Connor Macgregor Reviews...Buffy The Vampire Slayer & Angel

Buffy's nightmare about Drusilla killing Angel gives her a major wiggins. She tells Angel about it, afraid that Drusilla might still be alive, but he thinks there's nothing to worry about. They kiss a lot. That morning at school, Buffy is all swoony about Angel, and Willow encourages her to move their relationship to the next level. Willow works up the nerve to talk to Oz, the guitar-playing cybernerd who's been mooning over her, and he asks her out for the following night -- where he'll be her date for Buffy's surprise 17th birthday bash. When Buffy tells Giles and Jenny Calendar about her dream, Giles says it's possible that Drusilla is alive, and to be on alert. Sure enough, we see Spike and Dru at the factory. Spike is scarred and in a wheelchair but as evil as ever. Dru is planning a party, too, but it's a safe bet there'll be no chips and dip at this one.

A strange man approaches Jenny in class -- it is her uncle, and we discover she is actually a gypsy whose entire family was killed by Angel when he was the superevil Angelus. The uncle says it's not fair for Angel to have any happiness, so it's Jenny's duty to keep Buffy away from him. Jenny offers to take Buffy to meet Giles off campus, and they discover some vamps making trouble -- one of whom is the transcriber who once worked for Spike. As Buffy and one of the vamps scuffle, they go flying through the window of the Bronze where the surprise party awaits. Newcomer Oz is startled to see Buffy slay one of them, and now he's officially part of the gang. They open the box the vamps were carrying, and it contains an arm which reaches out and chokes Buffy. Angel explains there was a creature called The Judge who destroyed everyone who was righteous. He was finally dismembered by an army, but his parts still exist, and reassembling him would bring on armaggedon. Angel says he must take that arm to the other side of the world, and must leave by boat immediately. Buffy joins him at the dock to say goodbye, and he gives her a claddagh ring as a token of his love. As they say goodbye, the vamps are back and the arm is stolen.

Dru's party is in full swing, and The Judge is the main attraction. His first conquest is the transcriber, who he ignites with just a touch. When Buffy and Angel go to the factory to see if they can find any more parts, they see it's too late, and The Judge spots them. They escape to Angel's pad, where he finally tells her he loves her. They make love and go to sleep. An undressed Angel awakens with a start and runs outside, suddenly fully dressed in black, and collapses. He calls Buffy's name but she stays asleep.

Buffy's nightmare about Drusilla killing Angel gives her a major wiggins. She tells Angel about it, afraid that Drusilla might still be alive, but he thinks there's nothing to worry about. They kiss a lot. That morning at school, Buffy is all swoony about Angel, and Willow encourages her to move their relationship to the next level. Willow works up the nerve to talk to Oz, the guitar-playing cybernerd who's been mooning over her, and he asks her out for the following night -- where he'll be her date for Buffy's surprise 17th birthday bash. When Buffy tells Giles and Jenny Calendar about her dream, Giles says it's possible that Drusilla is alive, and to be on alert. Sure enough, we see Spike and Dru at the factory. Spike is scarred and in a wheelchair but as evil as ever. Dru is planning a party, too, but it's a safe bet there'll be no chips and dip at this one.

A strange man approaches Jenny in class -- it is her uncle, and we discover she is actually a gypsy whose entire family was killed by Angel when he was the superevil Angelus. The uncle says it's not fair for Angel to have any happiness, so it's Jenny's duty to keep Buffy away from him. Jenny offers to take Buffy to meet Giles off campus, and they discover some vamps making trouble -- one of whom is the transcriber who once worked for Spike. As Buffy and one of the vamps scuffle, they go flying through the window of the Bronze where the surprise party awaits. Newcomer Oz is startled to see Buffy slay one of them, and now he's officially part of the gang. They open the box the vamps were carrying, and it contains an arm which reaches out and chokes Buffy. Angel explains there was a creature called The Judge who destroyed everyone who was righteous. He was finally dismembered by an army, but his parts still exist, and reassembling him would bring on armaggedon. Angel says he must take that arm to the other side of the world, and must leave by boat immediately. Buffy joins him at the dock to say goodbye, and he gives her a claddagh ring as a token of his love. As they say goodbye, the vamps are back and the arm is stolen.

Dru's party is in full swing, and The Judge is the main attraction. His first conquest is the transcriber, who he ignites with just a touch. When Buffy and Angel go to the factory to see if they can find any more parts, they see it's too late, and The Judge spots them. They escape to Angel's pad, where he finally tells her he loves her. They make love and go to sleep. An undressed Angel awakens with a start and runs outside, suddenly fully dressed in black, and collapses. He calls Buffy's name but she stays asleep.

Buffy awakens to find Angel gone. Angel is in the street, still calling her name. A woman stops to see if he's in trouble, and he slays her. He's Angelus again. Meanwhile, the gang at school, who pulled an all-nighter trying to track down The Judge's parts, are worried about Buffy. She shows up and tells them what they just figured out -- The Judge is already assembled. Angel returns to the factory, and The Judge can't kill him, which confirms that he's pure evil once again.
Xander and Cordelia's secret smooching is witnessed by Willow, who's completely crushed. Buffy finally finds Angel in his apartment, but he's distant, snotty and generally obnoxious. She is devastated. Jenny's uncle says that if Angel experiences one moment of true happiness, his soul will be taken and Angelus will return. This freaks out Jenny, who realizes that many people will die. As Willow and Xander try to make up, Angel appears at school and asks Willow to approach him. Jenny shows up with a cross and Angel grabs Willow, trying to bite her. Buffy enters and he kisses her, then shoves her and leaves. Giles says some event must have triggered this transformation, but Buffy won't say, leaving Willow to figure out that they must have made love. Buffy goes home and sobs. She dreams of her special night with Angel, then of a funeral where Jenny is in black. She busts into Jenny's class, demanding to know what she knows. Jenny admits she's a watcher sent to keep Angel from happiness, so he'd pay for what he did. Buffy tells her to restore his curse to make him human again. Xander decides that even though no forged weapon could kill The Judge, that was way before today's technology, so he sneaks in an army base (using what he learned when he became a soldier on Halloween). Buffy, Giles and Jenny discover her uncle's body-- Angel killed him. The Judge, who was weak from all those years of not killing, is finally ready to take over the world. The gang wonders where he'll find the crowds he wants, since the Bronze is closed, and Oz suggests the movies at the mall. The Judge is there, preparing to vaporize everyone. Wielding the biggest, baddest gun imaginable, Buffy shoots The Judge. He's toast -- well, at least dismembered again -- and the crowd is saved. But Angel still wants to kill Buffy. She doesn't have the heart to slay him, but gives him a wicked kick in the groin, which knocks him to the floor. Giles warns Buffy that Angel is sure to keep pursuing her in his new evil incarnation, but he doesn't scold her for what happened. She and her mom have a belated birthday celebration, but Buffy doesn't even want to make a wish on her candle, and just forlonly puts her head on her mom's shoulder and watches a romantic old movie.

Buffy awakens to find Angel gone. Angel is in the street, still calling her name. A woman stops to see if he's in trouble, and he slays her. He's Angelus again. Meanwhile, the gang at school, who pulled an all-nighter trying to track down The Judge's parts, are worried about Buffy. She shows up and tells them what they just figured out -- The Judge is already assembled. Angel returns to the factory, and The Judge can't kill him, which confirms that he's pure evil once again.
Xander and Cordelia's secret smooching is witnessed by Willow, who's completely crushed. Buffy finally finds Angel in his apartment, but he's distant, snotty and generally obnoxious. She is devastated. Jenny's uncle says that if Angel experiences one moment of true happiness, his soul will be taken and Angelus will return. This freaks out Jenny, who realizes that many people will die. As Willow and Xander try to make up, Angel appears at school and asks Willow to approach him. Jenny shows up with a cross and Angel grabs Willow, trying to bite her. Buffy enters and he kisses her, then shoves her and leaves. Giles says some event must have triggered this transformation, but Buffy won't say, leaving Willow to figure out that they must have made love. Buffy goes home and sobs. She dreams of her special night with Angel, then of a funeral where Jenny is in black. She busts into Jenny's class, demanding to know what she knows. Jenny admits she's a watcher sent to keep Angel from happiness, so he'd pay for what he did. Buffy tells her to restore his curse to make him human again. Xander decides that even though no forged weapon could kill The Judge, that was way before today's technology, so he sneaks in an army base (using what he learned when he became a soldier on Halloween). Buffy, Giles and Jenny discover her uncle's body-- Angel killed him. The Judge, who was weak from all those years of not killing, is finally ready to take over the world. The gang wonders where he'll find the crowds he wants, since the Bronze is closed, and Oz suggests the movies at the mall. The Judge is there, preparing to vaporize everyone. Wielding the biggest, baddest gun imaginable, Buffy shoots The Judge. He's toast -- well, at least dismembered again -- and the crowd is saved. But Angel still wants to kill Buffy. She doesn't have the heart to slay him, but gives him a wicked kick in the groin, which knocks him to the floor. Giles warns Buffy that Angel is sure to keep pursuing her in his new evil incarnation, but he doesn't scold her for what happened. She and her mom have a belated birthday celebration, but Buffy doesn't even want to make a wish on her candle, and just forlonly puts her head on her mom's shoulder and watches a romantic old movie.

Willow meets up with Oz in front of one of the school's trophy cases. He has been checking out the moving eyes in one of the cheerleading statues, the same one in which Amy's mother, the witch, is trapped. They discuss their date the previous night, before Willow spots Buffy and walks outside with her. Willow is worried because Oz hasn't tried to kiss her yet, although she is happy that he is being so nice and respectful. Later that night, Xander and Cordelia make out in her car, which is parked in the woods. Without warning, the hairy arm of a werewolf breaks through the roof of the car. Cordy throws the car in reverse then brakes, sending the werewolf tumbling off of the car. They then drive out as fast as they can. The next morning, Xander tells Giles that they encountered a werewolf. Giles is quite excited, for he has never personally dealt with a werewolf case before. In gym, the class is studying self-defense. Xander's latent jealousy of Oz's relationship with Willow is becoming more and more obvious. Buffy tries to pretend she's a normal girl, but when Larry grabs her behind during a throw session, Buffy flips him over her shoulder and onto the mat. Back at the library, Giles has learned that a werewolf goes on the prowl on the night of the full moon and the two nights surrounding it, making that a total of three nights in every month.

Later that night, one of Buffy's classmates, Theresa, is walking home alone when she bumps in Angel, who offers to walk her home. Meanwhile, Buffy and Giles investigate Lover's Lane in the woods, hoping to find the werewolf and bring it back alive, for it is still a human twenty-eight days out of the month. Buffy gets trapped in a net that lifts her to the top of the trees. As she calls for help from Giles, a poacher named Cain appears with a shotgun. After realizing that his catch is not a werewolf, he cuts the net down, and Giles helps Buffy out. Cain explains that he hunts werewolves to make money. He then asks them if they know where else the teenagers might hang out, since werewolves are attracted to sexual heat. Buffy feigns ignorance, so Cain leaves and goes off on his own. Buffy and Giles then drive towards the Bronze, which fits Cain's description perfectly. As they arrive there, dozens of frightened teens evacuate the Bronze, for the werewolf has already arrived. Buffy runs inside by herself and pulls a chain out of her backpack. She tries to tie up the werewolf, but it breaks free of the chain and escapes. While Buffy and Giles deal with Cain, who is upset that she tried to capture it instead of kill it, the werewolf wanders down the alleys when it discovers Theresa's body. There are two bite marks on its neck, and all the blood has been drained from its body. The werewolf looks up and sees Angel. The two growl at each other, but do not attack. Angel eventually backs off and disappears.

Early next morning before sunrise, Buffy and Giles hear on the radio that Theresa was found dead, and her murder may be linked to the werewolf. They now have only night left before the werewolf goes into remission for the remainder of the month. As the sun rises, the werewolf slowly transforms back to human form while it is sleeping. Once all the hair fades away to reveal flesh, we see that the werewolf is Oz. After waking up and realizing that he is naked in the woods, Oz suspects that he may be the werewolf. He goes home and calls his aunt. Oz asks her about his cousin Jordy, who bit him recently. Apparently, his aunt knows that Jordy is a werewolf, and since he bit Oz, the curse has been passed along. Oz goes to school that day in a daze, and he is horrified to learn that he may have killed Theresa the previous night. Xander suspects that Larry may be the werewolf, so he leaves to question him in the locker room. Willow invites Oz to help her do some research later that night, but Oz refuses and runs off, leaving Willow upset over his apparent change of heart. In the locker room, Xander confronts Larry in the locker room. Xander tells him that he knows the secret that Larry has been hiding, only to find out that Larry's secret is his homosexuality. Misunderstanding Xander's words, Larry now believes that Xander is also gay, but assures him that their secret is safe between them. Feeling relieved and better about himself, Larry thanks Xander and walks off.

Realizing that the police reports never mentioned anything about Theresa being mauled, Buffy and Xander visit the funeral home and inspect Theresa's body. Sure enough, they find two bite marks on her neck, signifying death by vampire. While Buffy signs the guestbook, Theresa suddenly gets up behind her, only now her face is that of a vampire. In the middle of their fight, Theresa throws Buffy off guard by saying that Angel sent her. Luckily, Xander is able to stake her through the back before she can take advantage of Buffy's disoriented state. After being helped up, Buffy embraces Xander for a short while, expressing her fear of Angel's relentlessness. She then realizes her position, gathers herself together, and leaves, with Xander following behind. Elsewhere, Oz knows that he must not be able to leave the house that night, so brings out a box of chains and shackles. Before he can lock himself up, Willow knocks on the door. She is obviously upset by his decision to stay home and do nothing by himself instead of spending the time with her. Oz tries to warn her of the danger, but it is too late, for his transformation has already begun. Willow screams and runs out of the house, while the werewolf chases her down the block and into the woods. Before he can attack Willow, a different scent catches the werewolf's nose, so he leaves Willow alone. She runs off to the library, where Giles is loading up a tranquilizer gun. Willow tells Giles and Buffy that Oz is the werewolf, so they rush out to the woods. Buffy kicks the shotgun out of Cain's hand just before he pulls the trigger. After knockin Cain down, Buffy fights the werewolf, which prevents Giles from getting a clean shot. Buffy is then knocked into Giles and Willow. As the werewolf charges them, Willow grabs the tranquilizer gun and shoots him, causing him to stumble back and collapse. As Cain gets up, Buffy bends his gun with her bare hands, then orders him to leave.

The next day, Oz tells Willow that he'll be fine, as long as he locks himself up around the full moon every month. To his surprise, Willow is still interested in continuing their relationship. As she leaves, Willow kisses Oz for the first time.

Willow meets up with Oz in front of one of the school's trophy cases. He has been checking out the moving eyes in one of the cheerleading statues, the same one in which Amy's mother, the witch, is trapped. They discuss their date the previous night, before Willow spots Buffy and walks outside with her. Willow is worried because Oz hasn't tried to kiss her yet, although she is happy that he is being so nice and respectful. Later that night, Xander and Cordelia make out in her car, which is parked in the woods. Without warning, the hairy arm of a werewolf breaks through the roof of the car. Cordy throws the car in reverse then brakes, sending the werewolf tumbling off of the car. They then drive out as fast as they can. The next morning, Xander tells Giles that they encountered a werewolf. Giles is quite excited, for he has never personally dealt with a werewolf case before. In gym, the class is studying self-defense. Xander's latent jealousy of Oz's relationship with Willow is becoming more and more obvious. Buffy tries to pretend she's a normal girl, but when Larry grabs her behind during a throw session, Buffy flips him over her shoulder and onto the mat. Back at the library, Giles has learned that a werewolf goes on the prowl on the night of the full moon and the two nights surrounding it, making that a total of three nights in every month.

Later that night, one of Buffy's classmates, Theresa, is walking home alone when she bumps in Angel, who offers to walk her home. Meanwhile, Buffy and Giles investigate Lover's Lane in the woods, hoping to find the werewolf and bring it back alive, for it is still a human twenty-eight days out of the month. Buffy gets trapped in a net that lifts her to the top of the trees. As she calls for help from Giles, a poacher named Cain appears with a shotgun. After realizing that his catch is not a werewolf, he cuts the net down, and Giles helps Buffy out. Cain explains that he hunts werewolves to make money. He then asks them if they know where else the teenagers might hang out, since werewolves are attracted to sexual heat. Buffy feigns ignorance, so Cain leaves and goes off on his own. Buffy and Giles then drive towards the Bronze, which fits Cain's description perfectly. As they arrive there, dozens of frightened teens evacuate the Bronze, for the werewolf has already arrived. Buffy runs inside by herself and pulls a chain out of her backpack. She tries to tie up the werewolf, but it breaks free of the chain and escapes. While Buffy and Giles deal with Cain, who is upset that she tried to capture it instead of kill it, the werewolf wanders down the alleys when it discovers Theresa's body. There are two bite marks on its neck, and all the blood has been drained from its body. The werewolf looks up and sees Angel. The two growl at each other, but do not attack. Angel eventually backs off and disappears.

Early next morning before sunrise, Buffy and Giles hear on the radio that Theresa was found dead, and her murder may be linked to the werewolf. They now have only night left before the werewolf goes into remission for the remainder of the month. As the sun rises, the werewolf slowly transforms back to human form while it is sleeping. Once all the hair fades away to reveal flesh, we see that the werewolf is Oz. After waking up and realizing that he is naked in the woods, Oz suspects that he may be the werewolf. He goes home and calls his aunt. Oz asks her about his cousin Jordy, who bit him recently. Apparently, his aunt knows that Jordy is a werewolf, and since he bit Oz, the curse has been passed along. Oz goes to school that day in a daze, and he is horrified to learn that he may have killed Theresa the previous night. Xander suspects that Larry may be the werewolf, so he leaves to question him in the locker room. Willow invites Oz to help her do some research later that night, but Oz refuses and runs off, leaving Willow upset over his apparent change of heart. In the locker room, Xander confronts Larry in the locker room. Xander tells him that he knows the secret that Larry has been hiding, only to find out that Larry's secret is his homosexuality. Misunderstanding Xander's words, Larry now believes that Xander is also gay, but assures him that their secret is safe between them. Feeling relieved and better about himself, Larry thanks Xander and walks off.

Realizing that the police reports never mentioned anything about Theresa being mauled, Buffy and Xander visit the funeral home and inspect Theresa's body. Sure enough, they find two bite marks on her neck, signifying death by vampire. While Buffy signs the guestbook, Theresa suddenly gets up behind her, only now her face is that of a vampire. In the middle of their fight, Theresa throws Buffy off guard by saying that Angel sent her. Luckily, Xander is able to stake her through the back before she can take advantage of Buffy's disoriented state. After being helped up, Buffy embraces Xander for a short while, expressing her fear of Angel's relentlessness. She then realizes her position, gathers herself together, and leaves, with Xander following behind. Elsewhere, Oz knows that he must not be able to leave the house that night, so brings out a box of chains and shackles. Before he can lock himself up, Willow knocks on the door. She is obviously upset by his decision to stay home and do nothing by himself instead of spending the time with her. Oz tries to warn her of the danger, but it is too late, for his transformation has already begun. Willow screams and runs out of the house, while the werewolf chases her down the block and into the woods. Before he can attack Willow, a different scent catches the werewolf's nose, so he leaves Willow alone. She runs off to the library, where Giles is loading up a tranquilizer gun. Willow tells Giles and Buffy that Oz is the werewolf, so they rush out to the woods. Buffy kicks the shotgun out of Cain's hand just before he pulls the trigger. After knockin Cain down, Buffy fights the werewolf, which prevents Giles from getting a clean shot. Buffy is then knocked into Giles and Willow. As the werewolf charges them, Willow grabs the tranquilizer gun and shoots him, causing him to stumble back and collapse. As Cain gets up, Buffy bends his gun with her bare hands, then orders him to leave.

The next day, Oz tells Willow that he'll be fine, as long as he locks himself up around the full moon every month. To his surprise, Willow is still interested in continuing their relationship. As she leaves, Willow kisses Oz for the first time.

The night before Valentine's Day, Xander shows Buffy his V-Day gift for Cordy: a necklace with a heart-shaped pendant. After cracking a few jokes, Buffy assures Xander that Cordy will love his gift. She then slays a vampire which rises from its grave, and they continue on with their conversation.

The next morning, Harmony and her friends are shunning Cordy from their discussion groups. They mock Cordy for dating Xander, whom they perceive to be one of the biggest losers in Sunnydale. Elsewhere, Amy asks Willow and Buffy if they plan on attending the V-Day party at the Bronze later that night. Willow is going to see Oz play in the band, while Buffy plans on staying home. As everyone leaves and hands in their assignment, Xander notices that Amy does not have a paper to turn in. To his surprise, he watches as Amy stares at Miss Beakman, the teacher. Miss Beakman then reaches out her hand, as if she is taking Amy's paper which doesn't even exist. Amy then turns and leaves. Xander catches up with Buffy and Willow, telling them that he suspects Amy of messing around with witchcraft. Buffy and Willow remind him that it was Amy's mother, Catherine, who was the witch, and that Amy would never fool around with it. Giles spots Buffy and approaches her. Jenny Calendar sees them and walks over, but Giles brushes her off, saying that he and Buffy are busy at the moment. In the library, Giles warns Buffy that Angel has a long past of committing horrid acts on Valentine's Day. He refuses to tell Buffy any specifics, however, but he does suggest that she be careful. Meanwhile, in the factory, Spike and Angel give Drusilla their V-Day gifts. Spike gives her a necklace, while Angel gives her a freshly torn-out heart.

That night, Buffy receives a box of roses, which were left at her doorstep. Buffy opens the box and finds a card with only one word written on it: "Soon". At the Bronze, Xander sees Cordy and walks over to give her his gift. After admiring the necklace for a moment, Cordy breaks up with him. Xander is righteously furious, and it only gets worse for him the next day, as everyone in school seems to know that they broke up. Xander then notices Amy walking around, so he runs over and tells her that he knows she's practising witchcraft. With the upper hand, Xander strikes a deal with Amy: help him cast a love spell on Cordy, and nobody will have to know that she's a witch. After arguing the idea for a while, Amy concedes and tells Xander that she needs a personal item of Cordelia's. Xander finds Cordy near her locker and demands that she return the necklace he gave her. Cordy says it's in her locker, but when she opens it, she hides behind the locker door so she can remove the necklace from her neck without Xander seeing. Meanwhile, Buffy walks into the library and shows Giles the "Soon" card. Buffy demands that Giles tell her everything she needs to know about Angel and Valentine's Day, so Giles sits her down and proceeds to read various anecdotes from his books.

In a darkened room, Amy and Xander perform the spell that should cause Cordy to fall in love with him. However, Xander soon finds out that the spell had no effect on Cordy. He walks into the library where Buffy is still listening to Giles read his books. Buffy consoles Xander, then suggests that they spend some time together that night. Buffy's suggestions get increasingly lurid, but before they get too close, Amy walks in and tells Xander that she needs to have a word with him. Outside in the hall, Amy tells Xander that the spell didn't work. Xander could care less know, seeing how his dreams of Buffy and himself are finally being fulfilled. However, Amy then suggests that they spend some time together later that night, without the spells and other witchcraft. Xander grows suspicious, and his fears are confirmed when another girl approaches and asks him to accompany her that night. Xander realizes that the spell actually worked. However, instead of affecting Cordy, it zapped every other girl in Sunnydale. Xander goes home to avoid everybody, only to find Willow waiting for him in his bed. Willow wants to him to take her right there in his bed, and when things get a little too steamy between them, Xander pushes her off and runs off.

The next day, every single girl in the school ogles Xander as he walks down the hall. He quickly enters the library and tells Giles everything that's going on. Before Giles can process the information, Jenny walks in and tells Giles that they need to talk. However, her attention quickly shifts to Xander, proving that the spell affected not only the girls, but every single female in town. Giles gets between the two and berates Xander for causing all this to happen. He then leaves Xander in the library, dragging Jenny along with him. After they leave, Xander tries to barricade the entrance to the library, but Buffy simply walks in, wearing nothing but a raincoat. She seductively asks Xander to undress her, but he can't, for he knows that what Buffy is doing is not out of attraction for him, but simply a result of the spell. Just then, Amy arrives and tells Buffy to leave. Instead, Buffy punches her to the floor. Angered, Amy gets up and casts a spell on Buffy, turning her into the small rat. Giles and Jenny return just then. While Xander and Giles try to catch the rat, Oz walks into the library and punches Xander for whatever he did to depress Willow. While Xander assures Oz that nothing happened, the rat escapes through the partly-opened library door. Realizing that the rat is gone, Giles commands Xander and Oz to find the rat while he tries to get Amy to reverse the spells. Giles soon determines that Amy must have made a mistake in the casting that caused Cordy to be protected by the spell instead of affected by it.

In the hallway, Xander notices a fight breaking out. To his horror, he sees a mob of girls beating on Cordy. The mob is angry at Cordy for breaking Xander's heart. Rushing in through the love-crazed girls, Xander pulls Cordy out of the pack and runs away with her. They run outside, only to find Willow and dozens of other girls. Willow is wielding an axe, for she would rather see Xander dead than with Cordy. While the mobs of girls battle each other, Xander and Cordy escape through the commotion and end up at Buffy's house. Joyce lets them in and, after sending Cordy upstairs to get some bandages, starts seducing Xander. Cordy is sickened by this, so she pushes Joyce outside. Joyce punches through the door window and struggles to unlock the door, so Xander and Cordy run upstairs and hide in Buffy's room. Thinking they're safe, Angel suddenly arrives and pulls Xander through the window and throws him to the ground below. Before Angel can kill him, Drusilla arrives and protects Xander. While Angel leaves, Dru offers immortal life to Xander. Before she can sink his teeth into his neck, the mob of girls finally track them down. They pull Xander away from Dru and pile up on top of Xander. Cordy runs out and pulls Xander out from the pile before quickly running back inside. All the girls chase them into the house. That is, everyone except Dru. Angel reminds her that she can't get in without an invitation. Xander and Cordy run into the basement and lock themselves in there. Meanwhile, Oz tracks the rat into the school basement. The rat is first menaced by a cat, then approaches a mouse trap. Upstairs, Giles and Amy perform the reversal spells. They first reverse the spell on Buffy, causing her to transform back to her human self. She quickly realizes that she is completely naked, so she asks Oz to find her some clothes. While Giles and Amy work on reversing the love spell, the mob of girls break open the basement door. Xander and Cordy run downstairs, but there's nowhere to go. Soon, all the girls gang up on top of them. Finally, Giles and Amy complete the reversal spell, and everybody returns to normal. All the girls look around, completely confused as to what's going on. Cordy makes up an excuse that they had just finished a scavenger hunt.

The next day, Buffy thanks Xander for not taking advantage of her the previous day. It seems that everybody retained their memory of what occurred during the run of the spell. Xander then bumps into Harmony, who is walking with Cordy and the rest of their friends. After Harmony mocks Xander, Cordy has had enough. She rips on Harmony and tells everybody that she can date whoever she wants to date. Cordy then walks over to Xander and takes his hand. Cordy is horrified by what she's just done, but Xander comforts her, and the two of them walk off, together again.

The night before Valentine's Day, Xander shows Buffy his V-Day gift for Cordy: a necklace with a heart-shaped pendant. After cracking a few jokes, Buffy assures Xander that Cordy will love his gift. She then slays a vampire which rises from its grave, and they continue on with their conversation.

The next morning, Harmony and her friends are shunning Cordy from their discussion groups. They mock Cordy for dating Xander, whom they perceive to be one of the biggest losers in Sunnydale. Elsewhere, Amy asks Willow and Buffy if they plan on attending the V-Day party at the Bronze later that night. Willow is going to see Oz play in the band, while Buffy plans on staying home. As everyone leaves and hands in their assignment, Xander notices that Amy does not have a paper to turn in. To his surprise, he watches as Amy stares at Miss Beakman, the teacher. Miss Beakman then reaches out her hand, as if she is taking Amy's paper which doesn't even exist. Amy then turns and leaves. Xander catches up with Buffy and Willow, telling them that he suspects Amy of messing around with witchcraft. Buffy and Willow remind him that it was Amy's mother, Catherine, who was the witch, and that Amy would never fool around with it. Giles spots Buffy and approaches her. Jenny Calendar sees them and walks over, but Giles brushes her off, saying that he and Buffy are busy at the moment. In the library, Giles warns Buffy that Angel has a long past of committing horrid acts on Valentine's Day. He refuses to tell Buffy any specifics, however, but he does suggest that she be careful. Meanwhile, in the factory, Spike and Angel give Drusilla their V-Day gifts. Spike gives her a necklace, while Angel gives her a freshly torn-out heart.

That night, Buffy receives a box of roses, which were left at her doorstep. Buffy opens the box and finds a card with only one word written on it: "Soon". At the Bronze, Xander sees Cordy and walks over to give her his gift. After admiring the necklace for a moment, Cordy breaks up with him. Xander is righteously furious, and it only gets worse for him the next day, as everyone in school seems to know that they broke up. Xander then notices Amy walking around, so he runs over and tells her that he knows she's practising witchcraft. With the upper hand, Xander strikes a deal with Amy: help him cast a love spell on Cordy, and nobody will have to know that she's a witch. After arguing the idea for a while, Amy concedes and tells Xander that she needs a personal item of Cordelia's. Xander finds Cordy near her locker and demands that she return the necklace he gave her. Cordy says it's in her locker, but when she opens it, she hides behind the locker door so she can remove the necklace from her neck without Xander seeing. Meanwhile, Buffy walks into the library and shows Giles the "Soon" card. Buffy demands that Giles tell her everything she needs to know about Angel and Valentine's Day, so Giles sits her down and proceeds to read various anecdotes from his books.

In a darkened room, Amy and Xander perform the spell that should cause Cordy to fall in love with him. However, Xander soon finds out that the spell had no effect on Cordy. He walks into the library where Buffy is still listening to Giles read his books. Buffy consoles Xander, then suggests that they spend some time together that night. Buffy's suggestions get increasingly lurid, but before they get too close, Amy walks in and tells Xander that she needs to have a word with him. Outside in the hall, Amy tells Xander that the spell didn't work. Xander could care less know, seeing how his dreams of Buffy and himself are finally being fulfilled. However, Amy then suggests that they spend some time together later that night, without the spells and other witchcraft. Xander grows suspicious, and his fears are confirmed when another girl approaches and asks him to accompany her that night. Xander realizes that the spell actually worked. However, instead of affecting Cordy, it zapped every other girl in Sunnydale. Xander goes home to avoid everybody, only to find Willow waiting for him in his bed. Willow wants to him to take her right there in his bed, and when things get a little too steamy between them, Xander pushes her off and runs off.

The next day, every single girl in the school ogles Xander as he walks down the hall. He quickly enters the library and tells Giles everything that's going on. Before Giles can process the information, Jenny walks in and tells Giles that they need to talk. However, her attention quickly shifts to Xander, proving that the spell affected not only the girls, but every single female in town. Giles gets between the two and berates Xander for causing all this to happen. He then leaves Xander in the library, dragging Jenny along with him. After they leave, Xander tries to barricade the entrance to the library, but Buffy simply walks in, wearing nothing but a raincoat. She seductively asks Xander to undress her, but he can't, for he knows that what Buffy is doing is not out of attraction for him, but simply a result of the spell. Just then, Amy arrives and tells Buffy to leave. Instead, Buffy punches her to the floor. Angered, Amy gets up and casts a spell on Buffy, turning her into the small rat. Giles and Jenny return just then. While Xander and Giles try to catch the rat, Oz walks into the library and punches Xander for whatever he did to depress Willow. While Xander assures Oz that nothing happened, the rat escapes through the partly-opened library door. Realizing that the rat is gone, Giles commands Xander and Oz to find the rat while he tries to get Amy to reverse the spells. Giles soon determines that Amy must have made a mistake in the casting that caused Cordy to be protected by the spell instead of affected by it.

In the hallway, Xander notices a fight breaking out. To his horror, he sees a mob of girls beating on Cordy. The mob is angry at Cordy for breaking Xander's heart. Rushing in through the love-crazed girls, Xander pulls Cordy out of the pack and runs away with her. They run outside, only to find Willow and dozens of other girls. Willow is wielding an axe, for she would rather see Xander dead than with Cordy. While the mobs of girls battle each other, Xander and Cordy escape through the commotion and end up at Buffy's house. Joyce lets them in and, after sending Cordy upstairs to get some bandages, starts seducing Xander. Cordy is sickened by this, so she pushes Joyce outside. Joyce punches through the door window and struggles to unlock the door, so Xander and Cordy run upstairs and hide in Buffy's room. Thinking they're safe, Angel suddenly arrives and pulls Xander through the window and throws him to the ground below. Before Angel can kill him, Drusilla arrives and protects Xander. While Angel leaves, Dru offers immortal life to Xander. Before she can sink his teeth into his neck, the mob of girls finally track them down. They pull Xander away from Dru and pile up on top of Xander. Cordy runs out and pulls Xander out from the pile before quickly running back inside. All the girls chase them into the house. That is, everyone except Dru. Angel reminds her that she can't get in without an invitation. Xander and Cordy run into the basement and lock themselves in there. Meanwhile, Oz tracks the rat into the school basement. The rat is first menaced by a cat, then approaches a mouse trap. Upstairs, Giles and Amy perform the reversal spells. They first reverse the spell on Buffy, causing her to transform back to her human self. She quickly realizes that she is completely naked, so she asks Oz to find her some clothes. While Giles and Amy work on reversing the love spell, the mob of girls break open the basement door. Xander and Cordy run downstairs, but there's nowhere to go. Soon, all the girls gang up on top of them. Finally, Giles and Amy complete the reversal spell, and everybody returns to normal. All the girls look around, completely confused as to what's going on. Cordy makes up an excuse that they had just finished a scavenger hunt.

The next day, Buffy thanks Xander for not taking advantage of her the previous day. It seems that everybody retained their memory of what occurred during the run of the spell. Xander then bumps into Harmony, who is walking with Cordy and the rest of their friends. After Harmony mocks Xander, Cordy has had enough. She rips on Harmony and tells everybody that she can date whoever she wants to date. Cordy then walks over to Xander and takes his hand. Cordy is horrified by what she's just done, but Xander comforts her, and the two of them walk off, together again.

Buffy wakes up in the morning to discover a piece of paper sitting on her pillow. She unfolds it to discover a sketch of her face while she was sleeping. Buffy knows that Angel must have been in her bedroom during her sleep. At the library, Buffy pleads to Giles that he find a spell that would reverse the invitation into her home. Buffy and Giles then stop by Jenny Calendar's computer class to meet Willow, who has just been assigned by Jenny to fill in as class teacher the next day for the first few minutes. As Buffy and Willow leave, Jenny does her best to apologize to Giles, who insists that Buffy is the one who deserves the apology. Jenny also gives Giles a book that she has been reading since Angel lost his soul.

That night, Buffy tells her mother during dinner that Angel has been sort of stalking her lately. Buffy asks Joyce to never invite him into the house. Later, Buffy talks to Willow over the phone. During their conversation, Willow notices an envelope on her bed. She opens it and discovers that all the fish from her aquarium have been removed and strung along a wire, which she slowly pulls out of the envelope. Willow quickly retreats to Buffy's house to spend the night.

At the factory the next morning, Spike grows increasingly tired of Angel's presence. Their argument is interrupted by Drusilla, who falls onto the table in pain, for she senses something going on that may endanger them. What she senses is Jenny's visit to the local craft shop. Jenny purchases an Orb of Thesulah which she needs to restore Angel's soul. The shopkeeper warns her that the transliteration annals have been lost for many years, but Jenny tells him that she's working on a computer program that could translate the text.
The next morning, Giles gives Jenny's book to Buffy and points out the revoking spell that he just found. Buffy and Willow first help Cordy perform the steps on her car. The three of them then perform the spell in Willow's house. While there, Cordy notices a piece of paper left on Willow's bed. Willow unfolds it, then hands it to Buffy. It is a sketch of Joyce, asleep and completely unaware of Angel's presence. Buffy and Willow race to her house to perform the spell. Joyce soon pulls into the driveway, where Angel waits for her to get out of the car. Angel pleads with Joyce to help him get Buffy back, and he eventually mentions the night they made love. Joyce finally unlocks the front door and enters the house. Angel tries to follow her in, but a force holds him back. He then sees Buffy and Willow coming down the steps, and the door is promptly slammed in front of him. Back in Jenny's classroom, Giles walks in. She tells him that she may have some good news, so Giles invites her to stop by his house later. Meanwhile, Drusilla visits the shopkeeper after hours and asks him what he's been up to with Jenny Calendar.

Jenny finally completes her program. She saves the translated text on a floppy disk which she removes from the disk drive. As she prints out the text, she notices that Angel is sitting in the classroom. He destroys the Orb of Thesula, her computer, and the print-out. Angel then chases Jenny through the school halls before finally catching her in front of the second floor window. In a single instant, Angel snaps Jenny's neck, then drops her to the floor.
Meanwhile, Giles stops by Buffy's house to pick up Jenny's book so he can perform the revoking spell at his house. Upstairs, Joyce talks with Buffy about her irresponsibility. When Giles gets home, he hears opera music playing and finds a rose on his door. He enters and finds chilled wine, glasses, and a note that simply reads "Upstairs". He follows a path of roses up the staircase, but what he finds is everything but romantic. Jenny's dead body lies in his bed, and Giles drops the glasses and wine to the floor. Giles stares blankly ahead as the coroners take Jenny's body out of the house. The cops then ask Giles to come with them to the police station to answer a few questions. Giles asks if he could first use the phone. As the phone rings at Buffy's house, Angel watches from outside, through the windows. He watches Buffy's face as she gives the phone, then slowly collapses against the wall behind her. Willow immediately bursts into tears, and Joyce runs in to console her. After a while of recovery, Xander and Cordy arrive to give Buffy and Willow a lift to Giles' house. At this very moment, Giles stuffs his weapons into a duffel bag and takes off for the factory. Buffy and the others arrive too late, but they know where he's headed. At the factory, Giles throws a flame bomb into the middle of the floor, setting it ablaze. Before Angel can run, an arrow pins him against a post behind him. As he pulls it out, Giles ignites a club in the flames and proceeds to beat Angel repetitively with it. Finally, Angel grabs Giles by the neck and picks him up, but Buffy arrives just in time to take over the fight. Their battle carries on to the catwalk above, but before Buffy can finish Angel off, he reminds her of Giles, who remains collapsed by the rapidly spreading flames. He then throws Buffy over the rail, but she lands on her feet and rescues Giles, thus allowing to Angel to escape once again. Outside, Giles is furious at Buffy for interfering in his fight, but she punches him and tells him to never leave her alone.

Another day, another morning, Giles and Buffy stand over Jenny's grave. Buffy has finally realized that she is ready to finish Angel. In the computer classroom, Willow takes over as a substitute teacher until the new teacher can arrive. As she arranges Jenny's desk, she unknowingly drops a disk through a crack between the desk and a file cabinet. There the disk lies, the key to Angel's restoration.

Buffy wakes up in the morning to discover a piece of paper sitting on her pillow. She unfolds it to discover a sketch of her face while she was sleeping. Buffy knows that Angel must have been in her bedroom during her sleep. At the library, Buffy pleads to Giles that he find a spell that would reverse the invitation into her home. Buffy and Giles then stop by Jenny Calendar's computer class to meet Willow, who has just been assigned by Jenny to fill in as class teacher the next day for the first few minutes. As Buffy and Willow leave, Jenny does her best to apologize to Giles, who insists that Buffy is the one who deserves the apology. Jenny also gives Giles a book that she has been reading since Angel lost his soul.

That night, Buffy tells her mother during dinner that Angel has been sort of stalking her lately. Buffy asks Joyce to never invite him into the house. Later, Buffy talks to Willow over the phone. During their conversation, Willow notices an envelope on her bed. She opens it and discovers that all the fish from her aquarium have been removed and strung along a wire, which she slowly pulls out of the envelope. Willow quickly retreats to Buffy's house to spend the night.

At the factory the next morning, Spike grows increasingly tired of Angel's presence. Their argument is interrupted by Drusilla, who falls onto the table in pain, for she senses something going on that may endanger them. What she senses is Jenny's visit to the local craft shop. Jenny purchases an Orb of Thesulah which she needs to restore Angel's soul. The shopkeeper warns her that the transliteration annals have been lost for many years, but Jenny tells him that she's working on a computer program that could translate the text.
The next morning, Giles gives Jenny's book to Buffy and points out the revoking spell that he just found. Buffy and Willow first help Cordy perform the steps on her car. The three of them then perform the spell in Willow's house. While there, Cordy notices a piece of paper left on Willow's bed. Willow unfolds it, then hands it to Buffy. It is a sketch of Joyce, asleep and completely unaware of Angel's presence. Buffy and Willow race to her house to perform the spell. Joyce soon pulls into the driveway, where Angel waits for her to get out of the car. Angel pleads with Joyce to help him get Buffy back, and he eventually mentions the night they made love. Joyce finally unlocks the front door and enters the house. Angel tries to follow her in, but a force holds him back. He then sees Buffy and Willow coming down the steps, and the door is promptly slammed in front of him. Back in Jenny's classroom, Giles walks in. She tells him that she may have some good news, so Giles invites her to stop by his house later. Meanwhile, Drusilla visits the shopkeeper after hours and asks him what he's been up to with Jenny Calendar.

Jenny finally completes her program. She saves the translated text on a floppy disk which she removes from the disk drive. As she prints out the text, she notices that Angel is sitting in the classroom. He destroys the Orb of Thesula, her computer, and the print-out. Angel then chases Jenny through the school halls before finally catching her in front of the second floor window. In a single instant, Angel snaps Jenny's neck, then drops her to the floor.
Meanwhile, Giles stops by Buffy's house to pick up Jenny's book so he can perform the revoking spell at his house. Upstairs, Joyce talks with Buffy about her irresponsibility. When Giles gets home, he hears opera music playing and finds a rose on his door. He enters and finds chilled wine, glasses, and a note that simply reads "Upstairs". He follows a path of roses up the staircase, but what he finds is everything but romantic. Jenny's dead body lies in his bed, and Giles drops the glasses and wine to the floor. Giles stares blankly ahead as the coroners take Jenny's body out of the house. The cops then ask Giles to come with them to the police station to answer a few questions. Giles asks if he could first use the phone. As the phone rings at Buffy's house, Angel watches from outside, through the windows. He watches Buffy's face as she gives the phone, then slowly collapses against the wall behind her. Willow immediately bursts into tears, and Joyce runs in to console her. After a while of recovery, Xander and Cordy arrive to give Buffy and Willow a lift to Giles' house. At this very moment, Giles stuffs his weapons into a duffel bag and takes off for the factory. Buffy and the others arrive too late, but they know where he's headed. At the factory, Giles throws a flame bomb into the middle of the floor, setting it ablaze. Before Angel can run, an arrow pins him against a post behind him. As he pulls it out, Giles ignites a club in the flames and proceeds to beat Angel repetitively with it. Finally, Angel grabs Giles by the neck and picks him up, but Buffy arrives just in time to take over the fight. Their battle carries on to the catwalk above, but before Buffy can finish Angel off, he reminds her of Giles, who remains collapsed by the rapidly spreading flames. He then throws Buffy over the rail, but she lands on her feet and rescues Giles, thus allowing to Angel to escape once again. Outside, Giles is furious at Buffy for interfering in his fight, but she punches him and tells him to never leave her alone.

Another day, another morning, Giles and Buffy stand over Jenny's grave. Buffy has finally realized that she is ready to finish Angel. In the computer classroom, Willow takes over as a substitute teacher until the new teacher can arrive. As she arranges Jenny's desk, she unknowingly drops a disk through a crack between the desk and a file cabinet. There the disk lies, the key to Angel's restoration.

The flu has been spreading around Sunnydale High, and Buffy's one of the unlucky souls who's got it. While on a routine patrol through the cemetery, Buffy runs into Xander, Willow, and Cordelia. Before she can get them to go home, Angel appears and attacks Cordy. Buffy fends him off, but the flu has made her too weak to fight him effectively. Angel nearly bites Buffy when the others come to her aid and thwart him back with their crosses. After Angel leaves, Buffy collapses and lies on the ground, unconscious.
The gang brings Buffy to the emergency room of Sunnydale General. Giles and Joyce soon arrive, and they wait for Buffy to be moved to another room so they could see her. On the way to room, Buffy realizes that she's going to be there awhile, so she tries to get out, screaming that she has to kill the vampires. Dr. Wilkinson injects a tranquilizer to calm her down. Soon, Buffy is asleep in her new room while the others wait outside in the hall. Joyce tells everyone that Buffy has been afraid of hospitals ever since she saw her cousin Celia die in a hospital when they were both very young. The group goes home while Xander stays behind to protect Buffy in case Angel shows up. That night, Buffy is still overcome with her fever when she notices a young boy standing in her doorway. As the boy walks away, Buffy sees a tall, demonic man following the boy. He is dressed in black clothes and a black hat, and his fingers are long and pointed. Buffy gets out of her bed to follow them, but she soon finds herself in a flashback to a time when she was much younger, walking down a similar hospital hallway. As her young self walks into a room and approaches the bed curtains, Buffy wakes up, realizing that she was just dreaming. She then gets out of bed and walks down the hall. She stops outside of a door from which a body of a recently diseased girl is being wheeled out of. Buffy eavesdrops on Dr. Wilkinson talking with another doctor, Dr. Stanley Backer. Dr. Wilkinson is arguing about some kind of experimental procedure that Dr. Backer has been performing on the children. Buffy then notices two children standing before her. One of them is the same boy she saw earlier, who tells her that Death is coming for them, and that he can't be seen by grownups. Elsewhere, Angel walks into the hospital, holding some flowers for Buffy. Xander blocks his path and challenges him to a fight, but Angel simply points out Xander's apparent jealousy of Angel for getting to Buffy first. Angel then turns around and leaves.

The next morning, Buffy's fever has gone down, and the gang pays her a visit. Buffy tells them about the apparent demon she saw walking the halls, the one that grownups can't see, but also notes that she may have just been delusional from her fever. She also tells them about the girl who died and Dr. Backer's experiments. Giles and Willow return to the library to do some research while Xander and Cordy snoop around the hospital for more info. They find nothing, so Xander decides to stay behind and watch after Buffy. Cordy is upset with him for his obvious attraction that he still holds for Buffy, but she later returns with donuts and coffee to keep Xander company. In the meantime, Giles and Willow concoct a theory that the kids think they're seeing Death, but they're really seeing Dr. Backer. Willow researches his background, but can't find much to convict him of anything. Later that night, Buffy sneaks out of her room again. She heads for the children's ward, where Dr. Backer is preparing to inject a sleeping girl with an unknown solution. He then hears something, but it is too late, for an invisible force attacks the doctor, slashing away at his body. The young boy, Ryan, wakes up and watches in horror as Dr. Backer is slashed to death by the demon. Buffy looks in and sees Dr. Backer being attacked, but she can't see the attacker. His lifeless body is then thrown out of the room, and before Buffy can reach it, she is knocked back by the unseen force. She lies against the wall, unconscious, while Dr. Backer's body is dragged down the hall and out of sight.

The next morning, Buffy tells the gang that Backer is no longer their suspect, then shows them a drawing that Ryan made of the demon. Joyce arrives and tells Buffy that she's been cleared to go home, but Buffy makes up an excuse that she's still not feeling well so she can stay in the hospital and fight the demon. Willow stays to help Buffy investigate Dr. Backer's office for clues as to why he was killed, while Xander elects to stand guard at the hospital. This leaves Giles to reluctantly work with Cordy in the library. In Dr. Backer's office, Willow finds a log proving that Backer was innoculating the kids with the same virus they were infected with in an attempt to raise their temperature and burn out their fever. According the log, the process was starting to work, so Backer really was helping the children all along. At the library, Cordy notices that a picture on the cover of a book resembles the picture that Ryan drew. She calls Buffy and tells them that the name of the demon is Der Kindestod. Giles then tells Buffy that Kindestod kills its victims by sitting on top of them and pinning them on their backs. It then sucks the life out of them somehow. Buffy suddenly has another flashback to her earlier years. The younger Buffy walks into the room and opens the curtains, only to see Celia screaming with her hands in front of her, as if she is trying to push some invisible object off of her. Buffy realizes that her cousin Celia was killed by Kindestod. After hanging up the phone, Buffy realizes that the only time she was able to see the Kindestod was when she was still under the effects of her fever. Willow and Buffy sneak into Backer's office again. Buffy opens the refrigerator and removes a test tube that contains the same virus strain that Backer was using in his experiments. Willow dilutes it with water before Buffy drinks it. Sick again, Buffy stumbles to the children's ward with Willow's help. However, all the children are no longer in their room. Buffy then sees Kindestod walking around inside the room, then entering a door labelled "Basement Access". The door is locked, so Buffy needs to find another way to the basement. Dr. Wilkinson walks into the hallway and tries to get Buffy back to her room, but Buffy pushes her away, and she and Willow run for it. Two security guards stop them, but Willow throws an imaginary fit to divert the guards while Buffy slips by. She finds Xander, and the two of them head down to the basement. They find Ryan pinned to the floor by Kindestod, while the rest of the children sit together screaming. Buffy fights Kindestod while Xander moves the others to safety. Before Kindestod can drain Buffy of her life force, she grabs his head with both hands and snaps his neck, killing him instantly.

The next morning, Buffy is back in the comfort of her own bedroom. Xander and Willow are also there, keeping her company while she recovers from her fever again. Joyce brings Buffy a letter that just arrived in the mail. It's from Ryan, and Buffy opens it to find a drawing of Buffy standing victoriously over the body of Kindestod, it's neck cracked open and blood spurting out.

The flu has been spreading around Sunnydale High, and Buffy's one of the unlucky souls who's got it. While on a routine patrol through the cemetery, Buffy runs into Xander, Willow, and Cordelia. Before she can get them to go home, Angel appears and attacks Cordy. Buffy fends him off, but the flu has made her too weak to fight him effectively. Angel nearly bites Buffy when the others come to her aid and thwart him back with their crosses. After Angel leaves, Buffy collapses and lies on the ground, unconscious.
The gang brings Buffy to the emergency room of Sunnydale General. Giles and Joyce soon arrive, and they wait for Buffy to be moved to another room so they could see her. On the way to room, Buffy realizes that she's going to be there awhile, so she tries to get out, screaming that she has to kill the vampires. Dr. Wilkinson injects a tranquilizer to calm her down. Soon, Buffy is asleep in her new room while the others wait outside in the hall. Joyce tells everyone that Buffy has been afraid of hospitals ever since she saw her cousin Celia die in a hospital when they were both very young. The group goes home while Xander stays behind to protect Buffy in case Angel shows up. That night, Buffy is still overcome with her fever when she notices a young boy standing in her doorway. As the boy walks away, Buffy sees a tall, demonic man following the boy. He is dressed in black clothes and a black hat, and his fingers are long and pointed. Buffy gets out of her bed to follow them, but she soon finds herself in a flashback to a time when she was much younger, walking down a similar hospital hallway. As her young self walks into a room and approaches the bed curtains, Buffy wakes up, realizing that she was just dreaming. She then gets out of bed and walks down the hall. She stops outside of a door from which a body of a recently diseased girl is being wheeled out of. Buffy eavesdrops on Dr. Wilkinson talking with another doctor, Dr. Stanley Backer. Dr. Wilkinson is arguing about some kind of experimental procedure that Dr. Backer has been performing on the children. Buffy then notices two children standing before her. One of them is the same boy she saw earlier, who tells her that Death is coming for them, and that he can't be seen by grownups. Elsewhere, Angel walks into the hospital, holding some flowers for Buffy. Xander blocks his path and challenges him to a fight, but Angel simply points out Xander's apparent jealousy of Angel for getting to Buffy first. Angel then turns around and leaves.

The next morning, Buffy's fever has gone down, and the gang pays her a visit. Buffy tells them about the apparent demon she saw walking the halls, the one that grownups can't see, but also notes that she may have just been delusional from her fever. She also tells them about the girl who died and Dr. Backer's experiments. Giles and Willow return to the library to do some research while Xander and Cordy snoop around the hospital for more info. They find nothing, so Xander decides to stay behind and watch after Buffy. Cordy is upset with him for his obvious attraction that he still holds for Buffy, but she later returns with donuts and coffee to keep Xander company. In the meantime, Giles and Willow concoct a theory that the kids think they're seeing Death, but they're really seeing Dr. Backer. Willow researches his background, but can't find much to convict him of anything. Later that night, Buffy sneaks out of her room again. She heads for the children's ward, where Dr. Backer is preparing to inject a sleeping girl with an unknown solution. He then hears something, but it is too late, for an invisible force attacks the doctor, slashing away at his body. The young boy, Ryan, wakes up and watches in horror as Dr. Backer is slashed to death by the demon. Buffy looks in and sees Dr. Backer being attacked, but she can't see the attacker. His lifeless body is then thrown out of the room, and before Buffy can reach it, she is knocked back by the unseen force. She lies against the wall, unconscious, while Dr. Backer's body is dragged down the hall and out of sight.

The next morning, Buffy tells the gang that Backer is no longer their suspect, then shows them a drawing that Ryan made of the demon. Joyce arrives and tells Buffy that she's been cleared to go home, but Buffy makes up an excuse that she's still not feeling well so she can stay in the hospital and fight the demon. Willow stays to help Buffy investigate Dr. Backer's office for clues as to why he was killed, while Xander elects to stand guard at the hospital. This leaves Giles to reluctantly work with Cordy in the library. In Dr. Backer's office, Willow finds a log proving that Backer was innoculating the kids with the same virus they were infected with in an attempt to raise their temperature and burn out their fever. According the log, the process was starting to work, so Backer really was helping the children all along. At the library, Cordy notices that a picture on the cover of a book resembles the picture that Ryan drew. She calls Buffy and tells them that the name of the demon is Der Kindestod. Giles then tells Buffy that Kindestod kills its victims by sitting on top of them and pinning them on their backs. It then sucks the life out of them somehow. Buffy suddenly has another flashback to her earlier years. The younger Buffy walks into the room and opens the curtains, only to see Celia screaming with her hands in front of her, as if she is trying to push some invisible object off of her. Buffy realizes that her cousin Celia was killed by Kindestod. After hanging up the phone, Buffy realizes that the only time she was able to see the Kindestod was when she was still under the effects of her fever. Willow and Buffy sneak into Backer's office again. Buffy opens the refrigerator and removes a test tube that contains the same virus strain that Backer was using in his experiments. Willow dilutes it with water before Buffy drinks it. Sick again, Buffy stumbles to the children's ward with Willow's help. However, all the children are no longer in their room. Buffy then sees Kindestod walking around inside the room, then entering a door labelled "Basement Access". The door is locked, so Buffy needs to find another way to the basement. Dr. Wilkinson walks into the hallway and tries to get Buffy back to her room, but Buffy pushes her away, and she and Willow run for it. Two security guards stop them, but Willow throws an imaginary fit to divert the guards while Buffy slips by. She finds Xander, and the two of them head down to the basement. They find Ryan pinned to the floor by Kindestod, while the rest of the children sit together screaming. Buffy fights Kindestod while Xander moves the others to safety. Before Kindestod can drain Buffy of her life force, she grabs his head with both hands and snaps his neck, killing him instantly.

The next morning, Buffy is back in the comfort of her own bedroom. Xander and Willow are also there, keeping her company while she recovers from her fever again. Joyce brings Buffy a letter that just arrived in the mail. It's from Ryan, and Buffy opens it to find a drawing of Buffy standing victoriously over the body of Kindestod, it's neck cracked open and blood spurting out.

A night at the Bronze does nothing to improve the Slayer's morale, as Willow notices when she sees Buffy reject a guy. Willow tries to help her friend out, but Buffy opts to stop by the school and see if Giles has any work for her to do. Unbeknownst to her, a boy is fighting with a girl in the school hallway. He holds up a gun, and the girl tries to leave the scene. The boy then shouts, "Don't walk away from me, bitch!" Buffy arrives at the school just in time to stop the boy from shooting the girl. Buffy knocks the gun out of his hand, and the boy soon returns to his senses. While he and the girl try to figure out what just happened, the school janitor points out that the gun is nowhere to be seen.

The next morning, Principal Snyder calls Buffy to his office to let her know that he'll be keeping an eye on her. After he leaves the office for a minute, a book mysteriously falls out of the bookshelf. Buffy picks it up, noticing that it's a yearbook from the Sunnydale Class of '55. Meanwhile, Giles stops by the computer classroom, where Willow is still serving as the substitute teacher. She tells Giles about some of the files and pagan websites she found on the computer, then gives him a rose quartz that once belonged to Jenny. Elsewhere, Buffy has a dream in one of her classes that she's in the year 1955. She watches on as one of the students approaches the teacher. They start to hold hands when someone else interrupts them. Just then, Buffy wakes up from her dream and notices the teacher writing "Don't walk away from me, bitch" on the chalkboard. He doesn't even notice it until the students start laughing. In the hallway, Buffy tells Xander what happened. When they reach his locker, a rotted arm reaches out of it and grabs Xander, trying to pull him in. Buffy helps him loose, and the creature disappears. When Giles finds out about this, he deduces that this is some form of paranormal activity.

Later that night, one of the teachers, Ms. Frank, passes by George the janitor on her way home. Suddenly, they begin to reenact the same conversation that the boy and girl held the night before. While this goes on, Giles is working in his office when he hears a female voice call to him. He believes that it is Jenny's voice. When he walks out to investigate, he sees George and Ms. Frank outside. Before Giles can do anything, the gun goes off, sending Ms. Frank over the edge and onto the steps below. George tries to flee the scene, but Giles tackles him. After the gun is knocked out of George's hands, it suddenly vanishes into thin air. George has no idea what just happened, so Giles fills him in.

The next day, Giles tells the others that he believes the ghost is Jenny. They don't see how the pieces fit, but Giles remains set in his belief. In the computer classroom, Willow looks up any previous shooting victims in the school. She finds a record from 1955, when a student shot his teacher, then himself. Buffy recognizes the faces from her dream, so she grabs a 1955 yearbook and looks them up. The boy was James Stanley, and his teacher was Grace Newman. Buffy determines that they were having an affair. However, Buffy feels no remorse for James's fate, for she feels he deserved whatever punishment there was after shooting Grace. In the cafeteria, Cordy complains about the upcoming Sadie Hawkins dance when another paranormal event occurs. This time, all of the food transforms into snakes, sending the entire school population into panic. One of the snake bites Cordy's cheek before she swats it away. After they evacuate the school, a team is sent in to clean out the snakes. Principal Snyder talks with his friend on the police force, Bob. Snyder knows that they're on a Hellmouth, but Bob demands Snyder to control the situation, otherwise the mayor would have to get involved. That night, Willow sets up a plan to exorcise the spirit from the school. To do so, Buffy, Xander, Cordelia, and herself need to chant from different locations in the school at midnight, forming what is called a Mangus Tripod. Buffy elects to take the center position, since that is where the most danger would likely occur. After they split up in the school, Willow runs into Giles by the library. He is trying to contact Jenny's spirit, so Willow leaves him alone. As midnight approaches, Buffy sees a vision of James dancing with Grace in the band room. Cordelia inspects her wound in the bathroom mirror, then watches in horror as the whole side of her face turns red and swollen. Willow is suddenly pulled into the floor by an arm, but she is saved by Giles. Buffy watches as James's face is replaced by a rotted skull, which tells her to get out. T he clock finally strikes twelve, so the group does the chant simultaneously. However, it doen't work like it's supposed to. A swarm of wasps invades the hallways, and everybody makes a mad dash for the exit. They run to the street, then turn around to witness the swarm surround the entire school.

At Buffy's house, Giles deduces that it is James spirit which is haunting Sunnydale High. He is apparently trying to seek forgiveness from Grace, but that can never happen since she dies before she can possibly forgive him. So, he is doomed to repeat this scenario over and over again. While they try to figure out a solution, Buffy hears a male voice call to her. Without telling the others, she sneaks off to the school. The wasps part to allow her access, and she walks right in. Inside, Buffy meets Angel, who has come to finish things off. However, James spirit possesses Buffy, and she begins to act out the scenario. Confused for a moment, Angel approaches and is suddenly possessed by Grace's spirit. It all plays out the same way, only this time, Grace (in Angel's body) gets up after being shot and falling onto the steps below. In the band room, James (in Buffy's body) prepares to shoot himself, when Grace stops him. She forgives him, and they share one last kiss before their souls finally cross over, leaving Buffy and Angel in an embrace, kissing like they once did in the past. When Angel realizes what he is doing, he pushes her off and escapes.
Back at the Summers home, Buffy realizes that James never meant to shoot Grace.

Apparently, Buffy and James had more in common than she realized, for they were both tormented by guilt. Meanwhile, at their new home in an abandoned garden, Angel tries to cleanse himself from the vile kiss he shared with his enemy. He takes Dru out with him to find some blood, leaving Spike alone. After they leave, Spike rises from his wheelchair and kicks it on its side, knowing that the time for his comeback is nearer than anyone else thinks.

A night at the Bronze does nothing to improve the Slayer's morale, as Willow notices when she sees Buffy reject a guy. Willow tries to help her friend out, but Buffy opts to stop by the school and see if Giles has any work for her to do. Unbeknownst to her, a boy is fighting with a girl in the school hallway. He holds up a gun, and the girl tries to leave the scene. The boy then shouts, "Don't walk away from me, bitch!" Buffy arrives at the school just in time to stop the boy from shooting the girl. Buffy knocks the gun out of his hand, and the boy soon returns to his senses. While he and the girl try to figure out what just happened, the school janitor points out that the gun is nowhere to be seen.

The next morning, Principal Snyder calls Buffy to his office to let her know that he'll be keeping an eye on her. After he leaves the office for a minute, a book mysteriously falls out of the bookshelf. Buffy picks it up, noticing that it's a yearbook from the Sunnydale Class of '55. Meanwhile, Giles stops by the computer classroom, where Willow is still serving as the substitute teacher. She tells Giles about some of the files and pagan websites she found on the computer, then gives him a rose quartz that once belonged to Jenny. Elsewhere, Buffy has a dream in one of her classes that she's in the year 1955. She watches on as one of the students approaches the teacher. They start to hold hands when someone else interrupts them. Just then, Buffy wakes up from her dream and notices the teacher writing "Don't walk away from me, bitch" on the chalkboard. He doesn't even notice it until the students start laughing. In the hallway, Buffy tells Xander what happened. When they reach his locker, a rotted arm reaches out of it and grabs Xander, trying to pull him in. Buffy helps him loose, and the creature disappears. When Giles finds out about this, he deduces that this is some form of paranormal activity.

Later that night, one of the teachers, Ms. Frank, passes by George the janitor on her way home. Suddenly, they begin to reenact the same conversation that the boy and girl held the night before. While this goes on, Giles is working in his office when he hears a female voice call to him. He believes that it is Jenny's voice. When he walks out to investigate, he sees George and Ms. Frank outside. Before Giles can do anything, the gun goes off, sending Ms. Frank over the edge and onto the steps below. George tries to flee the scene, but Giles tackles him. After the gun is knocked out of George's hands, it suddenly vanishes into thin air. George has no idea what just happened, so Giles fills him in.

The next day, Giles tells the others that he believes the ghost is Jenny. They don't see how the pieces fit, but Giles remains set in his belief. In the computer classroom, Willow looks up any previous shooting victims in the school. She finds a record from 1955, when a student shot his teacher, then himself. Buffy recognizes the faces from her dream, so she grabs a 1955 yearbook and looks them up. The boy was James Stanley, and his teacher was Grace Newman. Buffy determines that they were having an affair. However, Buffy feels no remorse for James's fate, for she feels he deserved whatever punishment there was after shooting Grace. In the cafeteria, Cordy complains about the upcoming Sadie Hawkins dance when another paranormal event occurs. This time, all of the food transforms into snakes, sending the entire school population into panic. One of the snake bites Cordy's cheek before she swats it away. After they evacuate the school, a team is sent in to clean out the snakes. Principal Snyder talks with his friend on the police force, Bob. Snyder knows that they're on a Hellmouth, but Bob demands Snyder to control the situation, otherwise the mayor would have to get involved. That night, Willow sets up a plan to exorcise the spirit from the school. To do so, Buffy, Xander, Cordelia, and herself need to chant from different locations in the school at midnight, forming what is called a Mangus Tripod. Buffy elects to take the center position, since that is where the most danger would likely occur. After they split up in the school, Willow runs into Giles by the library. He is trying to contact Jenny's spirit, so Willow leaves him alone. As midnight approaches, Buffy sees a vision of James dancing with Grace in the band room. Cordelia inspects her wound in the bathroom mirror, then watches in horror as the whole side of her face turns red and swollen. Willow is suddenly pulled into the floor by an arm, but she is saved by Giles. Buffy watches as James's face is replaced by a rotted skull, which tells her to get out. T he clock finally strikes twelve, so the group does the chant simultaneously. However, it doen't work like it's supposed to. A swarm of wasps invades the hallways, and everybody makes a mad dash for the exit. They run to the street, then turn around to witness the swarm surround the entire school.

At Buffy's house, Giles deduces that it is James spirit which is haunting Sunnydale High. He is apparently trying to seek forgiveness from Grace, but that can never happen since she dies before she can possibly forgive him. So, he is doomed to repeat this scenario over and over again. While they try to figure out a solution, Buffy hears a male voice call to her. Without telling the others, she sneaks off to the school. The wasps part to allow her access, and she walks right in. Inside, Buffy meets Angel, who has come to finish things off. However, James spirit possesses Buffy, and she begins to act out the scenario. Confused for a moment, Angel approaches and is suddenly possessed by Grace's spirit. It all plays out the same way, only this time, Grace (in Angel's body) gets up after being shot and falling onto the steps below. In the band room, James (in Buffy's body) prepares to shoot himself, when Grace stops him. She forgives him, and they share one last kiss before their souls finally cross over, leaving Buffy and Angel in an embrace, kissing like they once did in the past. When Angel realizes what he is doing, he pushes her off and escapes.
Back at the Summers home, Buffy realizes that James never meant to shoot Grace.

Apparently, Buffy and James had more in common than she realized, for they were both tormented by guilt. Meanwhile, at their new home in an abandoned garden, Angel tries to cleanse himself from the vile kiss he shared with his enemy. He takes Dru out with him to find some blood, leaving Spike alone. After they leave, Spike rises from his wheelchair and kicks it on its side, knowing that the time for his comeback is nearer than anyone else thinks.

The beach is the site for the victory party of the Sunnydale High swim team, and everyone's celebrating except Buffy. One of the team members, Cameron, approaches the lonely Slayer and keeps her company. Another team member, Dodd, mocks Jonathan in front of everybody, so Buffy steps in to stop the foolishness. Dodd and fellow member Gage then leave the party and walk along the shore. Suddenly, Dodd disappears without Gage even noticing. He smells a strong odor coming from somewhere, so he decides to return to the party. He doesn't hear Dodd quietly scream in agony, nor does he notice the scaly creature walking away from Dodd's remains.

The next morning, Principal Snyder stops by the computer classroom to talk to Willow about one of her students, Gage. He is currently getting an "F" in the class, and Snyder encourages her to work his grade into a passing one. Meanwhile, Cameron gives a Buffy a ride to school, then tries to put the moves on her. She retaliates by busting his nose on the steering wheel. Principal Snyder sees this and calls the two of them to Nurse Greenliegh's office. The swim team coach, Marin, meets them there, and they discuss their chances for winning the state title. In the library, Buffy learns that Dodd's insides were eaten from some mysterious creature, leaving only his skin behind. Hours later, Xander takes a study break and heads to the vending machine. He bumps into Cameron, who is on his way to the cafeteria. Cam notices a foul smell when he enters the cafeteria, and a horrific scream follows soon after. Xander follows the sound, but he's too late, for all that remains of Cameron is his skin on the cafeteria floor. Xander then turns around and encounters the scaly creature that most likely killed Cameron.

Later, Xander explains to Giles and Cordy that the creature got away before he could get a good look at it. Without Cameron gone, Giles determines the pattern of the killing is connected to the swim team ranks. Dodd and Cameron were the first and second best swimmers on the team, respectively. Since Gage is the third best, he would most likely be the creature's next target. Buffy decides to keep an eye on Gage, while Willow interrogates Jonathan, who has tried out for the team several times but never made it on. All Willow learns is that Jonathan peed in the pool. Later that night, Gage confronts Buffy about her spying on him. She tries to come up with a good excuse, then simply tells Gage what's really going on. He doesn't buy it, so he turns and walks out. Outside, he meets Angel, who promptly sinks his teeth into Gage's neck, hoping to turn him into a demon. Buffy arrives on the scene just in time to witness Angel suddenly withdrawing his fangs from Gage's neck and spitting the blood out. He tosses Gage's weakened body at Buffy and makes his escape, all the while spitting out the blood in disgust. Gage believes Buffy now, so he asks her to walk him home.

At swim practice the next day, Buffy tells Willow and Cordy about Angel's distaste for Gage's blood. She believes that Gage may have been taking steroids, which might have turned Angel off. Willow then considers the possibility that the steroids might be what's attracting the creature. They then find out that Xander has joined the swim team. The position was open due to the recent deaths, so Xander took it as an opportunity to spy on Gage when Buffy couldn't. After spending some time in the steam room, Xander gets dressed and meets Buffy outside of the locker room, telling her that Gage is still inside. She soon hears Gage screaming and runs inside, where she sees the creature standing in front of Gage. She gets between the two of them, but something's wrong with Gage. To her horror, Buffy watches as Gage tears away his own skin in agony before emerging as the same type of creature standing behind her. Gage's former skin drops to the floor, and he quickly attacks Buffy. The two of them are too much for Buffy, and when her guard drops, one of them bite into her arm. Coach Marin arrives to pull Buffy out of danger, and the two creatures escape through a hole in the floor. Buffy and Giles question Coach Marin, but he denies any knowledge of substance abuse in his team. They can't figure out what's going on, so Buffy assigns Xander to learn more about the team's drug use while she and Willow talk to Nurse Greenliegh. However, Nurse Greenliegh is already being led to her doom by Coach Marin, who won't listen to her pleas to stop the experiments. He drops her into the sewer below, where the fish creatures quickly feed on her.

In the steam room, Xander learns from one of the other members that the steroids are in the steam itself. This means that Xander has been exposed to the same substance that transformed Dodd, Cameron, and Gage. He tells the others that he's already been in the steam room three times, so Buffy talks to Coach Marin. Eventually, he tells her about Russian experiments with fish DNA on their Olympic swimmers. He then draws a gun and orders Buffy to drop into the sewer so his boys could satisfy their "other needs". After dropping down, Buffy sees the chewed-up remains of Nurse Greenliegh floating in the murky water. Upstairs by the pool, Cordy mistakes a newly-emerged fish creature for Xander. She expresses her sorrow for his fate, but Xander shows up again, just in time to save her from the creature's attack. They return to the library, where Giles has locked up the remaining members of the swim team. Xander then goes to see Coach Marin, and they engage in a struggle over the gun. Down below, Buffy fends off the creatures until they finally surround her from all angles. Xander knocks Coach Marin down and extends his arm through the hole for Buffy. She leaps up, grabs Xander's hand, and is pulled to safety. Coach Marin gets up for one last strike, but Buffy is ready this time. She sweeps him off his feet, sending Marin into the sewer with his swimmers. They converge on him, leaving Coach Marin with nothing to do but scream. Later, Xander tells the others that he has to get a blood transfusion along with the rest of the team, hoping that will prevent them from changing. As they speak, the fish creatures swim out into the ocean, against the current.

The beach is the site for the victory party of the Sunnydale High swim team, and everyone's celebrating except Buffy. One of the team members, Cameron, approaches the lonely Slayer and keeps her company. Another team member, Dodd, mocks Jonathan in front of everybody, so Buffy steps in to stop the foolishness. Dodd and fellow member Gage then leave the party and walk along the shore. Suddenly, Dodd disappears without Gage even noticing. He smells a strong odor coming from somewhere, so he decides to return to the party. He doesn't hear Dodd quietly scream in agony, nor does he notice the scaly creature walking away from Dodd's remains.

The next morning, Principal Snyder stops by the computer classroom to talk to Willow about one of her students, Gage. He is currently getting an "F" in the class, and Snyder encourages her to work his grade into a passing one. Meanwhile, Cameron gives a Buffy a ride to school, then tries to put the moves on her. She retaliates by busting his nose on the steering wheel. Principal Snyder sees this and calls the two of them to Nurse Greenliegh's office. The swim team coach, Marin, meets them there, and they discuss their chances for winning the state title. In the library, Buffy learns that Dodd's insides were eaten from some mysterious creature, leaving only his skin behind. Hours later, Xander takes a study break and heads to the vending machine. He bumps into Cameron, who is on his way to the cafeteria. Cam notices a foul smell when he enters the cafeteria, and a horrific scream follows soon after. Xander follows the sound, but he's too late, for all that remains of Cameron is his skin on the cafeteria floor. Xander then turns around and encounters the scaly creature that most likely killed Cameron.

Later, Xander explains to Giles and Cordy that the creature got away before he could get a good look at it. Without Cameron gone, Giles determines the pattern of the killing is connected to the swim team ranks. Dodd and Cameron were the first and second best swimmers on the team, respectively. Since Gage is the third best, he would most likely be the creature's next target. Buffy decides to keep an eye on Gage, while Willow interrogates Jonathan, who has tried out for the team several times but never made it on. All Willow learns is that Jonathan peed in the pool. Later that night, Gage confronts Buffy about her spying on him. She tries to come up with a good excuse, then simply tells Gage what's really going on. He doesn't buy it, so he turns and walks out. Outside, he meets Angel, who promptly sinks his teeth into Gage's neck, hoping to turn him into a demon. Buffy arrives on the scene just in time to witness Angel suddenly withdrawing his fangs from Gage's neck and spitting the blood out. He tosses Gage's weakened body at Buffy and makes his escape, all the while spitting out the blood in disgust. Gage believes Buffy now, so he asks her to walk him home.

At swim practice the next day, Buffy tells Willow and Cordy about Angel's distaste for Gage's blood. She believes that Gage may have been taking steroids, which might have turned Angel off. Willow then considers the possibility that the steroids might be what's attracting the creature. They then find out that Xander has joined the swim team. The position was open due to the recent deaths, so Xander took it as an opportunity to spy on Gage when Buffy couldn't. After spending some time in the steam room, Xander gets dressed and meets Buffy outside of the locker room, telling her that Gage is still inside. She soon hears Gage screaming and runs inside, where she sees the creature standing in front of Gage. She gets between the two of them, but something's wrong with Gage. To her horror, Buffy watches as Gage tears away his own skin in agony before emerging as the same type of creature standing behind her. Gage's former skin drops to the floor, and he quickly attacks Buffy. The two of them are too much for Buffy, and when her guard drops, one of them bite into her arm. Coach Marin arrives to pull Buffy out of danger, and the two creatures escape through a hole in the floor. Buffy and Giles question Coach Marin, but he denies any knowledge of substance abuse in his team. They can't figure out what's going on, so Buffy assigns Xander to learn more about the team's drug use while she and Willow talk to Nurse Greenliegh. However, Nurse Greenliegh is already being led to her doom by Coach Marin, who won't listen to her pleas to stop the experiments. He drops her into the sewer below, where the fish creatures quickly feed on her.

In the steam room, Xander learns from one of the other members that the steroids are in the steam itself. This means that Xander has been exposed to the same substance that transformed Dodd, Cameron, and Gage. He tells the others that he's already been in the steam room three times, so Buffy talks to Coach Marin. Eventually, he tells her about Russian experiments with fish DNA on their Olympic swimmers. He then draws a gun and orders Buffy to drop into the sewer so his boys could satisfy their "other needs". After dropping down, Buffy sees the chewed-up remains of Nurse Greenliegh floating in the murky water. Upstairs by the pool, Cordy mistakes a newly-emerged fish creature for Xander. She expresses her sorrow for his fate, but Xander shows up again, just in time to save her from the creature's attack. They return to the library, where Giles has locked up the remaining members of the swim team. Xander then goes to see Coach Marin, and they engage in a struggle over the gun. Down below, Buffy fends off the creatures until they finally surround her from all angles. Xander knocks Coach Marin down and extends his arm through the hole for Buffy. She leaps up, grabs Xander's hand, and is pulled to safety. Coach Marin gets up for one last strike, but Buffy is ready this time. She sweeps him off his feet, sending Marin into the sewer with his swimmers. They converge on him, leaving Coach Marin with nothing to do but scream. Later, Xander tells the others that he has to get a blood transfusion along with the rest of the team, hoping that will prevent them from changing. As they speak, the fish creatures swim out into the ocean, against the current.

Galway, 1753 -- On his last day as a mortal human, the man who will become Angelus encounters a beautiful, blonde woman on the streets at night. Her name is Darla, and she seduces him closer to her. She sinks her fangs into his neck, then uses her nails to make an incision on her chest, just above her breasts. Immediately, Darla pulls the man's mouth onto her bleeding cut, turning the man into a demon of the night.
Sunnydale, Present -- Angel watches Buffy from afar as she battles a pair of vampires. She orders one of them to take a message to Angel, saying that she's taking the offensive. The vampire doesn't comply, so Buffy finishes him off. The next day, Giles pays a visit to the museum, where a newly-discovered stone artifact has been discovered. It is a few feet taller than Giles, and it contains some form of text on the side. Giles asks the man in charge, Doug Perren, if they attempted to open it yet, but Doug didn't notice the crack running down the side of the stone until Giles pointed it out. Giles then asks Doug to refrain from opening it until he can decipher the text. At school, Buffy declares to her friends for the umpteenth time that she's ready to face Angel, despite the fact that final exams are approaching. Willow offers to tutor Buffy in chemistry during one of their free periods.

London, 1860 -- Before she became a demon, Drusilla was a young Catholic woman who only wanted to follow the right path in life. She enters a church and steps into the confessional booth, failing to notice one of the priest's arms reaching out in desperation before being pulled back in. Drusilla does not realize that Angelus has just murdered the priest and is now acting in his place behind the confessional screen. After Drusilla tells him of her problem with her visions of the future, Angelus torments her by claiming that she is a child of the devil. Drusilla does not want this to be true, and pleads for help. Finally, Angelus lets her go with a request for Hail Mary's and an act of contrition.

Sunnydale, Present -- Drusilla, Spike, and Angelus read about the museum's new artifact in the newspaper. Angelus knows what it is immediately. Back in Sunnydale High, Buffy hopelessly tries to solve a chemistry problem when she accidentally drops her pencil. It rolls off into the desk and falls on the floor, right next to Ms. Calendar's disk which has remained their ever since the night of her murder. Buffy pulls the disk out and hands it to Willow, and pops it into the disk drive to check out its contents. What they find is Jenny's final project: the curse for the restoration of Angel's soul. Meanwhile, Dru, Angel, and several other vamps go to the museum to retrieve the stone, killing Doug Perren in the process.

Rumanian Woods, 1898 -- The dead body of a gypsy girl lays stretched out on the ground next to a fire, while an elder gypsy woman chants the curse of restoration. Glowing beneath her is an Orb of Thesulah. While she chants the curse, Angelus flees through the woods, trying to escape the scene of the crime, for he is the one responsible for the girl's death. The elder woman completes the curse, and Angelus is stopped in his tracks. He falls to his knees, and his eyes glow as his soul returns to his body for the first time in over a century. A gypsy man steps out of the woods and explains to Angel that he is being punished for the countless murders he has committed.

Sunnydale, Present -- Buffy and Willow show Giles a printout of the restoration curse. Giles claims that the curse would require a great knowledge of the black arts, and Willow feels that she's up to the challenge. While everyone talks of Angel's salvation, only Xander is upset, for he feels that Angel must pay for his murders with his life. Xander gets into an argument with Giles over Jenny's last wish before telling Buffy that she's willing to forget all about the murders in order to get her beloved Angel back. Elsewhere, Angel tells Spike the story of a demon named Acathla. This demon possesses the power to literally swallow the Earth into Hell, but he was stopped by a knight centuries ago. His body turned to stone with the sword still embedded in it, then was concealed in the stone tomb and buried deep beneath the ground. With that, two vampires open the tomb, revealing the body of Acathla inside. Only someone worthy can remove the sword from Acathla's body, freeing him to reign terror on the world. Later that night, Buffy finds the claddagh ring that Angel gave to her before he lost his soul. She goes outside for a walk and encounters Kendra, who has returned to take care of another dark force in Sunnydale. At the library, Kendra shows them a valuable weapon that she brought with her. It is a sword that was blessed by the same knight who stopped Acathla. If Angel succeeds in reviving the demon, it may be their only chance to stop it. Buffy asks Willow to perform the curse as soon as possible, but they need an Orb of Thesulah first. Luckily, Giles already has one in his office.

Manhattan, 1996 -- Angel stumbles through the streets of Manhattan, living like a bum ever since he regained his soul. He is approached by another demon named Whistler who say's he too is on the good side. Whistler offers Angel a chance to pick himself up from this foul life and become someone important in the world. But first, Angel has to see something before he can make his decision.

Los Angeles, 1996 -- A car with windows painted black parks outside of Hemery High, and Angel rolls the window down just enough to see what he came there for: the Chosen One. He observes Buffy's first meeting with a Watcher, then follows her to the cemetery where she first learns the truth about vampires and her destiny in life. Angel also follows Buffy to her home, where her mother is upset because Buffy got home late. Buffy goes to the bathroom and listens to her parents arguing with each other. Having seen enough, Angel asks Whistler to help him to a better life, teach him to become somebody.

Sunnydale, Present -- A human sacrifice is brought before Angelus, who promptly feeds on his blood, making sure to spread some on the palm of his right hand. Angelus then approaches the body of Acathla, reciting the incantations for the ritual of his revival. Angelus grabs the sword and pulls it with all his might, but he fails. Spike is amused at Angelus's failure, and Dru is very upset. Angelus then swears that they will turn to an old friend, and then succeed.

The next day, Buffy and the others take one of their final exams, unaware that a concealed vampire is walking down the hallway toward their classroom. The vampire steps into the room, and smoke begins to rise from her body as the rays of sunlight hit it. She warns Buffy that more will die if she does not meet Angel that night. As she finishes the message, her body disintegrates. Buffy tells Willow to perform the curse, leaving Kendra behind to stand guard. Buffy finds Angel at the cemetery, and they begin to fight. Meanwhile, a group of vampires invades the library during the restoration ritual. Back at the cemetery, Buffy realizes that her fight with Angel is merely a diversionary tactic, so she turns and runs towards the school as fast as she can. While Kendra battles one of the vampires, another one pushes a bookshelf over, crushing Willow underneath. Xander fights another one, but it brutally breaks his right arm before he can shake him off. After Kendra slays a vamp, she attacks another that has knocked out Giles. As they surround her, Cordelia escapes from the library, while Willow lays unconscious under the bookshelf. Drusilla then enters and takes on Kendra one-on-one. Kendra is no match for Dru, who defends all of her attacks before hypnotizing the Slayer into an immobile trance. Dru then slashes a cut in Kendra's neck with her nails. Kendra falls to the ground as blood pours out of her neck. Taking Giles with them, the vampires leave the library only moments before Buffy bursts into the school hallways. She finally makes it to the library, but it is too late. She runs over to Kendra's fallen body, but there's nothing she can do. Suddenly, the police arrive to see Buffy over the body of a dead woman. One of them aims a gun at Buffy, ordering her to freeze. Buffy's disastrous night has just gotten worse.

Galway, 1753 -- On his last day as a mortal human, the man who will become Angelus encounters a beautiful, blonde woman on the streets at night. Her name is Darla, and she seduces him closer to her. She sinks her fangs into his neck, then uses her nails to make an incision on her chest, just above her breasts. Immediately, Darla pulls the man's mouth onto her bleeding cut, turning the man into a demon of the night.
Sunnydale, Present -- Angel watches Buffy from afar as she battles a pair of vampires. She orders one of them to take a message to Angel, saying that she's taking the offensive. The vampire doesn't comply, so Buffy finishes him off. The next day, Giles pays a visit to the museum, where a newly-discovered stone artifact has been discovered. It is a few feet taller than Giles, and it contains some form of text on the side. Giles asks the man in charge, Doug Perren, if they attempted to open it yet, but Doug didn't notice the crack running down the side of the stone until Giles pointed it out. Giles then asks Doug to refrain from opening it until he can decipher the text. At school, Buffy declares to her friends for the umpteenth time that she's ready to face Angel, despite the fact that final exams are approaching. Willow offers to tutor Buffy in chemistry during one of their free periods.

London, 1860 -- Before she became a demon, Drusilla was a young Catholic woman who only wanted to follow the right path in life. She enters a church and steps into the confessional booth, failing to notice one of the priest's arms reaching out in desperation before being pulled back in. Drusilla does not realize that Angelus has just murdered the priest and is now acting in his place behind the confessional screen. After Drusilla tells him of her problem with her visions of the future, Angelus torments her by claiming that she is a child of the devil. Drusilla does not want this to be true, and pleads for help. Finally, Angelus lets her go with a request for Hail Mary's and an act of contrition.

Sunnydale, Present -- Drusilla, Spike, and Angelus read about the museum's new artifact in the newspaper. Angelus knows what it is immediately. Back in Sunnydale High, Buffy hopelessly tries to solve a chemistry problem when she accidentally drops her pencil. It rolls off into the desk and falls on the floor, right next to Ms. Calendar's disk which has remained their ever since the night of her murder. Buffy pulls the disk out and hands it to Willow, and pops it into the disk drive to check out its contents. What they find is Jenny's final project: the curse for the restoration of Angel's soul. Meanwhile, Dru, Angel, and several other vamps go to the museum to retrieve the stone, killing Doug Perren in the process.

Rumanian Woods, 1898 -- The dead body of a gypsy girl lays stretched out on the ground next to a fire, while an elder gypsy woman chants the curse of restoration. Glowing beneath her is an Orb of Thesulah. While she chants the curse, Angelus flees through the woods, trying to escape the scene of the crime, for he is the one responsible for the girl's death. The elder woman completes the curse, and Angelus is stopped in his tracks. He falls to his knees, and his eyes glow as his soul returns to his body for the first time in over a century. A gypsy man steps out of the woods and explains to Angel that he is being punished for the countless murders he has committed.

Sunnydale, Present -- Buffy and Willow show Giles a printout of the restoration curse. Giles claims that the curse would require a great knowledge of the black arts, and Willow feels that she's up to the challenge. While everyone talks of Angel's salvation, only Xander is upset, for he feels that Angel must pay for his murders with his life. Xander gets into an argument with Giles over Jenny's last wish before telling Buffy that she's willing to forget all about the murders in order to get her beloved Angel back. Elsewhere, Angel tells Spike the story of a demon named Acathla. This demon possesses the power to literally swallow the Earth into Hell, but he was stopped by a knight centuries ago. His body turned to stone with the sword still embedded in it, then was concealed in the stone tomb and buried deep beneath the ground. With that, two vampires open the tomb, revealing the body of Acathla inside. Only someone worthy can remove the sword from Acathla's body, freeing him to reign terror on the world. Later that night, Buffy finds the claddagh ring that Angel gave to her before he lost his soul. She goes outside for a walk and encounters Kendra, who has returned to take care of another dark force in Sunnydale. At the library, Kendra shows them a valuable weapon that she brought with her. It is a sword that was blessed by the same knight who stopped Acathla. If Angel succeeds in reviving the demon, it may be their only chance to stop it. Buffy asks Willow to perform the curse as soon as possible, but they need an Orb of Thesulah first. Luckily, Giles already has one in his office.

Manhattan, 1996 -- Angel stumbles through the streets of Manhattan, living like a bum ever since he regained his soul. He is approached by another demon named Whistler who say's he too is on the good side. Whistler offers Angel a chance to pick himself up from this foul life and become someone important in the world. But first, Angel has to see something before he can make his decision.

Los Angeles, 1996 -- A car with windows painted black parks outside of Hemery High, and Angel rolls the window down just enough to see what he came there for: the Chosen One. He observes Buffy's first meeting with a Watcher, then follows her to the cemetery where she first learns the truth about vampires and her destiny in life. Angel also follows Buffy to her home, where her mother is upset because Buffy got home late. Buffy goes to the bathroom and listens to her parents arguing with each other. Having seen enough, Angel asks Whistler to help him to a better life, teach him to become somebody.

Sunnydale, Present -- A human sacrifice is brought before Angelus, who promptly feeds on his blood, making sure to spread some on the palm of his right hand. Angelus then approaches the body of Acathla, reciting the incantations for the ritual of his revival. Angelus grabs the sword and pulls it with all his might, but he fails. Spike is amused at Angelus's failure, and Dru is very upset. Angelus then swears that they will turn to an old friend, and then succeed.

The next day, Buffy and the others take one of their final exams, unaware that a concealed vampire is walking down the hallway toward their classroom. The vampire steps into the room, and smoke begins to rise from her body as the rays of sunlight hit it. She warns Buffy that more will die if she does not meet Angel that night. As she finishes the message, her body disintegrates. Buffy tells Willow to perform the curse, leaving Kendra behind to stand guard. Buffy finds Angel at the cemetery, and they begin to fight. Meanwhile, a group of vampires invades the library during the restoration ritual. Back at the cemetery, Buffy realizes that her fight with Angel is merely a diversionary tactic, so she turns and runs towards the school as fast as she can. While Kendra battles one of the vampires, another one pushes a bookshelf over, crushing Willow underneath. Xander fights another one, but it brutally breaks his right arm before he can shake him off. After Kendra slays a vamp, she attacks another that has knocked out Giles. As they surround her, Cordelia escapes from the library, while Willow lays unconscious under the bookshelf. Drusilla then enters and takes on Kendra one-on-one. Kendra is no match for Dru, who defends all of her attacks before hypnotizing the Slayer into an immobile trance. Dru then slashes a cut in Kendra's neck with her nails. Kendra falls to the ground as blood pours out of her neck. Taking Giles with them, the vampires leave the library only moments before Buffy bursts into the school hallways. She finally makes it to the library, but it is too late. She runs over to Kendra's fallen body, but there's nothing she can do. Suddenly, the police arrive to see Buffy over the body of a dead woman. One of them aims a gun at Buffy, ordering her to freeze. Buffy's disastrous night has just gotten worse.

Two police officers rush into the library. From the looks of things, they believe that Buffy has just murdered Kendra. They take her outside, where Principal Snyder arrives with several more cops. Before one of them can cuff her, Buffy knocks the guy down and flees the scene. After disguising herself in a coat and black cap, Buffy goes to the hospital and runs into Xander, who is now wearing a cast on his right forearm. They go to Willow's room, where she lies motionless in a coma. Cordelia arrives, and Buffy learns that Giles was neither with her or in the hospital. Giles has been taken to the vampire's mansion hideout, where Angel hopes to force the necessary info concerning the ritual out of the Watcher. Meanwhile, Joyce learns from the police that her daughter is suspected of murder and that she's a fugitive from the law. Buffy goes to Giles apartment to see if he's there, but instead meets Whistler, who has been waiting inside. He tells Buffy that Angel was destined to stop Acathla, not revive him. However, Buffy's relationship with Angel changed all that. Buffy leaves before Whistler can tell her how to stop the demon. Outside, a patrolling officer recognizes Buffy and orders her to freeze. Suddenly, Spike arrives and beats the cop into unconsciousness. He wants Buffy's help in stopping Angel so he can have Drusilla back the way she used to be, in exchange for his leaving town with Dru and never returning. After some hesitation, Buffy decides to take him back to her house so they can plan their attack. They get there just as Joyce is pulling into their driveway. As Buffy tries to make up an excuse for Spike's presence, a vampire that has been spying on them attacks. Right in front of Joyce's eyes, Buffy stakes the vampire spy, turning him to dust. Realizing what she has to do, Buffy confesses to her mother that she is a vampire slayer.

At the hospital, Xander pleads to Willow for her to wake up. She finally snaps out of her coma just as Xander says that he loves her. The first word out of her mouth is Oz's name, who arrives to greet her back to consciousness. Meanwhile, Giles refuses to divulge the information that Angel needs to properly perform the ritual, so more torture ensues. Back at the Summers home, Buffy and Spike agree to work together, but only on the conditions that Dru can leave with Spike, and that Giles survives. After Spike leaves, Joyce begs her daughter to explain everything that's going on. Buffy tells her mom that there's no time to explain it all, which furiates Joyce. Joyce doesn't want her daughter to be in charge of saving the world, to which Buffy responds that she never wanted the duty in the first place. Joyce tries to restrain her daughter from leaving the house, but Buffy pushes her back against the kitchen counter. Joyce tells Buffy to never come back should she walk out the door, but Buffy leaves anyways.

At the hospital, Willow tells the others that she is going to try the curse again. Buffy returns to the library to retrieve the sword that Kendra brought. Principal Snyder finds her there and promptly expels her due to all the trouble she's been involved in. After Buffy leaves, Snyder calls someone to tell the Mayor that he has good news. Meanwhile, Drusilla tricks Giles by making herself look and sound like Jenny Calendar in his eyes. Giles says that Angel's blood is the key to the awakening ritual. Homeless and expelled, Buffy has only one path to follow now. She returns to Giles apartment and asks Whistler how to use the sword. He tells her that only Angel's blood can open and close the vortex to Hell. With one blow, both Angelus and the demon Acathla would be sent back to Hell, and the vortex would be closed.

Xander catches up with Buffy on her way to the mansion. She tells him to concentrate on freeing Giles and escaping. Xander does not inform Buffy that Willow is attempting the curse again. Inside the mansion, Angel slices his hand and approaches the sword in Acathla's chest. Suddenly, the ritual is interrupted by Buffy's arrival. Angel doesn't even notice Spike rising out of his wheelchair from behind. While Spike brutally beats Angel to the floor, Buffy takes one of the other vampires in the room. During this battle, Xander unties Giles and gets him safely outside. Spike doesn't get too many hits off before an enraged Drusilla jumps into the fray, tackling Spike. While they fight, Angel manages to get back up and run to Acathla. Just as Buffy drives a stake through the vampire's heart, Angel grabs the sword with his bloody hand and finally pulls it out. Swords in hand, Buffy and Angel engage in a sword duel. Elsewhere, Willow, Cordy, and Oz perform the curse of restoration. Suddenly, Willow loses control of her actions and seemingly becomes possessed by some spirit. Cordy and Oz watch in fright as Willow performs the curse herself in perfect Latin. Spike subdues Drusilla and takes her with him as he escapes from the mansion in his car. After the long duel, Buffy finally backs Angel up against Acathla. Just as she is about to deliver the final blow, Willow completes the curse, restoring Angel's soul to his body. Buffy lowers her sword as she realizes the change, and the two lovers are finally reunited. However, it is too late, for Acathla is now awake. Buffy looks over Angel's shoulder and sees Acathla's mouth creating a vortex to Hell. Angel has no idea what is going on, so all that Buffy can do is give her lover one last kiss before driving the sword through his stomach, thus releasing the blood needed to close the vortex and send the two demons back to Hell. Shocked, Angel reaches out towards Buffy with his right hand, but nothing can be done now. Buffy watches as the vortex closes around Angel, leaving the demon Acathla as nothing more than a silent statue once again.

Buffy goes home and packs up her belongings without Joyce ever knowing she had returned. When Joyce enters the room, she finds a farewell letter from her daughter left on the bed. At Sunnydale High, nobody knows what happened to Buffy and Angel. Some believe that Buffy had to kill Angel before the curse was completed, while others believe that Angel has been restored and they were taking time off to be alone together. Unbeknownst to them, Buffy is standing far away by one of the trees, giving her school and her friends one last look before hopping on a bus. The bus heads out of Sunnydale, and Buffy faces an unknown future.

Two police officers rush into the library. From the looks of things, they believe that Buffy has just murdered Kendra. They take her outside, where Principal Snyder arrives with several more cops. Before one of them can cuff her, Buffy knocks the guy down and flees the scene. After disguising herself in a coat and black cap, Buffy goes to the hospital and runs into Xander, who is now wearing a cast on his right forearm. They go to Willow's room, where she lies motionless in a coma. Cordelia arrives, and Buffy learns that Giles was neither with her or in the hospital. Giles has been taken to the vampire's mansion hideout, where Angel hopes to force the necessary info concerning the ritual out of the Watcher. Meanwhile, Joyce learns from the police that her daughter is suspected of murder and that she's a fugitive from the law. Buffy goes to Giles apartment to see if he's there, but instead meets Whistler, who has been waiting inside. He tells Buffy that Angel was destined to stop Acathla, not revive him. However, Buffy's relationship with Angel changed all that. Buffy leaves before Whistler can tell her how to stop the demon. Outside, a patrolling officer recognizes Buffy and orders her to freeze. Suddenly, Spike arrives and beats the cop into unconsciousness. He wants Buffy's help in stopping Angel so he can have Drusilla back the way she used to be, in exchange for his leaving town with Dru and never returning. After some hesitation, Buffy decides to take him back to her house so they can plan their attack. They get there just as Joyce is pulling into their driveway. As Buffy tries to make up an excuse for Spike's presence, a vampire that has been spying on them attacks. Right in front of Joyce's eyes, Buffy stakes the vampire spy, turning him to dust. Realizing what she has to do, Buffy confesses to her mother that she is a vampire slayer.

At the hospital, Xander pleads to Willow for her to wake up. She finally snaps out of her coma just as Xander says that he loves her. The first word out of her mouth is Oz's name, who arrives to greet her back to consciousness. Meanwhile, Giles refuses to divulge the information that Angel needs to properly perform the ritual, so more torture ensues. Back at the Summers home, Buffy and Spike agree to work together, but only on the conditions that Dru can leave with Spike, and that Giles survives. After Spike leaves, Joyce begs her daughter to explain everything that's going on. Buffy tells her mom that there's no time to explain it all, which furiates Joyce. Joyce doesn't want her daughter to be in charge of saving the world, to which Buffy responds that she never wanted the duty in the first place. Joyce tries to restrain her daughter from leaving the house, but Buffy pushes her back against the kitchen counter. Joyce tells Buffy to never come back should she walk out the door, but Buffy leaves anyways.

At the hospital, Willow tells the others that she is going to try the curse again. Buffy returns to the library to retrieve the sword that Kendra brought. Principal Snyder finds her there and promptly expels her due to all the trouble she's been involved in. After Buffy leaves, Snyder calls someone to tell the Mayor that he has good news. Meanwhile, Drusilla tricks Giles by making herself look and sound like Jenny Calendar in his eyes. Giles says that Angel's blood is the key to the awakening ritual. Homeless and expelled, Buffy has only one path to follow now. She returns to Giles apartment and asks Whistler how to use the sword. He tells her that only Angel's blood can open and close the vortex to Hell. With one blow, both Angelus and the demon Acathla would be sent back to Hell, and the vortex would be closed.

Xander catches up with Buffy on her way to the mansion. She tells him to concentrate on freeing Giles and escaping. Xander does not inform Buffy that Willow is attempting the curse again. Inside the mansion, Angel slices his hand and approaches the sword in Acathla's chest. Suddenly, the ritual is interrupted by Buffy's arrival. Angel doesn't even notice Spike rising out of his wheelchair from behind. While Spike brutally beats Angel to the floor, Buffy takes one of the other vampires in the room. During this battle, Xander unties Giles and gets him safely outside. Spike doesn't get too many hits off before an enraged Drusilla jumps into the fray, tackling Spike. While they fight, Angel manages to get back up and run to Acathla. Just as Buffy drives a stake through the vampire's heart, Angel grabs the sword with his bloody hand and finally pulls it out. Swords in hand, Buffy and Angel engage in a sword duel. Elsewhere, Willow, Cordy, and Oz perform the curse of restoration. Suddenly, Willow loses control of her actions and seemingly becomes possessed by some spirit. Cordy and Oz watch in fright as Willow performs the curse herself in perfect Latin. Spike subdues Drusilla and takes her with him as he escapes from the mansion in his car. After the long duel, Buffy finally backs Angel up against Acathla. Just as she is about to deliver the final blow, Willow completes the curse, restoring Angel's soul to his body. Buffy lowers her sword as she realizes the change, and the two lovers are finally reunited. However, it is too late, for Acathla is now awake. Buffy looks over Angel's shoulder and sees Acathla's mouth creating a vortex to Hell. Angel has no idea what is going on, so all that Buffy can do is give her lover one last kiss before driving the sword through his stomach, thus releasing the blood needed to close the vortex and send the two demons back to Hell. Shocked, Angel reaches out towards Buffy with his right hand, but nothing can be done now. Buffy watches as the vortex closes around Angel, leaving the demon Acathla as nothing more than a silent statue once again.

Buffy goes home and packs up her belongings without Joyce ever knowing she had returned. When Joyce enters the room, she finds a farewell letter from her daughter left on the bed. At Sunnydale High, nobody knows what happened to Buffy and Angel. Some believe that Buffy had to kill Angel before the curse was completed, while others believe that Angel has been restored and they were taking time off to be alone together. Unbeknownst to them, Buffy is standing far away by one of the trees, giving her school and her friends one last look before hopping on a bus. The bus heads out of Sunnydale, and Buffy faces an unknown future.