Title: Lil' White Lies
Author: Christine
Email: Xanderette43@hotmail.com
Rating: R
Spoilers: Three years after the season five finale ‘The Gift’.
Disclaimer: I don’t own anything, blah blah blah... you know the drill by now.
Dedication: To Regina cause you rock girl! whooo whoo!
Distribution: My site Lil' Nibblin... also Railroad Stakes and Sunrises, Tremble, Aurora Borealis, and Original. Everyone else, you can take it, but just let me know where its going. :)

Part One


The sun had just disappeared behind the horizon when Dawn slowly crept down the stairs, making sure they didn’t creak. She got to the bottom and looked around cautiously before tiptoeing to the front door. Just as she opened it up, it slammed shut and Dawn winced. She turned around and saw Willow and Xander standing down the hallway with their arms crossed over their chests. Dawn sighed.

“Um, hi guys.”

Willow walked over to Dawn and raised her eyebrows. “Dawnie I thought Xander and I went over this with you. You have to tell us where you’re going!”

Dawn rolled her eyes. Every time she went somewhere, Willow freaked out. She was seventeen and the Scoobies still thought she was a baby. She also knew that they’d really flip out if they knew where she was going for real. She hated lying to them, but she knew the truth would hurt them more then the lies.

“Guys, I’m just going over to Regina’s house, she’s having some people over and I promised her that I’d help her set up balloons and stuff. Please don’t make a big deal out of this.”

Willow’s features softened. She knew that they all were a little hard on Dawn, but it was only because they knew that the rustling behind the bushes weren’t just bunnies. She also knew that Dawn was almost eighteen and didn’t need to be told what to do anymore, but since Buffy’s death three years ago, they had all assumed the role of Dawn’s parents, with Willow and Xander officially adopting her so that she wouldn’t be taken away.

Xander walked over to Dawn and put a hand on her shoulder. “Dawn, we just don’t want you to get hurt... you know as well as we do what’s out there, and we don’t want anything happening to you or anyone else.”

Dawn smiled softly at him and Willow. “I won’t be out all night, I’ll be back in a few hours I promise.”

Willow looked at Xander and then back at Dawn. “All right, but be back before one o’clock okay?”

Dawn nodded. “I promise.”

She hugged them both and zipped up her jacket as she walked out the front door. “Bye guys, I’ll see you later!”

Willow and Xander watched her walk from the driveway on to the sidewalk and noticed she turned right instead of left where Regina’s house was a few blocks down. Willow looked at Xander who had on the same confused look as she did. Something was up, but neither of them knew what.

Dawn rounded the corner of Rosewood Dr. and stopped when she saw the familiar pathway. She made her way through the field until she reached the building and opened the door slowly, not wanting to draw unwanted attention to herself from making a lot of noise. She slid in through the small opening and closed the heavy door behind her. She leaned up against it and smiled as she glanced around the room and saw that there were hundreds of candles lit all around the room. She slowly unzipped her jacket and tossed it to the ground. She walked to the middle of the room and leaned down to smell the vanilla fragrance that drifted around the room when a pair of arms encircled her waist and spun her around.

“Hullo Nibblin, I missed you.”




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