Xander was eventually joined by the rest of the Scoobies at the hospital as they sat vigil over Willow's bedside once again, this time with Joyce, Amy and Faith also joining them. Buffy and Faith filled the rest in on the attack on themselves and what they knew about the attack on Wesley and Willow.

"Any word on Wesley?" Buffy asked.

"I'll go check on him. I need a break." Xander answered and left the others discussing the dual attacks.

"If it was Balthazar's goons that attacked Wesley and Red," Faith mused. "then they have the amulet he wanted back, because that's what Red and Wes were studying when they were attacked and it's missing."

"It supposedly makes him stronger," Buffy told them. "but Wes said there's no record of how exactly it makes him stronger, physically, mentally, magically. We're blind right now and Amy and Xander are our only Magic users up and running with Wesley and Willow out of commission. Not that you guys aren't strong on your own." She assured Amy.

"I know, but numbers would make everyone more comfortable." Amy agreed. "Wesley isn't a powerhouse anyway, but Willow is. Between her, me and Xander we could do some serious damage. But for now Xander and I'll have to be it. We just have to be optimistic that Willow will come through this intact."

"There's an option we should consider, just in case she doesn't." Cordelia reminded them.

"What?" Oz asked, wanting every hope for his Willow.

"Xander." Cordelia answered. "He's theoretically able to make more techno vamps, the books say so. The nanites may be able to repair the damage modern science can't."

The others sat in silence as they considered Cordelia's suggestion.

"Which means unless I'm her life mate," Oz said softly. "then I'm in the same boat you are, with the potential of losing her eventually."

"She loves you, Oz, like Xander does me. We can't give up, because they won't give up. We'll find a way to make it work."

He nodded. "And if it saves her, it's worth it either way. And the other Xander said, it doesn't upset that precious balance of the Powers that he can make more techno vamps because like regular vamps, techno vamps can limit their own numbers."

"She can't decide for herself, in the condition she's in." Joyce pointed out. "Do we have the right to decide for her? And where are her parents? Why aren't they here?"

"They're never here." Oz answered. "Except for brief visits. Not in years, she and Xander lost out in the parent department."

"What do they do that's so important they can't be with their daughter when she's in the hospital?" Joyce demanded.

"Lectures on papers they write." Amy told her. "Willow says they're well known in psychology circles."

"What's taking Xander so long to check on Wesley?" Buffy said. "It's been like ten minutes.

"He may need to use the bathroom, he has been here for hours." Joyce reminded her. Cordelia and Faith's eyes met in dawning horror.

"Oh shit!" Everyone stared at Cordelia, someone they'd never actually heard swear before.

"What?" Buffy demanded.

"You told Xander who's probably responsible for Willow's condition." Faith reminded her. "Remember what we talked about when we found Wes and Red? What Xander might do once he knew who was responsible?"

"Go medieval on their asses." Buffy replied and ran to the window, it overlooked the parking lot and she remembered seeing the distinctive car Xander had found by Spike's burnt out factory hideout after he'd dusted him. "His car's gone! Where would he go? We don't know where Balthazar is hiding!"

"But there's someone who could find out, if he doesn't already know." Faith reminded. "Willy the Snitch."

"Willy's bar is a Sanctuary, it's Warded against violence." Buffy remembered. "How's he going to get any information?"

"Did you forget that he can read minds?" Cordelia asked. "Just because he's only done it once accidentally and has spent months learning to block, doesn't mean he can't read Willy's mind on purpose."

Of course to read Willy's mind Xander would have had to have remembered that he could read minds, he was too filled with rage to remember though. But that didn't mean he'd forgotten about the Ward on Willy's bar, it just meant he had to use a loophole to put that quality rage to good use. The Sanctuary only prevented violence from being done inside the Ward. It didn't prevent violence coming from outside it.

"Willy! I want a word with you!" He spoke from the doorway.

"If you're looking for information, there's a price attached to it. And could I get a name?"

"No and I'm not paying you a damn penny." Xander stepped back until he couldn't feel the tingle of the Ward and raised the shotgun he'd secured to a strap under his arm, hidden by his coat and fired a shot over Willy's head. "Tell me what I want to know, Willy!" As Willy ducked to avoid the spray of glass and liquor.

"What? Anything, just stop doing that!"

"No!" Xander fired over Willy's head again. "The demon, Balthazar, where is he hiding and what the Hell do you know about him? Everything, Willy, or I take your bar apart piece by piece until there's nothing left!" He fired a third shot and left a large hole in the bar that was going to require extensive work to repair it.

Willy told him everything he knew.

"If you've lied to me, Willy, the next hole goes in you." The man with the blazing golden brown eyes let the shotgun drop back to his side, it swung slightly on the strap as the man moved swiftly to his car and drove off knowing the weasely human who ran a demon bar wouldn't be reporting the attack to the police.

A/N Holtz gets around Lorne's Sanctuary Ward by firebombing his bar. Throwing a lit barrel of gasoline down the steps from outside the Ward.