Selene and Michael managed to make conversation with Carlos. It turned out he'd met Buffy three days before Buffy had gone to fetch the twins from Ireland, which was two weeks ago.

"Mr Giles has a list," he explained, making himself another cup of coffee, "he tracked the remaining watchers after the Sunnydale Apocalypse was won. I had really just been a footnote in the watcher directory until Giles realised I had a large house"

"So why aren't more watchers taking on slayers?" asked Selene

"There aren't a lot of us left now, there was an attack on the headquarters and so many stayed there, those left are fairly paranoid. Some of them are still hiding," he replied, looking in a cupboard and frowning as he picked up an empty jar of crunchy peanut butter. He carefully put it back.

"You'd think they'd want more well-trained slayers around if they're so afraid" said Michael, raising his eyebrows

"You'd think" muttered Shauna, who had sat as if on guard, at the table, when the other two had gone to train or do whatever it was they were doing

Selene ignored it "There may be something we can do to help – bring slayers on Lycan meetings and supervise demon killings"

Michael caught her eye briefly in surprise but didn't react further. Selene ignored the eye-contact and took the last of his blood just as Buffy walked in.

"We're going to have to take some extras" she announced wearily

"Michael and Selene offered their help" said Carlos, nodding at the two

Buffy looked at them, half desperate, half worried.

"You don't have to"

"We could all use the extra hands" said Selene

Buffy frowned quizzically "How do you need hands?"

"Word's spreading," said Michael, "that slayers are neutral but powerful, the Lycans will agree to a truce and treaties if they're watching over it... it looks really good if we bring them ourselves"

Buffy's relief washed over them like a sudden shower. They both looked at her as if she called their names. Buffy's eyebrows raised

"You know that's creepy?" she said

"Sorry" said Selene

"Do you think you could take Rosheen and Fatwa?" Buffy asked them, going to the breadbin

They felt Carlos become very suddenly weary; a realisation swept over him and he excused himself.

Selene and Michael watched him leave and waited to see what happened.

"Shouldn't be a problem" said Selene, while Buffy put slices of bread on a plate and got a spoon

"Why aren't I going?" demanded Shauna

"Three slayers and two... immortals?" asked Buffy, now looking at the pair, who shrugged, "Well, it looks weird, so we're gonna have focus training"

Shauna was just to argue when she saw Buffy turn and open the cupboard, and closed her mouth again.

"Who... took... the peanut butter?"

Shauna kept very still. Selene and Michael touched fingers under the table; this was better than TV.

"You can't get this outside America, not this kind!" spat Buffy at Shauna, and before Shauna could argue, she strode out to the stairs and called "Who took the peanut butter?"

"Shauna!" called both the slayer-ettes upstairs

Buffy came back in and threw the empty jar into the bin, where it shattered from the force.

"That's the third one" said Buffy, glaring

"We share things, you said that" argued Shauna, glaring back

"Next time, ask" said Buffy quietly, and jerked her head to excuse her. Shauna left slowly, her eyes drilled on Buffy. Buffy simply waited for her to go and finally sat down at the table.

"Carlos saw that one coming" said Selene, smiling

"I need a fridge with lots of big locks... and alarms"

"Would that stop her?" asked Michael, nearly grinning

"No, but at least I'd hear her when she does it" growled Buffy running her fingers through her hair.

"She's the dominant twin" said Selene

"Yeah... or thinks she is" said Buffy, "I had to get her out of going to jail before this – her parents had to be told why, and they freaked, then we found out Rosheen had it too, and then we had to explain why we had to take both of them, and then they wouldn't be separated and they couldn't both sleep on the table at Giles' place, so I had to bring them"

"What's Shauna's problem?" asked Michael

"She doesn't want to be a slayer" said Selene

"Right" sighed Buffy, and her face hardened further

"What?" asked Selene, frowning

"It's not just her, there's more!" said Buffy, slumping back on her chair, "There's at least five more just like her, sitting around with Giles, and some of the grads are trying to leave, like they were on vacation job or something!"

"As soon as the meeting with Guillo's Lycans is over, we'll come to England"

"On the next flight" said Michael

Buffy looked at them both and nodded. She knew she didn't have to say thank you, her relief was evidently telling them enough.

Selene and Michael went sight-seeing. Selene had been making an effort to be interested in the countries they went, but since the making of the Young Covens, as Selene had christened them, she had been more subdued than usual and seemed to just go along with what Michael was doing.

Michael had asked her more than once what the problem was. He supposed because it wasn't mission related, she was still deciding what to do.

As they walked out of the museum, Michael had given up conversation (again) but Selene stopped, looking tense.

"Can we go somewhere?"

Michael simply nodded and took her to a nest of chimneys in the older part of town. Selene watched the world for a while, whilst leaning against a chimney, bathing in a strip of sunlight. Michael watched her, too impatient to be casual.

"You've been distracted for a while"

Selene nodded. There was a long silence while Selene appeared to be steeling herself for something. Michael's stomach swirled with dread.

"Michael, I've..." Selene began and then started again, this time leaning forward, her elbows on her knees, "I've changed"

There was a long pause, Selene was staring at him, and Michael could only keep still.

"I was a soldier... there were rules, following them made everything right; I was 'right' for centuries, and then you came and ruined my life"

Oh God

Michael couldn't breathe

"Things have changed now," continued Selene, her eyes boring into his, "and I've changed, I realised when we had to deal with the young covens, turning strays into teams"

Michael felt an awful wrench, so violent it made him wince. Selene seemed to hesitate, surprised by his reaction and then came forward on her knees "Would you marry me?" she asked grasping him by the forearms, somewhat desperately, like she was about to fall.

Michael blinked. He put both hands on Selene's shoulders and took a few breaths.

"Yeah" he said, and then looked at her again "Don't ever scare me like that again"

"I never proposed before" said Selene, her face still tense

Michael suddenly let out a great snort and Selene smiled. Selene's hair, which had been growing long recently, fell over her shoulders as she leaned her forehead against his shoulder and he simply laughed awhile.

"Wait"

He vanished. Selene smiled, leaning her chin on her hand, knowing what he was doing. In half an hour he came back minus his watch and slipped a silver ring on her finger. It had a miniscule diamond on it, but when eyes as strong as theirs looked at it, it didn't need to be big.

"I'll propose every time I want jewellery"

"I think I'll have to press the anniversary issue every time I wanna give you some" said Michael grinning

"Never more than once a century" warned Selene

Guillo was meeting them in the back room of the club. He had only two Lycans on guard and they sat quietly in the corner of the room.

Buffy, on Michael's advice, had taken Shauna out clubbing in the front room. A guard went in before Selene and Michael did.

"The slayers came to our meeting?" Guillo asked, having come to meet them at the door, so as to look. They appeared to be dancing away except Buffy made eye contact about once every five minutes.

"They're getting very keen on the truce progressing" said Selene as she and Michael took off their coats and showed neither had any weapons.

They went in and negotiated for a long time.

"You're asking both the vampires and us to make tributes to your tribe, which would be perceived as you and your group to be kings of some kind" said Selene

"You ruled our kind for centuries before trying to hunt us to extinction" murmured Guillo, who never seemed to speak very loudly

"We are not vampires, Guillo," said Selene coldly, "history aside, any further fighting is pointless. Humans could discover us and we will permit any more collateral damage; the truce is being made, and anyone who breaks the terms will have both us and the slayers bearing down on them, but the idea is that this isn't necessary"

Guillo leaned back on his chair. He had a big dark, wooden desk between himself and them. Michael thought it looked like the one in The Godfather.

"And because you are hybrids, you have decided you have the right, the power, to end this?" he asked

Neither of them answered.

Guillo put his hands together and looked at his nails "I promised the Italian tribes that if there were a truce, the terms would reflect the vampires' sorrow for what they have done"

"Revenge or payment for old wounds are not part of any truce that will last in the future – the vampires have no grudge against you now that Viktor and the Corvinus twins are dead, if we carry on as if they are still the 'evil oppressors', they will resent it and give you something to feel oppressed about"

Guillo smiled "But you would stop this, being the mediators"

"We would see things from both perspectives" growled Michael

Selene and Michael agreed to meet Guillo tomorrow while he told the tribes what was going on.

Selene had not let go of Michael's hand as soon as they walked out into the front room where Buffy and Shauna were dancing.

Fatwa and Rosheen, who had stayed at the bar closest to the door, gave them their seats and went off to join the dancefloor.

"Selene" murmured Michael through the din

There were two demons, people-looking demons at the other end of the bar, staring at Buffy. They looked... odd.

The barman gave them both drinks, exactly like the ones they drank. Selene realised the umbrellas were colour-coded, having seen the barman only green ones for blood drinks.

"They're vampires," she answered, frowning, "I think they're Buffy's kind that 'dust' when you stab them"

Then a connection made itself, just in the way the taller, darker one looked at Buffy, and Selene remembered all the (extensive) details Buffy had mumbled in the water trap in Germany.

"Shit... it's Angel"