Season 3

Later that night, Buffy revisits the mansion where Angel, Spike, and Dru once stayed. Back at the scene where Buffy kissed Angel for the last time, she places the claddagh ring on the floor and bids her final farewell to Angel. After she leaves, the floor of the mansion begins to rumble. A bright light appears in the air, and the naked body of a man falls out from it and onto the floor. He lies there, afraid and shivering. It's Angel, who has returned from Hell... somehow.

In the Sunnydale woods some murder happend and everyone is afraid it could be Oz. Buffy is looking after that person and to her surprise, that someone is Angel. He immediately attacks Buffy, ´cause he is very confused. They fight for a while before Buffy finally knocks him out and brings him back to the old chains to lock Angel up. Buffy asks Giles if Angel could ever return from Hell, and if so, what would he be like. But she isn´t telling anyone that he really returns. Angel breaks his chains free of the mansion wall and escapes. In the meantime Buffy fights Pete , who changed into a monster form. Another fight ensues. Just as it appears that Buffy's about to lose the fight, Angel arrives and kills Pete. To Buffy's suprise, Angel manages to say her name before falling to his knees and embracing her.

Xander sees Angel in a Cemetery while he is volunteering for Giles. He follows him and recognized Buffy who immediately begins kissing with Angel... The next day Buffy enters the library with good news about the glove, only to find Giles and all of her friends sitting around the table with serious looks on their faces. After she sits down, Giles tells her that her secret about Angel is officially out in the open. Buffy tries to defend her stance, emphasizing the fact that Angel is no longer the uncontrollable murderer that he became after his fateful "moment of happiness". However, her friends refuse to accept Buffy's excuses, especially Xander. Fed up with his accusations, Buffy grabs Xander by the arm and questions his motives for wanting Angel dead. Giles stops the debate and sends everybody back to class before things get out of hand. Buffy follows her Watcher into his office and reassures him that Angel got the glove they were looking for. Giles, however, doesn't want to hear any more of Buffy's excuses. He reminds her of how Angel tortured him months ago. Giles then acknowledges the fact that Buffy was wrong to keep Angel's return a secret from her Watcher, and she has gravely disrespected him by doing so.

Joyce pays a visit to the mansion. Angel listens as Joyce tells him about the reality of his relationship with her daughter. Deep down, Angel knows that what Joyce wants is also what needs to be done. In this night Angel is having a nightmare where they marries and in the end Buffy burns... After Angel wakes up, he joins Buffy on a nightly patrol. While tracking down a vampire in the sewers, Angel admits to Buffy that he can't maintain their relationship, knowing what it will mean for her future. Buffy refuses to believe what he is saying, but Angel makes it clear that he doesn't want her to spend the rest of her life with him. As it slowly sinks in, Angel announces his decision to leave Sunnydale after the threat of the Mayor's Ascension has been eliminated. Later, Buffy tells Willow everything that happened. Although they both understand and agree with Angel's intentions, Buffy lets her tears flow instead of hiding her grief. In the end of the episode the prom starts and after fighting some hell hounds Buffy is going alone to it. A special awards ceremony was organised for her and after it, Angel arrives in a tux for one last dance with Buffy. In each other's arms, they enjoy what little time they have left.

Buffy and Angel talk about their relationship, and Buffy expresses her frustration. Suddenly an arrow pierces Angel through the back. We see that Faith has shot the arrow. When Buffy tries to help Angel up, he collapses; he's sweating, burning up. The arrow is poisoned, he tells her. In a panic, Buffy rushes Angel back to the library.

Meanwhile, Willow cares for Angel back at his hideout, but things don't look so good for Angel. When he wakes up from a troubled sleep, he mistakes Willow for Buffy. When the real Buffy shows up, she asks Willow and Oz to leave so that she can be alone with Angel. When they leave, she explains to Angel that the only way for him to survive is to drink her blood. Angel emphatically resists, but after Buffy physically induces his vampire side to come out, he sinks his fangs into her neck and drains her near to death. When Angel comes to and realizes what he has done, he rushes Buffy to the hospital and demands that the doctors treat her immediately. After they could beat the Mayor Wilkins, Buffy spots Angel standing at a distance. They exchange a long, painful look, but before Buffy can approach Angel to say good-bye, he walks away and disappears into the smoky haze. Later that night, Buffy, Xander, Willow, Oz and Cordelia take a moment to reflect on the fact that they have not only survived the battle, but they have survived high school.

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