Cordelia breezed into the hotel the next morning to find Angel, Fred and Wesley hunched over a table of books. “Wow…you guys are at it early. What’s going on?”

“Researching the demons that are hunting Buffy,” Angel told her, barely sparing her a glance. “We could use your help.”

Cordy gave them a curious glance and shrugged out of her shoulder bag. “Sure…what’s up?”

Wesley finally looked up. “Lorne read Buffy last night. He doesn’t believe her to have been in heaven or in Hell. Rather, he thinks she was trapped in another dimension. Her soul was captive, that is. And Angel surmises these demons that attacked her last night have something to do with it. I tend to agree with him.”

Cordy’s eyes widened. “Wow. I missed some night, huh? Buffy sang?” Both Wesley and Angel stared at her. “Right, not the point. So…wait, what do you mean she wasn’t in Hell?”

Angel flipped the pages on the text he was reading. “Buffy thought she was in heaven. Wherever she was…she was happy,” he muttered.

“She thought she was in heaven? Oh man…Why did she tell us she was in Hell?” Cordy asked, slipping behind the counter to sit at the table.

“She didn’t,” Angel grimaced. “We assumed and she let us. Apparently Willow and Xander already know this…but they assumed the same thing, that she was in Hell. That’s why they brought her back. They thought they were saving her.”

“And she thought it was easier to let us think that than to feel the mind-wrenching guilt now that we know she was happy,” a voice came from behind them.

“Willow!” Cordy exclaimed. “What…how…where did you come from?”

“Sunnydale, like you,” the redhead told her morosely. “Angel called me this morning, early.”

“Thanks for coming,” Angel greeted her.

“Sure, hi,” she said. “I would have been here sooner but I had to get Xander and Anya over to take care of Dawn.” She looked around. “Where’s Buffy?”

Angel glanced up the steps. “Sleeping, I hope. She had a long night.”

Willow nodded and took a breath. “So, where are we in the research?”

“We have a few possibilities,” Wesley told her, offering a smile. “Please…have a seat.”

Cordy moved her chair to make room and Willow joined them at the table. “What else can you tell us?” Angel asked her pensively.

“Group pow-wow…with a newbie,” Gunn’s voice came from the counter. He leaned over it, grinning casually at Willow.

“Are we all here now?” Cordy cried.

“Willow, this is Gunn, our associate. Gunn, this is Willow, a friend from Sunnydale. She’s also the one who masterminded the spell to bring Buffy back,” Wesley said.

“More like masterminded the biggest mistake in the history of witchcraft. And Slayers. And best friends,” Willow corrected.

“Not necessarily,” Angel told her. “If Lorne’s correct, you might have saved her after all.”

Gunn grinned at her. “Hey,” he greeted her when the interruptions were over.

“Hey,” Willow replied with a nervous smile of her own.

“What’s the sitch?” Gunn asked, hefting himself up onto the counter.

Cordy quickly filled him in with what she knew. “So…we’re looking for the demons that attacked Buffy last night. Angel thinks they have something to do with where Buffy’s soul was when she died.”

Gunn let out a low whistle. “Any luck?”

“Not a lot, so feel free to join in,” Angel ordered testily.

Gunn cocked an eyebrow and jumped off the counter, picking up a book.

Wesley turned back to Willow. “Anything you could tell me about the spell you performed would be most helpful.”

Willow nodded again and took off her jacket. “Okay…it was complicated, and it required a quadrum,” she began, reluctantly.

“What’s that?” Cordy interrupted.

Willow glanced at her sideways. “Four people. Me, Tara, Xander and Anya.”

The redhead went over the spell, detail by detail, eliciting groans from both Gunn and Cordelia at the mention of the deer.

“She’s been off, I admit it, since we brought her back…but we just thought it was readjusting after the torture of being trapped in a hell dimension. If we’d known…if we’d even stopped to think…” Willow said, her throat tightening. “I can’t apologize enough.”

Wesley gave her a sympathetic smile. “You may not have been wrong, Willow. And…what’s done is done.”

“I’ve never wanted to be so right in all my life. Not just for me…for her. I think it will help her to know for sure where she was. But…I can’t help but think that that’s not the only problem we have. Granted, coming back from heav…from peace…would be hard…but she’s not adjusting at all. She’s unemotional. The only things that get her going are evil things,” Willow told them.

Wesley nodded. “That makes sense…it’s the one thing her life that’s still the same, still normal. She knows she’s still the Slayer, even if everything else in her world has changed.”

“Maybe,” Willow replied dubiously.

“Well, I’m sure she’ll be glad to see you, after all she’s gone through on this trip,” Fred put in cheerfully, trying to be supportive. “I mean, the poor girl’s only been here a day and…”

Willow glanced at her quizzically. “What’s happened?” she asked Angel.

Angel glanced at Wesley. “Um…some stuff with her father…” he started.

Cordelia sighed. “Oh, here we go again,” she muttered. “Willow, girl, do we have a lot to catch up on.”

*~*~*

Buffy walked downstairs much later that morning to find the group sitting at the table.

“And the neatest thing about the polymer transmodification is that it completely puts to rest Newton’s theory,” Fred was saying to…

“Willow?”

Willow looked up happily. “Hey, Buff!”

“What are you doing here?” she asked, looking around. “What’s wrong? Who’s watching Dawn?!”

“I called her,” Angel admitted. “I wanted to know more about the spell she performed that brought you back, and Xander’s with Dawn.”

Buffy stared at him momentarily before sitting down on one of the wooden chairs. “Oh.”

“She’s okay, Buffy, I promise,” Willow swore. “I’m just here to try and help. Sorta a best friends thing.”

Buffy gave her a small, reassuring smile. “It’s okay, Will. I’m sure Dawn’s fine.”

“She is!” Willow exclaimed. “Xander’s going to stay with her, and Spike’s going to patrol, even though I know you didn’t want him around, but…without you there, it’s better for Dawn.”

Buffy visibly stiffened at the mention of Spike’s name. Forcing herself to relax she slid a book towards her and began to scan the pages. “Oh…okay.”

“Wait,” Cordelia broke in. “Spike? Spike is helping you now? I can’t believe you’d leave that blood-sucker to watch after your sister…no offense, Angel.”

Angel didn’t answer her. He was watching Buffy.

“Well…Spike sorta helps us out now, Cordelia. With his chip he can’t hurt people anymore, just demons, so…it’s like extra brute strength. Plus, he dotes on Dawnie. Kind of a big-brother thing,” Willow grinned.

Buffy changed the subject quickly. “So what do we know?”

“Well,” Wesley began, “I’ve got it narrowed down to a certain species of demon that takes the--”

“You said Spike could hurt you now,” Angel interrupted, his words directed at Buffy.

Buffy bobbled the book she was holding.

Willow turned confused eyes to her best friend. “What? What’s he talking about?”

Buffy glanced desperately around the room. “Uh…I was going to…it just happened the one time…”

“It’s true?” Willow cried. “Why didn’t you tell me? Buffy, this is serious! If he can hurt you, there’s no telling what might happen now! When did you find out about this?”

“A little while ago…and I was going to tell you, honest, but things kept coming up…and it didn’t seem important,” the Slayer stammered.

“Not important?! He can hurt you Buffy, he can kill you now!” Willow exclaimed, hurt clear in her voice. “Can he hurt other people too? Is the chip completely inactive? Oh my God…I left him with Dawn!” the witch gasped in horror.

“No, no! It’s just me…and I’m sorry…Will…really…it’s just me…I--”

Buffy’s apology was cut off by Cordelia pitching backwards in her chair, shouting in pain as she clutched her forehead. Angel, Wesley and Gunn jumped to their feet while Fred ran to get a glass of water and some aspirin. Buffy and Willow watched helplessly until Cordelia stopped writhing in pain and sat up, gasping.

She turned horrified brown eyes to Buffy.

“Dawn.”

*~*~*

Dawn made her way home from school, whistling happily to herself. “Half day of school, bless you teacher’s conferences, Xander took the day off to spend with me…it’s Friday and Buffy’s out of town to visit dad. Party time,” she concluded as she put her key in the front door lock and turned it.

“Hello? Xander?” she called, walking inside and shrugging out of her sweater and book bag. “Xander? Anya?” Dawn walked through the first floor of the house, casting an eye to each room. No Anya, no Xander.

“Alone!” she cried giddily, and dashed into the kitchen, threw open the fridge door, and began removing the ingredients needed for the world’s largest hot fudge sundae. “Chopped nuts, coconut, banana, maraschino cherries, syrup, caramel, sprinkles, M&M’s…” she counted out each ingredient before reaching into the freezer for the ice cream. After this, it might be time for a trip up to Buffy’s room and a peek into her trunk where Dawn knew she kept all her secret stuff. Not about slaying, about her boyfriends and her…“Hey! Where are the mini-marshmallows?”

She headed to the pantry when, from the corner of her eye, she caught movement. “Okay, okay,” she muttered, resigned that now that Xander and Anya were here, her feast had come to an end before it had began. “I know. Eating this will ruin my supper.” Turning to walk into the living room she was confronted by two figures in dark hooded robes.

“Eeeyah!” she gasped, jumping at the sight. “Don’t do that!” She caught sight of their outfits and rolled her eyes. “Look, if you two are going to play freaky sex games I’m going to tell Buffy. This can’t be good for me to witness.”

The figures didn’t speak.

“Where’d you get the robes, anyway? You look like Glory’s crusty monk-guys, and boy, I really hope that’s not what you’re playing, ‘cause…ew.”

Nothing.

Dawn sighed heavily. “Xander, Anya, come on! Let’s forget dinner and just pig out for a change! It’s Friday! No one’s going to be home but us!” she cried, bouncing on the balls of her feet.

A little too late it occurred to Dawn that the figures in front of her were not Anya and Xander.

“Dawn Summers,” one of the rasped.

“Ye-es?” she stammered, backing up.

“Do not run. You needn’t fear us,” the other said.

“Yeah, sure. Ok,” Dawn told them, then turned and bolted for the kitchen and the back door. “Xaaaaander!!” she shrieked, her shoes slapping on the tile of the floor as she ran.

The figures followed her into the kitchen as she struggled with the lock on the door.

“We are here about your sister,” one of them told her.

“Glory’s back!” Dawn shouted, ignoring him in her panic. “Glory’s back! Xander!”

“We do not work for this Glory you speak of. We are here about your sister. We have news for the Slayer about her afterlife,” said the other.

Dawn looked up. “Wh-what do you mean? Her afterlife?”

“She doesn’t belong here. She was brought back to this world, ripped out of peace and tranquility. We want to amend this,” they said together.

Dawn was shaking in fear. Glancing at the counter she considered reaching for the meat tenderizer that had been left out, to use as a weapon. Or maybe a stake. Did these guys get staked? “She was dead…but Willow…and the others…they brought her back. She’s fine now,” she told them.

“You know she is not right. You ignore it. Your sister is in pain. She suffers on this plane, to please you.”

Dawn stared at them, the thought of a weapon instantly gone. “Buffy suffers?”

The figure on the right nodded. “She in is pain, and you ignore it. Her heart is heavy, she is unfocused, thinking only of the bliss she was once in. But we can help. We want to help. The Slayer is not at her best, and that may be disastrous for the world.”

Dawn looked at them skeptically. “I didn’t…it was Willow…but they thought she was in heaven,” she began, but stopped. Then, “How can you help her?”

“We can relieve the suffering, make her mind at ease. You must trust us. The fate of the world rests on the shoulders of the Slayer. If we do not help her, she may fall.”

“Buffy might die again?” Dawn gasped. The figures said nothing. Dawn took a tentative step forward. “What will you do for her?”

“It is a simple ritual, to cleanse her aura, and redirect her emotions. It will…align her soul,” the demon decided suddenly. “Yes, yes. Align her soul.”

Dawn looked to be considering their offer when she suddenly straightened up and crossed her arms over her chest. “Who are you?” she asked bravely.

“We are Vakalri fairies. Whenever there are situations like this, with an unnatural death and an even more unnatural birth, we are called to the soul that cries out in pain, as does your sisters’. We heard her, from our dimension, and came to help her.”

Dawn squinted at the dark space where their faces should be. “You’re fairies? Like Tinkerbell? Aren’t you a little big for fairies? And why can’t I see you? Do you have wings?” she shot off.

The demons looked at each other. Or Dawn assumed they did as she could see nothing of their faces, but they did turn their robed heads towards each other.

“Fairies come in all sizes, my child,” one of them replied finally. “And we’re very sensitive to light.”

Dawn seemed satisfied with the answer. “Like vampires.”

“Yes, like vampires. And, uh, no, we don’t have wings.”

“Oh. Well, she—she’s not here. Buffy’s in LA visiting my dad,” Dawn told them finally.

“We will go to her, you will join us,” the one of the left told her.

“Can’t we just call her and ask her to come home?”

“There is no time. You are needed for the ritual as well. Your…your love for her will help cleanse her aura. She will be sensitive to your feelings for her and Bam!”

Dawn jumped.

“It will help her soul be calmed,” he finished. “Now, come. We must go.”

“We’re going to LA? I—I need to call Xander. No way I’m going by myself.”

“The boy that was here? Yes, yes. He too is with us. We have sent him, and his companion, to collect their things for the journey. You may do so as well, little one,” one of them rasped. “All in the name of your sister do you do this.”

Dawn faced them both. “I don’t have a choice, do I? I don’t want my Buffy to suffer. Not if I can help her.”

“Please, collect your things, but be quick about it. Time is not to be wasted. We will join your friends shortly.”

Dawn stared at them for a moment, then nodded uncertainly, and turned to run up the stairs.

The demons faced each other. “Entwar will be pleased, Jimnub. The Slayer will surely come for her sister and her friends,” he said gravely.

“Oh, stop talking like Spock. It’s ridiculous,” Sulfeg complained, shuffling around the kitchen. “And you--cleanse her aura? Realign her soul? What have you been watching on tv?” he asked testily.

“Psychic Network. That and Emeril. Bam!”

*~*~*

Cordelia lay on the floor of the Hyperion lobby supported by Wesley’s lap. “She’s with some demons, robed guys, like from last night. Xander and Anya are with her, but they’re trapped.”

“Where?” Buffy spat.

“Sunnydale. In a warehouse behind the Bronze,” Cordelia gasped, sitting up.

Buffy wasted no time. The moment Cordelia spoke Dawn’s name she’d gone cold. Leaping from her crouch on the ground she took the stairs three at a time, racing around her room, collecting her things. Willow followed her, showing up moments later.

“We’re leaving,” Buffy ordered.

Willow nodded, knowing not to argue.

“I knew it was a mistake to come here. I knew it,” the Slayer muttered as she whipped her toiletries off the vanity of her bathroom and into her bag. A cashmere sweater followed them and Buffy took off back down the stairs, passing Gunn and Wesley on the way.

“Woah, wait! Where you going?” Gunn asked, steadying himself on the railing as Buffy and Willow flew down the stairs.

“Home,” Buffy told him without sparing a glance.

Angel stopped her before she made it out the door. “I’ll come with you,” he told her.

Buffy glanced at the sunny outdoors that was Los Angeles. “I don’t have time to wait for you, sunset’s not for a couple hours,” she told him, more harshly than she’d meant. “I’m sorry.”

He looked outside and blanched. “I’ll be there. I promise. I just need to get covered up, we can take my car…”

She wrested free of his grip on her shoulders. “I’m going, now. Willow?” she asked.

The timid witch joined her, waving apologetically to the rest of the group who stood, stunned, in the middle of the lobby. Gunn trotted up to Angel. “I got this,” he told his friend, and followed the girls outside.

“I’ll be there tonight,” Angel said, his voice gritty. And after this is all over, Buffy and I are going to have a little chat.

*~*~*

“Where are we going?” Dawn asked as she and the demons walked the back alleys of Sunnydale.

One of the robed demons turned to her. “Your friends are meeting us here. It was more…secure this way.”

“Yes,” the other agreed. “Fairies are not to be seen by the common man.”

“Oh,” Dawn replied, shifting her backpack. “Are we driving to LA or flying?”

“We will use…uh, magic. The Tunnels of Time,” Sulfeg told her, glancing at Jimnub, who rolled his eyes.

Sulfeg opened the door to the warehouse, pulling it back to reveal a labyrinth of old boxes and dust. “Neat,” Dawn said vaguely, looking around at their surroundings. It was huge, cold and dark, with rats scurrying in and out of cracks in the foundation. “Where are Xander and Anya?” she asked nervously.

“We’re here,” Xander said, his voice coming from behind her. She turned around to see both he and Anya tied to chairs, a third seat empty to their right. Her eyes flew open. “Xander! Anya!” she cried when Sulfeg and Jimnub took her by the arms and forced her into the empty chair. “But..but..wait! You’re supposed to help Buffy!” Dawn shrieked.

Anya rolled her eyes. “This is why our children are getting a demon education in addition to a mortal one. Am I the only one around here who knows what a fairy looks like? Fairies would never be caught dead in those ratty old robes. And hello? They’ve got wings! Some things in your mortal books are actually accurate,” Anya chastised as Dawn was forced back in the chair and twine used to secure her hands and feet.

“Nice of you to mention that before they got me in a headlock, Ahn,” Xander told her. His eyes flicked to a struggling Dawn. “You okay, Dawnie?”

“Buffy’s going to kill me,” Dawn moaned.

“Us. She’s going to kill us,” Xander corrected.

“Besides, you’re assuming that we’ll still be alive by the time Buffy finds out about this and gets back here to rescue us. We may be dead already, so you’ll have nothing to worry about,” Anya told her.

Dawn rolled her eyes and turned back to the demons. “What do you want with us?”

Sulfeg approached her, leaning over so they were face to face. For the first time she saw something beneath the robe. Two silver slits became bright orbs that stared back into her own blue eyes. “We don’t want you. It’s your sister we have to have.”

“Why? How do you know she was dead?” Dawn cried. “Who are you?!”

Sulfeg chuckled and his eyes returned to the black they had been. “Because she was with us,” he told her, and turned back to Jimnub. Together they walked away. “Oh, and don’t think of escaping,” Sulfeg called as in walked four rather large vampires. They stood in front of their captives, grinning.

Anya glanced from Dawn to Xander, then back to the vampires. “Oy.”

Chapter Eight: Breadcrumbs
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