Act 1

Manhattan, Kansas: September, 1972

Lyssa Carter and Quentin Travers are sparring with quarterstaffs. Both are clad in Karate uniforms. Travers is wearing a black belt, Lyssa a white belt. Travers seems to be pushing an advantage, but suddenly Lyssa feints high, then goes low for the legs. Travers easily jumps over Lyssa's attack, but the girl quickly reverses her staff and gets under Travers' guard. Lyssa stops her staff just before striking Travers' throat.

Travers smiles.

"Excellent, Lyssa!" Travers says. "I believe that is the first time you've actually defeated me!"

Lyssa beams at the praise. They are sparring in a small gym with wall to wall floor mats.

"I think I could use a drink," Travers says. "Tea?"

"Only the cold stuff," Lyssa says.

"That's not proper tea," Travers says with a dismissive sniff. "If that is what you want, you can go into the kitchen and make it yourself."

Travers and Lyssa leave the small gym, which turns out to be a converted stand alone garage. They go through the back door of a large, red bricked house, and enter into a very large and well appointed kitchen. Lyssa moves through the kitchen with practiced familiarity, filling a kettle of water and putting it on the stove, then going to the refrigerator, opening the freezer, and taking out an ice tray. Lyssa grabs a glass from an overhead cabinet and starts to fill it with ice. Travers, in the meantime, moves about the kitchen getting tea bags and tea cups. He brings them next to Lyssa's glass of ice. He appears to be about to say something when the phone rings.

"London calling," Lyssa says with the bored assurance of someone who has witnessed Travers answering phone calls many times.

"Undoubtedly," Travers says as he moves to pick up the receiver on the olive green rotary kitchen phone attached to the wall over the counter.

"Hello?" Travers says. "Mrs. Carter! What a pleasant surprise! What's that?"

Travers pauses and listens intently. We hear Mrs. Carter's voice on the other end of the line. What she is saying is unclear, but her tone is clearly distraught.

"I…I see," Travers says somberly. "Do you want me to…? Or do you want to wait until…? Oh certainly, I can do that. Don't bother yourself, I'll bring her home.

"And my most sincere condolences, Mrs. Carter."

Travers hangs up the phone.

"What's wrong?" Lyssa asks. "Why did Mom call?"

As she asks the question, Lyssa backs away slightly, as if steeling herself for the worst sort of news, but news that she has been expecting.

"A Captain Forrester came over from Fort Riley and…" Travers starts to say.

"NO!!! No, no, no, no, no!!!" Lyssa yells. "Don't say it!"

"I'm sorry, Lyssa," Travers says softly as he approaches Lyssa, his hand up to touch her face. The twelve year old girl runs into his arms and starts to sob.

"Daddy!" she cries into Travers' chest.

Nottingham, England: November, 2003

Lyssa and Giles are sitting in the hospital waiting room. There are a few other people in the room, but it is mostly empty. Caitlyn is sitting a distance away watching Sponge Bob on the waiting room's overhead TV.

"So let me get this straight," Lyssa whispers intently to Giles. "You are saying that the original Watcher's Council is a part of Wolfram and Hart?"

"Not exactly a part of Wolfram and Hart, more like a sister organization," Giles says. "The Watcher's Council and Wolfram and Hart each answered to the same management."

"And this management wants to transform the world into a hell dimension from within?" Lyssa asks in a tense whisper that betrays both anger and hard skepticism. "Are you listening to yourself here?"

"Considering the things we have all lived through, does that really sound so absurd?" Giles asks.

"Giles, if the old Council was as evil as you say, then how can you trust anything your grandmother says about it?" Lyssa asks. "She was the head of the Council for over three decades. Wouldn't she be evil as well if the old Council was as bad as she says it was?"

"I just…Dawn and I both think she's telling the truth," Giles says, rather weakly. "My grandmother really had no reason to lie to us."

"Is a reason to lie really so hard for you to imagine?" Lyssa asks, her voice remaining soft but her inflection rising. "By your own admission, your grandmother was extremely paranoid, and probably had some old rivalries within the old Council. Maybe this is just a way for her to get in the last word this side of the grave."

"I don't think so, Lyssa," Giles says. "We contacted her, remember? There…there have always been uncomfortable contradictions between the old Council's written history of the slayer, and older, often pre-literate slayer lore. What my grandmother told us resolves several of those…"

"Why do you believe her?" Lyssa interrupts in a tone of complete exasperation. "Is it because it's so easy for you to believe the worst of Quentin? I know you really didn't like him, Giles, but he's not the monster you say he was. You have no idea of how kind he could be. He was there for me when…"

"When what?" asks Giles.

"When we received word that my Dad had been killed in Viet Nam," Lyssa says.

Rome

We are looking into the living room of Buffy and Dawn's apartment. Dawn is sitting on the couch, her legs drawn up, her expression grim. She is wearing grey sweats and white socks, and her hair is tied back into a pony tail. The television is on, and we hear voices speaking in Italian. It sounds like a sporting event is on.

Buffy enters the room from the side, wearing only a pink robe. Her hair is wrapped up in a bright blue towel, and she flops down on the couch next to Dawn. Her eyes are still bright red and yellow.

"Anything good on?" Buffy asks.

Dawn starts slightly.

"What?" she says. "Oh! No, I really wasn't paying attention."

Dawn turns to face Buffy.

"Was the new African slayer really a ch-"

"Dawn, that's enough!" Buffy picks up the remote laying on the couch between them and turns off the television. Then she turns and looks at her sister. "What's bothering you? You've been tense ever since you met me at the airport. Is it about Giles' grandmother getting shot?"

Dawn shakes her head.

"No, although that was awful," Dawn says. "It's about what she told us before she was shot, particularly about you."

Buffy shuts her eyes, then reopens them.

"So, she knows something about why I'm experiencing each slayer death?" Buffy asks. "Why my eyes are this funky color, and why I am so freaking strong all of a sudden?"

"Yeah," Dawn says. "Yeah, I think she does."

"Uhm, is this news gonna be something I should be sitting down for?" Buffy asks. "Because you look like you're about to give me some really bad news."

"You're already sitting down, Buffy," Dawn says.

"Oh yeah," Buffy responds. Then she closes her eyes and shakes her head. "OK, Dawn, let's get on with this. The suspense is making me really nervous, and you know what I'm like when I'm nervous."

"You mean you're a spaz?" Dawn says.

"A super strong spaz, and don't you forget it," Buffy replies.

Dawn nods.

"Point taken," she says. "It starts with the old slayer prophecy we've all heard ad nauseum, but never really paid close enough attention to…"

Home Office of the Circle of the Black Thorn

"And even though our contribution from the Los Angeles office has fallen off after the management change, our overall corruption index has continued to increase in line with expectations. Thank you."

We are looking down at an immense, circular table, glowing white with the image of the Circle of the Black Thorn imprinted on it about 1/4 of the table's radius in. Seated around it are various humans and demons, all reading paper handouts. The Italian woman from Wolfram and Hart, standing next to a chart portraying a jagged red line moving gradually upwards from left to right, has evidently just completed a report.

A very deep voice booms up from the table itself.

"Any questions for Ilona?"

A rather disgusting looking demon, looking like a green skinned cross between a pig and a shark, drools on the table as it speaks.

"What about your Los Angeles division?" the creature asks in a gurgling voice. "What is the progress with the ensouled vampire and his creatures?"

"It is too soon to tell with most of them," the woman replies. "Angel and his team have all had to make ethical compromises to make use of company resources, but they are still trying to apply said resources in directions counter to company policy. We have made significant progress with the one called Gunn, and perhaps the Pilean, but we are increasingly certain that the Burkle woman is going to be a problem, and she has a great deal of influence with Wyndam-Price, whose loyalty to Angel borders on self sacrificing…"

"The ex-watcher?" the creature asks incredulously. "The one who betrayed Angel before?"

"He didn't really betray him…" the woman begins to say before she is cut off by the deep voice from within the table.

"Enough! Ilona's assessment of Wyndam-Price is accurate."

There is a quick cut to Travers, who looks somewhat embarrassed that the discussion is involving a watcher he fired.

"Ilona, is there a plan for dealing with the Burkle woman?"

"Yes, lord," Ilona says. "We have a man inside her department, one who is deluded enough to worship one of the lesser Old Ones. Nevertheless, he has a plan that should both eliminate Winifred Burkle and distract the Trinity at a critical time."

"I am aware of the plan. It is excellent. Tell your man to proceed."

"With pleasure, lord," Ilona replies.

"Other questions?"

The same creature as before raises two clawed limbs, on the same side of its body. The other assorted demons and humans groan among themselves.

"What about the other one?" it asks. "Spike, I think his name is?"

"I will accept that question. We have an applicant with a plan that will use Spike's return to make Angel doubt himself and his previous allegiances. Maybe encourage him to see our side of things."

"But the other one is also a vampire with a soul. Might the prophecy refer to him rather than Angel?"

"We already know that Spike is NOT the vampire of prophecy…"

"Begging your most humble pardon, lord, but how do we know that?"

"Because Angel, the vampire of prophecy, is a being whose soul is at war with his demon. Only one whose soul despises the demon within would find the fate of Shonshu rewarding. This is not the case with William the Bloody, whose demon hungered for the guidance of a soul and fought to get it back. In Spike, the soul and the demon are of one mind, and unfortunately, when the final fight begins, we can be certain he will not be on our side. He already has his reward, and his loyalties. But since he is not the vampire of prophecy, he will also not be the one to tip the balance in the final fight.

"Any other questions?"

There is a clear edge in the deep voice that indicates that any further questions would result in harsh consequences to the asker. The rest of the Circle turn to look threateningly at the creature who asked the questions, and it appears to take the hint.

"No, lord," it says.

"Excellent! Mr. Travers."

"Yes lord."

"You're up. After that, we'll take a break for lunch. I have some oxen and virgins on the grill and I am just famished."

Rome

We are back in Buffy and Dawn's apartment.

"Wow," Buffy says. "So I'm the Slayer after all, huh?"

"Yeah," Dawn says. "According to Grandma Giles, anyway. Maybe she's not telling the truth."

"She is," says Buffy. "I knew it as soon as you told me. I think I've always known it."

"Funny thing," says Dawn. "I didn't expect you to take it this well."

Buffy shrugs.

"See above, re: I think I've known it all along."

"How did you know?" Dawn asks.

"There have been hints," Buffy says. "The last one came when I met the new slayer in Africa. I understood her viewpoint, being a member of a different species and being hunted by humans. I flashed back to one of the Primitive's memories, and I knew it was mine."

"What was that memory?" Dawn asks.

"The loss of the second to last of my kind," Buffy says. Buffy's expression is different as she says it, alien and fierce. Dawn looks at her sister intently.

"What else makes you think you've known all along?" Dawn asks.

"After we beat Adam by calling on the source of the Slayer's power, the Primitive tried to kill Willow, Giles, and Xander in their dreams. I remember their dreams as well as mine, and I remember being the one hunting them. I think I've been repressing that, by the way."

"Eeeeeyughh," Dawn says. "I can see why."

"Then there was my dream, where the Primitive tried to do something other than kill me."

"What was that?"

"Talk me out of my humanity," Buffy answers. "When she failed, she let the others go."

"Because she was you, and you weren't willing to give them up," Dawn says.

"Yeah," Buffy answers. "I think that's it."

There is a quiet moment between them. The two sisters look at each other.

Finally, Dawn breaks the silence.

"So, how are you, really?" Dawn asks.

"Don't really know anymore, Dawnie," Buffy responds.

"Don't call me Dawnie."

There is another moment of mutual silence. Then, Dawn draws a deep breath and asks another question. There is a quaver in her voice, one born of grief for the loss of a good friend.

"Buffy, in the Hellmouth, did you feel Amanda die?"

"Yeah, I did, although I didn't realize what was happening at the time," Buffy says. "Dawn, I think when she and the others died down there, it increased my strength enough so that my wound healed. If Amanda and the others hadn't died down there, I would have.

"And that's not something I really wanted to know."

Dawn nods.

"I know, Buffy," Dawn says.

The two sit silently together for about 30 seconds before Dawn breaks the silence.

"So, what do you think we should do now?" she asks her big sister.

"Why are you asking me?" Buffy replies with a slight smile. "You're all 'Miss Know-It-All' now, what do you think we should do?"

"I think something really big happened when Willow activated all of the potentials," Dawn says. "Not just to you and to me, but to Will as well. I think when she did the spell, she activated potentials in the three of us that go way beyond anything else activated that day."

"The Female Trinity," Buffy says.

"I think so," Dawn replies. "But we really are in the dark about what happened, and what is supposed to happen with us. I need to see the Scrolls of Aberjian to get a better handle on what's happening, both with us and with our enemies."

"I agree," says Buffy. "If we're going to be Destiny's bitches…"

"…it would make sense to know the extent of our bitchdom," Dawn finishes. "I'll call Willow."

Rome and Rio de Janeiro

Dawn is now sitting in Buffy's office at the Rome Slayer Academy. Buffy is sitting beside her, and they are both looking at a speaker phone.

We switch to a private beach. Kennedy is in a red bikini rubbing oil on a bare back, and as we pan down we see it is Willow laying on her stomach. From what we can tell, she is "wearing" a black bikini, although the top is undone. The bottom looks black, but it is very thin and it is also pixilated so we can't tell for sure. We hear a cell phone ring to the 'Bewitched" theme.

"Oh! Kennedy!" Willow exclaims. "Can you get that?"

"Willow," Kennedy says in a half amused tone of voice. "We're alone here. You own this beach. No one can see you, and whoever is calling can't see you."

"C'mon, Kennedy," Willow says pleadingly. "It's a big step for me just to wear this thing. That's still the right terminology, isn't it? Wear? 'Cause in this case I'm not so sure."

"All right," Kennedy says grudgingly. She reaches into the handbag beside them and hands Willow her cell phone.

"Hello? Oh, hi guys! What's up?"

Back in the office in Rome, Buffy and Dawn lean forward.

"A lot," Buffy says grimly. "We need you here, ASAP."

We switch back to the private beach.

"Oh, uhm," Willow says, looking at Kennedy and mouthing sorry. "How ASAP?"

Kennedy gets a disgusted look on her face and stands up. Willow makes a face but continues to listen on the phone.

"That ASAP huh?" Willow says, sitting up. Now Willow's upper torso is pixilated as well. She is desperately trying to hold up and adjust her top over her bare chest. "Guys, what's going on?"

Back in Rome, Dawn turns to Buffy, pulls up her legs so she is sitting in a cross legged position, then says:

"Hold on."

Dawn closes her eyes and mutters a few unintelligible words.

Back in Rio, Willow's eyes go wide, and she forgets fiddling with her top. After about 5 seconds, she closes her cell phone. Kennedy kneels down.

"Willow, are you all right?" she asks.

Back in Rome, Dawn opens her eyes and draws a shuddering breath.

"Dawnie, are you OK?" Buffy asks.

"Don't call me Dawnie," Dawn says, her eyes blinking.

"OK, sorry," Buffy says. "But the question still stands."

"I'm alright," Dawn says. "The spell takes a little out of me, that's all."

"What spell?" Buffy asks.

Dawn looks at the buzzing speaker phone.

"Willow hung up on us," Buffy says.

"That's because I've already told her everything," Dawn says.

"How did you do that?" Buffy asks. "That spell?"

"Yeah, Willow can do it without batting an eye, but it still takes a lot out of me."

"All righty then," Buffy says. "Color me suitably impressed."

Back in Rio, Willow is adjusting her top, a determined look on her face.

"Let me guess," Kennedy says, with more than a little anger. "That was Buffy and Dawn calling to tell you to come right away. Couldn't have been Giles, because you wouldn't say 'hi guys' if he was on the other end."

"Kennedy, not now," Willow says.

"If not now, when?" Kennedy asks, clearly exasperated. "You're always running off to Rome or Devonshire to be with Buffy or Giles, or to somewhere else on your billion dollar business. This was supposed to be the first extended time we've had together in months."

"Then come with me, Kennedy," Willow says. "You're a slayer, it's your business too."

"I may be a slayer, but I'm not a 'scooby', and I never will be," Kennedy says bitterly.

"Whose decision is that?" Willow says, now clearly angry herself as she searches her bag. "As far as I'm concerned you're welcome."

"I'm trying to build something here, with you, and with Ana and the others," Kennedy says. "But if you don't take the time…"

"Kennedy, the Rio Academy is just one slayer academy among several," Willow says. "You can't use it to avoid dealing with Buffy, Dawn, and the others."

"I don't want to be in their shadow," Kennedy says, standing up again and walking away a short distance. "I don't want us to be in their shadow. We're grown ups. We're a couple, we have our own lives…"

"So, I have to choose between you and my friends?" Willow says, turning to look at Kennedy. "Jeez, petty much?"

Kennedy looks away as Willow pulls a vial out of her bag.

"Last chance," Willow says. "Are you coming? There's enough in here for both of us."

"What is that stuff?" Kennedy asks, turning to look at the vial in Willow's hand in spite of herself.

"Dawn's blood," Willow says. "Since she is the Key, her blood can be used to open a door in space and time, and to close it again. Dawn doesn't have the skill to do it herself yet, but I've been able to do it…"

"Do what?" Kennedy asks, looking to Willow's face.

"Teleport," Willow says.

"What do you do with the blood?" Kennedy asks. The liquid in the vial, once dark, is now glowing a bright green, like plutonium.

"I drink it. We drink it. Come with me, Kennedy."

Kennedy shakes her head.

"I can't believe you," Kennedy says. "You're not even going to take the time to pack and fly on one of your planes."

"No, I'm not, Kennedy," Willow says, the expression on her face no longer pleading, simply angry and resigned. "It's too important. I can't even take the time to explain to you what's going on. Not here, anyway. Not unless you come with me."

"I have an academy to run here," Kennedy says. "So bon voyage."

"Suit yourself," Willow takes a swig of the bright green liquid and mutters an incantation. She glows green for a second, then vanishes with a pop of imploding air.

Kennedy smiles as Willow vanishes. It is not a nice smile.

"Forget something?" she asks to the air.

Back in Buffy's office, there is a bright green flash and another pop, this time of displaced air.

Buffy's and Dawn's eyes go wide. Buffy reaches over with one hand and attempts to cover Dawn's eyes, but Dawn ducks down and looks under Buffy's hand.

"Willow!" Buffy says in a shocked voice.