"He's on his way here then?" Gunn was noticeably on edge as Buffy informed the gang of what had transpired between her and Wesley earlier in his apartment. She nodded, not caring that emotions regarding Wesley were clearly on high at the present time. If he could help her save Angel, well they could just deal with his presence for a little while.

"He said he just had to research some things regarding the opening of the portal and then he would be here to help me do so." She looked around at the sea of faces staring at her.

"Well if anybody can figure out a way to open that portal, it's Wes." Lorne said helpfully.

"Yea, I kind of got that vibe from him." Buffy replied with a slightly surprised smile. "When did he become competent? Cause the Wesley I remember..."

"Is gone."

Buffy turned to see Wesley enter the hotel, his eyes not meeting anybody's in the room which Buffy could tell was deliberate on his part. His voice was hard and defensive as if it alone acted as a shield towards any hostility that might come his way from the others in the room.

There was also a deep sadness and regret within his eyes, although she could tell he was trying desperately to hide it. He did not want to appear vulnerable and she could understand that. She empathized with him and wished she had more time to spend, figuring out what caused him to become so angry and alone.

"You got here sooner than I thought." She couldn't hide the surprise in her voice.

"I thought you were anxious to do this." Wesley replied, unsure of how to relate to Buffy. It had been so long and they had never been the best of friends to begin with.

"I am." She assured him. "Thank you. I'm just not used to you being....well, like I said competent. You must admit that when you were in Sunnydale..."

"Yes, I was quite green, you're right." Wesley said with a nod. He smiled slightly as if he longed for those days again where he may not have been as competent, but things were apparently simpler. "I can assure you now however that I am not."

"That's a comfort." Dawn said, so softly Buffy could barely hear it. She was glaring at her sister, unable to force her jumbled feelings into one solid emotion. One moment she was angry at Buffy beyond belief for wanting to do something so stupid as to go into that dimension, the next moment she was filled with deep and paralyzing fear for her sister's safety, and as soon as that emotion gripped her she would then be overcome with intense despair at the prospect of losing her sister once more to darkness. The only way she had found she could anchor such emotions was to grab hold of Connor's hand and grip it as tightly as she could, needing that connection to reality....to safety.

"How does this thing work?" Buffy was asking Wesley, trying to ignore the pleading in her sister's eyes.

"Well it's more complicated than I had originally thought." Wesley admitted. "You and I will need to hold hands when I do the incantation so that your strength and power may be added to me in order to open the door. After it's open however, then it gets a little trickier."

"Trickier? How?" Fred spoke up for the first time, meeting Wesley's eyes directly and ignoring the glare she knew Charles would be sending in both her and Wesley's directions.

"Buffy cannot step through the portal on her own. Nobody has ever been able to just walk into his dimension of their own volition. They must be sent there. The door must be thrown at them by someone else."

"Who would that be?" Buffy wondered. Wesley took a deep breath.

"It would have to be me Buffy." He told her, "and to be honest, I'm not sure I'm comfortable with the idea."

"You promised to help me." She reminded him, her voice becoming harsh and angry. "You promised to help me get him back."

"Do you have any idea what you are asking me to do?" Wesley burst out, unable to contain his anger. "Do you have the slightest clue?"

"What I'm asking is for you to help me help Angel." She told him, her voice soft. "That's all. The rest is for me to handle my own way."

"What you are asking is for me to send you on a suicide mission Buffy. I'm sorry. I tried to sugar coat it, but there really is no other way around it. What you are doing will lead you to eternal pain and torment and you are asking me to send you there!" He took a deep breath and cast his eyes downward, away from the stares emitted to him in every direction. "I'm so tired of sending people to hell Buffy."

"Does it absolutely have to be Wesley?" Cordelia asked before Buffy could respond. "I mean, he can say the incantation and create the portal, but does it have to be him that throws it?"

"Are you volunteering?" Buffy asked, surprised at Cordelia's apparent willingness to do this for her.

"If Wesley isn't willing to, then yes." Cordelia said. "If there is even the slightest chance you can bring him back, then yes I am willing to take on that responsibility."

"I suppose that it doesn't have to be me that throws the portal." Wesley mused, still not liking the idea of someone having to send Buffy in, but relieved that it would not be him. "Is it agreed then that it will be you Cordelia?"

"No." Dawn said strongly before anybody could comment. They all looked to her in awe. "If anyone should send Buffy in there it's me."

"Dawnie, I couldn't ask you to..."

"You're going to do it anyway!" Dawn exclaimed, tears welling up in her eyes once more. "Damn you Buffy! You just waltz in here, tell me that you're leaving me, possibly forever and that I have no control over the situation! Well I'm tired of not having any say in this. If I can't stop you...if I have no say whether you live or die whatsoever, then you are going in there at my hand. I will be the one to send you in. At least let me control that much."

"Quite the spitfire," Lorne murmured appreciatively. He looked at the older Summers who stared at her younger sister in loving contemplation. "I can see where she gets it from."

"OK Dawn," Buffy all but whispered. "You can send me in."

"There is one other thing Buffy." Wesley said carefully. "I did some research these past few months on Wolfram and Hart and the part Angel plays in this world. I have often wondered, with a firm their size and with so many contacts why they haven't killed him already. It's obvious they could have done so at any given time. It's not like they don't have the power."

"OK, we get it Wes...what's your point?" Gunn wasn't enjoying Wesley's stay at the hotel one little bit and was anxious for him to leave truth be told.

"Only that they have been allowing Angel to live for a specific reason." Wesley answered. "I have managed to unearth several accounts from the firm that tell of an upcoming apocalypse in which Angel is supposed to take a crucial role in. Unfortunately the texts do not say whether that role will be for good or for evil. Wolfram and Hart don't know and neither do we. Buffy if you go in there and something goes wrong..."

"Are you saying this could be part of their plan?" Buffy wondered. "That something could have happened already to him in that dimension and when I bring him out he could be....evil?"

"It's possible." Wesley admitted. "You could, simply by attempting to save him be playing right into their hands."

"But I could also be working for the side of good." She argued. "We don't know for sure that this is part of their plan at all and it's just as possible that Angel could end up fighting on our side when this apocalypse hits. The point is we won't know until we get him back and to do that..."

"You have to go in, yes I understand." Wesley nodded. "Right then, I will just get setup and then we will begin."

As Wesley went to work arranging the circle in which the incantation would be performed, Buffy turned to the others, intending on giving them a hopeful goodbye.

"In case I haven't said it before, thank you." Cordelia said sincerely to her. "I know you and I haven't always gotten along, but...."

"You love him." Buffy stated, this time without any feelings of jealousy towards her at all. "I understand. He has that affect on people."

Cordelia nodded, trying to keep from breaking down completely.

"You're always so brave." She said, awed for once by the strength that Buffy possessed as opposed to the slayer. "Be safe."

"I will."

She turned to Fred who smiled softly at her.

"Hell dimensions suck." She told her matter-of-factly. "Anybody who willingly goes into one is either really stupid, or...well actually I just think you're really stupid."

"Thanks," she said with a wry smile. Fred shrugged.

"Good luck."

"Yea, good luck." Gunn added when she turned to him. "Kick a little demon ass in there for me OK?"

"You got it." She promised, giving him an impulsive hug.

"Aww don't leave me out!" Lorne exclaimed hugging the slayer as soon as Gunn was finished. "If you make it back I would love to hear you sing sometime. There's more power to you than just slayer strength honey."

"Thanks." She turned to see Connor staring at her intensely.

"Bring my father back." He all but pleaded. "I screwed up big time and I want the chance to make it right. Bring him back."

"I'll do my best Connor I promise." She vowed. He nodded, swallowing the tears she could tell were in his eyes. Leaning closer she whispered in his ear. "Remember what we talked about....keep her safe....please."

"With all my heart, I will." He whispered back.

"Dawn," was all she could manage to say as she turned to look at her sister. She was trembling, Buffy could see it and longed to reach out to her, but feared Dawn's reaction if she did so.

"Buffy please," she begged through the tears that coursed freely down her cheeks. "Please don't leave me again."

"It's OK Dawn," she assured her. "You won't be alone. I promise."

"No I won't." Dawn agreed bitterly. "I will have Connor here, sworn to protect me. It's not enough and we both know it. I need you Buffy. You're my sister, my family. You're all I've got left."

"I know." She said with a shuddering sigh. "And believe me, the last thing I want to do is leave you, but Dawn....I love him. And if it were you that had been lost to that place I would go in there after you as well. You know that. Don't you see? I have to do this. I have to."

"Buffy please..." Dawn sobbed, "I'm so afraid. Please don't leave me."

"You know I have to Dawnie," Buffy told her, tenderly touching her hair and running her fingers through it. "You know I have to get him back."

"I know," she finally whispered. "I guess that's just the price you pay when you are a hero."

"Guess so." Buffy agreed, allowing the tears she had been withholding to roll down her cheeks as well. Reaching for her sister, she clutched Dawn tightly to her, allowing herself to revel in the love she held for her little sister one last time before she was potentially lost to her forever. "But jumping into the hell dimension is not heroic. It's stupid, like Fred said. Staying here, after I leave, continuing on with you life no matter what happens....that's heroic. I'm counting on you Dawn to be my hero."

"I can do that." She promised. "I love you Buffy."

"I love you Dawnie," she murmured, kissing her sister on the cheek before turning away and looking at Wesley.

"All set." He said with a nod. "Let's open the portal."