I trace a picture in the sand at the park, I'm trying my hardest to draw you, but all I could remember is the way you looked when you tried to turn me back. I don't understand. I miss Tara, too. I think Warren should've died painfully, but what did I do? What did Buffy do?

The truth is you are slipping. You were leaving us slowly, slow enough for us to stop you from going any farther, but then you sped up, going a million miles an hour. And now you're slipping away from us. Slipping, falling, stumbling, tripping, dropping.

I can tell you're about to take a tumble, one that will take you the rest of the way.

I watched you as you hid, you pushed the truth away, tried to end -all- pain. Well, guess what, Willow, without the world, you wouldn't be able to fall in love. Is this what Tara would have wanted? For you to end the world in a blood-vengeance kick? Probably not, but who knows?

She was, after all, a demon.

I know, I know, Spike got hurt when he hit her, but her demon jeans hadn't been activated yet. I think they developed about two weeks after her birthday. I'd caught her killing a few times behind the Bronze, but what was I going to do, tell Buffy? And how would I have explained my being there, the truth? 'Hey Buffy, did you know that Tara is killing humans in the ally behind the local club? How do I know? Oh, well, I go there sometimes to be shagged roughly against the wall by whoever fancies boinking with me that night.'

Ya, ya, I know, I sound a lot like Spike. What can I say, he's a bad influence.

I hear you're coming back next week, after some heavy anti-black-magicks- talks with Giles. If you want, you can turn me back, and this time, I won't fight you or call for Buffy. What ever it takes, I want you to get better. If me as a ball of energy opposed to a human does that, then that's good, turn me back.

I'm tracing a picture in the sand, at the park where you used to take me for ice cream and I'm trying my best to draw your picture, but all I could remember is the way you looked when you tried to turn me back into my original form. I don't understand how you could do this.

Don't you care?

Fin