Willow put the sack of groceries down, fumbling in her pocket for the keys to her parent's house. She tried to make as little noise as possible; Spike had been sleeping when she left and she didn't want to wake him.

She had slept more than 12 hours since Giles had dropped them both off yesterday evening, and she definitely felt like she still needed a lot more sleep before she would be capable of rational thought - plus her body seemed to currently consist entirely of tender spots and aches.

It was only mid-morning, but Willow had no intention of heading to campus. She was in no state for classes, and even less for an impromptu meeting with anyone she knew, especially Buffy.

Instead she ate a bowl of cereal as she packed away her purchases, including half a dozen bags of blood bought from Willy's. Her chore finished Willow headed upstairs, stripping then gently easing into bed next to her still sleeping mate. Spike grunted and threw his arm around her; within minutes Willow had slipped into a dreamless sleep.

Giles put his book down and slowly polished his glasses - a habit that for some reason always helped him to focus his thoughts. He had been studying the "Legend of the Servants" book, which Wesley had generously offered to him, saying that it would probably be best for the book to remain close to Willow, "just in case".

There were two things troubling Giles. The first was that Willow's power had not yet arrived, and he was concerned that they knew very little of the mechanics of the maturity process. It was not clear from the text whether those who died during maturity did so because their bond was not in place, or for some other reason.

Giles was also concerned about the relationship between the three. He knew very well from what he had read - and the way that the trio had acted - that Angel was now also a bond mate. One thing that the book did make clear was that the bond must be the same between all parties.

Of more concern to him was what the book didn't say. Would the bond be affected by the separation of Angel from the other two? Would the obvious tension between them weaken the bond, or prevent the bond from functioning properly? And most important of all, what exactly was the nature of the bond? Was Willow already immortal, or did this not happen until after the onset of her full power? Despite re-reading the book several times, Giles was no closer to discovering an answer to any of these questions.

He had however made inquiries with several of his contacts, and was hoping that perhaps one of them would be able to suggest another text that could be of assistance. In the meantime he needed to talk to Willow, to try to see what changes if any had already occurred, and to see if she needed an objective observer with whom she could discuss her new relationships.

Giles winced slightly, thinking to himself that if he had learnt one thing from the whole Buffy and Angel disaster, it was that problems had to be faced and resolved. There was no point just hoping that things would sort themselves out, as they never did - at least not the way that you wanted them to. Giles was hoping he could overcome his own embarrassment long enough to help Willow .. if, of course, she wanted help in the first place.

Hearing a knock at the door, Giles straightened his glasses; it looked like he was going to get his chance to try a "so you're in an eternal magical menage-a-trois with two vampires" talk sooner rather than later.

So when he opened the door to see Buffy standing there, Giles was momentarily nonplused. "Buffy! Of course, yes, Buffy, well, how are you? Oh, come in, come in." Giles ushered the Slayer inside, wondering what calamity had brought her here.

Since she had started seeing Riley, Giles rarely saw Buffy except for their weekly research meetings, unless she struck something unexpected on patrol or Giles needed to tell her about some new prophecy.

"Hey Giles, you look awful." Taking a quick look around at the books scattered on every available surface, Buffy gave him a questioning glance. "What's with the research? No, wait, let me guess ... a new evil prophecy?"

Buffy smiled at her own sense of humour, and picked a book off the sofa to allow her to sit down. She glanced at the title, "Mystical Bonds", and put it on the floor. She didn't notice that Giles hadn't answered her, instead saying "Anyway, the reason I dropped by was to see if you have seen Willow lately? She missed her Psych class yesterday, and she wasn't at the dorm last night. Has she been helping you with research?"

Giles was not sure what to say. He didn't want to lie to Buffy, but he knew that Willow needed time to explain recent events to her friend. Giles could imagine what Buffy's response would be when she found out that Willow was now immortal, with Buffy's true love as one mate - and Buffy's enemy as the other.

"Actually, yes, I mean I have seen her. She was feeling tired, I think she has decided to spend some time at her parent's home to recuperate, ah, I expect she will call you soon."

"OK," said Buffy, rising to her feet. She gave Giles a jaunty smile. "See you Monday for the research party then," she sang, and with a small wave she was gone, leaving Giles to breath a sigh of relief at his near escape.

Buffy headed outside, and decided that she might as well drop past Willow's and say hello. Plus Buffy had missed most of her classes on Monday and Tuesday, so Willow could give her those notes and she could give Willow the notes from yesterday's Psych class.

Walking briskly she soon found herself at Willow's home, and she knocked on the door. It was nearly 4pm, and she had to meet Riley at 6 for some quality time. Hopefully Willow had her notes here, that would save Buffy a trip back to the dorm. Frowning slightly, Buffy knocked again. Still getting no response, she fished her spare key out of her bag and opened the door, walking quietly inside. A quick look into the kitchen showed her that someone was here - there were empty bowls stacked in the sink.

(Wills must be really tired,) Buffy thought with concern, idly opening the fridge to see if there was anything to eat while she waited for her friend to wake up. Only to freeze in horror at the sight of blood bags sitting neatly next to the milk and orange juice.

Spike heard the knocking at the door, and nudged the still sleeping redhead next to him. "Wake up pet, sounds like you have a visitor." Willow tried to ignore him, but Spike soon resorted to tickling her until she had no choice but to get out of bed.

Willow heard the door open and thought of the people who had keys to the house: her parents, Xander and Buffy. At the moment she didn't know which was the worst option, but she pulled on some clothes - blessedly clean - and tried to marshal her thoughts.

"Stay here" she told Spike firmly, showing him her resolve face before heading downstairs. As soon as the door had closed behind her Spike got out of bed and started to dress, so he could see just what kind of trouble had rolled in, and how his little spitfire would handle it.

Willow looked around the living room and saw Buffy's backpack thrown on the sofa. (Thank Goddess I've finally had some sleep) Willow thought with resignation. (I have a bad feeling about how this is going to go.)

She was still mentally debating on how much to tell Buffy when she walked into the kitchen to see Buffy standing in front of the open refrigerator, a bag of blood in her hand and a look of accusation on her face.

"Want to tell me what the hell is going on here?" Buffy asked icily.

Willow hovered in the doorway nervously. "Buffy, why don't we sit down, I have a lot to tell you."

"I'll just bet you do," said Buffy slowly. "Where were you last night?"

"Buffy, I am not going to be interrogated by you" said Willow, hoping she was presenting a calm facade; inside she wanted nothing more than to run and hide. This was going even worse than she had feared, and they hadn't even started yet.

"Who's the blood for? Got a friend staying with you?" asked Buffy, with a heavy emphasis on the word 'friend' as she slowly moved closer to Willow. Willow was losing the battle to control her desire to flee, so she was relieved beyond belief to feel a cool hand grasp the back of her neck lightly.

A familiar voice drawled, "What's the matter Slutty, worried that Red might by moving in on your fuck-the-soul-out-of-the-undead routine? Don't worry. I'm proudly soul-free, so you can put my lunch down and piss off." The last words were spoken harshly, and Buffy gave Spike an appraising look.

She was in a very, very bad mood. She didn't understand why her best friend was here with Spike - Spike of all people! she thought incredulously - but she knew how to fix the problem.

First she was going to stake Spike, and put him out of his misery once and for all. Then she was going to have serious talk with Willow.

Without saying a word Buffy moved at full slayer speed across the room, grabbing a stake from her waistband as she raised her hand to the level of Spike's chest. Spike snarled and moved forward, only to scream and fall to his knees, hands clawing at his head as the chip flooded his body with red-hot pain.

"Easy as pie" Buffy muttered, grabbing Spike's hair and pulling him up to allow her a clear shot at his heart. Then she felt a sharp pain in her head, and everything went black.

Willow looked at the fallen slayer, and for a spilt second saw flames running over her body before they vanished, leaving a small crumpled blonde behind.

Ignoring her for the moment, Willow helped Spike to his feet and led him towards the sofa, where he quickly lay down, still clutching his head.

Through her link Willow could sense the intensity of his pain, but she could control it: she didn't actually feel the pain herself, but she knew that Spike did. She bit her lip, trying to think of something that would help him, but nothing came to mind. So instead she sat next to Spike, gently stroking his hair while muttering nonsensical words of comfort, trying to soothe him. Gradually the groans and whimpers of pain faded, and Spike appeared to have fallen into an uneasy sleep.

Willow ran her fingers through her hair. She knew that she had to get Buffy out of here before the Slayer woke up, but she didn't want to leave Spike. Seeing no alternative, Willow picked up the phone and dialed.

"Giles? I need your help - again" said Willow quietly. After explaining her problem, Giles told her he would come immediately, and Willow hung up. Still holding the phone, she sighed deeply before dialing again.

"Hello, Cordelia? It's Willow ..... No, no, don't disturb him, I just wanted to leave a message, um, we have had a bit of trouble here but we are OK, and I just wanted to let Angel know not to worry ..... No,no, really, just let him know everything is OK. I have to go now, bye Cordelia," and with Willow quickly hung up.

Then she went back to sit next to Spike, waiting for Giles to arrive.

Buffy woke up slowly, aware of a throbbing headache and a horrible taste in her mouth. She opened her eyes tentatively, and breathed a deep sigh of relief to find herself in Giles' apartment.

Through the window she could see that it was dark outside, and she fumed as recent memories came back and she realised that as well as everything else, she had now stood up Riley - all thanks to Willow

Thinking about what had happened, Buffy suddenly saw the answer: Willow had messed up another spell, and that explained the whole Spike thing. Given that she was already in Giles' apartment, he may have already set things right; even if he had she decided that Spike had outlived his usefulness, a problem that she would be more than happy to personally take care of.

Buffy looked up as Giles wandered in from the kitchen, sipping tea from a mug. As their eyes met Giles started, then quickly put his drink down and crossed the room to sit beside her on the sofa.

"Buffy, you're awake at last," said the former Watcher, relief evident in his voice.

"Do you know what's going on?" Buffy asked curtly. She couldn't waste time on chit chat until this botched spell had been fixed.

"Yes," said Giles cautiously, "Willow told me that you found Spike at her home and, ah, perhaps reached some overly hasty conclusions."

"So she's not screwing him then?" Buffy asked snidely, noting the look of horror that came over Giles face as he struggled for an answer.

"Buffy, it will help no-one if you maintain this attitude. Please try to keep an open mind. Willow and Spike will be here shortly, and I am hoping that we can all sit down and discuss this without, ah, well without insults or, or any acts of violence." Giles noted Buffy's stony expression with a sinking heart.

"Is this because of some botched spell? I mean, is she so desperate for a man that she's doing magic now to get laid?" asked Buffy in icy tones.

Giles held on to his temper with difficulty. He knew that Buffy could be irrational at times, but she was still the slayer, and he had honestly expected better than this from her.

Speaking with deliberate calm, he said: "Willow did not cast a spell. Buffy, I do not need to remind you that Willow is your friend, and has always supported you when you have needed her. I hope that you will at least do her the courtesy of listening to what she has to say."

If there was one thing that Buffy had always hated it was being out of the loop, that feeling that everyone knew a secret - except her. And now Willow, her supposedly best friend, was shacking up with a vampire - with Spike, no less - and it seemed her Watcher, HER watcher, knew all about it. That was the last straw.

With her eyes blazing, Buffy stood up, her back to the entrance so that she did not see Spike quietly open the door, ushering Willow inside.

"And what exactly is she going to tell me? That she can't even keep a werewolf happy so she's working her way down the evolutionary table? What's next, zombies? And when Spike tries to kill her, or dumps her to run back to Dru, are we supposed to spend weeks comforting her? God, could she be more pathetic? I mean, Spike! It's obvious he's just using her to get to me, and she should know better.

I mean, I don't mind if she wants to imitate me, but now she's taking things too far. Next she'll be on the bus to LA trying to hit on Angel."

Finally running out of steam, Buffy noticed that Giles' gaze was focused over her shoulder, and with a sense of foreboding she turned slowly to find herself looking into the stony face of her former friend, and the ridged face of Spike, who had his arms firmly around Willow, although whether to comfort her or hold her back Buffy wasn't really sure.

For a moment, Buffy froze. Years later, picking over the tangled memories of her time in Sunnydale, Buffy came to see that moment as a crossroads, when she still may have been able to repair the damage which she had done. If she had been able to swallow her pride, and treat Willow with the same non-judgmental love that she had always received from her friend, she knew that events would have taken a very different course.

But not having the benefit of hindsight, Buffy instead allowed her embarrassment and shame at being heard saying such mean-spirited words to transform into anger, and she lifted her head to gaze unflinchingly into Willow's set face.

"I don't know why you are doing this, or what you are trying to prove. But I don't have the time or energy to clean up another of your messes. You must know that you are making a fool of yourself. If you come back to the dorm now, with me, we can forget this ever happened. Otherwise you are on your own; don't expect me to help pick up the pieces when he leaves you."

Willow looked thoughtfully at Buffy. She could feel the anger radiating from the Slayer, and she tentatively tried to push her mind towards Buffy, to sense what else was there. But all she could identify was anger - the rest was too confused.

Willow refused to feel upset: she turned to Giles, saying calmly "We're going back to the house. You are welcome to come by later, so we can talk." Giles nodded his assent, and crossed the room to grasp Willow's shoulder reassuringly before bidding them both goodbye.

Then he turned to face Buffy, a girl whom he had at one time considered almost his own daughter, now a woman who had often filled him with pride for her skill and courage. But he also knew that Buffy had a core of selfishness, evident in the way that she treated her friends, and her behaviour during the whole Angel period, including running away rather than facing her problems.

Giles knew that he was no longer Buffy's official Watcher, but he valued his role nonetheless. After all, it was what he had trained for, and he knew that his research and knowledge had helped to save countless lives - including that of Buffy herself.

However Giles was more than aware of how carefully he must tread if he wished to maintain his relationship with Buffy, although part of him wondered if there was really any relationship left to salvage.

Buffy could see Giles' thoughtful expression, and knew that he was annoyed with her. But he didn't know everything that Buffy knew, and she had no intention of telling him the full story. She also had no stomach for one of his interminable lectures on the merits of patience.

"Look, I know you're dying to run after Willow so why don't you just go. I'm late anyway, I was meant to meet Riley before Vampirella knocked me out."

"Buffy, I agree that now is not a good time, but we do need to talk."

"Don't worry, I'll come tomorrow and we can talk then, OK?" Buffy tried to maintain a rational tone whilst inside she seethed at the injustice of her Watcher being about to run after Willow, no doubt to commiserate with her about mean old Buffy.

As Giles went to fetch his jacket, Buffy picked up her bag, her eyes noting the books lying next to it on the table. One caught her eye; instead of the familiar musty leather jacket it had what looked like a silver metal cover.

Buffy picked it up and weighed it in her hand thoughtfully before slipping it into her backpack. Then she headed for the door, yelling goodbye as she stepped into the night and headed to Riley's dorm.