~ The New World ~
by Hellmouthguy

e-mail: hellmouthadmin@thehellmouthrevisited.com
my story archive can be found at: www.thehellmouthrevisited.com

Disclaimer: See Part 1

The wind began to pick up again. Somewhere, a car horn blared.

The breeze had grown cold. Willow hugged herself, and waited. Buffy and Faith watched each other.

Faith finally broke the silence.

"Came out to give you a heads up," she said. "There's a vamp named Kakistos, I tangled with him in Boston. He kills Slayers, he killed Madeleine Lambert, the Slayer before you. Now he's after me. And he said after he gets me you're next on his list."

"Never heard of him," Buffy said. "So what happened?"

"He's one tough son of a bitch is what happened," Faith said. "Guy hit me once and my whole arm went numb. He runs with this black vamp named Trick. Trick dresses snazzy and talks real good, and he doesn't like to get his hands dirty. But Kakistos has a posse with him to handle that. Besides Trick, he had eighteen vamps with him when he came after me."

"Eighteen?" Buffy said.

"Yeah. They'd been tracking me for awhile and they finally came at me in a restaurant. Killed everyone there. I managed to get through his goons but Kakistos is on a whole other level of bad. Then the next day his guys were back at it, tailing me through the streets. They use cars with blacked-out windows during the day, and they've got guns. They shot the hell out of a pizza place I was in, and that was a bunch more dead people. Worst part is, not only is Kakistos the strongest vamp I've ever seen but I staked him and nothing happened. Plus he tossed me out a frigging skyscraper and I fell about fifty stories."

"Oh my God!" Willow said, and ran up to her. "Are you...are you okay?"

"Been awhile since I've seen okay," Faith said. "I'll be okay once I dust the bastard."

"Wait a minute," Buffy said. "You staked him and nothing happened? Sure you didn't miss the heart?"

"I know my way around a stake, B," Faith said. "I stuck him good. All it did was piss him off."

"I can't believe you fell fifty stories," Willow said, and touched Faith's shoulder. "Are you sure you're okay?"

Buffy watched Faith, as Willow touched her shoulder. Buffy thought Faith's scent was pretty: fruity, with a hint of muskiness underneath.

Willow was covered with it.

"Body's five by five now," Faith said. "But I'm still trying to wrap my head around how I'm alive. Slayer or not, I can't figure how I survived that fall. Got lucky, I guess."

"Maybe someone was watching over you," Willow said, and smiled. "The way someone was watching over me tonight."

The moon peeked out from behind the trees, illuminating the clearing with soft, silver light. Buffy suddenly noticed a big bruise on Willow's cheek.

"Will...your face is bruised," Buffy said. She ran to Willow, and stood between her and Faith. She took Willow's hand. "Did something happen to you?"

"I ran into some vampires near the Magic Box," Willow said. "I was lucky Faith was there. Actually, it wasn't luck. The Goddess was watching over me."

"Faith saved you?" Buffy said.

"The Goddess?" Faith said.

"Witch. Remember?" Willow said to Faith. "I prayed to Holy Mother to save me, and then a few seconds later, you were there."

"Cool," Faith said. "Never been an answer to someone's prayer before." "You're a Slayer, Faith," Willow said. "You've been the answer to a lot of people's prayers."

"The Magic Box?!" Buffy shouted. "What did I tell you about going to that neighborhood alone at night? You could have been killed! Why didn't you call me?!"

"I was...in the middle of a spell, and, um, I needed stuff," Willow said. "Okay, yup, one of my dumber moves. Guess I went blonde for a second there."

Faith smiled despite her mood. Buffy raised her eyebrows.

"I mean...not that you're not smart! You're the smartest blonde I know!" Willow added hastily.

Faith chuckled. Buffy felt her cheeks becoming red. She tried to hide it. She turned away.

"I mean...um...I'm gonna stop talking now," Willow said.

"Hey Will, why did the blonde stare at the orange juice?" Faith said.

"Why?" Willow said.

"Because it said 'concentrate' on the carton," Faith said.

Willow giggled.

"Great. Make fun of me now. Whatever," Buffy said, looking away from them.

"Hey...Buffy..." Willow said, and took her hand. "We're not making fun of you. I'm sorry, okay? I'm just being goofy." Willow had no idea why Buffy was so prickly, why she seemed so angry and embarrassed at the same time. It wasn't like her.

She didn't think it was just Faith. She thought it must be something else. She just didn't know what...

Buffy nodded, still not looking at Willow. She knew her face was still red and she couldn't let Willow see it. She walked away from them, further back into the shadows, before she turned and looked at them again. Buffy knew Willow and Faith must have been in close physical contact for a good long time for Faith's scent to be so strong on Willow. Willow must have let Faith touch her.

As Buffy let her senses reach out and concentrated on her nose, she realized that Willow's scent was even stronger on Faith than Faith's scent was on Willow. And she knew then that Willow must have touched Faith too. An image came into her mind, of Willow letting Faith kiss her. She felt tense again. Faith was looking at her. Willow and Faith were standing close to each other. Buffy dismissed the image, and tried to relax. "So I believe you were telling us how you got kicked off a skyscraper?" Buffy said. "And how, lucky us, you miraculously survived."

"I don't know how I survived," Faith said. "But I know why. I survived because I'm gonna dust that motherfucker."

"Considering how he likes to travel around with a bunch of vamp groupies, we should put our heads together on this," Buffy said.

"Forget it," Faith said, and started to walk away. Willow, she liked. But there was no way she could work with Buffy. It would be better like this. What Kakistos had coming to him, Faith wanted to be the one to deliver. "I can handle it solo. Just wanted to give you a heads up. Take it easy."

"Faith, wait," Willow said. "Don't you think it would be better if we all worked together on this? Kakistos sounds really dangerous."

"It's cool, Will," Faith said. "I got it. Like I said, he wants me a lot more than he wants Buffy."

"And what's your plan when he finds you?" Buffy said. "Get tossed off another building?"

"Stake didn't work, so I figure I'll cut his head off," Faith said. "Already cut his dick off anyway."

"You cut his...?" Buffy said. "Okay, eewww much?" "He pissed me off," Faith said. "Anyway, see ya."

"Faith, as much as it pains me to say it, we need to go after this guy together," Buffy said.

"Told you I got it covered," Faith said, and turned her back to her, and kept walking.

Buffy wanted to let her go.

"Buffy..." Willow said.

It would be so much easier just to let her go...

"Yeah," Buffy said. "I know."

Buffy ran after Faith, and blocked her path.

"Faith, I don't like this any more than you do," Buffy said. "But look, let's just think about this? We've got a vamp who's super-strong. And he likes traveling with a whole bunch more vamps. And he can't be staked. And he's cranky because you went all Lorena Bobbitt on his ass. He killed at least one Slayer already and he almost killed you." "I can handle him," Faith said.

"Sure. Just like you handled him in Boston. I bet your face really made his fist sore. Faith, think! There's more at stake here than your pride! You said he attacked you in a restaurant, that he killed people to get to you, and he's got guns. This guy sounds like he's way into collateral damage and killing innocent people and it's our job to prevent that."

"And you're way into hearing yourself talk, huh, B? But the speeches are starting to bore me now. Said I can handle this and I'll handle it," Faith said, and brushed past her.

"That's right, F," Buffy said. "You keep running, just like you did in Boston. Way to handle it."

"You've been giving me shit all night," Faith said, marching back at her. "You got a crush on me or something? Some reason you can't just get the hint and leave me the fuck alone?"

"Is there some reason you can't use your frigging brain? How many people did this guy kill out in Boston while you employed your brilliant strategy of taking off? How many more people will he kill out here once he tracks you down? And you're too arrogant and stupid to understand--"

"Buffy...!" Willow said. She grabbed Buffy's arm. Buffy wrenched herself free of her.

"You're too stupid to understand that this is way, way bigger than your little revenge fantasy!" Buffy shouted. She felt her anger flaring now, and a voice inside her head told her she should stop, that she should calm down. But this girl got under her skin. The image came into her mind again...Willow was letting Faith kiss her. "You think I'm gonna let some super-vamp and his pals shoot up my town and kill my friends because some new Slayer wannabe thinks she can handle it?! I cut his dick off, wow look at me, I'm so tough, I'm so cool! Do you even care about the people who died out in Boston? All because of you?!"

Faith was shaking with anger. Her hands were balled into fists. Her whole body felt hot.

She thought about Rebecca. Rebecca wouldn't want her to fight Buffy.

"And where the hell is your Watcher during all this anyway?" Buffy said. "Or did your Watcher decide to just take off too?"

Faith looked at Buffy silently.

"Cat got your tongue, F?" Buffy said. "You do have a Watcher, right? Or is that something else you're screwing up? Not that your Watcher's done such a bang-up job."

"Buffy!" Willow said. "Stop it! Now you're just being mean!"

Faith was thinking of a number.

"Forget it, Will," Faith said, and walked away.

"Whatever," Buffy said, and stormed off in the opposite direction.

Willow ran after Faith. Faith moved quickly, but Willow finally caught up to her, in the shadows beneath a stand of redwood trees.

"Faith!" Willow said, and touched her shoulder. "I'm...I'm sorry. Buffy's usually really nice." Faith was hiding her face from her. Willow moved around in front of her. "You two just got off on the wrong..."

Faith had tears in her eyes.

The moon appeared through the branches of the tree above them, illuminating everything around them in soft, gentle silver. Faith moved away from the light, into the shadows beyond its reach.

"Tell Buffy not to forget the cars with blacked-out windows," Faith said. "He can find us in the day too. And you be careful Will, okay? Try to stay inside."

Faith walked away from her, and disappeared into the darkness.

Willow found Buffy waiting for her back in the clearing. It still smelled like pipe smoke.

"You and your new friend have a nice chat?" Buffy said.

Willow looked at Buffy without saying a word. Then she looked away and said, "Let's go home."

They walked silently back through the clearing toward the trees.

"So now you're gonna be moody at me too?" Buffy finally said. "Maybe some of Faith is rubbing off." Willow heard something ugly in Buffy's voice.

"You were mean!" Willow screamed, whirling around. "Faith saved my life tonight and came all the way out here from Boston just to warn you about Kakistos and all you could do was call her stupid!"

Buffy had never seen Willow like this before. She stepped back, taken completely by surprise.

"It was mean and not nice and totally not fair and you should be ashamed of yourself!" Willow screamed.

"I should...I should be ashamed?" Buffy stuttered. "What about Faith? She just...just comes in and...and comes and kills two vampires that I--"

"A Slayer!" Willow shouted. "Killing two vampires! What on earth was she thinking? Quick, let's get the torches and run her out of town!"

"But they were...! I mean they weren't...! Look, she could've at least listened to me before she just...!" In her head, Buffy's reasons were good ones. But when she spoke them out loud they all got jumbled...she heard the jealousy in her voice. No matter how hard she tried she couldn't keep it out of her voice.

"Buffy! You told a Slayer you didn't want to kill two vampires because they helped you with your homework! What did you expect Faith to think? If I didn't know you I would've thought you were crazy too!"

"It's not as simple as that! They didn't want to hurt anyone! I could tell! We could've just let them go and everything would've been..."

"Like how you let Spike go? Or like how you dated the worst serial killer in history and then wondered why he suddenly went bad and tried to murder us all?! News flash! Vampires are demons! You're the Slayer, you know that! The three vampires Faith saved me from? They were gonna gang-rape me!"

"They...? Buffy said, and her face went white. "Oh my God...oh my God!" She hugged Willow, and Willow felt the old, familiar strength in her. "Are you okay, baby? Are you okay?"

Willow pulled away, her eyes filling with tears. "What did you expect? They were vampires! Demons! That's what vampires do! They hurt people! That's what Angel did too, even though it didn't stop you from dating him!"

"And I stuck a sword though his heart! Does that meet with your approval? What the hell do you want from me? You want me to hop in a time machine and go back and kill Angel again? Would that--"

"I KNOW!" Willow screamed, crying now. "I know Angel's alive! I know you've been seeing him every day before school and bringing him blood! All this time you've been LYING RIGHT TO MY FACE AND I KNOW!"

Buffy froze.

"Please, just...just let me explain...?" Buffy said.

"Excuse me," a voice interrupted.

They turned.

Trick was standing at the edge of the clearing with six vampires.

"You must be Buffy Summers," he said, smiling. He was wearing a black suit that fit him like it was custom made, with a lavender shirt and a lavender handkerchief in the suit's breast pocket. His black shoes gleamed. "Wearing a miniskirt out slaying? Now that's a bold fashion statement."

Buffy didn't know who he was, but she knew he was trouble. She put aside her guilt toward Willow, her resentment of Faith, her agonizing over Angel. It was all baggage now and it weighed her down; she needed to be light and quick and ready for fighting. She put it all aside, and let the Slayer in her take over. It was like flipping a switch. Instantly, she felt better.

She let her senses reach out. The cemetery was her territory. All of its sights and sounds and smells were as familiar to her as her own bedroom. Others had dared to invade her territory now, and she would defend it; it was as simple as that. The vampires didn't belong. Their scents were foul.

Relieved of the burden of her humanity, Buffy smiled, and showed the vampires her teeth. In that moment, she was as happy as she had ever been.

"Everyone's giving me crap about my skirt tonight," Buffy said, standing in front of Willow. "Got a name?"

"Call me Mr. Trick," Trick said, and took a cell phone from his suit pocket. Willow gasped at the mention of his name. Buffy glanced at her. Willow knew exactly what the look meant.

"Blue Hills," Trick said into the phone, as the vampires with him watched Buffy. "Got us a Slayer here." He paused. "Naw, the other one. But I'm sure she'll be delighted to meet you." He put the phone away, and grinned at Buffy.

"Never heard of you," Buffy said. "You must not be very important."

"I'm an East Coast kind of guy," Trick said, chuckling. "Y'all are a sight too casual out here for my taste. I mean, guys wear shoes without socks out here. It's mind-boggling."

"So let me guess," Buffy said. "That was your mom, and she's inviting me over for dinner."

"Cute," Trick said. "I get it. You're the cute Slayer. You're the sugar, Faith's the spice. You two should have an act. By the way, just making conversation here...you wouldn't happen to know where Faith is, would you?"

"First I'd have to know who she is," Buffy said. "Unless you mean that new Slayer out in Boston I heard about?"

"That's the girl. About 5'5", dark hair. With a rather exuberant sense of style. Flashy, if you know what I mean. Maybe a little on the reckless side." He smiled, baring his fangs. "In fact, some might even go so far as to call her rude."

"Sorry, the annual Slayer cookout isn't until next summer. We're supposed to be partnering up in the three-legged sack race. As far as I know she's in Boston somewhere."

"Uh-huh," Trick said, looking carefully at her. "You're a pretty good liar, if you're lying."

"Yup, and I'm pretty good with a stake too, and you'll be finding that out in a minute," Buffy said. "But if I knew where she was, why would I tell you?"

"Because I'm asking so politely. Because you enjoy our witty badinage. Next person who asks, well...let's just say he won't be asking so polite."

"Why is everyone saying big words tonight? It's totally tortuous."

"'Badinage' means banter."

"Hey, good to know. So okay, I'm just gonna kill you all now."

Buffy ran at the nearest vampire, knowing the other five would be right behind her. As she reached him she ducked, anticipating his move. He slashed at her, his claws slicing over her head, putting him out of position. She staked him, spun to her left, staked one of the vampires coming at her from behind and punched another one in the face, sending him flying.

She backflipped away from the others, jumped up to grab a tree branch and swung forward and kicked them as they ran at her. She held onto the branch in a chin-up and she had a second to look around. Trick was staying out of the fight, just like Faith said he would. Willow had run off into the trees. Willow had been accompanying Buffy on patrol for a long time now, and Buffy had given her some ground rules. Rule number one was, when it got bad, Willow ran.

Buffy dropped from the tree branch, spun, and kicked the closest vampire in the face. He went flying the length of the clearing, and the other three came at her. She saw Trick checking his watch.

Buffy rolled backwards to the ground, flipping one of the vampires over her head with her legs, rolled to her side, kicked another in the face, leaped up, and staked the third. The other one came at her from behind, and she spun and kicked him again. He didn't appreciate it, and snarled as he went flying across the clearing again and collided head-first with a tree. The other two ran back at her, but instead of dodging she took them by surprise and ran straight at them. At the last second she dropped to the ground in front of them, ducking both of their attacks, staked one of them, stood up again, grabbed the other one by the hair and kneed him in the face. He went down and she staked him too. She looked around the clearing. The last vampire was lying unconscious near a tree.

"Bring any more badinage, Tricky?" Buffy said, as she walked over to the last vampire and staked him.

She turned, and saw Trick pointing a gun at her.

"Nope," Trick said, and shot her.

When Buffy woke up, her shoulder hurt and she was lying on the grass with her head in Willow's lap. Willow was holding her hand.

Willow looked scared. When Buffy looked around, she saw why. Trick was standing over her, holding the gun down at his side. Eight more vampires stood around him, growling. "She's up," Trick said.

"Hello, Slayer," a voice said. The voice sounded like a shotgun. It also sounded rather pleased with itself. "I'm Kakistos."

The vampire who owned the voice went well with it. He stepped into the light and sneered down at Buffy, towering over her. He was bald and very tall and very wide. He had cloven hooves for hands and feet. One of his eyes was gone; in its place was a long, jagged, horizontal scar.

He crouched down beside Buffy and grabbed her by the throat.

"Faith," he growled. "I want her."

"Stop it!" Willow said. "Stop!"

Buffy gasped, and black spots swam before her eyes. She punched Kakistos in the face as hard as she could. He smiled.

"She can't breathe!" Willow screamed, grabbing Kakistos' cloven hand and trying to pull it away from Buffy's throat. "She can't breathe!"

"Gonna be the least of her problems soon," Trick said.

"Stop it!" Willow screamed, and scratched at Kakistos' face. He smacked her away and sent her flying.

Kakistos relaxed his grip. "Since she asked so nicely," he said. Buffy coughed, and sucked in air. The spots were still floating in front of her eyes. Shooting pain was traveling up her shoulder.

"I didn't aim for the heart because I was hoping you'd work with us on this," Trick said. "We got no reason to kill you. We don't want you. We want Faith. Be smart, girl. Tell us where she is, and we'll let you and your friend go."

Buffy knew they had a bridge they wanted to sell her too. It was now or never.

She chopped the gun out of Trick's hand, rolled away from Kakistos and flipped herself to her feet. She punched a vampire in the face as they came at her, and somersaulted away from the rest. She had to find that gun. Out of the corner of her eye she saw it lying in the grass. In the confusion Trick seemed to have forgotten about it. He was walking away from the fight, dusting off his suit. "For fuck's sake, will someone please handle this girl?" he said.

Buffy dove for the gun and managed to snag it, but the other seven vampires piled on top of her. Buffy had never handled a gun before but she had seen plenty of movies. She rolled around and started firing off shots as the vampires tried to pin her down. She knew the bullets couldn't do any real damage to them but they'd still hurt. And by emptying the gun she insured the bullets couldn't do any more damage to her. She kept firing until the gun made a clicking noise, then she smashed it into the nearest vampire's face, flung it away and got up. Trick and Kakistos stood by a tree, watching her. The other eight vampires surrounded her. The ones with bullet wounds growled in pain.

"Remember what happened last time you left a Slayer to the hired help?" Trick said. "This one's already killed six."

"Good point," Kakistos said, and ran at Buffy. The other eight vampires spread out, giving him room.

Kakistos threw a punch that took Buffy by surprise: it was much too fast. She wasn't ready and she barely ducked it in time. It connected with a tree with a crunch and knocked the tree down. Buffy had assumed Kakistos would be slow because of his size. He was much faster than he looked.

Buffy was faster. She spun and viciously kicked him in the face, a kick that would have killed any ordinary man instantly. It snapped his head back, but didn't move him. He tried to grab her, but she dodged him again, looking for Willow. She saw her lying on the grass. She couldn't tell if she was breathing.

Something happened inside of Buffy, when she saw Willow like that. Buffy felt it happen inside her.

Screaming, she ran at Kakistos and punched him in the face, first with one fist, then the other, punched him with every single ounce of her prodigious strength, over and over again, ignoring the pain in her shoulder that flared every time she connected with her right. The barrage of punches backed Kakistos up, but didn't seem to be hurting him. He laughed, taking the punishment just to show her he could. Buffy was snarling and screaming and baring her teeth; she was throwing out punches that could crush bones to powder.

Her fury flooded through her, filled her up until she couldn't contain it and then exploded out of her, exploded through her arms, and she sent it all crashing against Kakistos like cannon fire. He was trying to cover up now, but she was hitting him so hard that her hands were a blur. She smelled his blood, as his nose broke beneath her fist. The smell of it sent her into a frenzy. She roared, saliva dripping from her teeth, as she pummeled his face into meat. The Slayer was in control now and she was a lion and she meant to beat Kakistos down to nothing, to erase him. She wanted to bite his neck and feel it crack in her jaws. She wanted to see her fist come out the other side of his head. She wanted to eat his heart.

But he was laughing...

She almost tripped over something. She knew it was her stake. The lion in her didn't care about the stake; the lion wanted to keep hitting him. But Buffy knew that wouldn't work. The punishment she had been raining down on him could have knocked over a building by now and he was still standing. And she knew her rage couldn't carry her forever. She knew she had to out-think him.

Buffy took control of the lion, made her drop to the grass, scoop the stake up and roll to her side before Kakistos could grab her. Then she flipped herself back up, dodged one of his thunderous punches, got in under his guard, and staked him in the heart...

Nothing happened.

Kakistos laughed and backhanded her away; it was like a bat hitting a baseball. No one Buffy had ever fought had hit her anywhere near as hard. She hurtled through the air, crashed through the trees...and everything went black.

She was awakened this time by a clap of thunder.

She sat up, and saw Willow standing in front of her, looking at Kakistos and Trick and the vampires.

"Leave her alone," Willow said.

Buffy stood up and steadied herself against a tree. She felt lightheaded. "You gotta...get out of here," she muttered, and touched Willow's shoulder.

A bolt of lightning shot across the sky.

Trick looked up. The sky had been clear a moment before.

Kakistos watched Willow. She amused him.

Buffy tried to turn Willow around and push her behind her...and then she saw Willow's eyes, and shuddered.

They were black. They were as black as outer space...they were the blackest things Buffy had ever seen.

Willow's eyes had always been green. There was nothing left of them now.

Willow didn't move, didn't look at Buffy. She looked straight at Kakistos, with those black eyes...with the Devil's eyes.

Kakistos strolled toward Willow and Buffy, chuckling. His vampires came with him. But Trick remained where he was, looking up at the sky...

A deafening peal of thunder struck again, followed by another bolt of lightning, even more powerful than the first.

For a moment, night became day...

"I SAID LEAVE HER ALONE!" Willow screamed...

And Buffy gasped, as Willow called the lightning down from the sky and redirected it straight at Kakistos and his vampires through her fingertips.

The vampires with Kakistos were vaporized instantly. Kakistos flew across the clearing and smashed into a tree, his skin charred and blackened and smoking. Trick ran to him and propped him up.

"Time to go," Trick said, looking at Willow in amazement. But he looked away, when she looked back at him...he couldn't face those eyes. Kakistos nodded, and Trick led him away.

Willow's black eyes watched them go...

And then everything was in slow motion, and spinning around, and she heard Buffy scream, "No!"

Willow felt like all the energy in her body was seeping out of her, seeping into the ground...

She felt her body hit the grass, and she closed her eyes.

"Willow...!" Willow heard. She opened her eyes. Buffy was kneeling over her, scared. Buffy's shoulder was bleeding.

"Your shoulder," Willow said.

"Don't ever do that again!" Buffy screamed, and hugged her. "Don't ever scare me like that again!"

Willow sat up. She felt better. Her energy had returned. She wondered if she had reabsorbed it from the ground, then realized that was a very strange thought, and dismissed it. "I need coffee," she said. "A big mocha cappuccino with lots of sugar. And those cocoa sprinkles."

"Okay," Buffy said. "Your eyes are normal again."

"My eyes?" Willow said.

"They went all weird and black for a minute."

"They went...what? What happened?"

"You went all lightning girl and zapped all the vamps. Don't you remember?"

"Kinda. It's fuzzy. What about Kakistos?"

"Zapped him too, but he survived. Faith was right, he's way, way tougher than a regular vamp. I staked him and got bupkiss."

"We have to find Faith. We have to go after Kakistos together."

"I asked her before, remember? She's not much on the whole team concept."

"She'll do it for me," Willow said.

"Will...I'm...I'm sorry," Buffy said. "I'm sorry about Angel. He has his soul back. Your spell worked, it brought him back to me and it's just...I love him." She started to cry. "I love him so much I can't breathe sometimes." "I know, Buffy. I know you love him."

"But I love you too! You're my best friend and...and I can't lose you, Will. And I don't know...what I'll do if..."

"I love you too," Willow said.

Buffy hugged her again.

"You'll never lose me, Buffy," Willow said. "Never."

"He hits like a battering ram, he can't be staked, and he has a whole bunch of vamps for backup," Buffy said. It was one in the morning, and they were sitting in the living room in Rupert Giles' house. Giles was Buffy's Watcher, and a librarian, and also British, so he was used to strange new super-powerful vampires and meetings with his Slayer after midnight, he had a large collection of occult books, many of which were spread out on the coffee table in front of him, and he had made tea and set out a plate of dry little British tea cookies that you couldn't find anywhere in the United States. Buffy sat with Willow on the couch in the tastefully frumpy room with the fireplace and the scented candles. Giles liked scented candles. Tonight the house smelled like cinnamon.

Buffy looked around the room, at the guitar Giles sometimes played, leaning next to the stack of corny old records, the hat rack in the corner even though Giles never wore hats, the expensive rug she had once spilled a vanilla milkshake on, and the television that completely didn't get HBO, as Giles bent down in front of her in his bathrobe and slippers and bandaged her shoulder. She chewed one of the tasteless British tea cookies and washed it down with a sip of tea. She had lost count of the times she had been here, often late at night, often because she was hurt and she needed Giles to patch her up. He never complained, no matter how late it was. He was always gentle, when he treated her wounds.

She looked down at the milkshake stain on the rug. The rug cleaning people hadn't been able to get it out. It had been a year since that day.

"You'll be fine," Giles said with a smile, when he was finished bandaging her shoulder. "The bullet went straight through."

"Thanks," Buffy said. "But what about the vamp?"

Giles wiped his glasses, which he did when he was agitated or they were fogged up, sat down in the big, squeaky leather recliner, looked through his books, and sipped his tea.

"I know Kakistos by reputation; he killed Madeleine Lambert, the Slayer before you," Giles said. "I'm sure I have something on him somewhere. And he just showed up out of the blue?"

"No," Willow said. "He was after Faith."

"But I'm on his to-do list right after her," Buffy said.

"Faith?" Giles said, looking up at her. "Faith Lehane?"

"The other part of my double feature tonight," Buffy said. "Didn't catch her last name but she's definitely a Slayer."

Giles stood up, and paced around the room. "I was wondering if she'd find her way out here," he said. "I've been trying to get in touch with her all week... ever since the incident in Boston."

"What incident in Boston?" Willow said.

"Maybe he means the getting kicked off a skyscraper thing," Buffy said.

"Details are sketchy, a lot of what I know I've gleaned from the news channels," Giles said. "The police out there are covering it up, but Faith was obviously attacked by a large group of vampires. It happened in a restaurant located on the top floor of a skyscraper in Boston."

"It was Kakistos and his guys who attacked her," Buffy said. "She told me she dusted the lackeys, but Kakistos got away and now he's here. Along with his pal, a vamp named Trick. And they've already found more goons. They had fourteen vamps with them. If it wasn't for Willow I'd be dead."

"We're going to have to talk about that, Willow," Giles said, looking at Willow intently. "It would appear your magic has taken a rather dangerous turn."

"I didn't do it on purpose," Willow said.

"Nevertheless, you did it," Giles said. "And the fact that you don't know how you did it makes it even more worrying. But tonight we have more pressing matters."

"Yeah, I'd say a vamp who can send me into the air like a pop fly is pressing," Buffy said. "I'd say he's totally pressing. I've fought a lot of tough vamps, Giles. This one's in another league."

"And what he did in Boston was tragic," Giles said. "Sixty-three people were killed, including Faith's Watcher. And Faith nearly died with them. She fell more than fifty stories to the street. It's nothing short of a miracle she survived, even a Slayer shouldn't be able to take that kind of punishment."

"Her Watcher died...?" Buffy said.

"Yes," Giles said. "She was one of the people killed in the restaurant. A terrible loss for the Council, and for Faith."

Buffy thought about scented candles. She thought about Giles' corny guitar playing and his wonderful tea...the milkshake stain on the rug, and the way he always wiped his glasses when he was agitated...and she thought about what her life would be like if she ever lost them....if she ever lost him.

She felt Willow looking at her. "Yeah, Will," she said. "Go ahead and say it. I'm a jackass."

"You didn't know," Willow said.

"Didn't know what?" Giles said.

"Faith and I...didn't exactly hit it off," Buffy said. "I said some things. Some stupid, jackassy things. Who was her Watcher?"

"A woman named Rebecca Greer," Giles said. "I met her at a Watchers Council retreat a few years ago. Absolutely brilliant woman, she specialized in training potential Slayers. She took Faith in when she was a potential and trained her. The two of them were apparently extremely close. According to the records Faith ran away from her mother years before...there was a history of physical abuse dating back to Faith's childhood. It took Rebecca weeks to find her; she finally tracked her down last year. Rebecca eventually became something of a mother to her. Actually, I received a letter from Rebecca a little over a week ago. I was meaning to mention it to you. She was planning on bringing Faith out here for a vacation. It seems Faith was very much looking forward to meeting you."

"Thanks, Giles, way to rub it in," Buffy said, her face red. "I suck."

"We'll fix it, Buffy," Willow said. "Let's just find her."

"How?" We have no idea where she is," Buffy said.

"We could start by checking the local motels," Giles said. "She just arrived, we can assume she's probably staying at one of them."

"But there's a million motels around Sunnydale," Buffy said. "And how do we know she's not in L.A.? It would take us forever to call them all, and that's assuming anyone's gonna bother picking up the phone at this time of night."

"And we're also assuming she checked in under her own name," Giles said.

"Yeah. If I was on the run and Kakistos and his never-ending supply of disposable henchmen were after me I'd be all, Hi, I'm Jane Smith," Buffy said.

Willow took her hairbrush out of her handbag. There was a single long, brown hair embedded in it.

"There's another way," Willow said, and smiled.

Xander Harris had seen a lot of frightening things since becoming Buffy's friend; vampires were just the tip of the iceberg. There had also been a giant praying mantis, bewitched Halloween costumes, mummies, assorted robots, many, many snakes, a big blue demon that was assembled a piece at a time, a living puppet, and British people. But he had taken it all in stride, and even though he wasn't super-strong or magical and had no extraordinary abilities to speak of other than his uncanny knack for snarkiness, he always stood squarely at Buffy's side. Even at four-thirty in the morning.

"Okay, let me see if I understand all this," Xander said, yawning and drinking very strong coffee in the backseat of Giles' car, a grey 1963 Citroen DS that Giles insisted was a classic French automobile and Xander insisted looked like an overturned bathtub, as he and Buffy and Willow drove to Faith's motel before dawn. "In the eleven hours since I last saw you guys, there's a new Slayer in town, there's a new super scary vampire in town who can't be staked, and Willow can shoot lightning now."

"Yup," Buffy said, wrestling with the car like she always did on the sad occasions when she was forced to drive it, and grabbing a donut from one of the big boxes on Willow's lap. She took a bite, and washed it down with a sip of the latte she held between her legs because French people apparently didn't believe in cup holders. "Welcome to Sunnydale." She watched the street carefully, keeping an eye out for cars following them.

"You're doing a lot better this time, Buffy," Willow said with a hopeful smile, while eating a blueberry muffin and carefully balancing an extra-large super mocha cappuccino in her hand. Drinks had a tendency to spill when Buffy drove. "We haven't lurched as much as usual. I don't even feel nauseous!"

"I hate this car," Buffy said, as she struggled with the gear shift and the car made a noise like it was belching. "I really want to make sure everyone's totally clear on that. I think I'm gonna get it tattooed on my ankle."

"So you really shot lightning from your hands?" Xander said, grinning at Willow. "That's the most awesome thing ever! You're like Emperor Palpatine!"

Willow turned around and looked at him. "I'm like who?" she said, with her mouth full.

"I have a bad feeling it's Star Wars," Buffy said. "And he's gonna explain it to us."

"Palpatine was the emperor in Return of the Jedi," Xander said. "You know, the old guy who shot lightning at Luke?"

"See what you did?" Buffy said. "He's explaining."

"It's worse when he explains," Willow said.

"You guys just have no appreciation for high art," Xander said.

"And yeah, okay, lightning, but I don't know how I did it and I don't know how to do it again," Willow said. "It wasn't a spell. It just...kinda happened. And then, not really liking the fainting."

"Yeah, that part wasn't so awesome," Xander said.

"No, it wasn't," Buffy said. "So let's hope Lightning Girl is officially retired."

"So what's this new Slayer like?" Xander said.

"Faith," Willow said. "Faith Lehane."

"She's from Boston," Buffy said. "She's..." she searched for the right words. "We're different."

"Don't be so sure, Buffy," Willow said with a smile. "Anyway, I like her. She's nice."

"And she saved your life," Xander said. "Saving one of my best buds? That's serious brownie points in my book."

Willow nodded, and didn't pursue the subject. Buffy glanced at her. When Willow told Xander about the three vampires after they'd gone to his house and dragged him out of bed, she hadn't mentioned what the vampires had planned to do to her.

They were a few blocks away from the Magic Box now, and officially on the Wrong Side of the Tracks in Sunnydale. Xander looked around at the boarded-up buildings, thankful Buffy was with him. "And you're sure Faith's here, huh?" he said.

"Yup," Willow said. "The locator spell never lies."

"Not a great neighborhood," Xander said.

Buffy thought of her house, on her sunny, tree-lined street. She wondered what would have happened to her if she had run away like Faith did; on her own for years with no one to support her. Buffy had left Sunnydale and lived in a cheap little room in Los Angeles the previous summer, when her mother, sick with worry and unable to cope with the knowledge that her daughter was the Slayer, went a little crazy for awhile and kicked her out of the house. But her mother was frantically apologizing and begging her to come back the first time Buffy called her. Buffy stayed away for the summer anyway to get her head together after what happened with Angel, but she knew she had a home waiting for her. She knew her mother loved her.

What would have happened to her if it were all taken away? If her mother had beat her all her life, the way Faith's mother had? If Giles had been killed in front of her eyes?

Faith had saved her best friend's life. She had saved her best friend from being raped and killed.

Buffy knew she should have been there. But she wasn't...because she had screwed up. She'd screwed up and Willow almost died because of it. She remembered the photographs in a shoebox in her closet. She'd screwed up then, too. Maybe all she'd ever done was screw up.

Buffy was thinking of a number.

"Yup, whenever people give me that crap about how there aren't any vampires and it's all just gangs on PCP, I always say take a stroll on down to the Magic Box," Xander said. "And make sure to bring a Slayer. Or the National Guard." He looked at Willow. "Kind of a bonehead play, coming out here yourself last night, Will. You could at least have brought me along. Sure, I'm not a Slayer, but...well, actually, I've got nothing to finish that sentence. But I wish you had brought me anyway."

Willow looked back at him and smiled. "Thanks," she said.

"Will? Seriously?" Xander said. "Don't do anything like that again. Please."

Willow nodded, and looked out the window.

Willow had told Buffy where the three vampires attacked her the night before. It was the alley down the block from the Magic Box. Buffy knew they were getting close to it now. As she stopped at a red light, she flicked the turn signal on.

"What are you doing?" Xander said. "You're turning onto Ocean Street?"

"Shortcut," Buffy said. "We can shave a few minutes."

"What are you talking about? That would be longer," Xander said.

"He's right," Willow said. "Let's keep going straight."

"Are you sure?" Buffy said.

Willow smiled at her. "Yeah, Buffy. I am. But thanks," she said.

"Thanks for what?" Xander said.

"Oh, hey," Buffy said. "Do you have Friday's trig homework? I sorta lost track of time getting my ass kicked last night and I totally spaced on it."

"You really want to risk cheating off my homework?" Xander said. "You Slayers sure are brave." Something happened to Willow in that alley. Xander suspected it, when she first told him about how she had met Faith, and he heard something wrong in her voice; he knew it for a fact now.

"Your wrong answers can't be any lamer than mine," Buffy said. "Why can't Willow be in our trig class? And do either of you guys have your Western Civ notes? I was looking through my notes yesterday for the test on Constantinople and it turns out I'm missing the stuff on the Spartans and the Battle of Monopoly. I think I was fighting a robot that day."

"Robots suck," Xander said, watching Willow.

The light changed, and Buffy stepped on the gas.

"It's the Battle of Thermopylae," Willow said with a smile. "I've got the notes. And I'll help you with the trig if we have a chance." They passed the alley where the three vampires attacked her. Willow looked at it.

Buffy put her arm around her.

"C'mere, Lightning Girl," Buffy said. "Gimme a hug."

Without knowing why, Faith woke up, leaped out of bed and came up in a crouch with a sword in her hand. She let her senses reach out.

There was a knock at the door.

Willow's scent came to her...and Buffy's. And coffee and donuts too.

She heard some guy on the other side of the door say, "We're not vampires, by the way. Uh, just in case you thought we were vampires."

Faith opened the door.

Willow was standing there with two big Starbucks bags, smiling. Buffy stood behind her holding three boxes of donuts, and there was a guy with her whom Faith had never seen before. He was looking at Faith hopefully.

Buffy wasn't looking at Faith at all. She looked like she'd rather be anywhere else right now. Buffy smelled like a certain kind of flower...Faith had been trying to remember which kind, all night. It was pretty.

"We brought coffee and donuts," Willow said.

"That's Xander," Willow said, sitting next to Faith on the bed, as Xander and Buffy sat in the two rickety chairs.

"I'm the official mascot," Xander said. "And I'm also the official greeter for new Slayers. So, on behalf of all the non-vampire, non-demon, non-robot, non-giant praying mantis residents of Sunnydale, I officially bid you welcome."

"That's Xander's really long way of saying hello," Willow said.

"Uh-huh," Faith said. "Uh, hey, Xander."

"I really am the official greeter for new Slayers," Xander said, looking from Willow to Buffy. "We all agreed on that after Kendra, remember? Didn't we say I could be the official greeter?"

Buffy watched Willow, sitting next to Faith. She looked comfortable and completely at ease with her. The image came into her mind again, of Willow and Faith kissing. She buried it again.

"Faith, we brought donuts and stuff," Willow said, opening one of the boxes. "Come on, have some."

"Okay," Faith said. "Thanks." She was grateful for the food. She knew her money wouldn't last long and she was trying to conserve it.

"We brought a lot," Xander said. "Judging from the way Buffy eats, we figured you'd have a big Slayer appetite." He turned to Buffy and held up his hand. "And before you misinterpret that comment to mean I think you're fat, let me state for the record that I don't think you're fat, I've never thought you're fat, and I'd like to petition the court to change the subject in advance."

Buffy didn't rise to the bait, nor did she smile.

Xander looked at Willow. The look said, Your turn.

Willow took the ball and ran with it, determined to make this day work.

"Plus, look!" Willow said, and hauled two big plastic cups out of one of the Starbucks bags like she was scooping gold doubloons out of a treasure chest, and handed one to Faith. "Extra-large super mocha cappuccino with lots of sugar and cocoa sprinkles!"

Extra what with what now?" Faith said, sniffing it. It smelled good, whatever it was.

"Drink," Willow said.

Faith shrugged her shoulders and drank, and had a corn muffin too. And they all ate muffins and donuts and drank coffees and lattes and extra-large super mocha cappuccinos, and avoided looking at the terrible orange and black painting, and they were quiet. Faith thought she should probably say something, as it was her room and they were, after a fashion, her guests. But she didn't know what to say. She and Buffy had been avoiding each other's eyes since they arrived.

"Um, so that's a nice sword," Willow said, lamely. Faith looked over at the rapier on the nightstand.

"UC Sunnydale has a fencing club," Faith said. "I broke in and borrowed a rapier. It's not the best kind of sword but it'll have to do."

As silence descended again, Faith drank some more super mocha cappuccino, searched her brain for something to say, and finally managed to come up with, "So what's up?"

It wasn't much, but it was five in the morning and she had gotten forty-five minutes of sleep and it would have to do until she drank a lot more super mocha cappuccino.

"We ran into Kakistos last night," Willow said.

That woke Faith up.

"What?" Faith said, her posture becoming ramrod straight, the tired haze instantly disappearing from her eyes. She touched Willow's shoulder. "Will, are you...are you okay? What happened?" She noticed the bruise on Willow's face was worse than the night before.

"Trick caught up to us in the cemetery after you left," Willow said. "He had six vampires with him. He asked if we knew where you were. Then he called Kakistos on his cell phone, and Kakistos came with eight more vampires."

"Did they...hurt you?" Faith said. Faith knew it was her fault. If she hadn't lost her temper and left them there...if she hadn't insisted on going after Kakistos alone...she blushed, and felt like a fool.

"They shot Buffy," Willow said.

Faith and Buffy looked at each other for the first time.

"Shoulder. I'm healing up," Buffy said, and looked away.

"Buffy took out the six vamps Trick had with him, but then he shot her and Kakistos showed up with eight more," Willow said.

"And then Willow took the bastards down," Xander said, with a big grin.

Faith wanted to make sure she'd heard that right. "Wait," she said. "Will took them down?"

"I'm...not really sure how I did it," Willow said. "I kinda sorta called down a lightning bolt."

"You kinda sorta called down a lightning bolt?" Faith said.

"And then bang!" Xander said. "Barbecued vamp."

"I got the vampires Kakistos had with him," Willow said, as Faith stared at her. "But Trick was too far away, and Kakistos was too strong. The vampires were dusted, but when the lightning bolt hit Kakistos it just kinda burned him, and he and Trick got away."

"You killed eight vampires with a lightning bolt," Faith said, trying to wrap her head around it. "You killed eight vampires by calling a lightning bolt down from the sky."

"But I don't know how I did it," Willow said. "Plus, um, then I fainted."

Willow looked at Buffy, and then back at Faith. "Faith, Buffy has something she wants to tell you," she said.

Buffy was staring down at the floor. After a moment she looked up, and met Faith's eyes.

"I'm sorry, Faith," Buffy said.

Buffy got up, and stood in front of Faith. "Faith, I was..." Buffy said, and looked down at the floor again. "I was a bitch to you last night. You came to town and all you did was save my best friend's life and try to help me out and I treated you like shit. I'm sorry. I have some stuff going on and it's made me...it's put me off my game lately. But that's no excuse. Can we just...maybe start over...?

Faith still wasn't sure she liked her. But she knew it had taken a lot to do what Buffy had just done. Buffy was meeting her halfway. She was trying.

Faith knew what Rebecca would want her to do.

She stood up, and faced Buffy.

"I screwed up last night, Buffy," Faith said. "I left you hanging out there and you could've been killed. You were trying to talk sense to me and I wouldn't listen. I...got stuff going on too. So yeah, starting over sounds pretty good to me."

They watched each other. The tension was still there. Faith felt it, and she knew Buffy felt it too. They were two Slayers...

And they both instinctively knew there was only supposed to be one.

But there was something else. A warm feeling. Faith's body had tingled when she first met Buffy...like an electric current was passing through her. But then it had faded, and left a warm feeling behind...and the warm feeling was there again now.

Faith tried to remember the flower Buffy's scent reminded her of. Rebecca had it in the house sometimes...

After a few seconds, Willow finally stood up and glared at both of them with her hands on her hips.

"Well? Shake hands and be friends!" Willow shouted. "Be friends right now!"

Xander snorted and started laughing. And, despite herself, Faith laughed too, and then so did Buffy. Willow was smiling, but her eyes were very serious.

"I think we'd better do what she says," Buffy said, and offered her hand to Faith. "Will can get cranky. Plus, lightning bolts."

"I sure wouldn't wanna mess with her," Faith said, and took Buffy's hand.

Faith and Buffy had polished off five donuts, three corn muffins, a latte and an extra-large super mocha cappuccino, and other than the fact that they were talking about an incredibly powerful ancient vampire who was actively trying to kill them, the mood was good. They sat on the bed together and started in on the cranberry muffins, and they seemed to be more comfortable with each other. Willow and Xander were smiling in their rickety chairs.

Buffy glanced at Faith's legs. Faith looked pretty, in her nightgown. She had nice legs. Faith's scent came to her. Fruity...like a peach. With the hint of muskiness underneath that made it even better. Buffy had a warm feeling in her stomach, sitting next to her now. And it had been there in the cemetery, too...

"Still can't get over it," Faith said. "Will shot lightning from her hands. Lightning. Hot damn."

"It's too bad I can't figure out how I did it," Willow said. "It was kinda cool, except, y'know, with the fainting."

"Probably better this way," Faith said. "Whatever the hell you did, it took a lot out of you. I'm just glad you didn't get hurt."

"I've got donuts, my super mocha cappuccino, and a new friend," Willow said, and smiled. "I'm good. Heck, I'm just this side of dandy."

"Just leave the heavy lifting to Faith and me," Buffy said. "Worrying about you stresses me out. It's bad for my complexion."

"From now on you're staying up on the ship with me, Will," Xander said. "No more away teams for you."

Faith turned to Buffy. "You got a translation on that?" she said.

"Star Trek," Buffy said. "Remind me to lend you my Xander-to-English dictionary. I'm fluent, but you're gonna need a crash course."

"He gets like this sometimes when he's had too much sugar," Willow said.

"Okay," Faith said. "So you guys took out the hired help. With any luck that was all of 'em and it'll take them awhile to recruit more. We've got a window here. We need to use it. We find Kakistos before he finds us and take the fight to him. During the day if we can swing it."

"In Sunnydale one super-powerful evil vampire is like a tiny evil needle in a big evil haystack," Buffy said. "But I can ask around. There's a demon bar in town. The bartender keeps me clued in."

"Like a paid snitch?" Faith said. "Hey, cool. Just like in the movies."

"I don't pay him though," Buffy said. "I just beat him up. He's a greasy little sleazebag."

"Hey, beating him up works too," Faith said.

"You know, Buff, Willy's a pretty cheap bribe," Xander said. "I bribed him with twenty-eight dollars once last year during that whole giant snake thing."

"Yeah, but I really like hitting him," Buffy said.

"Or, hey, y'know, we can just do this," Willow said, and pulled candles, a folded-up map of Sunnydale, and a tupperware bowl of powder from her handbag.

"Locator spell?" Buffy said. "But you'll need something from Kakistos, and we don't have anything."

"I took this from the cemetery," Willow said, and gingerly pulled Trick's gun from her handbag, careful to aim it toward the floor.

"That's the gun Trick shot me with," Buffy said. "He's totally off my Christmas list. And on my kick in the face list. Don't worry, it's out of bullets."

"Okay. And once we find him we'll find Kakistos, one way or another. I'll need two or three hours," Willow said, and took a big gulp of her super mocha cappuccino, set the map, candles, powder and gun out on the floor, and sat cross-legged in front of them. She took a lighter from her purse, and lit the candles. Peppermint wafted through the room.

"Are those Giles' scented candles?" Buffy said.

"I stole some of his peppermint ones," Willow said. "Peppermint's my favorite but the Magic Box was all out."

"Who's Giles?" Faith said.

"My Watcher," Buffy said. "He's British. He's British with a side-order of British."

"Now you Slayers go and be all strategic and come up with a plan," Willow said. "Witch meditating here."

"I'll guard the donuts," Xander said, as Willow closed her eyes.

"You can come over here and be strategic with me and Faith if you promise not to talk about how Luke was strategic when he had to take out the Death Star, or any plan Captain Kirk ever came up with," Buffy said. "Especially that Teriyaki Maru thing."

"'Kobayashi Maru'," Xander corrected her.

"Not that one either," Buffy said.

"It was a brilliantly unorthodox plan," Xander said, and sat on the bed with them.

"Okay," Faith said. "So let's start with what we know about these guys."

"We know Kakistos is way stronger than a regular vamp," Buffy said. "Can't be staked. Serious anger management issues. I'd say he's downright grumpy. Especially now that you've got him singing falsetto."

"She's got him what?" Xander said.

"Xander Harris, meet Faith Bobbit," Buffy said.

Xander looked at Faith. "You didn't," he said.

"Sure did," Faith said. "Good times."

Xander's hands moved in front of his groin. "I'm just gonna apologize in advance right now for anything I might ever say, do or think that might annoy you in any conceivable way, ever," he said.

"Don't worry, Xan Man, you're on my good list," Faith said. "So okay, we know Kakistos is a bad ass, no question. But I've been thinking about what went down in Boston. Trick gets chatty, and he dropped some hints that make me think he's the key to all this."

"Faith," Buffy said. "I'm...really sorry about your Watcher. I'm sorry about Rebecca."

"Heard about that, huh?" Faith said, looking away from them.

"Giles told us," Buffy said. "He said she was a great, brilliant lady."

"Yeah," Faith said. "She was."

Faith looked back at them again. "Okay, Trick," she said. "He tracked Becca to the restaurant she was at, trying to get a bead on me."

Xander and Buffy exchanged a glance. It would take awhile with Faith.

"He knew what kind of car she drove, had her plate number," Faith said. "He knew her full name, birthday, where she lived in England, where she lived with me in Boston, everything. He said I was hard to track because there wasn't much of a paper trail on me and it pissed him off. But he still knew my last name, what part of Boston I was from, knew I dropped out of school and don't have my driver's license yet. He talked about computers. I figure that's how he tracks people. And he's the one who gets Kakistos his goons. He mentioned that too."

"The tracking people makes sense," Buffy said. "He was here looking for you right after you got here."

"'Course, they'd probably figure I'd head out here," Faith said. "Kakistos mentioned he'd be coming after you next, they probably figured I'd warn you."

"So, okay...maybe Kakistos is the brawn, Trick is the brains?" Buffy said.

"Maybe more like, Kakistos is in charge but Trick makes sure everything runs smooth," Faith said. "Either way, we start with Trick, we can squeeze him for all the info we need."

"Trick stayed out of the fight with me," Buffy said. "I don't know how tough he is, but for all we know he could be really tough. If he can't be staked either I'm gonna start pouting."

"Hold it," Xander said. "Don't you understand what this means?"

"What?" Buffy said.

"Think about it," Xander said. "Trick went after Faith through her Watcher. He had all her personal info. Anyone good enough with computers that he has access to all that, it's a cinch he can probably trace phone calls, backtrack a license to get an address, all that stuff. Sure, he wants Faith but you're on his list. What makes you think he won't do the same thing with Giles? Or your Mom? For all we know he's got their addresses now. If I had a Slayer on my trail, holding someone she cares about hostage would be a pretty nice bargaining chip to have."

"Oh my God," Buffy said, and leaped off the bed. Faith was up out of the bed too, looking toward the front door, all her senses alert, her sword back in her hand. Remembering the cars with blacked-out windows, and the guns inside.

"Not just Giles and your Mom, B," Faith said. "We gotta stash 'em all, Will and Xander too."

"Way ahead of you," Buffy said, picking up the phone on the nightstand. "By the way, please, please tell me you didn't use your real name when you checked into this place."

"Mary Connolly," Faith said. "Paid in cash."

"Buffy, wait!" Xander said. "If Trick has Giles' or your Mom's phones tapped then calling them tells him exactly where you are right now."

Buffy hung up the phone. "Crap," she said.

"Pay phone," Faith said. "Find a pay phone, I'll guard Will and Xander."

"Okay," Buffy said, and ran to the door.

"Oh, and Buff," Xander said. "Tell Giles I said to bring the crate I left at his place. He'll know what you mean."

"Got it," Buffy said. She hesitated at the door, and looked at Faith.

"No one's getting to them, B," Faith said. "Got my word on that."

Buffy smiled, and walked out the door.

Faith moved to a chair by the window and drew the curtains. She watched Willow, in a trance on the floor, oblivious to everything around her, and vulnerable.

Faith was thinking of a number.

She had been keeping count...

She had been keeping count of all the people who had died because of her. Because she wasn't good enough. Because she screwed up. She'd heard on the news that the death toll from the Prudential building and the Papa Gino's was seventy-two.

Willow had almost been number seventy-three in the cemetery, because Faith had left her and Buffy there alone...because she had screwed up again. Buffy had almost been number seventy-four.

"Good catch on all the cloak and dagger stuff, Xan Man," Faith said, as she watched the street through a tiny gap in the curtains, her sword ready.

"Buffy's the star, but sometimes you have to throw your bench guys in, give your starters a rest," Xander said. "I just try not to blow the lead."

"Talkin' hoop, huh?" Faith said with a smile, not taking her eyes off the street. "And here I thought you were all about the sci-fi."

"Hoop and sci-fi can peacefully coexist," Xander said. "Go Lakers."

"Bite your tongue, Xan Man," Faith said. "I'm Celts all the way, baby." She had let Rebecca die. She had let all those people in the Prudential building and the Papa Gino's die. She had almost let Willow and Buffy die. Maybe Buffy was right about her the night before. Maybe all she'd ever done was screw up.

Seventy-two.

"Len Bias is getting old," Xander said. "He won't be around forever."

"Long enough for a couple more banners," Faith said. Maybe she was a screw-up. Maybe she was just stupid. Maybe she always would be. But she wasn't going to let Willow and Xander die. Kakistos would have to go through her first.

Faith watched the street.

"Giles!" Buffy said, into the payphone in the parking lot of the Arby's four miles away from Faith's motel. "Just listen and don't talk, the line could be traced. I'm at Faith's place. I called a cab, it's on the way out to your house now. Get in, get my Mom, and get out here with her right now. Bring money, you'll be taking another cab ride from here. And Xander says bring the crate he left at your place. And I hate your car. I'm pretty sure it's evil. I might stake it."

She smiled. "Yeah, I know," she said. "It's a classic French automobile...I, um, spilled a teeny little splash of coffee on the seat. But it's just a little bit, you can't even notice it. It totally blends with the other coffee stain from last month."

"Okay, I'm hanging up now," she said. "Remember what I said last night about the cars with blacked-out windows. And Giles? Thanks. Thanks for..." Her eyes started tearing up. "Thanks for just...always being there for me, okay?" she said, her voice quavering. "You're the best Watcher in the world. I gotta go now. I'll see you soon, okay?"

She hung up the phone.

The bell rang. "It's me," Buffy said, from the other side of the door.

She didn't have to say it. Faith had known it was her by her scent.

"Everything's cool," Faith said, as she opened the door and let her in. "Willow's floating now and Xander and me are talking basketball. Giles and your Mom on the way?"

"Yeah," Buffy said, and sat on the bed and had a donut. "Now we just need someplace for them to go."

"It's gotta be a private house so vamps can't walk in," Faith said, and grabbed a jelly donut. Buffy kept on taking the jellies, and there were only two left now. "And whoever lives there can't be connected to you. No relatives, no friends. Who knows what Trick's got on you so far but we can't take chances."

"So we need someone no one would ever expect us to go to, but who'd still take us in," Xander said. "And there is no way the Celtics make it out of the east this year. Jordan won't be denied forever."

"Len and Reggie are good for another couple runs, and now that Red's brought in Shaq? Chicago won't know what hit 'em," Faith said. "And if we don't get past the Bulls this time there's no damn way you guys are."

Buffy thought about sending everyone to stay with Angel, but immediately dismissed the idea. He could protect them, but Xander and Giles didn't trust him after everything that had happened and they probably wouldn't ever trust him again. And Willow...Buffy knew there was still something wrong. Something Willow hadn't told her. And Angel's mansion wasn't a private residence as far as vampires were concerned anyway; they could walk right in without being invited. She watched the easy way Faith got along with Xander. Buffy was certain Faith would stake Angel on sight no matter how hard she tried to explain to her about how he had a soul now, and she was also certain Xander and Giles would be on Faith's side. She was just starting to get it together with Faith and she didn't need Angel complicating things now.

"Man, I miss Magic and Larry," Xander was saying. "Those were the days, huh?"

"Hey, we held up our end, man," Faith said with a grin. "The Celts stayed good even after Larry and Kevin retired. We're on banner twenty-two now, baby. Not our fault you guys couldn't keep up."

"Is Parish ever gonna retire?" Xander said. "The guy's about eighty."

"He wants a ring for every finger first," Faith said. "He's one away."

Buffy thought of all the people she knew, trying to come up with someone she knew well enough to be able to swing an invitation to their house, but not so well that Trick could connect her to them.

Unfortunately, she kept coming back to one name.

"Bullcookies," she said, and pulled her address book from her purse, and picked up the phone. "Got someone?" Xander said.

"Yeah," Buffy said. "And you're not gonna like her. But on the plus side, her house has a pool."

"I like swimming," Xander said.

"Hold onto those happy feelings, Xander," Buffy said, and dialed. "Nurture them. Cherish them."

Xander looked at Buffy like she had just shot his dog.

"Oh, no," he said. "Tell me you're not. Say, 'Xander, I'm not.'"

"Xander, I am," Buffy said.

"Dude, it can't be that bad, can it?" Faith said. "Who's she calling?"

Cordelia Chase rolled over in her luxurious bed, opened one eye, and squinted at the darkness. Her phone was ringing. She squinted at the floor-to-ceiling window thirty feet away. The sun wasn't up yet. She squinted at the alarm clock. It said 5:50.

She tried to remember what day it was. For one terrifying moment she thought it was Monday. Then she knew it had to be Sunday, because she had been to the party after the football game the night before and she felt hung over. She tried to remember how far she had let Todd Evans go when she was off in that quiet corner with him and his shoulders and her third martini. Being completely, adorably fabulous and the most popular girl in school could be a cross to bear sometimes. There were political considerations people never took into account.

The phone kept ringing. The maid wasn't picking it up. Cordy buried her head under her pillow, but then decided whoever had the gall to wake her up before sunrise on a Sunday when she was hung over was desperately in need of being ripped a new asshole and that it was practically her civic duty to do it. And the maid was so completely going to get yelled at that it wasn't even funny.

She shrugged off her silk sheets, readied the first volley in what she anticipated to be a short but devastating "shock and awe" style verbal assault, and picked up the phone.

"Whoever you are, let me count the ways that you're pissing me off," she said. "And then let me explain to you exactly why pissing me off is such a really disastrously bad idea."

"Cordy," Buffy said, frowning at the phone. Kakistos was going to get an extra-special beating for making her do this. "Always a pleasure. You're just a ray of sunshine in all our lives."

"Who the hell is this?" Cordy said, getting up and wrapping her velour bathrobe around her. She was completely awake now and ready for a fight, something she could really sink her teeth into. The voice sounded familiar, but she couldn't quite place it. "And what exactly is your mental damage that you think waking people up at six in the morning on a Sunday is a good idea?"

"It's Buffy. Buffy Summers. The girl you've been rude to in the hallways at school for the past couple years? Oh yeah, and I also saved your life. Twice."

"Buffy," Cordy said, with a grim smile. "Of course it's you. How could it not be you? Who else can so effortlessly piss me off?"

"As much as I'd like exchanging pleasantries with you all morning, I need to get right down to it," Buffy said. "I need a favor."

"You," Cordy said. "Need a favor. From me. I'm on one of those shows where they pull pranks on people, right? There are cameramen in the bushes outside and they're gonna leap out and say 'gotcha'!"

"Cordy, my Mom and Giles and my friends are in trouble. I need you to let them stay at your place today. It should just be for today. Then I'll come get them when it's over."

"Sure, anything else? Wanna borrow my car? How about a date with my boyfriend? Or I could write you out a check for a million dollars..."

Buffy sighed. "Cordy, I'm serious," she said. "They've got nowhere else to go, and..."

"What are you talking about?" Cordy said, pacing around the room and stretching her back. Talking to Buffy always made her back hurt for some reason. The girl just stressed her out. "Nowhere to go why? In trouble why? Make sense, because I was done with this conversation before I even picked up the phone."

Buffy wanted to put her fist through the wall. "Remember how I saved your life when those vampires tried to kill you?" she said.

"That was guys on drugs, and both times I could've handled it myself."

"Think what you want, I don't have time to argue. There's a vampire after me and he might try to get at me through my Mom and Giles and Willow and Xander. They need somewhere to stay until I take him down."

"Okay," Cordy said, and grinned despite herself. "I'll take Buffy's Paranoid Delusions for eight-hundred. So if vampires are after your friends why not put them up in a hotel?"

"Because vampires can walk right into a hotel, it's a public place. And this one's good at tracking people. But they can't walk into a private home, they have to be invited. You'll all be safe as long as you don't let any strange people in."

"And yet you want me to let your friends in," Cordy said. "Are we seeing the logical flaw in our argument yet?"

"Cordy," Buffy said, and took a deep breath. She was an inch away from reaching through the phone and strangling her. "I saved your life. Twice. I don't give a shit whether you acknowledge it or not, I don't give a shit whether you believe in vampires or not."

Xander and Faith both looked at Buffy. Xander had seen Buffy like this before. And he knew when he heard Buffy speaking in that particular tone of voice and he saw Buffy's eyes flashing in that particular way that it was time to duck and cover.

"I saved your ungrateful life and you owe me and you're gonna make good on it, Cordy," Buffy said. "My Mom and Giles and Willow and Xander are in trouble and you owe me and you're gonna make good on it today."

Cordy hadn't ever heard this tone from Buffy before. But she had seen Buffy punch a hole through a wall and she had seen her take down three vampires--Cordy knew vampires existed, she just pretended she didn't because that was the official line in town--single-handed. Cordy didn't duck and cover for anyone...but she decided it might be a good idea to tread a little cautiously now.

"Well, aren't we bitchy this morning," Cordy said.

"If I have to come down there and bang on your door you're gonna find out just how bitchy I can be," Buffy said.

"Fine, whatever," Cordy said, after a moment. "Just make sure they don't touch anything. I don't know where they've been."

"Thank you."

"Oh, sure, anytime. What are enemies for?"

Buffy was tired. She hadn't slept in more than a day and she felt it catching up with her now. "One more thing, Cordy," she said. "My Mom will be with them. Please don't be rude to her."

The 'please' took Cordy by surprise. Underneath it, she heard the worry and the exhaustion in Buffy's voice for the first time. And she suddenly felt lousy about herself.

"It's...it's okay, Buffy," Cordy said. "I'll be nice to them. The weather's supposed to be summery today, you know...tell them to bring their bathing suits if they want. It looks like it'll be a great day for using the pool."

Buffy smiled. "Thanks, Cordy," she said, and hung up.

"I can't believe you're making us stay with Cordy," Xander said. "What did we ever do to you?"

"I feel your pain, Xander. But she's all we've got," Buffy said.

"Queen bitch, huh?" Faith said. "I knew a couple girls like her in high school. Well, for the year I went to high school anyway."

"Only because she's never seen me really pissed off," Buffy said. "If she ever does she'll find out who the real queen bitch is pretty fast."

Faith grinned. She was starting to like this girl after all.

"How do you even have Cordy's number?" Xander said. "Are you secretly evil?"

"We were partnered up on that science project, remember?" Buffy said. "The thing with the egg? Drop it from twelve feet and find a way for it not to break? Guess I forgot to throw away her phone number. And burn it."

"Oh yeah, right, I remember that now. And then your egg broke and there was that Pterodactyl Demon," Xander said.

"If Cordy had held up her end building the little parachute thing the egg wouldn't have broke in the first place," Buffy said. "Stupid demon egg. How was I supposed to know it was a demon egg? If they're gonna sell demon eggs at the supermarket they should be clearly labeled."

"Pterodactyl Demon?" Faith said.

"Welcome to Sunnydale," Buffy said. "Anyway there's hope for Cordy yet. She said you guys could use the pool."

"Hey, great!" Xander said. "If we can just stop at my place and get my swim stuff--"

"Nope," Faith said. "Too risky. If you absolutely gotta swim, stop off at a store somewhere and buy a bathing suit real quick. You all need to stay away from your houses today."

"Faith's right," Buffy said. "You can stop off at the Costco or whatever and buy what you need to make your stay at Cordy's livable. But you have to be quick, and no going home. And no leaving Cordy's until we come and get you."

Buffy sat back down on the bed with Faith and took the last jelly donut. Faith decided to overlook that.

"Okay, Faith," Buffy said. "Let's figure out how you and me are gonna dust these guys."

"Music to my ears, B," Faith said.

After attacking the dilemma from every conceivable angle, it eventually became apparent to Buffy and Faith that the problem with super-powerful vampires who can't be staked and potentially have a network of vampire minions cruising around with automatic rifles is that it's very difficult to come up with plans to defeat them. They still had yet to come up with a plan, when the bell rang. Instantly, Faith was up and ready to fight. But Buffy was relaxed.

"My Mom," Buffy said, and got up and walked to the door.

"Buffy?" a woman's voice said. "Are you in there? Open this door!"

Buffy opened the door, and Joyce Summers rushed into the room and threw her arms around her.

"Hi, Mom," Buffy said.

"What happened to you? Tell me what happened! Are you all right? What happened to your shoulder?" Joyce practically screamed, noticing the bandage.

Faith watched her with Buffy. Joyce was forty years old, and pretty, and she looked younger than her age. She was tall, with reddish-blonde hair and hazel eyes, and Buffy looked like her. Buffy smelled like her too. Faith saw Joyce's concern; she saw the love there. She looked away.

"Mom, everything's..." Buffy started to say.

"What happened to your shoulder?" Joyce insisted.

"A vamp...scratched it," Buffy said. "Look, Mom, I don't have a lot of time. There's a new vampire in town and he's dangerous and you need to let me do my job here."

Joyce looked in her daughter's eyes. She knew Buffy was lying about her shoulder, just the latest lie in a series of them that stretched back...how far? How long since the day her daughter confided in her that she had these powers and this calling and this amazing gift and that it was her responsibility, her duty to stop the tide of evil that rose up, sometimes, threatening to engulf the world? She and Buffy's father had Buffy committed to an asylum, that day...and Buffy had never confided in her again. And Joyce had never forgiven herself.

It had cost Joyce her marriage, eventually: a piece at a time, she had lost her husband to it...to the Slayer.

She stood by her daughter anyway.

The day she found out Buffy was a Slayer, the day she saw her kill a vampire right in front of her and she had no choice left but to believe it, she knew she couldn't keep her daughter to herself anymore. She had to share her now; she had to share her with a whole world that it was Buffy's responsibility to protect.

"I love you," Joyce said. "You know that, right?"

"Mom..." Buffy said, groaning a little, and rolling her eyes. "What did I tell you about getting all After School Special? And where's Giles?"

Joyce smiled. She remembered acting the exact same way around her own mother, when she was Buffy's age. You're seventeen, and free...and then one day you're forty, and you have a daughter, and she has a power over you that you never thought anything could. "I know, parents are such a drag, aren't they?" Joyce said. "Giles is bringing some things in from the cab."

"I love you too," Buffy said, with a little smile. "And that concludes this week's very special episode of 'Buffy, Slayer of Vampires'. Tune in next week when Buffy confronts peer pressure." Buffy walked out the door to help Giles, and Joyce looked around the room for the first time.

"Hello, Xander," Joyce said with a smile. "Why is Willow floating on the floor with her eyes closed?" Joyce noticed the gun, and knew then what happened to Buffy's shoulder. She made herself keep smiling anyway.

"Hi, Mrs. Summers," Xander said. "Will's being all witchy."

Joyce's eyes lit on Faith. "Hello," she said, looking at Faith curiously. "You must be Faith. Rupert says you're a Slayer too, like my daughter."

"Uh, yeah, hi, Mrs. Summers," Faith said.

"Please," Joyce said, and sat next to Faith on the bed. "Call me Joyce. I already feel like you're the sister Buffy never had growing up."

"Uh...thanks," Faith said. Faith felt uncomfortable around Joyce, but she didn't know why. "Uh...who's Rupert?"

"I am," Giles said, walking into the room with Buffy. Buffy carried a crate into the room, and set it down on the bed. "Rupert Giles. I'm Buffy's Watcher. I've heard quite a lot about you, Faith. It's a pleasure to meet you."

He was looking at her. Scrutinizing her. Faith recognized the look. He was looking at her the same way Rebecca had, the day they first met.

"And now, Buffy, I take it you have an explanation for this?" Giles said.

"Trick finds people for Kakistos," Buffy said. "He uses computers to get their personal info. Addresses, phones, cars, the works. It's how he found Faith, he had all her Watcher's info. You guys aren't safe at home."

"Bloody computers," Giles said. "I keep warning people about computers. No one ever listens."

"Who's this, Faith?" Joyce said, picking up the photo of Gwen from the nightstand. "Is this your sister? She's beautiful."

It was too much. Giles and Buffy's mother and now Gwen...Faith felt everyone's eyes on her. She had to get out of there.

"She...uh...she was...my Watcher's daughter," Faith managed to say.

"Was...?" Xander said.

"Uh...hey, you know what? I'm just gonna go hop in the shower real quick and put some clothes on," Faith said. Faith grabbed some clothes from the bureau and the closet and practically ran into the bathroom.

When she got in there and the door was shut safely behind her she leaned over the sink, and just let herself breathe for awhile.

Buffy waited for the sound of the shower running before she spoke. "Faith's had it tough, Mom," she said, quietly. "Her Watcher was killed. Faith saw it happen. I guess they were real close, too. The vamp we're after is the one who did it." She took Gwen's photograph from her mother, and looked at it.

"That's...that's terrible," Joyce said. "That poor girl. "Where are her parents?"

"Faith...ran away," Buffy said. "I don't know where her parents are." Buffy realized she already knew more about Faith than Faith would have liked. She decided to keep what Giles had told her about Faith's mother to herself.

"I looked up Rebecca's file after you left last night," Giles said. "She had one daughter, Gwendolyn. She was killed by vampires ten years ago, when she was six. Along with Rebecca's husband."

Buffy looked at Gwen again. Gwen was a beautiful young girl, with blonde hair and dark, piercing blue eyes.

"She looked like her mother," Giles said, looking over her shoulder.

"Faith doesn't have much," Xander said, looking around at the cheap room. "Why do you think she kept the picture?"

Buffy carefully set the photograph back down on the nightstand.

You do have a Watcher, right? Buffy heard herself say, in the cemetery. Or is that something else you're screwing up? Not that your Watcher's done such a bang-up job. She remembered the look in Faith's eyes, when she said it.

"Rebecca," Buffy said. "Faith loved her."

They heard the shower turn off. Faith walked back in a few minutes later in her broken-in jeans and her tee-shirt, with her game face on and a swagger in her step.

"Nothin' like a nice hot shower to start the day off. Especially since vamps don't smell so good. Okay, so, Giles, right?" Faith said, pointing at Giles as she sat on the edge of the bed and put on her boots. "So what's up with the box? You bring me a present?"

Giles opened the crate. There was a flamethrower inside, along with bundles of dynamite, and two swords. "As a matter of fact, I did," he said, and pulled out the swords. "I see you already found a sword for yourself, but these are better. These are katanas, Japanese swords. In the hands of an expert they are devastating blades." He handed the swords to Buffy and Faith. They looked them over, getting a feel for them in their hands. "Xander can explain the rest."

"Flamethrower, dynamite," Xander said. "Dynamite comes with remote detonators. It's all stuff we grabbed from the local army base last year. With Kakistos being all grumpy and unstakable, it might come in handy."

"Your stakes not working on Kakistos," Giles said. "It bothers me."

"It bothered me too," Buffy said. "Especially the part where I was getting my ass kicked."

"Buffy," Joyce said.

"Butt," Buffy said. "Getting my butt kicked."

"What I mean is, it shouldn't be possible," Giles said. "It goes against everything we know about vampires. It goes against all the established lore."

"Believe me, it's possible," Buffy said. "I've got the bruises to prove it."

"I wonder," Giles said. "I've done a bit of research. Not much is known about Kakistos, but we do know that he is very old, perhaps the oldest living vampire in the world. He has cloven hooves for hands and feet. Other ancient vampires--the Master, for example--have mutated as the years go by, becoming more bestial in appearance. I wonder if perhaps there are other aspects to these mutations. Such as, for example, tougher skin. Or perhaps, if Kakistos' heart itself was thicker than normal, an ordinary stake might not be enough to kill him."

"Which leaves us back at square one," Buffy said. "So what's the point?"

"Hold up, B, I get what he's sayin'," Faith said. "Becca always told me the same thing--wooden stake to the heart kills a vamp, no exceptions. And she knew about Kakistos. If there was something special about him that he really couldn't be staked, you can bet Becca would have known about it, Becca was always on the ball. No way something like that would get by her. Maybe his heart is so old and thick and tough now that we just need a bigger hunk of wood to get to it."

"It's something to keep in mind, at least," Giles said. "But these swords are your best option now. No vampire can survive beheading, I don't care how bloody old he is. And he won't be very pleased with that flamethrower either."

"I'm sure pleased with it though," Faith said, and pulled the flamethrower out of the crate and examined it. "You know just what a girl wants, G-Man."

"Uh, can I just mention that I'm the one who stole the stuff?" Xander said.

"Stealing stuff from an army base," Faith said. "Pretty radical move."

"There was this magic spell last Halloween, our costumes sorta took over our minds and gave us weird new memories," Xander said. "So Buffy ended up as this Victorian lady and Willow ended up as the ghost of, uh, a dead prostitute..."

"Hold up. Will dressed as a prostitute?" Faith said. "Seems a little out there for Will."

"Nah, she just wore this sort of sexy outfit," Buffy said. "My fault, I wanted her to show herself off a little, so I took her out shopping to get something a little wild, and she ended up wearing this short skirt and a crop top. And she looked pretty but she was all embarrassed and a little freaked out, so she put a bedsheet on over it and went out as a ghost. Add a dash of annoying magic and presto, instant ghost of a dead prostitute."

"She was just so cute," Xander said. "She was the cutest dead prostitute ever. Uh...that didn't come out right."

"And I got to wear a corset and totally not know how to fight anymore," Buffy said. "And I was suddenly scared to death of vampires. Worst holiday ever. Even worse than last Christmas when we got all the zombies."

"Anyway I dressed as this army guy, and suddenly I had all these army memories," Xander said. "Like how rocket launchers work, and the codes to get into the supply depot at the local base. The memories stuck even after we returned to normal, so sometimes I still say stuff like "reconnoiter". The annoying thing is I was gonna go out as James Bond, but the tux rental place was closed. I could've had James Bond memories. James Bond memories."

"Are you ever gonna let that go?" Buffy said.

"No," Xander said.

"Count your blessings, Xander," Willow said, and blew out the candles and stood up. "You still got to be an army guy and pick up all those cool army skills. Me? When you're a crack addict prostitute, well, let's not even talk about the skills I picked up. Hi, Giles, Mrs. Summers. What are you guys doing here?"

"Trick's a computer nerd," Buffy said. "It's how they tracked Faith, he had all her Watcher's info."

"I bet he's on AOL," Willow said. "All the evil people are."

"Anyway until we corral Trick it's not safe for my Mom or Giles to stay at their houses, for all we know Trick knows where they live," Buffy said. "Did the spell work? Did you find him?"

"Wait," Xander said. "I want to hear more about the skills Willow picked up last Halloween first."

"Xander," Joyce said, and smiled. "Be good."

"Or I could just hit you with a lightning bolt," Willow said.

"I'm shutting up now, aren't I?" Xander said.

"Being skanky isn't as much fun as it looks in the movies," Willow said. "Just say no to drugs, kids."

"I know how to knit now," Buffy said. "Plus ballroom dancing."

Willow held up the map of Sunnydale and pointed at a spot near the northwest corner. There was a tiny pinpoint of light there. "Trick is right there," she said. "I got a pretty clear vision of the place too, it's this really run-down old warehouse near the docks. Hey, are there any blueberry muffins left? I'm totally jonesing for a blueberry muffin. Those things are like crack! Um...I mean...I'm gonna stop talking now."

"Okay," Buffy said, and passed Willow a blueberry muffin. "So here's the dealie-o. It's not safe to go home and motels can't keep vamps out. So I found a place to stash you all. Once Faith and I take the vamps down we'll come get you."

"Where are we going?" Willow said.

Xander looked deeply troubled. Faith looked up at Buffy, and grinned.

"What?" Willow said. "What is it? Where are we going?"

Buffy put her hands on Willow's shoulders. "Will, you know how you always say we're best friends no matter what, and you never carry grudges?" she said. "Not even after that time I borrowed your favorite sweater and got that stain on it and the cleaners could never get it out?"

"I really liked that sweater," Willow said. "And are you ever gonna give me my blouse back?"

"Cordy's house," Buffy said.

Willow burst out laughing. "Right! Cordy! Oh sure, like I'm gonna fall for that one! I know what happened, I was all being trancey and you guys were like, 'Hey, let's play a joke on Willow when she wakes up'. Cordy. As if! So come on, Buffy, seriously...where are we going?"

"I can't believe you're making us stay with Cordy," Willow said, doing her scowly face at Buffy with her arms folded across her chest and looking every bit as menacing as a baby panda bear. They all sat around the map on the bed, waiting for the cab to arrive and trying to come up with a plan.

"Oh, Cordelia can't be that bad, can she, Willow?" Joyce said.

"She can be," Buffy said. "And she is, on a regular basis. I've been tempted to stake her before. But I think she's experimenting with niceness today, so if you guys wanna use her pool she said it's fine."

"See, Willow?" Joyce said, and patted Willow's arm. "It'll be okay. I'm sure if you got to know Cordelia better you'd find she's just as nervous about seeing you as you are about seeing her. It's not easy being one of the popular girls at school, you know. I was popular, and I always thought a lot of people judged me without ever trying to get to know me."

"Mom, you know how I'd do bad stuff when I was a kid and it annoyed you and you'd send me up to my room and not let me watch Beverly Hills 90210?" Buffy said. "If Cordy was your daughter you would have sold her to a pack of traveling gypsies. This planet isn't big enough for the two of you. Okay, so Trick is in a warehouse by the docks. How does that help us?"

"A big loud fight shouldn't attract too much attention out there at least," Faith said. "Will, you said you got a good look at the place. It's real old, right? What's it made of? We got a flamethrower and dynamite. Think we can torch it?"

"Yup," Willow said. "Lots of wood. Judging from what I saw the place would go up really quick."

"Okay, that's an idea," Buffy said. "We know Trick's there, but the question is, will we find Kakistos with him. If we have to go looking for Kakistos it changes the game plan."

"Plan for your enemy's capabilities, not for what you think he might do," Faith said. Faith noticed Giles was watching her.

"What's that mean?" Buffy said.

"Something Becca always told me," Faith said. "Don't try to predict where the bad guy's gonna move, just be ready for any kind of move he can make. That way you keep all the bases covered. So for all we know Kakistos is off somewhere taking some R and R after Willow toasted him. But he could be in that warehouse with Trick, and we need to be ready for that."

"Kakistos is the big fish," Buffy said. "But we'll have to be careful with Trick too, he likes to use guns."

"We'll scout the place out," Faith said. "If Kakistos is there we'll go in hard and fast. We could use the dynamite and the flamethrower, nuke the place. If we block their exits we can make sure that when they run they run smack into us. I don't care how tough they are, they won't last long against us in the daylight."

"If it's just Trick we can play it sneaky," Buffy said. "Go in and grab him and squeeze him until he tells us where Kakistos is."

"Or another way to go is, they must have cars," Faith said. "The dynamite comes with remotes. If Kakistos is there we stick the dynamite in their cars, torch the warehouse, and when they burn rubber out of there, boom. Maybe Kakistos can survive his car blowing up but I bet he'll be nice and tenderized at least."

"You're very impressive, Faith," Giles said. "Rebecca was a good teacher."

"Hey, thanks, G-Man," Faith said. "Yeah, she was. And hey, when this is all over? You and me are gonna talk weapons."

"How come you never call me impressive?" Buffy said, frowning at Giles.

"I call you impressive all the time," Giles said. "Just not when you're in the room."

"You also call me intractable, insubordinate, rash and willful," Buffy said. "And I only know what three of those mean."

"They all mean you're a very stubborn girl," Joyce said. "Now where could you have picked that up from?"

"It's a mystery for the ages," Buffy said.

A car horn beeped outside. Faith jumped up and ran to the window.

"Cab," she said. "I'll check it out." She shoved her stake in her back pocket, and walked out the door.

"We're good," she said, when she returned a minute later. "Cabbie's not a vamp, no one else in the car. Checked underneath and in the trunk too."

"Okay, guys," Buffy said, as they all stood up. "We should be there to pick you up later today. Just enjoy the pool and try not to hate me."

"You come back," Joyce said, as she hugged Buffy goodbye. "You come back to me. I won't forgive you if you don't come back to me."

"I'll be back to annoy you," Buffy said. "It's my mission in life."

Faith stood there, looking down at her Doc Marten boots, and up at the horrible painting, and then at an indeterminate spot on the wall near the window, as Buffy hugged Willow and Xander and Giles. These people were Buffy's family, Buffy's friends, Buffy's Watcher...not hers.

And then Willow walked right up to Faith, and smiled, and hugged her.

The hug took Faith by surprise, and she didn't know what to do...and then she found herself hugging Willow back.

"You come back too, Faith," Willow said. "I just made a new friend. I'm not gonna lose her now."

"Kakistos and Trick won't know what hit 'em, Will," Faith said.

"Good," Willow said. "And after that you can rescue us from Cordy."

It was like someone stuck a "Hug Me" sign on Faith's back after that. Joyce hugged her, and looked down at her and smiled. "I want you to come to the house for dinner when this is over," Joyce said. "Do you like meat loaf?"

"Uh...sure," Faith said. "I'm good with meat loaf."

"You say that now," Buffy said.

Xander looked at Faith sheepishly. "So, uh...do I get a hug too?" he said. "I likes me some hugs."

"Sure, what the hell," Faith said, and smiled, and hugged him. "I'm runnin' a special on hugs today."

"You are so gonna kick their asses," Xander said. Not even a question."

"Got that right, Xan Man," Faith said.

Giles didn't hug her. Instead, he looked at her. And wiped his glasses.

"I would give you some words of encouragement, but you don't need them," Giles said. "I know Rebecca trained you well. If you and Buffy remember your training and work as a team there is absolutely no doubt in my mind you'll destroy this creature." He smiled, that little winsome smile he had that showed off his dimples. "And then you and I are going to talk weapons," he said.

Faith couldn't believe it. She actually thought he was cute.

"Down to you and me, B," Faith said, as they watched the cab drive away.

"Let's get to it," Buffy said, and they stuffed all the weapons back into the crate, grabbed the map of Sunnydale, and walked out with them into the sun. When she saw Giles' car Faith said, "What the hell is that thing?"

"A classic French automobile," Buffy said.

"Looks like a go cart," Faith said.

"You wanna drive?" Buffy said. "I hate this car with all the hate there is."

"Sure, why not. It's a car, right? How bad can it be?"

Buffy handed Faith the keys with a smile, and Faith walked to the driver's side door. Except it was the passenger side door. The steering wheel was on the wrong side of the car. "What's the steering wheel doing over there?" Faith said.

"I don't know if they were all made like this or Giles just got some kind of special British option," Buffy said. "But in England everyone drives on the left. I think they do it just to aggravate America. I think they're still pissed off about the American Revolution. I know Giles is."

Faith shrugged her shoulders, opened the passenger door for Buffy, and got in the other side. "This thing automatic?" she said.

"Manual," Buffy said, as she got in and threw the crate in the back seat. "You can do manual?"

"Driving stick?" Faith said with a wicked grin. "One of my best things."

"Faith," Buffy said. "Can I...ask you something?"

"Shoot," Faith said.

"This is...a personal question. I don't...I probably don't even have a right to ask this. And you don't have to answer me if you don't want to."

"One way to find out. What's up?"

Faith noticed Buffy was looking away from her. Faith had no idea what was on Buffy's mind, but it was definitely something that made her uncomfortable.

"Last night...you and Willow," Buffy said. "Your scents were on each other."

And then Faith finally understood...everything fell into place, and it all made sense. She knew then why she and Buffy had gotten off to such a bad start in the cemetery. It wasn't the argument over the two vampires.

It was Willow.

Her scent had been on Willow, because she had held her close for a long time in the car, when Willow was scared...and of course, Buffy had smelled it.

And she got jealous...

"Buffy," Faith said. "Listen. Nothing happened, okay? I swear."

Buffy finally looked at her.

"Did Will tell you about last night?" Faith said. "About those vamps?"

"She said...she said they tried to rape her," Buffy said.

"Yeah," Faith said. "I got there just in time. One of the fuckers had her down on her knees and they were about to get started. And she was freaking, Buffy, she was scared. I don't mean just while it was happening, but after too. She tried to hide it, but she was pretty shaky. After I dusted the vamps I kept my eye on her, y'know? She looked like she was holding a bunch of stuff in, but maybe it needed to come out. I hotwired a car because I wanted to find you in a hurry, but Will was all still shaky. So I kept my eye on her. Anyway she's got guts, y'know? She was all scared and freaked out still, I could tell she was, but all she was thinking about was you. After I told her about Kakistos she was all about going to find you. But she was scared, Buffy. Those vamps, they were rough with her."

Buffy nodded, looking straight ahead now.

"So anyway after a couple minutes in the car she suddenly starts shaking really bad, so I pulled over," Faith said. "She had to let it out, y'know? I told her it was okay, that I was there for her, that I wouldn't leave. I told her those guys were dust, and no one could hurt her anymore now that I was with her. And she started crying...and we hugged. She was all shaky and crying and stuff and she just put her arms around me and held onto me real tight. She was real scared still and I held her for awhile, until she stopped shaking and she was okay again. That's why you smelled us on each other. And that's all that happened Buffy, I promise. She just needed someone right then, and I know you would've been her first choice. But I was there."

Buffy nodded again, still looking straight ahead.

"Did they...did they hurt her?" Buffy said.

"Well...they hit her once or twice I think, before I got there," Faith said. "She had a bloody nose and a bruise on her face. But that's it. She was okay."

A tear fell down Buffy's cheek.

"Buffy," Faith said, and turned to face her, and put her hand on her shoulder. "She's okay, honey. Will's okay."

"Motherfuckers," Buffy said, her lips trembling now, as more tears ran down her cheeks. "Those motherfuckers."

"Nothing happened to her, Buffy," Faith said. "They didn't have a chance to do anything. I got there in time. They're all dust now, honey. They're dust."

"I should've been there," Buffy said. "I left her alone. I left her all alone and they...they almost..."

Buffy smashed her fist through the glove compartment, crumpling it like tinfoil, and started to cry.

"I'm supposed to be there!" Buffy screamed. "I'm the Slayer and I'm supposed to be there! She almost died! She almost...they almost..."

Faith stroked her hair. They looked at each other.

"They almost raped her," Buffy whispered.

Faith brought Buffy toward her. Buffy leaned her head on Faith's shoulder.

"I love her and they almost..." Buffy whispered.

"They didn't, honey," Faith said, and hugged her. "They didn't, okay?"

Buffy nodded, and put her arms around Faith, and cried...

"She's okay, Buffy," Faith said. "She's okay. She's okay."

Buffy nodded again, as Faith held her.

"It's my fault," Buffy said. "I should've been there."

Faith caressed Buffy's hair, as she held her. She felt warm again...the warm feeling in her stomach was back, the one only Buffy gave her.

Buffy's scent was all around her, now. She liked being this close to it.

"No, honey," Faith said. "It wasn't your fault. Will made a bad move, okay? She made a bad move, going there by herself, and she knows it, she knows she screwed up. You can't be everywhere at once. She knows she should've called you. From now on she'll be more careful, she'll call you when she wants to go to that magic store, and nothing like this will ever happen again. Okay?"

Buffy nodded. She noticed that Faith's scent was strong at the back of her neck, just below her ear. Buffy moved her head so her nose was pressed right up against that spot.

"So you're like, the hug girl, huh?" Buffy said, and smiled. "You just breeze into town and give everybody hugs."

"It's one of my Slayer powers," Faith said. "I got like, super hugs. They make everything all better."

Buffy giggled. "Yeah," she said.

She breathed in Faith's scent. She didn't want to move. She wanted to stay right there.

But she knew she couldn't. So she wiped her tears away, and let Faith go.

"Sorry I'm being such a weirdo," Buffy said, with a smile. Faith noticed Buffy was blushing. "I probably had too much sugar today."

"It's cool, B," Faith said. "Uh, hope G-Man wasn't too fond of that glove compartment."

Buffy laughed. "I've sort of been wrecking his car a piece at a time for a year now," she said. "But the car's evil and French. It's an evil French car."

"So uh, can I ask you something?" Faith said. "Y'know, personal?"

"Sure," Buffy said. "Guess I owe you one."

"Are you and Will...?"

Buffy giggled. "What?" she said, as if it was the most ridiculous question Faith could possibly have asked. "Can I give you the biggest no ever? I mean, hello, not gay over here. And Willow isn't either. That's...why I was so freaked out before. I mean, Willow likes guys and then all of a sudden it seemed like she was maybe getting busy with some girl she just met. It was weird and I guess it just freaked me out a little."

"Sure, I can see that," Faith said. She knew Buffy was lying. Maybe Buffy and Willow weren't a couple. But Faith knew Buffy liked girls whether she was admitting it or not...and she knew Buffy liked Willow, whether she was admitting it or not. Maybe Willow was straight. But that didn't mean Buffy couldn't be jealous...

Maybe Buffy knew she could never have Willow that way, maybe she hadn't even admitted to herself that she wanted Willow that way. But Faith figured Buffy wasn't willing to let any other girl have her, either.

"Um...but hey, if you're...um...that way? I don't have a problem with it," Buffy said, and smiled. "This is California after all."

"I drive stick, remember?" Faith said, and smiled. "Stop tryin' to get busy with me."

"You wish I was getting busy with you," Buffy said, smiling back.

"You wish I wished it," Faith said. Buffy's scent came to her again.

What was that flower?

"Okay, now that we agree that we're both totally not gay we better get going," Buffy said. "Kakistos and Trick aren't gonna stake themselves."

"Time for me to demonstrate my awesome stick handling skills," Faith said with a sly grin, and started the car.

"Talk like that around Xander and he might follow you home," Buffy said.

"He's a nice guy, but I got someone back in Boston. But hey, I'd take the G-Man out for a test drive."

"Giles? You like Giles?"

"Why not?"

"You've met Giles, right? You understand that Giles was the guy with the glasses and the English accent in the motel room?"

"Sure, I met him. He's a hottie."

"Oh my God," Buffy said. "Your words. They're hurting my brain."

Faith put the car in gear. They lurched forward, then stopped.

"Damn," Faith said. "I think this thing is a go cart."

"At least you didn't do that thing where you put it in reverse by mistake like in the movies," Buffy said.

"Then the engine backfires like a shotgun," Faith said, and grinned. "Okay, Faith drives the frigging French car, take two."

"Annnnnd...action!" Buffy said, and they drove off into the sun, laughing.

Faith looked out the window at everything as she drove. She liked new places; whenever Rebecca took her somewhere new it always made her excited. Sunnydale was hilly but the buildings were mostly flat; low one-story houses in bright colors that looked very strange to a girl from Boston. Boston was skyscrapers and stately old Back Bay townhouses; it was granite and concrete, and cold, windswept streets. Boston towered above you, looked down on you. Everything in Sunnydale was just the opposite: low and sprawling, horizontal where Boston was vertical, wood and stucco in bright colors instead of Boston's brick and stone, and it was warm when Boston was cold. Palm trees dotted the streets downtown, and there were mountains in the distance, and everything was splashed with sun from a clear blue sky.

The streets were more alive here, the sky was a brighter blue, everything was more vibrant. Boston was strangely muted by comparison. Boston had stood for centuries; it seemed to have been drained of color, over the years. You felt the weight of its history. Boston was old. But Sunnydale was new.

"I still can't believe you're crushing on my Watcher," Buffy said, checking the map. "Take a left at the next light, you brazen hussy."

"You don't think he's cute?" Faith said. "Come on, with that smile?"

"What planet are you from again?" Buffy said, shaking her head. "Have you come to our world to study this mysterious concept we humans call love?"

"I'm from Planet Beantown, baby," Faith said. "I'm still trying to figure out your strange West Coast ways. Thinkin' about buyin' a surf board."

As Faith took her turn at the light they passed a black transvestite standing on the corner with yellow hair and yellow lipstick wearing a bright orange dress and platform heels who could have played power forward for the Lakers. Boston didn't have anything like that either. Especially not at eight in the morning.

"Okay, we're five minutes out," Buffy said, checking the map. "It's a good bet they know what kind of car Giles drives, so we should hide it."

"I still say it's a go cart with a fancy body on top, and I'm not even kidding," Faith said. "We'll stash the thing and, uh, reconnoiter on foot."

"Good. I always wanted to reconnoiter something," Buffy said.

"Glad we got the crate to lug the weapons around in," Faith said. "Two gals walking down the street carrying a flamethrower and dynamite in their hands would have looked a little suspicious. But then I thought that drag queen back there looked pretty suspicious, so what do I know."

"Who, you mean Lonnie?" Buffy said. "He's a sweetheart."

Faith crouched on the roof of the old warehouse in her socks, so she could be as quiet as possible. She held a katana in her hand.

Trick sat in front of a computer set up on an old wooden roll top desk on the floor of the warehouse. Faith watched him through a dirty little skylight.

Trick was going to die for what he did to Rebecca. Faith was going to see to that.

She needed it. Watching him through the skylight, she felt like she needed to kill him more than she had ever needed anything in her life. Her hand moved to the stake in her back pocket. She imagined how it would feel, penetrating his chest, slicing through the meat, until it reached the heart, and popped it like a balloon. She could jump down through the skylight right now and do it...

A Slayer always thinks tactically.

No. She'd play this smart. The way Rebecca would have wanted her to.

The wind shifted, and Buffy's scent came to her.

Faith smiled. She hadn't heard Buffy's approach. If the wind hadn't shifted she wouldn't have known Buffy was there at all. The girl was good.

"Hey," Buffy said quietly, and crouched down barefoot beside Faith, carrying the other katana. "I checked all around, Special K's not in there. What's Tricky doing?"

"Still gettin' his geek on," Faith whispered back. They both knew vampires had very sensitive hearing. "What about exits?"

"Back door. Fire escape around the side along the second floor."

"Okay, if it's just Trick I don't think we need to get too fancy. How about you go around back, I walk in the front. He runs, no way he gets by both of us."

"He's probably carrying a gun, you know."

"Figure he is."

The two most dangerous predators on Earth looked down at Trick through the dirty skylight, baring their teeth. Savoring a fresh kill.

They were Slayers, now. Slayers, and nothing else.

Their humanity was far away, now. There was no room for it: they were traveling light. They only took what they needed on the hunt. They were strong and fast and hard and lethal and they reveled in their power. They knew their prey wouldn't escape them. But they hoped it would at least try.

They were aware of their humanity, peripherally. They knew it was still there somewhere. But it seemed unimportant; a complicated, monotonous, hopelessly mundane thing next to the lush, vivid world that was opened up to them now. It wouldn't have mattered to either of them at that moment if they lost their humanity forever. It was a burden, and it was so much better to travel light...

Buffy loved Faith's scent. She loved being close to it. Faith's scent made Buffy feel like she'd found something...something that belonged to her, that she had somehow lost for a time without even knowing it.

There was a connection, a physical connection, when they were together: it had been there in the cemetery and the motel room and Buffy felt it again now, like a warmth that suffused her whole body.

Buffy's heart beat faster as she looked down at her prey. Energy exploded through her in anticipation of the hunt. She felt like running a marathon. She felt like dancing. She needed a good, long fucking. She thought about Angel, then stopped herself. He was too complicated, too tangled up in her humanity; he was part of the boring, colorless world she had set aside. Buffy much preferred the vivid world she found herself in now: the world of the hunt.

She thought about Faith in her nightgown. She thought about peaches.

Faith liked Buffy. She liked the way she smelled and she liked her voice and she liked the warm feeling that she got when they were together, like being in bed under the blankets on a winter morning. She liked that Buffy was crouched very close to her now, their bodies almost touching. She couldn't believe she had disliked Buffy before; all those feelings of anger and resentment and wounded pride seemed a million miles away, seemed like someone else's life. Those feelings were buried deep down now, along with all the other trivial, unimportant details of her human life. They were Slayers. Not one single other thing mattered.

Faith looked at Buffy's legs. She liked Buffy in that skirt. She liked her without her boots on.

Then Faith looked down at Trick, and felt her heart in her chest. Energy pulsed through her; she nearly trembled with it. She wanted to leap, and scream, and roar like a lion. She gripped her sword so hard she thought she might break it.

Buffy and Faith looked at each other, inches away, and inhaled each other's scent, and felt the connection: the connection that no one else in the world could ever share.

Buffy wondered what it would be like to have sex with Faith.

Faith nearly threw Buffy down and kissed her.

They both let the moment pass. They were afraid of it, a little. Each was afraid that she alone felt it, and the other didn't.

And they were working now. There was no time for it.

"Ready?" Buffy whispered.

"One thing before we get started," Faith whispered back. "Get your licks in, smack Trick around all you want, smack K around when we catch up with him too. I know Trick shot you and K beat you up some and you owe them for that. But I owe them more, so the kills are mine. For what they did to Becca, the kills belong to me."

"I get to hurt Trick, before you dust him. And I want a piece of Kakistos. You can have him, but I still need a piece. He hurt Willow and he needs to find out why that's bad."

"Done."

"Remember, don't you go hogging all the fun. I'll get cranky."

"I'll take good care of you, B. Don't you worry about that."

"Gonna hold you to that," Buffy whispered, and showed Faith her backside, and stalked away as silently as a cat.

"Hey Trick," Faith said, stalking out of the darkness behind him in her socks, a sword in each hand. "How's tricks?"

Trick was fast. He jumped out of his chair, spun around and pulled a gun from inside his coat without missing a beat.

Faith was faster. She threw her rapier straight through Trick's hand before he could even take aim. He screamed and dropped the gun, and before he could pick it up again, Buffy was suddenly standing behind him. She snatched the gun from the floor and pointed it at his chest. He froze.

"Hey, Tricky, miss me? Oh, that's right," Buffy said, and pointed to her shoulder. "You didn't."

Faith moved up beside Buffy. "Dyin' ain't much of a livin', boy," she said to Trick, and smiled.

"What's that from?" Buffy said.

"Eastwood western," Faith said. "Clint said it to this bounty hunter guy who was after him just before he shot his bounty huntin' ass."

"How did I know you'd like Clint Eastwood?"

"'Cuz I'm a total fuckin' bad ass, girlfriend. And so are you," Faith said.

"Got that right, baby," Buffy said, and shot Trick six times, emptying the gun. The gun was a .44 magnum and each shot sent Trick flying backwards. He finally collapsed like a marionette with its strings cut, coughing up blood.

"Hey, this thing's kinda neat," Buffy said, twirling the gun around and practicing quick draws. "Am I a bad person for liking this? Do I have to vote Republican now?"

"Nah," Faith said. "Figure it just makes you like, an American."

"I think I'm a bad Californian though."

"Yeah, probably, but they'd love your pretty ass in Texas. Know what? Dirty Buffy. I'm callin' you Dirty Buffy from now on."

"Wanna see me being dirty, huh?" Buffy said.

"C'mon, don't make me blush now, honey," Faith said, and threw Buffy her sexiest smile.

Faith wondered if she and Buffy meant what they were saying. How far were they going to take this? Faith felt out of control, like she was saying things without thinking...like she was drunk. She knew it was Buffy's scent that was doing this to her. Being so close to it, Faith needed all of her self-control not to take Buffy in her arms and kiss her.

Jesus Christ, Faith thought. Am I the one who likes girls? What the fuck?

"Hey Trick, you feelin' lucky, punk?" Faith said, staring down at Trick and showing him her teeth.

"I don't think Tricky's feeling lucky," Buffy said. "I think he's all sad now. I think he's pouting."

"He sure doesn't look too good. But you know what the problem here is? We haven't beat on him at all. The gun was cool but..."

"Right there with you, girlfriend," Buffy said, and walked toward Trick. But Trick suddenly sprang to his feet, his face changing to vampire form, and roared at them.

"Boy's feelin' his oats," Faith said.

"C'mon Tricky," Buffy said, and tossed the gun away, and spread her hands, and smiled. "Let's see those oats."

Trick leaped at Buffy, growling like a dog. He still had Faith's rapier sticking through his hand. But the leap was slow and awkward and Buffy easily avoided it; she stepped out of the way and Faith batted Trick out of the air with her katana, carving a good chunk out of him. He fell to the floor, screaming.

"Shit," Faith said. "Don't even tell me he can't fight."

"Maybe he really is a computer nerd," Buffy said. "And I did kinda just shoot him six times." Buffy moved to Trick's desk, one of the few furnishings in the huge, mostly empty room. The small desk lamp was the only source of light; the windows on the upper floor of the warehouse were too covered with grime to let much sun in. She looked at his computer screen. He had an AOL account. She smiled.

"Or maybe it was five," Buffy said. "To tell you the truth, in all this excitement, I've kinda lost track myself." Faith giggled.

"Thought you weren't into Clint?" Faith said, and stepped on Trick's hand and pulled her rapier out of it. Trick screamed. Faith looked down at him and kicked him in the face. "Shut the fuck up, asshole, we're talkin' here," Faith said.

"Xander likes him. He keeps on renting Eastwood movies," Buffy said.

"Beats Star Trek," Faith said. "Hope for that boy yet."

Trick tried to stand. He had a nasty diagonal slash running from his chest down to his waist, marring a very expensive suit.

"Shit," Faith said again. "He's got nothin' left. Now I'm all frustrated." She kicked him in the face again and he went sailing toward Buffy. Buffy plucked him out of the air and threw him to the floor before he could crash into the computer; she had a feeling the computer would be useful.

"Why don't you beat on him for awhile, honey," Faith said.

"Hmm. I think Tricky needs some dental work," Buffy said. She picked Trick up, dragged him over to a nearby metal support beam, and smashed his face into it. He bounced off it with a clang that echoed through the warehouse and sounded just like one of those old cartoons where an anvil lands on someone's head. Buffy and Faith both giggled.

"Ow," Faith said. "Lose any teeth?"

Buffy let Trick go and he hit the floor like a wet sack. She looked around, and noticed a bloody tooth nearby. Trick looked delirious.

"Hey Tricky, Tooth Fairy owes you a quarter," Buffy said, picking up the tooth and throwing it back in his face. She walked back to his desk and looked at his computer again. "Let's see if we can get it up to seven-fifty. Or you can always talk to us about your old pal, Special K."

"You're not gonna beat on him some more first?" Faith said, and strolled over to Buffy. Buffy was leaning back against the desk, and her skirt had hiked up. Faith looked at her legs, and made no effort to hide the fact that she was looking. "You goin' soft on me, girlfriend?" Fuck it, Faith thought. If I like girls then I'm gonna like girls. Starting with this one.

"Nah, I just thought I'd let the big bad vamp make a speech," Buffy said, and sat in Trick's chair and put her feet up on the desk. Her skirt hiked up even more as she did it. She was showing Faith her legs. She couldn't believe she was doing that, but she was. She noticed Faith didn't seem to mind. "All these extra special super-bad vamps just love making with the speeches first. It always just fills me with dread."

"Hey Trick, you wanna make a speech?" Faith said, grabbing him by the neck, standing him up, and moving her ear close to his mouth. "What's that? Can't hear you." Trick was nearly unconscious.

"Try banging him into the pole again," Buffy said.

"Think that'll work?"

"It'll be fun to watch."

Faith shrugged her shoulders and smashed Trick's face into the support beam again. His nose broke, and blood spurted out of it. She giggled at that, and so did Buffy. It was funny. It was like a day at the circus. She dropped him to the floor. He lay perfectly still, face-down. "Christ, he's out cold already," she said. "Say what you want about K, at least he can throw down. I'm all frustrated now."

"Computer nerds have their uses," Buffy said. She brought up the computer's e-mail program. "Any more teeth?"

"Tooth Fairy needs to pony up seventy-five cents now," Faith said, turning Trick over and looking at his mouth.

"Well, we're getting there," Buffy said, leaning back in the chair and waving her sword around aimlessly. "Faith, take a message."

"Yes, ma'am," Faith said, with a big grin. "You want I should bring you your coffee first? Or like, uh, quarterly reports or something?"

"I got something you can do for me," Buffy said, stretching her legs out some more. "But first the message."

Buffy blushed a little; she couldn't believe she had just said that. It was the strangest feeling...she felt drunk. It was Faith, she knew. Her scent...hunting together like this, being so close...it was intoxicating. She was losing herself...

"Yes, ma'am," Faith said, looking at Buffy's legs again.

"Message reads," Buffy began, smiling down at Trick. "There are two kinds of vamps. You got your regular loser vamps, and then there are the vamps who think they're all that. Now you haven't been a Slayer too long yet, Faith, but you'll find that vamps who think they're all that, like Special K and our man Tricky, are really a dime a dozen, especially on a Hellmouth. And the big thing they do is, they make speeches. They go on and on about their big plans, and..." She looked over at Trick again. He still wasn't moving. "Is he still asleep? Secretary Faith, wake him up. Time for a vamp to hear my big speech."

"Yes, ma'am," Faith said, and grabbed Trick and stood him up again. He was unconscious.

"Hey!" Faith screamed in Trick's face, and slapped him. "Wake up!"

Buffy giggled. Faith started giggling too.

Trick opened his eyes, sluggishly.

"He's done," Faith said. "He's not even trying to fight anymore. Shaft my ass. More like Urkel. Hey Trick, Boss B's making a speech. You better listen up or I'll get grumpy."

"Thank you, secretary Faith," Buffy said. "So, yeah, the vamps who think they're all that really like talking about their big plans. Like, for instance, our man Tricky here of the snazzy suits and the fabulous shoes, who cornered Will and me in the cemetery with a bunch of vamps and started talking about how he's all cool and East Coast and how my skirt was a bold fashion choice and blah blah blah whatever. Oh, and the speech-making vamps are further subdivided into two groups, the quippy speechmakers and the self-important speechmakers."

"K's definitely self-important," Faith said.

"And Trick's quippy," Buffy said. "They make a good team. So Trick was all, 'Hey, you're obviously Buffy Summers and look how cool I am that I know who you are and check out my cool suit and blah blah blabbity-blah'. And the funny thing is? All these big bad super-vamps I've run into over the years, who make all these speeches and think they know Slayers? Who think they know me?"

She got up, pulled Trick away from Faith and stabbed him through the heart with her sword. He gasped, and made a squealing sound. "You don't fucking know me," Buffy snarled, in Trick's face. "If you did you'd all run home to your fucking mommies." She wrenched the sword out of his heart, and he gurgled and spit up blood, and fell to his knees at her feet. Buffy looked down at him.

"You look good there," she said.

Faith's eyes were on Buffy; she watched Buffy from her head down to her toes as Trick knelt bleeding at Buffy's feet. Buffy felt it; she felt Faith's eyes caressing every inch of her. She liked the feeling.

Buffy picked Trick up by the throat, wiped her sword on his suit, and looked him in the eyes. Trick was dead weight in her hands.

"Got any more badinage for me, Tricky?" Buffy said. "I'm waiting."

"What's badinage?" Faith said.

"Banter," Buffy said. "Trick's smart. He's way into big words. I bet he even knows what 'intractable' means."

"You sure he's smart?" Faith said. "Pissing me and you off doesn't seem too smart to me."

Buffy lifted Trick up by the neck and looked him in the eyes again. "You vamps think you're scary?" she said. "You think you're the monsters? That's only because you haven't seen the monster I've got in me. THREATEN MY FRIENDS?! THREATEN MY FAMILY?!"

With a roar, she smashed him across the face with a backhand that sent him flying across the room and crashing into a wall thirty feet away.

Faith looked at Trick, lying motionless on the floor, then back at Buffy. She had allowed herself to think Buffy was soft, in the cemetery. Faith would never make that mistake again.

Buffy sat back down, and looked at the computer.

"Kill him," she said, as if she was telling Faith to get her a cup of coffee.

"He needs to tell us about K first," Faith said.

"He won't talk because he knows we're gonna kill him anyway," Buffy said. "He's a creampuff but he's not dumb, and we don't have all day to waste beating on him while he stalls and hopes Special K shows up to bail his undead ass out. Besides, I got it covered." She pointed at the computer screen. AOL's e-mail program was open. "Faith, welcome to the information superhighway, also known as 'What A Bunch of Nerds Think About Star Trek, Plus Porn'."

Faith looked at the computer screen over Buffy's shoulder while keeping one eye on Trick. Trick still wasn't moving. There was an open e-mail message on the screen from 'Kakistos12@aol.com', and a reply being composed to the same address. Faith liked the way Buffy's hair smelled.

"Kakistos12@aol.com?" Faith said.

"Sad when old guys try to get all cool and with it, huh?" Buffy said, and picked up one of the phones that sat beside the computer. "You take out the trash while I get Will working on backtracking this."

"Lightning bolts, locator spells, now computers too? Girl's a triple threat."

"Yeah, before the magic took off she was computer hacker girl. She broke into France's Defense Department by mistake and went all Matthew Broderick on their asses one night when Xander got her drunk on Cosmopolitans. The French computers got all, 'Would-you-like-to-play-a-game?' and there was almost a nuclear war between France and China. Will denies it, but Xander swears it really happened. Anyway she's always been my secret weapon. Faith...thanks. For what you did for Will. If those vamps had...if you hadn't been there...if I ever lost Will I don't know what I'd do. I owe you, Faith. More than I can ever pay back."

"Hey, no problem," Faith said, and smiled.

Faith stood over Trick, looking down at him. He lay on the floor, his body riddled with gunshot wounds, his face covered with blood, his torso sliced open, his hand clutched to his chest.

"Guess we won't be doing lunch," Faith said.

Trick didn't move.

"Gonna take B and me awhile to track Kakistos down," Faith said. "And we don't like to be kept waiting. Nope, we surely do not. We get bored, y'know? And then, well...we get impatient. And then we have to find a way to occupy ourselves. And someone to occupy ourselves with."

She kicked him in the ribs, and felt some of them break. Trick slammed into the wall, and groaned.

"Which makes you our fuckin' piñata," she said. "So you gonna get up or what? Gonna at least take a shot? Look at me."

He didn't look at her. He looked down at the floor, and bled.

"I SAID LOOK AT ME!" Faith screamed, and picked him up and smashed him back into the wall. "YOU'RE GONNA FUCKING LOOK AT ME!"

He looked at her. He saw Faith drop her sword to the floor.

"Tell you what," Faith said. "Free shot. I'll give you a free shot."

She let him go, and he slumped back to the floor.

"Well?" she said. "Take a shot."

He didn't move.

"Take a fuckin' shot!" she said. "Grow a dick and take a fuckin' shot!"

Trick shook his head, and looked down at the floor. Waiting for death.

"Christ," Faith said, disgusted. "Even K's got more balls than you, and I cut his off." She picked Trick up again and slammed him back against the wall. He whimpered. She pulled her stake out of her back pocket, and showed it to him.

"Said I'd stick you like a fucking pig someday, Trick," Faith said. "I always keep a promise."

She pointed the stake at his heart.

"Got anything to say?" she said. "You were a talkative motherfucker in Boston. Famous last words? Fashion advice? Maybe some badinage? Anything?"

"Fuck...you," Trick grunted, and closed his eyes, and groaned.

Faith smiled. "Yeah," she said. "That's better."

She spit in his face.

"Becca says fuck you too," Faith snarled, and staked him.

"You okay?" Buffy said, when Faith eventually came back.

"No," Faith said. "Got a line on K?"

Buffy put her hand on Faith's shoulder, and touched her hair. "Will came through," she said, pointing to the computer screen. "She backtracked his e-mail and found the computer he's sending from." "Good," Faith said. "So we can go there and kick the shit out of him. Where's he at?"

"Across town, about twenty minutes from here. But I think there might be a better way to do this. Trick and K have been e-mailing each other..."

"Shoot K an e-mail. Pretend we're Trick, tell him to meet us. Set a trap."

"Great minds think alike. I say we bring him here, tell him Trick captured us. Wherever K is now it's his turf and he'll have the advantage there. But if we bring him here we can wire this place to explode right on top of him."

"I like it, but don't say Trick's got both of us, Trick's too much of a pansy to take us both down. Too much of a pansy to take even one of us, but there's no way K believes Trick nabbed us both without any vamp goons backing him up. Say Trick's got me. I'm the one K really wants anyway, he'll come out for me. Say I came here alone looking for Trick and he shot me."

"Makes sense, it's how it could've gone down anyway if you came here alone and he managed to get a shot off. I found something else on his computer too. He's got some program open I didn't recognize. Willow walked me through it. We were right. Trick was tapping our phones. Giles, my Mom."

"So K knows we got Giles and your Mom stashed."

"Yeah, but he doesn't know where. Turns out Will and I did take out all the hired help last night, Trick's got no men right now. He had no one watching the houses, so when I called Giles and told him to get the hell out of there Trick wasn't able to get there and follow the cab."

"You know that for sure? And what about Will and Xander? Trick have a line on them?"

"I've been reading his e-mails. Trick e-mailed K saying he was looking into recruiting more vamps. And they're worried about Willow, they're a lot more worried about her than they are about us, but they don't know who she is. Xander's not on their radar."

"Good. And I'd worry too if a witch torched all my guys with one shot."

"Lucky for us they don't know she can't just do it whenever she wants. And it turns out K's still hurt. Problem is he might be so hurt that we can't convince him to leave his place. What if he wants Trick to take you out to him?"

"Tell him I can't be moved, that I was shot bad and if they move me I could die. K wants to kill me himself. I don't care how hurt he is, a guy doesn't forget it when you cut his dick and balls off. He'll come out here, no way he leaves me to Trick."

"Okay," Buffy said. "Let's wire this place up and figure out just how we're gonna go at this guy. We should wire the front and back doors, we don't know which entrance he'll use, but that still gives us plenty of bang for our buck. Xander walked me through the remote detonators last year, they're easy. Set the dynamite, press the button, boom. Once we're wired I'll send the e-mail. Then..."

"Yeah," Faith said.

Then it would be over, one way or the other.

Faith wondered what she would do after that.

They lay together, side by side on the roof, watching.

An SUV with blacked-out windows turned the corner a few blocks away.

"Show time," Faith said.

They crawled on their bellies toward the other side of the roof, keeping low. Faith had the flamethrower on her back, and her katana in her hand. Buffy had her katana in one hand and four detonators in the other.

They reached the other side of the roof and were about to climb down the fire escape, when Buffy grabbed Faith's shoulder.

"Look," Buffy whispered.

Faith looked back, and saw the SUV parked near the front entrance. Its door was open, and she could see Kakistos inside...along with five other vampires. They all wore heavy hoods and cloaks.

"Son of a bitch," Faith muttered. "Where the hell does he get these guys?"

"It's only five," Buffy whispered.

"Still might slow us down some, and we need to be able to concentrate on K. Okay, here's what we'll do. You hit the detonators on schedule. I hop down there and torch the goons with the flamethrower while K's down. Then we both run at K like we planned."

"Got it," Buffy whispered, and looked at her sword. She smiled.

"Where is she, Trick?" Kakistos growled, as he opened the front door of the warehouse and limped inside, and two bundles of dynamite exploded a foot away from him. The explosion collapsed the doorframe and part of the roof, sending it all down on top of him and instantly incinerating one of the vampires who had been about to walk in behind him.

"Right here," Faith said, and strolled right up to the other four vampires from behind and sprayed them with the flame thrower. They burst into flames and ran around screaming for about two seconds, before exploding into dust.

Kakistos shrugged off the rubble and tried to stand. His face was covered with blood and his hood and cloak were gone, leaving him exposed to the sun. His skin, still partially burned from Willow's lightning strike, began to smoke. With a grunt of pain he leaped further into the warehouse to escape the sun, and fell to the floor. As he forced himself to stand again, Buffy ran at him with her katana and sliced his left arm off. He screamed, and tried an awkward punch with his right, but Buffy dodged and spun around behind him as gracefully as a ballerina and sliced his right arm off like it was the easiest thing in the world. Blood spurted from the stumps of his arms, and he fell to the floor again in shock.

"Hello, loser," Buffy said. "I'm Buffy."

He looked up, and saw her smiling down at him.

"You hurt my friends," Buffy said. "Mistake."

The blood continued to flow out from the stumps of his arms, collecting in a pool on the floor. Kakistos became very pale, and he began to shiver.

"And now Faith would like a word," Buffy said.

Kakistos managed to get himself up to his knees, before Faith kicked him in the face and knocked him back down again.

Faith stood above him, her sword ready. Buffy stepped back.

Kakistos struggled back up to his knees again, but he couldn't stand. He had lost too much blood. Faith watched him, silently.

They looked at each other. Kakistos was shivering badly now, and he was nearly unconscious. But Faith could still see the hatred in his eyes. And he smiled...a small smile.

Faith had rehearsed this moment in her mind a hundred times. She always knew just the right thing to say, when she rehearsed it. Just the right last words to send him off to hell with.

She looked down at him now, and couldn't think of anything to say.

No clever insults came to her mind. No taunts. No jokes. No catchphrases.

There was nothing to say. There didn't seem to be any point, now.

Faith started to cry.

There was nothing to say.

Except...

"For Becca," Faith said.

And she sliced his head off, and a depraved, malignant thing collapsed into dust...and a reign of brutality and terror that had lasted more than eight-hundred years finally came to an end.

Faith knelt down, in the pile of dust that had been Kakistos...the creature who had defiled and killed the person she loved most in the world.

"He's gone, Becca," she whispered, crying. "He's gone. He's gone."

Buffy knelt down beside her, and hugged her, as the rising sun finally found them.

They were all finally dead. Everyone who had anything to do with what happened to Rebecca was dead.

Faith didn't feel anything.

She didn't feel relieved or happy or even satisfied. She didn't feel anything at all...except the cold thing in her stomach that had been there since she saw Rebecca dying on the floor of the restaurant. The cold thing that she knew now would always be with her, as long as she lived.

They were back in the car now, driving to the motel. It wasn't even noon.

"Are you okay?" Buffy said.

"No," Faith said. "I don't think so."

Buffy touched her shoulder. "It takes time, Faith, when you lose someone," she said. "Give yourself time."

"You lost someone close to you?"

"My Dad."

"How'd it happen?"

Buffy leaned out the window, watching the streets pass by. They were downtown. The Exhibition Center was just a few blocks away. Her father used to take her to the Ice Capades there, when she was a little girl. "He didn't die," she said. "He left. One day he just stopped coming around. It was a little after I became the Slayer. My Mom always says they were having problems and it had nothing to do with me, but...I know it's my fault. I know he left because of me. He just...stopped loving me, I guess."

"Jesus," Faith said. "I'm sorry, B. That's rough."

"Yeah," Buffy said. She remembered the hospital where her parents had her committed for two weeks. Blue cinderblock walls, and rooms with metal doors, and shoes without laces. And apple juice with every meal. She hadn't been able to drink apple juice since.

"Men fucking suck sometimes," Faith said.

"Yeah," Buffy said.

"The fight with Kakistos was too quick, y'know?" Faith said. "I guess...I didn't expect it to be that quick."

"Be thankful for quick," Buffy said, and turned back to her, and pushed the memory of the hospital away. "Kakistos was tough. No way we could have lasted long against him in a straight-up fight."

"Might have been fun to try though."

"So he left you unsatisfied? Wham, bam, thank you ma'am? Aw, poor baby. At least you got the kills. I got bupkiss. Sure, I got some last night, but after everything we've been through today and then not getting any kills, I'm still all..."

"Restless."

"Yeah."

"Girlfriend, I know just what you need."

"Oh you do, huh?" Buffy said, and crossed her legs. Faith looked at them again. They were good legs, but Buffy's knee-high boots covered up a lot of them. Faith wished Buffy had left the boots off.

Faith didn't know where they were going. She didn't know where they would end up. But they were driving fast and the wind was in her hair, and she couldn't wait to get there. Whatever was at the end of this road, she'd deal with it. If she really did like girls, Faith figured there was only one way to find out.

She felt something...a little thrill of fear.

And then she knew that this must be what the roller coaster feels like. She knew it must feel exactly like this.

Faith looked at Buffy again, and wondered what it would feel like to kiss her.

"Let's find us some vamps, honey," Faith said. "And then we'll get you taken care of."

Xander didn't feel much like swimming.

And he'd bought a bathing suit and everything.

He was kicking back on a lounge chair by the Olympic size swimming pool in Cordy's seemingly endless, perfectly landscaped giant golf course of a backyard, drinking lemonade and watching Willow as she dived off the diving board in her cute completely unrevealing one-piece bathing suit with the little polka dots. Giles and Joyce were in the pool, and Joyce kept shouting words of encouragement to Willow; Joyce had apparently been on the swim team in college, and she still had the figure for it. But noticing Joyce's body in that bathing suit made Xander feel a little guilty, so he tried not to. He tried not to notice Giles constantly and obviously flirting with Joyce either, because Giles was old and British and for God's sake he was Giles, and it was just gross.

Giles kept splashing Joyce, and laughing. Xander recalled he used to try that technique on girls too, when he was ten. He hadn't had much luck with it. It was working gangbusters for Giles though.

Willow was laughing too, as Joyce divided her time between losing her splash-fight with Giles, and shouting out helpful hints to her about proper form on the diving board. Willow hadn't actually, technically managed a competent dive yet; more like a series of near-bellyflops. The girl just wasn't aerodynamic. She'd always been a little bit clumsy. Even back when they were kids...

At first, when she had changed into her bathing suit, Xander had been disappointed that it wasn't a bikini. He thought Willow was pretty but she just never seemed to have any interest in showing herself off. A bikini on her would have made his day.

Then he saw her smiling, as she dived into the pool, and he didn't care about bikinis anymore. The smile made his day just fine.

Whatever happened in the alley, she seemed to have shrugged it off.

But something happened...

Xander watched her smile.

"Mr. Harris? Will there be anything else?" the maid said, suddenly standing above him. Conchita was always appearing out of nowhere. She was like a short, fat, Spanish ninja. She was always just suddenly there. She'd mentioned that Cordy had told her to make sure her guests were well taken care of and wanted for nothing. Just before Cordy went out shopping. It was Cordy's best approximation of politeness. Based on what Cordy imagined politeness must probably be; Xander knew it was a foreign concept to Cordy and she was still wrestling with it.

"Nah, I'm good, Conchita, thanks," Xander said. "Got my lemonade, got my goofy polka-dot diving board girl."

"Miss Rosenberg, she is not a good diver," Conchita said, shaking her head at Willow. Then she looked down at Xander, and smiled. "But very nice girl. And good in other ways, eh?" she said, and winked at him. "Muy bonita."

Visions of bad women in prison movies went through Xander's head. Usually he liked movies about women in prison. But this one had Conchita in it. She was in a cell with Willow and Xander knew which one of them was going to end up doing the other's laundry. He very forcefully and with prejudice dismissed the vision from his head and made sure the vision knew that it was never allowed to come back, ever.

"Uh...yeah. She's the cutest thing ever," Xander said.

"You should ask her out," Conchita said, and walked back to the house. "Listen to Conchita, she knows."

Cordy had taken off as soon as she possibly could after they arrived and it was a good deal all around: they didn't have to deal with Cordy, and Cordy got to go out and buy shiny things and not try to make polite conversation, something Xander knew from painful experience that Cordy was spectacularly bad at. Still, she did have a way of cutting through the bullshit. The line between blunt and rude is a fuzzy one and Cordy crossed it with regularity and abandon, but she would've found out what happened in the alley. She would've found out by saying, "So what happened in the alley?" Xander knew that's exactly what Cordy would have said.

"Xander!" Willow shouted, laughing, apparently, at something British that Giles had said. Giles was laughing too, not realizing that he was more being laughed at than with; but the fact that he often couldn't tell the difference was one of his more endearing qualities. Joyce was shaking her head at Giles, in that exact way that Buffy always shook her head at Giles.

"Come into the pool!" Willow shouted. Then she did her scowly face, which was, by Xander's estimate, the cutest thing in the entire history of the world. "Don't make me come over there, young man," she said.

"I'm high and dry, Will," Xander said, and waved her off.

Willow jumped out of the pool and walked over to him. She had nice legs. Xander always knew she had nice legs. But for some reason he was more aware of it today...more aware of everything about her today. He held up a towel for her and Willow took it, and dried off her hair, and sat on the lounge chair beside him.

"You're not swimming. You're all mopey," she said.

"Mopey people don't swim," Xander said.

She looked at him, with those big green eyes. She smiled.

"I'm all like, doing these cool dives for you in my cute little bathing suit and you're over here not even giving me any eye candy," Willow said. "Not fair."

"Your cute non-little, actually very big, bathing suit," Xander said. "And you saw the package when I joined the swim team that time."

"People turning into lizards sorta ruined the mood. So why, y'know, with the mopey? And, hey! You better not be calling me fat."

"You're not fat. I just meant you should've worn a bikini, that's all."

"Yeah?" she said, and smiled.

"Yeah," he said, and leaned over, and kissed her.

Xander thought it was a hell of a kiss. In fact, Xander thought it was the best kiss ever. He wondered why he had never kissed Willow before.

The kiss made Xander feel like he'd found something...something that belonged to him, that he had somehow lost for a time without even knowing it.

Conchita, she knows, Xander thought.

"Um..." Willow said, eventually, and blushed. It had been a long kiss, too.

"Let's have a talk," Xander said.

"Here," Buffy said.

Faith pulled over and parked. It was still a pain in the ass parking when the steering wheel was on the wrong side of the car, but she was starting to get used to it. She didn't hit anything this time.

They were on a dead end dirt road, at the top of a hill. A few run-down houses dotted the road, low ranch style houses like a lot of the places Faith had seen in Sunnydale, and there were a lot of trees. The other side of the hill meandered through scrub brush and wildflowers down to a little stagnant pond. There were squirrels, and the old-fashioned kind of mailboxes that stood out by the road, and the lawns in front of the houses were all overgrown with weeds.

"There are vamps here?" Faith said, as they got out of the car. The sun was bright, and there were birds singing. "Doesn't look too vampy to me."

"That's how they stayed under my radar," Buffy said. "My bartender tipped me that the place at the top of the hill up there is some kind of vamp drug den, I've been meaning to check it out. The way it works is, people come in, pay some cash, the vamps give them stuff to shoot up with, then the vamps take some of their blood once the stuff's in their system. Everybody gets high, the vamps get a free blood supply, and the civilians get their kicks being drained by vamps without being killed or turned."

"Shit, and people get off on that?" Faith said.

Buffy thought back to her fight with Angelus. He had her pinned, and he bit into her neck and began draining her. She remembered how it felt, with him on top of her, taking her...the quick, sharp pain as his fangs penetrated her...the feeling of her blood, steadily coursing out of her body, entering his, and strengthening him...the warm, enervating, numb feeling that spread through her body, and made her want to sleep. He held her down as he drained her, but his grip softened, as she slowly stopped struggling. His rough touch became a caress.

She orgasmed, and whispered, "Angel".

And he stopped...

And Buffy stuck a sword through his heart, and sent him to hell.

"Yeah...I guess so," Buffy said. "Some weird people out there, I guess."

They walked to the top of the hill. The little house there had seen better days: the shingles were falling off and the paint had faded to a streaked, dull gray. There was an old orange Chevy Vega in the front yard, up on cinderblocks. The entrance to the house was a screen door at the top of three cracked wooden steps. The dirty old doormat said, "Bless This House".

"How many we looking at?" Faith said.

"There are supposed to be three vamps who run it, then you have the occasional visiting vamps, plus whatever civilians happen to be around donating blood," Buffy said. "But this time of day, who knows what we'll find in there."

"Whatever vamps are in there, you need 'em all?"

"If you're a good little secretary maybe I'll throw you one."

"Hey, I take great dictation, Boss," Faith said. "But if you want 'em all for yourself that's cool. I like to watch too."

"Then I'll give you a little show," Buffy said.

They walked up the stairs, and stood in front of the door.

"Your show, girlfriend," Faith said. "How you wanna play this?"

"Loud," Buffy said, and kicked the door in.

"That's my girl," Faith said.

"This is a bedroom?" Xander said, when he and Willow walked into Cordy's room. "They could park cars in here."

"You know Cordy," Willow said. "She's just...so you kissed me. I mean, hello? You kissed me."

"I'm sorry," Xander said.

"Oh...that's...don't worry, no big..." Willow said, and sat down on Cordy's bed, and fidgeted with her hair, twisting it into little loops. "No! I mean...big! Really big! Worry! I want you to be all worried! So you kissed me and you're sorry? And that's supposed to make it...what? Okay? So like, you kissed me and that's...I mean...you kissed me! And now you're sorry? What does that mean? That you didn't like kissing me? That kissing me is bad? That I'm all, the girl you can't kiss? Hey, can't, y'know, ever kiss Willow, because that would just be..."

"Okay, a couple things," Xander said, and sat next to her. "First, all that stuff you just said? Made no sense whatsoever. Second, I'm not sorry I kissed you. I'm sorry if you didn't want me to kiss you. But I liked kissing you and--"

Willow leaned over, and kissed him.

"We both talk too much, don't we?" Xander said.

"Kinda, yeah," Willow said. "And then like, the more either of us talks? The less sense we make. Buffy thinks there's a math formula for it. So now what? What are we...what are we doing?"

"Not talking enough,' Xander said, and stood up, and looked at her. He noticed every single thing about her. As if he was seeing her for the first time.

She looked up at him, still twisting her hair into little loops, her legs crossed modestly. She had big, beautiful green eyes. Her eyebrows were raised in that nervous, expectant way she had. Her skin was very pale, and she had freckles on her nose. Her fingers were long and delicate; her feet were small. She had red nail polish on her fingernails and her toenails. Her nipples showed a little against the bathing suit. Her red hair, still wet, fell straight down over her shoulders. She'd been letting it grow lately. She had goosebumps.

She was the most beautiful girl Xander had ever seen. He didn't understand how he had never noticed that before.

"So what happened in the alley?" Xander said.

The house was dark and hot and stuffy and it smelled like blood. Buffy and Faith were able to detect a medicinal smell as well, presumably the drugs the vampires used. The ceilings were low, cheap vinyl drop ceilings in panels, and the whole house seemed cramped. The floor of the long hallway they found themselves in was covered with a red shag rug, and the long wall was done up in fake wood paneling.

The place smelled like vampires too. But the smell was everywhere, and difficult to pinpoint, even for Buffy and Faith.

"Whole place smells like vamps," Faith said.

"We'll go room to room," Buffy said.

And they did, starting with the first room they came across, a living room that looked like it had fallen into a time warp in 1976. There were no vampires in the room, but it was still frightening: there was a black beanbag chair and a white leather couch, and the wallpaper was big, garish white flowers and vines on a black background. The rug was deep red shag, there was a painting of a little girl with gigantic, exaggerated eyes on the wall that was even worse than the painting in Faith's motel, and an honest-to-God lava lamp stood in the corner. The coffee table was rectangular white translucent plastic. An ashtray shaped like the Rolling Stones' "tongue" logo stood on top of it, filled to the brim with cigarette butts. The room's token gesture to modernity was a television set on a cheap stand with a Sega Genesis videogame system hooked up to it.

"What the hell is this?" Faith said. "The Partridge Family live here?"

"Either them or the Bradys during Mike's perm phase," Buffy said.

"Marcia, Marcia, Marcia!" Faith said.

There was a small extra bedroom off the living room behind a bead curtain; when they checked it out they found bunk beds, drug paraphernalia, an ironing board and someone's videogame collection, but still no vampires. They walked back down the long hallway and found another bedroom leading off of it. A pretty vampire who looked like she belonged back in the living room with the lava lamp was brushing her long, blonde hair in front of the mirror. She cast no reflection, but she was high enough that little details like that weren't a problem for her right now. She was barefoot on the omnipresent red shag rug, wearing faded bellbottom jeans and an Abba tee-shirt. Every inch of her seemed covered with jewelry; each of her fingers had a big, gaudy ring on it, she had at least three bracelets on each wrist, her neck practically bent under the weight of her beads, and gold hoop earrings dangled from her ears.

There was a big poster of a unicorn taped to one wall, and a massive sound system with four-foot high speakers took up the other wall, with a stack of old records sitting in a haphazard pile beside it. A badly painted yellow bureau and a bed covered with fluffy pillows were the only other furniture in the room.

"What was up with the seventies?" Faith said.

"Giles thinks it was a magic spell," Buffy said. "Apparently cast by someone with terrible fashion sense."

"Good an explanation as any, I guess," Faith said.

The vampire was humming to herself, and swaying, with her eyes half shut. She didn't seem to realize they were there.

"Whatever she's smoking, I want some," Faith said.

Buffy walked up to the vampire and tapped her on the shoulder. The vampire turned and squinted at her.

"Hi, I'm gonna just stake you now," Buffy said, and staked her.

They walked out of the room, back up the long hallway. The kitchen ahead of them was empty. To their right, they heard a toilet flushing and a young girl walked out of the bathroom. She gasped and jumped when she saw Faith and Buffy, but she wasn't a vampire.

"Jesus, you guys scared me," she said, and laughed nervously, her blue eyes unfocused, the pupils very small. She was a skinny little thing wearing a top that was unbuttoned too far and a skirt that was too short, and too much makeup. She teetered atop her high heels. She looked like she was about thirteen. She was pale, and her neck was bandaged. "You here to score?"

"Nope. We're here to kill a lot of folks," Faith said.

"So leave," Buffy said. "Now."

"Uh, okay," the girl said, and turned right around and wobbled back down the hall and out the door.

The only other room was a bedroom to their left, and when they opened the door they found two vampires, a man and a woman, practically comatose on the floor beside a big bed covered with leopard-print sheets. The man had dreadlocks and wore sandals. The woman was fat, with frizzy, permed hair, huge sunglasses, and a dolphin tattoo on her ankle. The rug was green shag this time. There was a blacklight poster of the Silver Surfer on the wall, and an overturned bowl of pretzels on the floor. The medicinal smell was strong here.

"I don't frigging believe this," Buffy said.

"Not gettin' you off, huh?" Faith said.

"Hippie girl and these two idiots?" Buffy said. Even if I woke them up they couldn't put up a fight, they're wasted." She shook her head in disgust and staked them both.

"Yeah," Faith said. "Sucks when they can't put up a fight first."

They looked around for a cellar, but there wasn't one. They had checked every room. They walked back down the hallway.

"Sorry, B," Faith said. She could see the tension in Buffy, the tightness in her shoulders, the pent-up energy in her stride. That energy needed a release and it hadn't gotten one. "Those were some pretty weak-ass vamps."

"Yeah," Buffy said, stalking down the hall. "Only one of them was even fucking awake."

The swear sounded awkward and ugly, coming from Buffy then. It didn't sound like her.

"Hey," Faith said, as they passed the bedroom with the unicorn poster.

Buffy stopped, and looked at her.

The problem, Faith realized, was that she had no idea what came after "Hey". She stood there, looking back at Buffy. Her skin felt too tight. She wanted to climb out of it.

Faith felt stuck, suspended. She didn't know what to do. She was at the top of the roller coaster, in that one moment when the car teeters on the brink, just before it falls...

Faith's scent came to Buffy, much stronger than the smell of vampires or drugs or blood that permeated the house. It was strong, but sweet...like peaches. Buffy's whole body felt hot. Her legs felt weak. She touched the wall with her hand, steadying herself. She knew she was on the edge of a cliff...

With a snarl, Buffy slammed Faith against the wall and kissed her...and let herself fall.

Willow looked down at the floor. "I, um, already told you," she said. "Three vampires chased me into the alley, and then Faith showed up."

"Says the girl who's the worst liar in the world," Xander said. There was something wrong in her voice again.

Willow kept looking down at the floor. Her hands were in her lap, and she was bent forward, like she was trying to curl herself into a ball.

"You told Buffy," Xander said. "Why can't you tell me?"

Willow shook her head.

"Did they...do something to you?" Xander said. He was scared now. He'd been thinking all day about what could have happened to Willow in the alley...

But he hadn't allowed himself to think about what could have happened to Willow in the alley.

"Willow...I'm your best friend," he said. "Talk to me."

"They..." Willow whispered. Then she stopped, and shook her head.

"I don't...I need...I need to know," Xander said.

"They tried...to do stuff to me," Willow said, still not looking at him. "But Faith got there before they could. They tried to..."

She looked up at Xander, and saw a tear rolling down his cheek.

"They...tried to rape me, Xander," Willow said. She took his hand. "But they didn't. Faith stopped them before they could. Faith stopped them. They hit me but they weren't able to...they didn't have a chance to do anything else."

He sat down next to her, in a daze.

"Now you know," Willow said. "Are you happy now?"

"Am I happy?" he said. "Am I happy?"

"I didn't...mean it like that."

He got up, and paced around the room.

"Am I happy," he said.

"Xander, I didn't mean it like that," Willow said. "Look, can we just drop this? You wanted to know and now you know. The vampires are dead. I don't wanna think about this anymore, okay? I'm...I'm over it."

"Bullshit."

"What?"

"Bullshit! You just...you just wanna freeze me out on this. You told Buffy, had a real heart to heart with her. But your friend since frigging kindergarten? No, you kept me out. If I hadn't brought it up you never would have told me."

"What are you...? Why are you being like this? Why can't you just--"

"How could you not tell me?! After everything we've meant to each other, all our lives! And you keep this from me? What the fuck were you thinking?! What were you thinking, Willow?!" he screamed, crying now.

"No!" Willow shouted, and leaped off the bed. "Don't you act like you're...like I have some...obligation to tell you this! You're not...yeah, sure, you're my oldest friend! But you're not my boyfriend, okay? It's not like you have some right to know this! I told Buffy because she's a girl and she's my friend and she would understand! You're a guy! So yeah, okay, what was I thinking? I was thinking maybe this isn't about you! It's about me! And maybe it's...maybe it's none of your business!"

Willow was crying now too.

"I want it to be my business," Xander said, and touched her hair.

"Oh, sure! Right!" Willow shouted, and slapped his hand away. "Now you act like...you act like you're all, all my boyfriend! Good old Willow, she'll always be there when your first choice rejects you! Maybe I should almost get gang-raped every day! Then you'd actually notice me!"

"That's...how could you even...? That's not how it is," Xander said.

"Who's bullshitting now?" Willow said. "You're not my boyfriend. You don't get to have all of me. There are parts you don't get to have."

"I...but...maybe...I want to be, Willow."

"No!" Willow screamed. "You don't want to be! This is just, because some vampires almost raped me and now you're all, I don't know what you are! But this, this isn't the way it's supposed to be! If you wanted me you would've wanted me before. I would've been your first choice, instead, of, y'know, the girl you invite to the dance when everyone else said no! You NEVER wanted to be with me, all you've ever done is TEASE ME!"

He looked her in the eyes. He had spent his whole life looking into those green eyes; he knew them better than anyone...

He had spent his whole life looking at this girl. But now, he finally understood...that he had never really seen her.

"You're right," Xander said. He walked away from her, and looked out the window. Giles and Joyce were kissing in the pool. Xander made a mental note to be dumbstruck about that later.

Right now, he had to try to salvage his life. Because if he lost Willow...

He saw his life, looming in front of him, like a long, lonely road in the dark. He couldn't walk that road alone. There was one person he needed with him. Without her...there just wasn't any reason to bother. Without her his whole life would be walking in the dark.

"Okay, so we both know I can be pretty dumb," Xander said. "Math, science...Willow. Three subjects I'm always lagging behind in. I need remedial Willow classes."

He turned to her. She was still crying. He wanted to hold her. If he couldn't, he thought he'd die. He saw all the years of his life stretching out ahead of him...long, cold years in the dark.

"Yeah. I take you for granted," Xander said. "Because I'm dumb. You've always been important to me, you've always been my best friend, and it...blinded me a little, I guess. And yeah, I wish so much that it hadn't taken me this long, that I had seen this years ago but...today, every time I look at you...it's like I'm realizing over and over again how beautiful you are. And it's not because of what happened in the alley. It was before I even knew about the alley...it was last night, when you and Buffy came to my house at four in the morning, when you knocked on my window in the dark, and the moon was behind you, and you were smiling. It was then. It was right then. It was then that...suddenly...I realized you're the most beautiful girl in the world and how much...how much I love you. So yeah, I'm dumb. Sometimes, the really special stuff...you don't notice it at first. At least, not when you're a dumb guy like me."

"I'm...beautiful?" Willow said.

"Yeah," Xander said. "You are."

"You...love me?" Willow said.

"Yeah," Xander said. "I do."

It wasn't a romantic kiss. It wasn't tender. It was hungry. Buffy's lips tore into Faith's, her tongue jammed into Faith's mouth, her hands wrenched Faith's hair, pulling her closer.

It caught Faith off guard. She froze. But then Buffy's tongue felt so soft, and Buffy's scent was all around her...

And Faith let herself fall, and let Buffy take her.

They kissed for a few minutes, the kisses eventually becoming softer, more gentle. Buffy wasn't yanking Faith's hair anymore, she was tenderly stroking it. Her tongue wasn't stabbing into Faith's mouth, but licking it, exploring it. They opened their eyes, and finally looked at each other.

Buffy slowly moved her hand to Faith's breasts, and caressed them, her hand shaking a little. She could feel Faith's heart beating like a triphammer.

Faith's fingers touched Buffy's thigh. Buffy moved closer to her. She rested her head on Faith's shoulder, and kissed her neck.

Faith's fingers moved up under Buffy's skirt, and brushed against her panties. Buffy's body was very warm there, and wet. Buffy gasped, when Faith touched her there, her lips against Faith's ear.

Faith put her arms around her, brought her closer, and kissed her again.

"What are we doing?" Buffy whispered, between kisses.

"I don't know," Faith whispered back. "I got absolutely no damn idea."

They were both sweating, and breathing like they had just run a marathon.

"Do you...want to stop?" Buffy said.

"Do you?" Faith said.

Buffy stood there, looking down at the floor, with Faith's arms around her. But she didn't move away.

Buffy was afraid. Faith could smell it on her.

Faith was afraid, too. But she didn't mind feeling afraid...it was better than feeling cold.

Buffy looked up at her.

Faith knew what the look meant. It was a line in the sand.

The look in Buffy's eyes said, cross it.

Faith threw Buffy into the bedroom. Buffy fell to the floor, and Faith leaped on top of her, and kissed her again.

Faith held Buffy down. Buffy wrapped her legs around her, and Faith rammed her body into Buffy's like she was fucking her. She wrenched Buffy's boots off. Buffy yanked at Faith's tee-shirt, ripped it off of her, tore off Faith's bra, and slid her head down until she could put her mouth on Faith's breasts. She sucked hungrily at them, while Faith held her there, her hand pulling at Buffy's hair. Faith's breasts tasted salty from her sweat; Buffy liked the taste.

After a few minutes Buffy flung Faith off of her, jumped up, and threw Faith across the room. Faith crashed into the wall, cracking it, and fell to the floor. Buffy threw herself on top of her, ripping her own sweater to pieces and flinging it away. She fumbled at her bra but her hands were shaking, and she couldn't work the snaps. "Get that fucking thing off!" Faith growled in her ear, and she tore Buffy's bra in two and flung it away.

Buffy slammed Faith's arms down to the floor and pinned her there. Faith didn't resist. She moaned as she kissed and sucked on Buffy's breasts, loving Buffy's taste, loving Buffy's scent, loving the strength in Buffy's arms as she held her down.

After awhile Faith moved her head down Buffy's stomach, kissing her way toward her waist. Buffy still held her to the floor, but allowed her to move. When she couldn't move her head down any further, Faith looked up at her. Faith was covered with Buffy's scent now, but she wanted more. She wanted to taste where it was strongest.

Buffy released Faith's hands. But Faith remained in her submissive pose, her legs spread, her pelvis arched. She tried the zipper on Buffy's skirt but Buffy would have to get up off of her in order to get it off, and Faith didn't want that. So she ripped the skirt off of her. She brought Buffy closer, until Buffy was kneeling above her lips, wearing only her panties. Faith thought she looked scared again.

Faith gently caressed Buffy, in the place where her scent was strongest. Buffy gasped, and trembled.

Faith slipped a finger under Buffy's panties. With a sudden look of panic in her eyes, Buffy grabbed Faith's hands, stopping her.

Faith looked up at her, and waited.

Buffy let Faith's hands go, and stood up. She hesitated...and then she took off her panties.

Faith took Buffy's hand, and brought her back down to her. She caressed Buffy again, as Buffy knelt naked above her. Buffy was wet now where Faith caressed her, and she moaned; it was the prettiest thing Faith had ever heard.

"I wanna kiss it, honey," Faith whispered. "Let me kiss it for you."

Buffy hesitated again. Faith waited.

They looked at each other.

"Please?" Faith said.

And Buffy moved herself to Faith's lips, and let Faith kiss her there.

"Are you ready?" Xander said. He and Willow were naked together, on Cordy's bed.

Willow nodded. "And I can see you sure are," she said, and smiled.

"You're really good at getting a guy ready," he said, and moved on top of her, and kissed her.

She adjusted herself underneath him, and put her hands on his shoulders. She felt him against her. She felt herself parting for him. "You were a little too ready at first," she said. "I hope it's all out of your system."

"Believe me, you got it all out of my system. Every last drop."

Willow giggled. Then she looked at the bedsheets. "Hey, do you think Cordy will notice...I mean...um, there are stains."

"I'm thinking the bedsheets are a lost cause, Will," Xander said. "We'll blame leprechauns. Leprechauns did it. Those wily leprechauns..."

"Yup. Leprechauns," Willow said. "You're pretty good at getting a girl ready too."

"Well, you were either getting ready or you were having an epileptic fit."

Willow giggled again. "Trust me, it wasn't an epileptic fit," she said.

"My tongue's tired," Xander said. "I need stronger tongue muscles."

"Don't worry, sweetie, I'm gonna put that tongue of yours on a regular exercise regimen," Willow said.

They laughed.

"Why do I have the feeling you're gonna be the one wearing the pants in this relationship?" Xander said.

"Maybe sometimes I'll wear sexy lingerie if you've been good and you keep up with your exercise regimen," Willow said. "Maybe a bikini too."

"I've...uh...never actually done this before," Xander said, and stroked her hair. Willow moved her hips beneath him, and drew him slowly inside her.

"Me neither," Willow said, and moaned, as she adjusted to him. He was halfway in now. It hurt a little. But she liked how it hurt.

"You've got the easy job," Xander said. "Wow. This sure is...you know, they showed us that movie in health class? But...the reality is just...a lot more..."

"We talk too much," Willow murmured, and kissed him, and wrapped her legs around him.

After Buffy came, she fell down on top of Faith, and they lay on the floor, catching their breath. They could feel their hearts beating against each other, beating together. Faith felt like she was swimming in a river of Buffy's scent.

When her breathing was back under control, Faith flipped herself over and threw Buffy down beneath her. Buffy didn't resist her.

Buffy grabbed Faith around the waist, and moved her forward until Faith was kneeling on top of her. Faith allowed it, but when Buffy tried to pull her jeans down, Faith moved herself back. She shook her head, and slapped Buffy's hands away. Then she moved herself forward again, until she was kneeling directly above Buffy's lips. When Buffy tried to pull down Faith's jeans again, Faith moved herself back again, and smiled.

"Bitch," Buffy said.

They both started giggling.

"I want a promotion first," Faith said.

"Executive secretary," Buffy said.

Faith nodded, and gently kissed her.

Faith noticed Buffy's shoulder wound for the first time. The bandage had torn off, and there was an ugly scab where the bullet had gone through. Faith kissed it.

"It's my turn to take dictation now," Buffy said.

"Get that little ass on that fucking bed," Faith growled.

Faith helped Buffy up, gave her ass a little pat, and threw her onto the bed. She jumped on her and they rolled around, jamming their tongues in each other's mouths again, feeling the energy coursing through them again. They pulled each other's hair, and licked and caressed and clawed at each other, and fought like cats: first one would conquer the other, forcing her down, making her surrender, then the other would gain the upper hand. They fought and kissed their way across the bed, reveling in each other's strength, luxuriating in each other's scent.

Buffy tore at Faith's jeans, trying to get them down, but they were too tight. "Fucking jeans!" Buffy screamed, and finally grabbed them by the waistband and ripped them in two and flung them away. She pushed Faith down into the bed, and tore Faith's boots and socks off, and ripped her panties down.

They were both naked now, and Faith wrapped her legs around Buffy and they started grinding their bodies together, fucking each other, faster and faster, sweat dripping off them, their hearts pounding, the air dragging in and out of their lungs, barely able to keep up with them.

After a few minutes, Faith threw Buffy off. She pinned Buffy down on the bed, and moved herself above Buffy's lips.

Faith looked down at her, and raised her eyebrow.

"All you got?" Faith said.

Slowly, Buffy raised her arms from the bed and tried to sit up, pitting her strength against Faith's.

Their arms shaking with the strain, they kissed, as Faith tried to force her down, and Buffy struggled to sit up...and then Buffy stopped struggling, and let Faith throw her back down to the bed again.

They each took a moment to catch their breath. They looked each other in the eyes.

"Lie down for me, baby," Buffy whispered. "No more playing now."

Faith hesitated...

Then she let Buffy up, and slowly lay back on the bed.

Buffy moved down to Faith's pussy, but Faith kept her legs closed tight. She moved her arms around in front of herself, like she was trying to hide. She kept fussing with her hair. Buffy smiled, and took Faith's hand, and kissed it. Faith relaxed a little, and allowed Buffy to gently open her legs. Faith was wet.

Buffy gave her a gentle kiss there...

When she looked up, she saw Faith crying.

"Hey," Buffy said, and moved back up beside Faith, and hugged her. "Hey, hey...it's okay, Faith. It's okay. It's okay."

She pulled Faith toward her, and Faith rested her head on Buffy's breasts. Buffy gently ran her fingers up and down Faith's stomach.

"What's wrong?" Buffy said.

"It's...just..." Faith said, sniffling. She looked up at Buffy, and smiled as she cried. "I'm just...I'm just being stupid," Faith said.

"You're not stupid," Buffy said. "Just tell me what's wrong. If it's...if you don't want to do this, if it's too much, we don't have to..."

Faith shook her head. "I want to, B," she said. "I want to with you. But it's just...no one ever really...I've never been...touched there."

"Do you want me to stop? Do you want me...not to touch you?" Buffy said.

"Don't stop," Faith said. "I like...I like your hand there."

"Like this?" Buffy said, and started rubbing Faith's belly. "Do you like when I do this?"

Faith nodded.

"Faith, are you saying...I'm your first?" Buffy said. "That's okay, you know. There's nothing wrong with that."

Faith shook her head.

"There's been guys, y'know?" Faith said. "But they...none of them ever..."

"But they...didn't touch you?" Buffy said. "I don't understand. Why wouldn't they want to...?"

"They just...did their business and got off," Faith said, and turned her back to her. Faith's voice was harsh, when she said that; it was like a gun going off in the room.

Faith felt Buffy looking at her.

"I wasn't a hooker, if that's what you're thinking," Faith said, and sat up, and wiped her tears away. "Maybe I might as well have been though."

"Hey," Buffy said, and gently brought her back down toward her. "I wasn't thinking that. I wasn't."

Faith was still turned away from her. Buffy gently turned her around.

"Faith, look at me," Buffy said.

Faith looked at her. There were tears running down Faith's cheeks again.

"I would never think that," Buffy said. "Never."

Faith nodded, and Buffy kissed her tears...kissed each one as it came.

"What are you doing?" Faith said, giggling.

"I'm gonna kiss you until you can't cry anymore," Buffy said. "I got more kisses than you got tears."

"It tickles," Faith said.

"I fight tears with tickles, and tickles always win," Buffy said, and smiled, and kept kissing her tears. Faith giggled again, and nodded, and stopped crying.

"Put your hand back there?" Faith said, turning over on her side. She took Buffy's hand and put it back on her stomach. Buffy started rubbing her belly again, and kissing her neck. Faith's scent was strong at the back of her neck, below her ears. Buffy kissed her there.

"How's this, baby?" Buffy whispered. "Is this good?"

Faith nodded.

Buffy kissed Faith's neck, and rubbed her belly. They were both quiet.

"I can't come," Faith said, after a few minutes. "I never could. I can't."

"What?" Buffy said. "What do you mean you can't?"

"Guys...I never came when we did it. Never came even if I tried to get myself off either. I'm...what do they call it? I'm frigid."

"No, you're not," Buffy said.

"I am, B."

Buffy turned her around, and hugged her, and kissed her.

"Look," Buffy said. "I'm not saying I'm like, Doctor Ruth, okay? I mean, I've only had sex like, once before. And, really didn't ever think I'd be hopping in bed with a girl, but...anyway...frigid is a word guys came up with to make themselves feel better. There's no such thing."

"What was it like?" Faith said.

"What, you mean the one time?"

"Yeah."

"He was...I loved him, and he loved me. And it was great. It was the best day of my life. The day after that...well, that wasn't so great. But that's a whole other story. The thing is, it was great because we were together, Faith. Because we were thinking about each other...sharing it with each other."

Buffy kissed her again, and caressed her cheek.

"Faith," Buffy said. "The guys you were with didn't deserve you. They were there to take something from you and what they did to you wasn't right. But the way sex is meant to be? It's meant to be about giving. Let me give this to you. Let me make you feel the way you made me feel."

"What if I...can't come?" Faith said.

"Well, like I said, not the expert here? But I think it's about trust. I think you just need to be relaxed, and to be able to trust the person you're with, that they're not out to use you, or hurt you. That way you can concentrate on just feeling good. Do you...do you trust me? Do you trust that I don't want to use you, or take anything from you? That I'm not doing this to hurt you?"

Faith nodded. Buffy moved her fingers down Faith's stomach, just below her waist, and stopped there.

"Are you sure?" Buffy said. "We don't have to, if you're not sure."

"I want to, with you," Faith said.

Buffy kissed her.

"I'm gonna make you come now, okay, baby?" Buffy said.

Faith nodded.

Buffy kissed Faith's neck, and her breasts...

She kissed her way down Faith's stomach, feeling Faith's abdominal muscles moving beneath her lips, contracting wherever she touched them...

She kissed Faith's belly button; it was a tiny little outie. Faith giggled like a little girl. She was ticklish there.

Buffy smiled, and gently spread Faith's legs, and moved down between them.

They looked at each other.

Faith was still afraid. Buffy could smell it on her.

She took Faith's hand.

And Faith purred like a kitten, as Buffy covered her most intimate place with kisses...

Cordelia snuck upstairs, piled down with shopping bags, hoping to avoid Buffy's nerd brigade. She'd hoped they'd all be gone by now but no such luck; she'd heard splashing out back by the pool when she parked her car, and unless Conchita had been at the wine coolers again and had decided it was time for the semi-annual rite of inflicting the sight of herself in a bikini on Cordy's innocent retinas, that meant they were still here. If she could just make it to her room without any of them seeing her she could lock herself in and try on all her new outfits and hopefully they'd all go away eventually. With some luck all of them were out by the pool and they wouldn't even notice she'd gotten back.

Cordy had known the day would be a disaster from the get-go; she'd decided the moment after she'd agreed to this that the only way she'd get through it was by sticking to a regimen of vigorous shopping and having Conchita run interference. She had thought Willow and Xander would be the problem, but it hadn't turned out that way. The problem was Buffy's mother. Willow and Xander had basically avoided Cordy and Cordy liked that fine. Giles had said a few British things she hadn't understood and then had gone away. But Joyce kept on talking to her, kept on trying to be nice to her and asking her about school and her friends. Apparently she had been popular back in the Stone Age and she thought they could both bond over it. She had a tediously earnest perkiness that made Cordy realize that Buffy's uncanny ability to annoy her must have a genetic component. Joyce kept hinting around that maybe Buffy belonged with the cool crowd. And maybe she did, Cordy knew, but Buffy had chosen to burn that bridge. And even if Cordy decided to extend the invitation again out of the kindness of her heart, Joyce actually seemed to think Willow belonged with the cool crowd too. It was bewildering.

She opened the door to her room, saw Willow and Xander having sex on her bed, and closed the door to her room.

"Great! And now I'm scarred for life," Cordy said.

When Faith came, a shudder went through her, and she cried.

"It's okay, baby," Buffy said, and moved up beside her again, and hugged her, and wiped her tears away. "It's okay. It's okay."

Faith kissed Buffy, and smiled, and rested her head on her breasts.

"Guess I'm not frigid," Faith said.

"Told you," Buffy said. "You just needed some hot Buffy lovin'."

"Yeah," Faith said, and giggled.

"How did it feel?" Buffy said, running her fingers through Faith's hair.

"Friggin' awesome," Faith said, and giggled again.

"Good."

Faith snuggled up closer to Buffy, and Buffy put her arms around her, and kissed her. Faith kissed Buffy's breasts. She took one of Buffy's nipples in her mouth, and started sucking on it.

"Mmmm. That feels good, baby," Buffy said.

Faith closed her eyes, and sucked on Buffy's nipple, as Buffy ran her fingers through her hair...

When Faith opened her eyes again, she realized she had fallen asleep. She looked up. Buffy was smiling down at her.

"Hey," Buffy said.

"Hey. Did I, uh, fall asleep?" Faith said.

"You took a little nap. It's okay."

"Sorry. I guess I just got kinda comfortable. Your boobs are real nice to lie on. Like pillows."

"I didn't mind," Buffy said. "I like having you like this. Besides, it was only maybe half an hour. I can be Buffy the pillow if you want."

Faith rested her head on Buffy's breasts again. She liked being there.

"You tired, baby? You wanna go back to sleep for awhile?" Buffy said.

Faith shook her head, and started kissing Buffy's breasts again, and moved her fingers down between Buffy's legs. She caressed Buffy's clit, and slowly worked a finger inside her. Buffy was tight, but she was so wet that Faith was able to enter her with ease. Buffy moaned, as Faith gently fucked her.

"Baby..." Buffy whispered.

Faith moved on top of her, and kissed her, and pushed a second finger inside her. Buffy was breathing heavily now, her breasts heaving, as Faith caressed her tiny button of a clit, and slowly fucked her with her fingers. Faith watched the muscles in Buffy's powerful thighs and calves flexing as Buffy thrashed around on the bed, scratching her toenails up and down the bedsheet like a cat on a scratching post, tearing the bedsheet to ribbons.

Buffy dug her fingernails into Faith's shoulder, drawing blood; Faith liked it. She knew the pain for what it was: just another part of the song Buffy had been playing, using Faith's body as her instrument. The pain knifed through Faith, sweet and sharp and shrill, the perfect high note you had to hit just right, or the song wouldn't be complete...and then it faded away.

But it awakened the lion in Faith before it was gone: Faith had loved being Buffy's kitten before but now she was a lion again, and she smiled down at Buffy, showing her teeth. She gently grazed them along Buffy's neck, and inhaled Buffy's scent. She wished she could bite her. She wanted to mark her territory.

She noticed two tiny wounds on the left side of Buffy's neck, the old scabs faded to white now. Faith knew what they were. A low growl escaped her lips: someone had been there first, dared to claim what Faith had already decided belonged to her.

Buffy was bucking and moaning and thrashing around beneath her, nearly throwing Faith off as Faith brought her closer to her orgasm. But Faith controlled her, forced her back down, rode her like a wild horse she meant to tame. Buffy wrapped her arms and legs around Faith and held on tight to her, trembling, her fingernails digging into Faith's back, her feet rubbing up and down Faith's strong, muscular legs.

Buffy felt Faith's fingers caressing the old wounds--the bite marks left by Angelus--on her neck. She opened her eyes, and saw Faith staring down at her.

"You're mine," Faith said.

Buffy nodded.

"Fuckin' say it," Faith snarled, and inserted a third finger into Buffy's pussy. But she was gentle, when she did it; moving it into her slowly, careful not to hurt her. She kept up her slow rhythm, caressing Buffy's clit with her thumb and moving her fingers back and forth inside her.

"Yours...baby...I'm yours," Buffy whispered breathlessly, and kissed her.

Faith licked the wounds on Buffy's neck, as Buffy bucked and moaned and trembled beneath her. It took all Faith's strength to hold her down.

"Here comes my girl," Faith whispered in Buffy's ear, as she gently fucked her...

And Buffy screamed and came like a rocket blasting off and bucked like a bronco and kicked out with her legs, nearly sending Faith flying off of her. But Faith managed to hold on, and she held Buffy down and kissed her, as Buffy's whole body convulsed, her orgasm ripping through her like an earthquake; Faith held her there, and tamed her, and kissed her...as Buffy trembled, and shuddered, and, eventually, lay still beneath her.

They kissed...

Then Buffy kicked Faith off of her. Faith flew across the room and slammed into a wall, knocking a hole in it, and fell to the floor.

Buffy sat up on all fours like a cat, and looked at her.

"And you're mine," Buffy growled.

And she showed Faith her teeth and sprang at her, covering the whole room in one bound. They rolled around on the floor, kissing and clawing at each other again, slamming each other into walls; one wall collapsed and actually fell on them. They jumped out from underneath it and Faith hurled Buffy across the room into the wall over the bed. Buffy slammed into it, cracking it, and landed back on the bed. Faith leaped onto the bed, but Buffy grabbed her arms in mid-air and flipped her over, and held her down. She jammed her face into Faith's pussy and tore into it like it was her last meal.

"Wait...B...wait," Faith said, eventually. "Turn around."

Buffy could barely catch her breath. Faith's scent was driving her into a frenzy; every part of her felt like it was tingling. She felt her energy spiking, felt it shooting through her. It was an effort to talk. Buffy felt like she had to dredge something up in order to do it; like she had to retrieve some nearly forgotten part of herself first.

"What...?" Buffy said, looking up from between Faith's legs like a greedy lion looking up from a fresh kill.

"Turn around. I wanna see that pretty little ass," Faith said.

Buffy grudgingly turned around. "What are we doing?" she said. "Why do you want me to--"

Faith grabbed Buffy's ass, and brought her down to her lips.

"There's my girl," Faith said, and started kissing Buffy's pussy.

"Oh..." Buffy said, and moaned. "Oh."

"You on vacation?" Faith said.

They both giggled, as Buffy put her head down between Faith's legs, and started licking her there again...

And then they stopped giggling.

"Holy galloping fuck," Faith said, much later, when the Slayers in them, finally sated, had returned to their lairs in their subconscious minds, and they both felt like themselves again. "What the hell did we do?"

"We broke the bed," Buffy said.

Faith looked down. The bed was tilting at an angle; one of its runners had collapsed. She looked around the room. Their clothes were torn to shreds on the floor. The wall by the bedroom door had collapsed, the wall to her left was cracked, and there was a hole in the wall behind them; she could see that the sun had gone down. There were stars in the sky now.

"I think we broke the whole room," Faith said. "How'd that wall over there fall down?"

"Remember, when we were rolling around on the floor?" Buffy said. "We kinda crashed into it. Plus either you threw me into it or I threw you into it at least once...there was a lot of throwing. Just a lot of general slamming into walls."

"Oh yeah," Faith said. "I thought I felt something fall on me. Wasn't really paying attention."

"And I think I kicked through the wall behind us when I was on top of you and we were adding up to our favorite number," Buffy said, looking at the back yard through the hole in the wall behind them. A labrador retriever stood in the yard, watching her curiously.

They were naked, lying together in each other's arms. Their breasts were touching. They could feel each other's breath on their skin...they could feel each other's hearts beating.

But it was different now...uncomfortable. Their scents were still there, they still smelled sweet, but they didn't have the intoxicating effect they'd had before. They sat up, on opposite sides of the bed.

"Holy galloping fuck," Faith said, again, because it seemed the most appropriate thing to say.

"That's one way of putting it," Buffy said.

"So now what?" Faith said. She had just had sex with a girl. And she liked it...but she didn't know what it meant. Was she a lesbian now? Could you be a lesbian and still like guys?

Everything was different now. Rebecca was gone, and she couldn't see Evan again. And Buffy...

Faith had no idea what to do about Buffy.

"We both...said some stuff," Buffy said. She thought about Angel. She had no idea what she would do now. But she could never really have him...she could never really have him, and sometimes she needed someone...she wondered if this is the way it would be for the rest of her life, if this was the kind of person she would have to be, if she stayed with Angel, and tried to make it work with him. She would try to be loyal to him, but they would never be able to make love...and sometimes, she would need someone...

Buffy didn't want to be that kind of person. She didn't want that life.

"We were...we were both in a real weird place," Buffy said. "We were..."

"Slayers," Faith said. "I don't know how it was with you, but...it felt like, yeah, okay, maybe I was in the car? But the Slayer in me was driving."

"Yeah," Buffy said. "Like how it gets when I'm out patrolling sometimes. Just...totally focused in on it...like there's nothing else in the world. We were...just focused in on each other."

Faith nodded. She had forgotten Evan. She hadn't thought about him for even a second when she was with Buffy...she had promised herself she'd be true to him and it had taken her less than a week to betray him.

"Faith," Buffy said. "This was...I don't regret it, okay? It was really sweet, and...I liked being with you and I don't regret any of it. But..."

The Slayer did it, Faith decided. It wasn't her. It was the Slayer in her who betrayed Evan. From now on, she'd just have to control the Slayer...never let this happen again.

"B...listen," Faith said, cutting her off. "I'm sorry, but...look, I'm not gay, okay? I don't swing that way."

"Wait, you don't swing that way?" Buffy said. "Hello? I don't swing that way! You think I swing that way? I'm not gay! I'm totally not gay!"

Faith nearly started laughing. The girl said it like she actually believed it.

Faith wondered if Buffy really did believe it. She knew Buffy hadn't lied about the guy...whoever he was...she had sex with that time. But it was obvious she liked girls...then again, maybe Buffy was thinking the same thing about her.

Faith raised her eyebrow. But she didn't laugh. It would have been rude.

"I'm not!" Buffy said.

"Could've fooled me," Faith said, with a grin.

"Who threw who on the floor and jumped on top of who?" Buffy said. "Uh, whom?"

"Hey, you threw me on the bed!" Faith said. "And into a wall."

"You started it!" Buffy said, standing up and pointing at Faith. "You started this whole thing!"

"I started it?" Faith said, and stood up. "How the hell do you figure that?"

The labrador retriever was still looking at them. It was wagging its tail.

"Pervo dog," Buffy said, covering her breasts. "You said 'Hey'."

"I said 'Hey'? You threw me against a wall and jammed your frigging tongue in my mouth!"

"You threw me on the floor and jumped on me!"

Faith shook her head, and looked down at the floor. "Splendid," she said. "Just frigging splendid."

"And you kept doing that secretary thing," Buffy said. "And I'm demoting you, by the way."

"Look, how's this?" Faith said. "Neither of us is gay, okay? We just got..."

"Carried away," Buffy said.

"That's one way of putting it. I'm naked with some girl I've known for like twenty hours in a vamp drug house in the middle of California. Splendid."

"Stop saying 'holy galloping fuck' and 'splendid'."

"Holy galloping fuck," Faith said defiantly, glaring at Buffy with her arms folded across her chest. "Splendid, splendid, splendid."

"Why are you so annoying?" Buffy said. "I've known you for twenty hours and you've spent nineteen of them finding new ways to annoy me."

"So are we gonna have to drive home naked or what?" Faith said, surveying what was left of her clothes. Other than her socks and her boots, they were ripped to shreds. "Not that the freaks out here would mind. People probably drive around naked all the time out here. Probably drive out naked to peace rallies and Grateful Dead concerts."

"Oh, please," Buffy said. "Like Boston's so cool. What do you guys have? Seafood and Cheers and like, Kennedys."

"Better than smog and freaks and a Hellmouth."

"So what are we gonna do about clothes?"

"I got an idea," Faith said, looking toward the closet. "And I can guarantee we're not gonna like it."

"Splendid," Faith said to annoy Buffy, as they looked at themselves in the mirror. Faith was wearing a tie-dyed tee-shirt and bell bottom jeans with little pink flowers stitched on the front pockets and a peace sign patch on the ass. Buffy was wearing a red paisley blouse and a brown and gold peasant skirt with a pattern of red and orange rainbows around the hem.

"Well, it's better than going home naked, I guess," Buffy said.

"You sure about that?" Faith said.

"So, Faith...look, about today..." Buffy said.

They looked at each other.

"It never happened," they both said, at the same time.

They giggled.

"Come on, you hippie," Buffy said. "Let's get outta here before some vamps show up and laugh at us."

"Groovy," Faith said.

As they walked into the hallway, Faith put her hand on Buffy's shoulder.

"Hey," Faith said.

"Faith, please tell me you're not trying to get me to kiss you again?" Buffy said. "Because I'm planning on repressing this memory and looking at pictures of Brad Pitt for a week."

"Buffy...thanks," Faith said. "For what you did for Becca. It...really means a lot to me, y'know? It means a lot."

"Hey, no problem," Buffy said, and smiled.

"She better not try to kiss me," Faith said.

She was standing in front of the mirror in the bathroom in her motel room the next day, combing her hair. She knew Buffy would be coming over soon. She didn't have a clock but she knew it was three because Oprah had just started. "A negative self-image can hurt us," Faith could hear Oprah saying in the other room. "According to this new book, our greatest strength and our greatness weakness lies in how we perceive ourselves."

Faith looked in the mirror.

"Bet she's gonna try to kiss me," Faith said. "No way she can resist this package."

Faith puckered her lips, and checked her lipstick.

"Everyone wants to kiss me," Faith said, with a wicked grin.

The doorbell rang. Faith checked herself one last time. She frowned at her outfit; she didn't have any decent clothes. She sighed and walked out of the bathroom. "So the way we perceive ourselves actually dictates how other people see us?" Oprah was saying. "Yes, to a significant degree. And if our self-image isn't fully formed, there is the danger that we may allow others to dictate--" someone answered, as Faith shut the TV off on her way to the door.

When she opened it, Buffy was standing there wearing faded blue cut-off jeans that fit her like a glove and did a nice job of displaying her long legs, a tight yellow tee-shirt without a bra and a pair of yellow flip-flops. She looked like the sun in a clear blue sky. Beautiful, and warm.

"Time for your tour of Sunnydale," Buffy said. "Ready to ride the welcome wagon?"

Faith raised her eyebrow, and gave Buffy a sexy smile. Not too sexy. She didn't want Buffy to kiss her again. But sexy. Buffy looked good in the cut-off jeans. Think about Evan, Faith thought. Hell, Brad Pitt too. Whatever works...

"You the welcome wagon?" Faith said. "Didn't I just take that ride?"

"Um...I want to have my last remark stricken from the record," Buffy said, and giggled, as Faith stepped aside and she walked into the motel room. Buffy immediately headed for the air conditioner, and stood in front of it with her arms stretched out at her sides and basked.

Faith moved to the nightstand. She was wearing tight jeans and a tee-shirt and her Docs; she wished she had some other outfit options but she didn't. Faith had one hell of a fabulous butt though, and she knew it. And she also knew that the jeans she was wearing didn't leave a single millimeter of it to the imagination. She decided to have some fun with Buffy.

She bent all the way over, went into the nightstand's little drawer and took her time finding her keys. She made sure Buffy got a good, long look at her butt. She even wiggled it at her. Just a little.

"You can be my welcome wagon, B," Faith said, looking back at Buffy with another sexy smile. "I liked the ride. I can go again." She noticed Buffy was very consciously not looking at her butt, and was instead staring at the wall.

"You're trying to get me to kiss you again, aren't you?" Buffy said, still basking in front of the air conditioner. "And on the eighth day God invented air conditioning. It's so hot out there today. It's Africa hot."

"You gotta stop projecting all your perverted fantasies onto me," Faith said, and lay down on the bed with her legs spread a little. What the hell am I doing? a part of Faith thought. "If I wanted a kiss you'd know," the other part of her said.

"Yeah?" Buffy said, and sat next to her. "How would I know?"

"I'd kiss you," Faith said, looking Buffy in the eyes, and nearly threw her arms around Buffy and kissed her. Instead she sat up, and got herself under control. She didn't know what she was doing. She didn't want a repeat of the day before...at least, that's what she'd been telling herself...

Buffy looked away from her and blushed a little. Faith took the opportunity to look at Buffy's legs. They were long and smooth and muscular and the color of cream. They were perfect. They were two perfect creamsicles on a hot summer day. Faith wanted to lick them.

"You blushing, girlfriend?" Faith said.

"No," Buffy said, giggling and still looking away from her. Faith decided to relent.

"It's cool, hon,' Faith said, and rubbed Buffy's shoulder and stood up. "You made me blush plenty yesterday. Want like a Sprite or something? Got drinks in the bathroom."

"You have drinks in the bathroom?"

"Got no 'fridge so I'm keeping drinks in ice in the bathroom sink."

"Yeah, I could use a cold drink. It's like ninety-five degrees and super humid today. It feels like I'm walking around in a big gross bowl of soup out there. I'm all hot and sticky."

"You tryin' to turn me on?" Faith said, and walked into the bathroom and took two Sprites out of the pile of ice she kept in the bathroom sink. "Already told you girlfriend, I don't swing that way."

She came back into the room and sat next to Buffy on the bed again. She popped the top off of Buffy's Sprite, and handed it to her.

Buffy was a little sweaty and her scent was stronger than usual. Faith loved that scent; it was like a flower...like a specific flower Faith had smelled before, but she still couldn't remember the name of it...

Faith couldn't resist one last little pinch. She moved her face very close to Buffy's...moved her lips very close to Buffy's. She smiled, her very sexiest smile.

"Unless you ask me real nice, honey," Faith whispered.

Buffy smiled, and shook her head, and came to a decision. "Oh, hey, I almost forgot," she said, and put her Sprite down. "I brought a surprise for you."

"I like surprises," Faith said, and grinned. Faith looked at her. Buffy wasn't carrying anything with her, other than her purse. "Is it in your purse?"

"Close your eyes," Buffy said.

"Uh...okay," Faith said, and closed her eyes, and drank her Sprite.

"So you like surprises, huh?" she heard Buffy saying.

"Love 'em," Faith said. "But usually I'm the one springin' the surprise." She wondered what Buffy could have brought her that would fit in her purse.

"Okay," Faith heard Buffy saying a moment later. "Open your eyes."

Faith opened her eyes.

Buffy was standing naked in front of her.

"Surprise," Buffy said.

Faith was speechless. She blushed.

"You blushing, girlfriend?" Buffy said, smiling her very sexiest smile. She moved close to Faith, and took the Sprite out of her hands, and put it on the nightstand. She touched Faith's hair.

"Buffy...look...we..." Faith started to say. Buffy touched Faith's lips with her finger.

"Sshhh," Buffy said. "Lie down."

"Buffy..." Faith tried to say, again. Buffy stood inches away from Faith now, as Faith sat on the edge of the bed. Buffy's breasts were very close to her. Buffy's nipples were hard. They were long when they were hard; they stood out from her breasts like two pink erasers. Faith could have kissed them from where she was sitting. Faith felt her own nipples getting hard too.

"Faith. Lie down for me, baby," Buffy said, and caressed her cheek.

Slowly, Faith lay back on the bed. Buffy knelt on the bed beside her.

"Just relax," Buffy said.

Buffy laid herself on top of Faith, and looked her in the eyes. She noticed Faith was starting to breathe faster now, and she was fussing with her hair.

"You know I'd never hurt you, right?" Buffy said.

Faith nodded. She was nervous; Buffy could see it, and she could smell it. Buffy took Faith's hand. It was shaking a little.

"Nothing's gonna happen that you don't want," Buffy said, and caressed her cheek again. "Okay?"

Faith nodded again. She relaxed a little. But she was still nervous. She kept fussing with her hair.

Buffy moved her lips very close to Faith's neck, behind her ear. She inhaled Faith's scent.

"I love the way you smell," Buffy said. "Do you...like how I smell?"

"Yeah," Faith said.

Buffy caressed her cheek. Faith still fussed with her hair.

Buffy got up, and knelt on the bed beside her again.

"I like your boots," Buffy said. "Docs?"

"Yeah," Faith said.

"I always wanted to try them," Buffy said. "But I don't know if I could pull off the look as well as you do." She unlaced Faith's boots, and took them off. She took off Faith's socks.

"I bet you got ticklish feet," Buffy said, and smiled. "You do, don't you?"

"No," Faith said, and tried not to smile.

"I think you're lying," Buffy said. "I bet they're totally ticklish."

"You better not tickle 'em," Faith said, smiling now.

"If you're a good girl," Buffy said. "Maybe I won't."

Buffy ran her fingers over the soles of Faith's feet. Faith gasped, and giggled.

"Or maybe I will," Buffy said.

"You better stop," Faith said, and sat up, giggling.

Buffy slowly started lifting Faith's tee-shirt up. When it was halfway up, she stopped, and looked at Faith, and waited.

Faith hesitated...then she raised her arms, and let Buffy lift her tee-shirt up the rest of the way, and pull it off. Buffy unclasped Faith's bra in back.

"It's okay, Faith," Buffy said.

Faith blushed again, and avoided Buffy's eyes, as Buffy took her bra off. Faith's nipples were hard.

Buffy gently raised Faith's chin, and looked at her.

"We'll go slow," Buffy said. "Any time you want to stop, we will."

Faith nodded. Her panties were soaked. She hoped Buffy wouldn't try to take her jeans down. She felt her heart beating. She was taking deep breaths now. She kept trying to calm herself down, but she couldn't.

"I'm gonna help you relax, okay?" Buffy said. She gently laid Faith back down and turned her over onto her side, and curled up behind her. She put her arms around her, and started rubbing her belly.

Faith felt herself relaxing, as Buffy rubbed her belly. She felt her nervousness seeping away.

"That's it, baby," Buffy whispered. "That's it."

Faith realized that Buffy hadn't once touched her breasts, or kissed her.

After a few minutes, Buffy said, "You let me know when you're ready for me to take your jeans off, okay, baby?"

A little thrill went through Faith, when Buffy said that.

"Okay," Faith said.

Faith felt warm, as Buffy rubbed her belly. She felt relaxed now. She wasn't nervous anymore. Her breathing was normal again. She breathed in Buffy's scent.

They didn't talk. Buffy didn't kiss Faith, or touch her anywhere else. She rubbed Faith's belly, and they listened to each other's breathing, and inhaled each other's scents.

"You can take my jeans off if you want," Faith whispered, a little later.

Buffy pulled Faith's jeans down. They were tight and it took her awhile; Faith had to wriggle out of them. Buffy saw that Faith's panties were soaked through. Faith blushed again, and closed her legs. Buffy smiled, and took Faith's hand, and kissed it.

"Do you want me to take your panties off now, or do you want me to wait?" Buffy said.

"You can take them off," Faith said.

Buffy gently took Faith's panties off.

Faith smelled good; even better than usual, because she was wet. It took all of Buffy's self-control not to start licking her pussy. But that wasn't why she was doing this; it wasn't what she was after. She turned Faith over on her side, and curled up behind her again, and went back to rubbing her belly.

"Now," Buffy said. "We need to talk, Faith."

"Uh...okay," Faith said.

Buffy started rubbing her feet against Faith's.

"You were all being flirty with me, and wiggling your butt at me and stuff," Buffy said. "How come, baby?"

"I don't know," Faith said.

"I thought you said yesterday you didn't wanna do that stuff? That you like guys?"

"I do, but...I don't know. I was just...jokin' around with you today, that's all. I'm sorry. I didn't mean nothin' by it."

Buffy knew Faith was lying.

"I'm not angry, Faith," Buffy said. "It's just that when you do that stuff... it makes it awkward for me a little."

"I'm sorry," Faith said.

Buffy kissed Faith's cheek. "You don't have to be sorry, Faith," she said. "I'm not angry. Do you like being with me like this?"

"Yeah," Faith said.

"Yesterday was a strange day."

"Yeah."

"You told me yesterday you had a guy in Boston. Is that true, or was it just so I wouldn't try to set you up with Xander?"

"It's true."

"Are you going back to him now that Kakistos is gone?"

"No," Faith said. She knew she could never go back to Evan. Kakistos was gone, but if there was anything she learned from Rebecca's stories of the Slayers who had come before, it was that there was always a new threat right around the corner. Evan would never be safe, if Faith gave in to her desires...if she let herself have him. It would be selfish...it would get him killed. "I think...I'm gonna stay around here, at least for awhile."

"I'm glad," Buffy said. "I like you here with me."

"I like being here with you," Faith said.

"Good," Buffy said. "Looks like we're a matched set."

Faith nodded. Buffy rubbed her belly. Part of Faith wished Buffy would rub her between her legs too. But she knew that would make things confusing again...and she wanted to be loyal to Evan. Or at least try to be...

"I got a guy too," Buffy said. "It's...really complicated though. We sort of broke up, but...we still care about each other. We're sort of...together and not together at the same time. He's the guy I told you about yesterday."

Faith nodded. She was starting to feel sleepy. When Buffy rubbed her belly it made Faith want to cuddle up on Buffy's breasts and go to sleep. But at the same time her pussy was still soaked. She wasn't sure what she wanted, wasn't sure what to do.

"So I bet you're wondering why I did this, huh?" Buffy said. "Why we're lying here naked together."

"The thought sorta crossed my mind, yeah," Faith said.

"With the vibe we had, from the moment I walked in here, I thought it would make things simpler for us if we cut right to the chase," Buffy said. "I just wanted us to be comfortable, and to make it past this whole sex thing, so we could really talk. Plus maybe I wanted to see your perfect little butt."

Faith giggled.

"So we both have guys, but we both like being with each other," Buffy said. "What's it all mean, jelly bean?"

Faith giggled again. "I don't know," she said. "We're weirdos."

Buffy moved herself closer to Faith, so her nose was against the back of Faith's neck, just below her ear, where her scent was strong.

"I think it means we gotta make a choice, Faith," Buffy said.

"Yeah," Faith said.

"The way I see it, we're both straight," Buffy said. "We both have guys, we both like guys. But we like each other too. Maybe it's a Slayer thing, maybe we're bi, I don't know. Of course, I guess you could just be a big huge lesbian..." Buffy said, and started tickling Faith's belly.

Faith laughed and started thrashing around, as Buffy kept tickling her. "Oh, it is so on!" Faith shouted, and she leaped out from under Buffy and jumped to the other side of the bed and started tickling Buffy's feet. Buffy started laughing hysterically and tried to yank her feet away like she had just stepped on hot coals. They got tangled up together like they were playing a game of Twister, laughing and shouting and rolling around and jumping on each other and trying to uncover new secret ticklish places on each other's bodies; their faces were red, and their nipples were hard, and they were wet for each other...

Eventually, Buffy ended up on top. She held Faith's arms down, and lay on top of her, and smiled. They were both out of breath, and sweating a little.

"What am I gonna do with you?" Buffy said, and let Faith's arms go. "You're such a bad girl."

Faith hugged Buffy, and giggled. "I can be good," she said.

"Okay," Buffy said, and smiled.

They just looked at each other, for awhile. Buffy caressed Faith's cheek, and ran her fingers through her hair. She could feel how wet Faith was, between her legs.

Eventually, Buffy rolled off of her, and turned her on her side again. "Good girls get tummy rubs," she said. She cuddled up behind Faith, and put her arms around her, and started rubbing her belly again. Faith nodded, and rubbed her feet against Buffy's.

"So we're back to the question," Buffy said. "How are we gonna be when we're together? Friends? Or the way we were yesterday?"

"I don't know," Faith said.

"Me neither," Buffy said. "But we gotta figure it out. We gotta decide what we want."

Faith nodded.

"You know what it's like?" Buffy said, and turned Faith over on her back, and looked down at her. She moved her hand lower as she rubbed Faith's belly, until her hand reached below Faith's waist, and touched the top of her pubic hair.

Faith opened her legs for her. Buffy smiled, and kissed her cheek.

"It's like what you're feeling right now," Buffy said. "I can tell you're getting all sleepy with me rubbing your tummy. But you're horny too. I know you want me to give you a kiss down there."

Faith nodded.

"So there are two choices," Buffy said. "You can be my sleepy girl and cuddle up with me and we can take a nap. And we can decide that we won't do anything more than that, and yesterday was just...not a one-night stand, because it was better than that, but...just...a strange day. Not a day we regret. Just a strange day. Or...I could kiss it for you. But that means everything gets complicated...and the guys in our lives...is it really fair to them?"

Faith thought about Evan.

And then she rolled over, and curled up with her head against Buffy's breasts.

"Let's just take a nap," Faith said.

"Okay," Buffy said, and put her arms around Faith, and brought her close to her. "So...is this our choice?"

"Yeah. I think so," Faith said. "I like you a lot Buffy, I love being with you but...I wanna be loyal to my guy."

"Yeah. I think...that's the right decision for us," Buffy said. "And hello? Not lesbians."

They laughed. Faith was ninety-nine point nine-nine-nine-nine-nine percent sure Buffy was lying, but she let it pass. "Yeah," she said.

"It's nice and cool in here, with the air conditioning," Buffy said. "Good for naps."

"Yeah, it's the one thing this place got right," Faith said. "I'm sorry, B. I'm sorry I was all...like joking around and being all flirty with you. I'm sorry if that made you...uncomfortable."

"Not uncomfortable," Buffy said, and kissed Faith's forehead. "Just...it complicates things, Faith. It makes things a little harder."

"I guess I was just nervous about seeing you after yesterday, y'know?" Faith said. "And...I guess I was just letting off some steam. I won't tease you like that anymore, I promise."

"It's okay," Buffy said. "I wasn't angry with you. I was just...um...really, really horny. You made me blush, baby. But I'm better now."

Faith giggled. Then she yawned, and cuddled up closer to Buffy. "I love how you smell," she said. "I love being close to you like this, having your scent right next to me. You always smell real pretty."

"So do you, baby," Buffy said. "I think I could stay here like this forever."

"Me too," Faith said, and closed her eyes.

When she opened them again the room was dark. She looked around. Moonlight was shining in through the window. She was cuddled up against Buffy's breasts. Buffy's arms were around her. Buffy was snoring softly.

Faith sat up on the edge of the bed. She looked down at Buffy, in the moonlight, and watched her sleep.

"Jesus Christ, you're beautiful," Faith whispered. Buffy's hair was in her eyes. Faith gently fixed it.

"You're my girl," Faith whispered.

Buffy rolled over in her sleep, and reached out. She ran her hands over the bedsheet, and seemed to frown.

Faith lay back down beside her, and took her in her arms.

"Mmmmm," Buffy purred, and put her arms around Faith.

After a moment, Buffy opened her eyes.

"Hey," Faith said.

"Mmmmm...hi baby," Buffy said, and yawned, and stretched, and looked around the room. She curled up closer to Faith, and smiled. "Got all dark."

"Yeah, we'll have to do the tour another time," Faith said. "But it's not too late though, I can hear cars and stuff outside. Figure we can still patrol."

Buffy shook her head, rolled over, and pulled Faith's arm around her. She held Faith's hand against her breasts. "Sleepy," Buffy said. "Need more cuddles."

"But what about patrolling?" Faith said.

"Cuddles," Buffy said, and rubbed her feet against Faith's.

"You're my lazy girl, huh, honey?" Faith said.

Buffy nodded.

"My lazy girl wants to go back to sleep?" Faith said.

Buffy nodded.

"Okay," Faith said. "Lazy girls get to go back to sleep. I gotta warn you though, sometimes lazy girls get tickled."

Buffy shook her head.

"They do," Faith whispered in her ear, and ran her fingers down Buffy's back, and over her butt. "They get tickled in all sorts of places."

Buffy giggled. "No they don't," she said. "They get goodnight kisses."

"They get goodnight kisses?" Faith said.

Buffy nodded.

"But what about our talk, honey?" Faith said.

"Goodnight kisses," Buffy said.

Faith turned Buffy around, and caressed her cheek. Buffy opened her eyes, and looked up at her.

Faith gently kissed her.

"Goodnight," Faith whispered.

"Goodnight," Buffy whispered.

Buffy turned back over, and pulled Faith's arm around her again, and held Faith's hand against her breasts. Faith curled up behind her.

"You're my girl," Faith said.

Buffy nodded.

They went back to sleep.

They woke up at the exact same time.

They sat up in the bed, instantly awake and completely alert and ready for a fight. The room was still dark. Moonlight was still shining in.

"Vamps," Faith said.

"Yeah," Buffy said. "Close by."

Two lions leaped out of the bed.

"Hot diggity," Faith said. She pulled her stake from the nightstand and twirled it around her fingers.

Buffy was standing very still, and looking toward the window. Faith watched Buffy as she stood there, naked in the moonlight, her legs spread apart, all the weight on the balls of her feet: she had unconsciously adopted a fighting stance. Buffy was reaching out with her senses, and baring her teeth. She was a perfect predator. She was the most beautiful creature Faith had ever seen. She was more beautiful than Evan.

Faith knew she couldn't have her. She couldn't have Evan either. She couldn't have anyone.

"They're coming closer," Buffy said. There was a hint of a snarl in her voice. "Not right toward us, but heading in our general direction."

Faith let her senses reach out. Mostly, Buffy's scent came to her. She tried to filter it out. It was distracting.

"Yeah," Faith said, zeroing in on the vampires' scents. "Smells like a whole bunch of them out there."

"I'm picking up seven of them," Buffy said, and turned on the light, and began scooping up her clothes. "Let's get to it."

"How we playin' this?" Faith said, as she put her panties on and wriggled herself back into her jeans. They were tight and it required some hopping around to get them buttoned, and Faith's breasts flopped up and down as she did it. Buffy watched her with an appreciative little smile as she got dressed.

"Sorry, what were you saying?" Buffy said, as she pulled up her cut-off jeans and slipped into her flip-flops. "Mesmerized by your boobs over here."

"B, not for nothin?" Faith said, as she put her tee-shirt on. She didn't bother with the bra. "Don't talk it unless you're gonna walk it, because you don't even wanna know how much I need you right now."

"Sorry, baby," Buffy said, and smiled, as she wiggled into her tight tee-shirt. "If it makes you feel any better the feeling's mutual, boob girl."

Faith wasn't smiling.

"Makes me feel worse, actually," Faith said, and pulled on her socks and her boots and started quickly lacing them up. "If you didn't want it I'd deal and move on. But if we both want it then why the hell can't we be together?"

"Faith..." Buffy said. She wanted to explain. But she didn't know how. Buffy thought back to the conversation they'd had earlier, about how they shouldn't be together. The reasons had seemed like good ones, then. Now they didn't. Why should she be loyal to Angel when she could never have him?

She remembered the photographs, in the shoebox in her closet.

"Faith, look," Buffy said. "I know we..."

Faith held up her hand. "Forget it, okay?" Faith said, and finished lacing up her boots. "It's complicated and I'm not in the fuckin' mood. I'm in the mood for simple right now. Dustin' vamps is nice and simple."

Faith looked up at Buffy. Buffy's face was red.

"I'm sorry," Faith said. "That didn't come out right, okay? I'm not angry with you, Buffy, I'm just...I'm in a weird mood. I've had...kind of a rough week, y'know? Everything's...everything's changed now. A week ago Becca was alive."

Faith had a tear in her eye. She wiped it away.

"I had Becca, y'know?" Faith said. "She always took care of me. I knew what I was doing, I knew where I stood. Now I don't have anything. I don't even have a frigging picture of Becca. I never took a picture of her. I always thought... we'd have more time."

Buffy sat down next to her, and put her arm around her.

Faith held up her stake. "This is what I have," Faith said. "This is all I have now. Becca's gone and this is what I have now."

"You have me," Buffy said.

"No I don't," Faith said, and got up, and started to walk away. "We made our choice, remember?"

Buffy took her hand, and stopped her.

"You have me," Buffy said.

Faith turned around.

"Prove it," Faith said.

"What...do you mean?" Buffy said.

Faith knelt down in front of her, took off Buffy's flip-flops, unzipped Buffy's cut-off jeans, and began pulling them down.

"Faith..." Buffy whispered.

"Want me to stop?" Faith said.

Buffy didn't say anything. Faith kept pulling the cut-off jeans down.

"The vampires," Buffy said, as Faith slipped the cut-off jeans off her feet.

"Always more vamps," Faith said, and took off Buffy's panties.

Buffy kept her legs closed. Faith looked up at her.

"Yesterday, we didn't even want to admit it happened," Buffy said. "So now it's suddenly all different?"

"We were both freaked out yesterday," Faith said. "So we were both bullshitting ourselves a little. Lying about what we want...maybe even about what we are. I'm tired of bullshitting."

Buffy opened her legs, and touched Faith's hair.

Faith ran her hands up and down Buffy's ankles, and kissed Buffy's knees. She moved herself between Buffy's legs, and looked up at her.

"We...can't," Buffy said. "We can't, Faith. And yeah, I'm not sure why either, okay? But...we were both pretty sure when we made the decision before and I don't wanna just throw that decision away now without thinking about it first, without at least talking about it again."

Faith looked down at the floor, and nodded.

She got up.

Buffy put her clothes back on. She pulled her stake from her purse, and stood up. She noticed Faith wasn't looking at her. She took Faith's hand.

Faith pulled away from her.

"Come on, let's get out there before we lose the scent," Faith said, and walked out the door.

"So how we playin' this?" Faith said. They had the vampires in sight now: six males and a female. The vampires weren't aware of them yet; they were loping down the street ahead of them at a leisurely pace, sniffing the air, and talking quietly. Hunting. But they hadn't caught a scent yet. Buffy and Faith watched them from behind a parked car a few blocks back, careful to keep upwind of them.

"The streets are too wide open around here," Buffy said. "I want to maneuver them somewhere where they can't run from us. I don't want any of them to get away. I want them all."

"Heard that," Faith said. "I need some good kills. How's this. I'll circle around, find an alley or whatever, some closed-in spot, right? You follow them at a distance, keep out of their range. I'll be the bait, let 'em pick up my scent. Once I lure them to the spot you join the party and block their exit. Then we dance."

"Works for me," Buffy said. She put her hand on Faith's shoulder, and ran her fingers through Faith's hair. "I'll head up to the rooftops, follow them from there. At least it's pretty late, there's no one around. Cuts down on the chance some civilians will get in the way."

"What are you doing?" Faith said.

"What?" Buffy said, and took her hand away from Faith's hair. "I'm just... I didn't mean..."

"We're working," Faith said.

"Sorry," Buffy said.

Faith glanced at her. Buffy's face was red. Faith felt like a heel.

Faith shook her head like a mosquito was buzzing around it. She was working. She needed to focus.

"Okay, we ready to do this?" Faith said.

"Yeah," Buffy said, and walked away from her.

Faith knew the vampires were close; she felt them. She was around the block from them now, walking up a parallel street a couple of blocks ahead of their position. She knew the vampires weren't aware of her yet; they weren't headed in her direction.

The night was quiet and the moon was bright enough to see by even without the streetlights. The street was deserted. No cars passed. The night was cool, and there was a soft breeze; enough to carry the vampires' scents to her.

Faith passed a McDonald's advertising ninety-nine cent Egg McMuffins. She passed a little storefront advertising karate classes. The storefront had a mannequin standing in the doorway dressed in one of those white karate uniforms with a black belt. Someone had painted the mannequin's lips red and written "Sucky Sucky" on the mannequin's forehead in red magic marker. She passed a porno shop called Super Sex which was advertising the impending release of "Cockhuggers 12". In one of the second floor windows of the building housing the porno shop there was a hand-painted sign advertising tarot readings in "Madame Talaitha's Mystical Sanctum Sanctorum" upstairs. Faith wondered what the hell a "sanctum sanctorum" was. She passed a boarded-up building with condoms littering the ground around the doorway. A mouse scurried by her; it stopped and looked up at her, sniffed the air, then darted across the street. Faith passed a liquor store. She passed an alley.

She walked into the alley and took a look around. It was a dead end. It was wide enough to give her and Buffy room to maneuver. It would do.

She let her senses reach out. The vampires were still around the block from her, headed up the street. They would reach the next intersection in less than a minute. That's where she'd let them see her.

She couldn't detect Buffy's scent; there wasn't a trace of it anywhere but on her own body. She walked out of the alley and looked up at the rooftops. She had no idea where Buffy was. It was amazing; since she had become the Slayer no one had ever been able to elude her before, not when she was actively looking for them, not when she was really trying.

Faith smiled. The girl was good.

When the vampires reached the intersection Faith was walking along the sidewalk, downwind from them and headed away. The vampires immediately turned the corner and started following her. Faith smiled. She felt like the female cop in one of those bad eighties cop shows. The female cop always had to go undercover so pervos could jump out of the bushes at her while the guys who were the stars of the show got to set up a sting and save her. Faith thought there should be a television show about Slayers. Faith the Vampire Slayer, it could be called. But she knew it would probably be called Buffy the Vampire Slayer.

She wondered what she was doing there. Kakistos was dead. This was Buffy's territory. She couldn't have Buffy. So why was she staying?

She knew it was because she had nowhere else to go. She couldn't go back to Boston...she couldn't go back to Evan.

She remembered Rebecca saying there was another Hellmouth in Cleveland. It wasn't as active as the one in Sunnydale; there weren't any Big Bads popping out of it but there were still plenty of run-of-the-mill vamps. Maybe she could go there.

The vampires were speeding up. They wanted to keep her in sight. Faith turned the corner like she didn't have a care in the world. The moment she turned the corner she detected the vampires' scents coming closer, fast. They didn't want to lose her, didn't want to risk her entering a house.

The hook was baited. As the vampires turned the corner Faith decided it was time to reel them in. She turned around and looked at them and pretended to be surprised. She turned away from them and sped up her walk. She heard the vampires chuckling behind her.

She turned and looked at them again and pretended to be afraid this time. She started running, and the vampires broke into a run after her.

She had timed it perfectly; by the time the vampires were almost on her she reached the alley and ran into it.

The vampires stood at the entrance to the alley, growling. Like wolves. Faith kept up her undercover cop act; it was fun. She felt like Heather Locklear.

She looked around frantically, as if she was looking for a way out and just now realizing the alley was a dead end. She turned and looked at the vampires. She slowly backed away from them, deeper into the alley.

"Please," Faith said, trying not to laugh. "I don't...I don't want any trouble. I got money. You guys want money?"

The vampires moved into the alley, and spread out around her. Faith moved farther back. She wanted to lure them all the way in so Buffy could block their exit. She smelled Buffy now. She let her senses reach out. Buffy was above her, on one of the rooftops nearby. The vampires apparently hadn't picked up Buffy's scent yet; Faith was their shiny new toy. They followed Faith deeper into the alley. The vampires' faces still looked human. They were taking their time. Stretching things out. A scared, helpless girl was fun.

"Please don't hurt me," Faith said, as the vampires moved toward her, and she backed away from them; she nearly did laugh this time. But in the darkness Faith thought it probably looked like she was starting to cry, so she figured it was okay. The vampires were buying it at least; they were pleased as pie. Faith backed all the way up to the far wall, and stopped. "I'll do...I'll do whatever you want," Faith said, happy that she got her voice to hit just the right high note.

"We know you will, baby doll," the female vampire said, and moved close to Faith, and smiled. She was standing only a few feet away from Faith now. "And I like to watch." She was pretty; she had long, blonde hair and a hell of a body and a great smile. She wore a short black leather coat with a red lace corset underneath, tight black leather pants, combat boots and a black choker collar. She wore black lipstick and black nail polish and black eyeliner. Faith was a Southie girl and although Rebecca had considerably expanded her horizons and Faith even knew who Margaret Thatcher was now, she had never developed an appreciation for goths and she thought the girl looked like a reject from The Rocky Horror Picture Show. But the girl was pretty. The red lace corset was ridiculous but it nicely accentuated the girl's boobs and the leather pants hugged the girl's hips just right and Faith nearly gasped at the realization that she was attracted to this girl and that she was therefore beyond a doubt at least bisexual and maybe even a lesbian. She had been clinging to the fragile hope that maybe Buffy was the only girl she was attracted to. But now this girl was revving her engine too.

Fuck, Faith thought.

The girl moved closer to Faith, and touched her hair.

"Tell you what, cherry," the girl said, and looked back at the other vampires, and grinned. The girl had a soft, pretty voice. "You take care of me, and I'll take care of you. I'm Chanterelle. We'll get to know each other a little, okay?"

The other vampires started chuckling. Faith tried to look scared. She tried not to look horny.

Fuck, Faith thought, again.

"I love a show," one of the vampires, a short, wiry bald guy, said.

What the hell, Faith thought, and looked Chanterelle up and down. Might as well enjoy the girl for the few more minutes she's alive. Chanterelle was tall and curvy, with large, nicely shaped breasts and wide hips. She had big, pretty blue eyes and soft, full lips, and her blonde hair was natural.

But there was nothing in her blue eyes; there never was, with vampires. Chanterelle was looking at Faith's neck the way a dog looks at a bone.

Faith saw Buffy standing at the entrance to the alley, in the shadows.

Faith smiled, and breathed in Buffy's scent. The vampire standing in front of her might have looked great but she still smelled like rotten meat. Buffy smelled like flowers.

Faith realized she had missed Buffy's scent; she had only been away from it for ten minutes but she had missed it.

"I got dibs on the chick," Faith said.

Buffy nodded.

"What?" Chanterelle said.

"Wasn't talking to you hon," Faith said, and pulled her stake from her back pocket. "Talkin' to my girlfriend back there. And what the hell kind of name is 'Chanterelle'? You've been readin' Anne Rice, haven't you? Can always tell when a vamp's been readin' Anne Rice."

Chanterelle shrank back from the stake, growling, as all the vampires looked at Buffy.

"Who the fuck are you, girl?" one of the vampires said, eyeing Buffy and growling. He was a lot bigger than the rest of them, and a lot meaner. He was about 6'4", with long, dark hair. His body looked to be all muscle. He had very wide shoulders.

"I got dibs on the big one," Buffy said.

"Okay," Faith said. "But if you get the big one then he counts as two. He's like double as mean as any of the others. I get four and you get three."

"Sounds like a plan," Buffy said, and pulled out her stake, and moved into the alley.

"Are you fuckin' serious?" one of the vampires said. He was a lean, good- looking guy wearing jeans and a flannel shirt and the flashiest pair of cowboy boots Faith had ever seen. They were a reddish-tan color and they looked like snakeskin. They were emblazoned with swoops and whirls of yellow in a fire motif. The things were almost hypnotic.

"Those are some serious damn boots," Faith said. "My Docs are blushing over here."

The cowboy ignored her. "Couple little girls are gonna threaten us," he said, and laughed. "Well yee-haw, darlin'." He had a Southern accent, just to complete the package.

The vampires all laughed.

"What the fuck is this, a social call?" one of the vampires said. He had an olive complexion; Faith thought he looked Hispanic. His long hair was drawn back in a ponytail. "Let's drink these bitches and get it done."

"You hear that, B?" Faith said. "He called us bitches."

"That was rude," Buffy said. "I think I'm gonna have to kill him for saying that."

The vampires all laughed even harder. The big one's face changed to vampire form, and the rest followed suit.

"I gotta get a piece of this bitch," one of the vampires said, and sprang at Buffy, snarling. Faith didn't get a good look at him; she caught a glimpse of a goatee and dark, curly hair before Buffy spun and kicked the vampire out of the air and sent him flying across the alley. He slammed head-first into the wall next to Faith and Faith staked him through the back before he could hit the ground.

The vampires stopped laughing after that.

"Well, fuck me," the cowboy said.

"You're gonna count that one as one of mine, aren't you?" Faith said.

"Yup," Buffy said.

"Shit," Faith said. She smiled at Chanterelle. Chanterelle looked back at her the way the mouse had.

"Who the fuck are you?" the big one said to Buffy.

"I'm the person who's gonna be killing you," Buffy said.

"Guess I better get my licks in this time, huh cherry?" Faith said, and grabbed Chanterelle by her long hair and kneed her in the face as the rest of them came at her and Buffy. Faith noticed that the big one was running at Buffy. Cooperative. The knee to the face knocked Chanterelle for a good loop and she looked shaky as Faith threw her into the cowboy and the little bald guy. As they went down, a vampire with a swastika tattoo on his hand leaped at Faith from her left. Faith dodged him, yanked him out of the air by the elbow and slammed him head-first into the ground. She leaned down and staked him through the back as the cowboy and the bald guy ran at her again. She noticed Chanterelle was up again but she was hanging back. Faith spun and kicked the cowboy in the face and sent him flying as the bald guy leaped at her. He managed to tackle her but Faith flipped him over her head with her legs. So far, not one of the vampires could really fight. Disappointing...

Faith flipped herself back up and caught a glimpse of Buffy. Buffy had apparently dusted the Hispanic-looking one with the ponytail--at least Faith assumed she had because she couldn't see him anymore--and she was squaring off with the big guy now. Faith wished she could watch the show, but she supposed she should pay attention to her three.

"Who the fuck are you girls?" the cowboy shouted, as he circled around her with the bald guy. Chanterelle was still hanging back. Faith assumed her job was to look pretty while the guys in the group did all the heavy lifting. Faith winked at her.

"Slayers," Faith said. "Dude, don't you know anything? You been too busy hangin' around the woods in Tennessee makin' moonshine and fuckin' your cousin to get clued in? You guys are vamps. My girl and me, we're Slayers. We kill you. Comprende?"

"There's only supposed to be one Slayer," Chanterelle said, petulantly, as if it was a violation of the rules that there were two Slayers there; as if the fight should be called off now and she should be allowed to go home.

"Double your pleasure cherry," Faith said. "You shy or somethin'? Why don't you come up here and gimme a kiss."

Buffy was trading punches with the big one; he was strong but slow and he hadn't come close to actually landing a punch on her yet. She had plenty of time to watch Faith. She listened to Faith talking to Chanterelle, and watched how Faith looked at her, and wondered what the hell she was doing.

Faith blew Chanterelle a kiss. Chanterelle snarled back at her. But she was all talk. Faith could tell she was afraid. She smelled it on her. The little bald one tried leaping at her again.

"Thanks dude," Faith said, flipping him over her shoulder and slamming him into a wall. "I owe Buffy one more of you guys." She grabbed him by the waist with one hand and by the collar with the other, picked him up and heaved him across the alley in Buffy's direction. "Heads up, B," she said. The vampire hit the ground a few feet away from Buffy.

Faith noticed Buffy was still going at it with the big one. She ignored the cowboy as he circled around her, and Chanterelle as she pretended to; the girl obviously had no idea what to do next. Faith watched Buffy for a moment to make sure she wasn't in trouble. She saw Buffy was snarling, and smiling. The little bald guy got up and tried to tackle Buffy from behind as the big one wound up and threw the slowest, easiest to dodge roundhouse punch ever. Buffy giggled and ducked and the roundhouse connected with the little bald guy and sent him flying into a wall. He collapsed, unconscious. Faith smiled at the cowboy and Chanterelle.

"Yeah, so I'm havin' a rough night, y'know?" Faith said, and showed them her teeth. "My girlfriend's not puttin' out for me. She's all about the teasin'. She's been a fuckin' cocktease to me all day."

Buffy snapped her head around and stared at Faith. But Faith wasn't looking back at her; Faith was looking at Chanterelle.

The big vampire managed to get a shot in under Buffy's guard while she was distracted; it sent her sprawling. She backflipped herself out of his way as he sprang at her, and staked the bald one while he lay unconscious on the ground. She barely paid attention to the vampires; she didn't take her eyes off Faith.

"What do you think, cherry?" Faith said, snarling at Chanterelle now. "Maybe I should like, wine and dine her first? Take her somewhere nice? Think that might get me some play?" Faith leaped at Chanterelle. Chanterelle tried to dodge her but she was awkward and slow; Faith pounced on her like a cat and pinned her to the ground. Faith sensed the cowboy coming up behind her and she rolled to her side without letting go of Chanterelle and aimed a kick right at his balls. He doubled up in pain and fell to the ground.

Chanterelle took a weak swipe at Faith with her claws. Faith easily blocked it and clubbed Chanterelle in the face with her forearm, cracking her head against the ground. Chanterelle whimpered. Faith put her knee on Chanterelle's left arm and held her right arm in a wrist lock.

"Change to human," Faith snarled. "Look pretty for me, cherry."

Chanterelle hesitated. Faith clubbed her in the face with her forearm again. Chanterelle screamed, and tears filled her eyes.

"Not fuckin' tellin' you again," Faith said.

Chanterelle's face changed to human form.

"That's better, cherry," Faith said, and smiled, and looked her in the eyes. She increased the pressure on Chanterelle's wrist. Chanterelle whimpered again.

"The fuck are you supposed to be?" Faith said, and laughed. "A vampire? You're a fucking joke." Faith leaned in close to her, and caressed her hair. "You do anything besides look pretty?" Faith whispered. Their lips were touching.

Buffy ducked another one of the big vampire's slow punches, got in under his guard, and staked him. She watched Faith.

"You fucking stay down," Faith snarled to Chanterelle, yanking her blonde hair. She saw the cowboy getting up out of the corner of her eye, about to make another run at her. "You fucking stay down or I'll hurt you worse. You get up from this fucking spot and I'll shove my stake all the way up your pretty little ass before I dust you with it. Got it, cherry?"

Chanterelle was shaking. She nodded. Faith stood up. The cowboy was circling her, and snarling.

"Bring it on, Tex," Faith said, and twirled her stake around. "Maybe I can't put the wood to my girlfriend but I sure as hell can put the wood to you."

"Shit girl, you want me to give you a poke before I drink you I'm game," the cowboy said.

"Don't flatter yourself dude," Faith said, and laughed. "Yeah, you're easy on the eyes, and I am diggin' those boots. But you're a vampire. Screwing a vampire would be fucking disgusting. I'd never lower myself like that."

Buffy looked away from Faith; she looked down at the ground.

"Shit, I'm not even gonna screw cherry over there, and she's real easy on the eyes," Faith said. "And I know she wants me at least."

"Guess you're gonna die unfulfilled, girl," the cowboy said, and sprang at her. Faith didn't even bother with an aikido move; she spun out of his way and staked him in mid-air as he passed.

"That was pretty fulfilling, actually," Faith said, to the pile of dust floating to the ground. "And dude? Weak-ass vamp like you so didn't deserve those boots. Those were like Clint Eastwood boots, man."

Faith could smell Chanterelle behind her. Out of the corner of her eye she could see Buffy leaning against the wall, her face red.

"You best not have left that fucking spot, cherry," Faith said, with her back turned to Chanterelle. "When I turn around, if you're not in you're fucking spot I'm gonna get plumb mad-dog mean."

Faith turned around. Chanterelle was lying where Faith had left her. Faith smiled, and showed Chanterelle her teeth.

"That's my girl," Faith said. Faith felt Buffy watching her.

Chanterelle was crying now.

"That's a pretty coat, cherry," Faith said. "I want it. Take it off."

With shaking hands, Chanterelle took her coat off. Faith took it from her.

"What are you doing?" Buffy said.

"Havin' a little fun," Faith said. "Gettin' my kicks where I have to."

"What the hell does that mean?" Buffy said.

They looked at each other.

"Something you want to say to me?" Buffy said. Buffy's face was still red.

"You can...you can fuck me," Chanterelle said.

Buffy and Faith looked at her.

"What?" Faith said.

"You can fuck me," Chanterelle said. She was crying. "Please don't...hurt me. Please don't. I'll do whatever you want. You can both fuck me if you want."

"Jesus Christ," Faith said.

Faith thought of Rebecca, on the floor of the restaurant. A wave of nausea went through her.

"Having fun yet?" Buffy said.

Faith threw Chanterelle's coat back to her.

"Chanterelle," Faith said. "Get up and go."

"What?" Chanterelle said.

"Get the fuck out of here!" Faith shouted.

Chanterelle got up and tried to put her coat on. Her hands were shaking too badly to manage it. So she ran away, carrying it in her hand...

Buffy threw her stake through her back, and Chanterelle turned to dust.

"What the hell did you do that for?" Faith said.

"She was a fucking vampire," Buffy said.

They walked back to the motel, without saying another word.

When they got to the motel room Buffy found her purse and marched right back to the door. Then she turned, and looked back at Faith.

"I don't put out, huh?" Buffy said. "You can't put the wood to me?"

"That was just...I was goofin' around," Faith said.

"Could you have been any more fucking crude and insulting?" Buffy said. "Could you have treated me any more like shit?"

"I didn't...that's not what I meant," Faith said.

"You think I'm stupid?! That I didn't see what you were doing? That I don't know what all that bullshit with that girl was about?!"

"You're the one who thinks I'm stupid, remember?"

"What? What the hell are you talking about? I don't think you're stupid."

"Sure you do. Said so in the cemetery."

"I didn't mean that! You know I didn't mean that! I was just pissed off."

"Seems to me you say a lot of things you don't mean, B. First I'm stupid then I'm not. First we can't kiss but then when you're feelin' a little horny suddenly we can. First you're my girl and then..."

"Want me to be your girl, huh?" Buffy said. "You sure you don't mean your whore? Maybe if you take me out somewhere nice I'll put out for you. Wine and dine me, Faith. Maybe all I need is for you to spend some money on me and I'll put out."

Buffy had tears in her eyes.

"Is that what you think of me?" Buffy said. "I'm some girl who put out?"

"Buffy," Faith said. "That's...that's not what I think."

"How could you humiliate me like that?" Buffy said. "How could you say those things?"

Disgusting, Buffy heard Faith saying.

"Buffy," Faith said, and touched her shoulder, and tried to hug her. "I like you. I didn't...mean all that stuff like..."

Buffy pushed Faith's hands away, and walked out the door.

The next day, Faith sat in her motel room eating potato chips and drinking a Coke and watching a repeat of one of those cop shows where the whole show is about how they collect evidence and find fingerprints and carpet fibers and drops of blood and do ballistics tests on guns. She missed NYPD Blue.

Faith didn't like the cop show but there was nothing else on except soap operas and they were worse. And there was nothing to do besides watch TV.

Has your brain rotted enough yet? she remembered Rebecca saying. She smiled.

"Almost there, Becca," Faith said, to the empty room. "Tryin' for a nice liquid consistency."

At least at night she could go out hunting. But the days were hard, now... the days were hard without Rebecca. The days were hard in the empty room.

Buffy and Willow and Xander got to go to school during the day. Faith remembered how Rebecca wanted her to get her GED, and go to college after that if she wanted to. It was a lifetime ago. It was a week ago.

She had three-hundred and eighty-two dollars left. It was enough to pay for a bus ticket to Cleveland, and maybe a week at a shitty motel out there.

Faith didn't want to go to Cleveland.

A familiar scent came to her. Willow. Faith let her senses reach out.

Willow was alone. Faith hadn't expected Buffy to be with her anyway.

She opened the door just as Willow was about to ring the bell.

"Um...hi," Willow said, and smiled. She was wearing a pink Hello Kitty tee-shirt and jeans and pink sneakers, and Faith thought she looked adorable.

The tee-shirt showed off Willow's breasts nicely; they were bigger than Faith had thought. The jeans were nice and tight. Faith liked how Willow looked in the tee-shirt and the jeans. She liked how she smelled too. Faith wondered if there was a girl in Sunnydale she wasn't attracted to. It was like someone had whacked her with a lesbian stick the moment she got off the bus.

Fuck, Faith thought.

"Hey," Faith said. "What's up? Uh...come in."

She stepped aside, and Willow walked into the room.

"Um...did you smell me coming?" Willow said, and sat on the bed. "You did, didn't you? You totally smelled me."

"Slayer thing," Faith said. "You don't got B.O. or nothin'. So what's goin' on? Uh...you want something to drink? Got Coke and Sprite."

"Sprite's good," Willow said. Faith walked into the bathroom, came back with a Sprite for Willow and another Coke for herself, popped the top off of Willow's Sprite and gave it to her. She sat next to her on the bed.

"You look good," Faith said. "The bruise is almost all gone. So how are you feeling? You doin' okay?"

"Yeah," Willow said, and smiled. "Thanks to you."

"Slayer," Faith said. "Part of the job description."

"Was the hug in the job description too?"

"Sure," Faith said, and smiled. "Right there in the Slayer handbook."

"Is there really a Slayer handbook? Kendra mentioned one but I've never seen it."

"Yeah, Becca said there is. I've never seen it either though. Becca told me she never bothered with it. Called it 'rubbish'."

"So what do I smell like? Like, y'know, how you smelled me coming? Do I smell good?"

"Yeah. I like how you smell."

"Okay but...if I smelled bad you probably wouldn't tell me, would you?"

"Well...probably not. But trust me Will, you smell good. If you didn't I'd be sitting far away. You smell like strawberries to me."

"Strawberries? Really?"

"I like strawberries. You don't like strawberries?"

Willow thought about it. Strawberries were sort of nice. They tasted good, when they were ripe; before they were ripe they tasted really sour. The problem was they were almost never ripe: they were either not quite ripe yet or starting to go bad. Willow was good at math and she knew the ripeness window with strawberries was really only theoretical. It was like imaginary numbers. They spent all week in your refrigerator not being ripe and you just knew they were going to taste sour and lame so you avoided them all week and then just when you were looking forward to having one they had suddenly gotten overripe and they were mushy and there was weird gross icky fuzz growing on some of them. But they made bubble bath that smelled like strawberries. They made really expensive shampoo that smelled like strawberries too. Strawberries smelled good.

"I like strawberries," Willow said, and drank her Sprite. "Um...I'm glad I smell good. I'd be all, y'know, mopey if I smelled bad."

"You smell great, Will," Faith said.

"Good," Willow said. "So how have you and Buffy been?"

"We're okay," Faith said.

Willow nodded. "She told me in school today that you guys didn't have a chance to do the tour of Sunnydale thing, so I want to take you," she said.

"On a tour of Sunnydale?" Faith said.

"Sure. There's this big English test tomorrow that Buffy totally needs to bone up for tonight, or she'd take you. But I'm free. And I thought, y'know, maybe we could hang."

Faith knew Buffy didn't want to see her. Faith knew Willow was only doing this because she felt bad for her.

"Night on the town with Willow, huh?" Faith said.

"Yup," Willow said. "There'll be a little less of an emphasis on shoe shopping on the Willow tour, but you'll see more stuff. Buffy's tour would have really been more of a look around all the shoe stores. Love the girl dearly, but she's got a serious shoe-shopping problem. I think she needs an intervention. So how about it? I got my Mom's car with me, I can show you the whole town. We can hit the mall, I can show you all the cemeteries if you want, and there are some pretty nice restaurants around Sunnydale too. And we might check out a shoe store. But just one. Um, two. No more than two."

Faith didn't have anything else to do.

"Sure," Faith said.

"So how have you and Faith been?" Willow said.

She was sitting in school with Buffy in the little student lounge area by the candy machines during their free period the next day. She was drinking an extra-large super mocha cappuccino with lots of sugar and cocoa sprinkles and Buffy had a latte. Jealous underclassmen frowned at them. They didn't get free periods.

Willow could even leave the school grounds now, any time she wanted to. She drank her extra-large super mocha cappuccino with lots of sugar and cocoa sprinkles, and smiled. She and Buffy had gone to the Starbucks during lunch. Underclassmen couldn't go to the Starbucks. They couldn't go anywhere.

Being a senior was awesome.

Buffy wasn't smiling. She looked down at her history notebook, and read through her notes without actually reading them, and tried to act casual.

"We're okay," Buffy said.

Willow nodded.

"You guys do your tour thing?" Buffy said.

"Yup," Willow said, looking down at her laptop and checking her e-mail. A quarter of it was spam. She'd been keeping track of spam since she'd first encountered it a few years before. It was getting worse. It was becoming a serious pain in the entire world's ass. It made e-mail tedious. Willow thought she should probably do something about spam at some point. Maybe there was a god she could call upon. "We hit the mall, and I showed her the Magic Box, and then we went to a restaurant, that Italian place downtown? 'Grappolo'? Then I took her by all the cemeteries after that. Faith insisted on paying for the restaurant. I kept trying to pay and she kept saying no and I kept explaining to her how she was like my guest and I should pay but she kept saying no and it got like a Monty Python skit after awhile--simply saying 'No it isn't' isn't an argument. Yes it is! No it isn't! Yes it is! No it isn't!--and anyway she ended up buying me dinner."

"You always lose me when you quote Monty Python," Buffy said.

"You need to watch Monty Python," Willow said.

"I'm never gonna watch Monty Python."

"Someday I'm gonna tie you down in the comfy chair and make you watch every episode."

"I'm a Slayer. You can't tie me down."

"I'll have weapons. Amongst my weaponry are such diverse elements as fear, surprise, ruthless efficiency, an almost fanatical devotion to the Pope, and a nice red uniform. Plus I'll poke you with soft cushions."

Buffy smiled.

"I knew I'd get a smile out of you eventually," Willow said, and closed her laptop. "Just had to keep pluggin' away. Hey. Do I smell like strawberries?"

"Yeah," Buffy said. "Faith tell you that?"

"Yeah, " Willow said. "When I went over her place yesterday she did that Slayer thing? Y'know, where she like, knew I was at the door before I rang the bell? And I asked her if she smelled me and she said yeah, and when I asked her what I smell like she said strawberries."

"Yup," Buffy said. "You've always been my strawberry girl."

"How come you never told me I smell like strawberries?" "Never came up I guess. Why? You don't like strawberries?"

"It's just so final. Like this big decision was made about me and I wasn't consulted. Now I'm like, this strawberry person forever. What if I wanna be bananas? Or like, orchids? Or waffles? Now I'm just always strawberries."

"I like strawberries. I gotta admit though, it'd be kinda fun if you smelled like waffles all the time. I'd be like, 'Mmmmm, waffles.' But then I'd always want to eat you. Um...and we will now pretend I never said that."

"Said what?"

"So how's Faith?" Buffy said. "How's she doing?"

"Bad," Willow said.

Buffy snapped her head up.

"What?" Buffy said. "Did something happen to her? Is she okay?"

"How about you tell me?" Willow said.

"I hate when you do this," Buffy said. "You never should've signed up for that psychology elective. There was a perfectly good philosophy course you could've taken instead."

"I'm with Faith, philosophy's a bunch of horse puckey," Willow said. "Life's about living, not wondering how to live. Besides, the psychology class gave me some insights into certain people who shall remain nameless and all their weird martyrdom issues."

"People named Buffy who shall remain nameless?"

"Not tellin'. But they have shoe compulsions too."

"You like Faith a lot, don't you?"

"Sure. She's nice."

"Don't take this the wrong way? But...you and Faith...you seem like two really different people to me. You don't seem like a natural match."

"Maybe I like tough girls. The Slayer's my best friend, after all."

"You think I'm a tough girl? But I like being a girly girl. I mean, yeah, okay, I kill bad guys, but, like, in a totally cute and lovable way."

"Don't worry, you're girly enough. You still get annoyed whenever you break a nail on patrol. And actually, Faith's a lot like you, y'know. And you think you and me are a natural match, right?"

"Of course I do. Duh. You're my best friend."

"Well, there you go. I work with Buffy and I work with Faith. I'm like peanut butter, and you guys are like marshmallow fluff and chocolate syrup."

"Am I fluff or chocolate?" Buffy said.

"I'm leaning toward fluff," Willow said. "More girly. Faith can be the chocolate syrup. She looks like a chocolate girl to me. Or maybe she's jelly. If I'm peanut butter I go good with jelly too. But maybe Xander should be jelly... okay, this is actually getting really complicated now."

"Faith can be chocolate syrup," Buffy said. "I like chocolate syrup." "Cool," Willow said. "And then you add me in and I'm totally in the middle of an awesome Buffy and Faith sandwich."

Buffy grinned, and raised her eyebrows at her.

"Um...y'know...'cuz I'm peanut butter," Willow said, lamely. "We make... y'know...a fluffernutter sandwich."

"I think it's time for us to back away from the metaphor slowly, and not make any sudden movements," Buffy said.

"Backing away now," Willow said.

"You really think Faith and I are a lot alike?" Buffy said.

"Yeah. She's what you could have been, Buffy. If things didn't turn out so good. She's got problems, she's got a lot of stuff goin' on, you heard what Giles said. But she's still a good person. She still tries. The way you would. And I'm pretty sure she's got that same martyrdom complex as The Buffy Who Shall Remain Nameless too."

"But not the shoe compulsion. No one's as compulsive about shoes as The Buffy Who Shall Remain Nameless."

"Faith's had lousy luck. It's made her like a porcupine, kinda. Prickly, hard to approach. I did like ninety percent of the talking yesterday. But I'm not giving up on her. And you know what I like best about her? She didn't want to be there yesterday, right? I mean, I think she likes me but she doesn't really wanna let me in. She doesn't wanna let anyone in. But I wanted to drag her around town and she went with me. And she tried her best to act interested in stuff I brought up that she completely doesn't care about, and I thought I was doing the tour of Sunnydale for her, but really? She was doing it for me. She acted interested even when I talked about the proper way to grind up mandrake root. She doesn't want me to think she doesn't like me. She worried about my feelings."

"You talk about Monty Python at her? She might draw the line at pretending to be interested in Monty Python."

"I'm gonna kinda ease her into Monty Python. So what's going on with you guys? What happened?"

"She say anything?"

"Nope. But she got all quiet whenever I brought you up. Um...quieter."

"We...had a fight."

"You guys do tend to do that."

Buffy laughed, without humor. She gulped down the rest of her latte. She needed the latte. She'd gotten about two hours of sleep.

"It's funny," Buffy said. "I've hung out with the girl like three times and ended up getting into a fight with her two days out of three. The only time we're not fighting is when we're..." she caught herself. "When we're not hanging out."

Willow wondered how long it would be before Buffy finally told her that she and Faith were having sex.

"So what did you fight about?" Willow said.

"It's...just Slayer stuff, Will," Buffy said.

"She feels really bad about it," Willow said.

"Yeah," Buffy said. "Me too."

Willow put her hand on Buffy's shoulder. "So do something about it," she said. "You're marshmallow fluff, sweetie. Go get with your chocolate syrup."

"I'm just saying, it's an option," Xander said. "If I was the fluff..."

"I'm the marshmallow fluff," Buffy said.

"I told you he'd get obsessive about this," Willow said. "He's gonna be talking about it forever now."

"Better than the Luke not shooting first thing," Buffy said.

"It's Han," Xander said. "Lucas changed it so Han doesn't shoot first. What about if I'm the peanut butter? And Will can be the jelly. That way..."

"Jelly doesn't go with chocolate syrup," Willow said.

"This is really complicated," Xander said.

School was over and they were heading outside. As they walked out the doors into a beautiful, clear, sunny afternoon, navigating their way through a horde of stir-crazy teenagers, Buffy detected Faith's scent. She looked around. At the end of the long, stone path through the lawn, she saw Faith sitting at the top of the stairs, facing away from the school, looking out at the street.

Willow and Xander continued their discussion about peanut butter, marshmallow fluff, chocolate syrup and jelly. Xander was proposing adding a fifth food item but Willow was refusing to even consider it because the whole system was complicated enough already. They walked down the path. Willow and Xander didn't know Faith was at the end of it. Buffy was quiet beside them.

Willow looked at Buffy, and understood.

Willow looked around. She spotted Faith.

"Hey Xander, I um, forgot something in my chem class," Willow said, and stopped, and took his arm. "I gotta go get it. Come back with me?"

"Uh...sure, okay," Xander said. "We'll see you around, Buff."

"Okay," Buffy said. "I'll talk to you guys tomorrow."

Willow squeezed Buffy's shoulder, and smiled.

"Marshmallow fluff goes great with chocolate syrup," she whispered in Buffy's ear, and then walked back to the school with Xander.

"Hey," Faith said, without turning around, as Buffy approached her.

"Hey," Buffy said. Buffy stopped beside her, and looked out at the street. Faith was looking down at the stairs.

"You in the market for an apology?" Faith said. "Got an apology I'm lookin' to unload."

"Maybe," Buffy said. "But it would have to be a really great apology. And I'll want to check the merchandise first before I buy."

Faith nodded, still looking down at the stairs.

"Somewhere we can talk?" Faith said.

"Come on," Buffy said.

Faith got up, and Buffy led her across the lawn. Eventually, they stopped beneath a tall willow tree.

Buffy leaned against the tree with her arms folded across her chest, and waited. Faith hadn't looked at her while she was sitting on the steps and she hadn't looked at her as they walked across the lawn and she still wasn't looking at her now.

Faith was looking at the kids spilling out of the school. They looked like prisoners who had just finished serving their sentences: a little shell-shocked, squinting up at the sun, but happy. Faith knew the kids had no idea how lucky they were. They'd go home to Moms and Dads and brothers and sisters who loved them. Toss the football around, maybe some Playstation before dinner.

How was your day? Wash your hands before dinner. Make sure you get your homework done. We love you.

We want you to get good grades because we want you to be happy. We want you to go to college, to have opportunities we never had. We want you to build a good life for yourself. We love you.

Faith finally looked at Buffy. It was a hot day and Buffy was wearing a halter top that showed a lot of her back and a short skirt with a slit up the side that showed a lot of her leg. She looked beautiful. She always looked beautiful.

"I hurt you," Faith said. "I said some stuff and it hurt you."

"Yeah," Buffy said.

"I'm sorry," Faith said. "I'd never in a million years want to hurt you."

Buffy nodded.

"I've been thinking about the stuff I said, about that whole day," Faith said. "I was wrong. This isn't me putting the blame on you, okay? I was the one who said mean, spiteful hurtful stuff and made you feel like...like I don't respect you. I take the blame for that, I ran my mouth and talked a lot of shit and acted like a dick. But I've been trying to figure out why I did it."

Buffy nodded.

"It was a weird day, y'know?" Faith said, and crouched down under the tree, and looked down at the grass. "You came in and I was...I was nervous. I was nervous because of what happened the day before. Because I thought I didn't want it to happen again. I mean, the day before, when we did it, we were both freaked out afterwards and we were both all like 'It never happened'. And I was right with you on that, I didn't want it to happen again, I was freaked out by it too. I mean, for Christ's sake, I like guys. I have a guy, in Boston. But, by the next day...turns out I did want it to happen again. I missed it, missed being with you, and I wanted it again."

"I did too," Buffy said.

Faith nodded, and looked down at the grass.

"So you walk in and you look real pretty and you smell real nice and everything and I was practically bouncing off the walls in there," Faith said. "I kept telling myself I was sort of like, laying down the law a little? Laying down the law when I was being all flirty with you. Like, 'Yeah, maybe I want you but you can only have me if it's the way I want it.' Or maybe like, 'I can be all flirty and stuff now because I'm so over how we got horizontal that I can totally goof about it, it wasn't a big deal.'"

"Yeah," Buffy said. "A little of both, I think."

"Yeah," Faith said. She stood up, and leaned back against the tree beside Buffy. The school was clearing out now; the big lawn was almost empty. Faith saw Willow and Xander walk out the front doors, down the path toward the stairs. Xander noticed her, and waved. Faith waved back. When Xander started walking toward them Willow grabbed his arm and led him back down the path toward the street. "But underneath all that, what I wasn't clueing myself into was that I really wasn't over it and I wanted it again," Faith said, turning back to Buffy. "And I kinda got a little hyper I guess and I teased you a little...and then..."

"And then I teased you back," Buffy said. "I told myself I was calming you down and just trying to get us both relaxed about the sex stuff so we could talk. And that was part of it but...the other part was I wanted it too. I wanted it, with you. And I don't know why. I'm...not gay. I've never liked girls."

Faith knew Buffy was lying. She wished Buffy wouldn't lie to her. Rebecca was right: lies complicated things, they made things harder. But Faith figured Buffy needed the lie...maybe even needed to believe it herself.

But believing it didn't make it true.

Faith knew Buffy was in love with Willow.

"We made a choice," Faith said. "We both made a choice and you tried to do the smart thing and stick to it but when our noses tuned into those vamps it was like a switch went off in me, y'know? The Slayer was in charge and I was all about the kills...but not just the kills. It was like everything in my life suddenly just got real clear and I knew exactly what I wanted. I wanted to kill those vamps and I wanted you in my bed."

"I didn't totally stick to it," Buffy said. "I liked being in your bed. I liked having your hand on my boobs as we slept. I liked the kiss goodnight. But...we made a choice. I don't like girls, Faith, I'm not...that way. Yeah, okay, I like you but you're like the one exception in the world. And I have a guy, we both have guys, and I don't want to cheat. I don't want to be the kind of person who cheats."

Faith thought about Evan. He seemed very far away, now. And she knew she could never go back to him. So what was the point of being loyal to him?

He was in her heart and he always would be, but he was gone...

"Me neither," Faith said. "But when you said I still have you and I asked you to prove it...I wasn't thinking about my guy, all I was thinking about was you. And when I tried to get something going and you said we shouldn't just go back on what we decided without talking it out first, you were right, you were using your head, but I wouldn't listen. All I heard was you don't want me and I got...I don't know."

"Hurt?" Buffy said.

Faith nodded.

"But I know you didn't mean it that way," Faith said. "You were talkin' sense and I was being dumb and not listening, same as always."

"You're not dumb," Buffy said. "Stop saying that."

Faith shrugged her shoulders.

"So anyway that girl vamp...Chanterelle," Faith said. "I gotta admit, I thought she was real pretty. And before you got to the alley, when I was doing my little girl lost bit, she was all mackin' on me, all in my space battin' her lashes at me like we were gonna get horizontal and put on a show for the guys, and maybe that's what she was planning. I was horny for you and now this chick's all in my face and I was still hurtin' a little from feeling like you rejected me and I just...I just started saying stuff, it just came out. But I didn't mean it Buffy, I'm sorry. I don't...I don't think of you that way. Those words. 'Putting out', and 'cocktease', all those mean words. I don't think those kinds of words about you. You're a smart, classy girl and all you've ever tried to do is be nice to me. I'm sorry."

"C'mere," Buffy said, and took Faith's hand, and drew her close, and hugged her.

They held each other, and leaned against the tree.

"Still some people around," Faith said. "They might see."

"I don't care," Buffy said.

Faith nodded.

"The stuff you said," Buffy said. "You meant it."

"No, B, I swear, I didn't," Faith said, and touched Buffy's cheek, and looked her in the eyes. "I didn't."

"You did," Buffy said. "And I don't blame you. You said it in a mean way because you were pissed off at me but you were telling the truth the way you saw it. I was teasing you. I didn't set out to but that's how it ended up. And I led you on a little, and then I turned you away. That's not how it seemed to me when I was doing it, that's not what I was trying to do, but I can see how that's the way it looked to you and it wasn't right of me to do that to you. And I think it hurt you, more than you let on then, more than you're letting on now. And I'm sorry. That stuff you said to the vampire girl...all that stuff you were acting out with her? I think you felt like I used you a little and then rejected you when I was done with you. I think...you kinda felt like I had all the power back in the motel room and that I was using you just to get my kicks, and you wanted to take some power back and get some kicks for yourself. I think you were pissed at me but you didn't feel like you could say any of that stuff to me, you couldn't tell me how you were really feeling, so you said it to the blonde vampire girl standing in front of you instead. I think she was like, your Buffy substitute."

Faith looked down at the grass.

"I don't know, maybe," Faith said.

"I'm sorry, Faith," Buffy said. "I haven't always been nice to you. I was mean to you and I hurt you when we first met in the cemetery and I hurt you again a couple of days ago and I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too," Faith said. "Wanna...start over?"

"Third time's the charm, huh?" Buffy said, and smiled.

"Maybe we can start over every day. Like every time we see each other I can be like, hey Buffy, my name's Faith, I'm new in town from Boston..."

"Then I take you shoe shopping and we go kill some vamps afterwards. Sounds like a plan."

Buffy found herself running her fingers through Faith's hair. She stopped herself once she realized what she was doing.

"Sorry," Buffy said, blushing.

"It's okay," Faith said, and took Buffy's hand, and brought it back to her hair. "I like when you do that."

"Okay," Buffy said, and smiled, and caressed Faith's hair.

"Buffy...look," Faith said. "I like you a lot and I like being with you but neither of us wants to cheat on our guys."

Faith knew it was a lie the moment she said it. She knew she was lying to Buffy, and she knew she was lying to herself. But she also knew that Buffy really didn't want to cheat on her guy...whoever he was. And maybe this would make things easier for Buffy. Buffy was gay and refusing to admit it and she was in a relationship with a guy and she was in love with her best friend who was a girl and she was having an affair with yet another girl. So Faith figured Buffy could use all the help she could get.

"But sometimes...sometimes it's hard for me," Faith said. "Especially when I'm all like, in Slayer mode. But even though I want you that way I want you as a friend too. I don't wanna risk losing that."

That part was true.

"I don't either," Buffy said.

"So what do we do?" Faith said. "How do we do this?"

"We...figure it out as we go, I guess," Buffy said. "We try to remember each other's feelings, and not hurt each other."

"I like when you touch my hair," Faith said.

"I can't help it. Whenever I'm with you I just want to kiss you and touch your hair. I think...we're gonna need some rules. Like..."

"We could maybe start by not being like, all naked together all the time. I think I've seen you more naked than I have with clothes on. Not complaining or nothin', but..."

They laughed.

"The scary thing is?" Buffy said. "If you like, add up all the time we've hung out together, like rounded it off to the hour maybe? I'm pretty sure you're right. I think we really have been naked together more than we've had our clothes on. Not that I'm complaining either. I could look at that butt of yours all day."

"Don't be jealous of my perfect butt," Faith said.

"I'm totally jealous," Buffy said. "It's all like, perfectly round and muscular and it sticks out just the right amount. Okay, we definitely need some rules. Rule number one. No nakedness."

"Rule number two, no mad crazy hot sex," Faith said.

They laughed again.

"Okay, if you insist," Buffy said. "Rule number three...no making out?"

They both looked doubtful about rule number three.

"That's a tough one," Faith said. "These rules are getting tough now. I like kissing you. But...kissing can lead to other things."

"Yeah. Kissing can lead to other things," Buffy said.

"Shit," Faith said. "I'm gonna hate rule number three."

"How about we make some rules for stuff we can do?" Buffy said.

"Rule number four, you can touch my hair whenever you want."

"That's my favorite rule so far," Buffy said, as she caressed Faith's hair. "Rule number five, we can hug. We can totally hug whenever we want."

"Yeah," Faith said, and put her arms around Buffy, and held her tight.

They both felt the connection again. They both felt warm.

"My Mom still wants you over for dinner," Buffy said. "You wanna come to my house for dinner tonight?"

"Okay," Faith said. "What's cookin'?"

"She's been threatening to make meat loaf lately," Buffy said. "I talked her out of it a couple times last week but I don't think I can make her put it off forever. Sometimes you just have to grit your teeth and eat the meat loaf."

"I'll eat the meat loaf," Faith said.

"Cool. Then maybe we can patrol after, do some quality violence."

"Okay," Faith said. "I'm sorry, Buffy. I'm sorry I said that stuff."

"It's okay, baby," Buffy said, and kissed Faith's forehead.

Faith looked at her with a little smile, and raised her eyebrow.

"Um...forehead kisses don't count," Buffy said.

They laughed.

"I'm chocolate syrup?" Faith said, as they approached Buffy's house. The street was sunny and lined with big, beautiful trees, mostly palms but with some other types mixed in. Down the block a girl was riding a tricycle. Across the street a man was mowing his lawn. Birds sang in the trees, and the air smelled sweet.

"Yeah," Buffy said, as they came to her house. "And I'm marshmallow fluff and Will's peanut butter. It's a whole thing. Just remember that marshmallow fluff and chocolate syrup go great together."

Buffy's house stood about twenty feet back from the sidewalk, at the end of a concrete path that cut through the big front lawn, flanked by palm trees. It was a two-story house, long and low, painted white with blue trim. Two gables projected out from the low, gray shingled roof, and there was a wide front porch. The roof overhung the porch and it was supported by four white pillars. Buffy and Faith turned into the front lawn and walked down the path. The grass was freshly mowed. There were rose bushes, and a bright flower patch beneath the windows with tulips and daffodils and azaleas and nasturtiums and other flowers Faith didn't recognize. There was a peach tree, in bloom.

"See the window up there?" Buffy said, pointing to a big window on the second floor beneath the gable on the right, as they approached the house. "That's my bedroom." They walked through a gap in a low hedge that ran around the front of the house, and climbed a short flight of steps to the front door.

Faith looked around. The door was flanked by tall picture windows. There was a sprawling umbrella plant in an urn near the door and there were hanging plants all around the front porch, spider plants and pothos and ferns and ivy; they all looked thick and green and healthy. There were three wicker chairs on the porch arranged around a wicker table with a fiberglass top. A Teddy bear sat in one of the chairs. The bear was wearing a white dress shirt with a black tie and blue trousers with a gold stripe down the side, and a blue military jacket with various medals sewn to the chest, shoulder straps bordered in gold with metal stars affixed to them, and sleeves trimmed with gold piping. It wore a blue service cap with an eagle insignia affixed to the crown and a silver leaf motif on the visor.

"That's General Paddington," Buffy said. "He got on my nerves when I was six years old back in L.A. because he was always ordering around all my other stuffed animals at the tea parties, so I started keeping him outside. He guards the house against enemy invaders now."

"He's one bad-ass bear," Faith said. "He's kinda eyeballin' me though. I think he wants me to drop and give him twenty."

"He's suspicious of visitors," Buffy said. "It's the whole guarding against invaders thing. For all he knows you might be like, an enemy agent."

"I'll win him over," Faith said.

Buffy unlocked the door and they walked into a little foyer with a tiffany lamp on an end table and an African mask hanging on the wall above it that looked like a crow's head.

"Whoa," Faith said. "That's a serious...uh...whatever that thing is."

"It's an African mask," Buffy said. "My Mom runs an art gallery, she's way into creepy African masks. It's all fun and games until one of them starts reanimating all the dead bodies in town and suddenly you're fighting fifty zombies in your living room."

"Your Mom had an African mask that brought dead bodies back to life?" Faith said.

"Well, she didn't do it on purpose, but yeah," Buffy said. "Welcome to Sunnydale."

"You had to fight fifty zombies in your living room?" Faith said.

"Worst Christmas ever," Buffy said.

They walked into a hallway, and Faith saw a living room leading off it to the left and a dining room leading off it to the right. Stairs led up to the second floor. And Buffy's bedroom.

"Faith!" Joyce beamed, rushing out at them from the dining room.

"Guess who's coming to dinner?" Buffy said.

"Uh, hi Joyce," Faith said.

"It's about time you got here," Joyce said, and hugged Faith. Faith felt awkward. She returned the hug, and tried to hide it.

"Come in, come in," Joyce said, and beckoned Faith into the living room. "I'm cooking dinner now. And thank you for the advance notice, Buffy," Joyce added, and smiled back at Buffy. "It gave me plenty of time to prepare something really special for Faith's first dinner here."

"She's being sarcastic," Buffy said, and sat on the couch. "Isn't she fun when she's sarcastic?" Faith sat next to her. The couch they were sitting on was a big, comfy chocolate brown monstrosity that you sank into, with burgundy throw pillows. Two dark wood side tables stood on either end of the couch, with a little tiffany lamp on each. The coffee table was made from the same dark wood. There was a gold and black and burgundy oriental rug covering most of the hardwood floor, and the wallpaper was gold with a subtle floral print. Two dark wood chairs with beige cushions and deep red plaid chenille throws draped over them sat around the couch. More African masks adorned the walls, all representing animals: there was a giraffe and a lion and what looked like an elephant, but Faith wasn't sure. There was a big landscape painting hanging over the fireplace; it was an impressionist painting of birds flying over a stormy sea and Faith thought it was probably what the painting in her motel room wanted to be when it grew up.

The living room was cozy and warm and intimate and also pretty fabulous; Joyce had good taste. But it was so cozy that just being there made Faith want to curl up in Buffy's lap and go to sleep. She put the thought out of her mind. If sleeping with her head in Buffy's lap in front of a fireplace wasn't against one of their new rules Faith thought it probably should be.

Faith looked at the fireplace.

"Plus the cool thing about you being here is she won't yell at me in front of you, so I can totally get away with stuff," Buffy said.

"That's an interesting theory," Joyce said, with a big smile. "Do you think it'll hold up under rigorous testing?"

There wasn't a fire going in the fireplace; the weather had been too hot lately. Faith remembered the fireplace in Rebecca's house...how she and Evan had sat in front of it once, on a cold night in early spring, when the fire was going, and Rebecca wasn't home.

"Remember those earrings I borrowed, and how I keep on, um, forgetting to give them back?" Buffy said. "I kind of, um, lost them when I was out patrolling. From now on, I hereby pledge not to wear fabulous jewelry when I'm patrolling. Especially not your jewelry." Buffy smiled. Joyce smiled too, but she had to put more effort into it.

Faith and Evan hadn't done anything when they sat in front of the fireplace that night; they hadn't even kissed. But she had curled up with her head on his shoulder.

He was gone, and she couldn't ever have him. But sometimes she still felt like she was cheating on him. She felt like she was cheating on him now. She kept going back and forth...

Faith looked at the fireplace. There was nothing there but ashes.

Evan was gone. And she was alone.

She felt Buffy's hands on her shoulders.

"You're my human shield," Buffy said, hiding behind her.

Faith looked away from the fireplace, pushed the memories away...pushed Evan away.

"I'll do my best but I don't know B, your Mom looks pretty tough," Faith said. "If it came down to it I bet she could kick my butt."

"Faith, would you like something to drink?" Joyce said. "There's soda, and orange juice, and apple juice, and fruit punch, and...well actually just assume I have everything and tell me what you'd like to drink. And I'd never kick your butt. That would just be rude. Buffy's butt, on the other hand..."

Buffy's hands were still on Faith's shoulders, and Buffy was still hiding behind her. Faith heard Buffy giggling in her ear.

"Uh, soda's good, like a coke or whatever," Faith said.

"Theory held up," Buffy said, peeking out from behind Faith's hair.

"Faith won't be here forever," Joyce said, and headed for the kitchen.

"So hey, what's for dinner anyway?" Buffy said.

Joyce looked back at Buffy over her shoulder.

"Meat loaf, dear," Joyce said, with a very big smile.

"And the war begins," Buffy said.

"How come you're always badmouthin' your Mom's meat loaf?" Faith said. "It's pretty good. Throw in the corn and mashed potatoes and that was one righteous dinner."

"Wow. First you have a crush on Giles, now you actually like my Mom's meat loaf," Buffy said. "Maybe I should just hang my head in shame and take off, let you be the Slayer here from now on. I could go to college and get my degree and like, live happily ever after as a fabulous socialite. Who's married to a rock star. Or a movie star. I'm not choosy."

"They got fabulous socialite degrees?" Faith said.

They were sitting on Buffy's bed. The bedroom was big and bright with hardwood floors and a king-sized bed covered with fluffy pillows. There was a desk without any homework on it; Buffy seemed to be using it to stack her CD's. There was a respectable stereo system, and a big walk-in closet, and a steamer trunk in the corner. A poster of Gavin Rossdale was taped to the wall above the stereo, but there was a much bigger poster of Lauren Bacall in Dark Passage on the wall across from the bed and an even bigger poster of Ava Gardner hanging next to that. Faith noticed Ava was showing a lot of leg. She knew Gavin was Buffy's beard.

The room was wonderful; Faith wished she could sleep there. There were maybe one or two more stuffed animals than Faith thought were strictly required, but it was still the kind of room she always dreamed of having when she was growing up...the kind of room she had when she was with Rebecca.

But the best thing about it was that it smelled like Buffy; her scent was everywhere in the room, on every surface. It was strongest on the bed.

Faith lay back on the bed, and inhaled Buffy's scent.

"They better have fabulous socialite degrees," Buffy said, and sat next to Faith on the bed, and played with her hair. "Because I have no idea what else to major in when I go to college."

"Nice bed," Faith said.

"Yeah," Buffy said, and smiled. "Looks great right now."

"Is there a rule against me sleeping with my head in your lap?" Faith said. "Did we make a rule against that?"

"Not specifically. I don't think we made any anti-cuddling rules. Sleeping in the same bed is sort of like just hugging while laying down, so I think it's allowed. But we'd have to be careful not to let it turn into naked sleeping. All our sleeping always becomes naked sleeping."

"Actually I think it starts out naked and just kinda stays that way."

"You want me to lie down with you for a little while before we go on patrol?" Buffy said.

"Yeah," Faith said.

"Okay," Buffy said, and lay down next to Faith. "But we have to be real careful not to fall asleep. My Mom sees us asleep in bed together and, um...well, let's just say that would get kind of awkward."

Buffy put her arms around Faith, and Faith curled up against her breasts.

"Your Mom wouldn't be cool with how you're secretly such a big pervo lesbian?" Faith said.

"You wish," Buffy said, and giggled. "No, my Mom's okay. I mean, she freaks about stuff sometimes but once she's calmed down and gets herself out of Ultra-Mom mode and like, takes a breath she's usually pretty reasonable about stuff. Still, me in bed with a girl might test the reasonableness."

"Plus there's that thing with the earrings," Faith said. "Joyce is already at Defcon two now, better not test her."

"Had to tell her sometime," Buffy said. "It was a tactical decision."

"The old human shield trick."

"Yeah, I'm a pro at it. I used to have Willow run interference for me all the time. She's just so pretty and huggable that my Mom can't ever get angry at me when she's around. But then Will got wise and made me promise to stop. And I can't use Xander because he secretly has the hots for my Mom and he always takes her side. He would've been all like, 'Yeah Buffy, how lame is it that you lost your Mom's earrings? I can't believe you lost her earrings.'"

"I'll be your human shield. I'd take a bullet for you."

Buffy nodded, and played with Faith's hair.

"You like this, baby?" Buffy said, and kissed Faith's forehead. "You like lying down with me like this?"

"Yeah," Faith said. "Kinda wish we could go to sleep, but..."

"Me too. But it's early, it's like seven. Once we get outta this bed and get our game faces on we'll feel wide awake again and we'll be totally all about the girl-on-vamp violence. But it'll be cute, sassy violence. And forehead kisses aren't covered by rule three."

They felt the connection. They felt warm.

"I always feel warm when we're together," Faith said.

"Me too," Buffy said.

"Show me that move you did," Buffy said.

It was nearly two in the morning. They were on their third cemetery. They had killed more than twenty vampires.

They had killed, and killed, and killed...

After they had gotten up out of the bed and gotten their game faces on things hadn't quite gone according to plan because then Faith had decided she wanted to explore every possible loophole in rule number three--if forehead kisses were allowed, what about kisses on the cheek? Or the shoulder? Or the neck?--and then they had decided to lie back down on the bed again but just for a little while, and then Faith had asked if massages violated any rules, and Buffy had said not technically but then she had said something about the spirit of the law versus the letter of the law. But by that point Faith had already started massaging Buffy's shoulders so the argument was moot, and then Buffy had rolled over and pulled Faith's arm around her, and Faith had kissed the back of her neck for awhile, and then suddenly it was ten o'clock and they both realized they had fallen asleep.

So they got up and got their game faces on (again) and this time they managed to make it out of the bedroom. Buffy peeked in on her mother--Joyce was in the little sitting room talking long distance to her goofy hick friend Claire from Idaho, and she smiled at Buffy and Faith in that exact way that Buffy knew meant she had no idea that her daughter had been sleeping with a girl and everything was fine, and then she told them not to stay out too late and made Faith promise to come over for dinner again on Friday and shooed them away. Claire was goofy and a hick and she kept talking about the environment all the time and she knitted Buffy a new horrible sweater every Christmas, and Buffy actually had to wear them whenever Claire came to visit so as not to hurt her feelings, but Buffy knew she owed Claire one tonight.

And they were out the door and the night was all around them and their senses reached out and caught all the smells, and they felt their hearts beating, and they bared their teeth. They were Slayers again. They were hunters and the world existed for the sole purpose of providing them with prey: it was simply a fact and it was so obvious that Buffy and Faith couldn't believe they had forgotten it. They sprinted to the nearest cemetery, racing each other and laughing.

They wanted to fuck when they got to the cemetery; they nearly did. It was dicey for the first few minutes. They wanted to fuck and they were Slayers now and they couldn't for the life of them understand why they weren't supposed to fuck. They both knew there was a reason, and it had seemed like a good one at the time...but they just couldn't remember it. They both wished, not for the first time, that they could simply discard every single thing about themselves that wasn't the Slayer. They wandered through that first cemetery for awhile, all their senses reaching out...but reaching out only to each other.

"It's hot," Faith said, and took her shirt and bra off, and flung them away.

Buffy took Faith in her arms and leaned her against a tree, and growled softly, and dragged her teeth across Faith's neck, as Faith purred for her. She breathed in Faith's scent. Buffy knew that scent belonged to her and she knew she would kill anyone else who ever tried to have it. She knew that if the guy Faith had waiting for her back in Boston ever tried to take Faith from her she'd kill him.

Faith knelt down in front of her, and took off Buffy's skirt and pulled down Buffy's panties. Buffy stepped out of them, and took Faith by the hair, and brought her mouth to her pussy...and then they caught the scent of their prey.

Their priorities changed. Killing was even better than fucking.

And then they had killed, and killed, and killed...

"What move?" Faith said. "You mean the aikido thing? The flip?"

"No, the thing you did with that vamp's wrist," Buffy said. "You know, the skinny vamp with all the tattoos? You had him down and you did something with his wrist so he completely couldn't move."

"Yeah, that's aikido too," Faith said. "It's called a wrist lock."

They were calmer, now. They still wanted to fuck but they could control the urge. The killing had pleasured them in a way tongues and fingers never could; touched them in deeper places. The Slayers in them weren't hungry, anymore. The Slayers hadn't relinquished control yet, but they were satisfied. Buffy and Faith were able to remember all the reasons they shouldn't fuck now. They just didn't agree with any of them.

"Show me," Buffy said.

"Okay," Faith said. "Come at me."

"Anything special I should do?" Buffy said.

"Yeah," Faith said. "You should get naked, get down on your knees and lick my pussy until I come. Then you should let me do the same to you."

Buffy smiled.

"Hey, you asked," Faith said, and smiled back.

"I meant, um, should I come at you in a special way," Buffy said.

"The rules are fucking stupid," Faith said.

"Yup," Buffy said. "Stupid, stupid rules. Worst rules ever."

"But we probably won't think they're stupid tomorrow."

"We'll be okay with them tomorrow, baby. Let's just get through tonight."

"Okay," Faith said. "So come at me like you're a vamp. You don't gotta get fancy, just take a run at me. But try to land a good punch on me."

"Punch you? Are you sure? But what if...I mean...I don't want to hit you."

Faith smiled, baring her teeth.

"Trust me, girlfriend," Faith said. "You're not gonna land the punch."

"Oh I'm not, huh?" Buffy said, smiling and baring her teeth right back.

"Nope," Faith said. "Now come for me."

Buffy ran at her. Her instinct was to feint with her right and sneak in under Faith's guard with her left--that's what she would have done if this were real--but she didn't want to risk hitting Faith so she went with the right without feinting. But she didn't telegraph the punch; she didn't want to make it too easy. She decided if she ended up hitting Faith she'd just kiss her until she felt better, and rule number three could fuck off. Buffy hated rule number three.

As Buffy threw the punch Faith suddenly wasn't where she was supposed to be anymore and then somehow Buffy was spinning around and her arm was behind her back. Faith swept her legs out from under her before Buffy could even begin to free herself and Buffy was on the ground on her knees, with her right arm held up in the air behind her back with her wrist bent a weird way. She tried to move her arm. Faith wasn't holding her nearly as tightly as Buffy knew she could. Buffy thought she could probably move her arm if she put all her strength into it.

"What the hell just happened?" Buffy said.

"I'm a total fuckin' bad ass is what happened, girlfriend," Faith said. "You okay? I'm not hurting you or anything, am I?"

"No," Buffy said. "But you should be. You're holding back."

"I don't want to hurt you," Faith said, and let Buffy go, and helped her up. "A real wrist lock hurts."

"I want you to do it for real," Buffy said. "I can't understand it unless it's for real. I can take the pain. I trust you."

"You didn't come at me anywhere near as sneaky as you could've," Faith said. "We're doing this for real, you gotta come at me with a real punch."

"What if you can't dodge it?" Buffy said.

"I can take the pain," Faith said. "Unless I see a real punch you're not gettin' a real wrist lock. I've watched you fight, lover, I know how bad ass you can be when you're trying. I want the whole package."

Buffy hesitated.

"I don't want to hurt you," Buffy said.

"I kinda want you to hurt me," Faith said, and smiled. "It would be interesting. Be like having you in a way I haven't yet. We threw each other around a little that first time gettin' horizontal in the vamp house but you never actually hit me. I kinda want that. I wanna bleed for you. But don't worry, I'm not gonna let you land a punch."

"You're not, huh? It's not up to me at all?"

"Hate to break it to ya B, but I'm better. I've watched you fight. Sure, you're a bad ass, and I'm not saying I'm stronger or faster or nothin'--actually I think you might be faster than me--but I've been trained up by Becca and that means I win."

"You're serious, aren't you?" Buffy said, and smiled.

"Nothing personal, B," Faith said. "This isn't about me, it's about Becca. You don't get how much of a bad ass she was. You think she was like Giles, right? She wasn't. If Becca had trained you up instead of me you'd beat me easy peasy. But I was her girl. So, you and me fight? I win."

"You're gonna have to prove it, baby," Buffy said, still smiling, but growling a little now, and baring her teeth.

"Come for me, lover," Faith snarled. "Gimme a kiss."

Buffy came at her again. Buffy was fast; this time Faith could tell she was serious and she was using all her speed. Buffy feinted with her right and threw a left hook that was too fast to dodge even for Faith. But Faith didn't need to dodge it. Instead she took Buffy's arm in mid-air and redirected it, going with Buffy's motion, and before Buffy knew what was happening she was spun around again and her arm was up behind her back somehow and her legs were swept out from under her and she was back on her knees on the ground, and Faith was crouched behind her holding her arm up in the air. Buffy's wrist hurt this time; in fact her whole arm hurt. She tried to move it and got even more pain for her trouble.

"Don't let go," Buffy said. "Keep the pressure up. Tell me exactly what you're doing and how this works. Nice move by the way."

"Thanks. You're faster than me," Faith said. "I suspected it before but now I know it. I wanted to dodge your punch but I knew I couldn't, you're too fast. So I redirected it. Notice how I didn't yank you around or anything?"

"Yeah. One second I'm aiming a punch and then all of a sudden my arm's not going where I want it to, but it didn't feel like you even really touched it."

"Just nudged it a little. I used your momentum. Once you throw a punch or a kick, once you let it loose, it's loose; the momentum's out there and it's like a runaway train. It's hard for you to redirect it. But an outside force can redirect it no problem. All I gotta do is nudge you a little to knock you off course. It's basic aikido, using your opponent's strength against him. Becca taught me aikido specifically because it's the one martial art that can really work against a Slayer, it's all holds and throws, it's all about defeating someone who's stronger than you by using his strength against him. Even after I became the Slayer Becca still whaled on me every damn day with the aikido when she was training me."

"Rebecca was one tough cookie," Buffy said. "Giles never whales on me. It wouldn't be polite." Faith was behind her, crouched very close to her. Buffy felt Faith's breath, warm on the back of her neck. Faith was holding her down with one hand and Buffy was completely immobilized, and on her knees; she knew this must be what Faith's prey felt like. She was Faith's prey.

With her other hand, Faith ran her fingers through Buffy's hair. Buffy realized Faith could do anything she wanted to do to her with that free hand, and she wouldn't be able to stop her. She felt her pussy getting wet.

Buffy tried to focus. She let her senses reach out. It was late and there were no sounds but the crickets in the cemetery. The cemetery was one of the newer ones and it was always well-tended; it smelled like fresh-cut grass, and all the tombstones were lined up in perfect rows and there was no litter anywhere and no graffiti. It had become a hot, humid night; it was cloudy and the moon was hiding behind the clouds. It was a big, yellow moon, and Buffy knew where it was hiding because that part of the sky was a little brighter. The air felt thick and heavy and full of energy, like it had been holding something in too long and it was about to burst. Buffy could relate. Her pussy was wet and she wanted to be fucked and it was hard to concentrate. Faith was warm behind her; Buffy felt her body heat. They were both sweating now and Faith's sweat made her scent strong. Buffy remembered what Faith's breasts had tasted like the day they had sex, how they were just a little salty; Faith had been sweating then too. Buffy wanted to taste Faith's breasts again now. She felt her blood pumping through her, and she thought about asking Faith to fuck her. She thought Faith would say yes. But she knew they would both agree with the rules again tomorrow...

Faith gently ran her fingers through Buffy's hair, as she held her down; as she kept her down on her knees.

Buffy tried to focus.

"Yup," Faith said. "One tough fifth degree aikido black belt momma. Anyway, the wrist lock's easy, once I get you down with your arm behind your back I twist your wrist into an unnatural position. And I don't gotta get all fancy, I could do a wrist lock just by grabbing your arm real quick. But as a rule you want it up behind your guy's back so he can't try to grab at you with his other arm."

Faith gently let go of Buffy's wrist, and helped her up.

"Thanks," Buffy said, and rubbed her wrist. "That's a hell of a move. Okay if I practice it with you?"

"Sure," Faith said. "I can show you aikido if you want. I can teach you. I mean I'm not a pro or anything, Becca was only teaching me for about ten months, but I can teach you what I know."

"You sure seem like a pro to me," Buffy said. "With all those flips and throws and stuff I saw you do? You were awesome, baby."

"I think the Slayer in me kinda fills in the blanks a little on my fighting, y'know?" Faith said. "Like, I got a certain amount of training and the Slayer takes it from there."

"You'll train me? You'll show me aikido?"

"Sure, honey. I'd love to. You wanna try a wrist lock out on me now?"

"Yeah but, I don't know how to do all that cool stuff where you like spin me around and stuff."

"I'll come at you slow and guide you through it. Ready?"

"Okay," Buffy said, and got into her fighting stance.

"Okay," Faith said. "I'm gonna come at you slow and throw a right straight out from my shoulder. When I do I want you to bat my arm away at the wrist with the back of your left hand, not hard, just knock it off course. That'll throw off my balance and send my momentum going right past you. As I pass, you spin behind me and grab my left arm by the wrist and yank it up behind my head. At the same time sweep my legs out hard and put me down on my knees. Then you twist the wrist the way I did yours. You got all that?"

"Yeah," Buffy said. "Ready when you are."

"Okay, I'm gonna come at you slow but I'm still comin' at you, I'm still throwin' a punch, this is for real. If you don't do the move right I could end up punching you in the face if I can't pull back. So, uh, apologizing in advance."

"Don't worry. Do it."

Faith came at her. She came at half speed and she threw a leisurely punch. Buffy smacked her fist aside, spun around her, grabbed her other arm at the wrist, swept her legs out from under her and threw her down onto her knees, yanking Faith's left arm up behind her head and twisting her wrist.

"Was that good?" Buffy said, and let Faith go, and helped her up.

"Shit, you're fast," Faith said, and grinned. "Yeah, it was perfect, lover. Wish you didn't let me up so quick though. I was gettin' into it."

"Come at me full speed," Buffy said. "Do it for real, throw a real punch."

"If I come at you for real I could end up hitting you," Faith said. "You're good B, you picked that move up quick, but we should go slow for awhile."

"How's this. Tell me in advance what kind of punch you're gonna throw, okay? But that's it. Make it a real punch and come at me as hard as you can."

"You sure about this, girlfriend? If I hit you..."

"Then I'll bleed for you, lover," Buffy said, with a feral smile.

Faith liked that smile.

"Okay," Faith said. "Apologizin' in advance again. Left jab."

"Do it," Buffy said.

Faith ran at her, at full speed. She didn't telegraph the punch; she kept it under wraps until the last second. It didn't make a damn bit of difference though: Buffy was faster than anyone Faith had ever seen and she slipped the punch and knocked Faith off course and a second later Faith felt her legs give and her arm being yanked behind her back and she was on her knees. Buffy crouched over her, twisting her wrist; it hurt. But Faith liked it. She liked Buffy hurting her.

Buffy crouched behind her, inches away.

"How was that, baby?" Buffy whispered, in Faith's ear.

"Perfect, lover," Faith whispered back.

Buffy ran her fingers through Faith's hair.

She noticed Faith was starting to blush.

She kissed her cheek, and let her up.

"Okay...that was uh, real good," Faith said, smiling, and still blushing. "So maybe I can start training you like on a schedule and next time we--"

"One more," Buffy said. "One more, totally for real. Come at me full speed and don't let me know in advance what kind of punch you're gonna throw."

"But...I might hit you," Faith said. "I don't want to hit you."

"Faith, look, if you're gonna train me you're gonna be landing some punches on me eventually, right?" Buffy said. "You can't show me this stuff unless we start sparring for real eventually, so what's the difference if we do it for real now? I'm gonna have to take a hit sometime. Don't worry, I'm a big girl. Now come on, come at me. I'm tired of the training wheels."

Faith hesitated. She looked down at the ground.

"It's just..." Faith said.

"Faith," Buffy said. "I know you don't want to hurt me. It's okay. If you really want to train me we're gonna have to do this, right?"

"Yeah," Faith said.

"And besides, what makes you think I'm gonna let you land the punch?" Buffy said, and smiled.

Faith grinned. "Okay," she said.

"But don't hold back, Faith. You're promising me we're doing it for real now and I expect you to keep your promise. It's gotta be for real. Don't pull your punch, don't telegraph it, don't come at me slow. Be as sneaky as you'd be if I were a vamp. Really try to surprise me. I want to know I took your best shot."

"Okay. Ready?"

"Ready."

Faith had a plan, when she ran at Buffy: she figured Buffy was expecting something fancy so instead she went with a basic right cross. It was a good, sneaky tactic, so Buffy would be happy that Faith was really trying, but at the same time a right cross was a slower punch that took more time to land and could be anticipated. Buffy was blindingly fast and Faith was hoping her speed would be enough to overcome her inexperience and allow her to block the punch. But the plan didn't work: Buffy wasn't expecting the right cross and when she tried to knock it aside she missed and Faith connected with her face. Faith had never really understood her own strength; she had a right cross that Vikings would have sang songs about and it hit Buffy like a wrecking ball, knocking her off her feet and sending her flying through the air. Buffy collided with a tree ten feet away and fell to the ground like a building imploding.

"Buffy!" Faith shouted, and ran to her and fell to her knees beside her. Buffy looked dazed, and her face was bloody.

"Buffy! BUFFY!" Faith screamed, with tears filling her eyes. She propped Buffy up with shaking hands.

"Whoa...kay..." Buffy said, and held her hand to her lip. It was bleeding. "Didn't know they made mack trucks shaped like pretty Boston girls. Um...ow."

She looked up at Faith, grinning...

Faith was crying, and shaking.

"Hey, hey," Buffy said, and hugged her. "Faith, I'm okay."

Faith wrapped her arms tight around her, and cried.

"Sshhh...baby...I'm okay," Buffy whispered in her ear. "It's just a little bloody lip. I'm okay, baby, I'm okay."

Buffy kissed Faith's cheek, and looked her in the eyes. She wiped Faith's tears away.

"I'm okay," Buffy said.

"You're bleeding," Faith whispered.

"It's just a bloody lip, baby," Buffy said. "Okay? Just a bloody lip."

Faith nodded. Buffy held her.

Eventually, Faith calmed down, and Buffy felt her shaking stop. She smiled, and kissed Faith's cheek again.

"You sure your last name's not Tyson?" Buffy said.

Faith managed to giggle, as Buffy wiped the last of her tears away.

"Nah," Faith said. "Mike's a pantywaist. I'd kick Mike's ass."

"I gotta tell you, Faith, outside of Kakistos, that's the hardest punch I've ever taken," Buffy said. "You're strong, baby. I think you're stronger than me."

Blood ran down Buffy's lip.

Faith kissed her.

She tasted Buffy's blood on her lips, and on her tongue. It was warm, and it had a sweet taste, and it was a little bit salty at the same time.

It was a soft kiss, a gentle kiss. Faith's tongue was warm, as it caressed the inside of Buffy's mouth; as Faith explored it, looking for the wound.

Faith licked Buffy's lips where they bled, and kissed them, and caressed the inside of Buffy's mouth with her tongue. Buffy's tongue was bleeding; the punch had made Buffy's teeth cut into it. Faith felt the blood, warm and thick and sweet on her own tongue. Faith licked Buffy's tongue, and went back to kissing her lips, and then back to licking her tongue again; she kissed and licked Buffy until the blood was gone.

"Uh...guess I broke rule number three," Faith said.

"Fuck rule number three," Buffy said, and took Faith in her arms, and laid her down on the ground, and kissed her

The air was heavy now, electric. The wind began to pick up. There was a storm coming, Buffy and Faith both knew it: they could smell it.

Buffy lay on top of Faith, and looked at her. She was beautiful. Her scent was sweet. Buffy felt the Slayer in her, looking down at Faith with her.

Buffy knew Faith belonged to her. She knew she'd kill anyone who tried to take Faith from her.

"I wanna bleed for you, Buffy," Faith whispered. "Make me bleed."

Buffy took Faith by her long, dark hair, and looped it like a rope around her hand, holding it in her fist, holding Faith in place. She looked at her.

"Make me bleed for you," Faith whispered.

Buffy kissed Faith's neck, on the left side...and slowly, gently, bit into it.

She wasn't biting Faith hard enough for her teeth to break the skin, yet. Not hard enough to really hurt her. But hard enough for Faith to feel it...to know what it meant. Faith gasped, and a little whimper escaped from her lips.

Faith wrapped her legs around Buffy, and Buffy began gently thrusting into her.

Buffy started sucking on Faith's neck, kissing it and taking the skin into her mouth and kneading the skin back and forth between her teeth. She meant to mark her. Faith clutched at Buffy, moaning. She lifted Buffy's skirt, and grabbed Buffy's ass and pulled Buffy into her as Buffy thrusted. Buffy could hear herself snarling, as she marked Faith...marked her for the whole world to see.

She wondered if this was how Angelus had felt, when he bit her.

Buffy took her time, leaving her mark. She made sure to give Faith some pain, as she greedily sucked on her flesh, taking it into her mouth and tasting it on her tongue; the mark should hurt, or it wouldn't mean anything. Buffy was a Slayer and she knew the important things in life came with pain. Faith had a long, graceful, muscular neck, and the muscles bunched and corded now as Buffy bit into it. It was salty with Faith's sweat, and sweet with her scent. Buffy could feel the blood pumping through it, in time to Faith's heartbeat. Slowly, Buffy bit down harder, increasing the pressure...

"Yeah...yeah honey..." Faith whispered.

Buffy allowed her bottom front teeth to break Faith's skin. Not too deep, but enough to draw a little blood. Faith whimpered like a prey animal when Buffy did that; it was a beautiful sound that nearly drove Buffy into a frenzy. But Buffy controlled herself, controlled the Slayer, and sucked on the wound only gently, taking Faith's blood into her mouth, and swallowing it. It tasted sugary. Buffy tenderly caressed Faith's hair now as she took her blood; she didn't want Faith to be scared. She wanted her to know it would be okay.

Faith breathed even faster, and clamped her legs tight around Buffy, and started shaking a little. Buffy realized she was bringing Faith to an orgasm.

Buffy started rubbing Faith between the legs over her jeans as she held her down; she wondered if this was breaking one of their rules. She almost smiled.

"Yeah...yeah...oh God honey yeah..." Faith squealed, breathlessly...

Thunder boomed through the sky, and the storm came...

Faith started making little high pitched squeals every time she exhaled now, and Buffy started rubbing Faith's pussy harder; but Faith's jeans were tight, and it was difficult for Buffy to get her hand exactly where she wanted it, so she unzipped them and slipped her hand inside and started rubbing Faith over her panties instead. Faith's panties were soaked through, and Faith purred the moment Buffy's hand touched them, her whole body shuddering. Buffy found Faith's clit and she focused in on it, stroking it over Faith's panties in a slow, gentle rhythm as she sucked on Faith's neck and kneaded her flesh between her teeth, tasting her blood, and marking her. Buffy wanted Faith to come, when she marked her.

Lightning flashed, and the rain fell, drenching them...

A moment later, Buffy felt Faith's legs trembling around her and Faith came with a little stifled scream as thunder cracked the sky in half and a cold wind tore through the cemetery all around them and lightning flashed again and the rain came down in torrents, and Faith held onto Buffy so hard Buffy thought her bones might break. Faith started to cry, like she had the other times Buffy made her come, but her tears mixed with the rain, and washed away. The rain was cold and the wind made it even colder; it awoke every nerve in their bodies, made every part of them feel alive.

As Faith began to calm down, and her breathing started to return to normal, and her trembling grew less, Buffy stopped sucking and biting Faith's neck, and began licking it instead; licking the wound.

Buffy licked Faith's neck, and inhaled her scent. Faith's breathing became steady again, and she stopped shaking. Buffy licked her wound, until the blood was gone. And when the blood was gone, Buffy smiled down at Faith, and touched her hair.

Somehow, Faith managed to blush despite being pelted by freezing rain. Buffy kissed her cheek.

They lay there together, in each other's arms, on the ground in the cemetery, neither of them moving, and looked into each other's eyes. They lay there together, and let the rain soak them through.

The mark on Faith's neck was big and livid and red. Faith touched it, and smiled.

"Bet it's all big and red," Faith said.

Buffy smiled, and nodded. She took Faith's hand, and kissed it.

Faith closed her eyes, and leaned her head against Buffy's shoulder. Buffy held her, and looked down at her.

Faith had Buffy's mark on her now, and Buffy didn't think Faith really had anything else, besides that. She didn't think Faith was ever going to go back to her guy in Boston. Faith didn't have Rebecca anymore, and Buffy was starting to understand how hard it was for Faith, being without her...how it made every single moment hard for her.

Buffy knew she was all Faith had, now.

"You have me," Buffy said.

Faith nodded.

They kissed, in the rain.

"We broke rule number three," Faith said.

"We totally broke rule number three," Buffy said. "We broke it and then smashed it into tiny little pieces. I hated rule number three anyway."

"So now we don't have a rule number three?" Faith said. "The rules go like, one, two, four?"

"I'm thinking we might need to make a rule against giving each other fully-clothed orgasms," Buffy said. "That can be the new rule number three."

"Fully-clothed orgasms do kind of make a mockery of our laws, don't they?" Faith said. "It's like we're Bonnie and Clyde, runnin' around and shootin' up the town and giving each other fully-clothed orgasms. People gotta lock their doors. No one's safe."

"Yeah. So, rule three," Buffy said. "No giving each other fully-clothed orgasms. Damn it. I didn't even get to have one. I hate the law."

It was Friday night, and they were in the Bronze. The Bronze was the local dance club, and according to Buffy and Willow and Xander, it was the only game in town. But Faith wasn't too impressed by it when she went there with Buffy after dinner at Buffy's house (Joyce made chicken this time, although she hinted to Buffy that there was still plenty of meat loaf left) and they met up with Willow and Xander and sat on a plush purple couch and drank coffee and listened to the folk band on stage. The Bronze had been converted from an old warehouse, and it still looked like it: it was a big, dark, shabby industrial-looking room with bare, concrete walls. Ancient light fixtures hung from the high ceiling, and a metal staircase led to a second level fashioned from a series of grates welded together and riveted into the walls to form a walkway encircling the room. The big, fake chandelier, the colored lights, the improvised stage and the little tables and chairs and plush couches here and there did their best to divert attention away from the fact that the place was a dump. They didn't quite succeed, but the Bronze was the only real option in Sunnydale and that meant it was usually packed anyway.

"I'm thinking after the cemetery we maybe need to figure some way not to go all crazy for each other when we're out slaying," Faith said.

"We didn't break any rules other than number three," Buffy said. "But that one sucked anyway. Rule number three was like Prohibition. It never really had the support of the people."

"Came close to breaking some other rules too. Found a hell of a lot of loopholes. A lot of legal gray areas," Faith said. "And then there's my favorite bruise." Faith smiled, and touched the mark on her neck. She'd had it for two days now, and unfortunately it was starting to fade; Faith was the Slayer and Slayers healed fast. The mark was still big but it had gone from red to purple after a day and then had started getting lighter. But Faith had already decided that once it faded away she was going to ask Buffy to bite her again.

She looked out at the crowd. The Bronze was a dump, but it had a serviceable dance floor, at least, and a solid number of hot guys. Faith was happy she still thought guys were hot; she had been starting to think she had somehow become a lesbian. Faith thought Buffy was beautiful and she wouldn't have kicked Willow out of bed either, but it was nice that guys could still rev her engine. It was reassuring, somehow.

But she still wanted Buffy to bite her again.

"We're so good at finding loopholes and legal gray areas," Buffy said. "We should be lawyers. Do you think Willow and Xander bought our explanation for the bruise?" She looked around to make sure no one was watching, and gave Faith a quick kiss.

"Thinking Xander did," Faith said. "It's dark in here, hard to see my neck too good, so it kinda looks a little like a vamp maybe took a chunk out of me. Not sure if Will's buyin' it though. Girl's perceptive. Think your Mom bought it?"

"Yeah," Buffy said. "The idea that I could've given it to you just wouldn't occur to her. You could've worn a bandage, you know."

"Didn't want to cover it up," Faith said. "I like it. Guess I could just say I got jumped by a hardcore pervo lesbian."

"You so wish I was a lesbian," Buffy said, and giggled. "Pervo."

"You so wish I wished it," Faith said, giggling back.

"Wish you wished what?" Xander said, as he and Willow suddenly appeared out of the crush of laughing, sweating, shouting, drinking kids, and came back to the couch carrying their refills. Buffy and Faith had lost track of them: the place was so crowded and there were so many scents all intermingling that it was difficult for them to follow individual scents unless they were really concentrating. Xander handed a latte to Buffy and a cappuccino to Faith.

"Uh..." Faith said. "Wish I wished...vamps...uh...weren't...bad."

"It's...um...Slayer stuff," Buffy said.

Willow nearly burst out laughing. Buffy and Faith were the worst actresses in the entire world. It was actually really entertaining, watching Faith sitting there with the gigantic blatant hickey on her neck that Buffy had obviously given her, trying to spin her lame lies. But Willow understood that Buffy didn't want anyone to know about her and Faith just yet, and even though Willow had already figured it out she felt obligated to at least try to keep Xander off the trail.

"Slayer stuff?" Xander said, and sat down with Willow on the little couch next to them. Willow sat next to Faith. Willow was wearing a skirt and a blouse and high heeled shoes, and gold hoop earrings, and even some makeup. Faith noticed her legs. She didn't go out of her way to look at them. She just noticed them. Willow looked good in the skirt and the heels, with the makeup and the earrings. Willow's style had seemed kind of little girly to Faith when she'd seen her before but tonight she was dressed to the nines, and so were Buffy and Xander. Buffy was wearing a sexy little miniskirt with a tight tube top and open-toed slingback heels and Faith had been having trouble taking her eyes off her. Faith wished she had some decent outfits. She was wearing jeans and a blouse. The outfit was serviceable, but that was it. Even worse, her money was getting low; she had about three-hundred dollars left but half of that would have to go to the motel tomorrow to pay for another week.

"So hey, Buffy says you're all like, aikido girl, Faith," Willow said, changing the subject. "She said you have all kinds of cool moves."

"Yeah, I'm gonna train B up a little," Faith said. "I'm gonna have her goin' all Jackie Chan on vamp's asses."

The folk band, an anemic-looking girl with blonde dreadlocks who wore a dress that looked like a shapeless sack and two guys with glasses who looked like rocket scientists, were finally done. Faith had been wondering how the hell all those people had been dancing to them anyway. Especially the hot guys. How could it be fun for hot guys to dance to folk music? Dancing to folk music, you never got to have girls like her wiggling their butts at you...

The band packed up their gear and got off the stage to polite applause. Faith was hoping for a DJ to spin some fast tunes; she wanted to dance. But no such luck. The stage was empty now and the crowd was talking. What kind of dance club didn't have tunes you could dance to? Faith figured it was the Hellmouth. The Bronze was just the kind of dance club a Hellmouth would have.

"Steven Segal, actually," Xander said. Willow smiled; she knew Xander was easily distracted. "Segal does aikido. Jackie Chan does this sort of combination kung fu kickboxing thing with a lot of acrobatics and using whatever's in the room and just general weirdness thrown in."

"First hoop, now martial arts, Xan Man?" Faith said. "When I first met you I thought you were like a Trekkie. Turns out you're full of surprises."

Faith thought that definitely went for Xander's clothes too. She hadn't figured Xander for a clotheshorse but he was dressed up...after a fashion, and in his own unique way. He was wearing some kind of fifties get-up consisting of an untucked black short-sleeved shirt with a powder blue center panel climbing straight up the middle to the long, open, pointed collar, which was also done in contrasting black and powder blue, along with a pair of baggy black polyester pants with red flames embroidered on the pockets for God only knew what reason, and black and white leather shoes. Faith thought the look might have worked on James Dean, but a lot of things worked on guys like James Dean and Xander wasn't James Dean. He looked like Fonzie's goofy cousin from New Jersey. Faith was a Southie girl and she decided she'd need to add fifties hipster outfits to the long list of things, including goths, that she had never developed an appreciation for.

She wondered when he was going to get around to asking her out. She knew he would eventually; all guys did, eventually. And Faith knew that guys who looked like Xander--okay, but nothing special--wanted posters of her on their damn walls. She was their dream girl. Foxy guys like Evan were usually cooler and politer about it because they knew they could get girls, but guys like Xander were always a little more desperate, and insistent She'd rejected about a million guys like Xander over the years. Xander was nicer than all those guys but Faith knew guys all wanted the same thing from her and at the end of the day Xander wouldn't be any different. She hadn't caught him checking her out much, but Faith figured he was just being slick about it. Still, she liked him and she was glad Evan would give her an excuse for rejecting him that wouldn't hurt his feelings.

Faith thought Xander looked goofy but she thought Willow looked like a cute little ripe strawberry. Willow crossed her legs, and Faith couldn't help but notice even though she was really trying not to. Willow's legs weren't muscular like Buffy's but Willow had a little more weight on her and her legs were curvier and her hips were wider; it was a different look than Buffy's but Faith liked it fine. And Willow was wearing sexy black stockings too, and Faith wasn't complaining about them either.

Faith sighed. Life had been a lot simpler before she became a damn lesbian, or bi, or whatever the hell she was...

She looked out at the dance floor, and tried to concentrate on hot guys. She knew it was Willow's scent that was attracting her. She didn't love it as much as Buffy's but she sure did like it a whole lot.

She sat squished between Buffy and Willow on the tiny plush couch, and resigned herself to the fact that she was the chocolate syrup in a peanut butter and fluff sandwich.

"So okay, I want to get back to this jelly business," Xander said. "It's not that I don't like being jelly, it's just that I wasn't consulted. I should be consulted about these things." "Well you're not trading with me," Buffy said. "Jelly doesn't go with chocolate syrup."

Worst actresses in the entire world, Willow thought, and smiled to herself.

Buffy was happy. Willow liked seeing Buffy happy.

It had been a long time...

"I should be whatever goes best with what Willow is anyway," Xander said. "But I like chocolate better with peanut butter. I don't even like jelly. Whenever I have peanut butter sandwiches I don't put jelly on them."

"I'd trade but jelly doesn't go good with marshmallow fluff," Faith said.

"I still think we should have a fifth thing, that way one of them can always rotate," Xander said.

"I think we should go back to talking about Luke not shooting first," Buffy said.

Onstage, three fat guys hauled in a drum kit and a keyboard.

Come on, Faith thought, as she watched the stage. Throw me a bone here.

Another band came out on stage. They were four girls who looked like they had just rolled out of bed and who glared at the crowd like they wanted to tell everyone in the room to fuck off. They smoked cigarettes even though Faith had seen a no smoking sign on her way in. They wore slutty outfits.

"Um...who are they?" Willow said.

"My Mom wouldn't approve of them at all," Buffy said. "I think she'd give them a speech about morals. And possibly make them eat meat loaf."

As Willow and Xander stared up at the stage, Faith put her hand on Buffy's knee, and slowly moved it up her skirt.

Buffy giggled, and took her hand away.

"Someone's a bad girl," Buffy whispered in Faith's ear.

"I need a spanking, lover," Faith whispered back. "I think you're gonna need to spank my little ass or I might keep acting up. Fair warning."

Onstage, the tall, pretty girl with the sneer and the cleavage and the black hair done up in a pageboy and the guitar slung over her shoulder swaggered up to the microphone, drinking a beer. Faith liked the way her boobs jiggled.

Fuck, Faith thought.

"They look...um...kinda skanky," Willow said.

"'Trouble'?" Xander said, squinting at the name emblazoned on the band's drum kit. "Well that sounds vaguely menacing."

"Yeah, so we're Trouble and I just woke up because I'm fucking hung over, Sunnydale," the lead singer said, in a British accent. "Jesus Christ I'm hung over. Hey I have an idea boys and girls let's all FUCKING ROCK."

The British accent sounded just like Rebecca's to Faith's ears. Faith thought the girl even looked like Rebecca too. She was tall and pretty with the same kind of nose, even a similar hairstyle. She was younger than Rebecca, maybe in her mid-twenties; she could have been Rebecca's niece. The girl was like a sexy, slutty, rock 'n roll Rebecca. Faith knew Rebecca completely wouldn't approve of the girl. She'd probably forbid her to do things a lot. She knew Rebecca would sure as hell forbid that outfit.

The girl got a fast, catchy guitar riff going, and the unapologetically slutty Asian girl with the dyed red hair and the green boa around her neck started pounding away on the drums and the obvious lesbian bassist girl with the nose ring and the crewcut started plucking and the dainty little keyboardist girl with the long, blonde hair wearing the short-shorts and the babydoll tee-shirt started tickling the keys and suddenly there was an actual beat Faith could dance to in the damn club for the first time all night, a kind of trippy, feverish pop-rock that got her toes tapping and kicked her engine straight into drive.

"Well what are you fucking waiting for, Sunnydale?" the lead singer shouted, glaring at the crowd as the drums and the bass started getting into some serious beats per minute. "Get on that fucking dance floor! Seriously, don't make me tell you again. This song's called 'Men Fucking Suck'. I think it's catchy." And then she started playing in earnest, and she wailed like a banshee and danced around like a crack-addled gypsy, and there was a stampede for the dance floor.

"That's our cue, B," Faith said, or thought she said: the music was so loud Faith couldn't even hear herself speaking.

"What?" Buffy said, as Faith grabbed her arm and whisked her onto the dance floor quicker than you could say marshmallow fluff.

Half an hour into their set Trouble started up on a medley of disco covers.

"Yeah that's right, I like disco. You got a problem with that Sunnydale? And don't even think about getting off that fucking dance floor," the lead singer had growled, giving the crowd one last good glare, before launching into a fast, sleazy cover of 'I Will Survive' that moved Faith and Buffy to the next level of butt-shaking. The band followed that with 'Never Can Say Goodbye', 'No More Tears', and 'Last Dance', and now they were starting in on what sounded like a drastically speeded-up version of The Stones' 'Miss You'. "Can someone be a darling and get me another beer please?" the lead singer said, before jumping in.

"Rule number six," Faith said into Buffy's ear, as she and Buffy danced around each other at approximately the speed of sound. They had energy to burn. Dancing wasn't as good as fucking and fucking wasn't as good as killing, but dancing was still a whole hell of a lot better than not dancing.

"What's rule number six?" Buffy said, into Faith's ear. They had to talk into each other's ears to hear each other over the music.

"We're allowed to grab each other's butts while we dance," Faith said.

"Sounds like a plan," Buffy said, laughing, as Faith grabbed her butt.

Willow and Xander, dancing much more slowly, watched Buffy and Faith.

"That's...some serious dancing," Xander said, into Willow's ear. "It's dirty dancing."

"It's, um, a Slayer thing," Willow said into his ear, and spun Xander around so Buffy and Faith were out of view.

"I guess...but..." Xander started to say, when Willow took his hands, and placed them on her butt.

"You were saying something, sweetie?" Willow said.

"I can't remember for the life of me," Xander said, and kissed her.

Willow smiled. Xander was easily distracted.

The band was taking a break and Buffy and Faith were back on the couch. Willow had volunteered to get their refills, and had made Xander come with her.

Faith had her hand on Buffy's knee again, and she was telling her all the things she wanted to do to her. Buffy was giggling.

"You're such a bad girl," Buffy said. "What am I gonna do with you?"

"Might have to give me a spanking," Faith said. "Only way I'll learn."

"Spank that perfect little butt?" Buffy said. "I'd rather kiss it."

"I wanna lick your pussy, honey," Faith said.

"Violates rule number two."

"I wanna lie down with you."

"We can do that. How about we have a sleepover this weekend. Willow sleeps over all the time when we're studying together and stuff, how about you come over tomorrow night and stay over my house?"

"In your bed?"

"Um...no, pervo. Not with my Mom there. But we can secretly lie down and cuddle and stuff when she's distracted."

"Okay. I wanna take off all your clothes and kiss your whole body."

"Violates rule number one."

"I wanna give you a foot massage."

"A foot massage?"

"Yeah."

"Okay."

"I wanna paint your nails."

"We can do that during the sleepover. And I'll do your hair. We can hang out and be all girly. Will and I paint each other's nails and stuff sometimes."

"Not anymore," Faith said. "Now they're mine to paint."

Buffy giggled. "Okay, baby," she said. "My nails are all yours."

"I wanna kneel down in front of you and lick your pussy right now," Faith said. "I want you to hold me by my hair while I'm doing it and I want everyone here to see me doing it."

"Wrong on so many levels," Buffy said.

"I want you to bite me again," Faith said.

"Maybe," Buffy said. "But only if you're good."

"I'm not gonna be good," Faith said, and giggled, and snarled a little. "Not unless you spank my little ass."

Buffy remembered what Giles had said, about Faith's mother.

"We'll see," Buffy said.

"You better spank me," Faith said. "If you don't I might spank you."

Buffy kissed Faith's neck, where the mark was. She dragged her teeth over it. The Slayer was there, inside her; Buffy called her up, let her out of her cage for just a moment, and let Faith hear her snarl. She knew that's what Faith wanted right now.

She took Faith's hair in her hand, and gave it a little yank. She knew Faith wanted that, too. She heard Faith moan.

She looked Faith in the eyes, and smiled, and showed her teeth to her.

"I don't think that would ever happen," Buffy said. "Do you?"

"No," Faith said, and smiled.

Buffy giggled, and kissed her.

Dinner at Buffy's house the next night was meat loaf again and Buffy had said, "the war continues". Faith had rubbed it in a little by making sure to constantly let Joyce know how much she liked the meat loaf. While caressing Buffy's knee under the table. Buffy had just smiled the whole time, refusing to rise to the bait as Faith lavished praise upon the meat loaf and cleaned her plate and had seconds. And she let Faith keep her hand on her knee.

They were in Buffy's bedroom now, in their nightgowns. They'd had to spend some time with Joyce watching a movie she'd rented for the occasion, some 1970's remake of Dracula starring a guy with feathered hair. Buffy kept pointing out how the movie got vampires wrong, and that cool vampires never had feathered hair, and Joyce kept telling her to shush, and they ate popcorn. Joyce still made Faith uncomfortable. Faith liked Joyce, and she understood that Joyce was trying to be nice to her, but for some reason it almost felt like too much, somehow. Faith had no idea why she felt that way but she always made sure to hide it, because Joyce was never anything but classy and generous and nice, the kind of Mom Faith wished she'd had. Joyce sat with Buffy and Faith on the couch, and they all watched the movie together, and Joyce talked about how much fun it was to be hanging out with "her girls".

But now Joyce was safely downstairs talking on the phone to her next door neighbor about what book they should read next in the book club and Faith's patience had finally been rewarded: Faith was with Buffy in her bedroom now listening to CD's and talking about guys they wanted to bang--at least, Faith knew she was, but she was ninety-nine point nine-nine-nine-nine-nine percent sure Buffy was faking--and Buffy sat on the edge of the bed, and Faith knelt in front of her, giving her a foot massage. Faith was exactly where she wanted to be.

"That feels good, baby," Buffy said, and stroked her hair. "It feels like, amazingly good. I think I'm gonna need you to do this a lot for me."

Faith had spent a good twenty minutes on Buffy's right foot and now she was working on the left. She knelt on the floor in front of Buffy and held her foot in her lap, and massaged it with both hands. Faith had never given a foot massage before, and she'd used the right foot for practice, learning what Buffy liked, how much pressure, and where to put it; where to rub hard, where to gently caress. Faith thought Buffy had pretty feet. They were pale, with high arches and long, powerful toes. Her feet were soft and pedicured and her toes had black toenail polish. Faith had painted them, along with Buffy's fingernails, an hour earlier.

"Whenever you want, lover," Faith said. "I'll do it every day if you want."

"You're really good at it," Buffy said. "I didn't know how sore my feet were until you started showing me how much better they could feel. The only problem is that it's, um, making me really, really horny. So, that's enough."

"But you're ruining my whole secret plan to seduce you," Faith said, and giggled, as Buffy lifted her up, and kissed her.

"What about my secret plan to do your hair?" Buffy said. "I think I want to give you hair like Ava Gardner in my poster over there. You already look like her and you have the same type of hair."

"You think I look like Ava Gardner?" Faith said, and looked at the poster. Ava was a sexy girl back in the day. Faith could see why Buffy liked her. And she had the most beautiful, smoldering eyes...

"It's your eyes, baby," Buffy said, and laid Faith down on the bed, and kissed her. "You have the prettiest eyes."

Buffy watched Faith sleep.

Faith slept curled up on Buffy's breasts. Faith had Ava Gardner hair now.

Buffy knew they couldn't stay like this. It was one in the morning, and Buffy knew her mother would be coming to check on them. And Buffy had taken her nightgown off--Faith had proposed that it wasn't a violation of rule number one as long as Buffy was under the covers and Faith couldn't actually see her body, and even though Buffy thought that particular legal argument wouldn't really stand up to scrutiny she knew Faith liked sleeping curled up on her breasts, so she allowed it. But Faith needed to be in the spare room.

Buffy let her senses reach out. Her mother wasn't on this floor yet; she was probably downstairs in the living room, on the couch watching the late movie. Her mother liked the late movies on Saturday night. Lots of Bogie and Bacall. Buffy liked Bacall too.

But her mother would be coming up soon, and she would check on them...

Faith was warm. She made Buffy feel warm. The warm feeling in her stomach--the one she got when she was with Faith--was there again now. Buffy moved her nose to Faith's neck, below her ear, where her scent was always strong. The mark she'd left on Faith was almost gone now; there was just a hint of pink there, and even the bite marks had disappeared.

Buffy knew she'd have to make a choice, soon.

But how could she be with a girl if she didn't like girls? If she stayed with Faith, wouldn't she always miss guys?

Buffy knew she wasn't gay. She told herself, every day.

"Things were easier before you got here, baby," Buffy whispered. "You've got me all spun around."

She kissed Faith's hair. It was perfect Ava Gardner hair.

"I don't know what to do about you," Buffy said.

She got up, put her nightgown back on, and carried Faith to the spare room. It was down the hall from her bedroom and situated between her room and her mother's. It was a little smaller than Buffy's bedroom, but not by much, and Buffy's mother sometimes used it as a sewing room and sometimes as a storage room for pieces she was evaluating for the gallery. But there was a good-sized bed in the room, and a desk, and a closet. Willow used the room whenever she was helping Buffy cram for a big test into the wee hours of the weekend and it was simpler for her to just sleep over rather than go home.

Currently the room was being used for storage, and there were canvases leaning against the walls and a few African masks on the desk: a peacock, a tiger and something that looked like a yellow demon with red horns and a unibrow. But Buffy always made Giles look over any new artwork her mother brought home now, and he had assured her the week before that it wasn't an actual demon.

Buffy laid Faith down on the bed, put the covers over her, and gave her a kiss goodnight. She watched her sleep for a moment.

"It was easier before you," Buffy whispered. "But I didn't smile as much, baby. You make me smile."

Buffy lay awake in her room, in the dark. She couldn't sleep. She looked toward the window. The moon was shining in; it was nearly full now. She'd killed plenty of vampires recently; she and Faith had gone on a tear, the last few days. She wasn't restless. But she still couldn't sleep...

Her mother had come up to check on her, just like Buffy knew she would, an hour before, on her way up to bed. "I like Faith," Joyce had said.

Buffy looked at the moon. The moon looked back at her.

A pebble hit the window.

Buffy jumped out of bed, her senses reaching out...

Angel.

She ran to her window. He was standing in the front yard. Faith was asleep, but Buffy knew she only had seconds...

She opened the window, and Angel watched her as she edged onto the roof and leaped out into the front yard in her nightgown, somersaulting forward through the air, and landing gracefully and silently as a cat, right in front of him.

Time was, he would've just gone into her room through the window.

But that was before Angelus...Angelus had entered her room through the window once.

After that, Angel had decided he would never do it again.

Buffy had someone else's scent on her...a girl's scent.

"Nice," Angel said. "Triple somersault, stuck the landing. You ready to do this? They should be there soon. Might be a good idea to put some clothes on."

Buffy had no idea what he was talking about but it was the least of her problems right now.

"You have to go, now," Buffy said. "I'll meet you at the end of the street."

"What?" Angel said. He was wearing a black silk shirt opened to the chest, tight black pants that Buffy knew hugged his butt perfectly, the very expensive black Gucci shoes he had bought for himself when he had treated Buffy to a shoe-shopping spree on her seventeenth birthday and she had felt bad because he had bought her eleven pairs of shoes and hadn't bought any for himself, and his long, lightweight black silk trenchcoat with the deep inside pockets that were good for holding weapons. His hair was perfect as always. He was smiling, and he still had the sexiest, most beautiful smile Buffy had ever seen on anyone, ever. He looked good enough to eat. But he smelled like roadkill.

The smell shocked Buffy, for a moment; she'd been with Faith's scent, so close to it, almost every day for a week. Angel's smell hit her like she'd suddenly been tossed in a garbage dumpster. Had he always smelled that way? Like rotten meat, like a carcass?

Like a vampire.

"There's a Slayer sleeping in my house and she's gonna smell you here any second and I can guarantee she won't care how hot you look," Buffy said. "I'll meet you at the end of the street in fifteen minutes. Go."

He looked at her, for a moment, in the moonlight; it reflected silver in his dark eyes. He was calm, almost serene. Controlled. He always was. Things never seemed to get to him.

Buffy knew he could smell Faith's scent on her.

"Okay," he said, and walked away like he was taking a stroll, and disappeared into the darkness.

Five minutes later, Buffy watched Faith sleep. Buffy was dressed and she had her stake and she was ready to go; she had remembered now why Angel was here. He'd told her a few days before that he was going to need her help tonight for a few hours; something about demons, and a ritual that needed the Slayer, she hadn't really been listening.

Buffy knew her mother would be driving down in the morning to that antique flea market in Thousand Oaks that she liked to visit on Sundays; it was a long drive and she always left by seven and didn't get back until late. She and Faith would have the house to themselves tomorrow. But she knew her mother would come to her room to check on her before she went out, and she'd worry when she wasn't there...and Faith would want to know where she went too...

Buffy went to the desk, and got a pen and a pad of paper.

Angel stood on the corner, leaning against a tree, looking up at the moon. He stood very still.

Buffy had a girl's scent on her, when he saw her in the yard. It smelled like peaches. It wasn't Willow. Willow smelled like strawberries.

He knew it was this new Slayer Buffy had talked about.

A dog rooted through some garbage cans four blocks away. The sound was jarring. It ruined the moment. Angel had enjoyed the silence; enjoyed looking up at the moon, and being centered within himself.

Life was a series of moments. He tried to see it that way, now; it helped take his mind off things. The past, the future...they were concepts. Abstractions. A way of looking at things. They didn't exist...only the moment existed. He lived for the moment...tried to be a good person, in each moment.

In the past he had killed thirteen-thousand, two-hundred and six people. In the past he had tried to kill Buffy. He had hurt her friends.

And he had done a terrible thing, that had scarred Buffy...maybe forever.

In the future Angelus might escape again. His control might slip someday, and Angelus might escape again.

Angel tried not to think about the past, or the future. Just the moment.

Buffy had seemed annoyed to see him. It wasn't just because she was worried that new Slayer would sense him. It was something else.

Every single time he had seen Buffy before, there was always a light, in her eyes...a light that was there just for him.

It hadn't been there, tonight.

He thought that was probably a good thing.

The street was silent, and still warm. The moon was big and bright and almost full. Angel leaned against the tree, and looked up at the moon, and let his senses reach out. There was no one coming, anywhere within at least six blocks of him. He wondered if Buffy would come. She'd said she would.

He waited.

A few minutes later, he smelled her, and the other scent she carried with her. The other scent wasn't as strong, now; Buffy had changed her clothes. But it was still there. Peaches...and a hint of muskiness.

He waited. He looked up at the moon. He didn't look at her. He didn't want her to see his eyes...

Get it together, he thought. You're two-hundred and seventy-one years old. Three-hundred and fifty-nine, if you count the hell dimension. She's a schoolgirl. Stop acting like a boy with a crush. You're not a boy.

You're not even a man...

He centered himself, as best he could. Thought about this moment, not any of the ones that had come before. The look in her eyes in the front yard was the past. It didn't exist.

He knew he was lying to himself. The past existed. Those thirteen-thousand, two-hundred and six people had existed. Until he snuffed them out.

"Okay, so demons, right?" Buffy said, as she approached him. He cleared his thoughts, and looked at her.

She looked different, for some reason.

"Yeah," he said. "Kree'shon demons. They're performing a ritual this morning that needs the Slayer."

"Sure," Buffy said. "I mean, I've always been all about helping out evil demons...oh wait, I haven't. Pretty sure I've always been all about killing them. I'm not killing these guys why?"

"The Kree'shon are a warrior race," Angel said. "They live to kill, but they respect strength, they respect a good fighter. A few hundred years ago a bunch of them got trapped in an interdimensional rift and landed here. They're a bunch of feuding clans now, but in a couple of hours they're going to anoint a new ruler who will unite the clans. That ruler needs the strongest warrior in this world to witness his installation."

"The strongest warrior in the world?"

"The Slayer. You."

"You want me to stand around and pose for pictures while some demon king guy gets his crown? Am I handling the catering too?"

"You need to acknowledge that he's a strong warrior, that you've tasted his heart and it's fierce and proud, that you respect his strength."

"Please tell me I don't have to actually taste his heart. I just had to deal with my Mom's meat loaf ."

Angel smiled.

"You just gotta say the words," Angel said. "I'll coach you. Joyce's meat loaf isn't bad. Better than my mother's sausage rolls."

They started walking. They used to hold hands, when they walked. They didn't now. Angel noticed Buffy wasn't standing as close to him as she usually did. The scent came to him again...peaches. With a hint of muskiness underneath.

"Remember when you used to kill demons?" Buffy said.

"The Kree'shon are a special case," Angel said. "They don't hunt humans, they consider them weak and it's against their code to hunt the weak. They only hunt when they can get a good fight. They hunt demons and vampires."

"So they're good guy demons?" Buffy said.

"No," Angel said. "They're warriors. They go where the battle is."

"You said a bunch. How many of them are there?"

"A little more than four-hundred, in six different clans. They operate out of the Middle East and Africa. They came out here for you."

"And why should I give a shit about this?"

"The guy about to take power is a traditionalist. He won't allow the clans to hunt humans. The guys opposing him would."

"Thought you said they think humans are weak."

"Humans are weak but they taste good. Human flesh is a delicacy among some of the clans."

Buffy stopped walking.

"They eat people?" she said. "You want me to help out a bunch of demon guys who eat people?"

"No," he said. "I want you to help out the ones who don't want to eat people. And they don't eat people all the time. Mostly they eat animals, and other demons. People are like caviar to them. They eat people only on special occasions. Birthdays and weddings. But this new guy will put a stop to that."

"Or I could just put a stop to them," Buffy said.

"Four-hundred more where they came from," Angel said. "So we have a new Slayer now."

"You knew we would, once you and your pals killed Kendra," Buffy said.

They walked on in silence for a moment.

"Sorry," Buffy said. "Cheap shot."

"Forget it," Angel said.

Faith rolled over and opened her eyes. The room was dark. She didn't smell Buffy. For a moment she had no idea where she was. Then she realized she must be in the spare room. It smelled like Willow, a little.

Her underwear felt weird, when she rolled over. It was crinkly.

She rolled over again. Her underwear crinkled again. Faith was certain it wasn't supposed to do that.

"What the hell?" she said. There was something in her underwear.

She looked. There was a folded-up piece of paper. In her underwear.

"What the hell?" she said, again. She took the paper out of her underwear, and unfolded it. She brought it to the desk and turned on the desk lamp.

It was a note from Buffy.

It read:

Hey baby,

I had to take off for a few hours and I didn't want you to worry, so I left this note. In your panties! How cool is that??? I didn't want my Mom to see the note if she wakes up before you and comes in to check on you, so I had to hide it somewhere she could never find it but you definitely would, so I hid it in my favorite place!!! I got a tip from my bartender I have to follow up, strictly reconnoitering (sp?) I'll be back in the morning. I left my Mom a note on the kitchen table with this total lie about how I actually just left ten minutes before she woke up to pick up some magic thing from a tomb somewhere for one of Willow's spells, so back me up. My Mom's going to this antique show really early, she leaves at seven and stays out all day. When I get back we'll have the house to ourselves! Go back to sleep baby. I'll be back for cuddles and kisses!

XOXOXOXO,

--"B"

P.S.: I peeked at you when I put the note in your underwear. I broke rule number one!

P.P.S.: You look pretty when you sleep. Ava Gardner hair!! I'm an awesome hairstylist!!!!!

Buffy wrote like a girl. She wrote in big, curvy swoops and she did the letter "i" with an open circle above it instead of a dot. There was a lipstick kiss on the note too.

Faith smiled, put the note under her pillow, and went back to sleep.

"How do you even know these guys?" Buffy said.

"I killed a couple of them, awhile back," Angel said. "The Kree'shon respect that. We've kept in touch."

She and Angel were moving through the sewers. The sewers beneath Sunnydale were all linked together in a grid system and unlike sewers on TV or in the movies, or in real life anywhere else in the world as far as Buffy knew, the sewers in Sunnydale were clean and neat. They were dark, and they didn't smell very good, but they were neat and they were dry. The walls and floors were concrete, and there were power lines running along the walls and the ceilings, and lamps about every hundred feet, and the occasional utility closet. The sewers in Sunnydale looked like someone's well-tended, reasonably clean cellar. Buffy thought whoever ran Sunnydale must be a neat freak.

They walked through the sewer together, in the dark. She had been to a lot of sewers with him. More sewers than movies. More sewers than restaurants. More long walks through the sewers than long walks on the beach.

"You always take me to such wonderful places," Buffy said. Her voice echoed.

"Demons don't really appreciate the finer things in life," Angel said.

"I do," Buffy said.

Angel stopped, and looked at her.

Buffy didn't think he smelled so bad, now. Maybe because the sewer smelled worse. Or maybe she was getting used to him again. A shaft of moonlight had slipped through the sewer grate in the ceiling twenty feet above them. His dark eyes caught the moonlight, held it, and reflected it back at her.

"You want to go out tomorrow night?" Angel said. "Back in the day a night out in the sewers was a nice, romantic evening. You modern girls, you expect everything to be all fancy. You probably even want me to buy you dinner."

He smiled. He was beautiful when he smiled.

Buffy found herself smiling back.

"A night out in the sewers was romantic?" Buffy said.

"Well, in France it was, during the French Resistance," Angel said. "I hung out with those guys for awhile. Smuggled guns, shot Nazis, wore a beret and everything. Brought lots of pretty French girls for dates in the sewers. How about I take you to a nice restaurant, anywhere you want to go. I'll watch you eat. I might even eat something myself. A walk on the beach after, and maybe we'll have some wine. No sewers."

One perfect night, he decided. He wanted to give her one perfect night.

"I bet you're lying about the beret," Buffy said. "It would've like, totally messed up your hair." "I had different hair then," he said. "Parted on the side and slicked back. Shooting Nazis was a good time. I kinda miss shooting Nazis. So how about it?"

"Okay," Buffy said. "Tomorrow night? I'll meet you at your place...say about eight?"

"Maybe I'll even pay for your dinner," Angel said, and smiled.

"You're so paying for my dinner," Buffy said. "I think I want flowers too. And not those flowers you keep at your place."

"You don't like the jasmine flowers?"

"I do, but you have to buy me flowers, not pick them."

"Why?"

"'Cuz I'm a girl," she said, and giggled. "Duh."

"We begin?" a deep, booming voice said.

They turned. The owner of the voice was a green-skinned demon standing at the other end of the tunnel. As it approached them, passing under a lamp, Buffy could see it more clearly, and smell it. Buffy realized the smell in the sewers had actually been the concentrated smell of this demon and lots more like it.

The demon had a series of little green horns sticking out of its forehead which were the only things about it that were little. It was nearly seven feet tall and it wore earrings that Buffy realized were someone's finger bones. It wore a necklace made of bones too. It wore white armor pieces on its shoulders, chest, forearms, groin and knees that Buffy realized were also made of bone. It had yellow eyes with red pupils and a mouth full of rows of big, sharp teeth like a shark. Buffy knew this because it was smiling, and showing them all to her. It carried a very big, curved sword in a scabbard strapped on its shoulder; it looked like a giant scimitar. It had dark hair that grew straight up and out in all directions in chunks. It looked like the Incredible Hulk having a spectacularly bad hair day. For some reason it had a tattoo on its cheek that looked like a band of red flowers.

"Is he one of our Klingons?" Buffy said.

"She's Kree'shon," Angel said.

"She?" Buffy said. "You're kidding me."

"The females all have the tattoos," Angel said.

Buffy had never really considered demons boring before. They were evil, and also smelly, and very slayable, but never boring. But after an hour standing around in a dark, bare concrete room in the sewers watching a room full of demons who all looked like the Incredible Hulk shout out tales of their exploits at the top of their lungs while drinking wine out of huge mugs the size of barrels--or maybe they were just drinking the wine straight out of the barrels--Buffy felt her eyes beginning to cross. She would have felt better if she could kill one of them. The Slayer in her was getting restless...

And the demons weren't even shouting the tales of their exploits in English, either, so Buffy couldn't even listen to the stories. She thought that was rude. They were shouting in their native language, which sounded like a series of grunts and screams and occasional burps. Buffy had giggled the first time she'd heard one of them make the burping sound, but then some of the Kree'shon had growled at her and Angel had quickly taken her aside and explained that the burp meant the equivalent of "amen" in their language and that Buffy had just been blasphemous. That's when Buffy knew it was going to be a long night.

The males were even bigger than the females. The males all looked like the Incredible Hulk's big brother.

After an interminable passage of time during which actual fashion trends could have come and gone one of the demons strode right up to Buffy and screamed at her, while looking at her with his mouth open and all his rows of extremely sharp teeth showing. He might have been laughing, or challenging her.

The Slayer in her didn't like those teeth. The Slayer had teeth of her own. Buffy was tired of the Kree'shon. She was tired of the little looks some of them had given her out of the corners of their eyes. She was tired of how they smelled and she was tired of their stupid shouting. She was tired of standing around the dark, bare concrete room when she wanted to be in bed with her arms around Faith. Mostly, she was tired of being this close to demons and not killing them. The Slayer wanted out. Buffy felt her, scratching.

"Get out of my face," Buffy snarled. And showed the demon her teeth.

"Buffy," Angel said, and tried to pull her aside, as the demon roared at her. Buffy didn't move.

"No Slayer," the demon said, sniffing at her.

"What?" Angel said.

"No Slayer!" the demon screamed, in Angel's face. "Smell wrong! No Slayer!"

"Smell wrong?" Buffy said. "You want to talk about smelling wrong? I'm the only one in here who doesn't smell like ass."

Suddenly all the demons were crowding around her. There were more than twenty of them, and even though Buffy was fairly certain she couldn't take twenty of them, even with Angel by her side and even if she got her hands on one of their swords, she thought about trying. She wanted to. Even though she knew she'd probably die, she wanted to...

She felt her adrenalin pumping. The demons were all around her, sniffing at her, and closing her in. She didn't like them. She didn't like the way they smelled. She heard herself growl...

Angel stepped in front of her.

"What are you talking about?" he said to the demon who had first sniffed at Buffy. "This is the Slayer."

"Wrong smell!" the demon screamed.

One of the other demons suddenly raised its arms and made a high, keening sound like a combination of a shriek and a whistle. This one wore the bone armor but didn't carry a weapon. Buffy noticed it had the flower tattoo on its face, but the tattoo was blue, not red. Its eyes were blue, too; it was the only one with blue eyes.

"High priestess," Angel whispered in Buffy's ear.

The rest of the demons backed away, giving the high priestess room. She approached Buffy, and sniffed at her.

"You are a Slayer," the priestess said. "But there is something...different about you. I cannot discern it, but it is there."

"You don't talk like them," Buffy said. "You're not all 'Hulk smash'."

"I do not know this Hulk of whom you speak, or why she or he should want to smash, but that is immaterial," the priestess said. "I am the Mak'shar. I have the old learning and the new. I know your language and history, Slayer. But you are strange...your scent is strange. It is not quite right. This is a puzzle."

One of the demons--a male wearing a bone circlet around his forehead--swaggered up to the high priestess and said, "Need Slayer! No Slayer, no Kai!"

"Silence," the high priestess said, without bothering to look at him. He bowed his head, and turned away.

"Starting to like you guys a little better," Buffy said. "Good to know a woman's in charge."

"As it should be. Your world would be a better place, if a female was in charge, I think," the high priestess said. "Why have you not taken charge? You are a powerful warrior...the most powerful. Why do you not rule?"

"I hate paperwork," Buffy said.

"Your culture is strange to us. We are warriors, and the strongest and wisest rule among us. That one, he who talks too much, and out of turn--" She looked at the demon who had interrupted. He was still hanging his head. "He is the greatest warrior. And I am the wisest one, the keeper of the knowledge. We rule, together...if he succeeds in his challenge today, and becomes our new Kai. If you are what we need."

"I'm a Slayer," Buffy said. "Wouldn't have bothered coming out if I wasn't. I got places I could be."

Angel hadn't said a word after the high priestess started talking. Buffy could see that the high priestess wasn't too big on men, or interruptions, and Angel had known it. He would've known it. Angel always went in prepared.

"This is a puzzle before us, so let us reason it out together," the high priestess said.

"Okay," Buffy said. "Reason away."

"You are a Slayer, your scent tells me that, but it also tells me you are different. You know of the Slayers besides yourself, the ones who came before? You know the history of your sisters?"

"Some," Buffy said.

"What has happened to you, that is different? What things about you have made you different than the sisters who came before? Think of the things that are common to all Slayers, and then the things that are peculiar to you."

"Well, I'm perky," Buffy said. "Um...I like long walks on the beach...I don't follow the rules much. Not much for the Slayer handbook. I have friends who help me out...the Slayers before me, they were solo acts from what I hear."

Angel put his hands together, and bowed his head at the high priestess.

"You may speak, Angel," the high priestess said. "You are a courteous guest. Some of us could learn from your example," she said, and glared at the demon who had interrupted before. He hung his head again.

"Buffy died, and was brought back to life," Angel said. "When she died a new Slayer was called. There are two Slayers now."

"Oh yeah," Buffy said. "And there's that."

It was like someone shouted "fire" in a crowded theater. All the demons started talking--actually, screaming--amongst themselves. There was wild gesticulating. There was finger pointing. There were fevered accusations. Some of them were tearing out their hair.

The high priestess stood still and silent. She looked at Buffy.

After a moment, the high priestess raised her right hand, without turning around. All the demons behind her immediately fell silent.

"That is the solution," the high priestess said. "But it presents us with a greater puzzle. Which Slayer is the Slayer, when there can be only one?"

"I'd say it's Faith," Buffy said. "I still have all my power but I think the Slayer line goes through Faith now. When I died Kendra became the next Slayer, and then she was killed, and Faith became the Slayer. According to my Watcher if I died again it wouldn't activate a new girl."

"Your Watcher?"

"Smart, British, drinks tea, drives an evil car. Reads a lot. Thinks I'm intractable. Sort of an advisor."

"You are flippant. I have to parse your words to find the meaning. Why do you speak this way?"

"Makes things easier when I joke about stuff, I guess."

"The puzzle remains," the high priestess said, still staring at Buffy. She hadn't taken her blue eyes off her for a second. Buffy could feel the strength in this woman, the wisdom. She felt like she had been granted a royal audience with some sort of monarch. And maybe she had. "The line may go through Faith now but we are not concerned with the workings of the Slayer magics, only their result. We need the greatest warrior; it must be one of the Slayers. But which one? Who is the greatest warrior of this world?"

"Good question," Buffy said. "Could be Faith, she's tough. But if you think you can get her to help with this, that could be a problem. For one thing, I'm pretty sure she'd try to kill you all no matter how much you tried to reason with her. You're demons. And I won't let her walk into a room with twenty demons unless I'm watching her back, I don't care how smart and reasonable you are."

"You know the issues that face the clans?"

"Well I know there's some debate over eating people. You shouldn't, by the way. Faith and I would get angry and you wouldn't like that."

"You have the fire of a Slayer, girl, I'll give you that," the high priestess said, and smiled, showing her many, many sharp teeth. "If you were a male I would have ordered you killed for that comment. It was...presumptuous."

"I bet I'm being intractable too," Buffy said.

"We'll see. If Ve'dron does not become Kai today and the clans go to war, some other claimant may prevail. If so, the clans may begin hunting humans freely. You and Faith are Slayers but you are two. We are more than four hundreds. The Slayer is not just strength, she is cunning, as any great warrior is. Use your cunning. Avoid a needless fight you can't win."

"Trying my best here. You got any ideas?"

"Two. One is, we bring Faith here and the claimants may agree upon one of you. But they would require you and Faith to fight first, to determine who is the greatest warrior."

"No," Buffy said. "What's behind door number two?"

"Door number two is, you fight any claimants who wish it, and force them to admit your greatness."

"Works for me," Buffy said. She looked around at the demons. "Who's up first? I've been wanting to kill something for awhile."

One of the demons--a male, and a pretty big one--swaggered up to Buffy and stood a few feet away with his hands on his hips.

"Gra'chit!" he screamed, and banged his chest with his right fist.

"Buffy," Buffy said.

"Gra'chit kill imposter Slayer," Gra'chit said, and unsheathed his sword. It was a very, very big curved sword. Buffy decided she liked it, and she was going to take it away from him.

"Imposter?" Buffy said.

"Do you accept his challenge?" the high priestess said.

"Fuck yeah," Buffy snarled, and showed Gra'chit her teeth.

"She needs a sword," Angel said. "He has a sword and she doesn't."

"Nah," Buffy said, and smiled. "I'm gonna just use his."

The high priestess stepped away from Buffy, and Angel stepped away with her. The rest of the demons gave them room.

"It would have been wise for her to take a weapon," the high priestess said to Angel. "Gra'chit is formidable."

"Gra'chit's dead in a minute," Angel said.

Gra'chit growled at Buffy, his eyes two little red pinpoints.

"Already bored," Buffy said.

Gra'chit ran at her.

Buffy ducked low under Gra'chit's sword swing and decided to test a theory. She punched him with all her strength in the approximate area of his balls. The bone armor he wore over his groin might as well have been made of construction paper; Buffy's fist smashed straight through it.

The theory was that the male demons had balls, and didn't like being punched in them. The theory proved to be true. Gra'chit gasped and fell to the ground. Buffy stamped down on his sword-hand with her boot, breaking all of his fingers. Gra'chit screamed. Then Buffy took his sword.

"Say goodnight, Gra'chit," Buffy said, and beheaded him with his own sword before he could even manage to get back up to his knees.

"Told you," Angel said to the high priestess.

"Interesting," the high priestess said, and smiled.

"Anybody else?" Buffy said.

Another demon ran at her, screaming. He was another male, not quite as big as Gra'chit, but a little faster by the looks of him. He leaped into the air and came down at Buffy with his sword pointed at her. She dodged him, spun around behind him and beheaded him with Gra'chit's sword before he landed.

"Still waiting for a challenge," Buffy said, pacing the room and snarling at the assembled demons. "I accepted a challenge and still haven't even fucking gotten one."

Another demon ran at her. These demons all seemed to have decent speed for their size but to Buffy they looked like they were moving in slow motion and this one was no exception. They were strong but they were simply too slow to lay a hand on Buffy; even the faster ones were too slow to touch her. They would be a problem in groups but Buffy thought she could kill every single demon in the room if they came at her one at a time. This demon pulled two long, curved knives from scabbards on his belt (the belt and scabbards were made of bone) and came at her, waving them around like a maniac. Buffy dropped to her knees and cut his legs off at the ankles with one stroke of her sword as he lunged forward to take a swipe at her neck with the knives. She rolled out of the way as he screamed and fell, then got up and beheaded him without bothering to look at him.

"I could kill you guys all night," Buffy said. "Anybody else?"

The room was silent. Buffy looked around. She noticed Angel was smiling at her. She could tell he was impressed...he was proud of her.

She didn't smile back. The Slayer in her didn't want to smile at Angel.

The Slayer wanted to kill him. She always had.

"Last chance," Buffy said. "Anybody else tired of breathing?"

She looked at all of them. She showed them her teeth. The Slayer wanted to kill the rest. She wanted to kill Angel too. Buffy controlled her.

"Definition of the Slayer?" Buffy said. "She fucking slays."

One of the demons--the one who had interrupted the high priestess before, Buffy recognized him by the bone circlet he wore around his forehead--approached Buffy. He stood in front of her, with his arms out at his sides. He didn't unsheathe his sword.

"This another challenge?" Buffy said.

"No," he said. He touched his left hand to his chest. "Ve'dron," he said.

"Buffy," Buffy said.

Ve'dron looked at her. Buffy looked back at him.

"There will be no more challenges," the high priestess said, and moved beside Ve'dron, and smiled at Buffy. "You killed the other claimants. Ve'dron will be Kai now."

"Slayer," Ve'dron said, and put his hand on Buffy's shoulder, and smiled.

"Yeah," Buffy said. "Guess I'm stuck with it."

"Hi baby," Buffy whispered in Faith's ear, a few hours later.

Faith opened her eyes. The sun was shining in. She rolled over. Buffy was lying next to her, in her nightgown again, holding her in her arms. She smelled beautiful, as always...but Faith smelled soap and shampoo, covering Buffy's scent now. Buffy had showered before she'd gotten in the bed.

"Missed you," Faith said, and yawned. "All done with the recon? Find whatever you were looking for?"

"Nope," Buffy said. "Dead end. Got bored and came home."

Faith nodded. Buffy kissed her.

"Go back to sleep, baby," Buffy said. Faith nodded again, and curled up on Buffy's breasts.

"Broke rule number one," Faith said, as she drifted toward sleep again.

"I'm an outlaw," Buffy said.

"Spank that little bum of yours," Faith muttered.

Then Faith lifted up her head, and looked at Buffy, studying her face.

"What is it?" Buffy said.

"You look different, for some reason," Faith said.

They slept like lazy cats for a few more hours, and when they finally woke up they spent the day kissing and watching movies and listening to CD's and trying to cook. They realized fairly quickly that neither of them could really cook and after a brunch consisting of waffles and Faith's famous grilled cheese sandwiches with bacon and tomato they ordered a couple of pizzas, and chased each other around the house for awhile and had a tickle fight, and then went to a bakery downtown and bought a cake, and then came back and ate it and ordered a couple more pizzas to go with it. The tickle fight had gotten pretty dicey and they nearly broke rule number three, and then Faith gave Buffy another foot massage and they nearly broke rules one and two. Buffy did Faith's hair again.

They were on the couch now, and Faith was lying with her head in Buffy's lap, as Buffy played with her hair. It was Lauren Bacall hair now.

"This has been an awesome day," Buffy said.

"Yeah," Faith said. "Glad there's no rule against lying with my head in your lap."

Buffy looked toward the window. The sun had set; it was getting dark.

"Um...this sucks but...I have to study for a test," Buffy said. "I have this big test tomorrow. I need to study tonight."

"I gotta take off, huh?" Faith said.

"How about I see you tomorrow?" Buffy said. "Wanna hang out with me tomorrow after I get out of school?"

"Okay," Faith said, and sat up.

Buffy felt horrible about the lie; she felt like she was cheating.

"What's wrong?" Faith said.

"Nothing," Buffy said, and kissed her. "You look pretty with the Lauren Bacall hair."

"You like doing my hair, huh?" Faith said. "I'm like your Faith doll."

"You're my Faith doll," Buffy said.

"I can be your Faith doll. Okay, I'll take off, let you study. You'll swing by my place tomorrow?"

"Yeah."

Faith stood up, and looked at her again.

"You sure you're okay, girlfriend?" Faith said. "You look all...I don't know. Almost a little sad."

"Only because you're leaving, baby," Buffy said, and stood up. They walked to the door together. "But I'll see you tomorrow."

"Okay," Faith said, and hugged her. "Countin' the minutes." And then she walked out the door, and disappeared into the darkness.

Buffy stood by the door for a long time after that, following Faith's scent, as it slowly faded away...

Buffy felt like she was cheating.

The dinner with Angel was properly romantic. Angel knew how to do romantic. They were in this little hole in the wall French restaurant at the end of an alley downtown that Buffy didn't even know existed; the alley didn't look very welcoming but the restaurant turned out to be fabulous. The place was dark and intimate, without too many tables, and there were candles on the tables and violinists playing in the corner. The waiters were attentive yet unobtrusive and the food was splendid. Buffy had chicken in red wine and Angel had steak and fries. Buffy couldn't believe French restaurants sold French fries until Angel looked into her eyes in the candlelight, took her hand, and said, "French fries." They laughed, and Buffy had Angel order her a plate of French fries to go with her Coq au vin. They held hands after that.

Angel even ate some of his food; he usually didn't eat because vampires didn't need to and also because they apparently had trouble tasting anything except blood. But Angel said he liked French food and he ate a little, and what he didn't finish Buffy finished for him. Especially the French fries; they were scrumptious. Angel ordered an old, very expensive wine and they drank some. Dessert was chocolate mousse and Angel ate a portion of his and Buffy finished it for him. During dessert the violinists came to the table and played them a song; Angel had secretly arranged it while Buffy was in the ladies room. He said it was an old Irish folk song he liked when he was a boy.

Everything was wonderful. The food was wonderful and the restaurant was wonderful and Angel looked wonderful in the candlelight, and he held her hand. He had been true to his word and given her flowers too, when she arrived at his mansion: a beautiful bouquet of yellow roses. Buffy noticed they didn't have thorns; he had cut the thorns off.

"How come yellow?" Buffy had said.

"Maybe because you look pretty in yellow," he had said.

She looked at him, in the candlelight, as they held hands, and drank wine.

She smiled. She didn't feel like she was cheating anymore.

They drove out to a secluded little beach that Buffy had never seen before. For some reason Angel seemed to know the town better than she did. "Got my nose to the ground," he said, when she mentioned it. Angel had apparently bought a car at some point during the past week; Buffy had been amazed when they left his mansion and he took her to the car and opened the door for her. They had always walked everywhere before. It was a big black convertible and Buffy felt just right in it. Angel explained to her that it was a very rare 1967 Plymouth GTX and he had said something about how the original extremely powerful V8 engine had been upgraded with a Chrysler 426 cubic inch Hemi which gave it extra horsepower and that there were only about 700 of these cars in the world, but Buffy didn't know about cars and all she cared about was that it was big and cool and shiny and fast and it was a convertible. The fact that Angel hadn't thought to have a CD player installed put a tiny crimp in the car's awesomeness, but Buffy knew Angel didn't really understand about CD's. The car had a radio though, and Buffy found a hip-hop station and cranked it up, and Angel put the top down and put his arm around her and drove too fast, showing off, as Buffy took off her shoes and hung her feet out the window and laughed with the wind in her hair...

They sat on the beach now, on a blanket, and drank some more wine; Angel had bought another bottle.

"I can't believe they had me boasting about my exploits," Buffy said.

"Part of the ritual," Angel said. "The strongest warrior in the world has to prove it by listing all the enemies he's killed."

"Yeah, but they made me scream it all," Buffy said. "I had to be all, 'AND THEN I KILLED THE MASTER! AND THEN I DEFEATED THIS BIG GIANT SNAKE! AND THEN THERE WAS ANOTHER GIANT SNAKE! AND THEN THERE WERE ALL THOSE ZOMBIES DURING CHRISTMAS! AND THEN GILES CALLED ME RASH AND WILLFUL! AND HE MADE ME HERBAL TEA! HERBAL TEA GOD DAMN IT!'"

They laughed. They had been laughing together all night. Buffy couldn't even remember the last time they'd had a night like this...maybe they never had.

"It was like primal scream therapy except it went on for like an hour and my throat got all scratchy," Buffy said.

"It got kind of awkward when you boasted about killing me," Angel said.

"Well they said all my exploits, in order," Buffy said. "They said not to leave anything out. It did take some explaining though."

"It was fun listening to you trying to explain about me after you had some of their wine," Angel said.

"I got a little tipsy."

"A little? You started talking about my hair. You talked about my hair for like twenty minutes. Actually, you screamed about my hair."

"Just my theory on how you get it to do that. I think the Klingons were really fascinated. They have bad Klingon hair and your hair is so awesome."

"Your theory's wrong. My hair just does this. I don't even know what mousse is. I'm two-hundred and seventy-one. You think I know about mousse?"

"You're cute when you lie. And at least the Klingons didn't like attack you or anything once I started screaming about all my exploits fighting you."

"They don't mind that I was evil for awhile. They don't see the world in those terms. Good and evil aren't important to them. Strength and weakness are."

"And screaming," Buffy said. "Klingons are totally about the screaming."

"Kree'shon," Angel said.

"Klingons," Buffy said.

"Fine," Angel said. "Klingons."

He was existing in the moment. It was a perfect moment...all he could have hoped for. He was with the girl he loved and the light was in her eyes again for him and he had made her smile. And she'd liked the car. He refused to admit to himself that he bought the car just because he knew she would like it. He just needed a car. And he still had that treasure chest full of gold doubloons. If you had a big chest full of pirate treasure, you might as well spend it on something...

He savored the moment.

He braided the yellow roses in Buffy's hair.

At first he was going to buy her a bouquet of red roses. Something had made him choose yellow.

The roses were the color of the sun. He wished he could be with Buffy in the sun. If she stayed with him, she'd be in the dark...she'd have to be in the dark forever. He could never give her children. He could never grow old with her.

He could never make love to her again.

"What are you doing?" Buffy said, and giggled.

"You look pretty with flowers in your hair," Angel said. "Girls used to have flowers in their hair all the time in my day."

They kissed. His lips tasted like wine.

It was a chaste kiss; Angel held back when Buffy tried to make it something more. She didn't understand why. She knew he wanted more...

Angel finished braiding the flowers in her hair. They were a crown of yellow flowers now, around her forehead. She felt like his princess.

He stood up, and held out his hand.

"Walk with me," he said.

They walked, barefoot, along the water for awhile, and he put his arm around her. The moon was huge and almost full and it reflected on the water, and the night was silent and starry, and the smell of the sea was on the wind; for a Slayer it was a feast for the senses.

They stopped, and looked out at the moon together.

She looked up at him. His eyes reflected silver. He was beautiful.

It was a perfect night. A perfect moment...

And then the photographs in the shoebox in her closet came back to her.

She hadn't thought about them for a few days...and now they were back. They always came back.

She knew it was her punishment. She knew she couldn't have a perfect moment like this...she knew she didn't deserve it.

The photographs stole the moment away from her.

"Did you like tonight?" Angel said. "Did you have a good time?"

"Yeah," Buffy said. "It's been a wonderful night, Angel. A perfect night."

"Buffy...you deserve all this and more," Angel said. "You deserve more than I can give you. You should be in the sun."

Angel knew why he had chosen the yellow roses now. He knew what he had to do...he realized that he had known, ever since he came back...ever since he had returned from hell, and known that he didn't deserve to return.

He knew what he had to do. He just didn't know if he had the strength to do it. He had always been weak. His whole life, he had been weak.

The thought of what he had to do stole the moment away from him. He had been living in this one perfect moment, looking out at the moon with the girl he loved, but it was stolen away, and now all he could think of was the moment that would inevitably come, in the future...the moment when he would either have to let her go, or know that he was being selfish...that he was putting his needs above hers. He had never put his needs above hers before. If he ever did, he knew there would never be another good moment for him again after that.

But he didn't know if he was strong enough to let her go.

The Kree'shon were right, he realized. Life is about strength and weakness.

"I want to be with you," Buffy said.

"You deserve to be happy, Buffy," he said, and took her hands in his. "I don't know if...I can give you those things...the things you need."

"Yes you can," she said, and kissed him. "You do."

Angel knew the moment would be coming soon...

Buffy sat in school in the lounge by the candy machines the next day, looking down at the floor, holding yellow roses in her hands.

She was thinking about the photographs, in the shoebox in her closet.

She smelled Willow, coming toward her.

"Platonic love," Willow said, a moment later, standing behind her.

"What?" Buffy said.

Willow pointed at the roses.

"Platonic love," she said.

"Just platonic?" Buffy said.

"Yeah," Willow said. "True love is red roses. Yellow's deep, loving friendship. I know flower symbolism backwards and forwards. Witch thing."

Buffy nodded. Willow sat down next to her.

"Angel," Willow said. "Angel gave you those."

"He braided them in my hair," Buffy said.

"Romantic," Willow said.

"You don't like me with him," Buffy said.

"Nope. Can you blame me?"

"No. After what he did...what Angelus did..."

"That's not what I mean, sweetie," Willow said, and took her hand. "It's just...he doesn't make you smile enough. I wish you could be with someone who made you smile more...who didn't make you cry so much."

"It's not like he and I are dating again, but...we went to do this thing with these demons, to stop them from hunting humans? Long story but anyway...he took me out to eat last night, kind of like to thank me for helping and...kind of like a date too, I guess. We went to this nice restaurant and walked on the beach and drank wine. He gave me these flowers, and braided them in my hair."

"Sounds like a fun date."

Buffy nodded, and looked down at the floor again.

Part of Willow was angry at Buffy. Part of her had been angry since she'd found out...that Angel was back, and Buffy had been keeping it from her.

But Willow never listened to that part of her.

"What's wrong, sweetie?" Willow said. "C'mon, tell me what's wrong. Best friend here, y'know, all, wantin' to be here for you."

"Angel...he's not gonna be the one, is he?" Buffy said. "And he knows it."

"Look, I'm not his biggest fan, Buffy?" Willow said. "But...Angel...I think he's always wanted what's best for you."

"Angel and I...we don't have a future," Buffy said. "We never did."

"No, sweetie," Willow said. "I don't think so."

Buffy looked down at the floor, and broke down in tears.

Willow hugged her.

Continued...

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