A slender hand waved in the air for a second. "Hey, I know I'm not doing well as the Head Research Girl right now, but…huh?" Willow asked.

Angel's smile widened. "None of you sees the big picture. The Mayor is ancient; his ties to any one person or place are tenuous. He isn't bound by normal human wants and needs."

"Then what abnormal wants and needs do we focus on?" Giles pressed.

Faith listened to the usual Scooby squabbling, still on edge from her run in with Anya. Even Buffy's hand, gently stroking her thigh, didn't erase the knot in her stomach. She was jarred out of her introspection at the sound of her name.

"…told Faith he was going to eat Buffy." Angel had moved. He now leaned against a research table, arms folded.

Frowning, Faith tried to catch up. She remembered that comment. "Yeah, right. It was some kinda threat. I got the knife and a quick death. B, though…" she trailed off, not able to finish that thought. Clearing her throat, she started again, on a different path. "What's that got to do with keeping the Mayor busy, Big Guy?"

"Everything." Angel's cold smile flashed again. "Think, guys. Once the Mayor Ascends, he's not human anymore. He's pure demon."

"Good Lord. We already know this," Wesley exclaimed, arms waving dramatically. "Perhaps we should concentrate on discovering-"

"Oh be quiet." Everyone followed Giles' exasperated command. The room rang with silence. "If anyone would know how to hurt the Mayor, Angel would. Or, rather, Angelus. His forte was tormenting his victims, discovering their weaknesses and exploiting them. "

Faith felt Buffy stiffen against her, and the small hand on her thigh clenched into a fist. Looking down, she saw Buffy watching Giles with tears in her eyes.

"B?" she whispered. What the hell was going on? What was she missing?

Buffy only shook her head in response.

Resorting to their bond, Faith tried to reach Buffy. Her chest ached at the sadness and guilt filling the link.

"Just spit it out, Angel." The softness of Buffy's voice didn't mask the force of the command.

Angel nodded in agreement. "Right. Sorry." He paused, scanning the room. "The Mayor, or the demon he's becoming, is going to be huge. Huge demons need equally large food supplies. When the Ascension ritual is completed, he'll be right in the midst of his first course." Tilting his head at Willow and Oz, Angel finished, "You. The graduating class of 1997."

"I knew it!" Xander burst out. "I knew I'd never make it out of high school alive."

He might have continued, but Anya's hand slapped over his mouth, cutting off the words. "If we leave now, we might get far enough away. There's a really nice little town called Pacific Grove in the Monterey area. I was there a few centuries ago."

"That's not quite what I had in mind. Close, though," Angel said. He seemed to be waiting for them to guess his plan.

Faith rubbed Buffy's shoulders absently. If Angel didn't want them running from the Mayor, what did he want? Her head throbbed. "We're all a little slow, Fang. Spit it out."

"We stay here. The rest of the kids and their parents, though…We get them out of town tonight." Angel let that hang in the air for a minute. "Once the Mayor knows his big meal is on the run, he'll have to act. That's when we move in and finish him off."

Buffy stared at Angel, chilled by the cold calculation in his eyes. Only Faith's warm hands, kneading the tight muscles of her shoulders, kept her from shivering. "You have a plan for that, too?"

Angel's eyes met hers. "Maybe." He broke off, continuing to stare at her.

It took everything Buffy had not to shrug off Faith's hands, try to deny their relationship. Instead, she reached up and entwined their fingers together. She wasn't hiding. She didn't want to hurt Angel, but Faith deserved her support. "Maybe isn't good enough. We're lost, Angel. None of us have a clue what to do anymore. You and Faith, though…you seem to be on top of this."

The fingers entangled with hers tightened before a callused thumb caressed the back of her hand.

The touch helped, but Buffy was still tense as she continued, "Go ahead, Angel. Fill us in on the grand plan."

"It's not very grand, really. It's more personal." He paced over and knelt at Willow's side. "Biblical, even. An eye for an eye." Angel brushed his fingers over the blood-stained bandage on her shoulder. "We shoot him."

"Not that I've got anything better, Big Guy," Faith's voice rumbled over Buffy's shoulder, "just…guns? How's that supposed to burn up the Mayor?"

Before Angel could answer, Buffy caught Willow's familiar grin. "I'm thinking no to the bullets, Faith." For once, there was no edge to Willow's voice as she addressed Faith. "Arrows, right, Angel?"

"Exactly." Angel smiled at Willow, and Buffy was relieved to see his fangs were gone. "We add a little flame at the end, and the Mayor never makes it to Graduation or the Ascension."

Willow's pale features were set. "I'll take care of the fire," she vowed. "Something a little better than oily rags and a lighter."

Buffy felt Faith lean forward. No. No way was Faith volunteering to kill the Mayor. "I'll do it," Buffy told Angel before Faith could say anything. "I'll make the shot."

The expected refusal didn't come from Faith. "No, you won't." Joyce looked calm – and resolute. "Even though Wilkins is a demon, he looks human. He's a public figure. We've already seen what happens to Slayers when they kill humans."

Gripping Faith's fingers tightly, Buffy refused to let her pull away.

"Mrs. S-" Buffy ached at the pain in the husky voice behind her.

"No, Faith" Joyce moved closer. "Honey, I'm not blaming you for Allen Finch. We know it was an accident. I'm saying we won't let you or Buffy have to kill a human on purpose."

Wesley coughed and cleared his throat. Everyone looked his way. Smiling slightly and straightening his tie yet again, he said, "I was top of my class at the Watcher's Academy in archery."

"The Mayor isn't a practice dummy." Giles didn't sound impressed with Wesley's achievement.

"I'm aware of that," Wesley said stiffly.

Buffy rolled her head. The muscles in her neck, relaxed by Faith's touch, were tightening at the polite, yet vitriolic, posturing. "Wes, can you make the shot?" That was the only important thing.

He met her eyes steadily. "I can."

"Then that's what we do." It was time to remind everyone, Watchers and mothers included, who was in charge. Buffy stood up, still gripping Faith's hand. "Will, I know you want to be part of this."

Willow nodded forcefully.

"Giles and Oz will help. If it gets to be too much, though, you go on injured reserve. I'm not letting my Big Gun push herself too far." She scanned the room. "Angel, keep an eye on the Mayor – just in case. I don't want to make plans, set Wes up with a flaming arrow, and have the Mayor take a different route home."

"What about the kids, B?" Faith let go of her hand and jumped up to sit on one of the research tables.

Buffy smiled grimly. "I haven't got that far. The rest is easy. Anyone have any ideas?"

"I can start calling the parents," Joyce offered. "I'm not sure how I can convince them to leave town, but I'm willing to give it a try."

"Thanks, Mom." Buffy smiled, happy for the first time to have her mother joining the gang. "I'm not sure it'll be enough, though. This is Sunnydale, land of denial and excuses. Even if we put a picture of the Mayor in his demon form on the evening news, they'd just say he was an extra in a horror film."

The clock behind the check out desk ticked loudly.

"The phone will take too long." Xander smiled apologetically at Joyce. "Sorry, Mrs. Summers."

Buffy's stomach knotted. Damn it. How were they supposed to get the graduating class out of town? Drug them and toss them in a semi? "No criticisms without solutions, Xan," she warned him.

"Got it covered, Buff." She had to laugh at his goofy grin. "I'm going to use something far better than your average telephone." Xander waited a beat and then continued, "I'm going to tell Harmony."

Oz looked up from his spot next to Willow. "Don't forget Larry."

"Or Percy," Willow added.

"OK, Ahn and I will talk with the Big Three. We'll get you a distraction, Buffy." Xander gripped Anya's hand, pulling her to her feet. "Anything else you need?"

Shaking her head, Buffy said, "No. We're good. Faith and I will take Wesley outside and test his skills. This is not a shot we can afford to miss."