When did it all begin? What was Willow's first step down the road that lead her to this sorry state of addicted torment? Cast your mind back to Season 2, Episode 21, Becoming Part 1. The Scoobs are living under the shadow of the evil Angelus. Miss Calender is dead. While Willow is tutoring Buffy in Jenny's old classroom, Buffy discovers the disk with the translated curse to restore Angel's soul.
Taking the disk to Giles the implications are considered. Giles asserts a greater knowledge of the black arts than he possesses is required to pull off the re-cursing, at which Willow surprises us all by saying:
Well, I've been going through her files, and ... and researching the black arts for fun, or ... educational fun. I may be able to work this.
Giles gets full marks for his response:
Willow, channelling such potent magics through yourself, it may open a door that you'll never be able to close.
A fateful moment indeed.
The upshot of it all is that Angel plays a dirty trick on Buffy, and Willow is squished by his henchmen while trying to cast the spell the first time.
Resolve face
Having survived being squished - just barely - Willow assumes "resolve face" and continues with the spell to restore Angel's soul. (Do we care to remember the upshot of that venture? Or have we suppressed it?) Evil Angelus is in the process of raising Ekathla when Buffy interrupts him and proceeds to kick his arse. *Magic Girl* proceeds with the spell, and *zap* - OMG - Buffy's doe-eyed Angel is back, just in time for her to send him straight on to hell.
Buffy, deeply wounded herself, but not in the blood and gutsy kind of way, bails on Sunnydale, the gang and the whole mess she used to call her life.
Is there any point wondering what would have happened had Willow not proceeded with that spell? Had Buffy righteously slain the Evil Angelus would she have been any more jolly about it? We will never know. However, what is plain is that Willow's use of magic did not get off to a propitious start, and we all know how "things bad begun, make strong themselves by ill." Let us hope Willow's fate will be less Macbeth and more 'as we like it'.
Tough as it takes ...
Crazed
Confused
Confident
Squished
Evil Angelus
Spell girl
Uh oh!
Close 'em
*Yay Willow*