'Seeing Red' Story Code '6ABB19' by Steven S. DeKnight

Willow and Tara wake up together, happy that they have reconciled; Willow is still concerned about Buffy, and when she comments on how strangely she behaved after seeing Anya and Spike having sex, Tara tells her about Buffy and Spike’s secret relationship. Willow discovers that Buffy has not been home all night; she tells Dawn that she and Tara are back together, and Dawn is ecstatic at the news. Buffy has located the lair of the three geeks, but discovers that they have vacated the premises; she finds some books and computer discs, but the boys have booby-trapped the place with buzz-saws; Buffy grabs the books and discs and is just able to escape unscathed. After returning home with the retrieved items, she, Dawn, Tara and Willow try to go through the evidence. Meanwhile, Anya is at a bar, trying to get back into the vengeance game; but things do not go according to plan, and she ends up talking about Xander. The three geeks have re-located to a cave, where they kill a demon. Dawn visits Spike in his crypt and asks him about his feelings for Buffy. Warren, Andrew and Jonathan attempt to enter the home of the demon they killed; as only demons can pass through the magical barrier Andrew and Warren have made Jonathan a suit from the demon’s skin. He manages to retrieve a box with two red orbs in it, and, when Warren picks them up, their power surges through his body. Buffy visits Xander at his apartment and tries to make peace with him, but Xander cannot understand why she would have sex with Spike. After Buffy tells him that her personal life is none of his business the conversation does not fare well, and ends with Xander walking out. Willow and Tara are in bed again, but this time Willow is studying the discs, and discovers that they contain blueprints. Xander is at ‘The Bronze’ in an attempt to drown his sorrows when Andrew, Warren and Jonathan walk in. Buffy fights a vampire in a cemetery; he puts up a good fight, and, although she is victorious, Buffy returns home tired and bruised. She decides to take a bath, but Spike barges into the bathroom and tries to apologise for having sex with Anya, revealing how hurt he has been since they stopped seeing each other. This leads Buffy to admit that she actually does have feelings for Spike, but will never love him. Spike will not hear it though, and he advances towards her, telling her that she just has to admit to herself that she does love him. He grabs her and starts to force himself upon her, but as they struggle, Buffy slips and hits her head. Spike takes this to his advantage, and pins Buffy to the floor while she cries, begging him to stop. She is finally able to kick out, sending the vampire flying across the room. It suddenly dawns on Spike what he was about to do. Buffy is furious, telling him that she should have stopped him a long time ago. At ‘The Bronze’, Warren is using his newfound power to his advantage, which scares Jonathan a little, but Andrew defends Warren’s actions. When Xander tries to stop Warren hitting on a girl, one punch from Warren sends him flying across the bar. The three geeks leave, and Xander goes to Buffy’s house. Seeing Spike’s coat he assumes that the vampire and Buffy are having sex again, but instead he finds Buffy on the bathroom floor, badly bruised and shaken. She tells Xander what Spike did, but stops him from going after the vampire. Buffy then gets dressed, and meets everyone downstairs; Willow and Tara tell her and Xander that the discs contain information on banks and armoured cars; they surmise that the geeks are going to rob a truck that night. Xander informs them of Warren’s new super-strength. Spike is in his crypt getting drunk when Clem comes by to watch television with him, but the vampire is too distracted, talking about his chip and remarking that he is neither a monster nor a man because of it. Warren hijacks a security truck while Jonathan and Andrew act as lookouts. Buffy finds them, but Warren is easily able to fend off her attacks, and gains the upper hand. Jonathan suddenly jumps onto the Slayer’s back, but instead of attacking to her, he whispers to her about Warren’s source of power. Buffy smashes the red orbs, but is surprised when Warren and Andrew suddenly activate their hidden rocket back-packs; they fly away, leaving a stranded and betrayed Jonathan behind. But after Andrew hits his head on a roof, he and Jonathan are quickly captured and taken to jail by the police. Just outside Sunnydale, Spike stops his motorcycle for one last look at the town, promising that when he returns, things will change. The next morning, Buffy and Xander talk in the back garden; they manage to patch things up between them, and share a hug. Warren suddenly steps into the garden, waving a gun about. He shoots at Buffy, and she falls to the ground, wounded. Up in their room, Tara stands before the window, facing Willow; she notes that there is something on Willow’s shirt - and then falls to the ground, dead from a bullet wound through her heart. In horror, Willow collapses to the floor beside her dead girlfriend. Then she looks up - and her eyes blaze with a glowing red fury...

Sarah Michelle Gellar (Buffy Summers), Nicholas Brendon (Xander Harris), Alyson Hannigan (Willow Rosenberg), James Marsters (Spike), Emma Caulfield (Anya), Michelle Trachtenberg (Dawn), Amber Benson (Tara), Danny Strong (Jonathan), Adam Busch (Warren), Tom Lenk (Andrew), James C. Leary (Clem), Garrett Brawith (Frank), Tim Hager (Administrator), Stefan Marks (Guard #1), Christopher James (Guard #2), Kate Orsini (Girl at Bronze)
Directed by Michael Gershman

TX (US): 7th May 2002
TX (UK - Sky One): 9th May 2002

Notes:
*Featuring Buffy, Xander, Willow, Anya, Tara and Dawn