Something he'd wished he'd had.

In an odd sort of way, Mr. Bough, who asked that they call him Doug, was a
lot like Principal Flutie: wanting everyone to like him, treating everyone as
an equal...he seemed to love those kids he taught. And he crept around in the
shadows because...

Well, he never gave a real reason for it, but neither Buffy or Oz were
suspicious.

"So you're the Slayer? The one who was lost in time?"

Buffy nodded. "Yeah. Oz was here completely accidentally."

Oz nodded as well. "It's a bad night that I don't want to remember."

Doug smiled. "Well, perhaps you guys will be able to help here. I mean, this
isn't the greatest place but it's home." He stood up. "I need to go see about
getting some food. If you'll excuse me," he said, blending back into the
shadows.

Oz shook his head. "Wonder how many vampires are living out among here."

"Probably a lot. Tsar must not be the most popular guy around here."

"I should hope not."

***

Willow was staying in Tara's room. It was too hard for her to stay in her
dorm, seeing Buffy's stuff and not knowing where she was. Tara had been
watching Willow, taking care of her as she mourned the fact her best friend
was lost, as was her ex-boyfriend.

Even though they were together, she knew Willow still cared for Oz. It wasn't
a secret between the two of them, but Tara didn't know how much sometimes.
Willow tried to explain, but couldn't.

And for that, Tara was feeling left out of the loop again. It was a feeling
she was sort of used to, but not quite.

She moved over towards the window, hoping to see Graham. He was going to come
up with more books from Giles and she wanted to be ready to let security know
it was okay for him to come up.

But what she actually saw was Spike and Anya outside, walking. It wouldn't be
a thing that normally got her attention, since the two of them were friends,
but tonight...

Tonight they were holding hands as they walked around the campus.

And as Tara watched, Spike leaned over and kissed Anya.

***

Graham went up to Buffy as they started to patrol. "Angel wanted to go with
Oz. I mean, he has almost four hundred years of fighting skills. I only have
about a hundred." Graham flashed her a smile, which she readily returned.

"I met a lot of the kids today," Buffy said, gripping and ungripping her
stake. "They seem nice."

Graham nodded. "I like them a lot." A bit of the smile faded as he said, "I
wish I'd gotten to have kids of my own."

"I wonder if I'd have gotten to have children," she said, walking around.
"And I wonder if others might have, too...Graham, what was everyone like,
after we disappeared?"

"Well, when you were gone, we banded together to get you back. All of us
except Spike and Anya. Did you know they had been seeing each other behind
Xander's back?"

Buffy's eyes bugged out. "No, I didn't."

Graham nodded. "That tore the small group apart. Xander wouldn't talk to
either of them, and when Anya was offered her powers back, she took them.
Willow was distraught about everything that had been going on, and she pulled
away from everyone for a while except Xander. I guess misery really does love
company."

Buffy just listened, surprised at how much they had all hid under the
surface. It was strange, knowing that one hundred years had passed and her
friends had been torn apart.

"Tara stayed close, though," Graham continued, "and when Willow broke out of
her depression, they were able to get their life back together again. Xander
wasn't so lucky...he stayed alone for a long time, before he just decided
that he'd throw himself headfirst into this fight."

"Anya was killed, while Spike watched, and then Spike started helping again.
And then there was the big battle, and then..." Graham paused. "Almost
everyone died."

Buffy stopped and noticed a tear forming at the edge of his eye. She gently
wiped it away, telling herself now was not the time to ask about him, or his
turning. Right now, they should just continue the patrol, most likely in
silence.

***

Willow looked at Graham as she waited for Xander to bring the last of the
ingredients for the spell. "Shouldn't you have taken the book to Tara?"

Graham nodded. "I want to send a message to Buffy. and Oz," he added hastily.

"We know you have a thing for her," Willow said, smiling.

Graham blushed slightly. "Well, I want her to be safe and know that you guys
aren't the only ones who want her back."

Willow nodded, looking around. The room was dark, and it was strange being in
her dorm room after the last few nights of staying with Tara. Buffy's bed was
still unmade, her weaponry by her bed waiting to be cleaned, her new school
books still in the bag.

The door opened and Xander walked in with the arrowhead root and the rest of
the ingredients. "Are you all set?"

Willow looked up. "Yeah, I guess."

"You are," Graham said. "Just remember how important this is."

Willow grinned slightly, then set up for the spell.