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Fading Away
By Niu

The interstate was quieter there, the backdrop of city lights no longer had any associated sound and the cars went passed so often that the coninuous wooshing noise they made had been written out of her hearing. If silence fell, she would hear that.

1376 miles from Los Angeles to Austin. More or less. And more or less straight too, unless you wanted to drive by Santa Fe on your way down. Mostly for the tacos.

21 hours from Los Angeles to Austin. More or less. Although that was in the car and she was pretty sure it was going to take her a lot longer. Besides, her feet were getting tired.

She wrapped her arms around her waist and leant into the wind, wondering what would happen if it changed direction. She was beginning to calculate it as the SUV slowed to a halt beside her forcing her to acknowledge the world in general as the horns blared. Angry drivers gesturing wildly as they screamed by.

He leant across from the driver's side and opened the door. He didn't sit up straight again but held his palm out flat and looked at her with those sad, puppy dog eyes.

She looked left, back the way she had come and sighed, shook her head again. The car crawled along beside her, the door still open but Wesley no longer reaching out to her. At least not with his body. She sighed again and turned to face him, blinking back the tears.

"I didn't think he had it in him." Confusion crossed Wesley's face as the wind whipped her whisper away as soon as it left her lips. "I said I didn't think he had it in him."

"Get in Fred." He said, loud enough for her to hear, but quiet enough for it to sound soft. There'd been so many harsh words already.

"Didn't you hear me?" She snapped back at him, "I said I didn't think he had it in him!" She wiped a dirty hand across her tear-streaked face. "Why do you think he did that Wesley? Why would he do that to himself? To me?"

She didn't see Wesley open his door and step out onto the road, to the further annoyance of the other motorists, because she'd dropped to her knees and was sobbing to the extent that she wouldn't be able to hear silence even if it did fall.

"Because he loved...loves you Fred." He was glad she couldn't see his face, too many emotions were rolling across it in close succession for it to be a pretty picture. "You can't blame yourself for how he is now Fred, he did what had to be done."

But now she was on her feet and a fire burned in her eyes that Wesley had seen only in Cordelia's before. "I didn't ask him to do it for me. Didn't he think lil' old me would be able to take care of my own problem? Did he think I'd go gaga and start writing on the...OK so I did that already but...but did he...did he think I'd feel guilty? Did he think I'd care? Or did he want to be the tough guy, the guy I. Don't. Want?"

This was new. This was unexpected. Wesley had assumed that Fred's 'vacation' had been on account of Gunn's Faith-esque behavoir, not jealously, not resentment. It was a perfect opportunity and he hated himself, more, for even thinking it.

"Get in the car Fred." He said and did so himself. After a moments hesitation, she did the same and pulled the door shut so hard that Wesley thought she might break something. Her arm for example. He slipped the SUV into gear and managed to get back into the traffic flow without too much difficulty. He turned around at the next journey and the lights on the horizon began to brighten as they drew nearer the city. He wondered if Faith could see the stars behind the glow. Like seeing animals in clouds and saints in danish pastries.

"Where are we going Wesley?" He loved the way she said his name, it made it less painful to hear it when her honeyed southern tones wrapped around those two english syllables.

"My apartment." There. His crisp pronunciation removed the romantisism once more and he returned to his usual state of self-loathing before elaborating. "Its quite the little hideout and retreat at the moment. Perfect for looking deep into your soul and deciding whether or not you've got one." His voice was bitter but Fred didn't really notice it.

"Why? Who's there?"

"Faith." When no response came, he looked across at his passenger to see that she was looking straight back at him, examing his features for any sense of humour. She raised her eyebrows at him and he nodded his assurance.

"Oh my." She looked so innocent when she was surprised. Like a child who has just seen a butterfly for the first time. Although in this case the effect of Faith's entirely negative track record running through her mind somewhat marred the effect. After all, she'd probably only been given the lowlights. "Break out did she?"

"Some sort of arrangement with the council. They telephoned a few days ago to inform me that I would be resuming my duties as her Watcher." Fred's intake of breath encouraged him to elaborate and so he went on, "Apparently I didn't fuck it up quite enough for them the first time so they'd like me to try again. This time with the hindsight of what being tortured is like should I happen to fuck it up." Wesley couldn't remember ever having sworn in front of Fred before. He quite enjoyed it, remembering with affection the occassions when she'd used something stronger than 'damn'. She seemed undeterred by his suddenly coarse language though and after being slightly concerned about not appearing 'big and clever' it dawned on Wesley that he was also quite pleased about this. Perhaps he wasn't sullying her glowing self by his proximity.

"You don't mind then." Sarcasm? From Fred? Surely not. She was smiling at him though which suggested it had been entirely intended to surprise him. Fair, he supposed, he had, after all, just done exactly the same thing.

The light was grey as Wesley pulled his car into the garage. That pre-dawn glow that suggested the sun would rise just as soon as it felt like getting up and not before.

Fred went up the steps first, Wesley following close behind and he had to reach round her to get the key in the door. He shivered at the contact and shot a glance at her face to see if she'd noticed. She hadn't.

"Faith?" He called softly. She stepped round from the bathroom almost before he'd said it, her hair wrapped up in a towel and wearing Wesley's robe.

"Hey, you found her." She returned to the bathroom and the hair dryer prevented Fred from making any attempt at conversation. She fell down onto the sofa, relieved, and slipped her shoes off. She alternated between making fists with her toes and spreading them out in the plush of the carpet. Wesley handed her a drink and she sipped at it without registering what it was.

"So what now?" She asked. Her voice sounded to certain to be asking such a question, like she already new the answer and would not be best please if that wasn't the one Wesley gave.

"You and Faith can share the bedroom tonight."

"Where will you sleep?"

"There." He pointed at the couch before leaning against the wall near his drinks cabinet. She nodded and returned to her drink. She wondered if she was 'nursing' it or did that involve things like twirling a finger round its rim between sips. The noise of the hairdryer ceased and she felt her muscles tense, knowing Faith was behind her and was looking at her. Examining her.

"Girl in the pen looked like you." Faith's voice seemed harder to Wesley now than it ever had before even as she had straddled him, bringing the homemade blowtorch closer to his face. He noticed the smile flicker across her face and tried not to think about what met. "Its kinda nice to see someone I don't own an apology. I don't do I?" She added as she sat on the opposite end of the couch to Fred whilst looking at Wesley for the answer to her question. He shook his head in response and the Slayer focused her attention back on Fred. Who giggled. "While since I've seen anyone do that too. So Winifred right?" More nodding and giggling. "I was thinkin' 'bout calling you 'dubya' whilst I was in the shower but I guess that name's not such a novelty for you guys." Giggling. And nodding. More of. Faith rolled her eyes and looked at Wesley for help.

"We call her Fred, Faith, I do believe I told you."

"Wes, I may be clinically insane or whatever but all the people who ever called me stupid are dead. Don't make me go all criminal on you again." She snapped but grinned afterwards.

"Many a true word said in jest." Fred said, no longer giggling. "D'you think ya haf t'av killed people to be clinically insane? I mean, I di'n't kill no body over in Pylea but, you know, I'm pretty sure when I first came back I wasn't what you'd call sane."

"You don't seem a whole set o' cutlery now honey."

"Bed." Wesley said suddenly causing both girls to look at him which was better than each other. The accents were gradually getting thicker as each sought to outdo the other and he was slightly concenred, though also a little hot under the collar, that might result in violence. "I think we should all go to bed and we can talk about things in the morning."

"Fine."

Fred was already on her feet and at the bedroom door before Faith could say, "Just a motherfucking minute. She's sleeping with me?" She didn't wait for an answer but exhaled noisily to show her distaste and followed Fred into the room. Wesley went over to the coach and sank down onto it before stretching out along the length of it and turning off the lamp behind his head.

Fred slipped her dusty trousers off and took the bobble out of her hair before re-tying it lower down.

"You can sleep on the floor." Fred ignored her and climbed into the bed. "Well I sure as hell ain't sleeping on the floor, I think I've done my time on rock."

"So sleep in the bed."

"You offered." She replied, partially as warning, partially to ensure they'd both remember it in the morning.

"Night." Fred closed her eyes but didn't relax until she heard the click of the lightswitch as Faith too settled down to sleep.

****

A rocking sensation woke Faith in what was the middle of her night. For most people it was around 9am. She glanced across at Fred and at first though she was crying but then it dawned on her. Fred was masterbating. Faith's eyes widened as she stared at the girl. Her eyes were closed and her hands were working furiously in her knickers, her control of her vocal cords was beginning to slip and Faith felt her blood start pumping faster as she watched.

Slowly, the Slayer reached her hand across to between Fred's legs. She could feel the heat there as she pressed her hand against the other girls. Fred's eyes snapped open looking directly into Faith's own. For a second, Faith thought she saw panic there but then Fred began to push her hips upwards into Faith's hand as she removed her own. Fred's fingers, now free for other options, intertwined themselves in Faith's hair and pulled her down into a kiss. Faith upped the tempo as she slipped her leg across Fred and pressed her body against her continuing to alternate between pumping and rubbing.

Fred placed her hands against her partners shoulders and pushed so that they rolled and she was on top, she hesitated as orgasm gripped her before kissing her way down Faith's body until her tongue found the girls clit which she began to lick and nibble until she had returned the favour. Which she, fortunately, managed to do before Wesley knocked tentatively on the door before opening it in quick succession and staring in shock at Fred's face as it hovered between Faith's legs.

TBC