Buffy is frustrated by the constant demands of her little sister -- who no one realizes didn't exist until recently. Harmony returns to town with minions of her own, and Gilles decides to take over the local magic shop.
After Buffy learns that Riley is experiencing a rapid heart rate, she calls upon the Initiative to try and help him -- putting him on the run. Spike makes a move to finally have the chip removed from his brain.
Buffy's mother undergoes surgery after a shadow turns up on her CAT scan. Meanwhile, the new bad girl in town hatches a plan against Buffy, transmogrifying a giant cobra to locate the Key.
After Giles leaves Anya in charge of the magic shop during a trip to England, she and Willow butt heads -- accidentally releasing a troll that wreaks havoc on the town.
The Watcher Council arrives in Sunnydale with vital information about Glory, but refuses to hand it over unless Buffy submits to a full review process.
Buffy investigates a violent murder on board a train at Sunnydale station. Meanwhile, Spike continues to wrestle with his unrequited feelings for the Slayer -- which is complicated by the arrival of an old flame.
Feeling burned out on her Slayer work, Buffy heads to the desert for a ritual of renewal. Meanwhile Glory's minions observe Buffy's friends, and Spike has fun with his new Buffybot.
Buffy drops out of school to become Dawn's full-time guardian, and Willow and Tara have their first fight. Glory goes after one of Buffy's friends, believing she is the Key.
Buffy convinces her friends to leave town and go into hiding from Glory. But when the Knights of Byzantium arrive in town, they corner the group and try to kill Dawn.
Glory enacts her plan to use Dawn to open the doorway between dimensions and return home, leaving all of Earth threatened by unimaginable terrors. Buffy and her friends must use everything they know to delay her until it is too late for the ritual.
