"Not a big nest," Faith realized, looking about. "Six vamps, tops."

"No, that's not what this is," Mary Dolores realized. "It's like . . . a breeding ground."

"For what?"

"Some vampires just dedicate themselves to making more of their kind," Mary Dolores explained. "That's why they can never all be destroyed. Sunnydale isn't that big of a town. It just can't sustain a vampire population the size it does without outside influence."

"Breeder vampires?"

"Exactly."

"What about the Father?" Faith asked.

Mary Dolores walked over to a box sitting on a table. She opened the box and dumped the contents on the table. "All religious icons," Mary Dolores commented. "Some iron, wood . . ."

"What is it?" Faith asked, going to the other side of the table to help her rifle through the objects.

"Objects taken from the . . . mortal they brought here," she explained. "A vampire can't wear iron or wood . . . Especially iron. Wood is only damaging if it goes through their heart. Well, most damaging. But iron is . . . it's almost like kryptonite. Weakens them."

Mary Dolores suddenly sighed. She lifted her hand, a red rosary hanging from her fingertips. "This is what happened to Father Sarducci," she told Faith.

"Oh my God," Buffy sighed, stopping at the door of the lobby.

"Not quite," the vampire formerly known as Father Sarducci said with a complacent grin.

"No," Buffy repeated. "This isn't . . ."

Between one blink and the next, he had traversed the lobby and was standing next to her. Buffy backed up a step and held the stake in a ready position to strike. "Mmm . . . Buffy," he said in a voice that sent shivers all over her body. "I need to call on a favor."

"I owe you nothing," she hissed. "And the only reason you aren't a pile of dust is because I don't know how to explain this to Mary Dolores."

"Bring her to me," Sarducci ordered. "The crypt on Lawndale, tomorrow night. Or I will kill your friend Willow."

"You'll have to go through me first," Buffy snarled.

"Willow has extended to me an open invitation to come visit her whenever I like," Sarducci said. "You can't be with her all the time."

Rage tore through Buffy, and thoughts of Sister Mary Dolores fled. With stake poised, she lunged at Father Sarducci. However, he took her off guard, and with one strong hand delivered to the center of her chest, she flew straight backwards and out of the lobby, landing on her back in the hall. "Bring the nun!" Sarducci ordered.

Buffy scrambled to her feet and ran into the lobby. However, it was once again empty.

"You're staying with me tonight," Buffy ordered.

"Buffy, I'll--"

"There's no room for discussion, Willow," Buffy snapped. "Understand?"

"Yes, Mom," Willow sighed.

"Father Sarducci must . . . Sarducci must have a personal vendetta against Willow," Giles mused. "Willow, did you say anything to him that may have triggered some sort of response? Anything at all?"

"I mentioned a spell I did," Willow said. "That's why I was there in the first place."

"You mentioned a Wiccan spell to a Catholic priest?" Cordelia asked. "Real good move."

"He said it didn't bother him," Willow insisted. "And I don't think it did. But . . ."

"I see you have had a visitor," Sister Mary Dolores said as she walked into the library with Faith.

"We know he was turned into a vampire," Faith said quickly.

"He told me," Buffy started, "that if I don't bring you to him, he'll kill Willow."

"He said that?" Mary Dolores asked coolly.

"Yeah," Buffy said softly with a nod. "Can you imagine why? What would he have against Willow?"

"I know why," Mary Dolores answered. "But I don't know if you can handle it."

"Sister?" Giles asked. "Would you please inform us? Willow's life may be at risk."

"All right," she relented. "I had a premonition this morning."

"About me?" Willow asked.

"Think you guys could speed this up a little?" Cordelia asked suddenly.

"Cordelia," Willow said quickly. "Mary Dolores? Was it about me?"

"You know that I became a Slayer because I was there when my mother was killed," Mary Dolores explained. "If my vision comes to pass, by this time tomorrow, Willow will replace me as the Slayer."

"I don't wanna be a Slayer, Buffy," Willow said. "I like being simple, boring Willow." She looked over at her friend and saw that she was sleeping silently, her head resting against her desk. "Buffy, you're supposed to be keeping me awake."

"Huh?" Buffy snorted as Willow nudged her awake. "What were you saying?"

"I don't want to be a Slayer," Willow repeated. "Killing vampires . . . It just sounds . . . like very . . . not-me behavior."

"She said if her premonition comes true," Buffy said. "There's no reason to think it will."

"If I do become a Slayer, that means she'll have to be killed," Willow stated. "I don't want that to happen, either. I like her. She's nice."

"How long did Giles say you had to stay awake?" Buffy asked, trying and failing to suppress a yawn.

"Six hours," Willow answered. "Is it one a.m. yet?"

"Almost," Buffy said. "I wonder what Sister Mary Dolores is doing right now . . . I can't even imagine how I'd act if Giles was . . . Ugh, I don't even wanna think about it."

"Hey, Sis MD," Faith interrupted.

"Yes Faith," Mary Dolores said woodenly. She was kneeling at an altar in her church, silently moving through the beads of her rosary.

"I learned something I think you might want to know," Faith said. "Father Sarducci wasn't a random victim. The Slayer/Hellmouth thing? If a vamped-out Watcher is the one who turns a Slayer into a Vampire, then the Hellmouth can't be closed with just a simple slaying."

"I see," Mary Dolores commented. "Thank you for telling me."

"I also came across the group of vamps that did this to him," Faith told her. "Wanna go learn more?"

"Do you, by any chance, know of a hardware store that's open all night?" Mary Dolores asked.

"No," Faith answered. "But anyway . . . what is it you want? I can get it."

"You left the cash in the register?" Mary Dolores asked as she took the nail gun from Faith.

"I even got you change," Faith promised, showing the nun a ten dollar bill.

"Keep it," Mary Dolores said quickly. "These nails are iron, yes?"

"As far as I know," Faith answered.

Sister Mary Dolores turned, seeing the time, 4:48 a.m., on a nearby bank sign. "I'm ready," Mary Dolores said. "Lead the way."

The vampire fell to the ground with a painful scream, pulling one foot up to cradle protectively. "Tell me," Mary Dolores insisted, "or I shoot the other foot."

"I'm not telling you anything," the vampire growled.

"Stupid," Faith remarked. Mary Dolores aimed the nail gun at the vampire's other foot and fired. With a hiss, another iron nail shot out and struck the vampire in his uninjured foot. Another painful scream filled the air.

"You are going to die regardless," Mary Dolores threatened. "You can either give us the info you want, and I'll let my friend here stake you quickly. Or you can be quiet, and I'll shoot you so full of nails you won't be able to move and the sun will kill you. Your call."

"What do you want to know?" he asked through clenched teeth.

"Three things," Mary Dolores said. "First, where is Sarducci, your newest vampire, staying?"

"Crypt . . . Lawndale," the vampire grunted.

"Why do you want a new Hellmouth?"

"For . . . for Androphenes."

"Who is Androphenes?"

"The Master's new form!" he screamed. Grinding his teeth, he added, "He's on the other side of the Hellmouth. Now would you freakin' kill me already!"

"Mr. Vampire, thank you for your assistance. Faith, stake him."

"Shooting them with nails," Faith commented after their extra companion was a pile of dust. She picked the two nails out of his "remains" and blew them off. "Nice touch."

"I'm not normally very aggressive," Mary Dolores commented. "But when an entire world is about to be endangered . . . well, I can be."

"I can't concentrate on anything today," Willow admitted at the lockers. "Something big is going to happen tonight."

"What is the plan for tonight?" Oz asked, looking at Buffy.

"I think you all should stay with Giles in the Library," Buffy suggested. "I'll . . . patrol, I guess."

"Sister Mary Dolores!" Willow suddenly cried, smiling as the nun approached them. The nun was dressed in her "slaying" clothes rather than her habit.

"We're going to find Sarducci tonight," Mary Dolores explained, "and we're going to kill him before he can create a new and possibly permanent Hellmouth."

"You really think you can kill your own Watcher?" Buffy asked.

"Sarducci the vampire has no ties beyond a physical appearance with the late Father Sarducci," Mary Dolores said calmly. "So yes, I believe I can."

"Sun sets tonight a little after six," Buffy said. "We go find him then?"

"I know where he is," Mary Dolores answered. "We draw him out then. In the meantime, could one of you please lead me to your school's Metal Shop?"

"Yeah," Xander offered, "I can. This way."

"She is like . . . the coolest nun I know," Cordelia said simply.

"Solder, please," Mary Dolores asked. As Xander handed her a small section of the pliable wire, she pulled two iron nails from her pocket and wound them together in the shape of a cross. "Acetylene torch?"

"Right here," Xander said, watching with interest as he handed her the blue canister. "If you don't mind my asking, what exactly are you doing?"

"Making a weapon," she answered. "Now, would you please escort me to the library?"

"Should we just go straight to Lawndale?" Faith asked. "Stake him before he can change ya?"

"There's something else that needs to be done first," Mary Dolores said. "Someone go to the hospital. I need you to look up something for me. About two weeks ago, I donated blood. I need to make sure it's been used, or it's at least been taken out of Sunnydale. My legal name is Sister Mary Dolores Thompson, not just Dolores."

"Check the Blood Bank," Giles told her. "You know--"

"Yeah, yeah, I know where it is," Faith answered hastily. "I'm on it."

"I'll go with you," Buffy said. "Mary Dolores, please be careful if you go out."

"I'm not leaving until I know where my blood is," she answered.

"Willow, will you look over my history homework for me?" Cordelia asked as she pushed her locker door shut. "I need to get a good grade on this paper."

"Sure, I can do that," Willow agreed. "I--" She paused in mid-sentence, completely unmoving.

"What is it?" Cordelia asked. She turned around, and saw Sarducci, with three vampire companions, standing behind them. "Oh."

"Get the witch," Sarducci ordered. "And bring the other one, too. She'll make a nice snack."

"Giles, I'm worried about Willow and Cordelia," Xander announced at last. "They should have been here."

"Maybe they're holed up at Willow's house," Oz suggested. He then added, "I didn't believe it when I said it, either."

"I'm going to Lawndale," Mary Dolores said suddenly, jumping out of her seat and racing out of the room.

"But the blood!" Giles cried. "Slayers are all the same. None of them listen."

"I'm going, too," Xander said, standing up and striding toward the doors.

"Xander, sit down," Giles ordered. "We need to ascertain what could have happened and not go running off on a suicide mission."

"In the words of Faith," Xander said, standing up, "screw that. I'm going to find my friends."

"I'm coming, too," Oz added, following Xander out of the library.

"At least wait for me!" Giles shouted, hurrying behind the counter to grab a few crosses, stakes, and vials of holy water.

"My life never used to be this complicated!" Cordelia whined, struggling uselessly against the ropes around her. "I used to only have to worry about getting a zit. Now, I have to worry about being eaten!"

"Cordelia, please be quiet," Willow pleaded. "We don't need any more attention drawn to ourselves."

"And thank you for volunteering to untie me," Cordelia added. The two girls were inside one of the mausoleums on Lawndale. Willow had been given a spell to "whip up," and Cordelia was tied to a cement post.

"If Sarducci comes in here and sees that I've untied you, he might kill us both," Willow told her.

Cordelia was quite for a moment, letting Willow work in silence, before she interrupted with, "What is it he's having you do?"

"I'm not sure," Willow admitted, crumbling up a leaf into the stone crock before her. "I don't recognize this combination of materials. But I'm almost done . . . I just need . . . organic fluid."

"Like what?" Cordelia asked.

"Like this," Sarducci said, shocking a scream out of Willow. She spun around, seeing him kneeling behind her. He handed her a vial filled with a dark liquid. "It's mortal blood. Don't drink it."

"Don't worry," Willow said quickly, uncapping the vial and pouring it into the bowl.

"You had better hope your little nun friend shows up," Sarducci told Willow. "Or we'll be forced to make do with you."

"What are you going to do?" Willow asked, her hands trembling as she poured the blood into the crock.

"I'm having you mix this up just in case Mary Dolores doesn't show up," he told her. "'Cause I'm gonna vamp me a slayer come hell or high water."

"Reference Code 438," Buffy said. "Found it, and it's not good." She emerged from the walk-in freezer with a drained blood bag in her hands.

"What was the deal with the blood, anyway?" Faith asked.

"Dunno," Buffy said, tossing the empty bag to a nearby trashcan. "But she was pretty upset about it. Lawndale?"

"Lawndale," Faith agreed.

"Now . . . let's see," Sarducci said softly. He stepped up to Willow, who was still kneeling beside the potion she had just mixed. Her gaze was kept down at the ground, but he grabbed her by the chin and yanked her gaze up, scaring a whimper out of her. "She's not here yet . . . The sun has been set for nearly . . . forty-five minutes . . . It's technically 'tonight,' and she's still not here. That isn't good for you, Willow."

"Leave her alone!" Mary Dolores threatened, walking into the crypt. She kept both hands low at her sides, an angry scowl on her otherwise pleasant face.

"Just in time," Sarducci said, gently patting Willow on the cheek. He pushed her to the floor, and his three companions immediately moved toward Willow and Cordelia.

"Sister, do something!" Cordelia screamed. One of the vampires walked right up to Cordelia and moved her head to an angle, exposing her neck.

Mary Dolores lifted one arm into the air and threw a stake, calling remarkably little attention to herself. The stake flew through the air, striking the vampire about to attack Cordelia in the left armpit. The stake was driven deep enough to pierce his heart, and he disintegrated into dust. "Call your goons off," Mary Dolores warned. "I'm faster than any of them."

Sarducci didn't have to give an order. The other two vampires took off running, and Willow promptly jumped to her feet and moved to help Cordelia. "These are really knotted," Willow muttered under her breath.

"Hurry," Cordelia pleaded as Willow attempted to untie the massive rope.

"The Master was supposed to be dead," Mary Dolores said simply. She folded her arms across her check, staring flatly at Sarducci.

"The Master is," Sarducci told her. "But his power is reincarnated as Androphenes. And he's just one vamped-out slayer away from coming to good ole Sunnydale."

"Well, that's half-right," Mary Dolores commented. Her arms were suddenly a blur, and intense pain exploded through Sarducci's chest. Flames burst from the contact point, and he looked down to see a cross made of iron nails embedded in his chest. Screaming angrily, he reached for the cross and yanked it free.

And then, completely unexpected, Mary Dolores had a flash-back. She remembered something that hadn't danced across her memory in the thirty-seven years since it had happened.

"Honey, I need you to do me a favor tonight. Can you do that?" Carolyn Thompson asked.

"Of course," Dolores said.

Carolyn walked over to Dolores with a small Tupperware bowl in her hands. She dipped her finger in the liquid and made a cross on Dolores' forehead. She said a few words under her breath, and then brushed her daughter's hair back over her shoulders. "Dolores, know I love you more than anything in this world, okay?"

"Of course, Mom. But--"

"The premonition you told me about this morning," Carolyn started. "That's going to be my death."

"Mom, no!" Dolores cried, standing up.

"Dolores, it can't be helped," Carolyn said sternly. She gestured to the potion in the bowl. "This spell will transfer my abilities to you as soon as I am in danger of dying."

"Mom, you--"

Carolyn stopped her and wiped a tear from the corner of Dolores' eye. "The world is bigger than you or me, honey," Carolyn said. "Do you understand what I need you to do?"

"I understand, Mama," Mary Dolores spoke aloud. She looked at the stone crock. She didn't know exactly what it was, but she could certainly guess.

"What?" Sarducci asked.

"You did steal my blood," Mary Dolores said. "You were going to give Willow my abilities and use her to make the Hellmouth . . ."

"I had a sniper waiting to endanger your life," Sarducci told her.

Mary Dolores rushed him, kicking the stone crock off of its pedestal as she did so. His strong arms wrapped around her from behind, and she wasn't really surprised to find that she was no longer strong enough to throw him off. And then, his lips hit her neck, and the hot sting of vampire teeth shot through her.

"Sister!" Cordelia screamed.

"Mary Dolores!" Willow cried.

Mary Dolores' body dangled loosely in Sarducci's arms as he partially drained her. Then, he lifted his wrist to his mouth, bit himself, and pressed the bleeding bodypart against Mary Dolores' mouth.

"Leave her alone!" Cordelia shouted, and she suddenly realized that she had ripped herself free of the ropes. Sarducci looked up at her in shock, and he realized that her blouse was stained with the potion Willow had prepared.

"You bitch," Sarducci growled, looking down at the pale-faced nun in his arms.

"Cordelia," Mary Dolores said in a soft voice, throwing her stake in Cordelia's direction.

"Meet your maker," he said, grabbing her head in both hands and twisting roughly. Mary Dolores slumped to the ground in a boneless heap.

"NO!" Willow screamed, her knees nearly folding up beneath her.

Buffy and Faith suddenly ran into the crypt. Sarducci looked at Cordelia, and then at the two Slayers in front of him. Then, he ran between Buffy and Faith and out of the mausoleum, both of whom were right after him.

"Mary Dolores," Willow sobbed, running over to her fallen friend. She knelt beside her, crying even harder when she saw that her neck had been broken.

Cordelia calmly bent down and picked up the stake. She glanced down at Mary Dolores, and then at the open door. With just a moment's thought, she bolted after Mary Dolores' assassin.

"Faith, watch out!" Buffy cried, throwing herself at Sarducci. She knocked him off of the dark-haired Slayer, who spun around the pavement on her shoulders, catapulting herself to her feet. Buffy drew out her stake, but before she could use it, Sarducci was already running.

"Not so fast," Cordelia said simply, stepping out into the street in front of Sarducci. He stopped, and then reached out with both of his hands. She reacted faster, grabbing him by both wrists and flipping him over her back. He landed on the pavement, but before he could do anything, Cordelia lifted Mary Dolores' stake high above her head and drove it into Sarducci's chest.

"Willow!" Oz cried. He ran into the mausoleum, stopping beside are her. "Are you okay?"

She sniffled and drew the back of her hand across her cheek, wiping up tears. "Not really," she admitted. "She's dead."

"Willow," Giles said sympathetically.

"Let's get you home," Xander offered, helping Oz get her to her feet. The two teenagers each put an arm around her, and they all walked out of the crypt, leaving Sister Mary Dolores' lifeless body where it lay.

Two days later . . .

Willow stood between Joyce and Buffy Summers, holding a handkerchief tightly in her right hand and a white carnation in her left. A row of nuns stood before them, while Willow and her friends occupied the next row back. Faith, Cordelia, Oz, Xander, and Giles, all of them were dressed in black. Joyce wrapped a motherly arm around Willow's shoulders and gave her a secure squeeze.

"The service is ended," Father Clark said, lifting an open palm up. "Go in peace."

The crowd began to slowly disperse, but Willow continued to stare at the two coffins, resting above empty graves. One of the coffins was empty, a purely symbolic act, while the other held the body of a friend she had had for only a very short time. "Willow, if--," Oz started.

"I'm okay," she said. "Really." Smiling warmly at him, she finished, "I promise." She walked up to Mary Dolores' coffin and gently laid the white carnation on the top.

"Let's go home," Buffy said gently. She wrapped an arm around Willow's shoulders, and with Joyce close behind, led her out of the cemetery.

"I'm telling you both, it was just a fluke," Cordelia said as the remainder of the 'gang' left the cemetery. "Adrenaline, or something."

Faith shook her head, saying, "You're a liar."

Cordelia shrugged and looked at Giles for support. "It may have been temporary," Giles said. "Willow did mix up the potion under stress. She may have gotten something wrong. Slayer powers do typically die with the Slayer, and they were second generation."

"I am not a Slayer," Cordelia insisted. "I promise."

"I'm gonna keep my eye on you," Faith warned as she walked away.

"Well on that threat, I'm going to leave," Cordelia said, getting in her car and driving off, leaving Giles, Oz, and Xander alone in the church's parking lot. "She's not a Slayer," Xander said.

"Not a Slayer," Oz agreed.

"God help us all if she were," Giles sighed. Glancing over at Xander, he added, "No offense meant."

A few days later . . .

Faith kept her word. She did try to keep an eye on Cordelia, but she saw no Slayerific behavior. After a few days, she got tired of watching. Buffy never did believe Cordelia was a Slayer. She stayed just as callous and, well, rude as she was before, and her experience told that the first major change to a Slayer was an attitude change.

On the Friday afternoon following the funeral, the entire gang was gathered in the Library. As per usual, life in Sunnydale was proving as hectic as ever. Androphenes was still trying to get out, and it was time to stop him again. And whenever the Hellmouth was showing signs of activity, no matter how minor, every vampire in a two hundred mile radius got antsy.

"I'll need help getting stuff to do this spell," Willow said. She produced three lists and handed two of them to Oz and Xander. "Please?"

"Aye aye," Oz agreed, snapping off a quick salute. "We can take my van, Xander."

"Not even a please?" Xander asked in mock-hurt.

"She said 'please,'" Buffy said with a bemused grin.

"I'll give you a cookie when you get back," Willow promised, smiling.

"Let's not be too happy," Giles suggested. "The world is ending, after all."

"The world tries to end every weekend," Buffy told him. "You ready, Faith?"

"Let's motorvate," Faith agreed, and the two Slayers left the library.

I need to go get something from my flat," Giles remarked, striding out of the room. "Will you two, uh, be okay here alone?"

"I'm about to go get some more things I need," Willow answered, gesturing at her list. "Can you give me a ride?"

"Sure. Cordelia?"

"I'll . . . I'm gonna run home and get something," she said. "I'll be fine."

"All right," Giles agreed. "Willow?" The two quickly left, leaving Cordelia alone.

Cordelia looked at the open doors to the Library for a few moments. Then, she walked to the back of the room and looked at the bulls-eye board that Faith and Buffy had been practicing with just a few moments before. Looking at the doors again, she picked up a knife, squared herself, and threw it at the target, hitting it dead center.

She smiled and pulled a golden crucifix from inside her shirt, no longer hiding it but letting it lay exposed on her chest. She hurried over to her backpack and unzipped it. Inside lay Mary Dolores' stake, which she tucked inside her vest. As she confidently walked out of the library, she remarked, "A girl can't be too careful in Sunnydale."