Sunnydale:
Buffy's heart rate spiked, the doctors are called in to examine her.
"This is the first change in her condition since she went into a coma a year
ago," the nurse pointed out.
"I know," the doctor said, taking Buffy's hand and feeling for her pulse.
Buffy squeezed the doctors hand and her eyes shot open.
The world as Buffy thought she knew it was drastically different. Sunnydale
had not been sucked into the Hellmouth as she thought it had been. All of
that--The First, the potential Slayers--all of it, had been nothing more than
a comatose dream. Buffy found out from the doctors that she had been put into
a coma from an injury the couldn't identify.
Buffy returned home to find everything amiss. Willow told Buffy that she had
been put into a coma because she had absorbed an enormous amount of evil
power from Willow when Willow went evil. That, coupled with Buffy dying to
save the world (Season 5), Willow explained, for some reason put Buffy into
what everyone thought was a permanent coma.
Buffy found Dawn as a rouge teenager, torn apart by Buffy going into a coma.
She started stealing again, this time bigger and more expensive items, and
going to jail for it. Dawn would listen to no one, and did whatever she
wanted. Buffy tried to change this, but couldn't, even though Dawn has
become a little more obedient, she still doesn't listen all the time.
Xander and Anya had been married after Buffy went into a coma. Xander worried
all the time about whether or not Buffy would ever wake up, and found out that
the love he felt for her in High School still existed. He filed for divorce
and Anya reluctantly agreed, even though she still loved him. Anya went back to
being a vengeance demon, even though she still loved Xander, and she is trying
to win him back.
Spike left Sunnydale after Buffy went into her coma, not being able to bear the
pain of the situation. He plans to return, and soon.
Buffy contacted Giles, who is in England, and asked him to return, but he
said he couldn't. He explained to Buffy that the Watchers Council was
mysteriously destroyed, and he has to stay and find all the remaining Watchers.
Giles told Buffy that once he had found the few remaining Watchers and sent
them to Sunnydale, he would return as well.
Through all of this, Buffy can't believe all that has happened in the year she has been gone. Deep down she feels something evil rising, but she doesn't know
what it is or when it will be coming. One thing Buffy does know is that she may
not be able to beat it.
Los Angeles:
Angel and Company have taken over Wolfram and Hart. Upon hearing that Buffy
had woken from her coma, Angel traveled to Sunnydale. He will be staying there
for a little while, but will return to his duties at Wolfram & Hart.
Meanwhile, while Angel is gone, Wesley has been overseeing things, and making
daily reports to Angel. Fred has been spending time in her laboratory, working
out reasons why Buffy went into a coma, and looking into a new evil that may
be rising. Lorne is head of the Activities Department, planning parties and
getting Wolfram & Hart the publicity it needs. Gunn has been taking care of
the cases that are coming in. Harmony is Angel's secretary, and Cordelia is
hanging around, completely trying to convince everyone to leave Wolfram & Hart
behind because it is so evil.
Connor is in San Diego, investigating a demon who has just entered this realm.
Angel told Connor to go there before he left for Sunnydale, and Angel told
Connor that when he returned to Wolfram & Hart, to let Angel know about what
he found, which, Connor hasn't told Angel yet, but he hasn't found anything.
Angel has the same feeling as Buffy does about the evil rising, but doesn't
know what the evil is. He plans to use the resources at Wolfram & Hart to find
out what is coming, and how he can beat it. Little does Angel know, from the inside it will attack first.
Written By: Brandon Collins