She sighed and wondered idly how everyone was doing. Giles had been going to keep Buffy over at his place overnight. He didn't think she should be alone, and her mother was away for the weekend buying art somewhere. Willow tended to agree with him. Although Xander had forgiven her -- and in truth there was nothing to forgive - Buffy by her nature would harbor some guilty feelings for a little while. But destroying Angelus last night had gone a long way to starting her healing process. And destroy him they had. Maybe not in the way that they originally planned, but Angelus was dead. Permanently. Giles seemed different too somehow. To Willow, it seemed almost as if he had finally accepted his position as an emotional stabilizer for Buffy. He had accepted his Watcher duties with some trepidation, she knew, but he'd been even more afraid of loving his Slayer. The fear that someday he would lose her distanced him from Buffy for a long time, but he'd been slowly opening up to the teens over the last year. And, Willow admitted to herself, a lot of that was due to Jenny Calendar and everything she'd taught Giles. She'd taught him that you had to love while you can, because no one could predict the future. Cordy had been elected to drive Xander home. His parents knew nothing of his ordeal, and it seemed the best way to continue the charade was to just have him arrive home like normal - which meant in Cordy's car. Willow smiled slightly and imagined that they probably parked for a while first. Life threatening situations tended to bring out the hormones in their relationship. Actually, everything brought out the hormones in those two. Cordelia had certainly revealed some strong feelings tonight. Willow was thrilled that Xander was happy with Cordy. His happiness had always been important to her. And she knew now in her heart that they were meant to be only friends. But the greatest of friends. Oz was right when he said she'd never given up on Xander. To her, that was never an option. And she knew that if their positions had been reversed, Xander would never have given up on her either. She owed him the same faith he'd had in her. She recalled fondly how she felt when she held the orb with Xander's soul in it in her hand. In those moments, she had felt all the love he had for her. It wasn't romantic love, but that didn't mean it wasn't just as deep and meaningful. In those seconds, she'd known how important she was to Xander.

She'd felt his faith that she would find him and free him. She'd known it all. Everything he'd ever wanted to say to her about his feelings for her. And she would never forget how it felt to have all that wash over her. In truth, she was glad she got to have the experience, even though it happened as a result of the worst circumstances.

She sighed happily and turned to the window. The sun was streaming in through the open blinds. She wondered if Angel had watched his first sunrise in over two hundred years this morning. She knew it would only be a matter of time before Angel approached them and asked forgiveness. He would need that forgiveness to regain some equilibrium. Now that he was human again, everything he'd done could very well drive him insane. It wasn't as if he could go into therapy and talk about his problems. He would need Giles and Buffy to forgive him, and maybe he'd ask for their friendship later. Willow wasn't sure if Buffy could ever love Angel again. She knew Buffy still had strong feelings for him. Maybe now that he was human they could have a relationship.

She looked at the clock on the wall in her room. Almost eight thirty. She grabbed the phone on the small nightstand and dialed her parents' number. She wanted out of the hospital. Now.

Giles awoke to a feeling that something wasn't quite right. He retrieved his glasses from their place on his nightstand and sat up in bed. Eleven am. There was sunlight streaming through the window, and he quickly recalled all the events of the previous night. Buffy was staying with him. There should be more noise than birds singing. She should be up and clattering through his kitchen right about now. Or at the very least abusing his television or stereo system.

He grabbed his robe and pulled it over his nightclothes. He headed downstairs slowly. He stopped abruptly on the stairs as he saw his empty sofa. His empty sofa where Buffy should have been sleeping, seeing that it was so quiet. "Buffy?" he called, he checked his bathrooms, but they were vacant. He began to panic. Buffy had gone through a lot last night, and they'd been up until almost dawn discussing her feelings of guilt and then both of their feelings of relief that it was all over. Giles uttered a low curse and prayed their talk helped her. Prayed that she didn't awake and think of doing something stupid. He knew she still blamed herself for a large part of the pain they had all experienced. He grabbed his phone from its cradle and hit the speed dial number to Buffy's home. He waited impatiently for five rings and then slammed it down again.

He hurried upstairs and dressed. Where could she have gone? Willow, she could have gone to check on Willow. He headed to the hospital, only to find out that Willow had been discharged and gone home with her parents earlier. He than went straight to Willow's house. He spoke to Mrs. Rosenberg under the pretense of stopping by to make sure Willow was all right. She told him that Willow was feeling wonderful. So good in fact, that she had headed straight over to Xander's as soon as she got home. Giles thanked her and hurried back to his car.

At Xander's house, he rang the bell several times. No answer. He experimentally tried the doorknob, and sighed with relief when the door opened easily. "Uh, hello? Is anyone home?" Again no answer. He looked briefly around the first floor of the house and found a note in the kitchen from Mrs. Harris to Xander, saying that she would be out all day and would bring home dinner at six. Xander must still be in the house if he hadn't picked up the note yet. So Giles began to climb the stairs, intending on finding Xander and asking him if he'd heard from Buffy.

He stopped dead in his tracks as he pushed open Xander's door. There, on Xander's bed, was Xander. With Willow curled up on his left side. And Cordelia on his right. And Oz snuggled in next to Willow. And Buffy. Buffy was lying near the foot of the bed across all their feet. They were all sound asleep. They all had small contented smiles on their faces. Giles almost cried with relief and like a proud parent, wished he had a camera. He settled into the easy chair near Xander's bed and watched them sleep, thinking how wonderful it was that they had each other, and how strong they were as a group. He smiled to himself and prepared to wait for them to wake up. Soon, he was asleep too.

Outside, reveling in the sunlight, an Angel looked towards the window and guarded their sleep.