Wesley chanted the words for the spell so softly Buffy could barely hear him. As the spell progressed however, she felt her strength literally draining from her into Wesley. She could feel herself growing progressively weaker as the spell demanded more and more from her. Towards the end of it, she was finding it difficult to stand upright, using Wesley's hand as an anchor of sorts.
"It's done." Wesley's words echoed in her thoughts, causing her to swallow her fear and step back from him, her knees shaking from being so severely weakened. Wesley turned and handed the portal to Dawn who stood tall, refusing to allow her emotions to cripple her. If this was what her sister wanted, Dawn would do it for her without hesitation.
"Are you ready?" She asked gently, noticing that Buffy was having trouble standing.
"I'm ready." Her sister replied stoutly. "Send me in."
Dawn nodded and took a deep breath, stealing her resolve and emotions. With all her strength, she closed her eyes and hurled the portal in Buffy's direction. She heard it hit Buffy, heard it suck her in, heard it close, but didn't open her eyes. She couldn't bear to.
When she finally did, there was no evidence left to show that Buffy had even stood in that spot at all. It was then she broke down.
"Oh God," she whispered through her tears. "She's really gone."
Suddenly unable to support herself, her knees gave out. Connor was instantly behind her as she fell backwards into the comforting solidness of his chest. His arms encircled her, as if they had a will entirely their own and in that moment, she let go of all the bravery and strength she had been clinging to. As she broke down in tears, she allowed Connor to comfort her. She allowed him to be her strength. She allowed herself to let go.