Dawn waited until the sounds from Buffy's room were long silent before she made her escape out her bedroom window. She wondered why Buffy hadn't seen fit to nail her window shut-not that she was complaining, mind.

Once on the ground, she made her way to the cemetery, hugging her coat to her against a wind that wasn't there, drawing comfort from the feel of the stake poking a her from inside her pocket.

Spike rolled his eyes, as if it were the most obvious thing in the world and Buffy was an especially dense pupil. "'Es the first male Slayer. Started 'imself a new line of Slayers altogether, 'e 'as. And the mutt there is the first animal Slayer, thanks to 'im and their mystical-mojo bond. Me an' the dire-wolf 'ere, were the demon wot powers im up. In return, we get to be all not-crispy in the sun, and not all acid-eaten in the holy water. And we get some action, fightin' other demons, so 's not so bad." He shrugged.

Buffy thought about that a moment. There was something she was missing in all that. What would a vampire have to do with becoming a Slayer? And then she remembered that the Primitive had said something about a demon being the one who chose who got the gift next. She suddenly felt very ill.

"Are you saying that the Slayers get their power from… a vampire? That there's a demon inside me, just like there is in my enemies?!?"

Spike nodded. "Yeah, I'd say that was about the size of it."

"But wait a minute …" William held up a hand. "If that's true, if a Slayer is part human, part vampire, then why hasn't Angel become a Slayer?"

Spike shrugged. "That all depends on your definition of the word, I suppose. I mean, he does kill vampires, after all. But As for why he hasn't transformed back to being at least partly human, I'd say that's because circumstances haven't exactly been right for that. You never left your body-he did. You've always maintained a connection with your shell-he was gone for a while. You've always been at peace with me, while Angel's human soul wars with Angelus. He could become a Slayer, if he wanted to, and accepted the terms."

"What about me?" Buffy protested. "I never accepted having a vampire inside me!!"

"That's different, love. That'd be like saying 'no one asked me if I wanted to be human'. It's in you're blood, just as being a human is." Spike sat down on the ground and got comfortable. Then he looked back into the shadows. "You wanna take it from here, love?"

From out of the darkness came another figure. It looked like Buffy as a vampire. Buffy felt her stomach flop, and even the Primitive seemed to shrink away form the creature. Vamp Buffy sat down on Spike's lap. They curled their arms about eachother and smiled at their human counterparts.

Dawn smiled when she spotted Shelly. The girl was out patrolling, just as she'd thought. Putting everything Spike had taught her about lurking to good use, she crept up quietly behind the Slayer-in-waiting.

When she was right on the girl's heels, she whispered, "Nice night for a patrol, huh?"

Shelly spun, stake in hand, ready to drive it through the heart of a vampire.

"See, sweetie," Vamp Buffy began, "Not all of us are evil. Back in our own dimension, we don't usually kill when we feed. The vampires you know are descendants of criminals from my world. They didn't like the laws of our people, so they fled here to live and kill as they pleased. I'd come here, with several others, to stop them. But our host forms were not human, and we quickly discovered they could not survive in this environment. Something about this dimension prevented us from simply transferring ourselves to new hosts, human ones. One of my group had already discovered that to try was to kill the host. Stealing a host is forbidden among my people. While the convicts had no qualms about taking human lives to survive, we would not.

"When that one's tribal elders found me," she pointed to the primitive, "I was the last of my group left alive, and my host was dying. They did not yet know exactly what monsters were plaguing them, only that a great evil had come into their world. So they worked to save me, and I vowed to help them rid the world of it's new evil. With the elders' help, I found a way to bond the vampire's demon with its human host, leaving the host body alive and it's human soul in tact, and giving it vampire strength. In return, they promised that all of this one's bloodline," she pointed to the Primitive again, "would be bound to me as well. When one Slayer dies, I'm drawn by the bond into another host. Every Slayer-in-waiting is a descendant by the matriarchal lines of her family, from her sisters.

"I had resigned myself to my task, and the idea that I would always be alone. But over the many centuries I hoped to find another of my kind that I could make into a Slayer. I thought it would be Angel that would help me achieve this end, but when I tried to bond his two souls, it didn't work. As Spike said, the human and the vampire refused to co-exist, each insisting on total control. Until William, all the human souls had been forced out of the shell when it was acquired by one of my kind. Even Angel had required a spell to give his human soul access to his body again. But William embraced what Spike had to offer him long ago.

"Last night was the first time all the conditions were right-that there was a vampire soul that was not evil, co-habituating his host with a human soul. All the vampires here being descendants of the convicts, they tend to behave as they were taught by their forefathers, to take pleasure in pain and destruction. Even this one here," she kissed Spike, "was less than well-behaved. But sharing his host with William had taught him how to love, and spending time with you," she looked pointedly at Buffy, "gave him incentive to change for the better. And that allowed me to bond their souls to make a new Slayer, as the humans had shown me all those years ago."

It was William's turn to look confused. "So what's with the metamorphosis? When a Slayer becomes the Slayer, the change is instantaneous! I'm still not alive!"

The smile she gave him was surprisingly gentle. "You had to change from vampire back to human. The transformation is reversing itself, and taking the same amount of time it did when you 'died'. You will be human-or Slayer, rather-by the time you awaken from this dream. And Cerberus will be alive, too. Your connection to him allowed me to bond his two souls as well."

Buffy looked at the wolf at Spike's side. Was this all just dream symbolism, or was that what was really inside of the little dog?

"So now I'll be mortal?" William asked. Buffy noted that he didn't sound either happy or disappointed-it was a question like someone might ask in biology class.

Vamp Buffy laughed. "You think a Slayer is mortal???"

Buffy raise her hand. "Uh, hello? I died, remember? Twice, in fact!"

Vamp Buffy shook her head. "You were killed. A vampire can be killed, too. A Slayer is as immortal as a vampire--even if they are a bit easier to kill--and will never die of natural causes." She looked a bit sad and wistful at that. "That was the one thing we couldn't be rid of, the immortality. If we had, the Slayer wouldn't have the vampire strength. Still, the Slayer can be killed far more easily than a vamp. It doesn't take something so specific as a wooden stale to the heart, just a bigger wound than your accelerated healing factor can handle. And the demon-that would be me-takes a back seat to the human soul, until there's a fight. I can walk in the sun, and I no longer need blood--I think because my host is still alive. We weren't really sure what would happen, but I think the pluses outweigh the minuses. But I still can never know peace." She gazed lovingly at Spike. "At least now I will no longer be alone … "

Dawn caught the stake in her hand, grinning. "Whoa, there, cowgirl! It's just me!"

Shelly scowled at her friend. "Dawn, I almost staked you!" she hissed. "What are you doing, sneaking up on me like that?!" She thought about it for a moment. "On second thought, how did you sneak up on me?" Dawn looked at her nails, shrugging. "I dunno. Something I picked up form a certain vampire, I guess." She dropped the coy routine in favor of smugness, crossing her arms. "Although I'm surprised it worked on you, you being the Slayer-in-waiting and all!"

Shelly sighed, exasperated. "Dawn, I'm not the Slayer yet! And I may never be! In fact, I hope I never am. I don't want another girl to die just so I can be!"

Dawn paled. "I forgot about that. I mean, Faith wasn't the nicest person in the world, but …"

A sound fro0m the nearby bushes made both girls jump.

Buffy sat long moments staring at the fire, absorbing the warmth and the words. At least now I know where a Slayer gets her death wish from, she thought. It's the demon's wish to finally be able to die, and escape the loneliness and horror of her existence … Aloud, she said, "But what about Kendra? And Faith? There's already more Slayers now!"

"When a vampire creates a fledgling, a bit of their own demon spirit goes into the new host, rather like an amoeba splitting. They are, in essence, copies of me. Twin sisters, if you like, or daughters. So yes, I guess in that respect, I was not alone, once that happened. But then again, it's rather like looking in funhouse mirrors, being surrounded by altered versions of yourself."

"So … you're saying you've made Spike into my … 'mate'?"

"Something like that. You must understand, I would never have done this without his consent and yours. I knew you loved him, and that he would welcome all that being a Slayer has to offer. He can still help you fight, unlike Riley, and now can walk among men as one of them, as you do. And, if you are willing, you will bear children who will be Slayers."

Buffy stood, eyes flashing. "Whoa, wait a minute! You want me to visit this--this curse upon my offspring?!"

"Not exactly. I mean, you do not have to have children if you don't wish it. I neither can nor will force you in this. But if you mate with William, your children will be Slayers. You will be the start of a new race of 'wolves' to hunt the vampires. Your children will protect your ordinary human kin from my bloodthirsty brethren, and any other monster out there. Together, we have evolved into something new, something beneficial to both our species." Her voice became pleading. "Buffy, if I could reverse time and the spell of the bond, I would give you back your life, your childhood. Do you think I wanted to leave my home? My loved ones? You know about sacrifice for the good of all-and so do I."

Buffy could see the tears in her vampire-self's eyes. She didn't want to believe. Didn't want to, but did. And she understood the necessity of it, even as she wanted to scream at the heavens for the unfairness of it all. Life was life. She had already learned that vampires were not inherently evil. Now it was time she accepted it.

The Primitive spoke. "You are blessed. You are allowed to know what no other Slayer has-love. You are not alone, as those before you."

Buffy felt her heart go out to the first Slayer, for the loneliness she must have known.

The Primitive continued. "And you already have a daughter who is a Slayer, now."

Buffy and William stared at the first Slayer. "Come again?" they said in tandem.

Two vamps swaggered out from behind the shrubbery. "Well, well, well," said one of them, "looks like Sunnyville done sent out the welcome wagon!"

"That's Sunnydale, moron." Dawn told him, rolling her eyes. "Can't you read?" She pointed to the sign above the gate that read "Sunnydale Cemetery".

Both the vampires shrugged. The second one said, "Nope." They stepped towards the girls, sneering. Then the second vampire stopped, scowling. The first stopped too, puzzled by his friend.

"Ain't ya gonna run? Er scream, at least?" the second vampire asked, clearly disappointed.

The first one turned to them, straightening in indignation. "Hey, yeah! What gives? You too dumb to know a vampire when ya see one, girlie?"

"Nope." Shelly smiled, holding up her stake.

"But you're too dumb to tell a Slayer when you see one, apparently," Dawn added, holding up her own.

"The Key," the Primitive answered.

"Dawn? But she's not even a Slayer-in-waiting!" Buffy protested.

Vamp Buffy raised a brow. "What makes you think that?"

"The Watchers said they made a mistake! They said SHELLY was really the Slayer-in-waiting and this is the Wtachers council, of course they screwed up, why am I not surprised?" Buffy finished, giving William an exasperated look.

Vamp Buffy nodded. "Dawn and Shelly are both descendants of the Slayer bloodlines, just as you and Faith are, and Kendra was. Faith drowned earlier today, so another piece of myself went to Dawn, the next best candidate."

Buffy was surprised to find tears in her own eyes. "So Faith is … gone?"

Vamp Buffy shook her head. "No, she was revived by Riley. But since she was dead for a few minutes, the spell called for a new Slayer. This was another unforeseen situation. Back when we first cast it, none of us ever imagined there would be a way to resurrect a Slayer. Thankfully it didn't call another Slayer when you died the second time.

"But for now," she added, "I think you'd better go help Dawn. She's let the power go to her head, and gotten herself into a bit of hot water.

Buffy and William tensed, their eyes wide with fear and worry. "What's happened?" Buffy asked, almost afraid to hear the answer.

Vamp Buffy shrugged. "Oh, nothing too serious. Just stepped into a hornet's nest, so to speak, in the cemetery. It's not so bad-Shelly's there, too. Still, I'd wake up now, if I were you, and hurry on over there."

"How?!" William cried, gripping Buffy's hand like iron. Cerberus whined beside them. "How do we wake up?!"

The primitive scowled at them, puzzled. "Just do!" she told them.

Spike rolled his eyes. "Do we have to do everything for you?"

The three vampires rose and walked over to their appropriate counterparts. They seemed to step inside them-

Buffy and William jerked awake, sitting upright, their hands still locked together as they had been in the dreamworld. Cerberus leapt from the bed and raced out the door. The untangled themselves from their blankets and raced after him.

Tara and Willow heard the ruckus and tore their bedroom door open. "What's the matter, where's the fire?!" Willow asked, her red hair wild as her eyes.

"Dawn snuck off to the cemetery!" Buffy told them as she scrambled to open the locks.

Willow ducked back into her room and reappeared a second later with her gauntlet on her hand. "Here, this is faster!" She used the gauntlet to open a magic portal to an area they knew well-Spike's old crypt.

The vampires rushed at the two girls. The girls evaded them easily. A moment later, they were standing in the vampires' dust.

Dawn brushed her hands together. "Well, that was easy! We make a good team!"

Shelly smiled. "Yeah, we do! Y'know, Dawn, if I ever do become the Slayer, I hope you'll be my Slayerette-"

"I don't think you're gonna live t' see that day, li'l lady!"

Vampires were coming towards them from all sides. The girls didn't even have time to be frightened as they ducked and dodged, swung and kicked. They let their instincts move them, as they had been taught. Only they discovered quickly that Dawn had the advantage.

Dawn grabbed a vamp by the wrist and swung him into two others. When she kicked the next one, he flew across the graves into the mausoleum wall. She Leapt high into the air, causing two that were coming at her from both sides to collide into eachother. When she landed, it was in a handstand. She horse-kicked another vamp into a tombstone, cracking it. She grabbed her stake form the ground and went after more.

Shelly was doing well in her own right, staking more vamps even if she didn't have Dawn's finesse. That is, until she noticed what Dawn was doing. Dumbfounded, she stared in awe at her friend's superhuman exploits.

Dawn finished off another vamp and looked Shelly's way. Her eyes went wide. "Shelly!" she cried, rushing towards the stunned girl. She grabbed another stake from her pocket and threw both, one to either side. Shelly jumped, startled by the poofs of dust to either side of her. Dawn grabbed her by the shoulders.

"Are you all right?!"

Shelly stared at Dawn, with an expression somewhere between awe and horror. "You … you're the Slayer now … aren't you …" It wasn't really a question.

Dawn let go, all the pride washed out of her. She knew what the life of a Slayer was like, had been in danger before … So why did the way she was feeling now come as such a surprise? The gift of being a Slayer felt less like a prize won and more like the heavy mantle of responsibility now she realised it really was. And as much as she wanted to prove herself to Buffy and the others, she wondered for the first time if she was really ready.

"DAWN!"

She spun towards the voice, the voice of her sister. She was in for it now. Her eyes opened wide as she found a vamp directly behind her-and it turned to dust. She looked down at the ground, seeing the grave it had just dug its way out of. On top of it were two stakes. She barley noticed as her sister threw her arms around her, practically crushing her in her embrace. Buffy always forgot how strong she was. Would she forget now, too? Would she accidentally hurt someone?

"Dawn? Are you all right?" Buffy's eyes were full of tears.

Spike was there too, wrapping his arms around both of them. He wasn't crying, but his eyes were full of worry. "Nibblet, speak up, love? Are you hurt?"

Dawn finally managed to shake her head, to get the words out. "I'm fine. Really." Not quite the truth, but it would do. She turned towards her friend. "Shelly? What about you?"

Willow and Tara had gone over to the girl, and were fawning over her. She seemed catatonic, and they were doing their best to get her to snap out of it.

Dawn pulled out of her sister's embrace and went over to her friend. She gave her a slap. "Shell, snap out of it!"

The girl began to cry. "I-I've never faced so many at once before! They just k-kept coming! And you--! I was supposed to be the Slayer! But you handled it better than I ever could!"

Dawn hugged the girl tight, smoothing her hair with a hand. "Don't say that, Shelly! You would have done exactly the same in my place! It's the gift that allowed me to do those things- I could never have done it one my own! But you! You did it without the gift!" She held the girl by the shoulders. "Buffy would never have lasted so long without her Slayerettes. Will you be mine? I need friends to help me."

Shelly wiped her eyes and nodded. "I have too, just to make sure you live, so I wont be called!" She laughed, and Dawn joined her.

Willow looked at Tara, clearly confused. "Did you understand a word of that?"

Her lover shook her head. "Maybe we're sleepwalking."

Willow nodded, thoughtful. "I think we should go back to bed," she said, heading back towards the portal. Tara took her hand and followed.

Buffy held out her hand. "C'mon, Dawnie. You too, Shelly, you can spend what's left of the night at our place."

Dawn took her sister's hand in hers, and took Shelley's in her other hand. Spike held Buffy's other hand, and carried Cerberus in his other arm.

"So I guess I'm grounded, huh?" Dawn asked.

Buffy shook her head. "Can't ground a Slayer for going out on patrol, now can I? But next time, you come-get-me!" she poked the girl for emphasis.

Dawn stared at Buffy in shock. "Y-you knew?"

"Mmmmmm, we have a LOT to tell you …"

Spike groaned. "It can wait 'til morning, okay? I wanna actually be awake for my first day alive in over a hundred years!"

Dawn stared at him as they reached the portal, stumbling over a rock. "ALIVE???"

Buffy sighed and ruffled her sister's hair as they stepped into the house. "Tomorrow."

The portal closed behind them.