It didn't end on the note that I was expecting and would have preferred, but I did like it very much. That tends to be the case for most of your stuff, and I look forward to your next story.

So sad that they think a mature decision has to make them less than happy and that they are so pessimistic of them ever working out :(

Very nice. Quite enjoyable. Thanks for writing.

I *like* this setup.
A street-smart, tough Xander, and an intelligent Buffy makes a nice change.

Too bad about Dawn deciding to choose Right Then as the time to make some points with her party pets.

It's funny, I've been trying to find this story for ages and I couldn't remember enough to find it. I just went back and re-read the ff.net version and even though I still really like it I think your re-write is a significant improvement in terms of writing and structure. Good work.

Great, "Watcher Xander" scene!
Great chapter!

Wow, I enjoyed the first chapter but I'll tell you. I so didn't think the bit about Dawn turning him down would work, but I really like the direction the story is going in. Your character work really is great. I hope to read more of this. Thanks

Classy. Buffy's learned from the past. Not everyone is willing to do that.

Very nice. ;-)

I'm enjoying this story a great deal, and I liked, very much!, the way Xander dealt with the bloodsucking Wyatt Earp wannabe. ;-)

Looking forward to seeing what develops next.

I loved this story on Ff.net and I'm looking forward to seeing where the rewrite goes. I also hope that this means that finishing Rising From the Darkness hasn't killed your muse entirely, as I have enjoyed just about everything you've written and would love to see you continue to write, either new material or continuing old stories. Keep up the great work.
Cheers,
Twilight0Wanderer

I think that this was very well-written, and was an accurate and quite plausible extension of how the characters might develop after 'Chosen.'

While I was quite disappointed in the way Dawn behaved, and most especially with both what she said to Xander and the way she phrased it, given the fact that she was at least partially drunk, I can see why most people will be saying she should be given a second chance.

Truthfully, I'm not sure that Dawn *should* be offered a second chance to make amends. As another reviewer noted, 'In vino, veritas,' meaning that alcohol generally produces the truth as the imbiber sees it, no matter how badly phrased that truth might then be offered.

Xander's hearing Dawn say all those hateful and viciously spiteful things means he will never be able to pretend he didn't hear them, and they are *always* going to be lurking in the back of his mind in any future conversation he will have with her, and they can't ever be ignored, even if one of them should die. And words like that *should* always be remembered.

Actually, one could hypothesize that Xander chose not to wait to speak with her until the next morning, when Dawn would be sober (and much more careful of her response), so that he might possibly learn what she truly thought of him when he made his offer.

As you pointed out, during season six, Dawn became little more than a Spike-groupie, choosing to ignore that Xander and other 'mere' humans risked much more than the superpowered members of their little group, but still went out each night and did just as much, and thus, one could argue, risking proportionately *more* than their powered-up teammates. Comparing Xander to Spike (a being whom Xander has pretty much always despised and held in contempt), and declaring him to be less worthy than a formerly evil, scheming, manipulative would-be rapist, is undoubtedly the death knell for any future relationship hopes Dawn might have been holding in her heart of hearts, and she has only herself to blame for that. Should Dawn eventually 'man up' and flew to Africa to visit Xander in order to apologize (which I truthfully can't see *this* version of her ever doing), I can't see him ever agreeing to simply dismiss her comments and have them begin again with a clean slate.

Having said that, I want to say that I liked the way Buffy offered her explanation of her past behavior to Xander - neither apologizing for what she did nor using it as an excuse, but merely presenting it as the truth that it was. I also liked the way she explained why she hadn't tried to more actively pursue him during the time Willow was with the coven.

I am certainly looking forward to seeing the next two chapters you mentioned to another reviewer, to see how the admittedly complex relationships among all of them develop.

One more thought - given that Dawn has taken any possible chance at a relationship with Xander and burned it to the ground, and then pissed on the ashes, to boot, this now gives Buffy an opportunity to try and develop her own romantic relationship with Xander. Buffy and Xander both now understand why things never developed romantically between them earlier, and should something like that happen, it won't be Xander offering his heart to Buffy to possibly be stomped on again - it will be Buffy trying to initiate a relationship, with Xander being the one who decides how they might proceed.

Regardless of how you think things will go, I am most definitely looking forward to seeing what you have in store.

Additional thoughts I had after re-reading some other reviews: Your comment that Dawn was considering what her so-called 'friends' might think of her if she had accepted his offer makes me wonder what she must have said to them concerning him previously.

After all, from a female perspective (I have five younger sisters, so I think I have a fair grasp of what a teenaged girl, even one in college, would consider acceptable) a tanned, muscular, good-looking guy would almost always draw approving looks from any crowd of girls, unless they knew him to be an abuser (and even then, he might still be considered 'hot'), a child molester or seriously mentally unbalanced. And, in a great many cases, the eyepatch could make teenaged girls consider the guy wearing it to be even hotter, because of the implication of violence which would be associated with it.

So, for Dawn to be concerned about what the people she currently associates with might think of someone they've never met before, she must have made some negative and disparaging comments about him to them before this occasion.

Which is something that Xander will eventually realize, also.

Any possibility of a future involving the two of them together is becoming more and more remote.

Thanks for such a detailed and considered review. I appreciate the thought and effort that went into it.

A very much needed clearing of the air between two old friends. I'm just sorry it took Buffy two years to work up to it. From what Xander said about Africa it sounds like they need her out there. As for Dawn, she should have gone easy on the booze :(

A very powerful and compelling story so far. I think Xander most of all would had understood about Buffy needing to get away especially after what she had been through the last 7 years and how much she suffered and sacrificed. Out of all the Scoobies next to Willow and Buffy, Xander especially suffered with the loss of his eye and the love of his life Anya. He would had more reason then most to quit for a while and get lost.

Is this story finished or will it be continuing for a while? Will we see the ramifications of Dawn's actions and what she must do to make amends? If I were her I would be on the first plane to Africa and be begging for forgiveness instead of being to ashamed of my actions and not show my face. It takes more courage to own up to your mistakes then to deny them or run from them.

I do have one more thing to say. I am not in the least bit defending Dawn's actions but in highsight that probably wasn't the best time for Xander to ask Dawn especially surrounded by all her friends and also observing she was intoxicated and most likely not in the right frame of mind. Xander knows the effects of alcohol better then most having grown up with two drunk and abusive parents. That is the main reason why he won't touch the stuff. He knows people say and do things they might not mean while drunk. Though sometimes it is the opposite. Regardless Xander should had seen the warning sighs present in Dawn and decided to ask such a personal question at a later time and in a more intimate setting.

Thank you for the review. There should be two more chapters to this if I stick to the original format. All I can say about the Xander/Dawn situation is that En Vino Veritas. Sadly I have found this to be true more often than not. I hope you enjoy the rest of the story.

I liked reading this, but i swear I have read it before. Didn't you also have the next day in there where Dawn wakes up and realizes what she did and Buffy plays the disappointed/let down sister card? Cause i swear i read something to that end awhile ago.

Either way, I liked it and I can identify with what is going on. I had a friend when I was younger who acted totally different with a different group of friends than she did with just us...it was a bit of a slap to the face seeing the different personality come out. So I can definitely understand how this happened, especially when alcohol is involved.

Keep up the good work!

I posted a very rough version of this on FF.net about five years ago so you may have seen it there. As to Dawn, the booze was a consideration as well as the Spike worship she seemed to develope (along with most of the writers) in season six. Thanks for the review.

To give my perspective on what another reviewer asked:

Dawn was currently mentally impaired by her drinking AND surrounded by people who she believes would judge her if she WERE to go out with Xander.

Thus, she puts on the act of putting him down harshly and criticizes herself for it later.

I do wish that Xander gets together with Dawn in the end though. I just feel so bad for both Xander and Dawn. At least Buffy's found some measure of peace in her current life. Xander hasn't.

Thanks for the review an the defense. I was re-watching season six fairly recently and was reminded of Dawn's growing Spike worship towards the end of that season, which also contributed to her actions.