Tonight, Buffy and I were patroling in the cemetery together.

We were fighting a pair of vampires.

I kicked one.

Buffy kicked the other with more strength than I had.

One of the vampires grabbed me from behind, trying to bite me.

I grabbed his arms, leaning forward and flipping him over my head to the ground in front of us hard. "Nice try."

The other one came at me again with a swing. I ducked it and punched him in the face, in the gut and again in the face. He fell to the ground, dazed.

The first one came at Buffy again with a kick, but she blocked it with her arm, backhand punched him in the face, jabbed him in the gut and grabbed his arm, twisting it up high and forcing him to his knees in pain.

The second vampire got back up and ran toward me, pushing me into the mausoleum behind me. I cleanly jammed my stake into his chest, making him crumble into ashes.

Buffy punched the one she was still holding in the face, making him roll away. "I want you to get a message to Angel for me. Tell him I'm done waiting. I'm taking the fight to him. You got that? Need me to write it down for you?" The vampire got up and charged her. She grabbed him and pulled him around and down to the ground, and immediately plunged her stake into his heart. He bursted into ashes.

"All right, I'll tell him myself," Buffy said. I walked toward her, offering a hand. Buffy took it, letting me help her up. "You know, you don't have to patrol with me."

I gestured to the pile of ash of the vampire I had killed. "Clearly, I had that guy under control."

"Zoey . . ." Buffy trailed off.

"Oh, come on, Buff," I told her. "We're a team! Together, we are unstoppable! I'm the ninja, you're the Slayer. It's a perfect match."

Buffy smiled, chuckling. "That is true."

I smiled, letting the smile fade. "So . . .What is that, um... five vampires in three nights?"

"Yep," Buffy answered. "But no Angel."

"Are you, uh, really that anxious to come up against him?" I asked.

"I want it over with," Buffy told me.

I nodded. "I hear that."

"Oh, we better go," Buffy told me, exhaling. "I haven't even started studying for finals yet."

Buffy started to walk away.

I joined her. "Oh, yeah, finals! Why didn't I let him kill me?"

"Ah, look on the bright side," Buffy told me. "It'll all be over soon."

We left the cemetery.

••

The next day, at school, Cordelia, Xander, Oz, Willow, Buffy and I sat at the same table in the cafeteria during lunch. I was sitting on Oz's lap.

Xander was holding two fish sticks, one with a toothpick stuck through the middle. He played with them like puppets, moving the one with the toothpick around. "Tell Angel I'm gonna kill him! No, wait. I'm gonna kill you!" He startes to repeatedly stab the toothpick into the other fish stick. "Die! Die! Die!" He made an anguished face and let the fish stick fall. "Aah!" He shuddered, sqealing. "Mother!" He smiled at Buffy and me. He chuckled. "Scene!"

"That's exactly how it happened," Buffy told him.

"Yeah, close enough," I agreed.

"Well, I thought it was riveting," Oz told us. "Uh, I was a little unclear about some of the themes."

"The theme is Angel's too much of a coward to take me on face-to-face," Buffy told us.

Xander was still playing with the fish sticks. "And the other theme was 'Buy American', but it, uh, got kind of buried."

Willow looked at Buffy. "Do you think you're ready to fight Angel?"

"I wish people would stop asking me that," Buffy told us. "Yes, I'm ready. I'm also willing and able. Just the one test I might actually pass."

"Don't say that!" Willow told her. "You're gonna pass everything. I will get you through this semester if I have to sweat blood."

"Do you think you're likely to?" Xander asked. "'Cause I'd like to be elsewhere."

"It was only metaphor blood," Willow told him. She looked at Buffy and me. "Sixth period, after my computer class, we'll rock on chemistry."

"Ready to rock," I told her.

"Boy, Willow, you've really got the teaching bug: taking over computer class, tutoring..." Cordelia trailed off.

Willow smiled widely. "I love it. I really do."

"I think it's great to do that before you go out and fail in the real world," Cordelia told her. "That way you're not falling back on something. You're falling... well, forward."

I rolled my eyes. "And almost sixty-five percent of that was actual compliment. Is that a personal best?"

"Gee, Zoey, what are you gonna teach when you fail in life?" Cordelia asked. "Advanced ninja-being?"

I shrugged. "Maybe."

"I will teach..." Xander trailed off, finishing with a French accent. "Zee Language of Love!"

Xander reached for Cordelia.

Cordelia fought him off. "Don't touch me! You have fish hands!"

Snyder came into the cafeteria behind them.

"Come, let me caress you!" Xander told her.

"Stop it!" Cordelia told him.

"Let me in!" Xander told her.

"No!" Cordelia told him, laughing. "Don't!"

"That's enough of that," Snyder told them. He looked at me. "And you! Are we having a chair shortage?"

I slid off of Oz's lap and into my chair, propping my chin onto my hand in boredom. "Gee, Snyder, so nice to see you, too."

"These public displays of affection are not acceptable in my school," Snyder told us. "This isn't an orgy, people. It's a classroom."

"Yeah!" Buffy said sarcastically. "Where they teach lunch."

Snyder glared at her. "Just give me a reason to kick you out, Summers. Just give me a reason."

Snyder walked away.

"How about because you're a tiny, impotent Nazi with a bug up his butt the size of an emu?" I asked.

"Sums it up," Oz told me.

"Don't you think?" I asked.

Willow smiled, looking from me to Buffy. "Do you guys wanna come by my house tonight and study, too?"

"Maybe," Buffy told us. "I-I do have to patrol."

"Again?" I asked. "Do you really expect Angel to turn up tonight?"

"No, I don't expect him to," Buffy answered. "But that's usually when he does."

••

Buffy, Willow and I were in the computer science classroom after school.

Willow was tutoring us in chemistry.

I gave up in frustration and slapped down my pencil. "Waah! This doesn't make any sense."

"Well, sure it does," Willow told me. "See..." She took the paper and looked. "Oh, no, this doesn't make any sense."

Buffy shrugged. "It's senseless."

I played with my pencil.

Willow was encouraging. "It is, but at least both of you know that, so you're learning."

"Yay us," Buffy said. "Well, it doesn't matter anyway. I mean, when in the real world am I ever gonna need chemistry or history or math or the English language?"

Willow shot me a glance. "Okay. I see your problem."

"I'm a moron?" I asked.

Willow gave me a look. "Will you stop that? You're not stupid! You've just had a lot on your mind. You can learn this real easily, but if you're just gonna give up, then don't waste my time."

I was impressed. "Wow. You really are a good teacher."

"Okay," Willow said. "Look at this. A covalent bond, which means these two atoms are linked by this..."

I put my pencil down on my open book, and it rolled off of the desk and into the space between it and the filing cabinet next to it. "Ohh!" I moaned. "Hold that thought." I reached down and in with my fingers, and pulling the pencil out. In the process, I bumped something with the pencil, sitting back up. "Okay. I'm Learn Girl."

"Okay," Willow said, pointing to the paper. "So, see here..."

I had an epiphany. "Deja vu."

"Really?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah," I answered. "I have this perfect memory of the pencil and..." I dropped the pencil onto my book again. It rolled off of the desk again, falling and hitting the disk. I looked over into the space and saw a yellow computer disk. I reached down again for it and my pencil. "Oh, hey." I pulled up the disk and pencil. "You dropped this."

I handed the unlabeled yellow disk to Willow.

Willow looked at it curiously. "It's not mine. It might be something of Ms. Calendar's."

Willow inserted the disk into her laptop's floppy drive.

"This feels kinda morbid," Buffy told us.

Willow smiled at us. "I've gone through most of her files already."

"Does that make it less morbid or you really morbid?" I asked.

The program on the disk started up, and the Rumanian text scrolled into the left-hand window.

Willow sighed. "I had to, to teach her class."

The translation program's percent complete window appeared, and the bar began to zip across the screen.

"Relax, Will," I told her. "I was making with the funny."

We all watched as the bar reached the far side. It disappeares, and the English translation scrolled into the right-hand window.

Buffy looked closely. "Does that say 'restoration'?"

"It's one of her spells, I think," Willow told us. She looked at us. "Ms. Calendar wasn't a practicing witch, but she did dabble--"

"Guys . . ." Buffy trailed off, still reading.

We looked back at the screen and began reading more.

It was the spell to get Angel's soul back.

"Oh, boy," Willow said. "Oh, boy. Oh, boy."

We stopped reading, and were just stunned.

••

We went to the library.

Xander and Cordelia were sitting at the table.

Giles walked up to Buffy, Willow and me. "What are you saying?"

"The curse," I told him, holding out a printout. "This is it."

"Looks like Ms. Calendar was trying to replicate the original curse," Willow told us. "To restore Angel's soul again."

Giles took the printout, looking at it. "She said it couldn't be done."

"Well, she tried anyway," I told him. "And it looks like it might have worked."

"So he killed her... before she could tell anyone about it," Xander told us. "What a prince, huh?"

Xander looked away.

"This is good, right?" Cordelia asked. "I mean, we can curse him again."

Buffy paced, thinking.

"Um, well, this, um... certainly points the way, but... the ritual itself requires a greater knowledge of the black arts than I, I, I can claim," Giles told us.

"Well, I've been going through her files and, and researching the black arts, for fun, or educational fun, and I may be able to work this," Willow told us.

Giles was very concerned. "W-Willow... channeling... such potent magicks through yourself, it could open a door that you may not be able to close."

"I don't want you putting yourself in any danger, Will," Buffy told her.

"And I don't want danger," Willow told us. "Big 'no' to danger, but I may be the best person to do this."

"Hi!" Xander said. "For those of you who have just tuned in, everyone here is a crazy person." He stood, walking to the end of the table. "So this spell might restore Angel's humanity? Well, here's an interesting angle. Who cares?"

"I care," Buffy answered.

Xander was not surprised. "Is that right?"

"Let's not lose our perspective here, Xander," Giles told him.

"I'm Perspective Guy," Xander told us. "Angel's a killer."

"Xander..." I trailed off.

"It's not that simple," Buffy told him.

Xander was disgusted. "What? All is forgiven? I can't believe you people!"

Cordelia stood up. "Xander has a point."

"You know, just for once, I wish you'd support me, and I realize right now that you were, and I'm embarrassed, so I'm gonna get back to the point," Xander told her. He looked back at us. "Which is that Angel needs to die."

"Curing Angel seems to have been Jenny's last wish," Giles told him.

"Yeah?" Xander asked. "Well, Jenny's dead."

Giles approached Xander angrily. "Don't you ever speak of her in that tone again!"

"Can't you hear what I'm saying?" Xander demanded.

They began to argue heatedly, which where we could barely hear what either of them said.

Buffy ran over and got in between them. "Stop it! Stop it!"

Giles and Xander shut up and glared at each other for a moment.

Buffy turned away and walked over to Willow and me, very upset.

Giles paced away, also very upset.

"What do you wanna do?" I asked quietly.

Buffy sighed, speaking quietly. "I-I don't know. What happened to Angel wasn't his fault."

"Yeah, but what happened to Ms. Calendar is," Xander told us.

Buffy, Willow and I looked at him in disbelief.

"Can't you see that Angelus and Angel are two very different people?" I asked.

"You can paint this any way you want," Xander told me coldly. He looked at Buffy. "But the way I see it is that you wanna forget all about Ms. Calendar's murder so you can get your boyfriend back."

Buffy refuseed to listen to any more of this, and walked out of the library.

Willow and I just looked at Xander in surprise and shock.

Xander walked back to his chair at the table.

••

Kendra came back to town because her Watcher said that there was a big evil brewing.

Giles, Buffy, Willow, Kendra and I were together in the library.

Giles walked out of his office into the main room where Buffy and Kendra were waiting at the table.

Willow was behind the counter, researching in a book. I was sitting on the counter.

"I've been on the phone to the museum," Giles told us. "The artifact in question is missing, and the curator has been murdered. Vampires."

Giles leaned on the table.

"And you're sure this was the tomb of Alfalfa?" I asked.

"Acathla," Giles corrected. "And, yes, the information provided by Kendra's Watcher seems conclusive."

Giles stood straight.

Willow walked out from behind the counter. "Okay, somebody explain the whole 'he will suck the world into Hell' thing, because that's the part I'm not loving."

"Well, the, uh, the Demon Universe exists in a dimension separate from our own," Giles told us, sitting on the table. "With one breath, Acathla will create a vortex, a-a kind of, um... whirlpool that will pull everything on Earth into that dimension, where any non-demon life will suffer horrible and... eternal torment."

"So that would be the literal kind of 'sucked into Hell'," I told them. I smiled nervously. "Neat." I frowned, turning to Willow. "Willow, I think you should try the curse."

"I tend to side with your friend Xander on this one," Kendra told us. "Angel should be eliminated."

"Oh, I'll fight him," Buffy told her. "I'll kill him if I have to. But if I don't get there in time, or if I lose, then Willow might be our only hope."

Willow was taken aback. "I don't wanna be our only hope! Uh, I crumble under pressure! Let's have another hope."

"We have," Kendra told us, pulling a sword from her bag. "Blessed by the knight who first slew the demon." Giles looked at the sword, intrigued. "If all else fails, this might stop it. I tink."

Giles approached. "Ooh. May I? May I?" He took the sword from Kendra. "Thank you. Well, l-let's, uh, hope all else doesn't fail." He looked at Willow. "Um, how close are you to f-figuring out the ritual of the curse?"

Willow walked to her pack. "I need about a day, and... " She picked up some papers and read. "An 'Orb of Thesulah'? Whatever that is."

Giles handed the sword back to Kendra. "Spirit vault for rituals of the undead." He walked toward his office. "I've got one." He was embarrassed. "I-I've been using it as a... paperweight."

Giles walked into his office.

Willow looked Buffy and me. "This means I can't help you guys study for tomorrow's final."

"Ah, we'll wing it," I told them. "Of course, if we go to Hell by then, I won't have to take 'em." I turned worried. "Or maybe I'll be taking them forever."

Giles came back with the Orb. "Angel has a ritual of his own to perform before he can remove the sword and awaken Acathla. With any luck, it should take some time."

Buffy looked at the Orb as Giles handed it to Willow.

••

The next day, Willow, Buffy, Xander, Cordelia and I, and the rest of the class were taking one of out final exams. Everyone was intent on it.

Buffy looked up and glanced around briefly, then turned her attention back on her paper.

••

Everyone was concentrating on the test.

Someone stood at the front of the class, pulling the shaw away from her face. Vampire. "Tonight... Sundown..." Everyone looked up. "At the graveyard..."

The teacher stood up. "Excuse me..."

Exposed now to the daylight, the vampire began to smoke. "You will come to him." She took the shawl off. "You will come to him alone or more will die." She pointed at Buffy and ignited into flame. Buffy watched, taken aback by the vampire's direct approach at delivering her message. "Tonight!" The students screamed, jumping out of their chairs and beginning to run from the room. Cordelia, Willow and Xander also jumped up, but didn't run. Buffy and I remained calmly in our seats. "His hour is at hand!"

She combusted in a flash of flame and smoke.

Buffy just stared at the empty space before her.

••

We went to the library.

Xander, Cordelia, Willow and I were researching at the table.

Kendra approached with her sheathed sword.

Giles and Buffy were up on the mezzanine.

"She said more would die," Buffy told him. "I have to go."

"Den I should go wit you," Kendra told her.

Buffy faced Kendra. "No. She saod alone. Besides, I need you here just in case." She headed for the stairs. "I can take care of myself." She walked down the stairs. "And look, as long as Angel's fighting me, then he can't do this end-of-the-world ritual thingy, and that's a good." She reached the table. "Will, what do you think?"

Willow looked over her research. "I just want to cross-check..."

"We don't have time," Buffy told her. "If this is gonna work, it has to work now."

"Okay," Willow said. "Then I need maybe half an hour once we're all set up."

Giles looked at the shelves. "Which means you just have to hold Angel off. Don't let him close on you." He pulled out a book. "If the curse succeeds, you'll, you'll know."

Giles tossed the book down to Xander. Xander checked the title, and handed it to me.

"Why don't you just wait here to find out if it worked, see if he phones you?" Cordelia asked.

"I can't risk him killing any more people," Buffy told us. "I better go."

Buffy started to walk away.

"Be careful," I told her.

Buffy looked back. "I will."

"Here..." Kendra trailed off, grabbing a stake from the table. Buffy stopped and looked back. Kendra walked over to her and held up the twisted but very sharp stake. "In case de curse does not succeed, dis is my lucky stake. I have killed many vampires wit it. I call it Mr. Pointy."

"You named your stake?" I asked.

Kendra was a bit embarrassed. "Yes."

I smiled. "Remind me to get you a stuffed animal."

Buffy smiled, accepting the stake from Kendra and looking it over. "Thanks."

Kendra exhaled. "Watch your back."

Buffy left the library.

••

Willow was sitting cross-legged on the table. Before her was the Orb of Thesulah within a sacred circle and surrounded by candles, bones and stones. Willow casted some stones. She looked at us and then gave Giles a nod.

Giles opened a book and read the Latin text. "Quod perditum est, invenietur."

Cordelia swirled incense into the air.

Xander and I watched.

"'Not dead nor not of the living'," Willow told us. "'Spirits of the interregnum I call...'"

••

Kendra guarded the main doors.

"'Let him know the pain of humanity, gods,'" Willow read. "'Reach your wizened hands to me. Give me the sword...'"

Suddenly a vampire came out from the stacks and attacked me from behind, pulling me up into the stacks.

The main doors bursted open, and Kendra spun around to defend as two more vampires walked in.

Giles pointed to the stepped and yelled at Willow, Xander and Cordelia as a fourth vampire appeared from the stacks. "Get out! Go!"

Willow, Xander and Cordelia made for the stairs.

Kendra punched the first of the two vampires to reach her.

The fourth one jumped over the mezzanine railing and landed on Giles' back, knocking him into the table.

Cordelia, Xander and Willow ran up the stairs.

I elbowed the vampire on my back, knocking the demon into a bookcase, turning toward him.

Having punched down the one vampire, Kendra grabbed the other and shoved her into the wall. The first one got up and ran in to fight.

Willow ran around behind the stacks to try to escape.

Cordelia was frozen in fright.

Giles grabbed a vase from the table and smashes it over his attacker's head.

My assailant ran toward me again, but I sidestepped him. I spun around, grabbing him and slamming his head into a railing.

Another vampire snuck up behind me. I turned toward him, punching toward him. He caught my arm, twisting, breaking it, making me yell out in pain.

The one down below hopped up onto the table, running across it and leapt over the railing above. I saw him coming, and ducked behind a bookcase.

The vampires pushed the case over onto me.

I tried to duck out of the way, but two more vampires pushed down the bookcase on the other side of me, both of them falling onto me and making me fall to the floor, keeping me pinned to the floor and making me unconscious.