Dawn Summers

Dawn Summers
Name	Dawn Summers
Aliases	Dawnie My Little Pumpkin Belly (by her mother) The Key Little Bit (by Spike) Nibblet (by Spike) Junior Watcher Little Miss Muffet Bitty Buffy (Once by Spike) Pushy Queen of Slut Town (by herself in 'Him')
Status	Alive
Classif.	Artificial Human/Magical construct The Key (formerly)
Affiliation	Scooby Gang Slayer Organization Sunnydale High students Summers family
Relatives	Joyce Summers (mother) Hank Summers (father) Buffy Summers (sister) Celia (cousin-deceased) Arlene (aunt with unspecified additional family) Lolly (aunt)
Appearances
Debut	"Buffy vs. Dracula"
Portrayed by	Michelle Trachtenberg Elyssa D. Vito

“She still thinks I'm little miss nobody, just her dumb little sister. Boy, is she in for a surprise.”

―Dawn Summers

Dawn Summers was a member of the Scooby Gang, sister of Buffy Summers and daughter of Hank and Joyce Summers. In her original form, she was a mystical power of living energy, known as The Key; however, because of a ritual, she was transformed into an ordinary teenage human girl.

Biography

Clues of Arrival

“Miles to go. Little Miss Muffet counting down from seven three oh.”

―Faith Lehane

Dawn Summers's arrival into the life of Buffy Summers was seemingly foreshadowed in a number of dreams the Slayer experienced in the years 1999 and 2000. Prior to her confrontation with Mayor Richard Wilkins III, Buffy dreamed of preparing a bed with rogue Slayer Faith Lehane, who, at the time, suffered a coma due to blood loss and severe injuries. The next year, in a similar dream, the still comatose Faith told Buffy, while in Dawn's future bedroom, "Little sis coming, I know," to which Buffy replied, "So much to do before she gets here." Some months later, in a third dream, Buffy was told by the spirit of the First Slayer in the form of Tara Maclay to "Be back before Dawn."

The Key

“They had to be certain the Slayer would protect it with her life. So they sent the Key to her in human form… in the form of a sister.”

―Spike on Dawn's origin.

In 2000, Czech monks of the Order of Dagon continued to protect The Key, as they had done since the 12th century. The Key was a concentration of living energy that could be used to shatter the veil separating all dimensions. If used, The Key would cause dimensions to flood one into the other, merging until the energy of the Key was spent, thus sealing the dimensional tearing. The monks wanted to put this dangerous power to good use; however, they were attacked by Glorificus, a hell goddess bent on returning to her home dimension regardless of the cost. In an act of desperation, the three surviving monks used powerful magics, as well as a portion of the Slayer's own essence, to forge The Key into human form as a fourteen-year-old girl, then sending her to Buffy as a sister for protection. The monks also altered reality, as well as the memories of the Slayer, her family, and friends, to make the now-human Key fit into the world, making everyone in Buffy' life believe that Dawn had always been present as her sister.

Sunnydale

Buffy: “What is she?”

Monk of Dagon: “Human. Human, now, and helpless. Please, she is... an innocent in this, and she needs you.”

— Buffy Summers and the last Monk of Dagon.

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Dawn in her room

For many months, Dawn, as well as Buffy, their mother Joyce, and the Scooby Gang were unaware of her mystical origins, believing the memories the monks had crafted for them. Dawn was supposedly born in 1986 in Los Angeles, and had moved with Buffy and Joyce at age ten to Sunnydale after Buffy burned down the Hemery High School gym. Only those "outside reality," such as mental patients, were capable of seeing Dawn's true nature. Later, when Joyce developed a brain tumor, she was briefly capable of perceiving Dawn in her original form. By this time, Buffy also discovered Dawn's origins through a spell, though after she met the last dying monk of Dagon, she learned that Dawn was now a common human being with no memories of her original form, and that she had to be protected.

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Buffy discovers that Dawn isn't her sister

Over the course of late 2000, Dawn came to learn how she came into existence. Upon learning of her mystical origin on Buffy's birthday, she suffered an identity crisis, took to self-harming, and ran away from home, though Buffy, who had initially considered Dawn a burden laid upon her shoulders against her will, managed to assure her that, no matter how she came to be, they were real sisters no matter what, securing those words with a blood oath.

Dawn was then subjected to further turmoil when her mother died unexpectedly from a brain aneurysm. Devastated to the point of irrationality, and feeling abandoned by Buffy, she turned to black magic in order to bring her back to life, though she undid the spell when she came to realize the inherent dangers of what she had done. After Joyce's death, Dawn began to suffer from kleptomania, at first beginning by simply stealing Anya Jenkins' earrings and then growing to the point where she began to repeatedly and excessively steal from many stores around town, including the Magic Box.

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Glory realizes that Dawn is the Key

“You wanna know what I'm scared of, Spike? Me. Right now, Glory thinks Tara's the Key. But I'm the Key, Spike. I am. And anything that happens to Tara... is 'cause of me. Your bruises, your limp... that's all me, too. I'm like a lightning rod... for pain and hurt, and everyone around me suffers... and dies. I... must be something so horrible... to cause so much pain... and evil.”

―Dawn blames herself for Glory's attacks.

Weeks later, when Glory tortured Spike for information and "brain-sucked" Tara, leaving her completely mad, Dawn was greatly affected and blamed herself for all of the harm that Glory had done to the people of Sunnydale, describing herself as a "lightning rod" for pain. Despite her sister's best efforts, Dawn was nonetheless kidnapped by Glory and taken to a tower, crudely built for the ritual where Dawn would be bled and the gates between dimensions would fall. Dawn tried to plead with Glory's human alter-ego, Ben, and while he tried to help her at first, he ultimately decided to help Glory with her plans out of self-preservation. Dawn was so disgusted by this that, during a subsequent encounter with Ben, she demanded that he turn into Glory, preferring Glory's in-your-face evil to Ben's cowardice.

As Glory's plan came to fruition and the barriers between dimensions began to crack, Dawn was willing to give her life and suicidally jump into the dimensional tear because once her blood stopped flowing, the chaos would cease; but Buffy stopped her and sacrificed herself instead.

Depression

“"The hardest thing in this world is to live in it."”

―Dawn quotes Buffy the last words she told her before leaping off the tower.

Following Buffy's noble suicide, Dawn struggled with abandonment issues, as well as her escalating kleptomania. Having been devastated by her sister's death, Dawn was overjoyed when Willow Rosenberg resurrected her through magic. On Halloween, Dawn experienced her first kiss with a vampire named Justin, who she was reluctantly forced to stake when he tried to kill her.

Shortly after, Xander Harris accidentally summoned the demon Sweet, who forced the residents of Sunnydale to perform in musical numbers. Sweet was ready to claim Dawn as his bride when he saw her wearing his amulet, which Dawn had stolen from the Magic Box. However, Xander admitted his part in things and Buffy admitted she had been in heaven while dead, leaving everyone, including Dawn, shocked and horrified.

Dawn later accompanied an increasingly-reckless Willow to the home of Rack, a magical drug dealer, which goes awry when the two were attacked by a demon and Willow attempted to magically drive the two away. The resulting car crash landed Dawn in hospital with a broken arm; this event served as the catalyst that led to Willow's decision to stop using magic altogether. When Buffy briefly became convinced that she had murdered Katrina Silber due to the manipulations of the Trio and resolved to turn herself into the police, Dawn reacted violently, accusing Buffy of running away and deserting them.

In January, Dawn's feelings of abandonment drew the vengeance demon Halfrek to Sunnydale. After inadvertently making a wish to Halfrek, Dawn got the Scoobies and their friends trapped in the Summers house on Buffy's birthday. During the group's imprisonment, Dawn's collection of stolen items was discovered, as well as her abandonment issues. The group was eventually released from the house and Dawn returned all the items she still owned, resolving to do better, while the gang attempted to assuage her depression and feelings of abandonment.

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Dawn upset after she found Tara's body

When Tara was shot by Warren Mears, Dawn was the first to find her dead in the house, hours after Willow had left her side to pursue revenge; she was noticeably affected by her friend's death, even advocating Willow's decision to kill Warren in revenge, though she quickly changed her mind when Willow actually did so and then went after Warren's accomplices, Andrew Wells and Jonathan Levinson.

Dawn helps Buffy fighting demons

When she later confronted a corrupted Willow at Rack's place, Dawn desperately attempted to reason with her, but Willow, unmoved and slightly annoyed, simply threatened to turn Dawn back into a ball of energy and end her human existence simply to put an end to her constant whining, but Buffy arrived on the scene before Willow could make good on her threat. While helping Buffy battle demons set loose from the Earth by Willow, Dawn proved herself to be capable in a fight, finally earning Buffy's respect. The trauma of Tara's death and Willow nearly ending the world made Buffy realize that the world was worth living in, and she promised to show Dawn the wonders of the world.

"Watcher Junior"

By the time of the reopening of Sunnydale High School in September 2002, Dawn had matured and was considered a full-fledged member of the Scooby Gang. She often helped her friends solve cases and battle monsters in a similar capacity to the role Willow had played as a teenager. When Buffy feared she would fail on her first day as the school counselor, Dawn reassured her that she would be fine and that she would be a great counselor.

Two episodes later, Dawn was the first victim of the love spell her classmate R.J. Brooks had inadvertently cast on the females of the town with his magic letterman jacket, and she nearly killed herself by train to prove her love for him. Thankfully, she was saved by Buffy, and the letterman jacket was destroyed.

Dawn after performing an exorcism.

While home alone one night in November, Dawn was forced to perform a solo exorcism to protect what she believed to be her mother from a demon. Joyce turned out to be The First Evil, and it attempted to persuade Dawn that Buffy "would not choose her." Shortly after this, Rupert Giles returned to Sunnydale with a slew of Potential Slayers in tow, as The First had been attempting to wipe out the Slayer line. Willow cast a spell in an attempt to trace the Potential that was found within Sunnydale's borders, and the results made Dawn believe that she was the Potential. However, it was soon discovered the Potential was truly her classmate Amanda, a classmate of Dawn's. Xander explained to a disappointed Dawn that being normal was possibly the hardest role of all and informed Dawn that she wasn't ordinary...she was extraordinary.

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Dawn and the Scooby Gang after the destruction of Sunnydale

During the Scooby Gang's mutiny against Buffy who was making questionable decisions, Dawn was the one responsible for personally kicking her sister out of the house, an act that had a profound effect on her . When Buffy returned to the fold, Xander, on Buffy's orders, chloroformed Dawn and departed Sunnydale with her, but Dawn subsequently tasered Xander and adamantly returned to town to help in the fight. In the final battle against The First, during which all the Potentials were activated as bona-fide Slayers, Dawn kept a clear head as she guarded one of the high school's above-ground exits with Xander, slaying at least three Turok-Han Vampires independently. The battle culminated in Sunnydale's destruction, and Dawn was among those that survived the battle unharmed and escaped the crater that had once been her home, asking her sister what they were going to do next.

Slayer Organization

A year and a half after the destruction of Sunnydale, Dawn had become a giantess, which Buffy believed was the result of losing her virginity to her college boyfriend, a thricewise named Kenny. Xander, however, believed that she may have subconsciously brought it on herself as a way of gaining Buffy's attention after so many new Slayers moved in with them, as the three took residence in a citadel in Scotland. Buffy and Dawn's relationship had been strained and conflicted. Dawn didn't want to speak with Buffy about her condition, preferring to wait for Willow, who Dawn described as a mother figure. Her exact height was unknown but she was tall enough to pick apples from the very top of the trees. Dawn had indicated that she wants to leave Scotland once her condition was back to normal and possibly return to Berkeley. Dawn began to accept the advantages of being super-sized when she stomped on malevolent witch Amy Madison, knocking her unconscious and allowing Willow to capture her.

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Dawn turned into a centaur

Dawn was unsure whether Kenny was the reason for her massive growth spurt. Dawn revealed to Xander that she did not have sex with Kenny like everyone else believed but she had, in fact, slept with his roommate.

She eventually shrunk to normal size again, but then turned into a centaur. Xander surmised that she will likely experience a third transformation before she could return to normal. Dawn underwent her final transformation into a living doll and was kidnapped by a dollmaker for her 'protection.' Buffy, Willow, Andrew Wells, and the Slayers managed to confront Kenny about the curse but he fled, only to show up later alongside Buffy to rescue Dawn. After she apologized to him, the spell was instantly broken and she became a real girl again. The two had a heart-to-heart, where she explained that she wasn't ready for sex with Kenny because of how intensely she liked him, before parting ways again. Afterwards, she and Buffy mended their bridges as well. As a result of Xander being Dawn's only confidante during her transformations, the two developed romantic feelings for each other and began dating.

Dawn's 'death'

When Buffy gained a multitude of new powers, Dawn showed increasing concern that the new abilities would have a major consequence, only to be increasingly frustrated when Buffy and Willow repeatedly dismissed her theories as paranoia. Ironically, Dawn proved to be correct when reality began to "evolve" to accomodate Buffy's newfound status, unleashing numerous hordes of extra-dimensional demons on Earth in the process.

World Without Magic

Following the destruction of the Seed of Wonder- and the subsequent loss of virtually all the world's magic - Dawn and Xander settled into a semi-retired life in San Francisco. Dawn also began her freshman year of college over again. While Willow was currently in another dimension trying to find a way to restore Earth's magic, she saw a horrific vision depicting Dawn without a face. As of late, Dawn had been suffering from an illness which is implied to be mystical in nature.

Eventually, this illness became worse and manifested itself into something far more dangerous. Due to the constant strain, Dawn passed out and was quickly taken to the hospital by Xander. The doctors could find nothing physically wrong with her and Andrew deduced his own uncertainty, only positive that it was definitely mystical and seemingly incurable. Buffy and Illyria immediately arrive to see what's wrong with her, horrifying and worrying her sister with the sight she was seeing. Illyria looked her over and noted expertly that Dawn was emitting energy from her body in steady amounts, clarifying her as slowly dying. Buffy and Xander realized that this was an effect of the end of magic since she was originally made up from a ball of energy as The Key.

Not wanting to lose Dawn, Buffy quickly called many people to come over and help her, only to be rejected by Faith, assuming Spike would be no help, Kennedy being busy with her own thing, and not wanting to call Angel at all due to her very complicated relationship with him at that moment. Faith and Angel had already forgotten Dawn's existence, although Spike still remembered her, suggesting that memory of Dawn was being lost based on the amount of time people have interacted with her in reality.

Somehow, after working tirelessly on her, Willow had managed to use her magic to make Dawn conscious enough to be out of her comatose state. However, Dawn was seen to be very out of it and could not remember certain events or even people. Willow informed Buffy and Xander that her limited magic only enabled her to give her a few more days before fading away completely. Desperate to save her, Willow, Buffy, and Xander had left her in the supervision of Andrew while they traveled to the Deeper Well to get enough magic to restore her life completely. Unexpectedly, Spike had arrived at the apartment. Dawn expressed no memory of him, but nevertheless, he had firmly decided to stay with her and look after her until Buffy and the others came back to help her.

Spike started to tell Dawn stories about both her and himself, specifically when she had first realized she was The Key. Dawn failed to remember any of it, but nonetheless felt like what he was saying was right. She confided in Spike her identity crisis, and bonded with him. However, Spike soon started to forget certain parts of her life, but did not tell her this.

Eventually, Spike was forgetting her name and big important events of her life. Buffy, Willow, and Xander also began to display this to a lesser extent, but they could still focus on rescuing her above all else. Dawn's condition became horrifically worse when she became transparent, starting to fade physically out of the world. She expressed her fear to Xander on the phone, and the two had a meaningful heart-to-heart. Back in the Deeper Well, Willow felt pulled toward a power source, and declared that it could not only save Dawn, but the world as well.

Examples of Alterations to Reality by the presence of Dawn

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In one of the several false memories, Dawn has been held hostage by Angelus, moments before Willow.

Dawn always believed there was more than one of Ted, a robot that began dating her mother in 1998. She was also acquainted with Faith Lehane, as Dawn held a grudge against her for her past deeds when Faith returned to Sunnydale; this grudge could stem from the incident where by Faith kidnapped Joyce and possibly, in light of the altered reality, Dawn as well. It was also valid with Oz, Cordelia and Wesley, although they technically left Sunnydale before she appeared, as well as with Amy Madison, although she was transformed into rat before his appearance, and Jenny Calendar (if she was a ghost, her memory also was modified). She and Angel knew each other, even though they never technically met until later; When Buffy was lecturing Dawn on not falling in love with vampires (particularly her then-crush Spike), Dawn sarcastically replied, "Right, that's why you were never with Angel for three years." Additionally, when Angel's evil alter-ego, Angelus, called the Summers home in 2003, Dawn recognized Angel's voice, and Angelus clearly knew who she was.

She was present when Buffy was killed by the Master—removing her sister from the water before Xander and Angel arrived to perform CPR—and when Angelus wanted to kill Buffy's friends and leave them as messages in the high school, Angelus attacking her rather than Willow as he did in actual reality; the resulting experience leaving her, in Willow's words, "all trauma-girl" when it came to Angel-related matters. 

In 'Buffy vs Dracula' Joyce seems unaware that Willow and Tara are lesbian lovers. However in 'The Real Me' when Dawn is writing in her journal about a prior occasion it is implied she is aware, hinting that Dawn's arrival has changed this aspect of reality.

After the End of magic, Dawn fell ill and was condemned to fade from reality. It turned out that Angel and Faith had "forgotten" her, with Buffy, Xander, Willow and Spike quickly following suit.

Personality

“What do ya know. Bitty Buffy.”

―Spike

Dawn was a strong-willed, confident young woman. Much like her mother and sister, she possessed a deep reserve of inner strength and a cynical and sarcastic streak. However, Dawn suffered from moderate abandonment issues, which branched into self-harming and kleptomania for some time. Dawn was also very kind and caring, but also very stubborn and independent, much like her sister Buffy.

However, after helping Buffy out by killing zombies, she matured, becoming more comfortable in her own skin and and in her fabricated life.

In 'Storyteller' Andrew Wells describes Dawn as a 'Bubbly and sweet with a hunger for fun and a smile that lights up the room'.

Interests and Hobbies

During her younger years in LA Dawn was a keen player of combat video games. She is a keen diarist and professes to like activities featuring water. She reads the Harry Potter books and has a fondness for her sister's soft toy pig Mr Gordo. Her favourite pizza topping is anchovies and she enjoys dancing, especially to Mexican music. She plays chess with Willow who states that she always leads with her knight.

Powers and Abilities

Dawn is a human being who, as seers and the mentally unstable can see, is really a massive ball of energy. With the right ritual conducted in the right time and place, her blood opens a dimensional portal to all universes, bringing chaos and destruction to Earth within minutes. After Glory's failed attempt to use her to go home, it was left ambiguous whether or not Dawn was still the transfigured Key; several of her friends stated that she was or used to be the Key, and Dawn herself told Spike that, as far as she knew, she was no longer the Key, and even if she was, she no longer opened anything.

Dawn has no superhuman powers; however, her experience in battling vampires and demons has made her a capable fighter and given her a limited knowledge of spellcasting; dialogue between herself and Buffy hints that she learned multiple fighting skills from watching Buffy, and Buffy began formally training her the summer before her first year at Sunnydale High. She can also read a variety of languages ranging from Turkish to Latin. Dawn has grown to rarely flinch when in danger, and her loyalty to her sister and friends is absolute.

Dawn mystically grew to the size of a giantess, an event which became a recurring gag in the series. However, she was not as proportionally strong as she is large, as mentioned by Buffy. Nevertheless, she still takes an active role in large scale battles, decommissioning enemies with super-sized kicks. She is shown to be able to damage a large stone wall by punching it, although she hurts her hand in the process. Later, Dawn was transformed into a centaur and a living porcelain doll with inherent physical traits, but what supernatural powers these forms granted was unknown. The transformations stopped and she was brought back to normal.

Relationships

Romantic Relationships

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Dawn and Xander become romantically involved.

• Xander Harris — Dawn harbored a crush on Xander into her adolescence, feeling that he was the only one who treats her like an adult. She saw him as brave and "seeing everyone as equals", expressing jealousy and dislike over Anya and his relationship with her. When Harmony had taunted Xander in front of the Summers' house, Dawn became defensive over him, only to accidently invite Harmony in the house. After getting kidnapped by Harmony and saved by Buffy, she noted that Xander wasn't mad at her as one of the good things that happened that day.Xander was both well-aware of and very flattered by her crush, exhibiting notable jealousy when Buffy informed him that she moved on to Spike. Although she eventually outgrew her romantic feelings for him, Dawn and Xander remained extremely close, bonding over the fact that neither has any real "superpowers." When Dawn was undergoing a series of mystical transformations, Xander was Dawn's only real confidante with Willow's absence and Buffy's duties as head Slayer. Throughout the transformations, he was there to comfort her and allay her insecurities. By the time she was a human again, and despite the possibility of romantic interest from Buffy, Xander and Dawn began seeing each other. After the end of magic and the relocation of the Scoobies to San Francisco, Dawn and Xander moved into an apartment together. However, Dawn and Xander where seen to argue because of him forgetting her birthday, and she ordered him to sleep on the couch for a couple days as punishment.
• Kevin — Dawn took a liking this boy in her junior high art class. He was surprisingly sensitive about her "family problems," indicating that he too had resorted to self-harm on occasion.
• Justin — A charming, manipulative teenage vampire with whom Dawn, unaware of his identity, shared her first kiss. When Justin tried to turn her into a vampire, Dawn was forced to stake him with a discarded crossbow bolt, an experience which upsets her greatly.
• RJ Brooks — Dawn developed an obsessive crush on this popular high school athlete because of his bewitched letterman jacket, resulting in her humiliating herself at cheerleader tryouts and pushing his rival down a flight of stairs. When pitted against the other female Scoobies in contest for his love, Dawn decides to commit suicide by lying on a train track to prove her "love" for him. Buffy rescued her, and the spell was broken.
• Kenny — Dawn dated this boy for some time, although Buffy, Leah, and Giles warned her that he was a "Thricewise." He apparently disappeared after Dawn became a giantess, which Buffy believes to be a side-effect of losing her virginity. Dawn later revealed that she cheated on Kenny with his roommate, and he casted the spell on her that resulted in her transforming into three different things. However, the two made peace and the spell was broken.
• Nick — Dawn cheated on Kenny with his college roommate Nick, losing her virginity. She and Nick attended a frat party during her freshman year at Berkeley. Xander described him as "cigarettes, dirty hair, didn't care what anyone thought, never gave you the time of day, but he seemed to be in pain deep down." He was also the vocalist and bass guitarist of a band.

Familial

• Buffy Summers - Buffy and Dawn had a typical sibling relationship, except with some added strain. They constantly held a almost hostile relationship, as Dawn felt overshadowed by her elder sister and how everyone seemed to treat her better. Buffy felt unreasonable jealousy too of how their mother focused so much on Dawn and never truly gave her the same affection, though rationally acknowledged that she was "the baby" so that's how it was. Despite their constant bickering, Buffy still was protective of her little sister as she rushed immediately to save her from Harmony who had abducted her. When realizing that Dawn was The Key, Dawn and her sister develop a unbreakable bond due to Buffy's continual efforts to protect and defend her from Glory. Their bond was so strong that Buffy adamantly refused to kill her little sister despite knowing that's how she would save the world, and threatened to kill anyone who tried. Upon realizing that she herself had to die to save the world, Buffy genuinely told her that she loved her and always will, begging her to live for her and giving her the advice that "the hardest thing in this world was to live in it" before jumping off the tower to her death. Dawn was heartbroken when realizing that Buffy died for her and when realizing she was ressurrected, she was overjoyed and this time begged her to live, insisting that she was trying to carry on her life but it was so hard without her. Dawn promptly almost died on the collapsing tower but seeing her in danger, it seemed to awaken her from her almost feral state as Buffy had saved her life. Dawn was also furious when Willow had realized that she had brought something over besides Buffy, mistaking them to send Buffy back and that they couldn't take her away from her after bringing her back to her. However, due to Buffy's closed off attitude as well her being never home (Instead, she was with Spike), Dawn began to worry that her sister was trying to avoid her. This thought process seemed to remain until the end of Season Six, when Buffy assured her that she didn't want to die again and that she wanted to see her sister grow up. Following their mother's death, Buffy seemed to represent a maternal/sisterly relationship with Dawn, as she had became her parental guardian. This was especially seen in Season Seven, when Dawn started High School. Despite this, Buffy said firmly to Giles that she'd kill Dawn if it was necessary to save the world again because of her duty as the Slayer. After Sunnydale became a crater, Dawn was envious of the Slayer army as they took up most of her sister's attention, jealously calling them "her slayer sisters" to Xander. Buffy admitted enviously that Dawn seemed to see Willow as a better sister than her. However, they eventually reignited their close relationship when Buffy apologized and resolved to try better.  In End of Days Buffy has Xander kidnap Dawn in order to get her to safety, telling her by letter that 'Everything I do is for you'. Dawn however returns to Sunnydale and Buffy allows her to fight in the final battle, finally accepting her as an adult. Following the end of magic, Dawn allowed Buffy to room with her and Xander in their apartment until she wanted to leave. As her health began to deteriorate, Buffy and her friends were desperate to save Dawn's life. Her sister, Willow, and Xander had proceeded to go to the Deeper Well in hopes of saving her life. There are various hints throughout the series that Buffy and Dawn share a much deeper bond than just sisters referred to by fans as the Summers Sisters Link.
• Joyce Summers - Dawn and her mother were very close, just like Buffy was with Joyce as well. However, Dawn viewed Buffy as being her mother's favorite. However, Xander disagreed with her and told her Joyce loved them both equally. Joyce had intuitively realized before everyone else but Buffy that Dawn was not actually her daughter and was something else entirely. However, Joyce told Buffy that she still loved Dawn like her daughter and requested Buffy to protect and love her the same. Dawn loved her mother very much and was absolutely grief-stricken over her passing, recklessly resorting to magic to bring her back to life only for the ritual to be halted by Buffy before Joyce had reached the house. In Conversations with Dead People Dawn battles supernatural forces in order to speak to an apparition of her mother which claims to be trying to warn her.
• Hank Summers - Dawn and her father shared a similar relationship that Buffy did with him: Neglectful and distant. This was especially enforced when Hank refused to show up her mother's funeral, much to Dawn's anger. In season 6 it is established that Hank is back in touch with Dawn at least by phone. Just like her sister, Dawn seemed to see Giles as more of a father figure than her actual father.

• Rupert Giles — Originally, Giles had no strong connection to Dawn and was merely just Buffy's watcher. While writing in her diary, Dawn claimed she didn't think Giles liked her very much, probably because he was  "old".Dawn seemed to regard Giles as a fatherly figure. He, as with Buffy, was protective of her and the two were shown to be rather close. Dawn was clearly upset when Giles left for England, and he softly told her he was only a phone call away as they hugged. After his return, they were planning to conduct an experiment by mixing food cereals together before a demon attacked. Giles acted as the lone parent figure to Dawn, being forced to reprimand her for her actions after Buffy absently avoided them. Giles consoled Dawn after the gang unanimously decided that Buffy should leave for the time being. Due to this, it's reasonable to say Dawn grieved just as much as everyone else did when Giles died.

• Willow Rosenberg — Dawn always admired Willow; she stated, "Willow's the awesomest person. She's the only one who likes school as much as me." When Buffy died, Willow and Tara moved into Buffy's house and acted as guardians to Dawn. Their relationship suffered a blow when Willow, strung out on dark magic, gets Dawn into a car accident, but they soon make up. When Willow was kidnapped by Amy and Warren, a furious Dawn told Buffy that Willow was "like a mom" to her.

• Tara Maclay — Willow's girlfriend, Dawn befriended Tara when the other Scoobies didn't know her too well. They bonded over their shared feeling of being an outsider from the Scoobies, causing both to feel great sympathy for each other. Dawn was quick to defend Tara from her father, and was devastated when she was "brain-sucked" by Glory. Even after Willow and Tara broke up, Dawn and Tara continued to meet up for the occasional milkshake. Dawn appeared to consider Tara as a surrogate mother until her death. Dawn was deeply affected by Tara's death, finding the courage to voice her opinion of what her killer, Warren, deserved.
• Spike - Feeling isolated due to her realization of being The Key, Dawn developed a crush on Spike for a brief period, saying " He's got cool hair and wears leather coats and stuff. And he doesn't treat me like a alien. However, she soon realized that though Spike had some type of affection for her, he would never notice her because of his love for Buffy. Because of this, she never pursued him seriously and quickly got over him, eventually regarding him as a kind older brother/protector figure instead. Nonetheless, she later joined the Scoobies in ostracizing him and ejecting him from the Magic Box. But she did however, get Spike to go along with her plan to bring back her mother and he protected her the entire time. When Tara got brain-sucked by Glory, Dawn confided in Spike to believe herself to be evil, which Spike discouraged and comforted her. Promising Buffy to protect Dawn with his life after her death, he was a type of guardian towards her, helping Willow and Tara raise her, and he was the only one that Dawn constantly confided in. They retained a close-knit bond, shown when she wanted to go to Spike's after Tara's death as she felt safest there. When Xander told her that Spike attempted to rape Buffy, Dawn denied it. But when she realized that Spike did tried to rape her sister, she was clearly disgusted, angry, and personally betrayed. So much so that she had threatened to set him on fire, which Spike was noticably disturbed by. After Spike got his soul back, Dawn still remained somewhat distrustful. Nevertheless, she seemed willing to give him the benefit of a doubt, and they began to repair their friendship, as Dawn was quick to defend him when Andrew asked why Buffy wanted to save him. Spike often called Dawn by pet names like "Nibblet" and "Little Bit" affectionately. Strangely, Spike was not invited in her apartment in San Francisco despite their close relationship, which was likely under the request of Xander. Due to the end of magic causing her to fade away from reality, Spike's dedication and platonic love for Dawn was reawakened and touched on. While she expressed no true memory of him anymore, he had decided to stay with her and take care of her with Andrew while the other Scoobies traveled to England.As Spike continued to tell stories about herself and their past, Dawn didn't remember much but still felt a close bond with him. She took comfort in him and confided in her identity crisis, reminscent of when she was fourteen.
• Andrew Wells — As a member of The Trio, Andrew was at first a foe of Buffy's, and by extension, Dawn. Dawn never really interacted with Andrew until he was captured by the gang during the First's rampage . Like the rest of the Scoobies, Dawn treated Andrew with hostility because of his alliance with Warren and his numerous annoying habits, and found herself off-put by his mannerisms, even wondering if "there's a language that he's speaking" . However, she, like the rest of the gang, gradually warmed up to him, and gladly allowed him to film her for his documentary . Dawn and Andrew developed an unusual brother-sister relationship, which grew when Andrew helped Dawn fight against her Japanese robot counterpart with his comprehensive knowledge of Japanese monster movies . When Andrew later saw Dawn (after she was cured of her transformation problem), they hugged like old friends .

Other

• Anya Jenkins - Dawn was initally unfriendly towards Anya, jealous of her relationship with Xander and accused him of "having the worst taste", meaning Anya. She also found Anya's ignorance of human ways and abrupt rudeness very annoying, similiar to most of the Scooby Gang.  However, as time when on, they did somewhat bond, despite the fact that she often spoke to Dawn as if she was much younger than actual age. Over time, she displayed almost no true hostility towards her and grew accustomed to her odd personality like the rest of the Scoobies, serving as a bridesmaid at her wedding and doing the 'Dance of captialist superiority' with her in the Magic Shop..
• Riley Finn - Dawn and Riley seemed to have what you would call a friendly relationship for the most part. However, she did express annoyance at Riley's obvious interest in Buffy at first, saying in her thoughts "He's so into her. And they're always kissing. And groping. I've bet they've even had sex." She was irritated that Riley always called her "kid" and considered her a kid just like everyone else, which she vehemently denied. Riley did take Dawn at to a carnival under Buffy's request and they seemed to get along, as Dawn mentioned how Angel always made Buffy cry and she never got that worked up over him, causing her to say that she thought he was good for her right now. She had however unknowingly depressed Riley by her statement, due to his insecurity and doubts that Buffy didn't actually love him the same way he loved her. After Riley broke up with her and returned to Sunnydale with his new wife, Dawn seemed angry with him for leaving and hurting Buffy's feelings, but she accepted Riley's friendliness and hugged him in forgiveness.
• Angel - Very little information is known about Dawn and Angel's interactions, due to Angel having already left Sunnydale by the time she showed up in Season Five and no mentioning was made about her relationship with him, so it's likely they weren't incredibly close. But she did say once that Angel always seemed to make her sister cry and that Buffy and Angel's relationship was very dramatic due to "her boyfriend being a vampire" thing, which caused Dawn to deduce that Riley seemed like the better choice for her. In season 4 of Angel, Angelus phones Dawn pretending to be Angel and seems convivial when talking to her.
• Faith Lehane - Faith and Dawn's relationship before season 7 is uncertain, whether Dawn was jealous of Faith's close relationship with Buffy or whether Dawn was enthusiastic about Faith who envied Buffy's love with her in the same way as she did with Joyce. When Faith returns to Sunnydale in 'Dirty Girls' Dawn is antagonistic towards her for trying to murder Buffy and Faith refers to her as a 'brat'. However after Faith takes her and the Potentials to The Bronze the emnity between them seems to fade, Dawn dancing with Faith, leading the Potentials in saving her from a group of possessed cops and siding with her when Faith takes over the leadership of the Scoobies.
• Amanda - In the episode 'Potential' Dawn thinks that she is Potential Vampire Slayer and teams up with her classmate from Sunnydale High, Amanda to slay a vampire Amanda has trapped at the school. It turns out that Amanda is actually the Potential Slayer rather than Dawn and joins the Scoobs. Amanda and Dawn appear to remain close, trading a friendly smile as Buffy leads Amanda and the other Potentials off to training from which Dawn is exlcuded and dancing together later at The Bronze.  

Antagonistic

• Glory - Glory was a major enemy of Dawn because she was searching for the Key, which was in fact Dawn herself (although Glory was unaware of this at first). Initially, the hell goddess treated Dawn as a minor annoyance, but pressed her for clues concerning the Key's location, although Dawn was too frightened to do anything against her. When Glory came to assume that Dawn had no information, she tried to kill her, but was stopped by Buffy and the Scoobies. However, upon discovering that Dawn was the Key, Glory made it her mission to capture her, and eventually succeeded In their final meeting, Dawn called Glory "a monster", and insinuated that she couldn't take on Buffy. An enraged Glory revealed to her that, while her blood can open the portal, her death can close it, or in her words, "the faster [Dawn] dies, the better for [her] sorry species." She then taunted Dawn by suggesting that Buffy wouldn't show up to save her since "she's not really your sister." In the end, however, Glory's plans were foiled while she herself was killed in her human vessel Ben at Giles' hands, while Dawn's life was saved at the cost of her sister's.

• Warren Mears - Warren could be considered a major antagonistic to Dawn considering how much Dawn mourned over the death of Tara. Dawn also claimed she sat in the room with Tara's dead body because she didn't want her to be left alone.

• Amy Madison - Due to Amy taking Willow to see Rack, Willow began to be hooked on magic. Magic was Willow's equivalent of drugs. As she became more hooked on it, the harder it was for her to stop using it. When Willow took Dawn along with her to Rack, Willow put Dawn in a lot of danger. Dawn broke her arm, had a few bumps and scratches but her perspective of Willow at that moment really changed. After her actions Willow admitted to Buffy she needed help. If it hadn't of been for Amy pulling Willow to 'the dark side' that wouldn't of happened. Dawn also seemed to truly develop a hatred for Amy, as she was furious when she had kidnapped Willow and tried to kill her.

Gallery

• See Dawn Summers/Gallery

Behind the Scenes

• She was portrayed by Michelle Trachtenberg.
• Dawn was a regular character for the last three seasons of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. However, she joined the regular cast in "Real Me" right after she was introduced in season five premiere "Buffy vs. Dracula" as a guest-star. She appeared in 66 Buffyverse episodes.

• Aside from Buffy and Willow, who appeared in every episode, Dawn is the only Buffy regular to appear in every episode after her debut.

• Trachtenberg says she was thrust into the role without knowing much about Dawn's personality; she describes her initial meeting with Joss Whedon as "Alright, welcome to the cast, you're a teenager, you're a Key, have fun."

• Responding to fan complaints of Dawn being whiny throughout Season Six, Joss Whedon said, "I scratched my head. I was like, 'Excuse me, she's been abandoned by about six parental figures. The girl has huge issues.'" However, he acknowledged that he and the writers hit "the same note for a while... We needed to make some changes." Likewise, Whedon expressed regret over not being able to go further with Dawn's character during Season 7, though he expressed, "You get into a situation that you do like to stand alone [but] Dawn Goes on a Date is not something that people would really sit for.

• Dawn was originally intended to appear in the Angel episode "The Girl in Question" after Sarah Michelle Gellar was unavailable to appear as well. However, Michelle Trachtenberg was unavailable for filming, so the character of Andrew Wells, played by Tom Lenk, replaced her.

• When Dawn tasered Xander with a stun gun in "End of Days," fans assumed that she possibly stole it from Agent Riley Finn during his relationship with Buffy.

• In 2005, Diamond Select Toys produced several action figures in the likeness of Michelle Trachtenberg for their Buffy the Vampire Slayer line. Each figure featured a "real-scan" likeness of Michelle and episode/character specific outfit. Figures produced: "Lessons Dawn", "Once More, With Feeling Dawn", "The Gift Dawn" alongside Glory, and "Intervention Dawn" alongside Buffy and Joyce in a "Summers Family Figures" set.

• Michelle Trachtenberg later starred an important role on Six Feet Under. This show include also many actors of Buffyverse like Eric Balfour (Jesse McNally), Robin Riker (Catherine Madison), Lenora May (Mrs. Jackson), Mary-Pat Green (Joan), Michael Cudlitz (Big Bob), Scott Torrence (Dickie), Dagney Kerr (Kathy Newman), John Capodice (Tony Papazian), Ken Abraham (Spivey), Lauri Johnson (Martha Straley), Margaret Easley (Gerhardt), Maury Sterling (Barney), David Wells (Cheese Man), Justina Machado (Jo), Eve Sigall (old Judy Kovacs), Tom Lenk (Cyrus/Andrew Wells), Stewark Skelton (Harold Jeakins), Cheryl White (Claire Jeakins), Kevin Rankin (Donald Maclay), Dwayne L. Barnes (Lester), W. Earl Brown (M. James Menlo), Evan Arnold (Shempire), Thomas Kopache (old Denver), Pat Healy (Doug Sanders), Brian Tahash (Narwek), Wade Andrew Williams (Gregor), Franc Ross (Razor), Bob Morrisey (Gregson), Ken Takemoto (Chine demon man), Dave Power (Zack), Jim Ortlieb (the translator in Lullaby), Raymond O'Connor (Teeth), Andrew Reville (Timothy Blane), Eric Bruskotter (Brian), Lee Carlington (Jessica Harris), Billy Rieck (Paco), Christopher Neiman (Francis), Caroline Lagerfelt (Anne Pratt), Jim Abele (Laurence Reilly), Jordan Garrett (Matthew Fries), Jon Billingsley (Evan Royce), Lindsey Ginter (Petrie), Jenny Vaughn Campbell (Tommy's Mom), Dennis Christopher (Cyvus Vail) and Irina Maleeva (Goran Maid).

• Michelle Trachtenberg later guest-starred with Nicholas Brendon (Alexander Harris), Luke Perry (Oliver Pike), Mercedes McNab (Harmony Kendall), Juliet Landau (Drusilla Keeble), Clayne Crawford (Rodney Munson), Jennifer Hetrick (Ms. Moran), Edward Edwards (Travis), Jeff Kober (Zachary Kralik/Rack), Michael Cudlitz (Big Bob),Lindsay Crouse (Maggie Walsh), Leonard Roberts (Forrest Gates), Bailey Chase (Graham Miller), Maury Sterling (Barney) Conor O'Farrell (McNamara), Sam Anderson (Holland Manners), Steve Rankin (Mr. Maclay), Randy Thompson (Aaron Kriegel), Nick Chinlund (Ellis), Abraham Benrubi (Olaf), Wade Andrew Williams (Gregor), Keith Szarabajka (Daniel Holtz), John Rubinstein (Linwood Murrow), Angela Sarafyan (Lori), Gina Torres (Jasmine and Jon Billingsley (Evan Royce) on Criminal Minds.

Appearances

Buffy the Vampire Slayer Dawn appears in all episodes of Season 5, 6, and 7. She first appears at the end of "Buffy vs. Dracula" and is added to the opening credits in "Real Me". Buffy Season 8 The Long Way Home No Future for You Anywhere but Here A Beautiful Sunset Wolves at the Gate Time of Your Life After These Messages ... We'll Be Right Back! Living Doll Retreat Turbulence Twilight Last Gleaming Buffy Season 9 Freefall Welcome to the Team The Watcher (comatose) The Core, Part One The Core, Part Two The Core, Part Three (near-transparent) Willow: Wonderland Wonderland, Part Two (hallucination) Wonderland, Part Three (only in visions) Wonderland, Part Four (only in visions) Angel & Faith What You Want, Not What You Need, Part One (only mentionned)

External Links

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