New York City, 1977 - Nikki and Spike are fighting each other violently outside in the rain while Robin, Nikki's son, watches on behind a park bench. After fighting for a bit, Spike runs off, leaving Nikki and her son behind. Nikki tells her son that she loves him, but that the mission is what matters. They head off together, but Robin runs back to grab the stake Nikki left behind. Cut to the present, where Robin is using the same stake his mother left behind all those years ago while fighting alongside Buffy and Spike in a back alley of Sunnydale. Spike manages to save Robin from a vampire, which does nothing but anger him even more.
At school the next day, everything seems to be normal, when suddenly Giles bursts in. He's utterly peeved that the library is so full of computers and yet so few books. Getting over his initial shock, Giles finally meets Robin. Giles has just returned from a short trip and declares that war is pretty much inevitable. Giles' trip was regarding Spike and his chip and he's is worried that the First will try to trigger Spike again. What he brought back is supposed to help them retrieve what Spike's trigger is. Soon thereafter, Spike is chained up in the Summers' basement where Willow enchants a small stone that Giles brought back from his trip. It liquefies and then proceeds to crawl itself into Spike's brain through his eyes. He's suddenly transported back to England, when he was still human. He can see himself reading one of his poems to his mother who appears to be enchanted by his words. He promises to always look after her, even when he has a wife of his own. He sits beside her as she sings an old British folk song. When suddenly, back in the present, Spike vamps out and throws Buffy across the room. The rock then spits itself out of Spike's brain and he returns to normal although they refuse to unchain him. Upstairs, Willow receives a phone call from Fred, who's in Los Angeles and works for Angel. Back downstairs Spike retells what he saw in his mind, but refuses to say why it has anything to do with his mother. He looks down again and suddenly he seems himself with Drusilla, back in England, only this time he's already a vampire. He's excited about turning his mother into a vampire, although Drusilla is less than pleased with the idea. However, Spike takes it upon himself to sire his mother.
In the present, Willow tells Buffy that she needs to take off for a day or two, and she'll Buffy about it later. Buffy then releases Spike from his chains, despite Giles' wishes. Robin takes Giles aside, and they both agree that Spike is a problem to their safety. Robin explains that his mother was a Slayer that Spike had killed and that Buffy doesn't know what Spike did. Giles agrees to keep Buffy busy while Robin attempts to kill Spike. That night, Giles takes Buffy out for a patrol explaining that she needs to become the general and that speeches aren't the only thing she's supposed to be doing, she needs to start making some hard decisions. Meanwhile, Robin takes Spike into his training room, which just so happens to have crosses covering the walls. Robin then reveals that Nikki, the Slayer, was his mother and he wants to murder the monster that killed his mother. He plays the song "Early One Morning" that Spike's mom used to sing to him and Spike's trigger goes off.
Flashback - London, England - William's mother is a freshly risen vampire and she's looking extremely healthy. He suggest that they go out for a feed or anything she wants to do. But what she wants is to take her leave of William, she couldn't bear to spend eternity with him. She had prayed he'd find a wife so that he could finally leave her. The flashback intercuts with shots of Spike and Robin fighting in the present. Robin is beyond angry and wails on Spike continuously. Meanwhile, in the cemetery, Buffy is fighting a vampire while talking to Giles. He realizes that if Buffy had to kill Dawn to save the world now, she would do it. Giles then brings up Spike, mentioning that he's a threat to the world and yet she lets him live. Back to the flashback - William's mother accuses him of having an incestuous desire for her, wanting to be with her as a lover. When they finally start fighting, William gives in and stakes his mother. Back to the present, Spike finally starts to fight back against Robin and Robin rapidly loses the upperhand. Robin blames Spike for stealing his childhood but Spike quickly floors him, telling him that unlike Robin, he had a mother that loved him back. He realizes that when he turned her into a vampire it was merely the demon talking back to him. He just wanted to inform Robin of that before killing him. He grabs him and bites down on his neck.
Back in the cemetery, Buffy tells Giles that she needs Spike because she's in the fight of her life... when suddenly she realizes that Giles is stalling her. She races over to Robin's place and finds Spike outside. He tells her that he let him live because he killed his mother, but if Robin tries to anything on him again, he'll kill him for real. Spike walks off and Buffy tries to talk to Robin and says that she'll let Spike kill him next time because she doesn't have time for personal vendettas.
At home, later on, Giles tries to talk to Buffy, but she won't listen to him, saying that she think he's taught her everything she needs to know.
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Buffy: "Giles, what's wrong?"
Giles: "Have you seen the new library? It's nothing but computers. Not a book to be seen. I don't know where to begin... Buffy, who do we talk to?"
Robin: "Uh, that would... that would be me."
Buffy: "I dunno. I mean... not like it had a catchy hook or anything like, "I'm comin' up so you better get this party started". It was boring, old, and English. Just like yo..ul. Brynner. Yul Brynner. A British Yul Brynner."
Spike: "Oh, bollocks. All the rubbish people keep sticking in my head... it's a wonder there's room for my brain."
Giles: "I don't think it takes up that much space, do you?"
Drusilla: "You... you want to bring your mum with us?"
William: "Well, yeah. You'll like her."
Drusilla: "To eat, you mean?"
Giles: "It's time you looked at the big picture."
Buffy: "Hello!? All I do is look at the big picture. The other day, I gave an inspirational speech to the telephone repair man."
Giles: "It takes more than rousing speeches to lead, Buffy. If you're going to be a general, you need to be able to make difficult decisions regardless of cost."
Buffy: "Have you seen me with those girls? I mean, the way I've treated my friends and my family and... Andrew."
Spike: "I've killed a lot of people's mothers."
Robin: "Yeah. You'd remember mine. She was a slayer."
Spike: "So, that's it, isn't it? Brought me here to kill me?"
Robin: "No, I don't wanna kill you, Spike. I wanna kill the monster who took my mother away from me."
Buffy: "Oh, my God. You're stalling me. You're keeping me away..."
Giles: "It's time to stop playing the role of general, and start being one. This is the way wars are won."
Buffy: "Spike is the strongest warrior we have. We are gonna need him if we're gonna come out of this thing alive. You try anything again, he'll kill you. More importantly- I'll let him. I have a mission to win this war, to save the world. I don't have time for vendettas. The mission is what matters."
Giles: "What I told you is still true. You need to learn..."
Buffy: "No, I think you've taught me everything I need to know."
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