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Rescue and Sacrifice	By : QueenC Category: AtS/BtVS Crossovers > Het - Male/Female > Connor/Dawn Views: 2677 -:- Recommendations : 0 -:- Currently Reading : 0
Disclaimer: I do not own AtS or BtVS. I do not make any money from the writing of this story.

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Title: Rescue and Sacrifice (2/?)

Author: QueenC

Rating: R

Pairings: Dawn/Connor; Angel/Cordelia; Buffy/Spike

Disclaimer: Joss owns all. All hail Joss.

Spoilers: Anything and everything is fair game.

Summary: Willing to do anything to get his son back, Angel enlists the help of an unlikely candidate.

Author's Notes: Ok, this story has been rattling around in my brain since halfway through 'Common Ground'. This story is slightly AU. Basically, Dawn discovered that she could use her Key powers early on, and has been working with Tara to perfect her skills and Groo never showed up at AI. Also, Buffy isn't quite as hostile to Spike. In fact, they have a tentative friendship. I think those are about the only major changes. And, as in all my stories, Angel is Spike's sire because I simply refuse to believe anything else. Words in *'s are emphasized, words in 's are thoughts, and words in ~'s are dreams.

******

LA

"So, let me get this straight. You're going to Sunnydale to get the Slayer's sister, who isn't *really* her sister, to open a portal to Quortoth so you can get Connor back," Gunn stated, watching as his employer stuffed weapons into a duffel bag.

Cordelia nodded, coming around the counter with a handful of books. "That pretty much sums it up," she said, handing the books to Angel, who promptly placed them in the bag as well. Then, she turned, facing the remainder of their group. "I'll call you if I have a vision, okay?"

Fred nodded, her eyes wide as she tried to process what was happening. However, Gunn wasn't so easily swayed.

"So, you just want us to stay here and twiddle or thumbs whilu'ru're off on some suicide mission?" he asked, abruptly jumping off the counter, where he'd been sitting. He shook his head, walking towards them. "Sorry, not going to happen."

Angel suddenly turned, giving the street-wise young man a dark look. "You don't have a say in this, Gunn. We're going, you aren't. That's final," he ordered. The tone of his voice brooked no room for argument.

Gunn stared at the vampire for a moment. Finally, he sighed. "Man, you know this ain't right. We should be there to help you. You're going to the *darkest* of the dark worlds. You don't know what's there, what you're going to be up against. You *need* us," he reasoned.

Before another argument could begin, Lorne, who had been watching the interaction silently, raised his hand and spoke up. "Um, you know how much I *hate* violence, fighting, or anything else that can lead to pain. However, I'm going to have to agree with Gunn on this one, Angelcakes. If you're going to do this, you're going to need all the help you can get."

The souled vampire growled softly, giving the Host a dark look. Yet, when the green-skinned demon refused to look away or back down, he sighed, realizing that he had lost the argument.

Cordelia smiled, clapping her hands together. "Ok! Well, not that *that's* settled, what do you say we get going? We have a baby to save!" she exclaimed.

Fred suddenly gasped, her eyes wide. "Oh! I need to go pack!" Seeing the dangerous look Angel was giving her, she looked down, shrugging. "Or, maybe not," she mumbled.

Angel ignored the guilt he was feeling at his behavior. He glanced anxiously between Cordelia and the door, half-tempted to tell them that he was going, whether they were ready or not.

However, his Seer beat him to it. "Well, I'm going to the car. Anyone not there in the next two minutes gets left behind," she said simply, heading to the front door. Instantly everyone else followed.

"You know what I find strange?" Fred mused as they all piled into the convertible. She didn't bother to wait for anyone to ask, just plowed on with her opinion. "We knew who Dawn was, or, used to be, from when Buffy, you know, died. So, why didn't we think of her when this first happened?"

Angel shrugged, throwing the car into drive and pulling away. "I just assumed that she had lost her abilities as the Key," he answered, the lightheartedness he had once shown slowly beginning to return. He actually had a partial smile on his face and a fairly cheerful tone. However, everyone knew he wouldn't be himself completely until Connor was back home.

Shaking his head, he marveled at the irony that ruled his life.

"So, um, how long until we get there?" Gunn asked after a moment.

Cordelia rolled her eyes, turning from her spot in the front seat to glare at him. "Gunn, I swear, if you start asking 'are we there yet', I'm going to make you ride in the trunk!" she threatened.

The young man shook his head. "No, I ain't gonna start that," he assured her. "I was just asking. Seeing as how I've never been to Sunnydale before, I was just wondering how long it took."

"About two hours," Angel answered quietly.

"Of course, with the way Angelcakes up there is driving, we'll probably make it in about, oh, twenty minutes!" Lorne spoke up, his eyes widening as the car whipped across two lanes of traffic.

The vampire gripped the steering wheel tighter, pressing his foot on the gas pedal and glancing at the speedometer. "I'm only going ninety," he argued. He could practically feel the incredulous looks coming from the backseat. Pouting slightly, he slowed down to eighty-eight. "Well, I was," he muttered. Then, as an afterthought, added, "You should see how Cordelia used to drive!"

"Hey!" the former cheerleader objected. "I wasn't *that* bad!"

Angel chuckled, nodding his head. "Yes, you *were*!" he insisted, glancing at her. "When I rode with you when you were in high school, you nearly gave me a heart attack...and my heart doesn't *beat*!" he exclaimed.

Cordelia rolled her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest. "Whatever," she huffed. However, her eyes betrayed the anger in her voice. "Like you really paid attention to how I drove back then! I could have walked up to you naked with 'bite me' written on my forehead, and you wouldn't have even noticed!"

The crew of Angel Investigations continued to chat back and forth for the next two hours, temporarily forgetting about what lay ahead of them. By the time they passed the 'Welcome to Sunnydale' sign, they were in much lighter moods and had re-cemented the bonds that had held them together for so long.

Lorne smiled, pleased with himself. Slowly, his grin faded.

******

Sunnydale

Dawn sat in the middle of her room, her eyes closed, her back straight, and her face a mask of concentration. She knew what she was doing was dangerous. She knew that if she were caught, she'd be forbidden from ever practicing magic again. However, she also knew that she only had a short amount of time to become used to using her power without guidance.

She wasn't sure if it had been the dream that had warned her, or something else, some type of premonition; she'd had without realizing it. All she knew was, she had an enormous urge to learn how to open portals on her own and that, very soon, she was going to need to know how to do it. So, she had been sitting in her room for the past four hours, making small rifts in realities, then closing them once she felt that they were fairly stable. And, to top it all off, she was getting pretty good at it.

Suddenly, a knock sounded at the door, disrupting her from her task. Sighing in frustration, she opened her eyes, watching as her latest potential triumph fizzled into nothingness.

Standing, she stretched, working the kinks out of her muscles. "Yeah?" she asked, glancing towards her bedroom door as whoever it was knocked again.

"Dawn, is everything ok?" Buffy asked, her voice muffled through the wood. "You've been held up in there ever since you came home from school."

The teenager rolled her eyes. "I'm fine, Buffy. I was just catching up on some studying," she fibbed.

The Slayer frowned. She knew something was wrong. However, she didn't know what. "Ok," she said uncertainly. "Well, dinner's going to be ready in a few minutes. Actually, it's pizza, so it's already ready. I'm just waiting on Spike to pick it up on his way over."

Dawn sighed, slowly opening the door and looking at her sister. "Ok. Thanks. I'll be out in a few minutes." Then, before the blonde could argue, she shut the door again, quickly locking it. She leaned against the wall, waiting until her sister had gone back downstairs before she slumped to the ground, holding her aching head in her hands.

"Damn it," she swore, rubbing her temples. "Why won't the pain go away?"

Buffy paused at the foot of the stairs, her Slayer hearing picking up on the soft whisper from the youngest Summers. Yet, the voice was too muffled for her to actually make out what was being said. Shaking her head, she sighed, walking into the kitchen.

Willow looked up from her seat at the bar as Buffy entered. "So, is Dawn ok? It's not anything serious, is it?" the redhead asked, concern filling her bright green eyes.

The blonde gave her a grim look. "Nope, I'm afraid it's *very* serious. So serious, in fact, that there's nothing *anyone* can do for her. It's a hopeless cause," she answered.

The former witch gasped, nearly dropping her bottle of water. "What is it? Some side effect from the Key stuff?" she questioned.

Buffy shook her head. Solemnly, she stated, "Even worse. I think she has a crush." At the shocked look on her friend's face, she grinned, laughing softly.

Willow's eyes widened, then she began giggling. "Really? Dawn's in *love*?" she squealed. "That's so *cute*! So, what's his name? Have you met him?"

The Slayer shook her head. "Nope. She hasn't done the whole bring him home to meet the parents, er, guardian, yet. And, I think his name is Steven. She had a dream about him last night at the Magic Box, and was pretty excited when she woke up. Oh! Plus, she's been locked up in her room all afternoon. I think she's doing the swooning and daydreaming bit."

The redhead nodded excitedly, bouncing up and down in her seat. "This is *so* great! Pretty soon she'll be dating, and..." Seeing the shell-shocked look on Buffy's face, she quickly amended, "Of course, when I say pretty soon, I mean as in a few years!"

Before Buffy could respond to that comment, there was a knock at the front door. "Who could that be? Spike would just walk in and everyone else is busy until later," she wondered, heading into the hallway. Opening the door, she gasped, all the color draining from her face.

"Angel."

Angel stared at the woman that had been his first love, a small smile on his face. She looked just as beautiful as he remembered. Yet, he felt none of the heart breaking, soul wrenching passion and pain he normally associated with her. He intended to make some small talk before telling her what he was there for. However, as he opened his mouth, he couldn't stop the words that poured out.

"Hey Buffy. Is Dawn home? I need her help."

******
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Rescue and Sacrifice