The Rosenbergs // Tillow

0. Prologue

(Late Summer 2001)

"Finished packing yet, Dawnie?" Tara questioned as she stood in the doorway of the teen girl's bedroom; her tall figure cast a shadow across the room. Her long skirt swayed in the breeze that flowed through the open window. Dawn was taping a cardboard box shut that was labelled Dawn's Room - desk. She set it down on top of another, already filled, box.

"This is my last one. Ready to carry all these downstairs?" She gestured around to the dozen or so other boxes that were filled with all her belongings, other than these the room was bare. She stacked two small boxes on top of one another and made her way down the hall. Tara followed in suit, and almost tripped over her skirt at the bottom of the glossy wooden staircase.

Willow was out front of the house packing their boxes into the rented moving truck. Her hair shined redder than usual in the bright rays from the sun. Dawn and Tara placed the boxes on the ground for her and headed back in and collected more. It took them four more trips to bring out the rest of the boxes from the house.

Tara wiped a bead of sweat off of her forehead and joined Willow. She passed boxes and bits of furniture up for her girlfriend to position in the back of the truck. When there was just one small box that remained, Willow hopped down out of the truck. "I got this one, you should get the air conditioning started in the front," she said to Tara. As she lifted the final box, and Tara slid into the leathery front seat of the truck, Willow noticed Dawn was still inside, seated on the bottom step.

She walked back in and sat down beside her. "What's the matter?" she asked softly and wrapped her arm around the girl's shoulder. Her hand moved in a slow, up-and-down motion.

"Leaving this place, it feels like I'm leaving her," Dawn sniffled and squeezed her eyes tight to stifle the tears that burned behind her eyes.

"Buffy? She's always with us, in here." Willow put a hand on her heart; she did her best to comfort Dawn despite feeling cheesy. Dawn nodded, but just barely.

"There's just so many memories here; Mum, Buffy and I. I don't wanna leave them all behind!" Her voice strained as she held back tears.

"I know, sweetie. But this move will be good. We'll be safer and happier. You'll adjust, I promise." Willow comforted. She rubbed her arm gently. "C'mon we better go."

The stair creaked as Willow stood back up, and again when Dawn did. Dawn towered Willow by an inch or two, being roughly the same height as her other mother figure. She leant on Willow as they walked outside, and waved a final goodbye to what had been the Summer's house and Scooby-gang central for the past five years.

The gravel crunched, as Tara put the truck in drive and pulled out of the driveway, under the big, rubbery tires. Tears streamed down Dawn's face. She tore her eyes away from the house and nuzzled into Willow. Tara could see a single tear cascade her girlfriend's cheek.

"You're going to love the new house, Dawnie!" Tara babbled as she pulled on to the highway, "it's huge! And there's a local witch coven. Plus I've heard the high school is amazing! Giles will visit us next week, and we'll be back here in the summer for Xander and Anya's wedding." The brunette witch tried her best the whole ride to cheer up the other two. She wasn't the slightest bit down in the dumps about the move; everything she'd ever loved and would ever need was right there with her in the truck. When it seemed to have no effect she said, "I love you. Both of you. I know this is hard but we'll get through it."

They passed the "Sunnydale" sign and that was the end of their life in Sunnydale.

After two hours of driving, Tara pulled of the highway at an exit and drove into a rest stop/gas station. She looked over to the two beside her; sound asleep. She let them be while she got out and filled the tank with petrol, then she opened the passenger side door.  She brought her lips to Willow's forehead and kissed her softly. "Hey, baby, we're at the first stop." Willow's eyes fluttered open and she looked around momentarily dazed. She then turned to Dawn and shook her awake.

"Pee and snack break time, Dawnie," she informed her. Dawn yawned and the two of them climbed down out of the moving truck. "Let's find the toilet while Tara pays and buys food, okay?" 

Despite having slept for about three hours on the trip, Dawn's face was still red and splotchy, and her cheeks were still tear stained. She seemed to be happy, but Willow could tell it was mostly just an act. "Your room at the new house is really big, you know? You are really gonna love it!"

"I know, Willow! I know that everything at the new place is going to be oh-so-amazing, but it isn't going to make me feel any better about the fact that in the last six months my mum and my sister DIED! And now I have to leave behind our house, and my school friends and everything familiar to me!" She gulped for air, "I'm grateful for this; for you and Tara, but for now I'm just gonna be really sad for a while. Is that okay? I need you to be okay with that!" Her voice cracked as the tears began again.

Willow frowned as the contents in her stomach boiled with guilt. "Of course. I was just trying to make the sadness a little less. I'm sorry, Dawn."

"It's alright, i just need time."

After their trip to the bathroom, the pair rejoined Tara by a picnic table beside the rest stop. She had bought a delicious variety of snacks, including donuts, chips, muffins, fresh strawberries and juice. "Dig in, girls," she smiled as Dawn sat down opposite her, and Willow beside her. Willow immediately reached for a glazed donut, her first bite was almost half of it. Dawn quietly nibbled on a blueberry muffin and listened to her soon-to-be adoptive mums discuss the new life ahead of them.

"Miss Kitty Fantastico is going to love it out in the country! She'll have so much more to explore and hunt. It'll make up for having her in the back of a truck for so long," Willow laughed, "Speaking of, I'll go grab her out and walk her on the leash." Willow shoved in the last bit of donut and walked off to the truck. She returned a minute or two later, Miss Kitty scattered about at her heal; slipping on the loose gravel. The black cat was confused about its new surroundings and was unused to being restrained like this. 

They stayed there for a good 30 minutes before they packed up the remaining snacks, returned Miss Kitty Fantastico to her carrier, and headed back out on the road.

At nightfall, they checked into a motel for a good night's rest. By the second night they'd almost reached their destination and made it into their new home state.

"Here we are," Tara declared, "Idaho, our new home. Safely away from demons of all kinds. Only about an hour drive left." Dawn stared out of the window at the orange painted sky and smiled. Willow would later go on to mention to Tara that this was the first real smile from Dawn since before Buffy's death. Since before the night she had gotten kidnapped by Glory, the hell goddess. 

Dawn got teary-eyed, but in a happy way. Things will get better, she thought to herself. And they did.