Disclaimer: Yet another use of characters not made by me.

Author’s note: All hail Bloodytearsoflife who made the banner for this fic, isn't it beautiful? LOVE it soooooo much!

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Chapter 1: Start of the end

Dawn Summers, Immortal Key, Guardian of Dimensions, slammed her fist down on the steel table of her office.

“That’s not good enough!” she shouted at the poor man.

“That’s all I can do, Miss Summers. The land has been acquired by the city and the new development will be built once the excavation is complete. As you know it’s been a thousand years since the last person was interred there.”

Dawn sighed. The wheels of bureaucracy didn’t care that she was the only person in the world that remembered those that were buried in that cemetery. That piece of land was the last link that she had with home, with her sister, with the time when there was only one Slayer.

She’d been protesting the development of the cemetery where Buffy’s bones had lain for a thousand years. Sometimes she couldn’t even remember what their mother had looked like, but Buffy...she’d never forget her.

They’d all left her. Alone. Spike in the Hellmouth, he’d been the first to go, after her mom, then Buffy, who had been betrayed by the very person that she had finally allowed herself to fall in love with again after Spike’s death. Dawn could still remember his smug face when he dropped Buffy’s lifeless body from the top of the Eiffel tower to celebrate his 2000th birthday.

He didn’t live to see his 2001st.

Dawn had made sure of that. And they’d never found his body.

Giles had been next, assassinated by some watcher who wanted power over the Council, the Council that Giles had rebuilt. Ungrateful moron, thought Dawn.

With a nod of her head she dismissed her lawyer and sent the man scurrying from the room. She lifted herself out of her chair and stepped towards the window. The landscape before her was bleak. Looking out towards the coast, Dawn wiped away a tear. Brown water covered everything as far as the eye could see, steam evaporating from the toxic sludge. Out of the corner of her eye, Dawn observed her Lawyer’s car zipping down her driveway as fast as it could be propelled by the latest hybrid technology.

He was scared of her. Most people were. She was immortal. More so than any god or demon. She would go on forever, and no neck breaking, or electrocution, or being bled dry would kill her. That would have been good to know when Buffy had sacrificed herself for her the second time she died.

Dawn Summers, the Key, couldn’t be killed.

Stupid monks had to make it so she could feel the passage of time though. That was the most tragic part of it all.

She’d had enough of life. She wished she had special powers, or the ability to tap into ancient powers and dark magicks or something cool. As it was, life was boring and the most she had ever pulled off was the failed attempt to raise her mother from the dead. She was thousands of years old, but stuck in a forever aging body, like a phoenix getting really, really old, and then one day waking up looking 14 again.

It was time to do something about it.

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Tracking down a witch willing to tamper with the space time continuum wasn’t as hard to find as Dawn thought it was going to be. One post on an internet forum and with the offer of a vile of her blood, and Dawn was in business.

She’d once asked D’Hoffryn, the master of all vengeance demons, just what made him get out of bed in the morning; he was a few thousand years old too. He’d said the vengeance had kept him going and all the prayers of his loyal vengeance demons.

Dawn had considered forming a religion around herself. She was going to have her worshipers build churches in malls so that when she was bored of the adoration she’d be able to go shoe shopping. That idea fell by the wayside when she was carded at the liquor store. She’d been 224 at the time and looked like a 15 year old, again.

It was so unfair.

The witch in question lived only two towns over from the village in which Dawn lived, the former home of Giles, which of course it had been rebuilt a few times over the centuries. Dawn passed the cemetery in which Buffy, Giles, Willow, and a couple of her husbands were buried, soon to be bulldozed ‘cause no one important was buried there and no fantastic monuments had been erected.

The vial of blood in hand, Dawn knocked on the witch’s door, attached to the most Addam’s family house she had ever seen. It was probably the house that was used in the latest remake of the TV show turned movie, turned stage show turned back into a movie, and then a role play scenario.

Wasting no more time with random thoughts or casual chatter with the witch, Dawn insisted they get to business.

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Armed with nothing more than the jacket she had on and some money that she had kept in her safety deposit box after the world went paperless, Dawn Summers stepped out onto the streets of Sunnydale. Her body hummed with anticipation and knew instinctively that she was still in key form at this time in the world’s history. It was a funny feeling knowing that you were out there somewhere and yet you were right where you stood too.

The streets were so familiar but the most terrifying familiarity came from the smell of the wet pavement beneath her feet, the smell of the flowering trees and shrubs, and the fact that just around the next corner was Revello Drive.

And Mom.

Mom who didn’t know who she was.

Before the monks did the mind whammy, before Glory decided to kill them all those peaceful holy men off.

Before Mom got cancer.

Dawn was suddenly struck that she had no place to spend the night. No one knew her. Even if they did, she was 11 now, and she certainly didn’t look 11. Last time she had contemplated it, she had decided that she looked 19.

She needed to find out what the date was. She had no idea just when in Sunnydale’s history she’d been popped. Well, she knew it was before she’d been turned into the body she had now and after Buffy and Mom had moved to Sunnydale. Other than that? She had no clue.

The slight chill in the air quickened Dawn’s pace to find shelter for the night. First to find out what day it was, then that would determine just where she could hide out.

She headed downtown in search of a date, various clues making her brain work towards finding out when it was as she walked. The Magic Box was not under Giles’ and Anya’s management, that was clear from passing the window. Sunnydale High was still standing and it wasn’t the new version.

So, before Buffy blew it up then.

Dawn passed a news stand. Eagerly taking up a paper she noted the date. September 29, 1997.

Dawn exhaled. She knew this. Buffy’s second year at Sunnydale High. It meant that Spike was going to show up soon, or maybe he was already there. It was early enough that Angel was still in his basement apartment.

Therefore the mansion was empty.

She sighed a breath of relief as she now had a place to stay. She dropped the paper where she got it from put the paper back on the stand and headed off to the Bronze. She needed a drink, badly. Tomorrow she’d find Buffy at school and explain to her what she needed to do. Oh yeah, that’s going to go well, Dawn thought. Maybe I should talk to Giles first?

Dawn walked though the doors of the Bronze and headed to the bar, slapping her money down on the counter. “A shot of Jack,” she ordered, not looking at the bartender, but at the crowd.

There was a possibility that Buffy was there, as was Willow and Xander.

Xander.

Xander, whom she hadn’t seen since that one night of drunken passion they’d had after Giles had died. He’d been so shocked, scared, and humiliated after he sobered up. She hadn’t had the opportunity to tell him that she’d been the one to start it all.

The bartender placed the shot on the bar next to her. Dawn downed the drink with a fluid motion, startling the men around her who were watching her. A little girl like her shouldn’t be that familiar with the taste of Jack Daniels.

Oh, if they only knew.

Dawn caught a glimpse of Xander, flailing about on the dance floor, trying to dance with other girls with little success. Dawn smiled. Xander as a teen, the time when she had a crush on him, because she hadn’t met her next crush. The fact that she crushed on guys who liked her sister was a little bit disturbing. At least Buffy had never done it with Xander. Dawn stepped away from the bar, towards Xander, maybe to dance with him, when another face that was imprinted on her memory passed before her eyes.

Spike stood, leather clad, bleach hair, painted nails, and no soul, before her, all badass and drool worthy.

He belongs to Dru right now, Dawn reminded herself. Soon to be your sister’s. Crap, it’s Tuesday isn’t it?

Dawn made her way to the dance floor, dancing ever closer towards the Scoobies. She didn’t know why she was being drawn to Xander, as he spastically danced beside her sister. She knew that any second now the three of them were going to go rushing out of there and meet up with Spike for the first time.

Dawn wiggled her hips in rhythm to the music. She was maybe a metre away from Xander and desperately trying to catch his eye. It wasn’t to be though, and Dawn sighed at the futility of her actions as Buffy, Willow, and Xander darted out into the alley.

It really sucked the big one that this Xander was still holding out for Buffy.

With a sigh Dawn left the dance floor trailing a little after Buffy, Xander, and Willow. As she reached the backdoor of the Bronze, Xander ran back through the exit muttering “stake, stake” and nearly running into her as he went. Even her indignant “Hey!’ didn’t slow him down. Only seconds later he ran back towards the back door, this time carrying one of Buffy’s stakes.

Fetch boy, fetch, thought Dawn with a wry smile.

Stepping through the backdoor and finally into the alley, sounds of fighting met her ears. Buffy in her natural habitat. Dawn rested against the outer wall of the Bronze watching the spectacle. Something she hadn’t seen in what seemed like eons. It brought a tear to her eye. Even after all the centuries of living without her, Dawn knew that she missed her sister on a fundamental level.

As Spike started to clap his hands, Dawn’s eyes drifted to the bleach hair goodness that was Spike. Spike and Buffy. Buffy and Spike. Long before it happened, long before everything went wrong or went right.

“What happens on Saturday?” asked Buffy.

“I kill you,” responded Spike.

Dawn giggled.

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Slinking off to the Sunnydale High library looking for Giles, Dawn left the Bronze, hoping that she’d get to there before Buffy did. It was silly, trying to out run the slayer, but then Buffy had Willow and Xander to walk with.

Dawn entered the library through the stacks like she remembered doing when she was eleven or twelve. She knew it wasn’t real of course, but the memories were there. There and kickin’.

Dawn’s breath hitched as Buffy, Willow and Xander entered the library, all full of the ‘huh?’ and the ‘who?’ of Spike. And then Angel appeared.

He so needed a bell around his neck.

“He’s worse,” intoned Angel, talking about Spike. “Once he starts something he doesn’t stop until everything is his path is dead.”

“Hmm. So, he’s thorough, goal-oriented,” chimed Xander at which Dawn had to cover her mouth to keep from erupting into giggles.

She missed Xander.

“Angel, do you know if this Spike fellow goes under any other name?” asked Giles.

But even Dawn knew he was gone.

“Okay, that’s it. I’m puttin’ a collar with a bell on that guy,” said an annoyed Xander.

Dawn had to cover her mouth to keep from the giggles again. Man, it sucked being in a teenage body again. Her giggles subsided and cautiously she emerged from the stacks, as Giles noted just how helpful Angel wasn’t.

“Hey,” said Dawn making a little wave at the group who were suddenly watching her with rapt attention.

“Are you a student here?” asked Giles, hastily putting away his books.

“That would be a no, and please, you don’t have to put away the books just for me. ‘Cause that would be bad, I’m having this feeling that you’ll need the books. Books give you comfort.”

“Mysterious girl here knows Giles,” piped up Buffy. “Who are you?”

“You’re that girl at the Bronze, the one on the dance floor, with the hips!” exclaimed Xander.

Dawn blushed. “Yes, I have hips Xander,” Dawn giggled.

“And she knows my name!”

“And here I was thinking the Xander ness was cute, “ muttered Dawn to herself. She turned up the hundred watt smile and addressed the group. “Yes, I know your names. You’re the Scooby gang, the extraordinary is the normal right? Well heads up ‘cause I’m about to make your lives way easier. So you guys do me a favour and I’ll spill about all the chalked up knowledge I have in my deceptively nineteen year old brain.”

Buffy stepped closer to her and put her hands on her hips, oh so Slayer like. “And just what do you know?”

“Everything.”

“Everything?” asked a sceptical Buffy.

“Oh, well, yeah, I’m way from the future. Bask in the omniscience that is me,” said Dawn, countering her sister’s hands on hips move.

“Giles?” asked Xander anxiously.

“Means all knowing, Xander,” muttered Giles. “Just how far into the future are you from? And how did you know that we would be interested in and where we would be?”

“From the future, Giles. Also I’m really old...Like really.” Dawn stepped around Buffy and sat down on a rather uncomfortable chair. “Look I’ll even give you a freebie. Angel lies. He knows a whole lot more than he’s letting on.”

“Hey!” protested Buffy.

“Oh stop fending for the poofter!” said Dawn, “He’s not worth it! He leaves you eventually anyway!”

“What?”

Dawn cringed. “Oooh, gave away too much. This is what I intended to say... Spike, William the Bloody, Childe of Drusilla, Childe of Angelus...Is this ringing any bells in your dusty brain Giles?”

Giles was actually flipping through the pages of the tome he was holding frantically.

“Sired in 1880, London,” continued Dawn.

“This fellow’s the progeny of Angelus? Intriguing,” added Giles.

“Huh?” asked Buffy. “That’s the freebie, that’s...huh?”

“That would be the ding ding sound going off in your head,” started Dawn.

“So Angel’s related to this Spike guy?” asked Willow. “How come he didn’t say so?”

“And we are just going to accept what this weird future chick says?” asked Buffy furious.

“Yep, ‘cause if you don’t, well, here’s what happens... You die, again. Xander loses an eye, Willow goes psycho murdery with the witchy power. Angel leaves you, Buffy. Well he’s gonna do that anyway, but he’ll die, and I think right now, you care about that. Now can we talk about what I want in return?”

“My first born child?” asked Xander jokingly.

“Get real Xander, you don’t procreate,” responded Dawn.

“I...I should like some proof that your information is accurate. Just where is this Spike character located, which hole in the ground is he inhabiting at the moment? Is he here with some purpose in mind besides killing Buffy...” asked Giles.

“Right now, that’s mainly what he wants. To kill Buffy, he is the Slayer of Slayers. But...he won’t be that way forever. Trust me.”

“Well it’s a little hard to do that when we don’t even know your name!” exploded Buffy.

“Dawn,” she introduced herself.

“Dawn? No last name to go with that?” asked Buffy. “What are you stuck in the eighties?”

Dawn drew a blank at that comment. “Huh?”

“Yep, she’s a bright one,” muttered Buffy.

“Can we get back to the important part here?” asked Xander. “What do you mean I don’t procreate?”

“I don’t think that’s the important part here Xander,” interrupted Willow.

“I think it is!” exclaimed Xander.

“Xander!” barked Giles. Giles turned back to wards Dawn. “Where is he located? Spike, I mean.”

“Oh, I’m not talking. Nope, zipped lips. That’s me. Not until I get some sort of guarantee that you are gonna do me that favour,” said Dawn with a smile.

“She...She could be evil!” added Buffy as if this hadn’t occurred to her before.

Dawn rolled her eyes.

“Just what would be this favour? You can’t expect us to just agree to your proposition without hearing what you want,” observed Giles.

“Goodie! Ok, there’s a hell god, goddess actually. Named Glory, or Glorificus. I need her head, like today, or something bad is going to happen.”

“What kind of bad?” asked Buffy with a frown.

“A hell goddess!” whispered Willow awed.

“Well, eventually, the ‘Buffy dies a horrible death,’ kind of bad,” observed Dawn looking into her sister’s eyes. “Glory shares a body with this guy called Ben, he’s a medical intern, or maybe not yet, but he will be. Ben is Glory, Glory is Ben, remember that, that is very important.”

“What do you mean, the ‘Buffy dies a horrible death’ kind of bad?” asked a worried Willow.

“I’m...from...the...future,” said Dawn very slowly. “I’ve seen it happen. There was crying, wailing, gnashing of teeth, and a semi suicidal vampire followed by much despair and depression and a nasty little thieving problem.”

The rest of the Scoobies looked at Dawn with blank faces for a moment.

“So this Glorificus is going to pose a problem for Buffy in the future?” asked Giles.

Dawn put one finger on her nose and with the other hand pointed back at the watcher.

“So in fact, you are asking us to take care of a problem much earlier than we would have normally...” pondered Giles.

“Yep,” said Dawn happily. It sounded like Giles was actually getting it. This was a very happy thing.

“And you are going to just give us all the info we want about anything until we do you this favour?” asked Buffy.

“I reserve the right to not, if I don’t think you need to know. Like, I could tell you the changes the political system in the US is going to undergo in the next hundred years, but then I don’t think that you’d really want to know that, or that how I still remember that crap because I was the First Lady of California once. See that’s just over share.”

“Huh?” came the collective reply.

“Just call me the All Knowing Key.”

“Key?” asked Giles.

“See? Over share again. I’ve really got to stop doing that.”

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tbc...