Ok This was to be the chapter in which I explain a couple of things but everything got out of hand. I still have about 3 chapters to go, most of them already written. Thanks to everyone who reviewed and who read my things even if they don't review, I don't hold grudges.
To Vanessa, I meant that it was the same Spike who could love Buffy and could torture Angel for the gem. Sorry if it wasn't clear.

This is a war room, outside in the backyard with sun chairs, kitchen chairs and whatnot. The faces are grim; there is open hostility on some of them, embarrassment and some shame but most of all there is confusion.

What is she doing here?

Will she blame us for the fiasco last night?

I want to go home, I'm too scared.

I take my time, trying to quell my anxiety. I share a smile with Spike who's standing with Angel, just close enough to me that he can get to me in time if someone wants to do something stupid. I don't know if he does it consciously or not, I still find it reassuring. I take the time to truly look at the potentials before me. What I'm about to do will change their lives forever, am I ready for the enormity of that responsibility? Am I ready to accept their death if they are to fight for our survival? Yes. I am ready to give them a chance to fight for their life, to be what they want to be.

Faith comes to stand besides me. She looks at me, appraising me still. She knows I have something important to say she's just not sure if it's something that she truly wants to hear. We share a small smile, sister to sister. Fight all we might, we're more joined than ever. She might be my Darth Maul to my Obi Wan but she's still imbued with the Force. And God I've spent too much time with Xander and Andrew.

The Scoobies huddle together on the other side, not sure of the attitude they should adopt. I look at my friends, sitting in a seemingly relaxed matter. I just know them too well to believe that they are anywhere near relaxed. Giles is analysing everything, trying to extract something out of what is going on around him. He's thinking about the axe, I bet. Has he ever heard of it? Did he hide the knowledge from me all of these years or was it a kind of Holy Grail for the slayer? There might be some traces of shame at having helped them kicking me out of the house though the Watcher in him would never confess to it. The greater good of things, this was the mission statement of the Council. Haven't we learned anything yet? Often time the salvation of the world comes from the smallest thing, like yellow crayons.

There is Willow, with the Scoobies, without Kennedy. Is there trouble in paradise? Do I care? I never liked her and can't fake my way around it. Willow needs to stand on her own, not to be pulled and pushed this way and that. And she is one pushy bitch, isn't she? Willow is stronger than that, she can stand alone. To have been where she was and to come back to tell the tale is amazing. It took me some time to get close to her again though. I've always been her friend, I just couldn't forgive myself for having been so deep into myself that I almost lost her to the darkest of magik. She's a reminder of what is at stake in all of this if I ever need one.

I saw Dawn grow up a lot in the last weeks, not that she was acting like a kid before, not all of the time anyway. I don't know exactly when but I think she was one of the first to really grasp the extent of this battle. I know at first when the girls started to arrive that she was all over them like this was a great slumber party at her house. Then she was slowly pushed aside from the main events, there for the running of the day to day maintenance, the normal chores or maybe the more boring research gigs. It wasn't a big party anymore. Something happened around the time that Amanda came into the group that turned her around. Maybe it was because she was there when the Bringers came for Amanda, I don't know. I just get the feeling that now she has dedicated herself wholly for the first time to our cause. She'll even get to play a part in it now, I wonder what she'll think of that.

I had to finish the tour with Xander, who for all his pigheadedness is closer to my heart than even Willow ever was. He was the first to notice me in the group, he started the Scoobies. I owe him my life strictly and figuratively speaking, it's also because of him that I sent Angel in Hell. He was important enough that Caleb went for him personally. He's the human factor, he's HumanX. I hope just hope he knows how much I love my big brother. It might not be the kind of love that he once had hoped for but I think it's a more profound sentiment had it been any other way.

I could still be holding grudges but this is all bigger than every one of us. If they hadn't thrown me out we wouldn't be here right now and we would end up loosing everything.

Hey, look at me, I think I finally grew up.

I'm no good at waiting games, I'm a man of action. Also I have no patience what so ever. So all this waiting is making me want to crawl out of my skin. I can't even smoke with all the girls around me, their life is already in danger, no need to add cancer to the mix. Let's get this show on the road already. I know something big is going on, Buffy looks about as nervous as I am and I haven't seen that very often.

I'm still reeling from everything she said to me, still can't believe that she loves me. I just can't wait to have her all by myself if only for a moment.

Damn! She chose me over Angel, yes! Sorry, I just have to keep repeating this to myself until I really believe it.

She's looking at all of them, taking her time to memorise each and every one of them.

Faith is stepping up to speak. The meeting begins at last.

- Ok people, sit down and be quiet. We have some serious things to talk about.

- What is she doing here, with two pet vampires this time? Does she think she can scare her way back into the group?

I couldn't really put a face on the voice that spoke up but the idea was from Kennedy, that much was clear from the look Willow shot her. I had to chuckle when I heard Angel growl too low for most of them to hear. He wasn't used to this feminine war psychology. The girl had that part right though, we were definitely her pet vampires, woof woof.

- I'm not asking anyone's opinion right now people, I'm pulling ranks. Buffy came here to talk to us, she has information about the coming battle from the Power That Be. She's even brought us this nice axe. So well take time to hear her out.

- And why should we do that? She just wants to stay in charge and come back into the house and lead us in another deadly wild goose chase.

I don't want that. I'm not coming back, Buffy interjected.

- Well, isn't this just convenient that the PTB, whoever they are, came to you just when you needed it. I imagine you're also the only one who saw that vision.

Faith took back the mike.

- I saw part of the vision myself. And don't you mess with the Power that Be, you wouldn't like what They could do to you. They're the big players for the Good, it's because of them that the slayers were made.

- You can trust her vision, it's the genuine article, and I can vouch for it.

We all started; Whistler had come out of nowhere to put his two cents in the pot. He was still badly clad, with a Hawaiian shirt that he could have borrowed from the whelp.

- Whistler.

Angel had spoken for the first time in the meeting. The small man turned and saluted some of the gang.

- Watcher, Angelface, Spike, Red, Faith, you all know who I am.

He turned to the girls sitting in front of him.

- They can all attest to who I am. Let's say I am a messenger for the Power. I've been here before and I'm here again for the same reason: to help restore the balance between the sides. Normally the First shouldn't have been able to interact directly with anything around it. The First is like a force of Nature: think of the wind, it's really powerful, can destroy about anything yet it's intangible. The First normally acts on people by pressing them to make decisions that they probably wouldn't make by themselves. It would have you taking the wheel when you've drunk too much, something that you wouldn't normally do. Just distorting enough your judgement to make you believe that you are in control of what is going on around you. But what It has done these last weeks is a direct assault on the slayer line, attacking the PTB at the same time. The PTB won't let things go on the way it has been going the last year. They will help you in your battle in as much as They can. They are a force of Good, it wouldn't do for them to bend the laws to their liking.
The first part of their help is the battleaxe. It is truly more than a simple weapon, as you will learn with Buffy's tale. The battleaxe is the traditional weapon of the slayer, its essence is linked to that of the slayer. They give each other strength when there is need. Not much can withstand the blade, as Caleb found out for himself. And might I add ouch! And bravo for that shot, Buffy.

I can hear the girls murmur.

What happened? What did she do to him? Is he dead?

Faith spoke up.

- Yes, Buffy killed Caleb. She sliced him in half and before you say it Nelly Olsen, yes there were witnesses. If everybody's bout of PMS is over, can we ditch the bitching and listen to what B has to say to us? I for one am tired of this loosing battle. If we have something that can tip our hand and maybe give us a chance of winning lets hear it already. Anyone else has something to add do it now and then shut up.

There was some grumbling but that was it. Everyone wanted to hear Buffy's story.