Twenty minutes later, Buffy was still leaning over the counter in shock due to the fact that her current boyfriend (in addition to her ex-boyfriend) was a member of possibly the most evil group on the face of the earth, and the fact that she would have to kill him.
By this time, Whistler had worked his way through another beer, as well as half a bag of Cheetos. Andrew was pacing around the living room; he still had a hard time believing that Ilona (that CEO lady whose cleavage he loved staring at) was a vampire, and incredibly, even by vampire standards.
Eventually, Buffy stood up and looked at Whistler.
"So, if we do this job, what happens afterward?"
"One thing's for sure…if you participate in Angel's plan, the combined armies of the Senior Partners will come for you, too."
"I take it you won't be helping us?"
"Me? Sorry, no. I'm a messenger, not a warrior. I can't make you do what the Powers request of you; it's your choice. Let me just emphasize this: this is biggest Apocalypse of all time, the most well-planned. You are dealing with something that outdoes even what the First attempted. It is also what Angel is fighting his damned hardest to prevent. If you want to help Angel save the world, this is your big chance."
Buffy looked down at the floor. Whistler leaned forward, and cupping her chin in his hand, tilted her head up so that she was staring into his eyes.
"The big moments will always come. You can't do anything about that. It's what you choose to do afterward that counts. Remember that, Buffy." With that, Whistler got off the counter and walked out the door.
Buffy, Dawn, and Andrew spent several long minutes staring at each other. Finally, Dawn spoke.
"What will we do, Buffy?" Buffy looked at her then closed her eyes for a moment as if deep in thought.
Then she replied, "For now, we are going to bed. We have a long day ahead of us."
Several hours and a few hours of sleep later, Buffy sent a cab to pick up Willow and Kennedy at the airport. When they arrived at the apartment, Willow asked what had happened to Buffy's nose (it was still bruised up, even though Slayer healing had helped it significantly within a few hours). Buffy told her it was a long story.
"You may want to sit down," Buffy told Willow and Kennedy. "I hate to ruin your visit, but something came up last night." She turned toward Willow. "You remember that demon I told you about several years back named Whistler? The one who told me how to defeat Angelus?" Willow nodded.
Buffy proceeded to tell the two of them everything that Whistler had said. They were surprised when she told them that Faith and Giles were going to be arriving in a short while.
Kennedy replied first. "Aren't there a few small slayer schools around Europe? We could get some of them to assist us."
"No," Buffy replied. "The Senior Partners will come for those who help in this plan. If we bring a bunch of slayers into this, we risk getting them all killed. We only need enough people to take out the four members of the Circle."
"So what's the plan, then, Buffy?" asked Willow.
"We'll talk about it later when Faith and Giles get here."
When Faith and Giles finally did arrive, Buffy gathered everybody together in the living room. Willow, Kennedy, and Andrew were all squeezed onto the couch (with Dawn sitting on the couch arm), while Faith sat on the carpet. Giles stood to one side, and Buffy stood in the center of the room, pacing around with her arms crossed.
"Okay, here's the deal. You all know what we've been asked to do, but I need to make something clear: anybody who fights will more than likely not survive. The Senior Partners will take drastic measures to ensure that.
"You must remember that, as with all the previous Apocalypses we've stopped, this is not a battle for our own survival, but rather for that of the world. And if by my own death, I make the world a safer place for a little while longer, then it is worth it to me.
"I have an idea for a plan, but first I must ask the ultimate question: who's with me? Think before you answer, because when you do answer, there's no going back. If you choose not to fight, I will not blame you or hold it against you; I will even pay your airfare out of the city. So, let me ask again: who's with me?"
Faith raised her hand. "Hey, B, me and the old man here are ready to fight the good fight any day. It's the whole reason we came." Giles scoffed (in a friendly way) at being referred to as the "old man"; adjusting his glasses, he raised his hand also.
Willow's left hand was holding Kennedy's right hand. They each raised their available hand. "We were prepared to die a year ago when we took the battle to the Hellmouth…don't see why I should react any different this time," Willow told Buffy, smiling.
Dawn raised her hand next. Buffy opened her mouth to protest, but Dawn cut her off.
"Don't even think about trying to stop me, Buffy. Remember how Xander got tasered the last time you tried to keep me out of a battle?" Buffy nodded, one side of her mouth curling up to form a half-smile.
The rest of the group looked at Andrew. He started to raise his left hand, but Buffy started speaking.
"You are not obligated to help us, Andrew. You could get out of Rome and go back to the States, if you wish. We won't blame you for leaving; no one else never even has to know that you here in Rome on this day…we could make it look like you were staying somewhere else this whole time."
Andrew's reply surprised Buffy. "It's true, no one else will know, but I will…and I couldn't live with that. I'm not sure how I will be able to assist in this fight, but I'm in." He raised his hand all the way.
Buffy looked around the room. "Okay, then."
"What exactly is the plan you're proposing, Buffy?" asked Giles. Buffy noticed Andrew whispering into Dawn's ear; Dawn was nodding in agreement at whatever he was saying.
"First off, we need to decide who's going to handle which Circle member."
Dawn spoke up first. "Andrew here has a brilliant idea to take care of the Wolfram and Hart CEO; we know how to get her alone. Between my training and his assistance, taking her out shouldn't be a problem. Ooh! 'Taking her out'! I feel like an assassin!" She grinned cheerfully. Buffy had to admire Dawn for being able to be happy on the day she was probably going to die.
"Are you sure it's going to work, Dawnie?" Buffy asked. Dawn nodded in response.
Buffy nodded. "Obviously, I'll be the one handling the Immortal. I'm the only one who can get alone with him without his dozens of helpers around. Willow, can you safely use magic to take out vampires?" Willow nodded.
"I can use levitation to make little pieces of wood fly around and stuff."
"With no risk of going all…dark?" Buffy cringed, feeling really bad for asking, but Willow just nodded, grinning.
"Okay, then you and Kennedy will be handling the Black Hat. You will probably have to fight his vampire bodyguards before you can get to him. Be careful, he's supposed to be a good fighter, especially with range weapons."
"Which leaves Faith and I to deal with D'Sulok," Giles sighed.
"Yeah, sorry about that, but I have something that will help you out; I'll give it to you guys later."
"What are we going to do in the meantime, B?" asked Faith.
Buffy smiled at Faith. She looked at the group.
"You're going to do whatever you feel like doing. Go watch a movie, or sink karaoke, whatever you want. You may want to spend a half hour or so polishing your fighting skills, if you believe it's necessary. Just be careful not to wear yourself out; you'll need all the strength you can muster. We will meet back here at ten o'clock tonight to get ready for the fight. Don't be late."
--
Author's Note: Yes, I know it seems like a bit of a direct rip-off of Not Fade Away to have them all having fun on the day they're apparently going to die, but this is to emphasize how their fight against evil is really not all that different from that of Angel's gang. Besides, if you knew you were going to die that day, wouldn't you want to have a really good day?
I know that so far, it's all been just dialogue and exposition, but don't worry, the action will come soon enough.