Buffy: [purses her lips, thinking of how to answer, how to convey all that she is feeling] You don’t have to make anyone want to be with you. So many people love you and want to be with you, to help you. [She lets out a sharp breath, the tears have finally stopped and her mind is clear] I know what I said before. That I couldn’t be around you. But I was wrong. [She swallows down the lumps in her throat, admitting it makes her feel better. Lighter maybe? She was wrong.] I was weak, Willow. I forgot my truth. The only truth worth listening to. [Buffy runs her free hand through her hair pausing to wet her lips, and continues.] You have to keep fighting, Willow. Keep trying. It’s the best any of us can do.
Willow: [wants to believe her so bad, wants it more than she wants air, and she’s hyperventilating. She tries to gather herself and whispers.] Buffy…Buffy there’s something else. About me. How I…how I am. What, I mean. I-I mean what I am. You can’t…you can’t say that stuff about me when…Buffy, it’s still inside me. All that stuff I put in when I tried to hurt everyone? And I have to use it to keep from going all scary. I /have/ to. And it’s in so deep. I can’t get rid of it. I used to think, I thought maybe, it could be okay anyways? Since that wasn’t all I had inside me? B-but this…what if it doesn’t matter what kind of magicks I’m using? If being inside me just makes it the same anyways. [She sniffles heavily] I’m scared. And I think fighting on your side for me might just be…doing nothing.
Buffy: [is stunned as she takes it all in. But the answer seems to come easily for her.] Look Willow, its not who you are. It’s what you do. And if your magic is all wonky now, it doesn’t matter. [she wants nothing more than to be there with Willow now, so she can see just how much she means what she’s saying] You are so much more than the magic inside of you. Willow… You’re the smartest person I know. And you’re strong. You’re so much better at figuring out life than I am Willow. I believe in you. [She’s nodding her head even though Willow can’t see it]

Buffy: [can hear Willow crying. None of this is right.] It was my idea, we did it together. [She’s not going to let Willow blame herself for this. It was a team effort. They both knew what they were doing.] You’re not going to say that. You are good. I know it, I feel it. What we did was right. [Through her tears she realizes something.] I don’t care what someone in another dimension or plane or whatever says. I’m here and you are good. This is where life is happening and we saved the world that day. [She has to stop and breathe because she’s talking so fast. She lets out a short sob, unable to stop crying.] You are good Willow. And even if you aren’t, I don’t care.
Willow: [shakes her head violently.] W-what do I do? Buffy, what do I do? I can’t…how can I live with myself o-or make anyone live with me, or anything? I-I’m…Buffy, I’m so.. [She swallows.] H-help me.
Buffy: [purses her lips, thinking of how to answer, how to convey all that she is feeling] You don’t have to make anyone want to be with you. So many people love you and want to be with you, to help you. [She lets out a sharp breath, the tears have finally stopped and her mind is clear] I know what I said before. That I couldn’t be around you. But I was wrong. [She swallows down the lumps in her throat, admitting it makes her feel better. Lighter maybe? She was wrong.] I was weak, Willow. I forgot my truth. The only truth worth listening to. [Buffy runs her free hand through her hair pausing to wet her lips, and continues.] You have to keep fighting, Willow. Keep trying. It’s the best any of us can do.

Willow: [scrunches her eyes up to keep from crying, but it’s not doing any good.] The spell with the scythe. When I activated the Slayers. [She chokes on the last word. It hurts to know that this was bad and wrong, because she still doesn’t understand how or why that could be possible. But then that just proves how warped she is, if she can’t even see it, right?] I-It hurt the universe. And it’s all my fault.
Buffy: [feels as though she’s just been thrown into a lake in the middle of winter. She takes in a sharp breath] The scythe?[It hits her all at once. This is her fault. She asked Willow to do this. It was her idea.] But that was…[she can hardly get the words out without letting out a whimper or cry] All me. It was all me, Willow. [she covers the reciever with her hand and allows herself to cry, keeping as silent as possible. She took it away Willow’s “goodness”. She can’t help but feel as though she might be sick for the second time that evening.]
Willow: [blanches] N-no. No, Buffy. No, don’t say that. You’re…you’re Buffy. This isn’t…no, I’m the bad thing. I’m the stuff you kill so people will be safe, this isn’t like that. I did it, I’m the only one whose fault is. [She begins to cry again.] I keep hurting everything I care about. Buffy, this isn’t your fault. It’s me.
Buffy: [can hear Willow crying. None of this is right.] It was my idea, we did it together. [She’s not going to let Willow blame herself for this. It was a team effort. They both knew what they were doing.] You’re not going to say that. You are good. I know it, I feel it. What we did was right. [Through her tears she realizes something.] I don’t care what someone in another dimension or plane or whatever says. I’m here and you are good. This is where life is happening and we saved the world that day. [She has to stop and breathe because she’s talking so fast. She lets out a short sob, unable to stop crying.] You are good Willow. And even if you aren’t, I don’t care.

Buffy: [at Willow’s cracking voice she can feel the tears forming in her eyes. She takes a deep breath. Be strong, Buffy. Someone’s got to] Not worthy? You’re one of the greatest people I’ve ever met Willow. [She swallows so that she can continue speaking. Willow not worthy? It didn’t make sense.] How? What did you do that was so terrible? [What could she have done? A few tears rolled down her cheeks, she needed to know but she was scared. Be strong, Buffy.] Please don’t be afraid to tell me. Whatever it is… [Her breath catches in her throat before the next words and they come out in a cracky voice] I’ll still love you, you know I will.
Willow: [scrunches her eyes up to keep from crying, but it’s not doing any good.] The spell with the scythe. When I activated the Slayers. [She chokes on the last word. It hurts to know that this was bad and wrong, because she still doesn’t understand how or why that could be possible. But then that just proves how warped she is, if she can’t even see it, right?] I-It hurt the universe. And it’s all my fault.
Buffy: [feels as though she’s just been thrown into a lake in the middle of winter. She takes in a sharp breath] The scythe?[It hits her all at once. This is her fault. She asked Willow to do this. It was her idea.] But that was…[she can hardly get the words out without letting out a whimper or cry] All me. It was all me, Willow. [she covers the reciever with her hand and allows herself to cry, keeping as silent as possible. She took it away Willow’s “goodness”. She can’t help but feel as though she might be sick for the second time that evening.]

Willow: [whimpers on the other end, even though telling Buffy everything that happened is the only thing she wants to be doing right now.] It was astral projection. I went to a different plain, but you have to get through the gate, you have to be worthy, and I wasn’t. I wasn’t worthy. They told me I was bad, like Giles did, [her voice cracks and she struggles to bring herself back into making-any-kind-of-sense mode] and that I couldn’t make up for this other thing, this great big other thing that, that I didn’t even /know/ was bad until they told me. I didn’t know. I would’ve been sorry if I’d known, I would’ve. I didn’t know. A-and they kicked me out, and I had to find my way back by myself.
Buffy: [at Willow’s cracking voice she can feel the tears forming in her eyes. She takes a deep breath. Be strong, Buffy. Someone’s got to] Not worthy? You’re one of the greatest people I’ve ever met Willow. [She swallows so that she can continue speaking. Willow not worthy? It didn’t make sense.] How? What did you do that was so terrible? [What could she have done? A few tears rolled down her cheeks, she needed to know but she was scared. Be strong, Buffy.] Please don’t be afraid to tell me. Whatever it is… [Her breath catches in her throat before the next words and they come out in a cracky voice] I’ll still love you, you know I will.

Willow: [sniffs and coughs, trying to swallow down her sobs before Buffy can get to the phone and pick up. Her eyes widen when she hears the click. Did she…did she really pick up the phone? Did she mean it?] B-buffy..?
Buffy: [jumps at the sound of the phone ringing but picks it up before it gets to the second ring. She’s still feeling sick and she’s angry. Somehow, though she’s happy when she hears Willow’s voice. She really can’t stop caring can she? She clears her throat.] Yes, Willow? Please tell me what happened,[it occurs to her that she was raging mad and downright bitchy just a few moments ago. She softens her voice a little] I don’t care about the rest right now. I just want to make it okay.