excuse why they stayed inside if anybody would ask.
Finally the sun was down and Spike put everything back into her car. He returned the keys and they drove into town. This town only had one main street with shops and restaurants and an elementary school. But at the sides were several smaller streets and one of them lead to a nice little old house which stood empty. It was at the end of the town on a little hill.
Spike asked the owner of a restaurant if the house was sold and he told him that it stood empty since the old woman, who had lived there died a few weeks ago. She didn't have any relatives so it was property of the town now. It would be hard making an appointment with the mayor at night. Besides this, maybe it was no good idea to stay in the first best town. They could still find a bigger one where Dawn could go to school.
"Do you know another place than this dirty motel where my sister and I could stay until we find something else?" he asked.
"Yes, you can stay in my sister's hotel. It's the third street to the right. Tell her Dan send you."
Spike nodded and thanked the man. He went to the hotel and asked for a room. The woman in the hotel was very friendly and smiled at Dawn, who was only looking apathetically to her feet.
"Our parents died in a car accident some time ago. She's not over it yet," Spike whispered to the woman.
"Oh, I am so sorry, poor little girl," she said with a concerned frown. "I have a very nice room at the back of the house. The only problem is that there doesn't come much light in because the windows are on the alley side."
"That is okay, as long as it doesn't have roaches like that motel it will be fine," Spike said.
"There were roaches?" Dawn looked at him in shock. This was the first time she had said something in almost 24 hours.
"Yes, but I didn't want to tell you, you would have freaked," he replied.
The woman still smiled at them friendlily. "No, we don't have roaches, you will like the room. Follow me."
She walked around the house and opened a door to the room.
"This is the only room which can be only accessed from the street. You will have to come around and use the main entrance to go to the dining room. I am sorry, but all other rooms are full right now."
"Oh, it is fine," Spike said and looked inside the room. It was small but nice with nice furniture, clean carpet and fresh sheets on the bed.
"Breakfast is from seven to ten, we don't serve lunch and dinner is from six to nine. It's included but you can go somewhere else too. We have many good restaurants here."
"Okay, thank you miss," Spike said politely.
"Call me Susan." She smiled and headed out of the room. "If you need anything just dial Zero and you will get to the reception."
Spike nodded and closed the door behind her.
"So, this is quite a nice lil town," he said and sat down on one of the beds. "Oh, and we have a fridge here, great! Now I can finally put the blood out of the cool box." Spike got up again and went to the car to get the rest of their suitcases, bags and boxes out of it.
He came back to the room and Dawn sat quietly on her bed.
"So, did you make yourself comfortable yet? Come on, pack your things out, we're movin' in." Spike looked at her but didn't get the slightest reaction.
"Well, not for always, just for a few days until we know where to go." He sat down on the other bed and gazed at the girl.
"Would you like to go somewhere else or should I try to find out if we can rent that nice house on the hill?" Dawn didn't even look at him. She laid down on the bed and turned her back to Spike.
Spike sighed and switched the TV on, minimizing the volume in case Dawn wanted to sleep. He knew she was just lying there but it was already night and she could fall asleep soon. The TV had only a few channels and Spike was forced to watch some creepy old black and white movies.
The next morning Spike dragged Dawn to breakfast. The front door of the hotel was on the north side and so no sunshine could harm Spike. They went in and took a table in the middle of the room, far away from the windows.
Susan came to their table. "Good morning, what would you like for breakfast?"
"I'll take only coffee. But my sister here gets a big breakfast," Spike said and pointed to Dawn who sat at the table with her arms folded in front of her chest.
"What would you like? Cornflakes, eggs, bacon, waffles?" Susan asked smiling at Dawn.
"Nothing, I am not hungry."
Susan frowned a little and gave Spike a concerned look.
"Just bring her something. She will eat," Spike glared at Dawn as he said the last words.
"Okay, I will bring you some cornflakes, cocoa and fruit salad. That is not to heavy and will fill your tummy." Although Dawn shot her an angry look Susan remained friendly. She looked over to Spike remorsefully, showing him she understood why Dawn was acting that way.
"So at least you talk to others and aren't all apathetic," Spike said but got no answer.
"Of course, I forgot you don't talk to me because you decided to hate me for some strange reason."
After a while Susan returned to the table and brought them their breakfast.
"Thank you Susan," Spike said.
"You're very welcome," she replied and smiled. "By the way, you didn't tell me your name yet."
"William Smith," Spike replied, using the name from his fake ID which he had gotten from David. Suddenly Dawn spit out a loud laugh but in the next second she was quiet again, returning to her pondering gaze.
Spike just shrugged at Susan who shot him a questioning look.
"What the hell was that about?" Spike asked as Susan went back to the kitchen.
"You really let this guy give you the name William Smith?" she asked.
"Well, yeah, what's wrong about it? William was my name when I was human and Smith is a very common last name."
"Okay Will Smith, are you getting' jiggy with Susan now?" Dawn said sarcastically, but her eyes still glared at him dangerously.
"I don't understand," Spike said.
"Of course you don't. How could I expect from somebody like you that you know something about good music?"
"Oh if it was good music, you can be sure I'd knew it," he just shot back and sipped his coffee. He didn't understand what was going on in her mind. Either she didn't talk at all for hours or she said mean things but she didn't even try to talk to him about her feelings. He didn't know how it was supposed to go on like this.

Part 7

After breakfast, which remained untouched, they went back to their room and Spike called David to make some arrangements. He also asked about the funeral which would be the next day and David ensured him that everything was organized perfectly. He then needed to worry how to get new blood because his supply was running out. David promised to send him fresh blood via UPS to the hotel.
Spike spent the morning and noon with watching TV while Dawn was lying on her bed, entertaining herself with watching the small flowers on the wallpaper.
Later that afternoon Susan knocked on their door and brought clean towels.
"Hello you two," she said and put the towels in the bathroom.
"Hello Susan," Spike replied.
Dawn got up from her bed and walked to the door. "I will go out for a walk," she said.
"No, you are not going alone," Spike protested.
"Then why don't you come with me?" She looked at him, grinning innocently.
"Oh, this town is very safe, nothing will happen to her," Susan said as she came out of the bathroom.
"Okay, but don't stay too long," Spike said and Dawn headed out without saying bye.
"It's hard for her, isn't it?" Susan asked and sat on a chair beside the closet.
"Yes, she's behaving real strange," Spike answered and sighed. "She doesn't talk, she doesn't eat and when she talks she is only mean."
"My little brother's been like this too when our mom died," Susan said.
"You mean Dan?"
"No, that's my older brother."
"Oh, of course. I was already wondering because you look at least 10 years younger than he," Spike said and Susan blushed slightly at this compliment.
"I am only three years younger than Dan. But when our Mom died, Mikey, our little bother, was behaving exactly like your sister."
"How old was he?" Spike asked.
"Well, he was ten."
"See, that's what I mean. Dawn is almost 15 years old and now she is behaving like a small baby."
"How long has it been since your parents died?" Susan asked with a remorseful look.
"Three weeks," Spike lied. Telling her it was only five days ago would make her wonder why they weren't in their town anymore. "We left immediately after the funeral and everything else was arranged."
"Oh, maybe she is angry that she had to leave her home town," Susan suggested.
"No, I don't think so. Nothing held us back there, no family, no friends, only the memories."
"Then a new start somewhere can be very good."
"Yes, I thought so too, but she kinda seems to hate me. I think she blames me for their death." Spike had the feeling that Dawn really thought it was his fault that Buffy had died.
Susan looked at him with a frown. "Why do you think she blames you?"
"Well," Spike had to think of a good story he could tell the young woman. "I forgot to drive her home from school and our parents had to drive there instead. On their way they made an accident."
"Oh my God. It's not your fault but it's kind of understandable that she thinks it is."
"Yes it is, but she doesn't even say it. She doesn't talk at all and she didn't even cry."
"Well, Mikey was like that too, but after some weeks when he finally realized that she was gone he cried a whole night and after that it was better," Susan told him.
"I hope it will be the same with Dawn. It's just not normal that she doesn't cry. And I am worried because she doesn't eat."
"Yes, that is not good. Is there something she really likes to eat? Maybe I could prepare it for dinner," Susan offered generously.
Spike didn't know what kind of food Dawn liked best. He didn't know what to say. "Well, she likes pizza," he just guessed after it had been the only thing she had eaten since Buffy had died.
"Oh, then I recommend the Italian restaurant at the end of the main street. It is very good and they have the best pizza in town." Susan pondered for a second "Actually they have the only pizza in town."
They both laughed. "Okay, I will try to go there with her. Wish me luck that I get her to eat something."
Susan got up and was on her way back out of the room. "Good luck and have a nice evening."
"Thank you," Spike replied as she left.

As Dawn came back Spike wanted to take her to the Italian restaurant, but she laid down on her bed, telling him to leave her alone. Spike really didn't know what to do anymore. If she continued to be this way she would follow her sister under the ground sooner or later. And maybe that was exactly what she was planning, but Spike would try everything to avoid this.
Spike had to leave the room and go out alone, he couldn't stand being inside all day and all night and so he walked over the main street and found a nice little restaurant where they had chicken wings. They weren't as good as the ones in the Bronze but very delicious. What a weird irony that he, the vampire who didn't have to eat normal food, had such an appetite and Dawn was almost starving on her own will.
He didn't stay long because he was worried Dawn could do something absolutely stupid and run away, and that was the last thing he wanted to happen. But as he came back to their room she was still curled up on her bed in the same position as when he had left her. He walked to her and pulled the blanket over her. Her eyes were closed and she slept tightly. But her peaceful look didn't reflect the inner turmoil she was living through.

Part 8

The next day Spike got a big supply of blood bags he could put into the fridge. Unfortunately he didn't have a microwave in the room but drinking it cold was better than nothing.
It was the day of Buffy's funeral and as he told Dawn about it she didn't show any emotional reaction. He should be used to this already but it wasn't normal.
Trying to get her to eat something was useless, not to speak of having a conversation with her. She didn't even insult him anymore. It rained all day, typical for a funeral, although it was hundreds of miles away. Spike spent the evening talking with Susan. She was really a nice person, although she was human. She was very helpful and friendly. But even her good advice didn't seem to be enough for helping Dawn. Spike desperately wished someone else could have survived the fight with Glory too. Xander and Demongirl, or the two witches. Dawn had always liked them. And Spike had liked them too. Red had been very nice to him lately and he kinda felt pity for her girlfriend, whose brain had been roasted by Glory, stupid bitch! Without her he wouldn't be in this situation now.
The next day and the day after had been even worse. Dawn didn't get up from her bed at all.
Susan had brought her some soup, toast and fruit but she didn't touch anything.
Susan just sighed and told Spike that he should get professional help for his 'sister' because she was clueless as well.
That evening he went to her bed again to pull the blanket over her and saw that she wasn't sleeping. She had remained in one position for more than two hours, staring at the wall. She was terribly pale, paler than any vampire Spike had seen. Although she slept all day she had dark shadows under her eyes and simply looked awful.
"Dawn, how is it supposed to go on with you like this?" he asked softly.
"I don't care," she mumbled and closed her eyes, avoiding his gaze.
"But I do. You can't lie on your bed all day and night without eating anything. And besides that, you have to take a shower or a bath." Spike turned up his nose on her. "You already start stinking like this hicks," he said jokingly but Dawn didn't laugh.
"I give up," he said and threw his hands up.
"Great," she mumbled faintly.
"Actually," Spike looked at her again. "I am not giving up. I am not the one who runs away from everything and is too much of a coward to face the problems." He sat down on the edge of her bed. "And you won't give up either, because I will simply not let you."
"What do you want to do?" she asked, almost whispering.
"Come on," he said and pulled her by the hand.
"Leave me alone," she squeaked as he pulled her to her feet.
"No," he just answered and dragged her out and to the car.
"Where are you bringing me?" she asked, trying to hit and kick him but she was much too weak for that.
"You'll see." Spike started the engine and drove off.

Two hours later they reached the road sign, which said "Welcome to Sunnydale".
"What are we doing here," Dawn frowned.
"Just wait." He didn't want to tell her where they were going because she would maybe jump out of the car then.
"We are near the cemetery," Dawn noticed after a while. "I'm not going to there."
But Spike didn't reply and drove into the street to the cemetery. He parked the car and went to Dawn's side, opening the door and dragging her behind him.
"Spike no!" she said, trying to free herself but it was useless. As she started kicking him again he just lifted her up and threw her over his shoulder again, walking to the grave. He put the complaining girl on her feet.
"Look!" he ordered and pointed to the tombstone.

Buffy Anne Summers
1981-2001
Beloved sister and friend

Dawn turned her head away.
"Is that what you want? Do you want to lie there beside her, six feet under ground? If so you're on the best way."
"Look!" Spike almost screamed and grabbed her neck, forcing her to face what she had tried to deny all the time.
"No!" she cried. "You're hurting me."
"Well, at least you feel something, you aren't dead completely yet." Spike said and tightened his grip. "And now LOOK!"
"No!" Dawn cried again. "No, no, no, no!" She suddenly fell down on her knees and started to sob. "No, no, no, no, no," she said again and again, almost chocking her words from crying.
Spike kneeled down beside her and took her into his arms, while she was sobbing loudly that it could even break an undead heart. She clung to Spike's duster, tugging on the leather and almost screamed. Spike held her tight, rocking her in his arms like a little baby while she let out all the pain and grief she had swallowed in the past week.
"Shhh, it's okay ducks," he whispered as she cried desperately. "Cry, cry it all out."
Dawn cried for a long while and Spike held her in his arms. She didn't notice that he had shed some tears too, also tears of relief that he could finally help her, be there for her to give her comfort when she was sad. It would take a long time until she could get over this loss but now that she finally had cried, she would be able to deal with it and sooner or later move on. And he would too.
They would find a nice place to stay and start a new life together. Spike was glad that Buffy had made him promise to take care of Dawn. At least he wasn't alone and he liked this girl. Playing her big brother wasn't as hard as he had expected it to be at first. Actually he already felt that he was responsible for her, even if he hadn't made that promise. And that would always stay so. They belonged together now. They were family.

~ The End ~