Epilogue: Chosen

Dawn looked at Angel and smiled. She had sent Buffy and Faith to take care of Caleb while she went to get the amulet.

"You know what this does?" he asked as he handed her the amulet.

"Yes," Dawn said. "It is meant for a Champion. Someone greater than human, but with a soul."

Angel frowned. "You intend to give to Spike, don't you?"

"Yes," Dawn said. "That is his part in what is to come. He dies literally to save the world."

"He doesn't know does he?" Angel asked.

"No," Dawn said. "And for him its better this way. He'll go out with a bang and he'll enjoy it." Angel only nodded. "Tom saw only a handful of episodes of your show. But what I know is this. Your final fight will be a year from now. And that is why it has to be Spike."

Angel nodded. "Then good luck."

Dawn opened a portal and stepped through it into the living room of her house just as the front foor opened and Buffy and Faith walked into the foyer.

"Well?" Dawn said.

"It slices, dices and makes julienne Preacher," Buffy said as Dawn smiled.

"Caleb?" Giles asked.

Faith nodded. "Buffy cut him in half. I'm not gonna lie, it was pretty killer."

"Well all right!" Willow said.

"He had that coming," Anya said.

"I got the amulet," Dawn said. "For Spike."

"Are you sure giving it to him is wise?" Giles asked.

"He needs it to complete his part in the final battle," Dawn said.

Buffy and Faith headed up the stairs as Dawn headed to the basement.

"Back from seeing Tall, Dark and Forehead?" Spike asked.

"Yeah," Dawn said as she handed him the amulet. "You will need this for your part."

"You're still not going to tell me what that is?" Spike asked.

"No," Dawn said as she turned and walked up the stairs.

Later Faith and Buffy lay together on Buffy's bed. "This was nice," Faith said. "I never knew falling for someone could be so …"

"Pleasurable?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah," Faith said. "And I do love you, Buffy."

"And I love you, Faith," Buffy said as she kissed Faith.

Later that night Buffy was wrapped in Faith's arms. As Faith slept Buffy was awake looking at Faith's hand resting on the bed in front of her. She ran her own hand along Faith's and smiled.

Just then Faith rolled over and Buffy took the opportunity to sit up as Caleb emerged from the darkness right next to her.

"Pretty, ain't it?" Caleb said.

"You're not him," Buffy said.

"No, you two killed him right and proper," Caleb said. "Terrible loss. This man was my good

right arm. 'Course, it doesn't pain me too much. Don't need an arm. Got an army."

"An army of vampires. However will I fight a bunch of - oh right, I've been doing that for years!" Buffy said.

Caleb nodded. "Every day our numbers swell. But then, you do have an army of your own. Some thirty-odd pimply-faced girls don't know the pointy end of a stake, maybe I should call this off!"

"Have you ever considered a cool name?" Buffy asked as Faith rolled over having been woken by all the talking. She reached behind her and felt Faith's hand reach for hers. "Since you're incorporeal and basically powerless you could call yourself The Taunter. Strikes fear..."

"I will overrun this earth," Caleb said.

"You know how many people have said that to Buffy?" Faith asked as she sat up and wrapped her arms around Buffy..

Caleb nodded. "I do, since they all had a small part of me in them. Whereas I have all of me in me, so I like my chances somewhat better. And when my army outnumbers the humans on this earth the scales will tip and I will be made flesh."

"Talk on. we're not afraid of you," Buffy said.

"Then why weren't you asleep in your sister Slayer's arms a moment ago?" Caleb asked.

"Because, she's baiting you."

They turned to see Dawn standing in the doorway.

"Tomorrow it ends," Dawn said. "And you're going down."

An hour later Buffy, Faith, Dawn and Willow stood with Andrew, Giles, Wood, Xander and Anya laying out the plan.

"Are you kidding?" Xander asked.

"No, I'm not," Dawn said as she looked at Andrew, Giles, Wood, Xander and Anya. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you guys the plan before now. I wanted the First to think we weren't ready. That's why the only people that knew were Buffy, Willow and I."

"Still," Giles said, "this flies in the face of everything we've ever – that every generation has ever done

in the fight against evil." He then smiled. "I think it's bloody brilliant."

"Thanks," Dawn said. "Willow and I will be key for this. The spell we cast will activate all the Potentials. And then I will join Buffy, Faith, Spike and the rest of the newly called Slayers in the basement while Willow joins Andrew. Andrew I expect you to make sure my love comes back to me."

Dawn was sure that by placing Anya with Xander that they would both survive. She hoped that Andrew would too. But as she had learned long ago, when you change things. They can go in unexpected directions. Such as when Buffy had been in that hell dimension instead of dying.

"I will," Andrew said.

"Are you sure we can do this, baby," Willow said. "This is beyond anything I've ever done. This is a total loss of control."

"I know," Dawn said. "But I will be there to keep you grounded. We can do this, together."

"I'll start digging up my sources," Giles said. "Literally, actually; there's one or two people I need to talk to who are dead."

"Come on. Let's go assemble the cannon fodder," Anya said.

Xander smiled. "We're not calling them that, sweetie."

"Not to their faces - what am I, insensitive?" Anya asked.

"The scythe if you please, Buffy," Dawn said. "Willow and I need to run an energy scan."

Buffy nodded and handed her sister the scythe.

After the Potentials were assembled in the living room Buffy started in explaining things. "I hate this.

I hate being here. I hate that you have to be here. I hate that there's evil, that it's growing, and I hate that I was chosen to fight it. I wish, a whole lot of the time, that I hadn't been. But this isn't about wishes. This is about choices. I never had one. I was chosen. And I accept that. I'm not asking you to accept anything. I'm asking you to make your own choice. I believe we can beat this evil - not when it comes, not after its army is ready, but now. Tonight I'm opening the Seal. I'm going down into the Hellmouth and I'm going to finish it once and for all. I've got strong allies: warriors, charms, sorcerers, and I'll need them all. But I'll also need you. Every single one of you. So now you're asking yourself, What makes this different? What makes us anything more than a bunch of girls getting picked off one by one? It's true none of you has the power Faith and I have. I think both of us would have to die for a new Slayer to be called, and we can't even be sure that girl is in this room. That's the rule. So here's the part where you make a choice."

"What if you could have that power? Now. All of you. In every generation one Slayer is born because

a bunch of guys that died thousands of years ago made up that rule. They were powerful men," Buffy said as she pointed to Willow and Dawn. "These two women are more powerful than all of them combined. So I say we change the rules. I say my power should be our power. Tomorrow Willow and Dawn will use the essence of this scythe, that contains the energy and history of so many Slayers, to change our destiny. From now on, every girl in the world who might be a Slayer, will be a Slayer. Every girl who could have the power, will have the power. Who can stand up, will stand up. Every one of you, and girls we've never known, and generations to come ... they will have strength they never dreamed of, and more than that, they will have each other. Slayers. Every one of us. Make your choice. Are you ready to be strong?"

As Dawn and Willow retired to bed.

"Dawnie," Willow said. "If we …"

Dawn smiled and nodded as she kissed Willow and then they started making out. And in the room down the hall Buffy and Faith were doing the same.

The two couples had one night of pure passion in case tomorrow they might still fail and never have another night again.

As Dawn lay there afterwards Willow's arm draped over her naked body, Dawn gasped out.

"Dawn?" Willow said concerned.

Then Dawn turned over and looked into Willow's eyes. "We're going to win."

"How do you know?" Willow asked.

"Because you will marry me," Dawn said. "On my eighteenth birthday. It will be a double ceremony for on that day Buffy and Faith will get married as well."

Willow smiled as she kissed Dawn.

0 – 0 – 0 – 0 – 0

Sunnydale High School: the last stand, the last battle, the last day as the sun finally rose and rose too fast.

Wood led the girls into the empty corridors of the building. He stopped at the big space at the bottom of the stairs.

"Welcome to Sunnydale High," he told them in a booming voice. "There's no running in the halls, no yelling and no gum. Apart from that we have only one rule."

He stopped and turned.

"If they move, kill them."

Buffy began to move everyone into position as she announced, "Potentials are in the basement, follow Faith and Spike.

As they began to leave, Xander called out, "If you have to go to the bathroom, it's on the left. If you don't have to go to the bathroom, picture what you're about to face. Better to go now."

Wood turned to Willow and Dawn and motioned toward his office. He then turned back towards the others. "Okay, civilians. The vampires get upstairs we have three areas they could get through to another building and down into the sewers."

"Down the hall in the atrium, the north hall here, and the primary target, through the lounge to the science building. Odds are, most of them will head there. Easy to find, big, no sunlight."

"Giles and Robin," Dawn said. "You guys take the lounge." She looked at Xander and Anya. "Xander, Anya, you two take the atrium." She looked to Andrew. "You and Willow will take the north hall."

"We will defend it with our very lives," said Andrew.

Willow rolled her eyes.

"Don't be afraid to use him as a human shield," Xander suggested.

Willow smiled at her best friend.

"And I just wanna say how proud I am to die for this really special cause with you guys," said Andrew. "There's some people I'd like to thank, both good and evil ..."

He was holding a paper, which he now unfolded, and began to read. "A shout out to my brother Tucker, who gave me the inspiration to summon demons and also –"

"Nobody cares, ya little monkey," Anya said.

Willow nodded in agreement and pushed Andrew off down the hall before turning back toward the others. "Okay," she said.

The Five: Dawn, Buffy, Giles, Willow and Xander were left as they looked at each other.

"So," Buffy said, taking on chipper. "What do you guys wanna do tomorrow?"

Willow considered. "Nothing strenuous."

"Mini-golf is always the first thing that comes to mind," Xander said, weighing in.

Giles looked mildly disappointed. "Well, I think we can do better than that."

"I'm pretty much thinking about shopping," Dawn announced.

"There's an Agnes B. in the new mall!" Willow told her excitedly.

"I could use a few items," Xander said.

"Well, no, aren't we going to discuss this?" Giles asked. "We're saving the world to go to the mall?"

"I'm having a wicked shoe craving," Buffy said.

"Aren't you on the patch?" Xander asked her.

Willow shook her head sadly. "Those never work."

"And I'm just here, invisible to the eye, not having any say …" Giles whined.

And the four younger champions headed off, leaving the older one to watch them.

Giles turned away from them. "The earth is definitely doomed."

Then the four peeled off from each other, Dawn and Willow first, then Xander, much with the cash chatter they would have, any other day …

… and Buffy was alone … with memories, with voices.

She made her way into the basement were at the end of the hall, Spike was waiting.

"Time to go to work, love," he said.

He gestured to the Potentials. Some were crowded outside the seal chamber because there was not enough room inside. But they parted respectfully for Buffy. Her gaze ticked toward a few of them. They were so brave, and yet so terrified. Maintaining their control so well … she was proud of them. She wanted to save them, all of them, not lose a single one, ever. For no one to die, ever, in the world …

She moved into the room and stood beside the Seal, next to Faith, who held out a knife.

"You're first, B," Faith said.

Buffy took the knife, cut her hand, and let her blood drip onto the Seal. Faith took the knife and said, "Pucker up, ladies. We're going to Hell."

Then she sliced her own palm with casual aplomb and handed the knife to Annabelle who followed suit. And then one by one each girl around the seal sliced their own palms and then held out their hands …

The Seal started to open.

Steeling her gaze, finding her center, Buffy started down.

In Wood's office, Willow and Dawn sat on the floor, the scythe between them, an athame and bowl at their side. Candles and incense surrounded them.

"They should be in place," Willow said. "Okay, magic time." She gazed at Dawn and decided to tease her just a tad. "You ready to ... heh, heh ... kill me?"

Dawn smiled. "Maybe tomorrow. Today I think I'm ready to feel you inside me," Willow blushed, "magically speaking."

Willow and Dawn took a deep breath and then …

They shut their eyes.

Down among the dead men, into the cavern, Buffy, Faith and a few of the girls went as more followed.

And Spike, with the amulet around his neck.

"Not to be a buzzkill, love," Spike said," but my fabulous accessory isn't exactly tingling with power."

"I'm not worried," Buffy told him.

"I'm getting zero juice here," he went on. "And I look like Elizabeth Taylor."

"Cheer up, Liz," Faith said to him. "The spell don't work, won't matter what you wear."

"I'm not worried," Buffy said again.

But her voice said otherwise, and the others gazed in horror as they moved to the precipice, which looked out over an endless cavern, and in that cavern … thousands of Turok-han.

Thousands.

"I'm not worried," Buffy said, practically catatonic.

"Really?" Rona whispered. "'Cause I'm flashing back to Xander's whole bathroom speech."

"Buffy?" Annabelle asked shrilly.

Buffy closed her eyes. "Now Willow. Now Dawnie."

"Buffy?" This time Annabelle almost screamed.

"I'm not worried!" Buffy proclaimed. "As long as Willow and Dawn can work the spell before they … see us."

As one, the vamps caught sight of the girls. Screaming, they charged.

"Willow," Buffy whispered. "Dawn."

The battle had begun.

In the Principal's office Willow and Dawn were chanting rapid fire.

"Words to the Goddess, prayer to the Goddess, protector of woman of women, the power of the Goddess, Queen of the Moon of the Earth Air Fire Water, of the Angel, of Guardians and of Slayers, of Slayers, of Slayers, of SISTERS."

Willow and Dawn tensed up, eyes widening, a light began to fill the room, coursing through them, through everything.

"Oh ... My ... Goddess," said Willow and Dawn.

Dawn fell back out of the circle, slammed by something unseen. She grunted, shouted … and was filled … filled with power beyond her imagination. She could feel her strength increasing just sitting there.

In the cavern the same power that had swept through Dawn swept through each and every one of the Potentials.

"Sweet fancy Moses," Annabelle gasped.

Buffy and Faith beamed at each other.

"You feel that?" Faith asked Buffy.

"I really do," Buffy told Faith. And then she looked up at the ceiling of the cavern but only for an instant. She could feel her sister and smiled.

"Everyone, hold the line," Faith said.

"These guys are dead," Vi said coolly.

The first wave of vampires hit, frenzied evil spilling over the girls in a blur of teeth and axes and spears, talons and muscles and no fear of pain or dying. They swarmed, enormous killing things …

… and they Slayers went into action.

Upstairs Willow was glimmering and shimmering.

Dawn was still feeling it, still mesmerized by the Power as it worked inside her, coursing through her. It was like a drug, a high, and she was taken over by it.

Then she opened her eyes and smiled, "You are a Goddess!"

For Willow was more than Willow, too-she was the Power incarnate, blown by a force so powerful, so loving, that she was bathed in a pure white wind. Her hair was actually white, streaming out behind her, her smile a bowl to catch her tears.

She like Dawn was forever altered … she was cleansed, forgiven, purified.

The loving wind sucked out of her and her appearance returned to normal. She was clearly completely spent.

Willow looked at Dawn and could feel it deep within her that Dawn was not only a Slayer, but a Goddess as well. "As are you my love," she said as she picked up the scythe and tossed it to Dawn. "Get this to Buffy."

Dawn gazed at Willow one last moment, and then raced away.

On the precipice in the cavern …

Buffy hovered near the edge, fighting every vampire she could touch: She tossed a Turok-han over the side, staked another, then she took a couple of brutal hits.

Dawn jumped through the seal opening, shouting, "Buffy! Catch!" She hurled the scythe at Buffy.

Buffy caught it in mid-flight, not even looking back, and dispatched two vamps immediately.

Dawn was attacked and jumped high, kicking hard-pummeling the enemy with her newfound power.

"Oh, I could get used to this," she exulted.

Spike fought as he had never before; Annabelle, Vi … every one of the former Potentials, now Slayers, were pumped and armed and filled with it. War cries echoed over the frenzy: Faith and Buffy, vamps and Slayers, leaping at each other over the warring crowd. A sprawling, brawling mob: Armageddon.

Having breached the line, some of the vampires saw the seal was open and scurried up it. More followed.

The army of the bad was not getting smaller.

A Turok-han leapt on a young Slayer and tore into her as the girl went down.

Faith battled her way over to Buffy's side. "Hey lover, think it's a little too late to talk this thing out?" asked Faith.

Buffy called out to the girls, "Keep the line together! Drive them to the edge, we can't let them –" She then watched as her sister was sliced through her back from behind. "Dawn!"

Buffy threw the scythe toward Faith as she ran toward Dawn. "Hold the line." Faith nodded as Buffy dusted the vampire that had gutted her sister and then pulled the sword as she helped Dawn slide to the ground. "Dawnie?"

Faith went crazy with battle frenzy, and started taking them out, one by one by one.

A vampire got her around the neck from behind; then more, dogpiling her. Her skin tore; the stench of the monsters assailed her. She tasted blood.

Faith looked around, saw Rona, and shouted, "Rona!"

As she was buried beneath the vampires, she tossed the scythe to Rona.

Who took it, and started hacking.

Searing pain wracked Spike's body; he tossed away a vampire as confusion and pain contorted his body; he clutched his stomach.

He was burning from the inside out.

Dawn and Buffy watched as Annabelle dropped right in front of them, her eyes wide.

Annabelle was dead.

Two more Slayers fell; Kennedy was back against the wall, her weapon knocked from her hand. She was steadying herself, preparing.

On the ground, Buffy continued to hold Dawn as The First appeared before them in its guise as Buffy.

"Ooh! Ow! Mommy!" The First mocked. "That mortal wound looks to be all itchy!"

The First leaned in and said to Dawn, "You managed despite everything that changed. And it was a nice trick. Hey, you came pretty close to smacking me down. What more do you want?"

Buffy and Dawn look at each other as they slowly got to their feet, fury in their eyes. "I want you ... to get out of my face," Dawn told her.

The First backed away, vanished.

Rona saw the sisters standing up, and threw the scythe to Dawn. Dawn caught it, and stood a little straighter.

Dawn screamed, swinging the back of the weapon like a bat, knocking five vamps back over the edge in one blow. Beside her Buffy smiled at Dawn as she unholstered a stake, the size of a baseball bat, that had been slung across her back and drove into the nearest vampire's heart.

And as if her power communicated itself to Faith, she kicked her way out of the dogpile and rose as if from the dead.

The tide turned then: The Power surged in all the Slayers, and it used them to force the vamps back, many of them falling over the edge, and at least one Slayer going with them.

But they were on the offensive now; they were pushing and screaming as if reborn in the mighty throes of the Power, as they battled to save the world.

Spike staggered under the Seal opening, paused, and said, "Oh, bollocks."

Then energy shot up from within him, straight through, like a geyser, piercing the seal, and bursting through the Principal's office and out the ceiling of the building.

The sun hit Spike hard; and he was pinned, pain and something else building inside him … he called out to—

"—Dawn ..."

Dawn saw him, raced to him followed by Buffy.

"Spike!" she shouted—and had to dive out of the way of a prismed ray of pure, soulful sunlight as it blasted out of the amulet and into the cavern.

In an instant, hundreds—thousands of vampires were incinerated.

Then the teeming cavern began to tear apart, walls crumbling, rocks tumbling like bombs; the ground shook and the foundations roared.

"Everybody out! Now!" Faith and Buffy yelled.

The girls fought their way to the exit; everything was shaking.

Dawn came to Spike. He remained still pinned in place, energy still blasting from him.

"I can feel it, Dawn," he murmured.

"What?" asked Buffy.

"My soul," Spike gazed at the sisters with wonder. "It's really there." He grinned faintly. "Kinda stings. Go on, then!"

"You've done enough, you can still—" Buffy started as Dawn put a hand on her sister's shoulder and shook her head.

"No," Dawn said as she looked at Spike. "This is why I didn't tell you. I knew that if you knew you were going to die you might not want to. I'm sorry."

"It's okay, niblet," Spike said. "I understand now. This is my redemption."

"Yes," Dawn said.

Faith called from the entrance of the cavern. "Dawn! Buffy! Come on!"

Then Faith ducked some falling debris and disappeared from the entrance.

"Gotta move, lambs," Spike said. "I think it's fair to say school's out for the bloody summer."

"Come on, Buffy," Dawn said. "We have to go before they leave without us."

Buffy nodded as she kissed Spike on the cheek. "Thank you." She then turned and followed Dawn up the stairs and out of the building. Getting on the bus at the very last minute just as Wood shut the door and peeled out.

The bus rolled on, just ahead of the cracking earth. Buffy watched as Faith crouched beside Wood, staunching a wound in his side.

Dawn watched as Giles wrapped a tourniquet around a wounded Rona, who was fading.

Vi was in Rona's face, yelling at her, "Stay awake. Look at me! This is nothing!"

Dawn sighed when she looked at Xander and Anya. They both had lived. She glanced around the bus then smiled there was Andrew also. And then her eyes fell on Willow and she smiled even more. Other than a couple of the former Potentials no one had died this time around. She had changed what she could.

Buffy looked to Dawn and then followed her gaze and nodded. She helped her sister to Willow who smiled at Buffy and took Dawn into her arms and held her close.

The entire town was sinking into a smoking black crater, the bus just making its way to the edge of the town ahead of the destruction.

Faith looked out, and said to Wood, "Ease off. We're clear."

The bus screeched to a stop.

Someone opened the back door as Faith opened the front and they all began to pile out.

The moment Xander, Anya, Buffy, Willow, Dawn and Faith were off the bus they were hugging each other. Well Xander was hugging Anya, Buffy was hugging Faith and Dawn was hugging Willow.

Sunnydale was a smoking black crater.

Buffy, Dawn, Willow, Faith, Xander, Giles and Anya walked toward the edge of it, smoke rolling before them, as Giles said, "I don't understand. What did this?"

"Spike," said Dawn.

The sign that read WELCOME TO SUNNYDALE toppled backward into the crater; the fillip on the town's demise, as girls milled about, counting their losses, checking in, processing that they had not only survived, but prevailed.

"Looks like the Hellmouth is officially closed for business," said Faith.

"There is another one in Cleveland," Giles said. "Not to spoil the moment..."

"We saved the world," said Xander.

"We changed the world," said Willow.

"I can feel them, Buffy," said Dawn.

"As can I," said Willow. "All over. There are Slayers awakening everywhere."

"We'll have to find them," said Dawn.

"We will," Willow agreed.

Giles sighed theatrically. "Yes, because the mall was actually in Sunnydale, so no hope of going there tomorrow..."

"We destroyed the Mall? I fought on the wrong side ..." Dawn choked as Buffy laughed at her sister.

"All those stores gone," Xander said sadly. "The Gap, Starbucks, Toys R Us ... who will remember these landmarks unless we tell the world of them?"

"We have a lot of work ahead of us," said Giles.

Faith appealed to the group. "Can I push him in?"

"You got my vote," Willow said, grinning.

Faith yawned, stretched. "I just wanna sleep, yo. For like a week."

"I guess we all could," said Dawn. "If we wanted to."

"Yeah, the First is scrunched, so..." Willow looked at Buffy. "What do you think we should do, Buffy?"

Faith grinned at Buffy. "Yeah, you're not the one and only chosen anymore. Just gotta live like a person. How's that feel?"

Buffy looked at Faith and smiled.

"Buffy?" Dawn asked her big sister. "What are we gonna do now?"

Two years later on Dawn's 18th birthday

"Do you Dawn Marie Summers take Willow Danielle Rosenberg to be your partner, through sickness and health, through richer or poorer, till death do you part?"

"I do," Dawn said with love evident in her voice.

"Do you Buffy Anne Summers take Faith Eliza Lehane to be your partner, through sickness and health, through richer or poorer, till death do you part?"

"I do," Buffy said as she smiled at Faith.

"I now pronounce you wife and wife. You may kiss the brides."

Dawn leaned in and kissed Willow as Faith leaned in and kissed Buffy.

"May I present. Mrs. and Mrs. Dawn Rosenberg-Summers. And Mrs. and Mrs. Buffy Summers-Lehane."-

Giles, Andrew, Xander, Anya and all the Potentials that had been at the Battle of Sunnydale stood up as they began to clap. What had started with a set of memories now had reached its conclusion.

Or had it?

To Be Continued in Wrong Memory 2: Wizarding Memories and Wrong Memory 3: Atlantis Memories