Synopsis:
A very powerful vampire called the Master addresses a throng of vampires. He tells them that a warrior, the Anointed, will arise and lead the Slayer to Hell. As Buffy and Giles sit in the library examining a ring they found on a vampire, Owen Thurman walks in. He is very handsome in a bookish way, and Buffy is immediately smitten. After Owen leaves with his Emily Dickenson poetry, Giles tells Buffy that the ring belonged to an ancient vampire who prophesied that a great warrior called the Anointed would come to help the Master on this very night. Buffy agrees to meet Owen, Cordelia, and some friends at the Bronze nightclub that evening, leaving Giles to watch out for the prophecy on his own.Giles settles in for the evening at the cemetery, while in another part of town, vampires feast on the passengers of an airport shuttle van who were killed in an accident. The five passengers include a man in a militia outfit and an eight-year-old boy. Tragedy also strikes at the Bronze, where Buffy walks in to find Owen slow-dancing with Cordelia.At school the next day, Owen tells Buffy that he danced with Cordelia only because she was all alone and he felt sorry for her. They make a date for that evening. As Buffy is getting ready for her date, Giles comes over with more information about the prophecy. He tells her it says that from the ashes of the five shall rise the One, the Anointed. Giles then pulls out a newspaper article about the five van passengers that died the night before. Agreeing with Buffy that it is a slim lead, Giles agrees to stand watch at the funeral home with Willow and Xander while Buffy goes on her date.Buffy and Owen begin their date at the Bronze. Owen says he likes Emily Dickenson because of her morbid fascination with death. He laments his own uneventful life. Suddenly Willow and Xander break in. They tell Buffy she should go to the funeral home right away, not wanting say to why in front of Owen. Buffy departs with her friends, telling Owen that she will be back shortly.Owen follows them and catches up at the funeral home. He finds the experience exciting. Buffy finds Giles, who is hiding from vampires. She returns to the others and hides them in the funeral home's prep room. On one of the tables is the militia man, who has transformed into one of the undead. Buffy appears and she and Owen fight the vampire together. Owen is knocked unconscious while Buffy proceeds to shove the militia man into the funeral home's oven and incinerate him. Giles and Buffy believe they have killed the Anointed.When Owen awakens moments later, Buffy tells him the militia man ran off. The group then leaves the funeral home before the other vampires return. The next day at school, Buffy and Owen talk about their date. Owen says he had a great time. He is drawn to the danger. Buffy realizes that this is not a healthy relationship and breaks things off with him. Later the Master welcomes the Anointed to his lair. It is the eight-year-old boy.