The Guardian beckoned to her, and they walked to the edge of the pool.

"Most of their souls will come to me within a year" he said, and showed her in the pool.

Some kind of reptilian beast appeared in the pool's surface, with Cordelia lying screaming beneath it.

"Who's Reptile Boy?" Buffy asked.

"A mascot for a college fraternity. Cordelia and her friend Harmony will be sacrificed to it in about…four months, I think."

"You think?"

"With you taken out of the timeline, it's resettling itself. Events will still take place-mostly-but the times that they do will change to a certain extent."

The image in the pool changed again and Buffy saw Xander kissing a pretty dark-haired girl.

"So Xander finally bagged a hotty, huh?"

"Not exactly."

Buffy watched in horror as Xander staggered back, looking ten years older, and collapsed.

"What happened?" she demanded of the Guardian.

"The girl is actually an ancient Incan Mummy. She needs to drain a person's life-force to stay alive."

"Xander isn't dead, though, right?"

"Not quite. However, he will be very sick for quite some time. His parents will move to San Francisco to be nearer his treatment. After a year, Xander finally gets out of hospital. A member of the Watchers recruits him soon after that."

Buffy looked at the ground for a minute, then murmured "Poor Willow. She'll be so lonely with Xander and me both gone."

"No, she won't be" Buffy looked up in alarm as the Guardian continued "By the time Ampata finds Xander, Willow is already dead."

Not wanting to see, yet unable to resist, Buffy looked into the pool.

Willow was walking home on a summer's night, the full moon shining down on her. Suddenly, she was jumped from behind. Willow fought with everything she had, using a tree branch to slice open her attacker, but it did no good. Buffy gasped in horror as Colin sank his fangs into Willow's slender neck, draining her blood. Buffy cried silently as Willow slumped to the ground, only to open her gold eyes to stare after Colin as he walked away, her face changing to that of a demon for the first time.

"Colin doesn't realize that Willow has become a vampire. It's a fatal mistake for him." The Guardian told her.

"Good" Buffy said fiercely.

"Not so good" the Guardian replied, as the image of the pool stayed on Willow, now in the Master's lair as she hauled on a long chain. The cage it was attached to held Colin, screaming with rage as he fought to get out. Willow, still wearing the demon face, fastened the chain to a ring in the wall and turned laughing in jubilation to the figure that came out of the shadows behind.

Buffy screamed "No!"

She turned to the Guardian "He wouldn't. Angel wouldn't!"

The Guardian turned her towards the pool, holding her in place as she watched Angel, wearing his demon face, yet somehow crueler than when she had seen it, come forward and put his hands on Willow's shoulders.

"Not Angel. Angelus."

As the rays of the sun started to burn Colin, the Guardian told Buffy gently, yet inexorably, "I think you underestimated the effect your love has on Angel. The longer and more that you love each other, the more his soul gains in strength against the demon. Without your love to anchor him, the demon will take control of him again."

Buffy sobbed as Colin burned, and Willow and Angelus dragged each other down onto the floor of the cave, growling with passion and triumph.

"What's going to happen to my mom?" Buffy asked, her voice choked with tears.

"Well, that's the most ironic thing. She'll find a happy ending."

The scene changed to a museum.

"Where's this?" Buffy sniffled.

"The British Museum in London, about…five months from now."

Buffy watched in astonishment as she saw her mother walk through the museum. She didn't stop to look at anything, just walked through like she knew where she was going.

Joyce stopped outside an office and entered without knocking. Giles was behind the desk, and looked up with a smile. He stood and kissed Joyce, and then they left the office.

"My mom and Giles?" Buffy asked, flabbergasted.

"They will be united in their grief over you. Whirlwind romance. They'll be married before the end of the summer, and back in Great Britain before the new school year starts. Neither of them have any reason to stay in Sunnydale without you.

"So, Buffy, do you still want to leave?"

Buffy turned to the Guardian and asked accusingly "Do I have a choice?"

Part three is here.

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