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Part 2
Cordelia watched the slayer twirl around in the outfit she'd picked out from
Cordelia's closet. The ex cheerleader had insisted Faith discard her bloody,
muddy, orange prision suit for something less chain-gang. Her choice was
a little shocking. A lavender sundress. Cordelia had never seen the slayer
look so girlish. The dress was at odds with the tattoo Faith sported, but it
looked good on her. She'd also pulled her hair into a ponytail and had on
no make-up. Cordelia was lost in the moment. Faith looked so innocent, so
un-evil. She'd come to keep them from harm. She cared. God, if she could
forgive Angel for Angelus, maybe she could give the new Faith a chance.
Not trust. Forgive. Big difference. Trust had to be earned, but Cordelia
was willing to give her a chance to do so.
A voice from the living room broke her thoughts. "What the hell is taking so
damn long?"
"Keep you pants on, Angel!" Cordelia barked.
"Or don't." Faith mumbled.
Cordelia gasped. The two girls locked eyes. Cordelia was the first one to
laugh. Soon the were both gasping for air.
Faith suddenly sobered. "I'm sorry I elbowed your face."
"I would say that's ok, but it's not. It's very much not ok." Faith looked
away. Cordelia continued. "What I will say is I'm over it."
"Really?"
"Sure. You had/have issues. Lots of people have issues. Just don't do it
again. Ever."
Faith grinned. "Ok. That's fair. So I'm good here?"
Cordelia raised an eyebrow. "We're five by five."
Faith grinned and chuckled a little.
*~*~*~*~*
Faith walked into the living room with Cordelia behind her. She felt
incredibly nervous. Angel looked up at her and gaped. Wesley pretty much
did the same thing, only his mouth was hanging open a little wider.
"Hello, Faith. You're looking well this evening." Wesley was smiling at her.
"Th-thank you." She hadn't meant to stutter.
"Faith?" Angel was looking a little concerned.
"This is very new."
Someone started pounding on the door. Angel grabbed Faith by the arm
and steered her to the bathroom.
Cordelia walked over to Wesley and ripped his shirt open. The buttons
scattered everywhere.
"Cordelia!" He hissed.
"Shut up." She kissed him, making sure to get her lipstick all over his
mouth. She unbuttoned her shirt and rebuttoned it wrong. She stuck her
hands in her hair and shook it up wildly. Then she proceeded to the door
leaving Wesley completely stunned on the sofa.
Cordelia threw open the door looking for all the world like a girl who'd been
making out. Kate Lockley's hand was poised to bang on the door again.
"Where is she?"
"Who?!" Cordelia was attempting to appear annoyed. She did it well.
"Faith. I know she came here."
"What?"
"Where's Angel?"
"He's not here."
"I know he knows where she is." Kate forced her way past Cordelia into
the apartment.
"Oh, come on in, officer. Not that I was BUSY or anything."
"What?" Kate had just entered the living room. She saw Wesley on the
sofa with his shirt gaping open.
"Detective Lockley." Wesley gasped and attempted to hold his shirt closed.
He was fastly turning red. "What brings you by?"
"I-I-I've interrupted. I'll go. T-tell Angel I want to speak with him." She
turned and practically ran out of the apartment.
Cordelia looked at Wesley. The two of them busted out laughing.
Angel and Faith crept in from the bathroom. Cordelia continued laughing
and flopped down on the couch next to Wesley. He draped his arm around
her. This caused his shirt to fall back open. Angel and Faith gaped.
"What were you two doing?"
"Acting for the LAPD." Wesley said with as staright a face as he could. It
didn't last long. "Good show, Cordelia." He broke down into giggles again.
"Not so bad yourself." She chuckled. "That blush looked real."
"I assure you it was."
"What happened?" Angel wasn't as amused as they were.
"Kate's looking for Faith. She's certain you have her."
"Well, she's right there." Faith put her hands on her hips. Wesley noticed
some of the old spark was back in the slayer's eyes. "So what now?"
*~*~*~*~*
She stepped into the room and looked around. Buffy's room. The blonde
slayer was sprawled out on her bed in a mimic of the christ. Her arms out.
Her legs crossed at the ankles. Her head tilted slightly to the side. A
plastic tiara was on her head. One of those really fake looking ones with
the plastic jewels. Her throat had been slit. There was blood everywhere.
Her eyes were open and unseeing. Faith shivered.
"Holy heartfailure, Batman. I think the Queen B is dead."
Faith spun around to see the other behind her. Black tank top. Black
leather pants. While she was in Cordelia's lavender dress.
"Cute dress, Killer."
"Why?"
"Why what?"
"Why did you do that to Buffy. We never hated her."
"Yes. We did. She had everything we wanted."
"I never wanted her dead."
"No, you wanted a sister. Coulda had it if you hadn't let me take over."
"I hate you."
"I know you do."
"Did you have to display her like that?" Tears welled up in Faith's eyes.
"Aww, Killer. Are you gonna cry?"
"I won't let you hurt them."
"You can't stop me. You're weaker than I am." The other Faith walked over
to Buffy's body and yanked it off the bed.
"Don't."
The other stood the body up and put her hand on the body's chin to make
it move. "Hi, Faith. I'm Buffy. I'll always be better than you. I have Angel. I
have the real watcher. I have Willow and Xander. I have my mom. I have
everything. You'll never be good. You suck ass."
"FUCK YOU!"
*~*~*~*~*
Angel jumped when Faith threw herself off the sofa where she'd been
sleeping. Her hands were out in front of her, bent into claws. She was
crying softly. Angel got up to grab her, but Wesley beat him to it.
Wesley gathered Faith up in his arms. "What happened?"
"B-Buffy." Faith started crying really hard.
Wesley held her tighter. "Shh. It's alright, Faith. You're safe."
"Don't let me go back there."
Angel dropped to his knees next to them. "Back where, Faith?"
She looked up at him. "The dark."
Angel smiled at her. "We won't."
"Promise me something, Angel?"
"What?"
"Promise me if I do, you'll kill me."
"Faith-"
"PROMISE!"
"I can promise you that." The three on the floor looked up to the owner of
the new voice. Buffy.
"B." Faith started shaking. Wesley's hold on her tightened.
Angel stood. "Buffy." He looked behind her as Giles walked in. He hadn't
even heard the two of them enter the apartment. "Giles." He wondered
how long they'd been there.
The door opened and closed again. Cordelia breezed in with Gunn in tow,
talking cheerfully. "Hey, Faith, I got you some.... Buffy." The former
cheerleader was holding up a pair of tennis shoes. "And Giles, uh, hi."
Buffy was glaring at Faith.
"Ok. Eveyone who's not a former watcher, a blonde slayer, or a souled
vampire out on the porch. Let's go." Cordelia ushered Faith and Gunn out
onto the porch.
"What's goin' on, Cord?" Gunn asked as Faith flopped into one of the
plastic lawn chairs on Cordelia's porch.
"Lots. Buffy is Angel's ex."
"Ex girlfirend in town. Not good."
"B's not so bad. She's had it rough when it comes to Angel. God knows I
never made it easier for her." Her eyes were filled with tears.
"Faith, don't."
"Don't what, Cordelia? Tell the truth? I tried to kill him. I mean, thank God
the Scooby Gang is smarter than they look. I nearly succeeded in offing
the one soul who was able to save mine. If that's not enough to give a
person nightmares, I don't know what the hell is."
"You weren't kidding when you said you'd escaped from prison." Gunn was
staring.
"No."
"What did you do?"
"Gunn!" Cordelia slapped him on the shoulder.
"No, it's ok. I, uh, killed some people. People. Plural." She closed her eyes
as the tears flowed freely. She could feel the sun on her face. She stood
and stretched into it, trying so hard to get into the light. To be good.
And that's what Wesley saw when he stuck his head out the door. His
slayer straining to the sunlight with tears rolling out from under her
eyelids.
"Faith?"
She turned to him. "Yes, Wesley?"
"Buffy wants to talk to you."
Faith stared at him for a second. Then she did something she'd never done
before. She fainted.
*~*~*~*~*
She entered the room and froze. There was a large dinning table with
chairs all around it. People were tied to the chairs. Wesley, Cordelia,
Angel, Oz, Willow, Xander, Giles, and Buffy's mom. In the center of the
table was Buffy, tied to the table itself with the plastic tiara on her head.
The other stepped out of the shadows. "Hello, Killer."
"Let them go."
"No way. Fun's just about to begin." The knife appeared in her hand. The
knife the mayor had given her. The one Buffy had stuck in her side.
"Where did you get that?"
"Here." The other patted her gut. "I think I'll give it back to B."
"No!" Faith lunged at her counterpart and attempted to wrestle the knife
away.
*~*~*~*~*
Gunn had grabbed Faith before she had a chance to hit the concrete. He
and Wesley dragged her into the apartment.
"Good Lord, what happened?" Giles asked.
"Faith!" Angel rushed to her.
"She fainted." Gunn answered as he laid her on the floor.
"What?" Buffy was a little confused. Faith had never seemed the fainting
type.
"I told her you wanted to speak with her and then..." Wesley let his words
trail off.
"NO!" Faith screamed and lurched off the floor. Wesley grabbed her arms.
"Faith. You're alright. You're safe."
Her eyes snapped open. Everyone was peering down at her. She screamed
and threw herself out of Wesley's grasp. "No!"
"Faith." Angel was watching her closely.
Faith looked at him. "She's here." Her eyes shot to Buffy for a second
before returning to Angel. "You don't need me." She turned and ran out of
the apartment.
Angel moved to follow her. Cordelia grabbed his arm. "Hello, middle of the
day. Sun and you, not mix-y things."
"I'll go." Gunn was out the door before anyone could stop him.
"What's wrong with her?" Buffy asked quietly.
"Her conscience is ripping her to shreads right now. She's kept it buried
too long." Wesley had a very sad look on his face.
Buffy looked at him, and something moved inside her. She understood
something about Faith she'd never gotten before. Or maybe Faith had
changed in way so that she finally could understand it. "She's tougher
than she looks."
Wesley looked at her. "She's going to have to be."
*~*~*~*~*
Faith didn't have a destination in mind. She was just running blind. Her
sobs were getting louder. She cut across someone's lawn. She tripped
over a waterhose laying masked by the green of the grass. She went
down and skidded a few feet. She didn't get up. She just put her face in
her arms and cried. She jumped when she felt two hands on her arms.
Gunn's heart twisted a little when he saw her laying on the grass crying.
He knew she was strong, but at the same time she was very weak. He'd
seen people hanging on by a thread before. She had two fingers holding on
to the very end of it. He turned her over and scooped her up in his arms.
He carried her several blocks. She clung to him and cried. People were
staring at him. He didn't care. He entered the park he and Alonna used to
come to. His little sis had loved this place. He sat Faith down on a bench
and sat down next to her. He waited several minutes before he spoke.
"My sister loved this place."
"Loved?" Faith asked.
"She's dead."
"I'm sorry."
"I killed her."
"What? Explain."
He noticed her eyes held a little fire in them now, despite being watery
from her tears. "I staked her."
"Staked?"
"She'd been turned."
"Then you didn't kill her. You killed a piece of the thing that killed her."
"No, it was my fault."
"Did you bite her?"
"No, but-"
"Not your fault. Trust me. I know a thing or two about vamps."
"I noticed. How is that? I mean, you're tiny."
"I'm a slayer."
"What?"
"A vampire slayer."
"No way."
"You know what a slayer is?"
"Hell, yeah, I've heard the stories. You dust vamps on the street you hear
things, but I never-"
"You thought I'd be taller or bigger."
"Something like that."
"Buffy's one too."
"I thought the story was there was one to every generation?"
"Supposed to be. I'm the mistake."
"Don't say that."
"It's true. I should go. They have Buffy. They don't need me." Faith got to
her feet. Gunn's hand shot out, grabbing her arm.
"They want you there. I've never seen Wes move so fast. And Cordelia?
She didn't look to good when your eyes rolled up in your head. Angel? Hey,
the guy's not known for his emotional displays, but he didn't look happy
when we drug you in. And when you took off, he was about to follow until
Cord reminded him about the sun."
"Really?" There was such hope in her eyes.
"Really. Come back with me. I know I'd like to have you watchin' my back.
You were kickin' vamp ass the other night, and your hands were all
cuffed."
"All part of being slay gal."
"Two slayers have got to be better than one. You came to protect them.
So protect them. Don't run off. You don't seem the runnin' type to me."
"I used to be. I think I need to kick that habit."
"Good."
He linked her arm through his and headed back towards Cordelia's
apartment. Both were unaware of the figure in the shadows watching
them.
Part 3
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