She looked up and at Emma, trying to search the other girl's face for some sort of sign. Emma had been quickly turning into one of the best friends Dawn had ever had, and the thought of how that could change now with Emma knowing the truth about her worried her. It was times like these she really hated not being normal…
Emma met Dawn's eyes, then gave her a smile, and Dawn felt relief flow through her. Maybe this would be okay after all. Unless Emma balked after getting the details of Dawn's origins… The worry rose up again.
Spike and Aiden made a pass around the cavern, checking for any signs of demonic company before they joined the women at the small camp.
"You know, I told you I knew where the Key was, and you said it was probably better you didn't know," Buffy pointed out as soon as Aiden sat down.
Aiden nodded. "True, you did, and that was in fact my response, but I still had no idea the Key would be coming with us. This entire time we've been bringing the Key closer to Chalchicomehuel."
"Look, this guy needs to be stopped," Buffy replied. "if he wants the Key, then that means he's coming after my sister, and I'm not about to let him go on existing if that's the case. Also, leaving her behind—not the brightest move either. She needs to be with me, where I can protect her."
"But we could be bringing her into a trap," Aiden argued. "The demon we just faced isn't local—I'm well versed in all species native to this dimension. There's a good chance that Chalchicomehuel sent it to get the Key, and from the way it went right for Dawn, it obviously knew she was its prey."
"That doesn't mean evil demon guy knows, though," Dawn said, speaking up. After all, they were sitting around discussing her. She might as well have a voice. "The demon was some sort of snake, and they can be sensitive to the Key sometimes. I had a snake thing come looking for me before, when someone else was trying to figure out where the Key was. She used the snake because she didn't know specifically where to find it." Dawn frowned, then added, "Or me. Or whatever pronoun I should use when talking about the Key."
"Which brings me to another one of my questions," Aiden said. "How exactly is Dawn the Key? The Key is energy, and looking at her all I see is a human girl."
"She didn't start out as my sister," Buffy said. "Only she is now. It's confusing and long, and hasn't made a bit of sense to anyone yet, so I'll just sum up. There were some monks, they wanted the Key protected, so they somehow made it into a person and gave me a sister. So Dawn, my sister, Key."
Aiden and Emma both blinked, twin looks of confusion on their faces. "The monks made her?" Emma asked. "What does that mean?"
"They somehow made the Key flesh and then created a bunch of memories for Dawn and everyone around her," Buffy said. "They used magic to make her and her life. Only apparently they somehow made her from me, and we have the same blood or something like that."
"Okay, that is really the weirdest thing I have ever heard," Emma said. A flash of hurt went across Dawn's face, and she quickly amended, "Not that you're weird. You're my friend, and I like you a lot. But monks making people out of Keys and giving them the same blood as their sisters—weird."
Dawn chuckled. "All right, I have to give you that."
"What are the effects of this?" Aiden asked. "The Key is an incredibly powerful mystical force. Even contained in a human vessel, it must be a source of great power."
"Dawn's just a normal girl," Buffy said. "Glory came after her and was going to use her to tear down the walls between dimensions, but after that, there hasn't been any sign of it."
"Uh, Buffy," Dawn said, raising her hand slightly. "Recently, there's been, some, uh…signs of it. Big signs."
Buffy's head whipped around and she gaped at her sister for a moment before yelling, "What?! There's been something going on with the Key, and you've just not told me?"
"I was still trying to sort it all out!" Dawn said in her defense, though even as she said it, she knew she didn't really have an excuse. She should have told Buffy about the reemergence of the Key.
Buffy's hands went over her chest. "Spill, Dawnie. Now."
Dawn sighed. "Fine. Around the time that you went to L.A. to stop the Circle of the Black Thorn, I started having these really weird dreams. I couldn't figure them out at first, but then it turned out that they were the Key talking to me, asking me to, well accept it. I did, because otherwise I was going to die or something, and then I think I got some powers. Only I can't quite figure them out yet. I can sort of see things, like if I stand in a spot, I can see what was there before. Like the walls of time are falling down for me. And sometimes, I glow green. I think there's probably more, but I've been too nervous to experiment."
Spike, who had been surprisingly silent for the whole conversation was suddenly on his feet, the look on his face telling Dawn in no uncertain terms that he was not happy with what she'd just said. "What?! Are you bleedin' out of your mind? All this has been going on, and you haven't said a sodding thing to anyone? Dammit, Dawn, this is serious! You can't just keep something like a mystical force speaking to you in your dreams and making you have super powers to yourself."
Dawn shrunk back from him as she responded. "I didn't keep it completely to myself. I told Andrew. Some of it anyway. And we did some research on the Key…"
"You told Andrew? And that was it? Like he could really do any help…" Spike replied.
"Hey!" Dawn yelled. "He did try to help me! You barely even know him, Spike, so don't even try to…"
"Okay! Everyone quiet!" Buffy yelled, cutting Dawn off and stopping Spike before he could say anything else. "Honey, sit down. We have an apocalypse on our hands, and there is no time right now for yelling."
Spike sat down reluctantly, though he didn't say anything, the tone in Buffy's voice telling him that arguing would not be a smart move at that particular juncture.
Buffy took a deep breath. "Okay, first off, Dawn, not telling us was dumb."
"Buffy, I'm okay," Dawn said. "The Key's a part of me, and I can feel that it's not going to be a danger to me like this."
"No, but withholding information like that from people you're going into battle with can be a danger," Buffy replied. "It's like fighting with a blind spot. If the Key's suddenly become active, this is an important piece of info, Dawn. And for another thing, you said yourself you don't know everything you can do with this power."
Dawn sighed. "I know. It's just been confusing, and I haven't really known how to deal with it, okay?"
Buffy could tell Spike wanted to say something again, but she spoke first, keeping him quiet. "We can't do anything about what's already done, but from now on, I want full disclosure. Got it?"
"Yeah. Full disclosure it is," Dawn agreed with a nod. "And, um, sorry about not doing that before." She ventured a glance at Spike and noticed how much the muscle in his jaw was ticking. And he'd called her by her actual first name when he'd been yelling… She swallowed, knowing she had one unhappy ex-vampire on her hands.
After a moment of silence in the group, Aiden spoke up again. "So let me make sure I have everything reasonably clear. Dawn is, in fact, the Key, made flesh by a group of monks. Recently, this has allowed her to be in possession of powers that even she is not completely knowledgeable of yet. Is this correct?"
"More or less," Dawn replied with a shrug.
"This changes things," Aiden said. "We are, essentially, bringing the Key to Chalchicomehuel. However, you are right, Buffy, in your assertion that allowing Dawn to be no longer under your protection is not a true option, especially since Chalchicomehuel seems to be sending his agents out to hunt the Key." He cleared his throat. "This is not an ideal situation, but it is the one we are in nonetheless."
"What about your truth-telling thing?" Spike asked. "Is that going to pose a problem now that you know about Dawn?"
Aiden shook his head. "No. When I answer a question, it must be the truth, but I do not have to answer. I can remain silent, and I will do so when it comes to this, even if I must give my last breath to do so."
"Right then," Spike replied with a nod.
An uneasy silence fell, everyone in the group trying to absorb all that had just been revealed. Buffy's hand went to her belly as what Aiden had told her earlier concerning her child being protected because of a prophecy came to her mind. She supposed it shouldn't shock her as much as it did, seeing as the child of a Slayer—especially one who had died twice—and a man who had spent over a century as a vampire was something that was bound to be a big deal. But up until that moment, she hadn't thought in those terms. It had just been her baby—hers and Spike's. A child they had created, the way countless other couples had done. Now she realized it was probably so much more—her child could very well be part of something big, something epic.
This child—her child—had most likely been prophesied. The thought of it made her head spin. Add to that her sister, who just happened to be a mystical Key, exhibiting signs of super powers, and she really needed to lie down.
Deciding to take advantage of those rests everyone had been so keen on assuring her she could have, Buffy did just that.
After they'd rested, the five of them set out again, Aiden telling them there was a cavern up ahead that would be a better place to stop for the night. Not that they could really tell when it was night down there. With no view of the sky and their internal clocks thrown by the dimensional hop, time had lost most of its meaning. There was nothing they could do but keep moving through the darkened caves, unsure of where they stood in time or place.
It was beginning to become more and more of a problem for Emma. The longer they spent in these small, dark spaces, the harder it was for her to remember to breathe. But she kept moving on, forcing back the desire to break into hysterics that was pushing inside of her. She was a Slayer now. It wouldn't do at all for her to succumb to claustrophobia when there were a lot of more important things to deal with.
Still, she kept a tight grip around Aiden, the strength she could feel coursing through him helping to keep her grounded. Something about his presence alone made her feel safe, and that was what kept her sane now.
For his part, Aiden was not unaware of Emma's distress, and he fought not to allow his concern for her to distract him. She'd assured him earlier she wasn't in pain from the battle, and he figured that must mean that whatever was upsetting her now was something other than physical—which made it something he couldn't help her with in their current situation. Later, possibly, if the fates allowed it.
However, Aiden found cause for concern in the "later" itself. He certainly hadn't expected when he opened the portal to bring forth the Slayer to meet someone like Emma—someone who could make him feel things that could threaten the life he'd sworn himself to over a millennium before. His life as a Guardian was a solitary one, with no real room in it for a mate. Where would he fit Emma into that? Could he?
Aiden forced those questions out of his mind. This was not the time for them, and seeing as the world as they knew it could quite possibly be coming to an end soon, it may never be something he'd have to worry about at all.
He continued on, ignoring his worries and the pain in his arm as Emma tightened her grip.
If you're interested in more details on how Dawn discovers and copes with her new Key-powers, it's part of my story Both Sides Now, which is included in my post-Chosen series. Since it's not primarily a Spuffy story (though Spike and Buffy do make appearances) it is not on this site. However, if you would like to read it, it is archived here: http://www.dark-desire.org/blood/fanfiction/BSN/main.html
Another big thanks to Niamh for betaing this and her help with performing a "that-ectomy." *wink*
Please take a moment to review!