"Yeah. We lost you when you guys started going towards Wisconsin," Tara said. "Where's Willow?"

"She was introducing Buffy to some of the local surfers," He said with a grin, wrapping a towel around his waist. He started to pull off the rest of the wetsuit.

"Xander, no free shows," Anya said.

He grinned at her. "It's a big towel."

"Still, there's a lot of scantily clad females around that would love a show of you penis."

Xander started to blush. "I wouldn't do that, Anya." He pulled the wetsuit all the way off. "Here comes Will."

"Hey, did you guys see the surf?" Willow yelled towards her friends.

"Yeah, you were great, Hun," Tara yelled back.

Willow smiled at her girlfriend. "At least now Buffy will stop saying there's nothing to do around here. She's a natural."

"Must be the Slayer skills," Anya said. She looked at her watch. "Xander, we have class in forty minutes."

"We'll take the 5 south to the 78 east. Traffic shouldn't be too heavy this late in the afternoon," Xander said, pulling his trunks on under the towel. "Everyone's either at work or enjoying the other beaches."

"Where is Buffy, anyway?" Willow said, peeling off her wetsuit to reveal a bikini underneath. "We have to get to The Firehouse to help Oz set up."

"You mean Dingoes are back?" Anya asked.

Willow shook her head. "Devon got a new band up north in this place called Sunnydale. Oz started his own when he went to San Diego, and this is their first North County show. The band's called Blinker. Sort of a harder rocking blink-182 sound."

Tara nodded. "They sound awesome."

"You've heard them?" Xander asked in surprise.

"Yeah. Oz is cool now. Still wolfy, but he knows Tara and I are together and he accepts it," Willow said.

Xander started to reply when a yell of "Cowboy up!" rang over the noise on the beach. "Guess the Marines are looking for a brawl."

"Probably not the ravers, though. Most of them are candy kids, like Kid Ultimate and Raver Ragna, even though Ragna doesn't wear much candy. The jungleists, maybe...but Pygens's a pacifist and Jungle Gym isn't all that violent," Buffy said, approaching them. "I lost a piece of candy in the ocean, one that Spooky gave me."

"At least it wasn't the one Tweety gave you," Willow said with a sly grin.

"We are just friends. Besides, he's with Roxanne, remember?" She wrapped a towel around her head.

"Hey, where's my board?" Xander asked.

"Uh...I had to beat a water demon over the head with it."

"Buffy, it was a custom..."

"I'll get you another, I promise. At least the demon's dead." She smiled at Xander. "Or I'll pay your way into JuJuBeats. Yours and Anya's."

"No more raves, thank you," Anya said, standing up and wrapping a sarong around her waist. "That last party at the Dome was enough for me."

Willow laughed. "Hey, Buffy, I think your admirers have arrived."

Approaching the group was three people with baggy pants and bright shirts. Two of them were wearing brightly beaded bracelets and necklaces, and the third was wearing a set of spikes on his wrist.

"Hey, Glitter Kid!" the shorter male yelled.

"Where's Pygpen?" Buffy yelled back. "At work?"

Raver Ragna shook her head. "Playing with his turntables at home, where else? He'll be out tonight, though. I hope."

"You don't keep a tight leash on your boyfriend," Kid Ultimate said. "Shouldn't you be worried?"

"Casey, shuta." Raver Ragna shook her head again.

"Let me introduce," Buffy said. "This is Ragna, also known as Raver Ragna." The auburn-haired girl smiled and waved her book, one of the many she always had around. "Pygpen's her boyfriend. Used to be known as Raver Adam since there's so many Adam's here."

"Still are," the bald headed man said.

"Kid Ultimate, or Casey, is this short guy here." Casey scowled a little at the short comment but said hi to Buffy's friends.

"And this silent guy here is Jungle Gym, or Chris."

Chris nodded his bald head towards the others. "Hi."

"This is Anya, Tara, Willow and Xander." She looked around. "Where's Dawn?"

"Watching a movie at the Regal," Casey said. "She got tired of our excessive talking, as she said."

A cell phone rang from Buffy's bag. "Hello? Uh, sure. Well...I...all right, Giles. I'll be at your apartment tonight. You can help me study," she said, throwing a discreet glance at her newer friends. "All right, be there later." She looked at her slaying friends. "Study session at Giles' tonight, eight."

They nodded. "Well, we've got to roll," Xander said. "Remember, you owe me a surfboard."

Buffy sighed, then smiled. "All right. Let me go drag my happy ass to Rendevouzs--"

"Closed," Chris said.

"All right then, Kelly's. I want a smoothie. Then I'm going to get Dawn and hit Spin and grab more rave flyers. See you later?"

Her friends all nodded and started to scatter, leaving Buffy alone on the beach. She sat on her slightly wet towel and looked out at the ocean.

And she felt lucky to live in this town, have these friends.

Life was good.