The stark realization that hunters — slayers; whatever — in Buffy's world are more powerful than humans would've put Derek on edge again, in this state, except that he's more focused on worrying about the fact that there's someone following them, Buffy's injured, and Derek's no good without his wolf.

Relief washes over him when Buffy agrees that they should go back, so he moves right back into the elevator. This time, he doesn't put her down. Once they reach their floor, there's no fumbling to get her back up on his back, so he just heads down the hall and gets them to their room. After setting Buffy down on her bed, he moves to his and wishes her good night before getting comfortable and letting himself drift off. They can try again tomorrow. Tonight is a bust.