"I'm as confused as you are, Buffy. Such an unusual event was evidently of some importance."

"Maybe we misinterpreted the poem, Giles - could it mean something else?" enquired Willow, who was seated in front of her laptop again."

"It�it's possible, Willow. Perhaps we should examine it further," replied Giles, reaching for the printed copy on his desk. Buffy sighed impatiently, jumped off her chair, and headed for the door, saying:

"Study, schmudy. I'm tired of waiting for�whatever it is to come to us. It's time we went in search of�whatever it is that has popped up from Hell to pay us a visit, and do some serious slayage!"

"Buffy!" Giles called warningly. Buffy hesitated just inside the doors, stopping long enough to turn and face him with an annoyed glare, and hear what he had to say. He was used to this Buffy, and returned the glare, forcing Buffy to soften up a little. "Don't get into anything you can't handle, Buffy. Be sensible! You don't have your usual back-up anymore - Angel can't save you this time�" He stopped, silently cursing himself for letting his anger get the better of him. Bringing Angel into the conversation was the easiest way to unsettle the Slayer�everyone watched as the familiar wave of sadness rushed over Buffy's countenance, followed by a shot of anger in Xander's direction, and finally settling back to her usual indifference. She hated to show her true emotions, even though she was burning with pain inside, and desperate to collapse into the arms of the one person that could fully understand and comfort her. Buffy's anger at Xander for him keeping the knowledge from her that the Curse of Restoration was being tried again had slowly begun to disappear over the last couple of months, but whenever Angel came up in the conversation in the group - which wasn't very often - she always felt bitter towards her friend. As long as Angel was gone, Buffy felt she could never fully forgive Xander.

"Buffy?" A shy voice broke through Buffy's reverie, and she looked up at its owner. Willow smiled slightly. "Just be careful, okay?" Buffy sighed and nodded, turning away to hide the sad, faraway look in her eyes.

"I'm sorry�I'm just�sorry." muttered Buffy quietly, before dashing out of the library, and running out of the school into the cool night air.

Buffy sat on a park bench, humming quietly to herself, and lightly tapping a wooden stake on the palm of her hand. Vampire activity had hardly increased since the storm, and most of the vamps around were found at the park. She let her concentration wane, and began thinking back over her life in Sunnydale - more particularly, her life with Angel. Buffy sighed sadly, as she pictured the slight smile he so often flashed at her on his pale face; the intense, loving look in his penetrating brown eyes, and that distinctly possessive, powerful presence he had about him whenever he was with her. Buffy glanced down at her claddaugh ring dejectedly, before leaning back and closing her eyes. She remembered the feel of his gentle, cold fingers as they brushed her cheek, his strong arms as they held her, and the deep, passionate kisses he had so frequently bestowed on her before his transformation. A tear slid slowly down Buffy's already wet cheek as she recalled the night of passion that was shared with Angel - how wonderful it had felt! Like coming home. Images of the evil Angelus and his taunting words flashed through her mind, followed by the memory of a sword being stabbed through Angel's souled body. Buffy shook her head, vigorously trying to rid her mind of such images, although knowing only too well that they would haunt her forever.

Suddenly, Buffy heard the snap of a twig a few metres behind her. Her eyes snapped open, and she hastily wiped her face wit the sleeve of her jacket. Angel's leather jacket�Buffy struggled to regain her concentration. She jumped to attention, spinning around and adopting her fighting stance. Glancing around, Buffy saw no-one, but felt an increasing presence�a presence she had not felt for�

"Ooof!" A hard kick to her back sent Buffy sprawling on the ground. She scrambled to her feet, turning quickly to face her attacker. Buffy shook her head at the vampire before her. "Don't you guys ever learn anything?!" she retorted, a slight smile playing about her lips. The snarling creature smile.

"We learn more than you think, Slayer. The last two months have been valuable in discovering your biggest flaw!" it replied, smirking. Buffy raised an eyebrow.

"And what would that be, Slayee?" she asked, playing along. The vampire growled and attempted to kick and punch her in the face, but Buffy defended both moves with ease, concluding with a well-placed kick of her own. The vampire stumbled back, but soon regained his balance, before smiling at Buffy again evilly.

"That's easy, Slayer. Angel." He grinned broadly as Buffy was instantly caught off-guard by such a comment. Taking full advantage of her lack of attention, the vampire flew at her with a powerful kick to the head, sending her flying backwards. He stood over her, holding her down and madly punching her with his free hand. Buffy winced with each blow that connected, trying to block as many of the hits as she could. A harsh knock to the stomach left her gasping for breath, silently cursing herself for her weakness, and wondering when vampires became so intelligent. The vampire snarled, grinning successfully.

"I told you we could learn!" he growled, and prepared to sink his teeth into Buffy's exposed neck. Weak and suddenly very tired, Buffy sighed, knowing her downfall to be near. The strange part was that she didn't care. She didn't want to fight. Her body and, most of all, her mind had dealt with more pain and guilt than most people experienced in a lifetime. And Buffy was ready to leave all of it behind, to be happy at last. She closed her eyes, wincing briefly as fangs pierced her skin. She smiled as the growling vamp proceeded to fully sink his teeth into her neck, slowly draining the blood within - her once strong heart helping to pump the last of her life into his mouth. She thought about how wonderful it would be to end all the pain, anger and sadness she had felt since she lost Angel.

Angel. Buffy's smile widened as she felt her life slipping away�she would be with her Angel again at last.