Angel and Spike were hardly surprised when Buffy refused to accompany Giles on his drive to get backup. She knew they wouldn't wait for her, just as she wouldn't wait for Giles. Buffy was as anxious to find Willow as Spike had been to find herself just minutes before; all the more so for all the guilt she couldn't keep pushed down no matter how she tried, and no matter what Spike whispered to her. Giles had tried to be kind, but he'd agreed with her. It was all her fault…

Pulling the car into the first space he saw within blocks of their destination, Angel jumped out of the driver's seat, waving solemnly for the others to follow him. Dodging around dozens of pedestrians, the two sped after him, barely feeling the bitter cold of the air. If Spike was surprised when they ducked into the same Public Underground station that he and Dru had used decades before, he kept it to himself… but Buffy couldn't help but notice the tightening of his cheeks and his sudden change of pace as he jumped up to lead the way with Angel. He knew all too well where they were going. Can't believe that crazy bitch would risk coming back here… She's even farther 'round the bend than I thought…

Even with her enhanced stamina and strength, Buffy struggled to keep pace with them as they moved faster and faster past the crowds to the little-used maintenance halls. Her broken rib screamed in pain with every step, but Buffy knew better than to slow down. She would be sent back by both companions if they knew the extent of her injuries, by force if need be, and in her current state she had no chance against them. Her only hope of being there for Willow was to hide it, and she refused to let her friend down now. She still carried the guilt of years before, when she'd failed to notice her best friend's downward spiral… Fighting for her now, even to the death... it wasn't a question.

As they neared their destination, Angel signalled to them to slow, and move on quietly. Sneaking a glance at Buffy, Spike was terrified by the look he caught in her eyes. It was the same one he'd worn, many months ago, when the amulet had begun to do it's work. It was the look of someone who was fighting for a cause they would happily die for.

Promising himself that things wouldn't turn out that way, he and and Angel nodded briefly at each other, each placing one foot on a rusted metal door and drawing back. With an ear-splitting crash, the door was flung from its hinges, landing just two feet shy of the two dark-haired women crouched at the far end of the room, staring up at the group in shock.

"Nasty intruders," growled Drusilla. "Stay back, or little bitty witchy here's gonna be my next little masterpiece…"

Rolling her eyes, Renata flicked her wrist in their direction, and a glittering white wall of energy split the room in two; firmly separating the opposing groups. Sparks were still flying from the Scythe, and her hand appeared badly burned, but she barely felt it as she relished the sheer volume of the power coursing through her veins.

Buffy barely stopped herself from letting out a wail at the sight of Willow; she was lying motionless on the ground, her dangling arm dripping with blood. Her face was pale, as if all of the life was slowly draining out of her. From the look of the glowing black-haired witch, that could very well be exactly what was happening… Swallowing her fear, Buffy forced her features into the toughest expression she could manage, trying to appear as dangerous as the two game-faced vampires on either side of her.

"You have no idea who you've just pissed off," she jeered, fighting the stabbing pain in her right side when she put her hands on her hips.

"Stupid girl," snarled Renata. "Even if you could get to me, you couldn't stop this now…" Raising her voice higher and higher, she chanted on, and the amulet on her lap slowly rose into the air, hanging above the room like a small, burning-red sun…

Suddenly, Spike screamed in pain, and Buffy whirled to face him. Moaning, he dropped heavily to his already bloodied knees, staring at his hands with wide eyes. Buffy reached for him on instinct, inadvertently confirming what he already felt happening as her hand passed right through his.

"I... I'm…" he stammered. "I'm sorry love, I'm fading."

"Oh, oh!" Drusilla screamed with delight, clapping her hands together with her features twisted into a deranged smile. "I'd almost forgotten about this happy little side effect…"

Buffy stared in horror as the meaning of their words hit her. His amulet's work reversed… did that include Spike's resurrection? Could she possibly, in one fell swoop, lose both of her best friends?

Fueled by shock and rage, Buffy rushed at the barrier, ignoring the indignant protests of her own logic and survival instincts. She flung her fists at the immovable wall, raining blows down with loud cries of physical and emotional pain. Angel rushed to her side, managing to pull her away just seconds too late for her wrist, which snapped sickeningly under the intensity of her onslaught. Buffy's cry of pain mingled with one of Renata's, as the Scythe under her hand suddenly flared white-hot, sending a bolt of what looked like lightning in Buffy's direction.

On impact with the wall of magic, the bolt cracked the barrier, and Angel's instincts kicked in just a moment quicker than Buffy's.

A second before Renata had a chance to mend the break, he leapt through, and the barrier flared back into place behind him, leaving Buffy and Spike trapped on the other side.