*****

The police room was silent, save for the occasional keys clicking, phones ringing and hushed voices. Detective Kate Lockley was focussed on her own computer screen, researching her new obsession. Ever since the death of her father, she had vowed to rid the city of every evil thing she could. She had given herself no rest, spending almost all her free time learning or trying to track down where evil things lurked. She spent countless hours scanning unsolved cases, unusual cases and any other case that could indicate demon activity.

Kate shut down the file she was reading and closed her eyes. Glancing at her watch she noted that time had flown by again. Turning off the computer, she slowly made her way down to her car. She climbed in and leaned her head back, sighing loudly. How much longer could she keep this up, she didn't know. She'd heard the whispers in the precinct, the rumours she was going crazy, that she should take time off, that she couldn't handle the job anymore. Yet she was still maintaining her good service record and there were no complaints from the upper levels on her performance. But soon something had to give, it wasn't possible to keep going like she was. The last few nights she had gone to bed well after three in the morning and tonight would be no different.

She put the keys in the ignition, catching something out the corner of her eye. A yellow envelope sat on the passenger seat. It simply read 'Kate.' She opened it and found papers inside relating a Californian town called Sunnydale. Newspaper articles of strange phenomena, a school being blown up without investigation and several murder cases that had the police baffled. There was a write-up of the town, highlighting the fact that it had 12 cemeteries and 43 churches. Kate scanned the information, sure that whoever had given it to her, was giving her a lead. Was it Angel or one of his employees or did someone else know about what really happened to her father? Putting the papers back she made her way home to bed. If this information was as good as she thought it was, she needed to be rested.

*******************

Kate checked the map again, the car idling on the side of the road. The sun was set high in the sky on this late winter Saturday. Only a few more miles to go until she hit the town of Sunnydale. The day before she had tried to trace whomever had given her the packet, but to no avail. She had twice picked up the phone to ring Angel Investigations but backed out at the last minute. If it was one of them, they didn't want it known and Kate was not ready to talk to any of them. She shook her head, trying to lose the recent memories and pulled back into the traffic. Her plan was to go in as a civilian, from what she read of the police in this town, theirs was one of the lowest success rates in the state. Obviously, whatever was going on here was evading the law. If they were demons, as Kate suspected, then that would explain things. Her question was, why this town? She had come to find out.

Her first goal was to visit the cemeteries in town. Often they told the story on the town's life, more than people could. Not a pleasant task considering she had been to a cemetery for an entirely different reason earlier in the week. While walking around the grounds, Kate found many people dying very close to each other, sometimes within the same couple of days. Not being an expert in this kind of thing, Kate used her own police experience, piecing together times where there was a lot of deaths and noted them for later research to see if was a correlation between them and some newsworthy event in the town. Next, she started on the churches to find out why there were so many for a town of Sunnydale's size. She didn't find much of an answer and as she visited the thirteenth church, the sun was beginning to set.

Deciding to stay and research more the next day, Kate went and found accommodation, had a quick meal then decided to see how the nightlife was in the town. Having been in LA all her life, she thought this town should be tame compared to the streets back home. She came across a club called the Bronze and decided to observe the place for a while. Nothing much seemed to be happening. The place was filled with both high schoolers and college kids enjoying themselves with a dance or a game of pool. Oh to be that age again, she thought miserably. She noticed a blonde woman having a drinking contest with a group of boys literally hanging around her. The blonde apparently decided that they were no good and moved away bumping into another blonde and a redhead, who she seemed to know. Kate scanned the room but there didn't even seem to be an illicit activity in sight. She stayed another hour or so, watching the crowd below her. They seemed blissfully unaware that there may anything lurking outside waiting for them.

She went back to the motel to study the information she had collected during the day. That's where she found herself the next morning, sleeping on papers still laid out on the bed. She clicked on the TV while she ate a quick breakfast. The program was interrupted for a special news bulletin. 'A situation in a Sunnydale church this morning has police on the scene. There are reports that three bandits broke in and barricaded themselves in the church with at least 20 parishioners. One of the few who escaped described the three men as frighteningly disfigured, almost inhuman. So far, one escapee has since died of severe neck wounds.' Kate didn't hear the rest of the news, she was on her way out to the car with her bags. After finding the frequency being used by the police on the scanner, she started the car and back out of the motel.

Finding out the name of the church and it on the map, she raced through the town. When she arrived she could see police cars blocking the road. She climbed out and raced over, but the police weren't letting anyone near the church. Kate stepped back in two minds about her next course of action. She could get involved and be questioned about why she decided to take on a case in another county or� She was about to talk to the lead officer when a young man started declaring that it was a Military operation. What the fuck! She watched as he talked to the officer. After hearing little snips of the conversation she understood that the man seemed to know the police weren't equipped to deal with what was inside. Finally, Kate had a breakthrough in the town. But why were the military involved? Or more importantly how were they involved?

A commotion off to the right drew her attention. A man was begging an officer to let him and a couple of teenagers into the church. Either he was made or he knew more than the police did. Kate moved closer managing to see a dark haired girl sneak off around the back of the church while her buddies held up the policeman. She went to follow but was stopped and told to stay back. Kate desperately wanted to get in on the action, but it was a little too late to announce she was a cop now, there would be more questions than she needed right now.

A couple of minutes later parishioners started pouring out of the church in mass panic. There were shouts of someone in there fighting the men, of dead bodies and weird looking things. In the confusion, Kate rushed to the church in time to see the same dark haired girl run out also looking frightened. As she turned at a booming noise behind her she crashed onto the ground.

"Sorry," a strangled voice said as Kate regained her balance. Kate looked up into dark eyes.

"You okay?" She asked, brushing herself down. The girl looked back at the church, terror on her face. "Are you hurt?" The girl was still looking back, but when she saw nothing coming out after her she turned back to the woman.

"No, but there's people in there that are." She pointed back towards the church

"There are paramedics and police around near the entrance, they'll be taking care of them." The girl nodded, satisfied with the answer. "You sure you are alright? I can take you to a hospital."

"No, I'm five�I'm fine." The girl shook her head as she hurried the answer. She turned to go, but felt an arm on hers. She looked down at the hand gripping her, then to the concerned look on the blonde's face.

"Why did you go in there?"

"Huh?" Her eyes darted around.

"Why did you sneak in the church? I saw you." The girl gave her a guilty look.

"What, are you a cop or something?" She looked Kate up and down.

"I'm Kate," she said holding out her hand. The girl hesitated for long seconds before taking it and giving it a strong shake.

"Faith." She took another look back at the church. "And I'm going."

"Vampires."

Faith whipped her head around. "What?" But the look on her face gave the game away.

"Vampires, they were in there attacking people."

"Listen lady--"

"You willingly go into a church full of vampires and come out running. You even had your buddies cover for you while you snuck past the police. That's not exactly smart behaviour�unless you knew something no one else did. Judging from the fear on your face, I doubt you were their accomplice. So what gives?"

"You must be a cop." Faith gave a wry smile.

"I am, but I'm not with them," she said as she pointed in the way of the other police. "I'm from LA up here for the weekend."

"Funny place to spend a weekend away." Faith moved away from where the crowd was thinning out and Kate moved with her.

"Why do you say that?"

"Vampires are right at home here. And seeing you know about them�" Faith paused thinking. "Are you a demon hunter? Cause you sure don't look like one."

"I'm a cop, I just told you." Kate ignored the slight insult.

"Who just happens to know about vamps. Not buying it." Faith shook her head, looking around again. Spotting Willow in the distance, she turned around.

"Could ask you how you know, too. You probably aren't even out of high school yet."

Faith laughed. "You have no idea who I am. Now if you excuse me I have somewhere to be."

"I'll give you a lift," Kate offered, not wanting to let the girl go before she found some answers. Whoever had given her the envelope knew what they were doing.

"No thanks." Faith had already started walking in the opposite direction to the crowd and the rest of the Scoobies who probably had followed Buffy to the scene. Kate followed her, walking at a fast pace to keep up with the dark haired girl. When they were well away from the church Faith turned. "Look lady, I have an aversion to cops, especially ones that follow me around. So I suggest you get your ass back to LA."

Kate sighed wearily. "Whatever you did in there, I'm sure a lot of people are grateful." She took the gamble that the girl had been helping, judging by her earlier concern over the victims.

"It was the right thing to do." Faith crossed her arms staring at the cop. A car came down the road and Faith sprinted to hide behind a tree, leaving Kate shaking her head as she watched the van roll away into the distance.

"What the hell was that about!" Kate demanded as Faith came from her hiding place. "I somehow doubt that vampires are driving in the middle of the day." Faith took a one look at Kate's glare and started running. Kate followed, but soon found she didn't have the pace to keep up.

She back-pedalled to her car and sped off in the direction Faith had disappeared. She couldn't see her as she came to an intersection. She took a right. Navigating the roads for about five minutes, she was ready to turn back before spotting Faith heading towards the bus station. Kate slowed to a crawl and pulled up in front of the girl.

"Hey." Faith turned and gave her a murderous look. "Wanna jump in?"

"To walk fifty yards?" Faith scoffed.

"Where you headed?"

"Out of this town." Faith came around to the driver's side.

"Without any possessions?"

"Got a problem with that?" Faith leaned against the car, looking down at Kate.

"I gotta say you are an enigma." Kate smiled, not intimidated by Faith's actions.

"Well, gee, I gave you a thrill for the day. Knowing any more about me might ruin the impression."

"First impressions aren't always correct."

"So you're not a cop who likes to stick their nose into other people's business?" Faith leaned down a little more.

"And you are not running away from whoever you fear in this town?" Faith stood up straight and backed off slightly.

"Been here too long." She fingered a sticker on the windscreen.

"How does LA sound?"

"Like it starts with L and ends in A."

Kate had to laugh. "I think you know what I mean. I'm heading back there myself. I could give you a lift down there, save you some money." Faith stood there, unsure. This was a cop, granted she knew nothing about Faith, but they were out looking for her and she wasn't about to get caught. No fucking way. But if the cop didn't know, then it was probably the best way to get out of town considering exit points were likely to be risky.

"How's the weather down there?" Faith leaned down again.

"Sunny." Kate smiled.

"Then let's go." Faith walked around to the passenger side. Before she sat down she moved a yellow envelope onto the back seat. She saw the police scanner on the dash and was relieved it wasn't on.

"So you really are a cop?" Kate pulled out her ID. "Detective Kate Lockley, LAPD. Impressive. Picture doesn't flatter you though. Much better looking sitting here next to me."

"What's your qualification? Demon Hunter?" Kate took her ID back and glanced in the rear-view mirror while she turned back on the road.

"Vampire Slayer," Faith's voice turned melancholy. Kate glanced across wondering if Faith was pulling her leg.

"You slay vampires?" Faith shifted in the seat. "Is that what you did today?"

"Whatever."

"I think it's a bit more than that." Kate wondered if Faith was a reluctant hero or if it was something else. "You've just saved those people's lives."

"It was the right thing to do." Faith shrugged her shoulders, half wishing she could change her mind about taking a ride with this woman.

"You said that already. How does one get to be a Vampire Slayer?"

"I got called," Faith said nonchalantly.

"Called? By whom?"

"The powers."

"Powers?"

"No idea about them. I guess with all the demons in the world there has to be something to try to balance them out." Faith looked out the window as they passed the 'You are now leaving Sunnydale' sign. She clenched her fist in a small victory.

"And they called on you to slay demons?" Kate asked.

"Pretty much."

"You're just a girl!" Kate exclaimed.

"Another time I might prove you wrong," Faith said and leaned her head back with her eyes closed. She didn't get much sleep in Riley's bed. Don't go there, she thought to herself. Move on. Faith fought tears, but they pooled at the bottom of her eyes. She turned fully towards the window as they spilled.

"You telling me you have the strength and skills to fight vampires?" Kate turned her head, but there was no answer. Torn between comforting the girl and knowing that she didn't want it, Kate kept silent for a time.

That gave Faith a chance to at least compose herself. She was tough, she told herself, so it didn't work out in B's body. She didn't like it anyway, all those people wanting her to hug and be the good little girl. She didn't know how B stood it. She even had a boyfriend that said 'I love you' after sex. She shivered at the memory of the beefstick trying to comfort her. He probably said the words so he could have another go with her. It made her sick now that she thought about it.

"You know," Kate broke the uneasy silence, "I don't know what's going on here, but I'll help you if you want. You need money?"

Faith turned. "What do you want?"

"Want?"

"Nothing's for free," Faith said as she shook her head, "not even a cop's help."

"Don't think of me as a cop, then."

Faith snickered, "You got to be kidding me. You scream cop all over."

"I just want to help. Make sure you're not going to sleep on the streets tonight. In return, I have the satisfaction knowing I've helped someone. That's all I want.

"I don't need your charity."

"I'm not asking you to take it." Kate drummed her fingers on the steering wheel. This girl was in some trouble, she could feel it. The question was; who was she running from and what did it have to do with vampires? "You seem like you can take care of yourself."

"You got that right, been doing it a long time," Faith's voice turned angry.

"It gets hard, doesn't it?" Kate said, her own feelings being stirred up by the girl's tone.

"Look I'm not here to have a little bonding session with you." Faith turned her attention back to watching the scenery go by. Kate nodded to herself, trying to think of a way to help this young woman. Her own grief still on her mind, she wasn't in the mood to deal with other people's problems. Still, if this girl was really a Vampire Slayer, Kate wanted to know everything about her and Sunnydale.

"I went to Sunnydale for some answers," Kate started. She waited to see if Faith was interested.

"To what?" Faith never looked around.

"To what that yellow envelope contains." Faith remembered the envelope and reached back for it. Opening it she took the papers out and slowly went through them until she came to an article about Sunnydale High being blown up. B, she thought, you bitch. Her handed went unconsciously to her gut.

"You know something about that?" Kate saw Faith study one particular article. Faith was high school age and might have even gone to the school in question.

"Fucking bitch killed him," Faith mumbled.

"Killed whom?" Faith didn't answer, she was too busy tracing the photo that accompanied the article. "Who killed whom?"

"Never mind." Faith moved onto the next articles, briefly scanning the contents. When she was finished she put them back in the envelope and threw it onto the backseat.

"So what do you make of them?" Faith's behaviour only strengthened Kate's concern about the girl's welfare. Had she witnessed a murder?

"You got quite a collection there."

"Not mine." Kate saw an encouraging look from Faith so she continued, "An anonymous source gave them to me."

"Because?"

"I'm not sure." Kate shrugged.

"There's gotta be more to it than that."

"I have an idea who it might be, but I'm not sure why they did it, other--" Kate shook her head, trying to keep it together. Breaking down in front of this girl was not on.

"Other than what?" Faith sensed Kate was up here on more than a fact-finding mission. The detective's body had tensed up.

"To show me that," Kate laughed hollowly, "there's more to the demon world than I ever imagined. The question is why does a smallish town in California seem to be a haven for these creatures."

"The Hellmouth."

"The what?" At least the girl was answering her.

"The Hellmouth. There is a portal between here and hell. Demons are drawn to it." Faith explained seeing Kate was actually interested in this stuff. She always found it boring, Giles or Wesley alway going on about this or that when all she was thinking was 'bring it on.'

"A portal?"

"Under that school. It's closed. It's not like demons can jump back and forth. But I've seen the thing open and believe me it's not a pretty sight." Faith looked over and Kate nodded encouragingly. "I saw that you've made notes on the cemeteries and churches. Sunnydale is not your normal American town. It has more demon activity than anywhere, that's why the Slayer was sent there. You know how there are so-called UFO hotspots?" Kate nodded. "You can call Sunnydale a demon hotspot."

"The town seems relatively quiet." Kate thought back to the club she was in.

"That's the weirdest thing, mostly everyone is unaware of what's going on. The police don't have a clue. If anything goes down it's like the whole town goes into denial or relates it to something like gang activity."

"So you were sent to Sunnydale to make sure the Hellmouth is kept closed. What changed?" At the mention of the present Faith turned her head back after becoming animated when she was explaining about Sunnydale. "Did a demon kill someone you cared for?" Faith shook her head, the irony of that statement hitting her hard. Kate was also affected by her own words. She took a time to get her feelings back under control. Blowing out a breath, she reminded herself that she needed to get back home in one piece and this wasn't helping.

*******************

They rode in silence, both tired from their emotional roller coasters. Faith dozed for a while, trying to erase the memories of the last few days. She couldn't stand to think that she was back in her own body and still hurting from the beating she'd given it. She scrunched her face up in disgust. The boss thought he was doing her such a favour, but while the cops couldn't identify her, there had been too much pressure to not give herself away. She couldn't even ditch the town without screwing it up. She sighed softly. She could be out of the state by now, the ticket was sitting there in her pocket. Kate had told her that she had saved lives. She hadn't done that in a long time and maybe it felt good. Like when she saved that girl outside the Bronze. Sure the girl was hysterical, but at least she appreciated it. Was what the boss said true? Were her days were numbered?

She drew her lower lip in, holding back the painful expression. The cops were after her, if B ever found out where she was she would come after her and now B had escaped the Watchers those bastards might also be in the hunt. It was either about going out a big bang, like the boss said, or laying low. LA seemed a perfect town for that, it must be easy to get lost in that city, after all there were thousands doing that every day. Laying low, she could do that. Maybe she might take the cop's offer of money; it was a better option than risking a robbery or four.

Faith felt the car pull up and the engine turn off. She opened her eyes and found herself in a parking lot of a fast food joint. Kate had unbuckled and was looking at her.

"I'm hungry, you?" Faith nodded in response. Might as well get a free feed, who knew how long it would be before the next one. They ordered and sat down in silence, each hoping the other didn't see how unsettled they were.

Faith tucked eagerly into her food, not having eaten since -- well she didn't know when her body last ate. Which was a scary feeling. What the hell had B done in her body? She tentatively felt her arm where she had a little pain. Something had happened there, maybe where she had the needle to keep her quiet. She excused herself to go to the bathroom and had a closer look. Yep, the area was a little infected. No big, it should heal okay. Faith looked at herself in the mirror. Stared hard. She brought her arm up and punched the reflection. She was still there. She punched the mirror again, cracking it slightly. She still looked like the murdering bitch that she was. Again she did it, creating a big crack in the mirror. Again. Again. Again. The mirror shattered. People came rushing through the door, but she didn't notice them. At least she couldn't see herself now.

"Faith, what are you doing?" Kate pushed through the crowd gathered in the doorway. The dark haired girl turned staring blankly at her. "Faith?" Still the girl looked blankly. A worker came in and surveyed the damage.

"What the hell happened in here?" the worker demanded. Faith turned to him, unseeing. "You're gonna pay for that. Goddamn it." The worker called to someone for a broom.

"Don't have any money." Faith shrugged her shoulders, slowly waking to what she had done.

"What do you mean you don't have any money? I'll sue if I have to." He pointed a finger at Faith, then let a girl come in with a broom.

"Wait a minute," Kate stepped in. "She's with me."

"Well I'm not letting her go until she gives me a contact number or pays for it."

"How much?"

"I don't know. I've never had to replace a mirror before." The guy stared at Faith.

"Look, I'm a cop. I'll give you my details and when you find out how much it's gonna cost, give me a call and I'll send you the money."

The worker looked appeased. "You a cop?" Kate whipped out her ID and the worker nodded. They moved out of the bathroom - Kate literally pulling Faith along - and into a back room where Kate exchanged details.

When they were both settled in the car, Kate turned to Faith, opening her mouth but the words not coming. Faith had not said a word since declaring she had no money. She had gone along with Kate, cradling her hand and not making eye contact with anyone. The worker was happy to deal with Kate and leave the crazy kid alone.

"You hurt?" Kate asked blowing out a heavy breath. Faith looked trapped and just about ready to run. "Let me see," Kate asked trying to take a look at Faith's hand, but was stopped with the good one.

"Why'd you go and pay for the thing," Faith painfully said, her voice thick.

"I don't think you need to worry about that right now. When you have the money you can pay me back."

"What's stopping me from getting outta here and leaving you to foot the bill?"

"I don't know, Faith. What is stopping you?"

"Don't...know," Faith said barely above a whisper. She looked down to her hand, which had reddened considerably since she last looked. She flexed the fist, wincing in pain as it closed again.

"Okay." Kate nodded taking in Faith's action. "Do you need treatment?"

"Shouldn't need." Faith flexed her hand again.

"I'm not about to leave you while you're like this. You need help. I'm just not sure what kind yet." Kate could see the resistance in Faith's face. "Faith, there is no way I'm going to let you go out onto the streets like this. You've already hurt yourself once and I don't want it to happen again." She watched Faith take that in. "So, tell me, what is the next step?" Faith looked at her then turned away watching the cars drive in and out. "I can't do anything, Faith, if you don't tell me. I honesty don't know what to do other than take you down to a hospital," she said as Faith sneered. "But you don't want that. So how about helping me out here."

"Don't know." Faith grimaced.

"Have you got someone to stay with? Friends, family?"

"Nope."

"No one?" Faith shook her head. "At all?" Tears started to fall silently down Faith's cheeks. She turned her head away, knowing it was too late. Kate decided not to embarrass her. "Okay. You don't have anywhere to stay, so that's where we start."

"I'll check into a motel," Faith said with difficulty.

"And do what? I'm very concerned here, Faith." Kate closed her eyes. She was stuck. Faith wasn't about to stay put in any welfare place she put her, the hospital was out, Faith had no one and there was no way she was going to leave her alone. That left Kate finding someone who she herself trusted to take Faith in or to offer her own place. She thought of Angel. He probably did this kind of thing or at least knew of someone. No, seeing Angel was the last thing she needed right now. "How about you stay at my place, while we decide?"

"Yeah, sure, whatever," Faith said. She would bolt the first time the detective left her alone.

"Good." Kate pulled out of the parking lot and drove the twenty minutes back to her middle-class apartment block. She grabbed her bag, the envelope and tugged at Faith to get out. For a moment it seemed Faith wasn't going to move, but after another tug she climbed out and slammed the door.

*****
Part 2:

Faith took in the apartment through mostly unseeing eyes. She headed straight for the sofa and flopped down. Kate put her bag in the bedroom and the envelope with her other pieces of research. She came back to see Faith resting on the sofa.

"Make yourself at home. Except for destroying any mirrors that happen to be around." Kate wasn't even sure if Faith was listening.

"Do you mind if I sleep?"

"No, of course not. Take my bed." Kate pointed the way to her room.

"You sure?" Faith stood up slowly.

"Yes, you look like you need a good sleep." Kate smiled gently. Maybe Faith would be ready to talk afterwards. She watched as the girl made her way into the room and closed the door. She took a deep breath.

Faith couldn't be bothered even having a look in the detective's room. She collapsed on the bed and looked up at the ceiling. Minutes later she fell into a restless sleep. She woke up sometime in the early evening judging by the lack of light. She listened, but heard nothing from the apartment. Maybe Kate had left, but that would be asking for a miracle. Looking around the room, she decided that Kate was a practical person. There were little touches of her personality in the room, but mostly it was simple and neat.

She stretched, feeling at least rested. She knew it would take a while to get back to full strength from her coma, in fact she was surprised she had won the fight at Joyce's. Maybe being with lover boy was taking more out of B these days. She checked her fist. Thank goodness for slayer healing. The last thing she wanted was a cop trying to nurse her. Although in an entirely different context, it sounded better than good.

Quietly she opened the door. Lights had been turned on, but there was no sign of the detective.

"Have a good sleep?" Damn it, Faith noticed a movement in the kitchen.

"Yeah." Faith took a chair at the kitchen table watching Kate fry something.

Tending to the stir-fry Kate couldn't see Faith's face. "While you were asleep I made enquires at the local welfare centres." Faith made a grunt, causing Kate to peek over her shoulder. "Just in case you change your mind. The list is by the phone." Kate turned back, concentrating on the cooking.

"Yeah, thanks." Faith said weakly.

"I hope you're hungry, it's not often I cook for two and I think I've made too much."

"Starved," Faith said a little more eager. She hadn't finished her lunch in the confusion.

"It will be about ten minutes."

"Okay." Faith stood and went to the bathroom to wash up. She avoided looking at herself. What she would do for a bit of make-up and a brush. She had nothing; even the few things she stole in Sunnydale were left behind. She sat down again with dinner on the table and waited for Kate to do the same. "Smells good." She said and dug into it. There was silence again, but this time there was a little less tension.

*******************

Faith curled into one end of the sofa, listening to Kate put away the last of the dishes. The cop was turning out to be an okay person. Once she found out what Faith was though, it would be all over. She was counting on the fact the detective would have to go to work the next day and then she could make her exit. LA was a big place, the detective would forget about her in a day or two. Kate would have a nice story to tell about the time that she met a slayer.

"So," Kate came and sat down on the other end of the sofa, "what do you plan to do tomorrow?" Faith shrugged. "What are you good at?"

"Huh?"

"Your skills. What are you good at?" Kate questioned.

"Fighting." Faith studied her hand.

"Anything else?"

"Sex." Faith gave her a wink.

"That's not exactly what I meant." Kate gave a slight shake of her head, bemused.

"Screwing things up," Faith sharply said.

"Okay." The word was drawn out as Kate turned to face Faith. "How about tracking, are you good at that?"

"Sure." Faith's attention sparked.

"I have a tip about strange activity at a warehouse. Now, I think it is probably demon activity, so I'm wary of sending uniforms down there for obvious reasons. I was planning going down there tomorrow, how would you like to come?"

"Because I'm a slayer?" Faith showed her apprehension.

"Yes. I'm new to fighting things other than humans and I could use the backup." Kate mentally crossed her fingers. She spent a good deal of the afternoon trying to figure how to stop Faith from running the first chance she had. Building trust was the number one factor.

"Tonight?"

"Actually I was thinking tomorrow."

"Why wait?" Faith became thrilled at the chance for a fight, especially onethat wasn't against B.

"I don't know�" Kate was still concerned with Faith's earlier behaviour.

"I'm ready here, Kate. Let's get 'em now before they do more damage." Faith's hand slammed into her palm.

Swayed by this, Kate looked at the girl. Could this be what Faith needed to get back on the right track? Kate had speculated that whatever made Faith flee Sunnydale had to do with demons. "Okay, let me get ready." Faith nodded getting charged with the anticipation of a good fight.

Kate handed Faith a couple of stakes as they walked towards the dark warehouse. The streets in this part of town were empty. Darkness clung to the figures as they silently approached the building, each covering the other. Faith pulled Kate back as she was about to open the door. Not used to playing second string, Kate tried to brush her off but couldn't.

"Let me go first," Faith whispered close to Kate's ear. "I'm the more experienced." Faith couldn't stand the thought of another innocent getting in the way of her war. A renewed war on demons, she thought to herself, and this time no one is gonna die. Kate nodded sensing Faith needed to do this.

Faith opened the door, ready for anything on the other side. She found it as something crashed into her. Quickly she regained her balance and took a battle ready stance. Hesitating in case it was human, Faith eyed a horn. Definitely not human. The fight lasted only a few seconds before Faith saw an opening and stabbed the demon with her stake. It was not enough. Whipping her knife from it's hiding place she drew her arm back and thrust it deep in the stomach. No time to check if it did the job as another creature came at her back. She ducked avoiding its blow. This gave her time to regroup and she spared a glance to Kate who had knocked over the first creature. The second demon attacked, but Faith's skill was much better and she managed to get in a jab as the demon missed her. It screamed out in pain. Good shot, Faith thought to herself. These demons were no match even for a weary slayer. She quickly dispatched the second one.

As it slumped to the floor, she checked on Kate's progress. The detective was eyeing her with wide eyes. "You five by five?"

"Are you human?" Kate asked half threatening her with the stake.

"Yes. Slayers are human." Faith whipped her head around at the sound of footsteps. "But now is not the time to have a social chat." Faith rushed the third demon. This one was taken off guard and barely had time to throw a punch before the knife lodged in its abdomen. Giving it a couple of good kicks she reached down and retrieved her knife. Somewhere in the warehouse a grunting was heard. Scanning the area quickly, Faith noticed a light coming from the right side of the building. Not waiting for Kate, Faith dashed for it. In a small room Faith could make out another demon in the dim light.

"What are you doing?" The creature asked, his attention being drawn away from a human hanging from chains attached to the ceiling. The young girl was out cold, Faith noticed.

"What, you can't come up with something more original?" Faith drew the demon further away from the girl. She was in her element now, all those instincts she hadn't used for more than eight months coming back. The energy was flowing through her body, making her feel alive again.

"Arrgh," was all the horned creature said as he charged the slayer. Kate had followed Faith to the room and her gut clenched when she saw the young girl. Running back to her car she called for paramedics and backup. She figured the way Faith was taking down those demons it should be all over by the time someone came.

Inside Faith and horned demon were exchanging blows. This last one was a lot stronger than the other three, but Faith was gaining an advantage. She vaguely heard Kate come back in and tried to keep herself between the cop and the demon.

"I'm going to crush you," the demon huffed at Faith.

"Again with the unoriginals. What kind of demon are you?" Faith taunted and it worked. Slashing hard and taking advantage of the creature's lack of focus, Faith landed the killing blow. Screaming the creature took one last shot at Faith, but a swift kick downed him altogether.

"Wicked cool!" Faith turned to Kate a grin beaming from her face. Her breathing was laboured, but that didn't worry her.

"Cops and paramedics on their way. What do we do about them?" Kate pointed to the bodies.

"I'll take care of it, you take care of the girl," Faith took off as she shouted the last words to Kate.

Blue lights flashed as Faith watched Kate talk to the last of the police on the scene. She knew she should be high-tailing it out of there but she couldn't bring herself to run off without at least saying goodbye to Kate. It had been a long couple of hours answering questions and waiting around while crime scene officers made a record of the scene. Kate had insisted on sticking around while everything was going on. Paramedics had made a good prognosis on the girl and whisked her to hospital not long after arriving.

"Hey, Detective Lockley says you came along for the ride and got more than you bargained for," a young uniformed officer said as he came up to Faith leaning against Kate's car.

"Yeah," Faith said looking at the cute officer.

"Just as well you didn't run into the bastards that did this."

"Sick bastards." Faith didn't need to pretend she hated the perpetrators.

"Yeah, to do that to a young girl. We're gonna get them." The officer was playing the gallant knight.

"Of course you are," Faith reassured. In other circumstances she might have flirted with the guy, god knows she was still wound up over the fight, but he was a cop.

"Ready to go?" Kate walked up to the two of them, surprised Faith was playing buddies with the young officer.

"You betcha." Faith grinned to the officer. "Good luck."

"Thanks." He smiled back and then returned to his patrol car. Faith eyed his butt as he walked away. Would have liked a piece of that, she thought but without regret.

When they were back on the road Kate looked over at Faith, amazed at the change in mood from the slayer. She patted herself on the back, taking her along was a good idea.

"It's a good thing we went down there tonight," Kate said as Faith closed her eyes. "That girl might not have been alive tomorrow. Thanks to you she's safe."

"And you." Faith still felt the tension from the night's activities. There was no way she was up for a friendly chat.

"But mainly you. The way you handled yourself was impressive. I'm sorry I doubted your abilities."

"Don't worry, you're not the first or last." Kate looked over seeing the tension in the slayer's face.

"Well, I wish I were." Kate felt a pang of sympathy for the girl. Somebody, somewhere had hurt this girl. There was no reply, but by now, Kate was getting used to that. "You did good tonight, Faith. You've done more in one night than I've managed in a week." Faith shook her head in disgust. How wrong those words were. "And judging from tonight you've been doing this for a long time."

"Then don't judge," Faith snapped.

"Sorry," Kate said earnestly. The rest of trip was done in silence.

*******************

Kate threw a blanket, sheets and a pillow on the sofa while Faith was in the bathroom. She couldn't remember the last time she had someone stay over.

"You going to be warm enough?" She said as Faith emerged from the bathroom.

"Sure." Faith surveyed the sofa; she'd slept on worse.

"Okay then, goodnight." Kate retreated to her bedroom and fell into bed exhausted. The weekend was nothing like she expected, but then again chasing demons was not the norm. Like the person who previously slept in the bed, she fell into an unsettled sleep.

No way Faith was sleeping, not after that sleep in the afternoon and certainly not in her unreleased state. She tapped her fingers on her stomach staring at the ceiling. Going out was not an option, not if she wanted money. She was pretty sure she couldn't sneak in and find Kate's purse without waking her. She was going to have to wait until the morning. Besides the cop had helped her out, least she could do was thank her. Otherwise she might launch a search and rescue and she didn't need that with the Sunnydale cops already on her tail.

She tossed and turned for a while, she guessed an hour. It wasn't that she was worried about Kate interrupting her if she decided to take care of her needs; it was that she might get thrown out for it. Maybe she could sneak in and out without her knowing. She was getting up when she heard a cry from the bedroom. She raced and opened the door quietly.

"Daddy, Daddy!" Kate was screaming out. "No, no, no, no! Daddy no!" Faith crept over to the bed not sure what to do. "Oh god," the cry wretched from Kate's nightmare.

Faith shook her hard, waking Kate immediately. "Hey, Kate."

"Faith?" Kate couldn't see her.

"Here." Faith knelt by the bed and took hold Kate's shoulder. "You got a set of lungs on you."

"I woke you, I'm sorry." Kate closed her eyes, extremely embarrassed, but still feeling the remnants of her dream.

"Don't be, I wasn't sleeping."

"You weren't?" Kate sat up a little. Faith's hand was still on her shoulder, comforting her.

"No, slept this afternoon." Kate's eyes adjusted to the dark and could make the outline of Faith kneeling beside her. "Too wired anyway."

"I thought after tonight you would be worn out."

Faith shifted her weight to lean on the bed. "Easy fight. Too easy. Not enough to take the adrenaline out of me. Hence the wiring."

"Maybe you should do some exercises." Kate was worried she wasn't sleeping. The girl needed all the rest she could get, particularly in her emotional state.

Faith smiled in the dark at the comment. She could smell Kate's natural scent and it made her arousal worse. Here she was practically in bed with a cop. She laughed at the thought. "What's funny?" Kate asked.

"Exercise." Faith chuckled, her face coming closer to Kate, breathing in more of Kate's delicious smell. Oh god, she thought, I have to back off. "I need more than that." That came out way too seductive.

Kate didn't pick it up. "More?" When Faith didn't answer, she thought about it. "A good kill? Release of all that build up? But you had that."

"Too easy," Faith whispered. She was too close and tempted. It was too much. She leaned down and kissed the detective, showing Kate exactly how she was feeling.

Kate pushed Faith back, hard. "Get out." Faith stood up, the painful expression hidden in the dark.

"Sorry, you won't ever see me again," Faith said hoarsely.

"I meant my bedroom." Kate sat up fully and turned on the bedside lamp bathing the room in light and showing Faith's revulsion on her face.

"No, I know what you meant. Bet you regretting everything right now." Faith flared her nostrils and shook her head.

"Faith, I want you to go back to the sofa and I will see you in the morning." Kate brushed a stray hair out of her eyes. "The only thing I regret is that I disturbed you. I thank you for waking me, but I need to get back to sleep."

"I'll leave you to it then." Faith turned and walked to the door.

"Faith, please be here in the morning," Kate pleaded.

"You really want that?"

"Yes," Kate said firmly and turned off the light. A few moments later she heard the door close. Hesitantly she felt her lips still feeling Faith's on them. She fell back asleep still thinking about the kiss.

Faith finally fell asleep after quietly releasing herself well into the early hours of the morning. But god did it feel good. The next thing was too find someone who could do the same, only without the 'I love you's' she'd had last time. Too bad that cute cop wouldn't be a wise choice; he looked like a guy who would be fun. But then again, he could have been a total non-event like Kate. Talk about going all 'would you like a grateful fuck?' on a cop. She'd nearly blown it. But from looking at Kate's body maybe it would have been worth it. Faith, she told herself, no roll in the hay is worth it. Not even with a babe like her. Thinking of that had fuelled her fantasies in the quiet hours of the morning. How the good Detective Lockley would look�taste�feel�smell�sound when she came. That got Faith off again. Good.

Kate breathed in relief when she found a lump sleeping on the sofa the next morning. She snuck over for a look. Faith looked almost angelic lying there on her side. She looked so young and Kate wondered for the first time just how young that might be. Kate moved to the kitchen for a much-needed cup of coffee. She contemplated not going into work today and it was tempting, but damn if she was going to show any weakness to the boys down at the precinct. Having a quick breakfast and getting ready she mentally checked herself. As Kate picked up her car keys, she heard Faith groan and move. Good, she was waking up.

"Morning."

"You sure that's what it is," Faith mumbled. She burrowed deeper into the sofa.

Kate smiled, "I need to talk to you before I go to work. You can go back to sleep later."

"Okay," Faith propped her head up at an angle. She opened her eyes taking in Kate's clothes for work. Typical cop. And a hell of a lot different from when she last saw her.

"I want you to stay."

Faith stared at the detective, "Huh?"

"If you want to go I'm not going to stop you. But I would really like you to stay until you decide what you want to do. I'm going to leave some money, I suggest you go shopping for essentials. There's plenty of food in the kitchen."

"What makes you think I'm not gonna split." Faith was not quite awake yet. Was she hearing right?

"I'm hoping that I'm good enough company," Kate joked.

"And you trust me, you know I could loot your apartment if I wanted to."

Kate laughed, "I'm sure you could. But I don't think you would. Prove me right."

"That a challenge?" Faith looked hard at the cop. She just told a cop that she might rob her and she was laughing? Faith didn't think Kate was that naive to think that Faith wasn't capable of stealing.

"Yes. I don't know what time I'll be home, I'll call if it is going to be sometime during the night." Kate picked up her jacket and put it on.

"So, you really gonna leave me here?" Faith sat up disbelievingly.

"Yes." Kate leaned over and handed her a key. "You'll need this. And this." Kate handed a piece of paper to Faith. "This is my direct line at work." She waited to see if Faith had anything else to say. Nothing came. "Alright, I'll see you later." Kate gathered her things together.

"What, no goodbye kiss?" Faith lifted her head and leaned back on the arm of the sofa.

"You can kiss my ass," Kate retorted

"Don't tempt me," Faith said as Kate left. Damn, the cop was rigid. She needed some loosening up for sure.

Sometime later Faith woke up. The clock said 11:25. That was a better time to wake up. She searched the kitchen and put together quite a good meal. Then she moved through the apartment taking it in. Kate's music choices were certainly tame. The cop liked action movies peppered with the occasional comedy or romance. She found Kate's research spread all over the desk. Going through it, Faith came across a reference to Angelus. There was hardly anything enlightening. The notes were missing quite a few critical pieces of information, particularly the happiness clause. Papers and books about vampires, demons littered her desk. The cop had made notes about various demons, their qualities and such. But most of the information was on vampires. Faith noticed various news clippings from newspapers, including recent ones. Very recent, Faith noticed. Faith lifted the front of a manilla folder. Inside was a copy of a police report. One of Kate's cases. Faith then looked further and found an unedited copy. What a difference the two were. One told of a vampire following a pattern for a hundred years, the other of a profiled killerthat escaped in the sewers.

That case was dated January, only just over a month ago. In fact looking through Kate's notes there wasn't anything going back before January. Not normally Research Girl, Faith was intrigued by this. It explained why Kate was not educated in Slayers or Sunnydale. If she was only new to this demon thing and had first encountered them on a case, it made sense she would be searching for answers. Good cops always did and Faith figured that Kate was a good cop. Going by her reports and profile, Officer Lockley was a young detective for a reason.

Bored now she had more than a clue where the detective was coming from, Faith moved onto the rest of the apartment. Nothing much to do and she wasn't about to go through the detective's bedroom, she did have some respect for privacy. So she washed up and went to find a place to shop.

**************************************

Kate unlocked the door, hearing the thumping music on the other side. Well that answered her question. She opened the door to be greeted by a blast of some incoherent alternative music. There was no sign of Faith, but she heard movements from near the sofa. Kate walked over to the stereo and turned it down.

"I don't think the neighbours are going to be pleased." Kate stood there looking at Faith lying on the sofa.

"Why not? Wicked music." Faith closed the magazine she had picked up shopping.

"For some."

"Yeah, seen your CD collection. It needs a bit of pumping up."

"Not with that crap." Kate took off her jacket. "I see you've been shopping."

"Yeah, thanks for the money." Faith swung her legs over the side and sat up.

"So what did you do all day? Other than annoy the neighbours."

"Let see, sleep, shop, that pretty much covers it."

"You didn't sell off any of my stuff, then?" Faith frowned before looking at Kate's amused face.

"No, all safe and sound. The only thing that's disappeared would be food." Kate walked into the kitchen and grabbed a drink. "Catch any bad guys today?"

"Yes." Kate plopped down next to Faith and took a long drink. "How are you doing?"

"As opposed to yesterday?" Kate nodded. "Five by five."

"Meaning?" Kate looked at Faith

"Fine." Faith looked down.

"Good. How does pizza sound?" Faith smiled and nodded enthusiastically. Kate ordered on the phone and then disappeared into her bedroom for a while. When she came out she was dressed in casual street clothes and had a handful of others. "Here I thought you might need a change."

Faith took them with a smile. "Thanks. Not exactly my style though." Kate smiled and answered the door. She paid the deliveryman and took the pizza to the sofa. Faith opened it and took a piece.

"You always hungry?" Kate sat back down as she grabbed a slice.

"Among other things," Faith said as she chewed.

"So, do you go out slaying every night?"

"Yes." Faith thought back to a time where she went out on the prowl daily. She sighed inwardly when she thought about how much fun that had been.

"Shouldn't you be in Sunnydale, protecting the Hellmouth?"

"There's another Slayer doing that," Faith said already reaching for her second slice. "I've decided to move on." Kate suspected it wasn't as simple as that, but Faith was in a good mood and she didn't want to change that.

"Well, there's plenty of slaying to do in LA."

"Is that an invitation?" Faith asked hopefully. She was beginning to like this town. Enough demons to keep her busy and a place to stay. The only thing worrying her was that Kate was a cop and had access to police records, warrants and APB's.

"Yes, for as long as you like," Kate impulsively decided.

"I'll have to think about it," Faith said honestly. "But there's something you have to know before we go on."

"Yes?" Kate put down her pizza waiting for Faith.

Faith looked down, then back up. "I'm not exactly up for a Good Samaritan award."

"I figured as much," Kate said quietly.

"Sunnydale, big bust. Things got out of hand. Ran into some trouble." Faith stopped, trying to find the words. "Needed to get out of there. I know I've done wrong, but all I want to do now is�" Faith put her head down.

Sensing she was losing her Kate gently said, "I'm listening."

"Before yesterday I didn't really know what I was doing, but�I know now I'm a slayer�I should be slaying demons. It's who I am. It's what I do." Faith locked eyes with the detective clear communicating her intent.

"Then that's what you should do." Kate nodded her head relieved that the girl seemed to be back on track.

"That's not gonna put money in my pocket."

"But you've done this before?"

"Yes, but�it's complicated. Let's just say I was being compensated, that's not gonna happen now." They both fell silent.

"We can work on that as we go," Kate finally said.

"We?" Faith looked sharply at Kate.

"Yes, I'm not letting you do this alone." The words brooked no argument.

"What about money?"

"I'll make enquires about alternatives and we can go from there." Kate picked up her slice and started eating.

"I can't believe you haven't thrown me out." It came out as fatalistic.

"Believe it."

"I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop," Faith said.

"Then stop."

"Ain't that easy." Faith ate another bite to hide her pain.

Kate sighed, "You're not making it easy for yourself." Faith nodded. No, she thought, I don't deserve it easy. "Slaying tonight?"

"Hadn't thought about it," Faith lied. She had been tempted to go out during the afternoon to get in a good fight but decided to wait for night.

"I don't know where demons live in this town. I'm sure you would know of popular spots."

"Sewers, tunnels, abandoned buildings, that kind of thing. Then there are your high tech demons that like to live in the human world."

Like Angel, Kate thought. "So how do you find them?"

"Patrol." Faith smiled. "I guess like police do." Kate returned the smile, appreciating the analogy.

"I don't have anything to do tonight. I'm coming along."

"Now wait a-" Faith stopped seeing the look on Kate's face. She was getting the impression that this demon hunting was personal for Kate. Her father? She was having a nightmare about him. "Why are you doing this?"

"What?"

"Hunting demons. I mean no offence or anything, but you don't have a clue. You may have stakes and other weapons but there's more to demon fighting than those. So, why are you going in there in the first place? You should leave it up to the professionals." Kate turned away, her eyes closing for a moment. "Something happened, didn't it? To make you believe, to make you want to go demon hunting when you know nothing about them." No answer. "Was it about your father? Turn into a vamp, or -"

"Shut it," Kate barked and disappeared into the kitchen. She leaned against the bench with both hands, head down.

"You know it wouldn't be the first time that's happened to someone," Faith said following her. "Most just don't know about it."

Kate turned. "I said shut up, you have no idea what you are talking about."

"But I do. Do you know what a slayer sees? Death, pain and knowing it's too late to save�. People you care about," Faith finished her voice hoarse. Kate stared at Faith and they locked eyes, pain mirrored in each. "Sometimes it's not enough, Kate," Faith continued seeing a kindred spirit, "you don't have enough strength or make one fatal mistake. It will never be enough."

"You lost someone." It wasn't a question.

"A woman." Faith took a step closer to Kate, sharing her pain. "Sent to teach me the ways of the slayer. The vamp that got her, god," Faith turned her head for a moment, "what he did to her�"

Kate nodded as she felt tears pooling. "Is the asshole dead?"

"Yeah dusted him, but not before I ran." Faith walked back to the sofa and Kate followed. "So what happened to your father?"

Kate took a couple of deep breaths, "Killed by�" She didn't finish, didn't have to.

"You got 'em though?" God, Faith hoped the sons of bitches were still not roaming around.

"Yes," Kate answered through clenched teeth.

"When did this happen?" Kate couldn't answer. "A month ago?"

"Try a week."

"Jeez, I'm so sorry." Faith watched Kate tremble trying to bottle her feelings. She was no good with this consoling thing, but she had to try. "I know it hurts, but going into demon lairs recklessly is not the answer."

"It isn't?" Kate turned to Faith. Faith shook her head.

"Not unless you have professional help. But you're lucky, you have me." Faith grinned.

"I have you." Kate echoed.

"That is, if you want me?" Faith didn't mean it to sound like a come on, but in true Faith style she couldn't help it.

"I do," Kate said quietly, not looking at Faith.

"Then let's get in on," Faith was in full quipping mode now relishing another encounter with some not so fortunate demon.

"Not so fast," Kate could see Faith revving up. "I haven't finished eating and nor have you." Faith rolled her eyes, but gave in and started in on her fourth slice.

*****