"Dawn, stay with me here, I'm not done yet." Angelus sung in the bittersweet tone he used around the teenager.

Hair clinging to her clammy skin, Dawn choked on her own tears as she dangled helplessly against the cold stone wall. Every time she closed her eyes to block it all out, his voice cut through the blessed silence and pulled her back to reality.

Bodies bloodied so badly she could barely make out who they were anymore, the room stank of death. He was saving her for last. Only because he knew, even in death, it would kill Buffy to know her little sister suffered such an ordeal.

Angelus looked up and held Willow's injured face for viewing. "She looks real pretty, don't you think?"

*~*~*~*~*

For the second time that night Tara was woken to the screams. Moving quickly, she rolled over and held Dawn's flailing arms down.

"Shh, baby, it's okay." Tara hushed soothingly. "Calm down."

"Willow…" Dawn cried painfully. "No…"

Tara felt a stab of regret at the sound of Willow's name. Years gone by and the redhead still haunted her dreams.

Not as much as she haunted Dawn's though.

"Tara…" Dawn whimpered, her eyes now open and filled with tears.

"Ssh," Whispered Tara, holding Dawn's head to her chest and running her fingers across the lifeless brown hair. "It's alright, Dawnie. I'm here."

"Willow…"

"I know." Tara said, gently. "It's gonna be alright, just breathe. I'm right here. You're safe."

Dawn quietened as Tara began to sing a lullaby, all the time brushing her fingers down Dawn's cheek. She felt the body go limp in her arms and carefully laid her back onto her pillow. Watching Dawn's chest rise and fall, now a far cry from the state she was just in, Tara wondered when it would all end. How long until Angelus stopped hurting the girl beside her and they could leave the past behind them?

With a deep sigh, Tara lay back down beside Dawn, her face only inches away. She watched Dawn sleep until her eyes grew heavy and she was finally able to join her.

*~*~*~*~*

Buffy was dead. They all vowed vengeance on the thing that had killed her, but despite their efforts, no one could find her killer. Spike disappeared, with no word of where he was going. At first it was assumed he'd removed the implanted chip from his brain, but when word got round that Angelus had returned, it became clear what had happened.

With no one to protect them, they knew it was only a matter of time before Angelus struck again. They tried to leave Sunnydale, but they didn't get far before Dawn went missing.

One by one they were taken, all killed for Dawn's viewing pleasure. All killed to drive the young girl into insanity before Angelus killed her.

But he hadn't counted on the pissed off blonde witch.

*~*~*~*~*

"Dawn? You want some breakfast?" Tara asked, as the young woman appeared from the bedroom. "I made pancakes."

Dawn crossed her arms over her chest and shook her head. "No thanks."

Frowning, Tara sighed at her. "You've got to eat something. You're getting to skinny."

"I'm fine." Dawn snapped, protectively. "I don't wanna eat, alright?"

With eyes lowered, Tara returned to the kitchen of their tiny apartment. She knew it was just the lack of sleep that made Dawn act this way. It was hard to remember a night where Dawn *did* sleep well though.

Tara jumped as hands slipped round her waist from behind. "I'm sorry."

Smiling, Tara placed her hand on the pale arm around her. "It's okay. I just worry, that's all."

Pulling away, Dawn lifted herself onto the kitchen counter and smiled. "You going to stay with me today?"

"Don't I always?" Tara asked, picking at the abundance of pancakes she'd made in the hope of getting Dawn to actually eat something.

Dawn frowned. "You go to work, don't you?"

"Well, I have to if you want a place to stay." Tara reminded her softly. "I hate leaving you as much as you do, but it's important."

Dawn looked away. "It's always worse when you're not here."

"I know, sweetie. But there's no one else…" Tara explained.

"And we all know whose fault that is." Dawn said, bitterly.

If Tara hadn't have known better, she'd have thought Dawn was talking about Angelus. But after years together, she knew all too well that Dawn only blamed herself for everything that had happened.

"Baby, it's not your fault." Tara said, soothingly as she walked over and put her hands on Dawn's legs. "I wish you'd believe that."

"He killed them all for me." Dawn hissed, barely holding back the rage of emotions that always arose when talking about *him*.

"He killed them all for himself. Not for you." Tara corrected. "If you're going to blame yourself, why not blame me? I was the only one he didn't know about. I could have done something sooner and he wouldn't have expected it. If I'd got there sooner…"

"Then you'd have died as well, and I'd either be dead or insane by now. Insane-er." Dawn pointed out.

"You're not insane." Tara assured her.

Dawn laughed. "Look at me. I'm twenty next month and I still feel like a little kid. I still act like one. Nightmares at my age…I just can't let it go. I can't grow up. You should have dumped me in an asylum years ago and you know it."

"I'd never do that." Tara said, holding Dawn tighter. "You're all I've got left, and I'm all you've got left. We're staying together."

"Until he…" Dawn broke off.

"Until he what?" Tara asked.

Ignoring the question, Dawn slid off the counter and pushed past Tara, walking back towards the bedroom.

"Dawn?" Tara urged. "Until he what?"

"Your pancakes are getting cold." Dawn said, flatly.

"Is this what you dreamt about?" Tara asked.

"I don't remember my dreams." Dawn lied.

Tara walked over to the younger woman and looked her in the eye. "He's not coming after us."

"How could you know that?" Dawn asked, angrily. "Buffy said exactly the same. Angel would never lose his soul again. She would never leave me. She lied…she didn't have a clue. She just lied to make me stop worrying about it. Don't you dare lie to me now."

"I'm not. If he was after us, don't you think he'd have found us by now?" Tara asked.

Dawn shrugged. "I don't know. What I do know is, he swore to me he'd be the one to kill me. If he's still alive, he's going to keep his promise. Just don't be here when he does."

"Dawn…" But it was too late. Dawn walked away, leaving Tara on her own.

*~*~*~*

"Dawn, I have to work the night shift tonight, are you going to be alright?" Tara asked, as she poked her head round the bedroom door. Dawn lay on the bed. Not moving, but not quite sleeping either.

She didn't answer.

"I'll be home in the morning." Tara promised. "Call me if you need me."

Dawn lay still, waiting for the sound of the front door closing. As it did, she clenched her eyes shut and tried to think of pointless things. Television commercials, the pair of boots she'd seen in the mall the other day that she would have wanted once upon a time…the way it felt when Tara held her and chased her demons away…

She heard the bedroom door creek open and her chest tightened, making it hard to breath.

She began to whisper to herself. "No, no, no, no, no, no…"

She didn't dare move as the bed shook slightly, dipping at one end.

"…No, no, no, no, no, no…"

"Dawn."

"Willow?" Sitting up, Dawn's eyes opened wide with horror.

Willow, looking exactly as Dawn remembered her, sat on the edge of the bed, smiling back at her.

"You're not here. You're not real." Dawn stated. She didn't believe for one second that this was real. She'd watched Willow die, there was just no way…

"Sssh, Dawnie. Willow's here. Come closer." Willow hushed, gently.

"You're in my head. This isn't real." Dawn said again as she closed her eyes, trying to will the ghost away.

"Dawn…come here…" Buffy's voice demanded.

Eyes snapping open, Dawn watched her sister sitting where Willow once sat, hair tied up, still wearing the clothes she had worn the day she disappeared. "Oh God. Buffy…"

"It's alright. Come here. I'm going to take care of you…" Buffy told her.

"I can't…" Dawn said, closing her eyes. "Go away, please…"

"Dawn…"

A cold feeling spread across her body and her throat felt suddenly strangled at the sound of the new voice. "No…"

"I told you I'd be here when you died. I told you it would be me."

Dawn opened her eyes, praying he wouldn't be there. He was. "You're not real!"

"Did you think you could run from me?" Angelus asked, getting closer as Dawn sank back against the wall, her legs tucked in close, trying desperately to get as far away as she could from the monster leering back at her.

"Stop it…" Dawn whispered.

"They're all waiting for you, Dawnie." Angelus said, sweetly. "Buffy, Willow, Xander, Giles…they're all waiting."

"Stop…"

"You shouldn't have run from me, little girl. I don't forget that easily. You knew it was only a matter of time." Angelus told her, leaning in closer. "I promised you I'd make it good…want to see how good it can feel, Dawnie?"

"Please, no, please, no." Dawn whispered, tears rolling down her cheeks as she pressed her back into the wall.

"First you…and then your little witch friend. Want to watch as I fuck her…like you watched me with the others? You'd enjoy that, wouldn't you? I'm doing this all for you, baby. We're family after all."

"Go away!" Dawn screamed, bringing her hands to her eyes and shaking with fear.

Moments passed before she slowly brought down her hands and looked around.

She was alone.

Sobbing, she slipped under the covers and lay in a foetus position, waiting for Tara to return.

*~*~*~*

Tara dropped her keys on the table and made her way to the bedroom. No doubt she'd find Dawn in a bad state. She hated leaving her at night, but she had no choice.

A lump under the bedclothes at least alerted her to Dawn's presence. As she pulled them back, a shivering, tear stained face look up at her. "Are you real?"

"What? Of course…" Tara said, sitting beside her on the bed. "What happened?"

"Hold me." Dawn whispered, getting up and falling into Tara's arms. "Don't leave me, please."

"I'm not going to. I'm right here." Tara said, rocking Dawn back and forth as her hand stoked the younger girl's hair. "No one's going to hurt you."

Dawn said, nothing, just closed her eyes and let Tara hold her, feeling her fear slowly starting to fade.

*~*~*~*

"Dawn!"

"Xander?"

"Go…just go…"

"I can't…where are you?"

"Please…go…"

"Xander, I can't see you!"

"He's coming…run…"

"Xander!"

*~*~*~*

Tara sat up in bed, unable to sleep. She watched Dawn toss and turn, occasionally talking or crying out in her sleep, calling the names of those they had lost. She pushed a stand of hair from Dawn's face, wishing she knew what Dawn saw. She was afraid she'd never be able to help if she didn't know what was happening in the young woman's head.

"…Tara…"

"Right here." Tara whispered, not sure if this was more sleep talk or not.

"Touch me…"

Tara reached down and began to stroke Dawn's forehead with her thumb.

"I need you…please…" Dawn begged quietly.

Still unsure whether Dawn even knew what she was saying, Tara did nothing.

Dawn's eyes opened slowly and she looked up at the blonde girl looking down at her. "He said he was going to be my first. Don't let him. I want you…"

Confused and slightly unnerved by Dawn's words, Tara lay down and put her arm round her. "He's not going to be your anything, Dawn."

"Please, I want you. Don't let him take that from me." Dawn pleaded, tears forming in her eyes as she spoke.

"I can't…Dawn, you're not thinking straight. We'll talk about it tomorrow." Tara whispered.

Sitting up in bed, Dawn cupped Tara's face with her hands and kissed her. Tara remained motionless for a few seconds, before her arms wound around Dawn and she began to kiss back.

Dawn's hands ran into Tara's hair, holding them together, before she broke away and lifted up her vest top, watching nervously for Tara's reaction.

"Dawn…I don't want to take advantage of you…" Tara stuttered, trying not to look at the other girl's body.

"I want to." Dawn insisted. "I won't let him take this. I want you to have it. You're all I have and I love you so much…"

"You're not ready…" Tara argued.

"I am." Dawn countered. "I've wanted you to do this for so long. But you're not here because you want me. You're here because I'm the only one left…I know that…"

"Dawn, no."

"But it's okay. I just want tonight. You don't have to love me, too." Dawn told her, taking one of Tara's hands and slowly lifting it, placing in on her breast.

Tara struggled to get her words out. "I…do. I love you. You don't have to do this to prove that you love me though…"

"I'm not. You look after me, you protect me. You're like my mother, my best friend and my girlfriend all mixed into one. I'm doing this *because* I love you, not to prove it."

Tara swallowed her arguments down. She knew there would always be this bond between them, but Dawn wasn't talking about the kind of love that usually resulted in a relationship. It was a different kind of love that held them together. And she knew that if she let this continue, it would happen time and again, until it became the only way to comfort each other. Because at the end of the day, that's all it was. A comfort thing.

Dawn took Tara's silence as agreement and let go of her hand. Tara slowly brushed her thumb across the breast she held, teasing the nipple. She'd forgotten how good this felt…it had been so long…

"Show me." Dawn whispered, urgently.

Tara guided Dawn onto her back, her hand still stroking Dawn's hair, a habit she'd picked up for keeping the girl calm. She was very careful at first; terrified she'd spark a bad memory for Dawn and cause a fit of hysteria. As Dawn closed her eyes, groaning at the feeling Tara was creating on her breasts, Tara allowed herself to take it a bit further, leaning down kissing the other one, playing with the nipple between her lips. Experience soon took over and her hand slipped down the girl's body, pushing down the panties she found there, before easing between the parted legs and inside. Touching that part Dawn had never really felt before, Tara started rubbing against the clitoris, watching as Dawn arched her back in pleasurable surprise.

"God…yes…" Dawn gasped.

Smiling faintly, Tara pressed harder, moving her whole body to the rhythm of her finger, until Dawn copied her movement. Just as Dawn was getting vocal, Tara eased a finger inside Dawn, using her thumb to continue the attention to her clit. As she was moving her finger in and out of Dawn, she pictured Willow beneath her. The last girl she'd done this with. The only girl she'd ever love. She felt guilty for doing it, but just as Dawn was reluctant to let go of her past, Tara was reluctant to let go of Willow.

"More…please…" Dawn whined, her hands now on her breasts, copying Tara's earlier movements.

Tara carefully pushed another finger into Dawn, winced as Dawn shook with the added pain. A few small thrusts and Dawn was getting used to the intrusion, enjoying it even. Her hips bucked with each push, tensing as the pressure on her clit caused an explosion inside. She felt her whole body quiver pleasurably before it faded away, leaving her breathless.

Tara pulled away, nervously. "Dawn, are you okay?"

Still catching her breath, Dawn nodded, a smile on her face.

Tara watched as her eyes closed and she slowly let herself fall back to sleep, both the exhaustion and sleep deprivation finally taking it's toll. Lying down beside her, Tara tried to get some sleep, hoping that she'd finally helped Dawn find some peace.

*~*~*~*

That night, Dawn slept soundly, undisturbed by memories and voices. It was the first night she didn't dream of them. It was the first night in a long time that Tara hadn't been woken to Dawn's terrified screams. For once, they slept soundly, wrapped in each other's arms. It wasn't love. Not that kind. It was a comfort thing. And for now, it was all either could hope for.