Rabidreject- Thanks for review and well, you will see that Giles will have a HUGE part in dealing with the magic addict that is Willow.

Zigpal- Thanks for review and claps (ee! hehe) and I know I made them all react a bit harsher, but like you said this will kinda have a knock-on effect. And of course I couldn't seperate the Giles couple, hehe, and actually you may have just latched onto a story arc there with your hinty-guessage. in mystical voice this chapter will reveal aaaaall... hehe.

g120- thank you and thank you (I got two reviews off you at once ya see. Hehe.) And sorry my songs weren't all meshy for ya music scene, hehe. And nice pun ;-)

Jason Barnett- Thanks for reviewage...and well, since you seem to have major pro-willow and anti-everyone else things goin on here, I'll just have to see if you like how Will's dealt with in later chapters.

Buffy was on patrol. She seemed to have lost her simple going-through-the-motions outlook on it recently, or at least partially anyway. She was still fairly down as she still remembered what it had been like in Heaven, but she seemed to be getting along better now. More smiles...as though she were adjusting to the world again finally.

And so, rather than patrolling for something to do, or, deep down, in the hopes that a vampire would finally get the better of her and send her right back to Heaven with one fatal blow, she was patrolling because she was the Slayer and that's what Slayers do. Or rather that's what The Slayer did. There was only one after all. Well, two technically, but the other was crazy and in jail so she didn't count, Buffy believed.

Okay, so the official reason she was on patrol was because she was the Slayer. The genuine reason? She just had to escape the walking cuteness that was her Mom and Giles recently. Ever since the memory incident a week ago, they'd been all over each other once again. Like they had been...well, way at the beginning, Buffy realized. Which was nice, she thought, in a way because well Dawn wasn't going all therapy-needing because of another divorce and also Giles wasn't like off in jolly England so that was all a good. But there was seriously only so much cuteness a Slayer could take.

"Buffy,"

Buffy turned around to see Spike stood there, just having walked out of the shadows.

"What are you doing here?" She asked impatiently, thinking the cuteness of her Mom and Giles was no longer such a terrible thing to deal with.

Dawn flipped through her magazine, not really reading anything in it. The stories were boring this month anyway. Even the cringe pages weren't as cringey as they could be. She tossed the magazine aside and it landed on the floor next to her bed. The CD she had been playing came to an end also and suddenly everything in her room came to a silent stop. Boredom, it wasn't fun. Really wasn't fun. She was also hungry. Not for hard food. More like fun food...cookie food sounded real good right about now.

Swinging her legs around off the bed so she was sat up, Dawn took a brief glance around her cluttered room, before deciding she was going to make that cookie trip to the kitchen. There were some chocolate chip ones left last time she checked. As long as Buffy hadn't binged on them after patrol, they should still be there.

She bounded down the stairs lightly before heading in the direction of the kitchen, once her feet hit the ground floor. As she came to the entryway to the kitchen, she could hear giggling trickling out through the gap that the partly open door had left. It was her Mom giggling, Dawn could instantly tell and she took another step forward, pushing the door open a little more slightly.

There were glasses of wine on the island, half finished and they were eating together (Joyce and Giles, not the wine glasses), occasionally feeding one another pieces of the food laid out in front of them, before smiling and kissing. Buffy was right, Dawn thought, they were a twosome of cuteness. And at times, it was just too much for the viewing audience. Dawn abandoned the cookie plan and headed back upstairs, taking time to admit to herself that she was a little giddy over the fact the two of them were getting along so well once again.

"I've missed this," Joyce admitted, taking another sip of her wine.

"Yes," Giles agreed, "Whatever you would class 'this' to be"

Joyce thought for a moment.

"The fun bits," She finally decided, "These are the fun bits- that we've been missing out on for a while"

"For a decidedly too long a 'while'" Giles told her, before giving her a long, sensual kiss that had shivers running up and down her spine in a clichéd way she enjoyed.

"Definitely," She agreed, once the kiss was broken, "I think we've had a lot of fun bits in the past...maybe it's time to...uh, 'revisit' them?" She suggested, "I mean isn't that what Rita's been telling us these past weeks? 'Revisit our fondest memories'. So," She leaned in close to him, "why not revisit our fondest..."

"Pleasures?" Giles finished and Joyce smiled.

"Well...not that it had ever occurred to me before then...but that bit with the handcuffs was..." She grinned as she searched around for an apt description, "Interesting." She settled on.

"I clearly came in at the wrong point here," Buffy's voice drifted over to them, and the couple started as they saw that Buffy, unheard, had come in through the back door.

"Buffy," Joyce stood up straighter, reaffirming the distance that had previously been between her and Giles as she turned to look at her daughter.

"Mom," Buffy replied in the same slightly-shocked tone.

"H-how was patrol?" Giles asked and this simple question seemed to make Buffy momentarily flustered.

"Just the usual you know," She said, once she had eventually forced herself to become fluster-free, "Few vamps," Her face brightened, "Ooh- and I stopped a mugging."

She paused for a moment, thinking over Spike's words. I'm the only one here for you pet! You've got no one else!

That wasn't true though was it? At least she didn't want it to be true. She could tell her Mom about kissing Spike couldn't she? Joyce had never truly disliked Spike- except for that one time on Parent Teacher Night...and so it would be less likely that she would look down on Buffy. So maybe she should just tell her, get it out in the open...then once it was it would stop her from ever having to kiss Spike ever again.

She went to say something when the phone started ringing and she reluctantly went to answer it.

"Hello?"

Joyce and Giles watched as Buffy's eyes became wider and wider with each word the caller said. Eventually, after telling the caller she'd be right over, she hung up the phone looking completely stunned.

"That was Willow," She told them, "She...Amy's back"

"Pardon?" Giles asked, completely confused. Who was Amy?

"Amy. The Rat. Willow's turned her back," Buffy explained, still very stunned, "She's Amy the human now. I don't know why...but she wants. Erm. She wants me to go over now so I said yeah."

She left, heading out the way she had come in, before either her Mom or Giles could comment on Willow's recent abundant use of the magics.

"Isn't...turning Amy back into a human...isn't that..." Joyce asked warily and Giles finished her question.

"Powerful?" He nodded, "And potentially dangerous too. So much magics...it..." He sighed, thinking on his own past when he had delved into the Black Arts with Ethan and the others, "It's a downward spiral."

Joyce looked understandably worried for Willow at this concept.

"Then shouldn't we..." She trailed off as she wavered a little where she stood, a bout of dizziness taking over.

"Joyce?" Giles asked, wondering whether she was okay.

"I'm fine," She told him with a smile, "Just a little bit of a dizzy spell. Head rush," He looked unconvinced and she gave him a reassuring smile, "I'm fine. Promise." She took a bite out of one of the cookies on the side as if to prove the point.

Giles decided to let it slide, after all, didn't everyone get dizzy spells now and then? It was one of those inhibiting human qualities they were all vulnerable to. As she munched happily on the chocolate chip cookie, he walked over, closing the small distance between them and from behind slipped his arms around her, making her giggle as he rested his chin on her shoulder.

"Have a cookie," She told him with a grin, holding out the other half of the cookie she had taken a bite of to him.

"Hey," Buffy announced her presence quietly as she walked into Willow's dorm, closing the door behind her. As she had walked along the halls and seen the students milling about, Buffy had decided she definitely wanted to audit until late enrollment. She missed the college life and who knows? Perhaps it would get her back on the life track after...well, after where she'd been.

"Hey," Willow smiled back, sat alone on her bed.

"Where's Amy?" Buffy asked, looking around.

"Oh she's in the bathroom across the hall," Willow explained, "She felt the sudden need to embrace personal hygiene. Apparently being in a sawdusty cage for three years has that effect on a person," Willow smiled nervously.

"I can't believe you turned her back," Buffy forced herself to smile confidently, "I mean...wow. Pretty amazing- human Amy"

"Yeah..." Willow nodded, biting her lip, apparently nervous about something she wanted to say.

"Will,what is it?" Buffy asked, immediately picking up on it.

"There's a reason I called you over here. A favor-y type reason."

"A favor?" Buffy asked with a frown, "What sort of favor?"

"The sort of favor where Amy stays at yours for a few days. Just until she can go back to her Dad's," Willow quickly added as though that little tidbit made the whole favor more acceptable, "It's just...she's not at college here and well...non college people usually have to go home to the non-dorms"

"Willow, you know I wanna help...but shouldn't you kinda be asking Mom this? Or Giles? I mean, they're kinda the house-paying people"

"Well, I was kinda hoping I'd tell you and then...you'd tell them and everything would be fine and dandy" Willow admitted with a smile, but Buffy didn't seem won over.

"I don't know..." She looked at Willow with an even stare, "Why don't you just use magic? Put Amy on the college system so she could stay here?

Willow couldn't miss the negative undercurrent in that question and what Buffy was implying, but for now, Willow chose to ignore it.

"Yes," She admitted, "I could, but really? I think Amy would be better off in a place with less people right now. Crowds kinda make her jumpy"

Buffy sighed in resignation.

In the early hours of the morning, Dawn awoke, still feeling hungry. No, not hungry. Peckish. Peckish enough for those cookies she'd attempted to get earlier on, but had been prevented from doing so by the cuteness scene in the kitchen. Now though, the kitchen would be empty and the cookies would be there for her to grab.

She crept down the stairs quietly so as not to wake anyone else in the house and upon reaching the kitchen immediately headed over to the cupboard that was home to the tin of biscuits. She pulled off the lid to find the container empty of it's contents.

"They ate them," Dawn whispered in disbelief, "They went and ate the cookies"

"Erm...I'm not sure it's legal in the United States to have someone living in a room this small," Joyce worried aloud as she looked around at the small box room she had done up for Amy's short stay. It consisted of a bed and chest of drawers. A mirror was on the wall and there was a tiny window, but other than that...

"I'm sure it will be fine," Giles told her.

"Yeah," Buffy agreed, looking on at the room also, "I mean she's been living in a cage for years. This...this will be like a palace"

Joyce was saved having to retort when there was a knock at the door- Amy and Willow no doubt- and the three headed down the stairs.

When Joyce opened the door, Willow was stood there smiling broadly while Amy was hunched over slightly and looked very nervous. When she saw Joyce she visibly jumped and hid behind Willow.

"I'm flattered," Joyce sad flatly at the reaction, before looking at Willow questioningly.

"She's a little jumpy around people," Willow explained.

"Particularly people who tried to burn me at the stake," Amy added in from behind Willow.

"What...?" Joyce was momentarily confused, but then it all fell into place, " That. Oh...erm...sorry about that"

"Huh. Sorry. Huh." Amy said nervously, looking very unconvinced by Joyce's apology.

"I was possessed" Joyce defended herself, "What more do you want?"

"Okay," Buffy spoke over her Mother's sudden snap change in mood, "Amy would you like me to take you to your room? It's small, but livable"

Amy nodded and she and Willow were led past Giles and Joyce and up the stairs.

"Right," Joyce said, watching their retreating forms, before returning her attention to Giles, "I'm off."

"Off?"

"I'm going to see Tara today. Remember?" She prompted, smiling at his forgetfulness. She also smiled as she thought how cute he looked when he was puzzled. Bemused was a look he wore well. Not many people could claim that.

"It's just she frightens me so much when she gets so lost in the magic...and she won't listen to anything I have to say." Tara admitted as she sat with Joyce over coffee at the Espresso Pump. Joyce had been sort of uncomfortable coming here to talk, Tara noticed and she had a feeling it had something to do with the adult/teen-young adult boundaries, ones that people rarely crossed. And those lines included the fact that the 'adults' and 'teens-young adults' never socialize together in public places such as coffee shops. But it had been a more comfortable place to talk than Tara's new dorm. For one, the dorm didn't feel like home yet. Without Willow there, Tara doubted it ever would. "I know...if she's going to come to her senses about it, I have to leave," Tara carried on, "But at the same time, it's tearing me apart"

Joyce felt so sorry for the girl, as strange as it had been initially to find out Willow was gay, especially after how deeply in love she had been with Oz, now it seemed unnatural for her and Tara not to be together. Yet, Joyce understood and agreed why Tara had to leave.

"She uses it too often," Tara continued, looking down sadly into her cup of coffee, "Relies on it too often. I'm afraid the world's losing her...I'm losing her" Without any warning, or perhaps with a lot, Tara started sobbing into her beverage. Joyce had never seen Tara cry, look sad, distraught, yes, but she never actually cried and to see it now was quite startling. But Joyce was only stunned by the sight for a moment, before motherly instincts kicked in and she sidled round to give Tara a warm, comforting hug.

"It'll be okay, we're not losing her," She assured the girl, "Maybe...maybe this time apart will help Willow to...clear her head about it all. She loves you too much to go on without you and I'm sure that...uh, that that will bring her to her senses." The comforting words seemed to allay Tara's cries a little, but Joyce wasn't sure she believed her own reassurances. She wasn't as knowledgeable on these subjects as Tara, Willow or even Rupert, but she knew enough to see a problem when it began and Willow was heading for some serious issues.

Tara pulled out of the hug to wipe her eyes dry with a napkin.

"S-sorry," She apologized, "I-I-I didn't mean to-"

"No it's fi..." Joyce trailed off as the same dizziness she had felt the previous night in the kitchen overcame her again and Tara was filled with concern as she looked at her.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," Joyce waved away her concern as she waved away her own dizziness, "I've just been getting a few dizzy spells this past week. It's probably just low blood sugar or something..." She smiled sheepishly at Tara, "I should probably go to the doctor's but...well, I really haven't the time and to be honest," She lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper, "I really can't be bothered making the appointment"

As Tara smiled at this, Joyce looked down at her watch and realized she'd have to be at the gallery soon. She made to say her byes to Tara and go, but Tara stopped her.

"I hope it's n-not too much to ask, but before you go, could you g-give me a ride to your house? I promised Dawn I'd take her out for the day. Kind of a movie and milkshake fun day" She grinned and Joyce smiled back.

"Oh, sure, she'll love that. Course I'll give you a ride"

"Thanks," Tara smiled, following Joyce out of the coffee shop. It was true that she had promised Dawn she would take her out one day this week, but the real reason she wanted Joyce to give her a ride was the fact she was genuinely worried that the woman would have another dizzy spell in the car. And when a person was at the wheel, that kind of spell could end badly.

"Hello?" Joyce called out as she and Tara walked in through the front door of 1630 Revello Drive. They were greeted by the sound of a newsreader on TV relaying the facts about the latest suspicious tragedy in Sunnydale. On the sofa Giles and Amy were watching this broadcast. It was a very odd scene to behold. "Rupert...?" Joyce prompted for an explanation to this surreal occurrence.

"Oh, Joyce, Tara..." He said as his attention was drawn away from the broadcast, "There's, quite strange really, there's a man at the museum who has been, well for lack of a better description, frozen."

"Like in time?" Tara asked, concerned and Giles shook his head.

"No, rather different actually. He's been frozen in ice," He cocked his head to the side thoughtfully, "Though I suppose if you consider the concepts of being frozen in ice, then time does essentially stop for the person in question doesn't it?"

"Yes," Joyce agreed distractedly, her thoughts still on the fact that 'Rusty' the security guard at Sunnydale Museum had been frozen to the point of looking like a victim straight out of a Fantastic Four comic strip,"You say he's been completely frozen?" Giles nodded, "And there's no evidence around him at all?"

"Exactly. I believe some extensive research is in order," Giles grinned, clearly watcherly-giddy at the thought, as he stood up. "We might be able to shed some light on the matter. People being frozen into the likeness of ice structures though, that's not something you come across everyday is it?"

"Have I ever said how very different our lives are from other peoples?" Joyce asked just as Willow came down the stairs with Buffy and Dawn mid-conversation.

"...Amy will be fine with that I mean if-" She stopped talking the moment she saw Tara stood there. "Tara"

Tense didn't quite describe this moment.

"Willow," Tara greeted her,"It's erm...what are you-"

"Oh I'm just making sure Amy's settled in," Willow explained immediately, eager for any sort of conversation with Tara.

"Amy?" Tara frowned and Willow gestured vaguely at the girl sat up on the sofa.

"Hi," Amy waved as Tara looked over at her.

"Amy the rat," Willow explained enthusiastically, waiting for Tara's response. "Sorry," She apologized to Amy.

"No it's okay," She told her with a too-quick shrug, "I was a rat"

"Y-you turned..." Tara was flabbergasted, but not impressed, "Wow..."

Awkward silence fell on them once again.

"So where you guys off?" Dawn asked, purposely breaking into the moment as she noted that most people were stood near the door.

"Oh, someone's been ah frozen at Sunnydale Museum," Giles quickly explained, clearly enthusiastic, "It's fairly new and unheard of so ah- well, research is in order I believe."

"Have I also ever told you how very strange you are?" Joyce asked, taking in Giles' enthusiastic approach to the concept of research.

Willow, Buffy and Dawn smothered a giggle at this, while Giles just frowned a bemused frown.

"I'm not saying it's a bad thing," Joyce hurried to tell him, "Just...that you are" She smiled warmly at him and liked it when he smiled back.

"So, we're off to the Magic Box?" Dawn asked, "Research mode?"

"We are, you're not," Joyce corrected her-realizing her plan to go to the gallery would have to be cancelled-and her daughter immediately fell into a sulk,"We have something else planned for you."

"You're gonna make me tidy my room again aren't you?" Dawn whined, "I tell you, it's as tidy as it's ever gonna be"

"Or...how about a Movie and Milkshake Fun Day?" Tara asked and Dawn just looked confused, "I said I'd take you out right...?"

"Ooh yay!" Dawn smiled as the memory of such a plan fell into place in her mind. "Let me just get my jacket" And she dashed upstairs, quick as a shot. It was an impressive sight to see.

"Perhaps you could visit the scene, Buffy?" Giles suggested as Tara waited for Dawn to return, "See if there's anything revealing you can find"

"I'm on it," She told him, a moment later heading off out the door.

"Ah, here we go," Xander announced as he held up a newspaper in the magic shop later on, "This one's got some more stuff on it. Apparently the guy's gonna live."

"Well, that's a relief," Joyce acknowledged as Xander continued reading.

"He's all thawed out now." He explained, squinting at the information in the article, "Apparently, they used hairdryers. Huh."

"Hairdryers?" Giles asked incredulously as he continued flip through his own newspaper. They needed as much information on the incident as possible before they could begin researching into potential demons behind it.

"Yep," Xander nodded, "And Max Power strikes again"

"Everything slowed down," Willow read aloud from her own paper, "Nervous system, circulatory system, he's still unconscious"

"So this demon doesn't kill it's victims..." Giles pondered over the facts aloud.

"No, just turns them into victims of major frost bite," Anya said bluntly.

"Yes..." Giles said thoughtfully, "Perhaps we should start looking into elemental demons...sprites..."

"But what about the diamond?" Joyce asked, "This news report says that a diamond had been taken from the museum...so...wouldn't the two events be connected?" Joyce looked unsure of her suggestion.

"Perhaps it has mystical properties," Giles suggested.

"Could be cursed," Anya added, "Diamonds are good for cursing"

"Well, I suppose we'll find the answer once we find the demon," Giles surmised, standing up to head over to a nearby bookshelf and take off the relevant texts that might help them all.

"And I'll research into the diamond," Willow told them, "Find out what I can"

"Willow, I don't think-" Buffy began, assuming Willow was going to use magical means to research, when her friend got out her laptop and set it down on the table, before opening the top and starting it up calmly, "Oh. Hey. Cool."

"All right, back to basics," Xander grinned, clearly happy at this sight, "A little old-fashioned, state-of-the-art, hacker action"

"That's great Will," Buffy smiled a genuine warm smile, "I haven't seen you do that in a long time..."

Suddenly, a new part in the research process began as Willow placed her hands on the keyboard, the palms sinking below the surface and the laptop began to glow slightly as Willow absorbed the researched information directly. Everyone looked at Willow in concern, but no one more so than Giles.

"Willow-" He began carefully but the redhead cut him off.

"Shh, I've found something. About the diamond," She read from an invisible screen, "Okay, internal police reports. A diamond was stolen last night from the museum. A big diamond. On loan from the British Museum."

"The British Museum?" Giles repeated. He knew that that particular museum kept certain items of magical properties protected for the Council. A hiding-in-plain-sight thing. That meant the crystal could definitely be of importance in their research. He just didn't wish Willow to research that way any longer.

"Ooh pretty," Will grinned, before explaining, "There's a picture,"

"Is it a supernatural diamond?" Buffy asked, "Like all good-lucky? Or healing powers?"

"I still have contacts at the British Museum," Giles told them, "I could give them a ring...find out whether it was an item connected with the council and so on"

"Ah, there we go," Xander smiled, "G-man's on the case. So...erm..." He looked warily over at Willow, "Guess you can cut back on that now, Will, relax..."

Willow broke her concentration to look at Xander and saw that everyone wore the same concerned faces.

"Guys, really, I'm fine. What's the deal-"

"Oh for crying out loud," Anya said impatiently with a roll of the eyes, "This is bizarre. You're all la-la-la with the magic and the not-talking, like everything's normal, when we all know that Tara up and left you and now everyone's too scared to say anything to you," She paused for a moment before smiling a self-satisfied smile, "Except me"

"Besides which, what you're doing Willow is highly dangerous," Giles said.

"And him," Anya added.

"What...what are you talking about?" Willow asked.

"Willow, you know this...all this that you're tampering with is volatile to your well-being. Using it so much can lead, can lead to your own self-corruption, self-destruction- the destruction of those around you."

"What? Like you did?" Willow asked harshly, "'Randall' was his name, right?" She asked, attempting for a casual tone, but the look in her eyes was menacing and everyone around her fell deathly silent. She had crossed a line. However, Giles remained calm, but there was authority in his voice.

"I always trusted that you would be careful Willow...that you would learn from my mistakes. This over-use of the magics is dangerous...and has the potential to be addictive if you rely so heavily upon it and it's this that was the reason Tara was forced to leave you. She knows what you're getting into even if you choose not to see it"

Willow took her hands out of the keyboard slowly and the laptop ceased to glow. She closed the screen shut and slid it back into her back just as calmly and silently.

"Fine," She said, her voice low and menacing, "If you don't want to do it my way then do your own damn slow research"

And without another word she left the store to go and talk to the only other person who truly understood magic. Amy.

It was later on in the night, way late on, and at Giles' suggestion Buffy had gone on patrol to see if she could find anything that would be potential clueage to what they had dubbed, much to Giles' chagrin, The Frost Monster.

Joyce had just gotten off the phone with Tara, telling her that they'd probably be home very soon as they fully intended to clear up now and leave, but until they got back, would she look after Dawn. Tara, being the sweet girl she was, had obviously said of course and now all that was left to do was for Joyce to convince the others that they needed to call it a night on the research front, or go crazy.

She walked back into the front of the store where she saw the group were still hard at work, researching, bless 'em. They never quit until the problem was solved. But sometimes, they just had to stop and realize when they had to call it a night.

As she walked over to them, she felt the now-familiar wave of dizziness overcoming her and she swayed on the spot, shaking her head in an attempt to clear it, but it did absolutely nothing to help.

"Rupert..." She said, her voice coming out weaker than she intended it to and Giles glanced over at her in concern just in time to see her collapse.

"Joyce!" He exclaimed, quickly running over to her and Anya and Xander weren't far behind him. Giles knelt beside her, gently lifting Joyce's head onto his lap. "Joyce..." She clearly wasn't going to awaken, "Xander- we need to get her to a hospital"

"I'll go start the car," Xander immediately said, rushing out of the store muttering something to the effect of 'why does she always do this?'

"This is a very unpleasant deja vu," Joyce said as they waited in a hospital room a few hours later. She'd had numerous tests, including the nauseating blood tests and now she had been ordered by the doctor to stay lay down on the bed for some rest while he worked on getting her some results as quickly as possible. Despite those orders, Joyce was sat up on the bed, not lay down. She had come to shortly after she had been brought to the hospital and now felt, in all honesty, fine.

"I just got off the phone with Tara," Xander said, walking back into the room, "She said she'll look after Dawn as long as you're here. I also told her to not...well, tell Dawn anything- I thought you wouldn't want her worried"

"Thank you," Joyce smiled at him, truly grateful, "What about Buffy?"

"I tried her cell. I couldn't get hold of her," Xander told her, "But she's not usually all phone-answering when she's on patrol. I left her a message on her voice mail though"

"You should have told me about these dizzy spells you've been having," Giles told Joyce quietly, taking hold of one of her hands in both of his. She smiled at him.

"I didn't think they were anything to worry about," She admitted, "I just...figured I was dehydrated or something. That's probably what the results are going to say anyway."

At that point Dr Warren walked back in, holding a clipboard of obvious test results in her hand.

"Well, we're about to find out," Xander murmured as he went to stand beside Anya and out of the doctor's way.

"Well, Mrs Giles, looking at-" She paused in her retelling of the results, to glance over at Xander and Anya before looking back at Joyce. "I,erm, I think only your husband should be allowed to be here" She explained, but Joyce shook her head.

"No, it's okay, they can stay," She told the doctor, "They'll uh probably only listen in at the door anyway"

"That's very true," Anya told Dr Warren in a bright cheery tone, and the doctor shrugged in acceptance.

"Okay..." She reluctantly accepted before looking back down at the notes and as she went to read them, Joyce gripped Giles' hand a little tighter, "Well, the good news is that's it's not bad news," The doctor told them.

"It's...not?" Giles asked warily and the doctor shook her head.

"No, not at all. I mean, of course, it's not perfect. Fainting spells aren't ideal after all." The doctor smiled at them as she said this, "But it can sometimes be a natural thing for a lot of people in the first few weeks. Particularly those who are over thirty-five"

The group nodded in acceptance of this fact, before all becoming universally puzzled.

"I'm sorry...you've lost me" Joyce told her with a puzzled smile, as though trying to smooth over the confusion, "Over thirty five?"

"Oh," Dr Warren smiled before she explained, "I just meant studies show it's less likely for a person to faint in your condition when they're...let's say...in their twenties"

"My...my condition?" Joyce asked, eyes wide, and as calm as she had been before she was now deeply worried.

"What condition?" Giles asked.

"What c...?" Now it was Dr Warren's turn to be puzzled, "Oh I'm sorry," She apologized, "I just assumed you knew"

"Knew what...?" Joyce asked slowly, giving the doctor a pointed look that Xander had seen her use with Buffy many a time when she wanted her eldest daughter to give her a straight answer.

"Well, Mrs Giles..." The doctor smiled, "You're pregnant"

There was major silent shockage throughout.