A.N. Okay, here's the next chapter, hope ya dig it. Just so ya know, I
hate the word 'chuckle' it sounds like something old women do at their
weekly bingo games. I had to use it a few times just because it was really
the only form of describing certain forms of laughter that I could think
of. Had to let you know that. So when you see any variation of the word,
just know that your author was grimacing while typing it out. I didn't get
as much feedback as I had hoped from the last chapter, but decided to drop
this one anyways. Hope ya like it. It's a Fuffy all the way. Oh, and the
songs both belong to Linkin Park, I realize however that the album that
the songs are on wasn't exactly around in the time period of the show, but
after listening to both songs, they seemed to fit Faith perfectly.

Faith stood anxiously at the door with her hands stuffed in her pockets.
Seconds later the door opened and Giles smiled tentatively at her. She
returned the nervous smile with one of her own.

"Hey Giles." Faith spoke the greeting so softly Giles barely heard her.

"Faith, girls please come in."

Faith ushered both Clarke and Kennedy in the door ahead of her.

"Giles this is Clarke, my slayer and this is Kennedy. Guys this is Giles."

"Nice to meet you both."

Faith followed the two in the door and stopped short when she saw Buffy
who was standing near the desk in the middle of the room. Giles began
introducing the two girls to everyone; the whole gang decided to attend
the welcoming party. Buffy said hello to the girls and smiled at them
both before she turned her attention back to Faith whose gaze hadn't
left the blonde. As always Buffy lost the staring contest and took a
tentative step towards the brunette. She gave Faith a small smile.

"Hey Faith."

Faith returned the tiny smile with one of her own.

"Hey B."

Faith peered over Buffy's shoulder as the blonde turned when they heard
Willow begin to babble loudly. Xander was standing next to Willow
staring at Clarke in a very familiar way.

"Just ignore Xander, the cat always has his tongue when he's around
cute slayers...oh...but not that I think you're cute...well, I mean you
are...it's just that Xander obviously thinks...the cat obviously never has
my tongue when I'm around cute anythings..." The redhead looks at Tara.
"You're supposed to stop me when I do that." Willow sighed and looked
around slightly embarrassed but looked at Tara again. Tara just smiled
lovingly at the redhead. Buffy turned back to Faith and smiled again.
Buffy studied her for a moment. Buffy sensed something different.

"You look good Faith...I mean, you look..."

Faith smiled slightly as she jammed her hands back in her pockets.

"Thanks B, you too."

Buffy smiled again and reached out and grabbed Faith's arm and pulled
her into the living room. Giles had brought out some tea and cookies.
Faith gave Willow and Xander small smiles as she sat on the couch.
They both gave her smiles that seemed kinda forced. But Faith decided
it was better than them charging her with knives, or guns or any weapon
really.

"How was your flight?" Buffy asked.

"It was...long, but fine otherwise."

The group sat uncomfortably for a minute.

"So...where will you be staying Faith?" Giles asked.

"Oh, um...the Council found a small house for us to rent on a temporary
basis, it's a couple blocks from here. We're just gonna hit a hotel
tonight and go out tomorrow to sign the lease and everything."

Giles glanced at Kennedy for a moment.

"So you and Clarke will be nearby."

Faith caught the glance and smiled.

"Yeah, actually we were hoping that Kenny could stay with us too,
unless you...need to keep an eye on her. I just figured you could do
without a teenager cramping your style."

Kennedy glared at her and punched her. Faith smirked at the younger
girl and hit her back.

"No, I wouldn't ask you to take someone else in...its no trouble."

Faith raised her eyebrows.

"You sure G-man? We already kinda talked about it, I mean, I already
have one teenager, one more won't hurt. It's up to you though, you're
the boss."

Faith grinned at her two travel buddies. Clarke stuck her tongue out
at her and Kennedy shot her a playful glare.

"No, I don't mind at all if the three of you want to stay together."

"Cool."

As the two 'watchers' talked about some other mundane details, Clarke
noticed Buffy watching Faith intently. She yawned and leaned back into
the couch and squeezed in a bit closer to Faith. She nonchalantly
rested her head on Faith's shoulder and sighed. She watched from the
corner of her eye as Buffy glared at the blonde for a moment before
returning her attention to Giles. Kennedy watched the exchange and bit
back a smirk.

Giles shifted his attention to Kennedy and the two began talking about
her extended stay. Faith placed a hand on Clarke's knee and used it to
hoist herself off the couch. She pulled the blonde up after her and
the two slipped outside for a smoke.

"Boy, that was really slick Clarke...nice moves." Faith teased as she
fished in her pocket for a cigarette. Clarke smirked and slapped the
older slayer playfully on the arm.

"Shut up, I certainly got the evil eye from Buffy, she's kinda scary."

Faith stuck two cigarettes in her mouth and lit them both. She grabbed
one and handed it to the blonde.

"Yeah well, power trips to that to ya."

Inside, Buffy was frowning slightly as she watched the two girls walk
outside.

Don't they seem comfy together.

So?

It kinda stings doesn't it?

No, it doesn't

Yup, that could have been you and Faith, but you had to play the bitch.

Shut up, I didn't play the bitch, I played the responsible slayer. She
played the reckless slayer.

Tight-ass.

Will you leave me alone?

That Clarke is a cute girl; I'll bet she turns Faith to mush when she
flashes those dimples.

Well, dimples are cute.

Faith has cute dimples.

Shut up, shut up, shut up. Dammit, can't even win an argument with
myself.

"Buffy?"

Buffy was snapped out of her argument with her brain by Willow who
looked concerned.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, it's just been a rough couple of days."

Willow nodded sympathetically.

"Faith seems different, don't you think? She isn't quite as...well she
certainly didn't make a flamboyant entrance this time..."

Buffy smiled.

"Ya got that right."

"Clarke and Kennedy seem cool, don't ya think?"

Buffy nodded absentmindedly as her gaze lifted when the two girls
reappeared from outside. Buffy felt a pang of something that she
couldn't describe as she watched Faith and Clarke tease each other as
they came back inside.

"Hey G man, I think we need to hit the road, we had a wicked long
flight and I think jet lag is kicking in."

Giles smiled and nodded.

"Alright, so we can meet up here in the afternoon after you get your
living situation settled?"

"Sure thing, I'll call ya when we're done to give ya a heads up. See
you guys later"

Faith smiled at the group as they called out goodbyes to the three
girls. Giles nodded again and walked the girls to the door. Buffy
followed them out to walk them to the car. Faith handed Clarke the
keys as she yawned.

"Here C, you get to drive this time, I'm beat."

"Aw, come on Faith, I don't wanna drive."

Faith rolled her eyes.

"Hey, I drove to the airport and here from the airport, it's your
turn."

Clarke pulled out the pout. Faith saw it and raised her eyebrows
pointing a finger at the younger blonde.

"Don't you start that crap. No pouting."

Clarke grinned.

"But you can't resist the pout." She said playfully.

"I can resist just about anything right now I'm so damn tired. You're
driving."

"Fine."

The four girls reached the car and Faith turned to Buffy as the other
two hopped in the front seats.

"So, I'll see ya tomorrow B?"

"Yeah, see you guys tomorrow."

"Bye Buffy, it was nice to finally meet you."

"Yeah, see ya later Buffy."

Buffy smiled at the two girls.

"See ya B."

The two exchanged a small smile and Faith turned to the jeep.

"Bye."

Buffy smiled sadly as Faith sprung herself into the backseat using the
tire for leverage. Clarke started the jeep and cranked the music.
Buffy could hear them singing over the music as they pulled off as she
slowly turned and headed back inside. Frowning.

They seem so comfortable around each other. Dammit, why couldn't we
have been like that? We're both slayers and we have the slayer bond.
I should be the one driving around with her in a stupid red jeep. We
should be the ones singing and being silly and stuff. Stupid bottle-
blonde. 'Oh, look at me with my cute dimples and great body, and my
stupid bottled hair.' Bitter much? No. Jealous much? Dammit. Fine, have fun with your new blonde slayer friend. Don't need you anyways. I am such a whiny
bitch. Dammit Faith.

Buffy walked through the door and flopped down on the couch next to
Xander.

"I don't like her."

"Who Buffy?"

"The blonde."

"Ooh, I did." Anya glared at Xander and punched him. "Okay, ow. I
just think she's...spunky." He grinned.

Anya stood up and grabbed Xander by the front of the shirt and dragged
him to his feet.

"You want spunky? I'll give ya spunky, let's go, time for the sex."

Xander shrugged as he smiled to his friends. The three girls smiled as
he called out good-byes while being dragged out the door. Buffy,
Willow and Tara decided to go and left after saying their own standing
still goodbyes to Giles. Buffy was pouting as they walked back to
campus. Willow and Tara exchanged a glance.

"Buffy? What's up?" Willow asked tentatively.

"Stupid blonde. She thinks she's so cool and so cute. She's a bottle
blonde, I can tell."

Willow's brow furrowed for a second.

"Did she say something to you or something? She seemed sweet to me."
Willow asked.

"No...did you see the way she cuddled up next to Faith on the couch?"

"So you suddenly hate her for resting her head on Faith's shoulder?"
Tara raised her eyebrows.

"Ugh, never mind, it's fine, I'm just being stupid. It's just been a
long day. A long couple of days actually."

"You sure?"

"Yeah, it's cool."

Willow smiled briefly and began babbling away to Tara. Buffy walked
silently thinking about Faith and Clarke. She couldn't figure out why
it was bugging her so much. Buffy watched as Tara and Willow said
goodbye and exchanged a small kiss. Tara waved and smiled at the two
as she headed off to her dorm. Willow watched her for a moment before
turning her attention back to Buffy. The redhead looped an arm through
Buffy's as they walked towards their room.

"Are you sure you're okay?"

Buffy sighed and pouted slightly.

"Yeah...okay this may sound weird, but do you think they're together?"

Willow raised her eyebrows.

"Faith and Clarke?"

"Yeah."

"I...honestly don't know Buffy, maybe? They seemed pretty close. Does
it bother you?"

Buffy's eyebrows shot up as she opened her mouth and made a few sounds
and she shut it again. She absently chewed on her lip for a moment.

"I don't know...I just feel like it should be me who has all the fun
stuff with Faith...we should be the ones laughing and teasing each
other."

"So you're saying that you want to be Faith's only friend?"

"No...I don't know, I'm just being childish and stupid. I don't
understand how she always manages to do this to me. I always get to
confused about everything when she's around."

Willow thought for a few seconds.

"Buffy, maybe it wouldn't be so bad if they were together. I think her
time in Boston has been good for her. Faith seems different. I know
we only saw her for a few minutes, but she seems more grounded. Right?
Maybe it was just me."

Buffy shook her head.

"No, I know what you mean. Her whole vibe is so different. Before,
she would walk into a room and her presence was palpable, now...it's
different. It's like we're seeing her, not her tough girl image."

"I know what you mean. It's obvious that she's changed; we'll just
have to see. I was certainly surprised at her attitude tonight, or
lack thereof. It makes me less anxious about her being around though."

Buffy nodded.

"I still don't like 'little miss bottle blonde' though." Buffy pouted
slightly and Willow just smiled. The two girls made it back to their
room and started talking about random stuff and eventually Willow fell
asleep, leaving Buffy to her thoughts.

Wow, she looked good tonight. Who am I kidding, she always looked
good. I wonder if the Scoobs ever knew I had a thing for Faith. I
tried to clue them in a few times. They just ignored it the time they
were babbling about my new 'honey' at the Bronze and I made it sound
like I had a date. Then she came in looking sooo good and I threw my
arm around her shoulders and told my friends 'really, we're just good
friends'. That was the night that our new Olympic category was
created. The slayer bond was at an all time high that night. Then
there was that other night at the Bronze...the night...I almost gave in to
my feelings that night. But of course Captain Broody came in and
snapped me back to reality. Stupid Finch...stupid me, dammit, stupid all
of us. We all screwed up. Faith was the only one who had to pay
though. Well, I guess we all had a bit of Faith's anger directed at us
at one point or another, so I guess everyone paid in their own way.
Man, I have missed her. Well, the pre-scary her. It's good to have
her back in town, and I'm gonna make sure she knows it.

Buffy smiled to herself and added a nod for good measure. She felt
sleep tugging at her and eventually giving in as thoughts of the
beautiful brunette danced madly in her head.

As the three girls drove away from Giles's apartment, Faith sat in the
middle of the backseat and draped her arms across the back of the seat.
They had only been driving a few miles when Kennedy turned the music
down.

"So, that's her?"

"That's B."

"Aside from her giving me a few nasty looks, she seems pretty cool."

"She has her moments."

"Faith, I gotta say, you have great taste in girls. She's hot."

"Yeah, Fai, she is totally hot."

Faith smiled and rolled her eyes.

"Yeah...too bad I'll never have her."

The two girls in the front smirked.

"I have to say that I think I saw her turn a bit green when Clarke
snuggled up to you though."

"Yeah, she was probably getting ready to puke...B is as straight as an
arrow."

"She was so not ready to puke...Willow and Tara are together." Clarke
shot her a look in the mirror.

"Yeah, I picked up on that, but she's probably used to them being all
snuggly."

"Fai, I'm telling you, she feels something."

"I guess we'll see."

The three rode in silence for a few more minutes.

"Willow is kinda cute."

Faith and Clarke each rolled their eyes and smiled at the brunette.

Once they reached the hotel, they were all kinds of wired. They ended
up getting two adjoining rooms. They left the door between the rooms
open and got settled. Faith was digging through her bag and grinned as
she found what she was searching for. She pulled out a bottle of Jack
Daniels and a bottle of vodka; she dug a bit further and found her
cards. She grabbed the deck of cards and the alcohol and brought it
into the girls' room. They ordered a ton of food and started drinking
and playing poker.

A few hours later, Faith returned to her room and closed the door all
but a crack. She flipped on some cartoons and flopped onto the bed. A
few minutes later she was sound asleep.

Faith could hear the faint sounds of the cartoons on when she rolled
over the next morning. She groaned slightly and rubbed her eyes. Her
slayer hearing wasn't picking anything up from the next room, so she
stayed in bed a few minutes longer, relaxing and stretching. After she
took her shower, she made her way into the next room. Kennedy was
draped in a towel and had her bag on the bed, digging through it to
find clothes. Faith could hear the shower running.

"You guys gonna be ready in like a half hour?"

"Yeah, as long as Clarke doesn't take all day in the shower, she's been
in there forever."

"She has a tendency to do that. Has she started her singing yet?"

Kennedy gave her a weird look.

"No, not yet."

"Then she'll be in there at least another ten minutes. She always
starts singing at the end of her shower and won't shut up until she's
out of the bathroom."

"She's not a bad singer."

Faith rolled her eyes.

"No, but she does this whole Phantom of the Opera thing, she's seen it
like a hundred times and she'll go into all the characters and
everything, singing and doing all the lines. I'm beginning to memorize
it myself...it is very annoying."

Kennedy just laughed and turned back to her stuff.

"I was thinking about getting coffee downstairs, but there's a better
place down the street, I figured we could hit it on the way to the
house."

"Yes...I need coffee now. Damn jet lag."

"Know what ya mean."

Faith returned to her room and began packing her stuff. Once Clarke
was ready they hauled their stuff out to the jeep and headed for the
house. Faith had spoken to Evan about where they were going to live
and he found a place that was about halfway between Giles's house and
UC Sunnydale. They pulled into the driveway and grabbed their stuff.
An older dark haired man was waiting for them on the porch. Faith
signed all the appropriate paperwork and soon after, the man left. The
house had a very rustic feel to it; it was one of the older houses in
Sunnydale. It had a huge basement and backyard. But, if you came in
the front door, you would go through a hallway with a room off of it to
the left. It was set up as an office. Once down the hall there was a
large living room. Off the living room to the left was a spare room,
with a bathroom, that they could use for storage and weapons. To the
right off the living room was a dining room and straight ahead was a
large kitchen. The house was designed so you had to go through the
kitchen to get upstairs. There were three large bedrooms upstairs with
two bathrooms. Faith called the master bedroom with it's own bathroom
and the other two settled their stuff in the other rooms. Faith
appreciated the fact that the house, despite being old, still had
fairly modern furnishings.

"Hey guys, let's just drop our stuff and get outta here, I want to grab
something to eat and head over to Giles's and get the lowdown. Also,
grab a change of clothes, Giles is probably gonna want to get the
rundown on where we all are for training purposes." Faith called as
she walked back downstairs.

"Okay, one second." Kennedy called back.

"No problem." Clarke said.

Faith walked into the kitchen and checked the fridge and the cupboards
and found them empty.

"Dammit, we have to go grocery shopping, I hate grocery shopping."

Faith stuck her tongue out at the empty cabinets and headed out the
door as the two girls made it back downstairs. They climbed back in
the jeep and headed for a diner along the way. Once they had placed
their orders Faith lit a cigarette and tossed the pack to Clarke.

"Hey Fai?"

"Yeah."

"Do you think it would be at all possible for us to go to a hockey game
while we're here? It's looking like Boston and L.A. are going to meet
in the finals and I would love to catch a game down there."

"I don't know honestly. You'll have to ask Giles and clear it with
him. He's probably gonna have us training by day and patrolling by
night."

"Right, but he's not a slave driver is he?"

"No, but you'll have to clear it with him. I'm up for it if he says
it's cool."

"Okay, that's of course if they actually do meet in the finals. I was
a season ticket holder, so I can get us killer seats before they go on
sale to the public."

Faith nodded and listened half-heartedly as the two girls babbled about
hockey and a bunch of other stuff. She smirked as Kennedy got all
googly-eyed listening to Clarke talk about her experiences playing.

After eating, Faith grabbed her cell and called Giles to tell him they
were on the way. He told her Buffy was there with him. They pulled up
at his place and hopped out of the jeep and made their way down to the
door. Buffy answered a bit too quickly and ushered them inside.

They exchanged hellos and settled in on the couch. Giles began
cleaning his glasses.

"Faith, will you be needing to work while you're here?"

Faith shook her head.

"No, Council is paying for the whole ride. 'Official business'...they're
pickin' up the tab. No need for a job."

"Right then. Obviously we need to get you and Clarke battle ready. As
you know, Faith you can't kill the demon, but you will have to fight
it. We have about three weeks to make sure you are back to full
strength. Have you been training at all?"

"Yeah, me and C have a weekly routine, I'm probably not in the shape I
was before, but Boston isn't quite as hoppin' as Sunnydale is...in the
evil department at least."

Giles nodded.

"Right...well we can work out a training schedule that we can all work
around. Buffy is obviously in classes during the day, but she will
help with patrolling at night, just as a back up. You two need all the
practice and training you can get." The two girls nodded in agreement.
"I was also hoping Kennedy would join you obviously in the training
but with patrol as well."

Kennedy grinned and Buffy noticed a familiar twinkle in her eye. The
group worked out a training schedule and they also started putting
together a plan to defeat Adam. Buffy was relieved that they would
have some extra firepower to defeat him. Giles had the three girls
spar for a while to see where they were and he and Buffy took notes on
weaknesses and strengths. Buffy noticed Faith fought less carelessly
than she did before. Faith had always been at full throttle when she
fought, she always left herself wide open. Buffy figured that's why
they were always so evenly matched. Her own style of fighting was very
guarded and defensive. Polar opposites. She noticed that Clarke
seemed to be somewhere in between. She was patient, she waited for
Faith to make a mistake and she pounced. She also kicked it into high
gear when you least expected it. Buffy was rather impressed with both
girls. She and Giles made a few minor notes and were both very upbeat
that these battles with the demon and Adam would be much easier than
originally expected. After the sparring session they made plans to
patrol that night. Buffy told them that things had been kinda slow
with Adam hanging around. The three girls gathered their things and
got ready to leave. Faith turned back once she reached the door.

"Hey B, we were gonna hit the Bronze tonight if patrol is light if ya
wanna come along."

Buffy smiled.

"Is it cool if the rest of the Scoobies come too?"

"Yeah, of course."

"Okay. It's a date."

Faith gave her a confused look, but it quickly disappeared into a small
smile.

"So, ya wanna swing by our place before patrol, it's close to Shady
Acres."

"Sure, I'll see you guys later."

"See ya B."

The girls smiled and said goodbye and headed home. On the way back
they hit the grocery store and piled the jeep full.

A few hours later Faith answered the door and found Buffy on the other
side.

"Come on in B."

Buffy smiled as Faith took her on a mini tour.

Thank God she doesn't have to stay in that awful dump like last time.
It's about time the Council took better care of its slayers.

The girls had a fairly uneventful patrol and managed to get to the
Bronze fairly early. They parked the jeep and made their way inside.

"I'm warning you C, this place is nothing like the clubs we have in
Bean Town."

"Fai, I kinda figured that...don't worry, as long as we can dance, I'm
good. I still have a bit too much energy."

Faith grinned thinking back to the H&H conversation they had after a
busy night patrolling in Boston.

"I think I know someone who might be able to help you out in that
department."

Clarke grinned as she looked at the girl walking ahead of them with
Buffy.

"She is cute."

"Damn right she is, she's into you too."

"Ya think?"

Faith rolled her eyes.

"Yes, I think. She gets all goofy every time you do that smile thing
that you do."

"What smile thing?"

"That little flirty smile thing. The one that had me that first night
at Roxy. You know what I'm talking about."

Clarke smiled.

"I'll just have to turn it up a notch."

Faith suddenly smiled deviously.

"Well...we could always go for making them both a little green."

Clarke gave Faith a similar smile.

"Now that's an idea."

The four girls walked in the door and immediately spotted the rest of
the Scoobies. Faith and Clarke got drink orders from Buffy and Kennedy
and headed for the bar. Once they had their drinks in hand, the two
younger slayers made their way back to the table and greeted everyone.
Faith slid drinks to Buffy and Kennedy and grabbed Clarke and headed
for the dance floor. Buffy watched as Faith led the younger blonde
away and kept her eyes on both of them as they began to dance.

The two girls fell into the pulsating rhythms quickly and danced a bit closer
than they were used to. Faith caught sight of Buffy staring at them
and almost felt guilty when she saw the pout. She shook it off and
took a rather large drink of her beer. She smiled at the blonde
dancing with her and slung an arm over her shoulder. Clarke whipped
out the dimples and pulled Faith in a bit closer. The two danced so
close their foreheads would brush together occasionally. Buffy felt a
pang in her stomach as she watched the two dance. She glanced around
the table and found the rest of the group watching the girls dance as
well. Willow and Tara looked slightly turned on. Xander's mouth was
gaped open and was staring at them blatantly. She was taken aback
slightly as she saw evident jealousy etched on Kennedy's features.
Buffy thought to herself for a second and turned on her resolve face.
She wasn't about to be outdone. In an act that surprised everyone,
including her, she reached out and grabbed Kennedy and pulled her out
to the dance floor. The three remaining Scoobies exchanged glances and
Willow looked to Tara knowingly. Buffy gave Kennedy a look that was
instantly recognized and the two began to dance almost as close as
Faith and Clarke. Buffy glanced over Kennedy's shoulder and saw Faith
watching them. Clarke noticed the look on Faith's face and turned to
see what had the dark slayer so captivated. She raised her eyebrows
when she saw Buffy and Kennedy dancing together. She laughed slightly
and looked back to Faith.

"I think we're busted."

"Don't worry, this is one game that would be pretty impossible for us
to lose. B doesn't have the balls to take it that far."

Clarke laughed again and continued dancing. The two couples began to
slowly inch closer together until they were side by side. Faith was
dancing next to Kennedy and Clarke was next to Buffy. Clarke shuddered
slightly at the charge in the air caused by the four girls. Faith
watched Buffy dance with her eyes closed. A thin layer of sweat was
coating her forehead and her chest that was exposed above the neckline
of the halter-top she was wearing. Faith absentmindedly licked her
lips as she watched the blonde dance. Slowly the girls backed away
from their partners and they found themselves dancing in a small
circle. Buffy and Faith locked gazes and everything from that night
came back. Buffy watched as the memory of their night, in almost that
very spot, came back to her. A tiny smile tugged at the blonde's lips
as Faith closed her eyes and shuddered. Before she even knew what she
was doing she reached out and grabbed the brunette's hand and tugged
her closer. Both Kennedy and Clarke grinned as they watched the Chosen
Two dance. Kennedy returned her gaze to the blonde in front of her and
gave her an expectant look as she let her eyes wander the length of the
girl. Clarke raised her eyebrows and grinned as the two of them began
to dance a bit closer. Buffy and Faith danced closer this time than
they ever did back then and the slayer bond allowed them completely
synchronized rhythm. They were interrupted after a few hours as the
rest of the gang said goodnight. Willow gave Buffy a small sly smile
before hugging her.

"Don't let her go this time Buffy." The redhead whispered into her ear
before pulling back and smiling again. Buffy gave her a grateful smile
as they walked away. Buffy turned her attention back to Faith as they
danced until the club closed. Buffy and Faith both smiled at the two
younger girls who walked out holding hands as they headed for the jeep.

"I can't believe I'm still so wired after dancing that much." Faith
said to Buffy as they walked along.

"Tell me about it, I'm not even close to tired."

"Ya wanna come hang out for a while, I know those two are just as
jacked up as we are. We can play some cards or something."

Buffy mused the proposition for a moment before smiling broadly.

"Yeah, that sounds like fun."

"Cool."

Clarke turned suddenly and noticed Faith weaving slightly.

"Fai, ya want me to drive? I think you've had a bit too much to
drink."

"I think that would be a good idea. I think I'm wavering a bit."

Clarke smiled and grabbed the keys that Faith held out for her. Buffy
and Faith hopped into the backseat as the other two jumped in the
front. Faith absently draped her right arm over the back of the seat
as she rubbed her eyes with her other hand. Clarke saw the hint of a
smile from Buffy in the rear-view mirror. The blonde up front flipped
through the tracks on the CD and gave Faith a look as the music came
thundering out of the speakers. Faith closed her eyes for a moment as
what seemed to be her theme song engulfed her. Buffy caught the silent
exchange and began to listen to the lyrics that Faith was singing along
to.

When this began
I had nothing to say
And I'd get lost in the nothingness inside of me
I was confused
And I'd let it all out to find
That I'm not the only person with these things in mind
Inside of me
When all the vacancy the words revealed
Is the only real thing that I've got left to feel
Nothing to lose
Just stuck, hollow and alone
And the fault is my own and the fault is my own

Clarke locked gazes with Faith for a second at the words she knew were
coming. She saw Buffy pick up on the look and the blonde continued to
watch Faith out of the corner of her eye.

I wanna heal
I wanna feel
What I thought was never real
I want to let go of the pain I felt so long
Erase all the pain til its gone
I wanna heal
I wanna feel
Like I'm close to something real
I want to find something I've wanted all along
Somewhere I belong

Buffy almost shivered as she listened to the words and could tell by
the look on Faith's face that she felt the meaning of them.

And I've got nothing to say
I can't believe I didn't fall right down on my face
I was confused
Looking everywhere only to find
That it's not the way I had imagined it all in my mind
So what am I
What do I have but negativity
Cause I cant justify the way everyone is looking at me
Nothing to lose
Nothing to gain, hollow and alone
And the fault is my own and the fault is my own

Clarke smiled as she watched Faith turn slightly towards Buffy and the
two's eyes met for a moment as Faith continued to sing the words of the
song that she not only knew, but she felt.

I wanna heal
I wanna feel
What I thought was never real
I want to let go of the pain I felt so long
Erase all the pain til its gone
I wanna heal
I wanna feel
Like I'm close to something real
I want to find something I've wanted all along
Somewhere I belong

Faith smiled as she prepared to belt out the next verse and she shared
a grin with the blonde in the front because every time they sang this
song, they both reacted the same way to the verse that was about to be
sang.

I will never know
Myself until I do this on my own
And I will never feel
Anything else, until my wounds are healed
I will never be anything
till I break away from me
I will break away
I'll find myself today

I wanna heal
I wanna feel
What I thought was never real
I want to let go of the pain I felt so long
Erase all the pain till it's gone
I wanna heal
I wanna feel
Like I'm close to something real
I want to find something I've wanted all along
Somewhere I belong

I wanna heal
I wanna feel
I wanna feel like I'm somewhere I belong

I wanna heal
I wanna feel
I wanna feel like I'm somewhere I belong

Somewhere I belong

Buffy smiled at Faith, understating that Faith was talking to her
without saying a word. Clarke began flipping through the songs again
and glanced back to Faith as the music started.

It's easier to run
Replacing this pain with something more
It's so much easier to go
Than face all this pain here all alone

Something has been taken from deep inside of me
The secret I've kept locked away no one can ever see
Wounds so deep they never show they never go away
Like moving pictures in my head for years and years they've played

Buffy almost felt like crying as she thought back to the way she
treated Faith in the past. This song seemed to say it all. She
watched as Faith turned and looked her in the eye as she sang the next
part of the song.

(If I could change I would take back the pain I would)
(Retrace every wrong move that I made I would)
(If I could stand up and take the blame I would)
(If I could take all the shame to the grave I would)
(If I could change I would take back the pain I would)
(Retrace every wrong move that I made I would)
(If I could stand up and take the blame I would)
(I would take all my shame to the grave)

It's easier to run
Replacing this pain with something numb
It's so much easier to go
Than face all this pain here all alone

Sometimes I remember the darkness of my past
Bringing back these memories I wish I didn't have
Sometimes I think of letting go and never looking back
And never moving forward so there'd never be a past

(If I could change I would take back the pain I would)
(Retrace every wrong move that I made I would)
(If I could stand up and take the blame I would)
(If I could take all the shame to the grave I would)
(If I could change I would take back the pain I would)
(Retrace every wrong move that I made I would)
(If I could stand up and take the blame I would)
(I would take all my shame to the grave)

Clarke watched as Faith closed her eyes and sang the words as Buffy
watched her, almost entranced by the confessions the brunette made
through the song.

Just washing it aside,
All of my helplessness inside
Pretending I don't feel misplaced
It's so much simpler than shame

It's easier to run
Replacing this pain with something numb
It's so much easier to go
Than face all this pain here all alone

It's easier to run
(If I could change I would take back the pain I would)
(Retrace every wrong move that I made)
It's easier to go
(If I could change I would take back the pain I would)
(Retrace every wrong move that I made I would)
(If I could stand up and take the blame I would)
(I would take all my shame to the grave)

Kennedy turned the volume down significantly as they turned onto their
street. The girls piled out of the jeep and headed inside. They shed
their light jackets and headed for the kitchen. Faith grabbed four
bottles of water from the fridge as Clarke and Kennedy rummaged through
cabinets pulling out bags of snack food. The four sat around talking
and playing card games. Kennedy grew bored of poker quickly and headed
into the living room to watch a movie. After about an hour Faith
scrunched her face up and sat back in her chair.

"Ugh, I don't feel so good."

The other two girls looked at her sympathetically.

"Have you eaten anything today?" Buffy asked.

"Yeah...it's nothing, I'm fine."

"Fai, I hardly think you can call a bag of Doritos, eating."

"Yeah, I'll call your Doritos and raise ya too many coffees and a
couple of cokes."

"Ya going for a caffeine and sugar overload?"

"I just needed a little pick me up earlier."

"Not been sleeping well?"

Faith looked at Clarke who was obviously holding in a smirk at the
heartfelt concern of the blonde slayer.

"Get lost C."

Clarke smiled sweetly at her, dimples and all.

"But I don't wanna."

Faith glared at her and the girl's smile just grew. Suddenly Faith
smirked as she thought of something.

"Hey Kenny!" Faith called to the girl in the living room.

Kennedy came jogging in looking expectantly at Faith.

"Kenny" Faith said pointing at her. "This is Clarke, the vampire
slayer." She said pointing at the confused blonde. Faith was smiling
sweetly at her slayer. Kennedy shot Faith a confused look.

"Faith, I know-" She was cut short as Faith held up a hand to silence
her. Faith smirked at the youngest slayer.

"Clarke." Faith said pointing to the confused girl. "This is Kennedy,
the potential slayer, ya might say she's next in line." Faith grinned
at the two confused girls and turned to Buffy, who was looking at her
like she'd gone a bit looney.

"B, wanna see a neat trick? How would you like to see me turn Kenny
into a slayer...right in front of your eyes, using only my bare hands."
Faith grinned and held up her hands in front of her, wiggling her
fingers.

Clarke's eyes got wide and she stood gaping like a fish. She suddenly
smiled sheepishly.

"We're gonna go...away now...you guys have fun."

The two older slayers watched, grinning as Clarke hurried out of the
kitchen, tugging Kennedy along behind her. Buffy shook her head and
turned back to Faith. Her face grew a bit more concerned as she took
in the tired look of the younger girl.

"So you haven't been sleeping well?"

Faith shrugged and dropped her gaze to her hands.

"Nah...it's just...sometimes...I feel like I'm dreaming...and I'm afraid when I
wake up...I'll...be back in the hospital...guess it's really the...waking up
part that has me."

Buffy's face fell. She began playing with her fingernails.

"Faith...I had to."

"I know B...I was way outta control. Turn the tables and I woulda done
the same. Don't worry about it."

Buffy opened her mouth to say something, but closed it suddenly. She
chewed absently on her bottom lip for a moment.

"Why Faith?"

Faith thought for a moment and sighed.

"Look, I know I can't enter a plea of temporary insanity...I wasn't
crazy...I was scared. I didn't know what to do..."

"Why didn't you let us help you?"

"Yeah...I've been so good at that in the past. Look at the history,
remember Kakistos? I tried to keep that my problem and it blew up and
you ended up getting involved in it. I didn't want to put you in any
danger. It was the same thing. I killed him B. Not you. I didn't
know how to take responsibility for anything. I screwed up big time
and I really can't justify anything I did. I was totally lost. I
didn't think that I had to take responsibility as a slayer. Anyways, I
went to Wilkins and he didn't care what I had done, seeing as how he
was evil, but he didn't treat me like I was a bad person. He treated
me like a daughter. After seeing the way Giles looked at you...I never
had that...and it felt good. Again with the evil, but it felt
unconditional. I just let the darkness consume me and I knew I could
never go back to you, so I figured I should at least go out with a
bang. I wanted you to kill me...but that didn't mean I wasn't going out
without a fight."

Faith returned her gaze to Buffy who was visibly upset.

"That's not even funny Faith."

Faith's expression turned confused.

"I wasn't being funny B, I was being serious."

"Faith I...you know that I couldn't have killed you. I never would've
killed you. I didn't even mean to hurt you...things just got out of
hand. I guess Clarke is living proof that I did kill you though."

Buffy almost felt like crying.

"You were just doing what you had to do B. You needed slayer blood for
Angel."

"I just feel bad about the way I handled everything back then."

"So do I, and all I really want is a chance to make things right again.
We both made mistakes and we both feel bad, but I want to do it right
this time...if you'll let me."

"I definitely want us to make things right again...I don't know if the
rest of the gang will jump right on board, but eventually they will."

"Well, the most important thing to me is making sure you and me are
good. I can deal if it takes longer with them."

Buffy sat and thought for a few minutes as Faith lit a cigarette. The
brunette grabbed the ashtray and sat across from Buffy at the table.
She deposited the ashtray, her smokes and a lighter on the table as she
sat down. Buffy suddenly reached out and grabbed a cigarette. Faith
raised her eyebrows at the blonde as she took a drag and coughed a bit.
Faith couldn't help but laugh at the attempt.

"Since when do you smoke B?"

"Since now."

Buffy locked her gaze with Faith, challenging her to say anything about
it. Faith just raised her eyebrows again and chuckled.

"Hey, what you do is up to you girlfriend."

"I just feel like I don't have to be...I don't know...everything when I'm
around you. I feel like you don't have these huge expectations of me."

Faith snorted slightly.

"That's because I don't. You know that you can do pretty much anything
around me and I won't judge you, because most likely, I've already done
it. Although, you did it to me."

"Did what?"

"You judged me at first. You all did."

"I know...I'm sorry. I was stupid and self-involved back then."

"Just back then?" Faith smirked, daring her to say anything to the
contrary. Buffy smiled and rolled her eyes.

"Yeah yeah. I am sorry though."

"Nah, it's cool B. But know that you can just be, around me. You can
do whatever you want. I don't have any expectations as far as what you
do, I may get a surprise now and then, but I'm not going to think
you're a bad person."

Buffy gave Faith a genuine smile and suddenly got a bit woozy. She
shook her head briefly and giggled.

"Mmm, I feel funny."

Faith laughed at her.

"Yeah, the first time you smoke, you get a bit of a buzz. It'll pass."

Faith slid out of her chair and went to the fridge. She pulled out a
beer and turned back to Buffy.

"Ya want a beer B?"

Buffy thought back to her alcohol induced Neanderthalism and was about
to say no. Suddenly she realized that Faith wouldn't let anything bad
happen to her so she nodded.

"Sure."

Faith grabbed a second bottle out of the fridge and set them both on
the counter. She rummaged through a drawer and pulled out a bottle
opener and popped the tops quickly. She slid the bottle across the
table to Buffy and sat back down.

"So what's the deal B, you seeing anybody these days?"

Buffy felt a wave of sadness rush over her as thoughts of Riley filled
her head.

"I was...but he kinda died last week."

Fait raised her eyebrows but her expression soon turned to concern as
she watched the blonde's expression turn sad.

"What happened?"

"Adam killed him."

Faith's brow furrowed for a second before she put on her badass face.

"Don't worry, tomorrow night, we'll get Adam back. That son of a bitch
doesn't even know what's coming."

Buffy looked up at Faith with a hopeful expression on her face.

"Do you really think we can beat him?"

Faith grinned in anticipation of the fight that would have the two of
them playing on the same side again.

"Yeah, I have no doubt, I mean G and Red have that spell that's gonna
get you all wicked wired up right? You go in and take out the big guy
and I have your back just in case he has any surprises for us."

Buffy nodded and soon found her grin matching the one Faith had
plastered on her features.

"God Faith, I have missed you...I've missed this. It's like its so
different now, but it's so familiar."

"I know what you mean B."

The Chosen Two shared a smile. They found their way into easy
conversation and talked and drank for hours that night. By the time
they were ready for sleep, Buffy was a little too drunk.

"B, I think you should stay here tonight, you're a bit toasty."

Buffy gave her a languid smile.

"Okay Faithy, but I don't have anything to sleep in." Buffy gazed down
at her clothes and tugged on the bottom of her top as if trying to
emphasize her point.

Faith rolled her eyes at the nickname and held her hand out to Buffy
who took it and followed the brunette upstairs. Faith grinned wickedly
as she noticed Clarke's door wide open and her bed empty. Kennedy's
door was closed however and Faith knew that both girls had gone to bed.
Faith pulled Buffy into her room and grabbed clothes for her to sleep
in. Buffy changed in the room while Faith washed her face and brushed
her teeth. She found Buffy sitting on the edge of the bed when she
returned.

"I need a blanket for the couch."

Faith rolled her eyes and smiled slightly.

"B, don't be a dork, the bed is huge and I don't bite, you can sleep in
here with me."

Buffy smiled widely.

"Okay."

Faith watched amusedly as Buffy rolled backwards on the bed and
burrowed herself under the covers. Buffy sighed loudly and contently
as Faith hit the lights and crawled into bed.

"Night Faithy."

Faith rolled her eyes again.

"Night B."

Hope this didn't disappoint, please leave some feedback, I will get to the updating as quick as I can.