Giles sat silently in the passenger seat of Joyce's SUV as she drove them both to the Summers home. He had stopped by the gallery after school to tell her what was going on. Now the two of them were on their way to check on Buffy. Joyce gripped and re-gripped the steering wheel several times, her jaw tightening each time.

"I hate this," she said finally. "You know that, right?" she asked, turning to Giles for a moment. There was no mirth in her eyes as she said this.

"Yes," Giles said, hanging his head. "I'm well aware."

Another long silence ensued. Then Joyce spoke up once again.

"I mean, she risks her life night after night – and not by choice, mind you, no, she has to because she had the misfortune to be 'chosen' by this-this slayer power whatever it is – she puts her life on the line, and how does this 'power' repay her? By punishing her for defending herself!" Joyce shook her head.

"I know this is difficult –"

"Do you?!" Joyce demanded.

"I do," Giles said softly. "Not to the extent you know it, of course, but…despite the difficulty, we must focus on getting Buffy through this. Cursing her calling, however deserved it might be, won't help us do that."

"Fine," Joyce said, pulling into her drive and slamming the car into park.

When Joyce and Giles entered the house, they found Willow and Xander on the couch with Buffy, who was still crying after Faith's abrupt departure.

"Buffy!" Joyce cried as she rushed over to her daughter.

Willow and Xander instantly stood up, freeing the space on both sides of Buffy so that Joyce could take her place next to her daughter.

"Mom," Buffy sobbed as her mother wrapped her in a warm hug.

"Baby, I'm here…" Joyce reassured. "I'm here."

While Joyce tried to comfort her daughter, Willow and Xander slipped over to the front door to talk with Giles.

"What's going on?" Giles demanded in a hushed voice. "What's got Buffy so upset? And where's Faith?"

"She left!" Willow replied angrily. "You should have let us come check on Buffy! We wouldn't have left her."

"What do you mean Faith left?" Giles asked.

"When we got here, Faith was gone," Xander explained, "and Buffy was crying her eyes out on the couch. Just a coincidence? I think not."

"She probably took off this morning and left Buffy alone all day," Willow speculated.

Giles softened his voice. "Look, I know that Faith's not known for her sensitive side, but –"

"But what?!" Xander shot back. "She left Buffy alone, and now Buffy's a basket-case. You do the math. One plus one is two, and Faith's the two." Xander paused, rethinking what he had just said. "Okay, that didn't make any sense, but the point is…Faith let us down."

"She let Buffy down," Willow corrected.

"No."

The voice came from behind Willow, Xander, and Giles, and they turned to see Buffy standing there.

"She didn't," Buffy said.

"What?" Xander asked, confused.

"She left because of me," Buffy explained. "It was my fault."

Joyce got up from the couch and came to stand beside Buffy. She put her hand on her daughter's shoulder. "Honey, you don't have to try and cover for her. She said she'd keep an eye on you, and she –"

"No!" Buffy nearly shouted, pulling out of her mother's grasp and stepping away to address the whole group. "You don't understand! I don't want you blaming her for something she didn't do!" Buffy stopped to take a deep breath. "She left because I…I…" She looked down at her hands for a long moment before looking back up. New tears were in her eyes as she said in a flat voice, "It wasn't her fault."

Without another word, Buffy turned and went upstairs, leaving the others shocked and bewildered.

Later that evening, after having a long talk with Giles, Willow, and Xander, Joyce bid them goodnight and went upstairs to Buffy's room. Although the bedroom door was almost completely open, Joyce gave a short rap on it and stepped inside.

Buffy was on her bed with her knees drawn up against her chest and her arms wrapped around her legs. Dressed in her pajamas, she sat staring blankly at her window, with only the bedside lamp on. She turned slowly at the sound of the knock and saw her mother standing there.

"Hey," Buffy said in greeting.

Joyce smiled and said the same.

"Giles give you the scoop?" Buffy asked.

"Yes," Joyce answered, sitting on the edge of Buffy's bed. "Yes, he did."

Buffy merely nodded in reply.

"Honey, I wish you'd told me. Now that I know about your slaying, you don't have to hide things like this from me."

"I just couldn't," Buffy said, glancing away, her voice nearly breaking. After clearing her throat, she looked back and gave her mother a grin. "'Sides, you really don't want to know the gory details of my daily life as a slayer. Trust me on that."

"I want to know when you're hurt and when you're in danger," Joyce insisted.

"Mom, that's every day," Buffy replied softly, dropping her gaze to her hands. There was no sarcasm in Buffy's tone – just quiet, inescapable truth.

Disbelief and denial flashed in Joyce's eyes. They were quickly replaced by anger and fear until they too were replaced, this time by reluctant resignation. Joyce hated her daughter's calling – truly hated it. Intellectually, she understood the importance of the slayer in the safety of the world, but emotionally she couldn't help questioning why it had to be her daughter. This latest news had only increased her resentment and her worries. She reached out and took Buffy's hand in hers.

"Please, Buffy," she said gently. "Keep me in the loop? You don't have to give me all the 'gory details' as you put it. Just tell me what's going on. Good or bad. Slayer-related or not." She gave Buffy's hand a squeeze. "Because I love you and I want to know what's happening in your life. Okay?"

Buffy's eyes were wet with tears as she whispered, "Okay."

After giving her daughter a long, warm hug, Joyce got to her feet. "Can I get you anything?"

Buffy shook her head.

"Maybe you should lie down," Joyce suggested. "Try to get some rest?"

"I will, Mom," Buffy promised. "In a little bit."

"If you need me, I'm right across the hall."

Buffy forced a small smile. "Thanks."

At that, Joyce turned and headed out of the room. As she left, she made sure that she left the door fully open. Buffy didn't even notice. She had already returned to her sad staring.

Meanwhile, outside the Summers home, Faith watched Buffy's window from the shadows. With pain and longing in her eyes, she watched until she saw the faint light inside Buffy's bedroom go out. She dropped her gaze to the ground and sighed heavily. After one final glance at Buffy's window, Faith went on her way.

Later that night, Buffy lay tossing and turning in her bed, clearly in the throes of a nightmare. She shook her head from side to side, her face creasing in a frown.

In her dream, Buffy was in the high school's supply room. She did a slow 360, peering at the room with a confused look on her face. When she finished her turn, she found Pete suddenly right in front of her. Blood was gurgling from the wound in his mangled neck.

"Look at what you did," Pete accused.

Buffy took a step back and looked down at her hand. In it was a broken bottle covered in blood. She screamed and dropped the bottle. When she lifted both her hands, they too were covered in blood.

"Oh God, oh God…" Buffy said in horror. She looked back up at Pete, tears streaming down her face. "I'm sorry…I didn't mean to…"

"You're sorry?!" Pete replied, outraged. Pete closed in on Buffy, backing her towards the wall. "You gouge a gaping hole in my neck and make me bleed to death, and you're sorry?"

Buffy hit the wall, cowering as Pete loomed over her.

"Did you hear that?" Pete asked, looking over his shoulder. "The slayer is sorry."

Instantly, the person that Pete had been addressing appeared. It was Angel. He was thin and pale with dark, hollow eyes, and his shirt was covered in dried and caked blood.

"She's not a slayer," Angel said coldly. "She's a killer."

Buffy awoke from her dream, screaming and crying. Within seconds, her mother was at her side. Joyce pulled her sobbing daughter into her arms and held her tightly.

The next morning, as Joyce was sipping her first cup of coffee, she was surprised when Buffy came into the kitchen, already dressed and ready for school – though not with her usual attention to appearance. She had paid only minimal attention to her hair and makeup and had put on a well-worn pair of jeans, an old t-shirt, and a faded zip-up sweatshirt. When Joyce started to object to Buffy's obvious intention to go to school that day, Buffy instantly raised her hand and stopped her.

"Mom, I know what you're about to say, but I need to go to school," Buffy insisted.

"Honey, don't you think you should –?"

"No," Buffy said, shaking her head. Then she looked at her mother and said, "I can't stay home forever."

There was a mixture of determination and vulnerability in Buffy's eyes, as if she were steeling herself to do something that she really didn't want to. Joyce frowned worriedly.

"Look, sooner or later, I gotta face going back," Buffy explained. "It might as well be sooner. Get it over with, you know?"

"Okay," Joyce agreed. "But not without breakfast," she quickly added.

As her mother began making preparations for a hot breakfast, Buffy's stomach churned. Eating before fear-faceage…probably not a good idea, Buffy told herself. Then she added, Better play along. Otherwise, she'll worry even more. Buffy sighed and settled on the stool at the bar.

As Buffy walked toward Sunnydale High, she felt her heart rate increase. The closer she got, the faster it raced. She had thought that walking the short distance would calm her mind and allow her to collect her thoughts, but it had had no effect on her ever-growing anxiety. By the time she had reached the school's entrance, Buffy was a wreck.

As she entered the school, Buffy pulled her small book bag against her chest and wrapped her arms tightly around it as if she were shielding herself from the world. She lowered her gaze to the floor, allowing herself only occasional darting glances elsewhere; then she hurried through the lobby.

You can do this, you can do this, she thought, trying unsuccessfully to concentrate. Just focus on school. School, school. Teachers, classrooms, books, students. Pete. Debbie. Blood. Oh God, so much blood. Get a grip! They're gone, it's done, get over it! I wonder where Faith is. Why did she leave like that? Why? You know why. Stop whining! Just –

"Stop."

Buffy froze at the commanding voice in front of her. She slowly looked up. It was Principal Snyder.

"Buffy Summers," Snyder said dramatically, crossing his arms in a stern stance. "Who just happened to be conspicuously absent the day after a double-murder."

Snyder uncrossed his arms and stepped deeply into Buffy's personal space, looming over her, glaring accusingly. Buffy shrank under his stare.

"If the police hadn't assured me that the two lovebirds had killed each other," he whispered harshly, "then you, Little Miss Violent, would have been the first on my suspect list."

Buffy couldn't even speak or meet his eyes. She just stood there, trembling, seconds from bursting into tears. Snyder's lips twitched upwards at the sight. He stared silently at her, savoring the moment.

"Get to class!" he finally barked, earning a jump from Buffy, which brought an even bigger smile to his face.

When Snyder stepped aside, Buffy wasted no time in complying with his order. She scurried off without so much as a word to him.

As Buffy hurried around the corner of a hallway, she ran headlong into someone, sending his books flying from his hands.

"Oh my God…I'm so sor –" She stopped mid-sentence when she saw who it was.

"Buffy," Scott said, surprised but happy.

His elated expression fell when he saw Buffy back away from him with a look of horror on her face. She dropped her bag and tried to speak, but no words came out. Tears sprang to her eyes, and she covered her mouth with her hand. Scott looked on with confusion.

From across the hall, Willow caught a glimpse of what was happening and rushed over. But, just as Willow arrived on the scene, Buffy bolted.

"Buffy!" Willow cried out. When the slayer didn't stop, Willow turned back to Scott and let out an apologetic chuckle. "Buffy, she's, well, she's just upset…about what happened, you know?" She bent over and picked up Buffy's bag. "A-A-And she just doesn't know what to say, that's all." She began backing away. "I'm sorry, but I should really go check on her."

Without waiting for an answer from Scott, Willow turned and ran in the direction that Buffy had gone. Scott was left looking hurt and bewildered.

Willow found Buffy in the girls' restroom. She had heard Buffy crying the minute she had stepped inside. She followed the sound to the last stall.

"Buffy?" she called out. "It's me. Willow."

Willow gave the stall door a test pull and found that it wasn't locked. She called out Buffy's name again and then slowly opened the door. She found Buffy sitting on the edge of the toilet seat, just sobbing. She set Buffy's book bag on the floor and then knelt in front of the stricken slayer.

"Buffy?" she ventured again, reaching out to place a reassuring hand on Buffy's knee.

Buffy looked up and met Willow's eyes. "I-I-I shouldn't have come back, Will," she said, still crying. "I s-s-saw Scott a-a-and totally freaked out."

"I know, I saw," Willow admitted.

"H-H-He probably hates me," Buffy wailed.

"No," Willow said. "I'm sure he doesn't. He could never hate you. I-I-I told him you were upset and that you just didn't know what to say."

"Really?" Buffy asked, hopeful. "What did he say?"

"Ummm, nothing…that I know of," Willow explained. "I kinda came running after you." When she saw Buffy's face fall, Willow quickly added, "But I'm sure he'll understand when you talk to hi –"

"No, no," Buffy interrupted, jumping to her feet and shaking her head vigorously. "I can't talk to him, I can't face him, not after what I did, I can't, I can't…"

As Buffy's words trailed off into more crying, Willow stood up and pulled her friend into a tight hug, trying to comfort her as best she could. "It'll be okay," she told her.

Buffy held onto Willow fiercely, but then, between sobs, she said, "I wish Faith was here."

A deep hurt flooded Willow's eyes. She felt a lump form in her throat, but she forced herself to speak past it. "Well, she's not," Willow said, trying to keep her voice even. "But I am. I'm here."

"Thank you," Buffy whispered against Willow's shoulder.

The upset expression on Willow's face didn't soften at Buffy's words.

Later that day, a calmer but still dejected Buffy trudged into the library. Giles was putting away some books, but he immediately came down from the stacks to stand beside his slayer. He put a gentle hand on her shoulder and looked into her eyes.

"How are you?" he asked. "How are you feeling?"

Buffy put her hand on top of her watcher's hand and gave him a rueful smile. "Like somebody ran me over with a Mack truck…about a hundred times. But other than that, I'm fine." She tried to sound convincing and optimistic but failed miserably.

Giles gestured at the chairs at the table, and they both sat down. "Are you sleeping?" he asked.

"Not really," Buffy said, dropping her gaze to her hands. "Every time I go to sleep, I dream…about what happened. I feel like I'm going crazy."

Deep worry flashed in Giles's eyes, but he pushed it down and said, "That's perfectly normal, Buffy. You went through a very traumatic event. It's going to take time for you to fully recover. The important thing is not to bottle up your feelings."

"Oh, no bottling here. More like bawling my eyes out every half hour."

"Good! That's good!" Giles blurted excitedly, earning him a strange look from Buffy. "You know what I mean. It's good that you're expressing your feelings."

"Tell that to my mascara," Buffy deadpanned.

Giles looked confused for a moment, but then he eventually got it. After his quick chuckle, the two fell into an awkward silence. After a minute, Buffy finally spoke.

"I, um, I just wanted to say thank you for…you know…arranging things," Buffy said.

Giles smiled back at her. He knew that she was referring to the police investigation of Pete and Debbie's deaths. "It was the right thing to do," he said.

Buffy fidgeted and looked nervously around the room before finally asking the question that was on her mind. "Have you, um, have you seen Faith?" she asked in a vulnerable voice.

"Um, no…no I haven't," he said.

Buffy looked away, clearly upset.

"But…you know Faith," Giles quickly interjected. "Not unusual for her to drop out of sight from time to time…only for a short while, of course."

Buffy nodded wordlessly.

"Buffy, do you want to talk about what happened yesterday…why Faith left…what got you so upset?"

Buffy shook her head. "No, not really. Just a…difference of opinion." I like her, she hates me, that's all, she quipped sadly to herself. "Not uncommon with us," she added, forcing a small smile. "But thanks."

At that, Buffy got to her feet and headed for the door. Giles watched her worriedly as she left the library.

That night, Buffy and Joyce were alone at home, sitting at the dining room table, eating supper. Actually, only Joyce was eating; for the most part, Buffy was simply pushing her food around on her plate, pretending to eat.

"So…how was school today?" Joyce asked. "You know…going back and all?"

Buffy froze, and it took her several moments to answer. "Hard," she finally said, without looking at her mother. "Harder than I thought it would be, but…I survived." She spoke the last two words without much enthusiasm. After a few final pushes of her food, she set her fork down. "I, um, I think I'm just gonna go to bed," she said, looking at her mom, "i-i-if that's okay."

"Of course," Joyce said sympathetically. "I wish you had eaten more, though."

"I know," Buffy said. "I'm just not very hungry." She pushed away from the table and got to her feet. "If anybody calls or comes by, just tell 'em I went to bed, okay? I'm not really up for conversation."

"Okay, honey," Joyce said, giving her daughter a nod.

Buffy turned and took a step toward the doorway. But then she suddenly turned back around. "Unless it's Faith," she added with hope in her voice.

Joyce frowned but didn't comment.

"But she probably won't come," Buffy said dejectedly. "I mean, she's got to patrol and everything." She dropped her gaze to the floor and muttered, "What I should be doing."

Without another word, Buffy trudged out of the dining room and headed for the stairs.

Later that night, Buffy tossed fitfully in her bed. Once again, her sleep was disturbed by nightmares.

In her current dream, Buffy was walking along a hallway at school. It was dark, and the corridor was lined with people. Though they were standing and moving, it was clear that they were dead – quite dead. Some were pale with punctures on their necks; others looked like they'd been savaged by beasts. As she passed each one, they glared at her with cold hatred, hissing accusations at her.

"Failure."

"Useless."

"Loser."

"Your fault."

Buffy's face creased in pain, and tears began streaming down her face. She stopped and turned in place, trying to address them all. "I'm sorry…"

They didn't seem appeased. They started to close in behind her and around her. Buffy's expression became panicked, and she turned and ran, screaming as hands reached out for her. Soon the crowd thinned, but before she could fully escape, a wall of bodies stopped her forward progress. She stumbled back then looked up to see familiar faces.

Jesse. Principal Flutie. Dr. Gregory. Theresa. Jenny. Kendra. Mr. Platt. Debbie. Pete.

"Oh God…" Buffy whimpered.

"You were supposed to save me," said a pale and drained Jesse. "I tried to be your friend."

"I believed in you," said Dr. Gregory, carrying his own mutilated head in his hands.

"Because of you, a Slayer died," a bloody Kendra added, crossing her arms in judgment.

"Pathetic," Jenny pronounced sharply, despite the awkward tilt of her broken neck. "Fallen. Unworthy of the calling. It was your duty to protect us, and you failed! Faith is the only true Slayer now. Time for you to go!"

As Jenny and the other victims rushed forward, Buffy screamed…and then awakened in her bed with a gasp of fright. She pulled her pillow to her chest and curled herself around it, muffling her cries into its softness.

Outside Buffy's room, a robe-clad Joyce tiptoed through the hallway carrying a glass of milk. She stopped when she thought she heard a sound coming from Buffy's room. She peeked through the open door and saw her daughter apparently crying into her pillow.

"Buffy? Are you all right?" she called out. She heard Buffy get her sniffling under control then saw her glance briefly over her shoulder.

"I'm fine, Mom. It's just another bad dream," Buffy said. "Just go back to bed."

Something in Buffy's tone told Joyce she shouldn't intrude this time. Though her maternal instincts urged her to do anything but leave, she reluctantly stepped away and returned to her bedroom.

Near dawn the next morning, Faith was still on patrol. Though she was already exhausted, she had stayed at it all night, hoping that the business of slaying would keep her mind off Buffy. It hadn't succeeded.

As she passed through one of the older cemeteries, she clenched and unclenched her fists over and over as her mind replayed the last images she had of Buffy: Buffy's hurt expression when Faith had shoved her away after their kiss, Buffy crying in anguish and reaching out to her, Buffy pleading with her not to leave.

Faith began shaking her head in frustration. "Stop it, stop it, stop it!!!" she screamed before lashing out at the nearest tombstone. She kicked it multiple times until it cracked. Then she slammed both hands against it and pushed, causing it to crumble to the ground in pieces. She stood over it, panting with exertion, before finally plopping down onto the largest piece. She groaned and dropped her forehead into her hands as her own thoughts began to assail her.

What is wrong with you?! You're pathetic!

Faith sighed sadly and then opened her eyes. She was surprised to find five demons closing in on her.

"Shit!" she cursed, jumping to her feet and whipping the stake from her back pocket.

The shaggy demons walked upright, but with a hunched-over, beast-like gait. As they neared, they growled and swiped their clawed hands in the air.

After a quick glance behind herself, Faith began backing away. After making a few steps, she looked behind herself again, gauging her escape route.

"Whatcha gonna do now, s-s-s-slayer?" the lead demon hissed. "Run?"

Faith's expression hardened as she instantly abandoned the idea of a wise retreat. Instead, she roared and attacked, rushing the lead demon first. She let him make a couple of useless swipes at her, then took advantage of an opening and kicked him into two of his comrades.

When the demon to her left moved in, she side-kicked him to give her a moment's reprieve while she took on the demon to her right. When he swiped at her, she grabbed his arm and spun him, then slammed her stake into his chest. He screeched and went down.

By then the demon to her left was back, and he grabbed her around the neck with his arm and dragged her several yards away, trying to choke her. The lead demon had regained his feet and came back mad. He sent his two comrades ahead, and each grabbed one of Faith's legs at the other demon still kept his hold on her neck. Faith kicked at their clawed hands but failed to keep them from latching on.

The lead demon smiled and made a clean swipe right at her torso. Faith managed to free one of her legs and twisted away at the last second. As a result, instead of being sliced across her stomach, she caught the swipe on her right side directly above her belt. She screamed in pain as the claws raked through her flesh.

She kicked her other leg free and then backpedaled the demon choking her into a large monument. When he slammed into the stone, he released his hold on Faith. She flipped him, grabbed his head, and quickly snapped his neck.

The lead demon seized her from behind, picked her up, and threw her hard against a large headstone. She hit it with a thud, landing on the same side where she'd already been sliced. She groaned loudly and rolled off the far side of the headstone, temporarily out of the sight of the three remaining demons. They rushed the headstone.

Seconds before they got there, Faith popped up, a small throwing knife in each hand. With synchronized slings, she let the daggers fly. Each one hit their mark: right between the eyes of the lead demon's comrades. It was just Faith and the lead demon now.

When she came from behind the large headstone, he rushed her. She moved sideways to the tombstone she had broken earlier and tried to high kick him. He grabbed her leg mid-kick and slammed his forearm onto her knee. She screamed in agony as her left knee joint was forced into full hyperextension.

When Faith hit the ground, she rolled onto her stomach and began dragging herself way. Just as the demon leapt upon her, she got her hand on a chunk of granite that had broken off from the tombstone. She turned and bashed his head with the jagged rock. When he went down, she rose to her good knee and smashed his head three more times until his blood began splattering her upper body.

Finally, she dropped the rock and surveyed the damage: all five demons were dead, she was safe. She gave a high-pitched hysterical laugh that very nearly turned into a sob. She choked it down before it could do so, however, and then let herself fall back onto the ground. As she lay still, waiting for the dawn, a few tears trickled down her cheeks.

The next morning, after Joyce had arrived at her gallery, she called Giles at the school. She tapped her pen impatiently on her desk as she waited for the librarian to answer.

"Library, Mr. Giles speaking," said the voice on the phone.

"Mr. Giles, this is Joyce Summers."

"Oh, Mrs. Summers, is everything all right? Is-is Buffy all right?"

"No, she's not!" Joyce replied angrily. "She's having nightmares all night. When she's not having those, she's crying…she won't eat anything…the only thing she ever asks about is Faith, though I don't know why after she deserted her the other day. We have to do something!"

"Yes, well, I, um, I'm not sure there is anything that we can do," Giles admitted. "Other than watch over her. The powers at work here are –"

"If Buffy's not better in the next day or so, I'm taking her to the hospital," Joyce said, interrupting Giles. "There has to be something they can do to help her."

"If her condition does worsen, hospitalization might be a prudent course of action."

This was not what Joyce wanted to hear. She sighed unhappily.

A short time later, Giles arrived at Faith's motel room. He walked up to the door and gave it a couple of polite raps. When he heard no sound from within the room, he gave the door a hefty series of knocks.

"Faith, are you in there?" he called out.

"Jesus Christ!" he heard Faith yell from inside. "I'm coming already."

Within a few seconds, the door opened. "What?!" Faith demanded. Giles's eyes widened at the sight.

Faith's hair was damp as if she had just gotten out of the shower. She was wearing a very thin and very short robe that was only barely tied closed. Her body was covered in bruises, and her left knee in particular was quite swollen. Through the opening in her robe, Faith was holding a bloody towel against her right side.

"Dear Lord! What happened?" Giles exclaimed.

"What do you think happened?" Faith said, leaving the doorway and walking back to her bed. "Got jumped by some demons. One of 'em clawed the shit out of me."

Giles immediately took off his jacket and started rolling up the sleeves of his shirt. "Let me see," he said in an all-business tone.

Faith shook her head. "I don't think so," she said defensively and sarcastically.

Giles put his hands on his hips. "Faith, I am your watcher. Treating wounds, wherever they may be, well, it comes with territory, so lie down and let me see." His tone was stern but not mean.

"Fine," she huffed.

Faith lay on her side with her back to Giles and opened her robe. She stuffed her lumpy motel pillow under her arms and let out an annoyed sigh.

While Faith got settled on the bed, Giles washed his hands in the bathroom. When he returned, he took a look at the first aid kit she had already laid out. He pulled out the things he would need. Then he turned back to Faith and began examining the wound.

It was a series of long, ragged gashes about eight inches long that stretched around her side at her waistline. All were red and angry-looking and still bleeding.

"Faith, this looks very bad," he said, squinting worriedly at the wound. "You should go to the –"

"No," Faith said firmly. "I hate doctors, and I hate hospitals, so just clean it up, put a Band-aid on it, and I'll be fine."

Giles gave an exasperated sigh. "Very well."

He poured an antiseptic into the long gashes, making Faith flinch and groan. She cursed softly into her pillow.

"Sorry," Giles said.

"Just hurry up," Faith growled back.

Giles applied an antibiotic ointment and then covered the wound with a large adhesive bandage. "Done," he announced.

Faith let out her breath and pulled her robe back around herself and sat up.

"Thanks."

Giles went to the bathroom and washed his hands again.

"So…what brings you to the poor slayer's side of town?" Faith called out to him.

"It's about Buffy," Giles said as he came out of the bathroom and sat at the end of the bed.

"What about her?" Faith asked, concerned. "Is she okay?"

"No, not really," Giles replied honestly. Then he said, "I want you to go see her."

Looking very uncomfortable, Faith said, "Why?"

"She needs you, Faith," he told her simply.

Faith shrugged. "What does she need me for? She's got you, her mom, all her super-friends."

"She needs you, too," Giles said sincerely.

Faith scoffed loudly and got off the bed. She limped over to the TV and grabbed the bottle of Jack Daniels sitting on top of it.

"What for? I mean…who am I, Giles? Just some fucked-up girl from Boston she's known less than a month." She opened the bottle, took a big swig and then another.

"You're a slayer, Faith."

Giles got up from the bed and walked over. He took the bottle from Faith, closed it, and returned it to its place on the TV.

"And being a slayer is a very…lonely place to be. She needs someone who understands the calling…and-and the sacrifices that often come with it. She needs you, Faith. She's been asking for you."

Faith frowned and looked away, fidgeting nervously. Finally, she gave an unhappy sigh and said, "Fine. I'll stop by."

Giles gave her arm a squeeze. "Thank you." As he headed for the door, Giles added, "And skip patrol tonight. Give yourself some time to heal."

As Buffy moved between her classes, she eyed the bustling crowd with trepidation. While her fellow students talked and joked and got things out of their lockers, Buffy crept cautiously down the hallway – the memory of her nightmare picking at the back of her mind.

Suddenly, in a group of students by the water fountain, Buffy saw Pete standing and staring. Buffy gasped and stopped in place, causing the person behind her to run into her.

Buffy didn't even notice the grumbling complaint of the person who moved past her. Her eyes were locked on Pete's bloody figure. She backed frantically into the far side of the wall and hurried sideways into the opposing traffic. She kept going until she was beyond the fountain and then broke into a run.

When she got to the end of the corridor, she stopped and looked back, breathing heavily – more from fear than exertion – but Pete wasn't there. She took a moment to get her breathing under control and then headed for her next class.

Meanwhile, Faith lay in her bed, staring at the ceiling. Despite her wounds and exhaustion, and several more shots of whiskey, she had been unable to sleep. With a painful groan, she reached over to the nightstand and plucked a Polaroid from between the phone and the wall. She looked at it sadly.

It was from the night of Kakistos, the night Faith and Buffy had gone out to the bar. Faith and Buffy were hugging, cheek to cheek, with their inside arms wrapped around each other's waists, and their outside arms held together with their hands clasped as if they were striking a tango-like dance pose. They were both smiling wildly. Buffy had several tiny drink umbrellas stuck in her hair.

Faith gave a small laugh and shook her head. Then her sad frown returned. She lay back down, bringing the picture with her, letting it rest right over her heart.

At the end of the school day, Buffy was once again in the hallway. After the earlier event, she was even more nervous than before, expecting to see Pete or some other dream victim hovering nearby. When she made it to the end of the corridor and into the lobby without incident, Buffy exhaled in relief. Not only had she managed to avoid seeing Scott all day, but she had also not had a second encounter with Pete. She thought she was home free. She was wrong.

Just as she turned the corner, Pete was suddenly in front of her. She cried out and pressed herself against the wall, drawing the attention of the other people in the lobby.

Pete leaned closer. "Look at them," he said, motioning toward the gawking spectators. "They know." He moved to the side so that he could whisper in her ear. "They know what you are…they know what you did…"

Buffy shut her eyes tightly and shook her head repeatedly, clutching her book bag against her chest. "You're not real, you're not real," she told herself several times before opening her eyes once again.

Pete was still there. He smiled and said, "Thaaaat's riiiight. I'm here to stay."

Buffy looked at him with fear and disbelief. Then she backed her way to the front entrance. When she got to the door, she ran through it and dashed down the steps.

As Pete smiled wickedly, the onlookers merely shook their heads, wondering what was up with the crazy chick.

Later that night, Faith finally left her motel room to go over to Buffy's house. As she walked, she limped noticeably and often cradled her arm against her side. Despite Giles's order to skip patrol, she made a sweep through several cemeteries in an effort to postpone the inevitable, but without even a fledgling vamp to distract her, she eventually had to make her way over to Revello Drive. She stood on the sidewalk looking up at the Summers home. She saw that the lights in the living room were on and that someone was watching TV. She took a deep breath and let it out slowly.

Okay, make it quick, she told herself. Keep it light, see how she's doing, then get the hell outta there.

She took another deep breath and headed for the front door, still limping at bit and favoring her side. She knocked on the door. She heard someone turn the TV off and walk to the door. When it opened, a sad Buffy was standing inside the doorway.

"Hey," Faith said simply.

"Faith!" Buffy said, her expression brightening at the sight of the brunette. When Faith didn't echo Buffy's enthusiasm, Buffy's face fell. She looked away for a moment, then made herself speak. "Y-Y-You wanna come in?"

"Yeah, thanks," Faith said.

Faith forced herself not to show any sign of her injuries as she stepped inside the living room. Once Buffy had shut the door, Faith made no attempt to move further into the room; instead, she hovered only a few feet from the door.

At first, neither of them said anything. Finally, Buffy said, "So…how's it goin'?"

"Good," Faith replied. "Just…doin' the patrol thing." She shrugged and said, "Giles said I should stop by, so…"

"Oh," Buffy said in a hurt voice, dropping her gaze to her hands.

Faith mentally smacked herself. Stupid! She quickly went on, trying to gloss over her mistake. "So, um, how are you…you know…feelin' and stuff?"

Buffy looked back and gave Faith a fake smile. "Good, I'm good." She dropped the smile and said, "Well, not so good really, but you?"

"Good, I'm good," Faith said, fidgeting a bit. "Five by five."

"Good. That's good," Buffy replied, fidgeting just as much. "So…how's patrol?"

"Good. In a way. It's kinda slow, actually. Tonight, anyway."

"Hey, don't complain," Buffy told her. "You'll jinx it and get an apocalypse for sure."

They shared a laugh but then immediately fell into silence. Their eyes darted nervously about the room, refusing to meet the other's gaze.

Ask her, ask her! Buffy's inner voice told her. Buffy frowned but then raised her head and looked at Faith. Just as she was about to speak, Faith beat her to it.

"Well, I'd better get back to it then," Faith announced. Then she turned around and headed for the door.

With a pained expression, Buffy watched her go. Then she called out, "Faith?"

Faith stopped in place, but she didn't turn around. Instead, she spoke over her shoulder. "Yeah?"

With tears welling in her eyes, Buffy said softly in a very choked voice, "I, um, I've missed you."

Faith closed her eyes and swallowed hard. When she opened her eyes again, she said lamely, "Yeah, um, thanks. Gotta go." Without another word, Faith opened the door and left the house, closing the door behind her.

The tears that had formed in Buffy's eyes slid over her lids and spilled down her cheeks. She covered her face with one hand, and after a moment, she pulled it away, wiping at her tears.

"Did you see that?" came Pete's voice as he appeared beside her. "Did you see how fast she wanted out of here? She couldn't stand to be near you. She was just…disgusted by you."

Buffy pulled away from Pete, shaking her head, not meeting his eyes. "No! That's not true."

"Giles had to make her come over here," he went on. "What does that tell you?" He moved closer. "It's bad enough that you're a disgrace to your calling, but then you went and kissed her," he said cruelly. "I'm surprised she didn't just puke right there on the spot!"

Buffy turned and faced Pete, pointing at him desperately. "No, no," she said in denial. "She kissed me back."

Pete just looked at her and shook his head as if breaking some bad news to her.

Buffy turned away and started to cry in earnest. "She kissed me back…" she said in an anguished voice, full of doubt, but wanting so desperately to believe.

Behind her, Pete merely smiled.

The next day, Buffy once again returned to school. She looked even worse than she had before. Her clothes were rumpled, and her hair was a bit flat. Her face was pale and haggard, with dark circles under her eyes. She looked like she was fighting a bad case of the flu and had just dragged herself out of bed to come to school.

More than a few students stared at her as she passed through the lobby. Some even seemed to be whispering about her, as if they had seen her actions the day before. Buffy did her best to ignore them and went on to her classes.

She went through the morning in a kind of distracted withdrawal, speaking to no one unless they spoke to her first, just trying her best to blend in and disappear. When she met Xander and Willow in the lunchroom, they tried to engage her in conversation but couldn't get more than a few words out of her. When lunch was over, Willow and Xander lingered with Buffy outside the cafeteria.

"Buffy, you gonna head to the land o' books with us?" Willow asked.

"Yeah, we can mess with Giles and un-alphabetize the encyclopedias," Xander added, waggling his eyebrows invitingly.

Buffy actually grinned. "Sure, I could use a little…Scott!" Buffy's grin faded to shock as Scott joined the group.

"Scott, hey!" Willow said in a nervous and high-pitched voice.

"Hey man," Xander added.

Scott nodded politely at Willow and Xander but then turned his attention to Buffy. "Can we talk?"

"Um, yeah, sure," Buffy replied, trying not to panic. She turned to Willow and Xander. "I'll see you guys at the library, okay?"

"Okay," Willow said. But she didn't leave until Xander pulled her away.

As her friends left, Buffy dropped her gaze to the floor. "Look, I'm sorry about the other day," she said. When she looked up, she saw Pete standing several feet away. She tried unsuccessfully to avoid being distracted by his presence. "I was just, um, shaken up, a-a-and I know I've been all avoid-y, and I know we need to talk about Homecoming…" She dropped her gaze once again, and there was no hint of enthusiasm in her voice as she continued. "…coordinate colors and all."

"Actually, we don't," Scott said.

Buffy's head shot up. "What?" she asked, confused.

"I lost my two best friends, and you've been avoiding me like I'm the one that did it or something!"

"No, that's not it at all," Buffy tried to explain. "I just –"

"I don't want to hear your excuses!" Scott said hotly. He took a calming breath and then added, "Just…consider yourself uninvited."

At that, Scott walked away, leaving a devastated Buffy behind. When Scott had gone, Pete moved in. He circled menacingly around the distraught slayer.

"One by one…they're all going to abandon you," he told her. "Because you're a freak! A pathetic…failed…freak!"

Buffy flinched at his every word. When she could take no more, she ran away with tears streaming down her face.

Minutes later, Buffy was crying hysterically in the library with Willow and Xander and Giles hovering worriedly nearby. The three couldn't get close to Buffy, however, because she was pacing frantically at the base of the stairs to the stacks. Unseen by the others, Pete stood just a few feet away from where Buffy was pacing.

"It's not fair," Buffy wailed. "All I wanted was a normal life. Is that too much to ask?"

"No, it isn't," Willow said gently.

"Can't have a normal relationship," Buffy went on. "Can't even have a normal date." She stopped pacing, and her face creased into a pleading expression. "Why can't I just go to a dance and for one measly night have everything be perfect? Why?"

"Because you're a failure," Pete stated. "A mistake. A Slayer that should never have been."

Buffy didn't look in Pete's direction, but she did drop her gaze. Xander took a step toward Buffy and started to speak but was cut off.

"Shut up," Buffy said to Pete, but without conviction.

"I haven't said anything yet," Xander pointed out, confused.

"That's why things have gone so badly for you," Pete said. "You and the calling were never meant to be."

"Buffy, things'll get better," Xander said. "You'll see."

"No," Buffy cried, shaking her head, not wanting to believe Pete's words.

"I mean, really," Pete continued. "Do you honestly think you belonged on the list of potential slayers?"

"Xander's correct," Giles told her. "I know that things seem rather bleak at the moment, but I promise you…you won't always feel like this."

"You're a mistake," Pete repeated, his tone becoming harsh and cold. "One that needs to be erased before you kill someone else."

Buffy cringed in guilt.

"Buffy, please…let us help you through this." Giles reached out and put a comforting hand on Buffy's shoulder.

"NO!" Buffy screamed, wrenching away from Giles's grasp. She pushed past her friends, turned, and pointed an accusing finger at them. "You don't understand. None of you understand!" She dropped her hand and just stared at them. "There's nothing you can do…there's nothing anyone can do to make this better! My whole life is going to hurt and suck and end in disaster until I make it stop."

Without another word, Buffy turned and ran from the library. Willow, Xander, and Giles instantly took off after her. They chased her through the school hallways and out the front entrance, but once outside, she quickly outpaced them and left them wheezing and panting at the far edge of the campus.

"Giles! What are we gonna do?" Willow asked in a panic. "She's gonna hurt herself, I just know it!"

"You go to my office and find the locator spell," he told her. "You know the volume. Get as much set up as you can. I'll go to the magic shop and get the additional supplies we'll need." Giles turned to Xander. "You call Faith and get her here. If you can't get her on the phone, then drive to her place and get her."

"Faith?" Xander objected. "She's part of the reason Buffy's in this state."

"Yeah," Willow agreed.

"No, she's not," Giles said firmly. "It's the backlash that's causing all of this. It's taking every negative occurrence in Buffy's life, no matter how small, and blowing it completely out of proportion. The truth is…we need Faith's help. Now, hurry, both of you!"

At that, Willow and Xander ran back inside the school, while Giles headed for his car in the faculty parking lot.

A short time later, Buffy trudged her way up steep, narrow gravel road until she was at a precipice hanging over a rocky canyon far below. The sign nearby read "Kingman's Bluff."

Buffy wasn't crying anymore; instead, she just seemed dead inside. She walked numbly to the edge, a few feet from the brink of a very long drop, and stood there waiting.

Soon Pete walked up behind her. He leaned over and whispered into her ear, "There now…that wasn't so hard, was it?" He moved to stand beside her. "It's for the best really. With you gone, another slayer can be called. One that isn't broken." His voice turned mean. "One that doesn't kill the people she's supposed to be protecting!"

At the library, Willow and Giles were just completing the locator spell. They were standing over the table, watching as a glowing trail of magic indicated a particular spot on the map of Sunnydale.

"We've got it!" Willow cried. "Kingman's Bluff!"

Giles snatched up the radio sitting nearby. "Xander! Faith! It's Kingman's Bluff! That's where Buffy is!"

"That's just a few miles from where I am," Faith said over the radio. "I'm on my way!"

"It'll take me longer," Xander said from his car, "I'm on the other side of town."

"Meet us there," Giles said. "We're leaving now."

At Kingman's Bluff, Buffy was still standing on the edge. Tears were slowly rolling down her face.

"There's nothing for you here, nothing to hold you back," Pete told her. "No duty, no life, no love…"

Buffy put her hands to her face.

Faith had made her way to the gravel road leading up to Kingman's Bluff. She was desperately trying to run up the steep hill, but her injuries were slowing her down. She was limping badly and clutching her side, which was bleeding again.

"Buffy, please don't do it, don't do it," she panted as she ran. "Please don't…"

"Do it!!" Pete screamed.

Buffy dropped her hands. She was crying hard, but forced herself to get it under control. Once she had done so, she took a step forward, resigned to her fate.

Faith poured every ounce of her voice into that call as she tumbled onto the cliff-top, her injured knee finally giving out on her.

Buffy turned around and saw Faith getting back to her feet. But Buffy didn't move or speak.

Practically dragging her injured leg, Faith limped over. "Buffy, please…step back from the edge…let's talk, okay?"

"Don't listen to her!" Pete ordered.

Buffy lifted her eyes to Faith's. "There's nothing to talk about," she said flatly.

"Yes, there is," Faith insisted, moving closer. "We've got unfinished business, you and me."

"It's all finished, all over, everything," Buffy said in a voice devoid of hope.

"No, it's not," Faith countered, still several yards away. Buffy, however, was only a small leap away from the drop.

Buffy didn't answer. She simply turned back around and took one step closer to the edge. Now a mere lean in the right direction would take her over the side.

"No!" Faith called out desperately.

She rushed over as close as she dared, knowing that too much momentum could easily send Buffy or herself or both slipping over the edge. She fell to her knees and skidded the last few feet. Ignoring the searing pain in her knee and side, she reached out with her hand.

"Buffy, please!" Tears were rolling down Faith's face, and her voice caught in her throat as she begged, "Please don't leave me!"

Something about Faith's words – the way they echoed Buffy's earlier ones, the way they came in a voice choked with anguish – made Buffy turn around again. She stared at Faith for the longest time, a mixture of conflicting emotions passing over her face: despair, fear, sadness, anger, hope.

"Don't listen to her," Pete urged. "Just get it over with!"

As Faith held her breath, Buffy continued staring, hovering uncertainly between two decisions. Finally, though, she gave a huge sob and held out her hand toward Faith. She took two stumbling steps before collapsing to her knees. Faith scrambled the few remaining feet between them and pulled Buffy into her arms.

"Oh thank God!" Faith whispered, holding Buffy close and burying her face in the long blonde hair. "Thank God," she repeated.

Buffy didn't speak. She just clung desperately to Faith as the tears came.

Once they had both calmed a bit, Faith pulled away enough to touch Buffy's cheek and to look into her eyes. "I don't know what I would've done if…"

Faith trailed off, unable to complete the sentence. Buffy merely looked imploringly at her and remained silent. Finally, Faith abandoned words entirely and pulled Buffy's face to hers, kissing her warmly, thoroughly, and with all her heart.

When Buffy did the same, Pete's image simply faded away.

Part 7

As Buffy and Faith enjoyed their post-crisis kissage on Kingman's Bluff, two cars roared up the gravel road and into the clearing. Giles, Willow, and Xander piled out and rushed over. When they got to the edge, all three froze in place. They found the two slayers still making out, totally oblivious to their arrival.

Giles squinted and ripped off his glasses. "Good Lord!" he exclaimed.

Willow's eyes widened. She squeaked an "oh" and looked away, but only for a moment. Soon her eyes were drawn back.

"Holy moly macaroni," Xander said, dropping his car keys but never taking his eyes off what he was seeing. "Not the scene I expected to find. My mind went through many and varied scenarios, but I must say…that was not one of them." His lips began to inch up in an involuntary smile.

"I-I-Is this part of the backlash?" Willow asked. "Buffy losing her mind?"

"If so…what a wonderful mind-losing it is…" Xander said, pleasantly entranced. Willow smacked him.

"No, I, um, I don't believe so," Giles said rather prissily, shoving his glasses back on. "I think it's a matter of a whole lot more going on behind our backs than we were made aware of!"

"Darn tootin'," Willow said, equally miffed.

Xander merely snickered, still staring with delight.

Willow smacked him again. "Straighten up, or I'm telling Cordy!" she warned.

Xander cleared his throat and straightened up; then he looked down at his pants. He gave a sheepish giggle, then purposely slouched again. Despite his awkward stance, he managed to put on a stern expression for the kissing slayers.

Suddenly, Buffy and Faith froze, mid-kiss, realizing only just that second that they had an audience. They slowly turned to face the staring trio. They opened their mouths, but no words would come out.

"Faith, what is going on here?!" Giles demanded as he and the others moved closer.

"Uhhh…I saved Buffy," Faith offered awkwardly.

Willow crossed her arms tightly. "Oh, and I suppose that was mouth-to-mouth resuscitation you were giving her just now?!"

"If that was mouth-to-mouth," Xander interjected, "then I have sooo been doing it wrong."

"No, that was kissing," Faith shot back to Willow. "Maybe you should try it some time."

"I-I-I know about kissing!" Willow spluttered, outraged. "Oz and I kiss. Don't we, Xander?"

Xander shrugged apologetically and gave Willow a how-should-I-know look.

"Can we get off the topic of-of kissing, and focus on what's important?!" Giles interrupted. Then he turned to Buffy and asked, "Buffy, are you all right?"

Buffy gave him a solemn nod. "Yes, I'm okay now," she told him, making eye contact with the others as well. "I-I-I don't know how to explain it, but…I feel like myself again."

A sincere look of relief came over the watcher's face. "Good, that's very good. You seemed so…distraught earlier. I'm glad that the, um…mood has finally been broken."

Buffy turned and smiled at Faith. "Thanks to Faith."

Faith smiled back, and for a long moment, the two slayers were locked into each other. Buffy reached for Faith's hand, and Faith let her take it. They took no notice of the others growing increasingly uncomfortable around them.

"Yes, well, um, perhaps we should head back," Giles finally suggested.

"Good idea," Faith said in a tired voice. "I think I need to crash."

"Me too," Buffy agreed wearily.

As the two slayers got to their feet, Faith noticeably favored one leg, but when she tried to straighten up, she groaned in pain and reached for her side.

"Damn," she swore softly.

Buffy immediately went into alarm mode. "Faith, what's wrong?"

"It's nothing," Faith insisted, forcing herself to stand up straight.

It was then that Buffy, as well as the others, could clearly see a large patch of blood staining Faith's shirt along the lower edge of her rib cage.

"Oh my God, Faith, you're hurt!" Buffy exclaimed. "Why didn't you say something?"

Faith gave the blonde an incredulous look. "Like when?"

Buffy ignored Faith's sarcasm and pressed on worriedly. "When did this happen?"

"Night before last, on patrol," Faith answered with a shrug. "It's just a scratch. Messed it up running here, I guess. It's no big deal."

"Faith, you're a slayer!" Buffy said. "If it's still bleeding after two days, it's a big deal. You're going to the hospital." Without allowing time for an objection, Buffy turned to Xander and held out her hand. "Xander…keys!" she ordered in no-nonsense fashion.

Buffy's suddenly commanding tone made Xander instantly comply. He picked up his keys and tossed them over without question.

"Come on," Buffy told Faith, moving into place beside her to lend assistance.

"No. No doctor," Faith said, shaking her head. "I'll be fine. Slayer healing will take care of it."

As Buffy helped Faith walk to Xander's car, the others merely watched, a mixture of emotions on their faces. After the two slayers had gone a few steps, Buffy turned back to the group.

She gave them an apologetic look. "I'll catch you guys later, okay? We can talk then?"

The three gave Buffy a collective nod, not knowing what else to say. Buffy smiled in return and then went back to assisting Faith. Giles frowned a bit until he overheard the slayers as they walked away. Faith was objecting that she wasn't going to the ER, and Buffy of course was insisting the contrary. As the debate between the slayers continued, Giles couldn't help but smile.

A short time later, Willow and Xander were riding back from Kingman's Bluff with Giles. In the front passenger seat, Willow once again had her arms crossed tightly in front of her.

"I can't believe Buffy didn't tell me about her and Faith," Willow pouted. "I mean, this obviously didn't happen just this second. Something's been going on for a while, it had to, but she never said anything. I'm supposed to be her best friend. I'm supposed to know about these things."

"To be fair, she hasn't exactly been herself of late," Giles said. "Not since what happened with Pete." He gave Willow a reassuring smile. "I'm sure she would have told you…had she not been under such stress."

"Why are you worrying about this?" Xander said frantically. "What's past is past. Let's worry about something that really matters. Like my car. Buffy Summers is driving my car."

"You gave her the keys," Giles reminded him.

"Well, she got all commander-y," Xander said defensively. "What was I supposed to do?"

"Stop drooling?" Willow suggested.

Xander shot her a mini-glare.

The crowd at Sunnydale Hospital's emergency room had been surprisingly small, and Faith had been taken back and treated fairly quickly. Buffy had stayed at her side, but the two of them had kept their conversation light, unwilling to have any serious discussion amidst the hustle and bustle of the emergency room.

The doctor had first treated the wound on Faith's side, cleaning and stitching it. Then he had examined Faith's knee. After x-rays and a thorough series of manipulations, he judged it badly strained and bruised, but nothing more. He gave Faith a shot of antibiotics and a tetanus shot then gave her two bottles of pills. One contained a full series of antibiotics, and the other contained a few days' worth of heavy-duty painkillers. Despite her objections, the doctor made Faith take one of the pain pills right then and there.

Once she had done so, he finished up the paperwork and approved the slayer's release. Soon the two girls were on their way out of the hospital.

Within minutes, the two arrived at Faith's motel room. Buffy led Faith inside and helped her over to the rumpled bed. Faith shook her head groggily as she sat down.

"Man…I think that painkiller's kickin' in," Faith said with a slight slur in her voice.

"Good," Buffy said as she began rummaging through Faith's dresser for some fresh clothes. "Maybe it'll…" She turned back to the bed with a t-shirt in her hand and found Faith passed out on the bed. "…knock you out."

Buffy sighed and set the t-shirt aside. She walked over and knelt at Faith's feet. She took off the slayer's boots then gently shifted her legs until Faith was lying in the bed properly. After that, Buffy pulled the thin sheet over Faith's body. When Buffy picked up one of the pillows to place it beneath Faith's head, she found a photograph underneath.

It was the Polaroid of the two slayers dancing at the bar after they had defeated Kakistos. Buffy took one look at the image of herself with the drink umbrellas stuck in her hair and shot a mock glare at the sleeping Faith. Then she chuckled and set the photo aside.

After easing a pillow under Faith's head, Buffy took off her shoes and slipped into the bed on the other side. For the longest time, Buffy just stared, her eyes softening at the sight of the slayer.

God, she is so beautiful, Buffy thought as she pushed a strand of dark hair off Faith's forehead. She gave a small smile then shook her head in disbelief.

Buffy made a mental snort. Okay, stop channeling Sally Field and get real.

She sighed heavily and then continued. Does she like me? Really? She hasn't said. Well, technically I haven't said either, not to her anyway, but…she kissed me, Buffy offered with a hopeful tone. Soon her face creased into a smirk.

Buffy immediately began fanning herself. Is it hot in here, or is it just me? What was I saying? Oh yeah. Faith. Does she like me?

With a kiss like that, I'd have to say that's a definite…She looked over at Faith, and worry crept into her eyes.…maybe?

Buffy groaned in her mind. You're thinking about this too much! she chided herself. Just go to sleep. You can ask her when she wakes up.

At that, Buffy snuggled in close to Faith and rested her hand lightly on the slayer's stomach. Ahhh, much better…She closed her eyes, and it wasn't long before she too was sound asleep.

Several hours later, Faith woke up. She blinked her eyes in slow motion as if she were still somewhat groggy from the pain medication. After several seconds of blinking and a few deep breaths, the fog cleared, and Faith realized where she was: in her motel room, in her own bed, with Buffy curled up next to her.

Faith's gut immediately tightened into a knot as she instinctively reacted in typical morning-after fashion. It took her body a minute or so to catch up to what her brain was trying to tell her. Eventually, she relaxed and allowed herself to enjoy the feeling of Buffy's body next to hers. She leaned down and nuzzled into Buffy's blonde hair. Faith's moment of peace didn't last long; soon her inner voice began badgering her.

What are you doing? the voice asked. Not gettin' comfy, are ya? Cause we don't do all that lovey-dovey bullshit, remember?

Faith let out an annoyed grumble at her inner self.

Look, don't kid yourself, the voice told her. Relationships ain't our thing. You know that.

Faith's expression changed as mere annoyance became serious worry.

You've already gotten yourself in deeper than you should have, the voice went on.

Faith closed her eyes and frowned. "Shut up," she told herself, not realizing she had spoken out loud. Not until Buffy stirred awake beside her.

"Whaaat?" Buffy asked sleepily. "Was I snoring?"

"No," Faith replied quickly. "I was just…never mind."

Now fully awake, Buffy sat up and looked at Faith with concern. "Are you okay?"

"I was just about to ask you the same thing," Faith replied seriously as she also sat up in the bed.

"Hey, I'm not the one who was too 'bad ass' to go to the doctor when she got hurt," Buffy teased.

"No, you're the one who just tried to walk off a cliff, that's all," Faith teased back. Buffy's light expression fell away, and Faith instantly regretted her words. "Shit! I'm sorry…I didn't mean it like that…I was just…" Faith said, trying her best to salvage the conversation.

"No, no," Buffy corrected, nodding her head. "Valid point, I…I did try to do that."

Buffy's face creased into a frown as she remembered the day's earlier events. Faith frowned too as she watched Buffy stare at her hands in her lap, but she didn't speak; she just waited for Buffy to go on. After an eternity of silence, Buffy finally continued.

"I can't explain it," Buffy said softly. "I was just…going crazy, I guess, and I look at it now, and I can't believe that was me. It's like I was under some kind of spell, and then boom! I wasn't anymore." She looked up and met Faith's eyes.

Faith's thoughts went to the backlash curse, but she chose not to mention it. "And now?" she asked.

"I remember how I felt," Buffy replied. "I mean, all that's still there, but…it's not…I don't know." Buffy shook her head in confusion.

"What's still there?"

Buffy took a deep breath and returned her gaze to her hands. "Guilt over killing Pete, for not saving Debbie…what I did to Scott…feeling like I failed Giles, failed my calling…"

"None of that was your fault," Faith said, reaching out to place a comforting hand on Buffy's arm.

"I know," Buffy whispered, not lifting her eyes.

After another long moment of silence, Faith asked, "What else?"

Buffy gave a small shrug and said, "I guess there's some pain in there. It hurt so much when Scott broke up with me."

Faith froze then pulled her hand away. Buffy's head shot up, and she looked at Faith with panic in her eyes.

"Not because I – I mean, he's nice, but I didn't want to be with him. It was you I wanted, but when he – It was too much, I couldn't – Not after you'd just –"

Buffy's frantic babble was cut off when Faith gave her an earnest and passionate kiss. After it was over, Buffy sighed and reluctantly finished her last sentence.

"– left."

Faith's eyes filled with guilt, and she looked away. Buffy dropped her gaze to her hands, and once again, the conversation stalled.

Eventually, Buffy looked up. Her eyes were slightly wet, and she had to clear her throat before speaking, but she made herself go on.

"The other night," she said quietly, "you kissed me like that…like you wanted me too…and then you just left. Why?"

"Why I kissed you or why I left?"

"Both, but mainly why you left."

It took a long time for Faith to answer. "Why do you think?" she finally said with a rueful chuckle. "I was scared. Scared shitless."

"Of what?" Buffy asked. "W-W-Was it because we're both girls…?"

"Hell no," Faith said, smirking a bit. "I've made it with a girl before. More'n one, actually. But never one that I –"

Faith stopped, and Buffy looked at her expectantly. A flash of fear entered Faith's eyes, and she glanced away. When she looked back up, she forced herself to finish.

"– never one that I gave a damn about seein' again after."

At Faith's last line, the two slayers locked eyes for a long moment. Then Faith hung her head, directing her gaze at the bed.

"Hell, I'm probably not makin' any sense at all," Faith said.

"Yes. Yes, you are," Buffy assured her.

"Look, I'm sorry," Faith said, glancing up and taking Buffy's hand in hers. "I didn't mean to hurt you. That's what I was trying not to do. I knew if we got involved, I'd do what I always do – get some and get gone – and you'd get hurt, and I'd feel like shit, and –"

Buffy snatched her hand out of Faith's grasp. An angry expression was on her face. "Is that what you're gonna do? 'Get some and get gone?' Stay with me long enough to bed me and then leave?"

"No!" Faith insisted. "At least I don't think so, I'm not planning to, I don't want to –" Faith clenched her fists in her lap and growled in frustration. "Why is this so fuckin' hard??!!!"

Faith forced herself to take a couple of deep breaths. Then she lifted her head and looked at Buffy intently.

"Listen, B, what I'm trying to say is…for the first time in my life, I don't want to 'get gone'."

She paused and searched Buffy's eyes, but all she saw was a pair of stony walls. Faith shrugged and went on.

"I don't know what that means," she admitted. "All I know is…" She took Buffy's hand again. "…I don't want to be without you."

Buffy's walls slowly crumbled, and her expression softened as tears slipped over her lids. She gave a small laugh and wiped the tears away. Then, in a slightly choked voice, she said, "You know, coming from such a cynic, that was pretty damn beautiful…"

Faith's expression widened into a large smile. "Well, you'll notice I didn't deny still wanting the 'get some' part of the equation…"

"I did notice," Buffy said, laughing but also blushing a little. "And I'm very glad to hear it."

After exchanging playful grins, the two sobered, and Buffy went on. "Faith, I'm just as confused as you are. I don't know how it happened or how it happened so fast. All I know is…when I'm with you, it feels wonderful, and I haven't felt that way in a very long time. I want to see this through, wherever it goes."

Faith nodded in agreement. "Me too."

The two smiled lovingly for a moment then leaned in for a kiss. It was a sweet, slow kiss, full of warmth and gentleness, but it left them no less breathless when it was done.

"So…what are you gonna tell the others?" Faith asked.

Buffy groaned and plopped back against the pillow. "I have no idea. I mean, I'm having trouble explaining it to you. I don't know how I'll explain it to them." Buffy let out a long, deep sigh. "I should call them, though. Set up a time at least."

"Sounds good," Faith replied. "And while you're doing that, I'm gonna grab a shower." She lifted her shirt and sniffed. "I smell like antiseptic."

Faith threw the sheet off and swung her legs over the edge of the bed. When she stood up, a small grunt of pain escaped her lips. Buffy was instantly at her side.

"Are you okay? Do you want me to help you in the shower?" Buffy offered.

Faith's mouth quirked into a sexy grin. "Oh, I want you in the shower all right," she said, grasping Buffy by the hips and pulling her close. She kissed Buffy hungrily, passionately, and Buffy eagerly did the same. After planting a line of kisses along Buffy's neck, Faith breathed into Buffy's ear, earning a small shiver from the blonde slayer. "But…I'd rather be a 100% for that endeavor. Okay?"

Buffy couldn't form words at the moment, so she just nodded vigorously when Faith pulled away and looked at her.

The dark slayer grinned, pleased with the reaction she was getting from Buffy. "Be back soon," she promised.

"Okay," Buffy replied, but in a voice much higher pitched than normal. She was over-nodding again, too.

At that, Faith turned and headed for the bathroom. When Faith had gone in and shut the door, Buffy let out the breath she had been holding. Her face was flushed, and she began to fan herself.

"I think I need a shower, too," Buffy mumbled. "A cold one."

After a final fanning, Buffy headed for the phone to call Giles.

As soon as Buffy hung up the phone from calling Giles, she immediately dialed her mother's gallery. She waited a few rings, and then her mother answered.

"Hi, Mom," Buffy said into the phone.

"Hey, Honey," Joyce answered cheerfully. Then a little worry crept into her voice. "Is everything all right?"

"Everything's fine, Mom," Buffy said. "I just wanted to check in with you, let you know I was okay…"

Just then, the bathroom door opened, and a barely-towel-clad Faith came walking out. Buffy's attention was instantly drawn toward the freshly-showered slayer.

"…I, um, I know you've been, ahem, worried about me, and I wanted you to know that…"

Faith released the towel from her body and tossed it over in the corner beside the small dresser. She pulled out a pair of underwear and started to put them on. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Buffy staring. Faith grinned mischievously and then quite intentionally turned in Buffy's direction, giving her a nearly-full frontal view as she finished pulling on her panties.

Buffy froze for a solid second, almost dropping the phone. Then she rapidly ducked her head so that her gaze was safely averted.

"…I'mfeelingmuchbetter," she said hurriedly to her mother. Then she gave a small, awkward laugh before continuing at a more normal pace. "Much much better. Yeah. Feeling pretty good. Right now. Uh-huh…"

Faith grinned and turned back around to complete the task of getting dressed.

A few seconds later, Buffy finished her call to her mother, making sure that she told her about the meeting with Giles that night. After saying good-bye, Buffy made a point to hang up the phone with a noticeable amount of noise; then she loudly cleared her throat. She waited a full second after that to finally peek up and look in Faith's direction. Finding her mostly dressed with only shirt, socks, and shoes to go, Buffy got up and walked over.

"So…how's your side?" Buffy asked.

Faith turned and examined the wound. "Not bad," she said. "I probably shouldn't have gotten the stitches wet, but hey…not like I'm gonna need 'em for long."

"Do you want another pain pill?" Buffy asked as she pointed out the medicine bottle on the dresser.

"No way," Faith answered as she slipped on her shirt. "That stuff knocked me out."

"No kidding," Buffy teased. "I turned my back for one second, and you were passed out. I had to tuck you in and everything."

"I guess we're even then," Faith teased back. "Miss I-Can't-Hold-My-Liquor."

"Funny you should bring that up," Buffy said pointedly as she stepped back to retrieve something from the night stand. When she turned around, she was holding up the Polaroid from the bar.

Faith tucked her hands in her back pockets and gave a laugh that was only slightly repentant. "Cute, huh?"

"Oh yeah. Love my new fashion accessories," Buffy added, calling attention to the drink umbrellas in her hair. "I suppose there's one for every drink I had?" she asked as she set the picture on the dresser.

Faith shrugged. "Well, not counting the shots…"

Buffy groaned and covered her face with her hands. "God, no wonder everything is a blur from that night."

"So you don't remember anything?"

"Bits and pieces…flashes…" Buffy said. "I kinda remember this one part, but I don't know if it was real or a dream."

"What was it like?"

Buffy's brow creased in thought. "We were sorta…dancing. Outside the bar, though. And you were holding me. Really close…"

Faith pulled Buffy into her arms. "Like this?" she asked, holding her hands firmly at the small of Buffy's back.

"Yeah, like that," Buffy answered slowly, a little huskiness entering her voice.

The two slayers stared at one another for a long time before Faith finally said, "And then what happened?"

"I-I-I don't know, I…" Buffy paused to think. "Sometimes I think we kissed, but…Did we?"

Faith's face spread into a broad grin as if she were going to tease Buffy by not answering, but then she said, "No, we didn't."

"Oh." Buffy seemed disappointed by that response.

"Don't get me wrong," Faith added. "I wanted to." She gave Buffy a full-dimpled smile and a wink. "I mean, who wouldn't?"

When she got a small smile in return, Faith leaned in for a kiss, but Buffy moved her head back and made eye contact instead. "So, why didn't you?" she prompted.

Faith froze for a moment, apparently stumped by the question. She pulled back a bit and looked away. "Uhhh…I don't know…I mean, I could have…but you were all…and I didn't want to –"

It was Faith's turn to have a babble cut off with an embrace as Buffy pulled her close and kissed her soundly.

"Thank you," Buffy said sincerely when they finally separated.

The two then exchanged warm glances, although it was clear from Faith's expression that she wasn't exactly sure what she was being thanked for.

"So…you hungry?" Buffy asked, changing the subject.

Faith smirked widely but chose not to twist the innocent question into more. "Starved," she replied simply before nodding at the door.

About an hour later, Buffy and Faith were at the late-night diner where they had eaten the night of Kakistos. They had pretty much the same fare: cheeseburgers, fries, milk shakes, and more. When they had finished and paid the bill, they leaned back in their booth with satisfied expressions on their faces.

"Man, that was good," Faith said, patting her stomach. "Just what I needed."

"Me too," Buffy agreed. "Oh, don't forget these," she added, pulling a medicine bottle from her pocket. "ER doc said you should start these tonight."

"Oh yeah," Faith said, taking the bottle of antibiotics from Buffy's hand. "Thanks." She twisted off the cap, took out a pill, and washed it down with a big gulp from a mostly-melted chocolate shake. Then she tucked the bottle into her own pocket.

Buffy looked at her watch and then cast a nervous glance at Faith. "It's, um, it's almost time for the meeting. We should – I mean, I should, you know, get going, I guess…" Buffy eased out of the booth and stood up, and Faith did the same. "I mean, you can come…I-I-I wish you would come…but you're probably tired, and-and rest would be good for you right now, so I'd understand if you didn't want to come, but –"

Faith took Buffy's hand to stop her ramble. "I'll come," she said simply.

Buffy's face immediately brightened. "Thanks."

At that, the two left the diner, hand-in-hand.

A short time later, Buffy and Faith were outside Giles's apartment. Buffy hesitated in the alcove, eyeing the door with more than a little unease. When Faith stepped up beside her, Buffy gave an embarrassed laugh.

"Sorry, I-I-I'm a little nervous," Buffy said. "Stupid, huh?"

Faith stood in front of Buffy and put a hand on her arm. "Look, they're your friends, they love you. All they care about is making sure you're okay."

Just then, Xander dashed from the apartment. When Faith turned around, he blurted, "Where is she? Is she all right?" When Faith stepped aside to reveal Buffy, he grabbed the blonde's arms and asked frantically, "Is she still in one piece?"

Buffy rolled her eyes and pointed at the curb outside the complex. Xander rushed out of the alcove toward the street.

"Okay, so much for that theory," Faith quipped.

"Buffy!" Willow said excitedly when she saw her best friend through the doorway. When she stepped outside, she then realized Faith was also there. "A-A-And Faith," she added much less enthusiastically. She turned back to Buffy and smiled again, pulling her friend into a warm hug. "I've been so worried about you, all day." When she ended the hug, she put her arm around Buffy and guided her toward the open front door.

Faith's jaw clenched tightly, but she said nothing as she entered the apartment behind the two friends.

Once they were inside the apartment, Buffy left Willow to greet her watcher, who was standing beside his desk. Giles placed his hand on Buffy's shoulder and smiled at her, but Buffy wasn't satisfied with just that. She wrapped her arms around him, and though a little surprised at first, Giles happily returned the gesture.

Faith and Willow passed by them and each took a seat in the den: Willow in the middle of the sofa and Faith on the loveseat across. The two eyed each other suspiciously but didn't say a word.

"Are you all right?" Giles asked Buffy as they pulled out of their hug.

"I am," she said, nodding with confidence. "Really, I am."

"Glad to hear it," Xander said cheerfully as he shut the door and came over. As Buffy held out the keys, his expression grew serious. He took the keys, tucked them in his pocket, and then grasped both of Buffy shoulders. "Really, I am," he said, repeating her words with total sincerity. "You know that, right?"

Buffy put one of her hands over his and smiled. "I do."

After giving Buffy a big hug, Xander moved into the den and sat on the far side of Willow on couch. When Giles gestured Buffy toward the seating area, Willow expected Buffy to sit next to her, but instead, Buffy headed straight for the loveseat, where Faith sat sprawled with her arms draped across the back. Willow frowned a bit as Faith shifted over to make room for Buffy to sit next to her. Once Buffy was seated, Giles sat down next to Willow. Then all three looked in Buffy's direction and waited.

Before beginning, Buffy looked nervously at Faith. Faith gave her a reassuring smile and touched her back briefly. Buffy took a deep breath and turned back to face the others.

"First, I want to say thank-you for everything you did today. Faith told me how you all rallied to my rescue," Buffy said. "A-A-And I wanted to say thanks, too, for understanding when I just ran off at the bluff without explaining anything." Buffy reached out and touched Faith's leg and shot her a quick glance. "I-I-I was just worried about Faith, and I wanted to make sure she was okay."

"And how are you, Faith?" Giles asked. "What did the doctor say?"

"I'm good," Faith replied. "Got stitched up, got some meds, knee'll heal on its own. Like I said, it's no big deal."

Buffy rolled her eyes and shook her head at Faith's nonchalant attitude toward her injuries.

"Well, good. I'm happy to hear it," Giles said. "You should stay off patrol for another day or so at least, though," he pronounced. Then he added, "Both of you."

It was Faith's turn to roll her eyes, but she didn't object to her watcher's orders. And neither did Buffy.

Giles inched forward on the couch and said, "I, um, I wanted to talk to you, Buffy, a-a-about what happened today. I –"

"I know, I know," Buffy interrupted. "It's crazy. I was telling Faith earlier, I can't believe I did that. It's like I lost my mind or something." Then she promptly clarified, "I don't feel that way now. Crazy, I mean." She sighed and shrugged. "I can't explain it. I don't know why it happened."

"Well, that's what I – we – need to talk to you about," Giles went on. After a short pause, he said, "We know why this happened."

"What?" Buffy said with a confused look on her face. She glanced about the room, making eye contact with each one. "I-I-I don't understand."

"It's because of what happened with Pete," Willow explained. "When you…when you killed him, it…it triggered something."

"A backlash effect," Xander added. "A kind of…guilt curse."

"Yes, it's-it's built into the slayer power itself, you see," Giles continued, "as a kind of, um, safeguard to prevent slayers from using their powers against humans."

"It's what made you crazy, not you," Faith said.

Buffy looked appalled at what they just told her. She got up from the loveseat and walked away. She kept her back to them for a long time before turning back around.

"You knew about this?" she said. "All of you? And you didn't tell me?"

"We wanted to tell you, we did, but we were afraid," Willow insisted. "Afraid that…" She stopped and looked at Giles imploringly.

"…afraid that if you knew about the curse, it would only increase your sense of guilt," he finished for Willow. "That you'd feel that you deserved the curse and whatever consequences it brought."

"We were trying to protect you, Buffy," Xander added. "Slayers who kill humans…well, they don't exactly have a good track record when it comes to beating the backlash. We didn't want to lose you."

Faith leaned forward and rested her arms on her knees. She wouldn't meet Buffy's gaze. "I was supposed to keep an eye on you, but –" Willow and Xander's loud scoffing stopped her. After a brief pause, she went on. "But then things got…" She stole a quick glance at Buffy. "…complicated." She shook her head and looked down at the floor. "And I thought I had screwed things up, so I figured you'd be better off if I left."

"And what a brilliant idea that was," Willow grumbled.

"No kidding," Xander said.

Faith pointed angrily at Willow and Xander. "Look, you weren't there, okay? You don't know what it was like!"

Xander shot a glare at the watcher at the other end of the sofa. "We weren't there because Giles wouldn't let us be there."

At that, everyone but Buffy started into a simultaneous argument.

"Another brilliant idea…" Willow said.

"I didn't let you go because…" Giles began.

Willow scoffed again. "…like Faith would be a good idea."

"Hey!" Faith objected.

"I wanted to go," Xander insisted, "but nooo…"

"…I didn't want to set off Buffy's –"

An ear-piercing whistle from Buffy stopped all four in mid-argument.

"Enough!" she shouted.

Then she glared at each one until they calmed down. When she was sure that they wouldn't pipe up again, she took a moment to calm herself and to gather her own thoughts. She let out a long exhale and then spoke.

"I think I understand why you did what you did. I know you were doing what you thought was right. But you can't keep information like that from me," she told them. "It's hard enough being the slayer when I know everything. So no more secrets, okay?"

Everyone nodded in acquiescence except for Willow. "We weren't the only ones keeping secrets," she pointed out.

Buffy sat down next to Faith again and hung her head. "I know." When she glanced back up, she kept her eyes fixed on Willow. "I would've told you, but…I didn't know what was going on myself." Buffy turned and gave Faith a rueful smile. "Still don't know exactly." Faith returned the smile, and Buffy turned back to the group. "But we're going to find out," she said. "Together."

There was a bit of a warning in that last word as Buffy spoke it. And for a very long series of moments, no one said anything. Then Xander grinned and broke the ice.

"Together," he said rather whimsically. "I like together. Especially the kind of together I saw earlier today. Will we get to see more of – Ooooommpphhh!" Xander cradled his arm against his side where Willow had once again elbowed him. "Jeez, I was just tryin' to lighten the mood."

After a few chuckles, the group sobered again, and Faith turned to Giles. "So…is this backlash thing over now?"

Giles shrugged uncertainly. "I, um, I honestly have no idea. The records didn't indicate any kind of specific timeline. It's possible that the effects might last for weeks, perhaps even years. Buffy herself will probably be the best judge of that." He turned toward the blonde. "Buffy?"

"I definitely feel different now," she answered. "I told Faith I felt like I had been under a spell and that when we were on the bluff it seemed like the spell had been suddenly broken. I guess I was right." She dropped her gaze to her hands. "I mean, I still feel bad about what happened. I don't think I'll ever get that image out of my head." She frowned a bit and then added in relief, "But at least I don't have Pete screaming in my ear any more."

All four listeners blurted "What?" at exactly the same time.

"When things got really bad," Buffy said softly, "Pete was there. N-N-Not 'in my head' there, but 'out here' there. Kind of like a ghost or something." She paused a moment, her eyes filling with pain. "He was taunting me, reminding me of what I had done, blaming me." She hung her head once again. "He told me that I had failed my calling…that I was broken now…that the world would be better off without me."

Anguished expressions crept onto the faces of Buffy's friends as it finally became clear to them the degree of torment Buffy had truly been under the last several days. Faith reached out and took Buffy's hand in hers.

"Buffy, I'm so sorry…" Giles said.

Buffy forced her frown away and looked up, but there were tears in her eyes. She wiped them away and said, "But he's gone now. At least I think he is. I haven't seen him since…" She didn't finish that sentence; she just looked at Faith and smiled.

"If you see any sign of him," Giles commanded, "or experience any hint of what you felt before, you must tell us immediately. Understood?"

Buffy nodded in agreement.

"Good," Giles said. Now satisfied with her compliance, he moved on to a relevant side topic. "Have you, um, have you spoken with your mother yet?"

"I called her after I talked to you," Buffy replied. "Just to let her know I was okay." Alarm suddenly came over Buffy's face. "Does she know about all this too?"

"Yes, I'm afraid so," Giles answered. "Well, about the curse, yes. But not about what happened today, at the bluff."

Buffy let out a breath of relief. "Good. I don't think I'm ready to tell her that part yet. She's worried enough as it is. If I tell her any more, I'll be spending the rest of my senior year under house arrest."

Everyone laughed, and then Willow said, "No kidding. Remember when she grounded you when we were trying to stop the Harvest?"

"Do I ever," Buffy said. Then she sighed and said, "Oh, I'll explain it to her somehow. Without the scary details. And when enough time has passed, like twenty years or so, then I'll tell her what really happened."

"A-A-And what were you just saying earlier about no secrets?" Xander reminded her.

"That was just for us," Buffy said with a hint of a pouty whine. "Moms don't count."

As the meeting fell into pleasant small talk, Willow excused herself to go to the bathroom. When she came out, she found Buffy waiting in the hallway outside.

"Oh, sorry, were you waiting for the bathroom?" Willow asked.

"Um, no, actually I was waiting for you," Buffy replied. "I-I-I was hoping we could talk. You know…just you and me?"

"Okay," Willow said. "Y-Y-You wanna go outside?"

Buffy looked toward the den, turned back to Willow, and said, "Yeah. Maybe we should."

When the two friends had stepped outside into the alcove, they took a seat on the bench nearby and continued their conversation.

"I'm sorry I didn't tell you what was going on," Buffy said, reaching out to touch Willow on the arm. "Since Pete, I just –"

Willow took Buffy's hand in hers. "I get it, Buffy, I do," she said sympathetically. "I just wish I had known what you were going through. It must have been awful."

"It was," Buffy said, dropping her gaze to her hands. When she looked up, she said, "A-A-And the whole thing with Faith got mixed up in all that, so that's why I didn't say anything…I just couldn't."

"But…how did this happen? This thing with Faith?" Willow asked in a whisper. "I mean, since I've known you, you've always…you've never been…you know…so inclined?"

"Believe me, I know," Buffy agreed. "But there it is, and I guess I am, at least with Faith, anyway."

"But, but…Faith?" Willow asked skeptically.

"I know it seems weird, but there's something between us," Buffy said. "And it's…powerful."

"But…Faith?" Willow repeated, still incredulous about the whole matter. "She's about as trustworthy as Ethan Rayne in a chaos shop. She ran out on you, Buffy. When you needed her the most."

"No, honestly," Giles insisted.

Xander and Faith looked at Giles with doubt in their eyes.

"Unicorns are not a fable," the watcher repeated. "They really do exist."

"Unicorns?" Faith asked skeptically.

"I'll prove it," Giles said, rising to his feet. He turned to his bookshelf and began scanning the shelves. "I know there's a reference in the Compendium…"

Both Faith and Xander rolled their eyes and shook their heads. After a few seconds of waiting for Giles to find his reference, Faith glanced worriedly at the front door. Xander noticed, got up from his seat, and joined Faith on the loveseat.

"They're talkin' about you, you know," he said.

Faith dropped her gaze to her hands. "Yeah, I figured." Then she looked at Xander. "I'm surprised you're not out there, jumpin' on the ol' bash-Faith-bandwagon."

Xander shrugged. "Well, I can't say I haven't got reason to," he admitted. "Still more than miffed about the night you left Buffy."

Faith didn't reply. She just nodded ruefully.

"But…the fact of the matter is…you saved Buffy." Xander looked at her intently. "We wouldn't have gotten there in time. And even if we had, I don't know if we could have stopped her. You did, and that's good enough for me."

Faith took that in. Then she grinned and said, "Plus you got to see two hot chicks with superpowers makin' out."

"That was a definite bonus, yes," Xander replied, grinning as well.

"Well, don't expect a repeat performance," Faith teased. "I don't usually work with an audience."

"Oh, just a glimpse every now and then shall be sufficient," Xander said. "I'm sure my vivid imagination will fill in the gaps."

"I'm sure," Faith quipped.

"I, um, I don't understand this," Giles said, having turned around to face Faith and Xander once again. "I was certain I had the proper volume…" Giles seemed quite put out.

Xander and Faith tried not to burst out laughing at the unhappy watcher.

"No, that wasn't her fault," Buffy insisted. "It was my fault. I made her run."

"Oh come on, Buffy! What could you have done to make her run away?" Willow scoffed. "I mean, really…"

"I kissed her."

Willow did a double-take. "W-W-Whaaat?"

"I kissed her." Buffy gave an embarrassed shrug. "I had a nightmare, and she was comforting me, a-a-and I kissed her."

Willow's mouth dropped open. It stayed there for a few seconds and then began to move. "I, uh, ee, oh, um…"

"I think I've rendered you speechless, Will," Buffy quipped. "Either that or you're picking a very strange moment to practice your vowel sounds."

Willow's brain was still struggling to process what Buffy had just told her. It simply did not compute. If anyone was the initiator in this affair, it had to be Faith. Didn't it? "W-W-Well, w-w-what happened?" she finally managed to ask.

"She kinda froze," Buffy answered, "with this look of shock on her face. I got worried. I thought I had totally screwed up. But then…she kissed me back." Buffy's eyes lit up, and her lips skewed into a smirk. "And I mean kissed…me…back," she added, emphasizing each word.

"I-I-It was good?" Willow asked nervously but with more than a little curiosity.

"Ohhh yeahhhh!" Buffy confirmed.

"So, how did you get from you thinking 'oh yeah!' to her going 'I'm outta here!'?"

"She just freaked," Buffy said. "She shoved us apart, backed away from me toward the door, and just ran. Of course, the state I was in, her leaving was like…my world was coming to an end." Buffy's expression became pained. "And the things Pete said to me…"

Willow gave Buffy's hand a squeeze. "But she still ran," she pointed out. "Doesn't that bother you?"

"Maybe a little, but she explained why she freaked, and I understand where she was coming from."

Willow didn't look convinced, but she chose not to press the matter further.

Just then, Faith came out of the apartment. She approached cautiously and said, "Hey, you ready to go? You said you wanted me to walk you home."

"Yeah, um, sure," Buffy said. "Let me say bye to Xander and Giles, and I'll be right out."

At that, Buffy went inside, leaving Faith and Willow alone. The two made darting glances at one another but didn't speak. At least not until Willow began eyeing Faith with suspicion once again.

"You got something to say, Red?" Faith finally asked, turning to face Willow.

"I sure do," Willow said, turning to confront Faith. "If you hurt her, I will beat you to death with a shovel. Got it?"

Faith's eyes widened, and her mouth opened slightly. She couldn't believe the mousy redhead was actually threatening her. She was even more surprised when Willow didn't back down. Instead, Willow gave Faith one final glare and stomped inside.

"Damn," Faith said, impressed.

Within seconds, Buffy came back outside, having made all of her good-byes to the other Scoobies. Then they two of them headed down the steps from Giles's apartment.

"So…that went pretty well," Faith commented as they reached the sidewalk at the curb and started toward Buffy's house.

"Yes, it did," Buffy said with a smile. Then she sighed and added, "Only one more hurdle to go."

"Mom?" Faith inquired.

"Yep."

"Piece o' cake," Faith said as she wrapped her arm around Buffy's shoulders.

"That's easy for you to say," Buffy replied.

"It is, isn't it?" Faith shot a smirk in Buffy's direction.

Buffy rolled her eyes, but then she quickly put her own arm around Faith's waist, and the two slayers walked down the street together.

After leaving Giles and the others, Buffy and Faith headed toward Revello Drive. Holding hands, they walked very slowly, intentionally prolonging their time together. They didn't speak of the day's events; instead, they made light banter and simply enjoyed each other's company.

When they reached the Summers home, they stopped on the sidewalk out front, reluctantly releasing each other's hands. Faith tucked her hands into the back pockets of her pants and struck a laid-back pose. Buffy fidgeted and swung her arms a few times before finally hitching her thumb over her shoulder.

"Well, this is it," she said. "My house. Where I live."

"Yeah, it sure is," Faith said, going along with Buffy's statement of the obvious.

Buffy twisted her hands nervously. "I'd, um, I'd invite you in, but I kinda need to have that 'Mom talk' I mentioned."

Faith shrugged nonchalantly. "No big. I get it."

"Good," Buffy said, letting out a relieved breath. "I didn't want you to think I was blowing you off or anything. 'Cause I'm not…it's just…Mom doesn't know what's happened…with the curse o-o-or with us and…I need time to explain it all."

"Like I said, I get it."

"Thanks," Buffy said as she gave Faith's arm a grateful squeeze. Then she looked down at her hands. "To be honest, I wish I could just skip the 'Mom talk' and go directly to the 'snuggle with Faith' part."

Faith's lips curved into a smirk. "Is that right?" she asked before reaching out and pulling the blonde into her arms. They stood close, resting their hands at each other's hips.

After a shy pause, Buffy said with confidence, "Absolutely." Then she leaned in for a kiss.

It started slowly, warmly, sensuously, but soon it became something more – something powerful and passionate, something that wouldn't stand for still hands. When the two slayers separated moments later, both were breathing heavily.

Buffy managed a chuckle and said, "You know…you are really good at that."

Faith flashed her a full-dimpled grin. "I got the maaaad skiiiiiillls." Then she gave Buffy a nod of approval. "You're pretty good yourself."

Buffy blushed and ducked her head. "Really?"

"Hell yeah!" Faith confirmed without hesitation, earning her a smile from Buffy.

After a long gaze between them, Buffy eventually pulled away. "I'd better get inside," she said, taking a backward step toward her house. "See you tomorrow?"

"Sure. I'll stop by the school."

"Okay. I'll see you then. Have a good night."

"You too."

They both hesitated, not really parting, until Buffy finally turned and walked to the front door. After unlocking her door, she looked back and saw Faith waiting. The two exchanged quick waves, and then Buffy went inside.

Once she had locked the front door, Buffy went upstairs to find her mother. When she got to the top of the stairs, her mother's bedroom door opened, and Joyce stepped into the hall.

"Buffy, thank goodness," Joyce said. "I was just about to call Rupert and tell him to send you home."

Buffy made a pouty frown. "Mommmm…"

"No, I don't like the way he monopolizes your time," she stated firmly. "It's slayer this and slayer that. You need time to rest." She reached out and caressed her daughter's hair. "Especially after what you've been through."

Buffy smiled, and the two moved into a long, warm hug. When they pulled away, Buffy looked her mother in the eyes.

"I know you've been really worried about me," she assured her, "but I'm okay now. That backlash thingee I was under…I think it's broken."

Joyce's expression became worried. "You know about the curse? But Rupert said that –"

"I know," Buffy explained. "He was just trying to protect me. But I kinda had a breakthrough today, and after that, he figured it was okay to tell me. That's what we were talking about tonight, actually."

"A breakthrough? I don't understand."

"I got really upset at school, a-a-and I kinda freaked and ran," Buffy said. When she saw the alarmed look on her mother's face, she quickly continued. "But Faith found me and talked to me, and after that, I just…felt 'right' again."

Joyce folded her arms tightly. "Faith?" she asked, her voice dripping with skeptical sarcasm.

Buffy sighed. "You sound like Willow."

"Do you blame me?" Joyce countered. "She was supposed to be watching over you, and she left."

"I know," Buffy admitted. "But that wasn't her fault." Joyce merely rolled her eyes in disbelief. "Please…just trust me on this, okay?"

Joyce didn't look the least bit convinced. "So she just 'talked' to you, and suddenly you were all better?"

"Well, not 'suddenly'," Buffy pointed out. "Not instant-like or anything. It took some…very special…" She paused to consider how to word the next part. "…persuading," she finally said. "Eventually, though, it sank in, and I got it, and I felt like a burden had been lifted off my shoulders." Buffy shrugged. "I can't explain it. I think it must be some kind of 'slayer bond.' All I can say is…Faith reached me when no one else could."

Joyce still seemed doubtful, but her eyes softened a bit. "So…you really think it's gone…it's broken?"

"Yes, I do," Buffy told her.

Joyce pulled her daughter into another hug and kissed her on the top of her head as she tightly held her. "I was so worried," she said, "and I felt so helpless."

"I think we all did – me included," Buffy answered. "But I guess it just had to run its course. Like a fever or something."

When mother and daughter moved out of their hug, Buffy took a step toward the bathroom. "It's been a long day," she said. "I'm just gonna grab a shower and hit the sack."

"Sleep well, honey," Joyce said. "And sweet dreams."

Buffy gave a rueful laugh. "Let's hope so."

At that, Joyce returned to her bedroom, and Buffy headed for the bathroom.

A short time later, after she had finished her shower, Buffy returned to her room and got dressed for bed. When she turned away from her dresser, she suddenly heard a tapping at the window. Tugging down on the hem of her nightshirt, she cautiously approached. When she peeked around the curtain, she saw Faith on the other side of the pane, kneeling on the roof of the house. Buffy's eyes lit up in surprise, and she instantly opened the window.

"Faith!" she chided. "How did you get up here?"

"I'm a slayer, remember?" Faith quipped as she crawled inside the window.

"A slayer with a strained knee! Not to mention thirty-something stitches in her side," Buffy scolded. "You're supposed to be taking it easy, not scaling houses in the middle of the night."

Faith shot her an unrepentant smirk. "In case you hadn't noticed, I don't always do what I'm supposed to."

"Yeah, I had noticed that," Buffy replied as she closed the window.

"Admit it," Faith teased. "You're glad I'm here."

Buffy couldn't contain her smile. "I am," she said. Then she glanced worriedly at her bedroom door. "But what if my mom finds you in here?"

Faith gave a big shrug. "We'll just tell her it's another 'slayer sleepover'."

Buffy rolled her eyes, walked to the bedroom door, and locked it.

"What?" Faith asked with a grin. "She didn't have a problem with it the last time I was here."

Buffy let out a deep sigh as she walked back to Faith. "That was before."

Faith lost the grin. "Before I ran out on you, you mean," she stated evenly.

"Well, yeah," Buffy confirmed, "but I was thinking more like…before she knew we were seeing each other."

"So you told her?"

Buffy shook her head. "No, not yet." She let out another sigh. "I'm still working on the 'I'm really okay now' part and the 'Stop blaming Faith' part."

"Oh." Faith dropped her gaze to her hands. "She's pretty mad, huh?"

"Yeah," Buffy answered with a nod. "But…she's getting there. It's just gonna take a little time." Buffy reached out and put her hand on Faith's arm. "I didn't tell her about us because I think she's got all she can handle right now. I'll give her a day or two to let all that other stuff sink in, and then I'll break the news."

"How do you think she'll take it?" Faith asked, finally looking up.

"Don't have a clue," Buffy confessed. Then she put on a smile. "But you know…my last significant other turned out to be a hundreds-year-old homicidal vampire, so…"

Faith laughed. "True. Guess I gotta like my odds against that."

Buffy walked over to the bed and turned back the covers. "So…you gonna join me for our 'sleepover'?"

"Only if you promise not to braid my hair or give me a magazine makeover," Faith said.

"Don't worry," Buffy chuckled. "I think you're safe."

As Faith started pulling off her boots, Buffy went back to her dresser and got out the same big t-shirt that Faith had worn the last time she had stayed with Buffy. She walked over to Faith and handed it over.

"I hope you washed it," Faith teased. "All that drool last time…"

Buffy swatted Faith's arm. "Hey, you're lucky I don't make you sleep naked."

"Oh, you wish!" Faith needled.

Buffy blushed furiously, cleared her throat, and blurted, "Never mind." Then she scurried back to her nightstand to switch on the bedside lamp. After that, she turned off the overhead light and returned to the bed – all without glancing in Faith's direction.

Faith snickered to herself, set aside the borrowed t-shirt, then started to pull her own shirt off. When a sharp sting shot through her side, she hissed in pain, which caused Buffy to rush over.

"See?" Buffy chided. "You hurt yourself getting up here, didn't you?"

Faith scoffed and shook her head as she tossed her shirt to the floor. "It just hurts when I move certain ways sometimes." She leaned aside to allow Buffy to see the stitched area. "I'm fine," she insisted. She felt Buffy reach out and gently place her hand on the wound. She expected it to hurt, but she found the touch to be surprisingly warm and soothing.

Buffy frowned and looked at Faith. "I'm sorry," she told her. "I should've been with you. You wouldn't have gotten hurt if –"

"Stop," Faith said, turning to take Buffy's hands in hers. "No more o' that, okay? The guilt trip ends here."

Buffy just stood there blinking for a long moment before finally nodding. "Okay," she whispered.

Faith released Buffy's hands. While Buffy returned to the bed, Faith finished undressing. After she had put on the borrowed t-shirt, Faith joined Buffy in bed. Buffy leaned over to switch off the lamp; then she turned back over to lie facing Faith. With the faint light from outside, the two could still clearly see each other. They were close, within touching distance, but not snuggling. It was a long time before one of them finally spoke.

"What a day, huh?" Buffy commented.

"Uh, yeah," Faith deadpanned.

"Went from being the worst day of my life – almost the last day of my life, in fact – to being one of the best days."

"One of the best, huh?" Faith asked. "Hmmm…emergency room fun, group intervention with Giles and friends, and mega-talk with mom…yeah, that's my idea of a good day."

Buffy refused to be swayed by Faith's sarcasm and continued insistently. "Know why it was one of the best?"

Faith just looked at her without answering.

"Cause I was with you," Buffy said sincerely.

Faith felt a slight blush creep into her cheeks, and she looked away. When she glanced back up, Buffy gave her a warm but very sweet kiss. When they pulled apart, Faith cleared her throat and changed the subject.

"Hey…did you know that Giles believes in unicorns?"

"What?" Buffy replied incredulously.

"Yep. When you and Willow went outside to talk, he tried to convince me and Xander that unicorns were real."

"No way!"

"He even tried to look it up in his books to prove it," Faith said. "Couldn't find it, though."

Buffy grinned mischievously. "Oh, I am soooo gonna tease him about that."

"You should get him a unicorn paperweight or something," Faith suggested.

"I should," Buffy replied, pleased with that idea.

An awkward silence entered the conversation. But Faith soon broke it. "So…ummm…what did you and Willow talk about?" She hoped her question had sounded nonchalant.

Buffy's teasing grin told her it hadn't. "What do you think we talked about?" Buffy countered.

"I'm guessing me."

"And me," Buffy answered with a nod. "You me and me me. The whole 'us' thing. You know…how it happened, why I didn't say anything, and did I really know what I was getting into."

Faith didn't reply. She just listened.

Buffy laughed as she recalled the earlier discussion. "She totally freaked when I told her that I kissed you first."

Faith grinned at that. "Yeah?"

"Totally," Buffy confirmed. "It reduced her to vowel sounds." Then she paused to think about the matter more deeply. "I don't think she expected that."

"I sure as hell didn't," Faith interjected. When she realized how her words might have sounded, she instantly began correcting herself. "I mean, I knew that something was happening. I felt it."

"I did too," Buffy added.

"But you were – And I was –" Faith stopped and let out a long breath and then started over. "When you went to kiss me, my brain kept screamin' at me to stop you, to not let you do it, but the truth is…I didn't want to stop you. I didn't want to stop myself either."

"But you did," Buffy said softly, with a little hurt in her voice. "You stopped it." You definitely stopped it, she thought sadly to herself.

"Yeah…too late, though. Then I just fuckin' panicked. Jesus…" Feeling guilty and embarrassed, Faith ran her hand through her hair and looked away. "I made everything worse. Willow and Xander…they should be mad at me."

"They're not mad…" Buffy said, trying to be consoling. When Faith pinned her with a stare, Buffy added, "…much."

Faith scoffed loudly. "Maybe not Xander," she said, "but Willow? She threatened to beat me to death with a shovel if I hurt you."

Buffy's eyes widened in total surprise.

"And she wasn't kidding either," Faith went on. "Red's got guts, I give her that."

"She's just being protective," Buffy said, once she had gotten over her shock. "You know…best friend duties and all."

Faith didn't reply. She just nodded, not really very comforted by Buffy's explanation. Buffy tried again.

"She's just worried."

Faith looked away. "About what?"

Buffy hesitated at first. She didn't want to say anything to hurt Faith, but at the same time, she wanted to be honest about Willow's fears – and her own.

"I think she's afraid that…" Buffy lowered her gaze. "…that you're gonna run out on me." She looked back up and searched Faith's eyes. Are you? she asked Faith silently in her mind as she held her breath and waited.

Faith felt her stomach twist into a knot under Buffy's stare. She felt her internal voice begin to nag her. Don't make promises you can't keep, it told her. You know how you are. You don't know where this is going.

Faith took a deep breath and looked into Buffy's eyes. The more she stared, the more she felt her inner voice fade away. "I'm not going anywhere," she told Buffy before moving over to give Buffy an earnest kiss.

After the brief kiss, Buffy let out the breath she had been holding, and it very nearly came out as a sob. She wrapped her arms around Faith and pulled her close. Faith returned the embrace, and the two of them lay warmly entwined until exhausted sleep finally overtook them.

The next morning when Buffy woke up, she found herself being spooned by Faith. The dark slayer was snuggled against her back and had her arm draped over Buffy's side.

Buffy smiled and sighed, basking in the sense of safety and contentment she felt at being wrapped in Faith's embrace. She liked this feeling; she liked it a lot. Plus, for the first time in several days, she had slept the whole night through without a single nightmare. And that was definitely a good thing.

Buffy smiled again and then very carefully turned over. Despite Buffy's repositioning, Faith remained asleep. Buffy reached out and gently moved a strand of dark hair aside so that she could see Faith's face more clearly. She studied her features as if awestruck, as if she were seeing them for the first time, as if she wanted to memorize every part of them: the long dark lashes of her eyes, the slight hint of a cleft in her chin, the full red lips. Just as Buffy felt a lump form in her throat, her reverie was interrupted by a voice.

"Take a picture," Faith mumbled with her eyes still closed. "It'll last longer." Then she opened her eyes and grinned.

Buffy grinned back and said, "If I had a camera handy, I would. I'll have to settle for a mental snapshot."

Faith ran her hand through her bed-head hair. "Gettin' me back for that bar picture, huh?"

"No, I'm reserving that revenge for a later date," Buffy promised. Then she added, "This is just me liking what I see. Ha! And I even rhymed when I said it."

Faith snorted and rolled her eyes. "You're goofy in the mornings."

"At least I'm not grumpy," Buffy countered, giving Faith a nudge.

"Who you callin' grumpy?" Faith threatened. "I'll show you grumpy."

Faith began to tickle Buffy, making her squeal and laugh. Buffy fought off the attacking hands and managed to throw back the covers and jump out of bed. Faith quickly crawled across the mattress and grabbed the blonde before she could fully escape, and the two of them ended up in a tangle on the floor. Faith got in a few extra tickles before finally straddling one of Buffy's legs and pinning her arms above her head.

Buffy giggled once or twice more, then found herself mesmerized by the look that Faith was giving her. It was a smoldering stare that made Buffy flush with excitement. Her heart began to race, and her breathing became rapid and shallow.

Without releasing Buffy from her stare, Faith slowly slid her body down Buffy's and then just as slowly slid it back up again. She held her face directly over Buffy's and said, "Still think I'm grumpy?"

Buffy didn't answer. Instead, she wrested one of her arms free and yanked Faith down into a crushing kiss, which Faith eagerly returned. She released Buffy's other arm and pulled the blonde up to sit in her lap, wrapping her arms around the smaller slayer's body. They kissed again and again – deeply, urgently – with their hands roaming, along arms and over shoulders and down t-shirt-clad backs, before sneaking under shirttails so that fingers could touch skin.

When they finally pulled apart to catch their breath, Faith whispered huskily, "I want to see you…touch you."

Buffy froze, and Faith instantly felt the tension in Buffy's body. Faith put a little more distance between them, but she kept her eyes on Buffy, trying to gauge her reaction. Faith waited a few moments, and when the heat between them didn't dissipate, she took off her own shirt and tossed it aside.

Buffy swallowed hard then shyly looked down at Faith's bare chest. Her heart rate immediately kicked up a notch. She was breathing hard when she looked back up and met Faith's eyes. She saw intense desire there, but no pressure, no judgment. Buffy gave Faith a small, vulnerable smile and then slowly pulled her own shirt off.

Faith returned the smile; then she dropped her gaze to Buffy's breasts. She stared at them appreciatively for quite a long time. To Buffy, it seemed like an eternity of staring, but she resisted the urge to cover up during Faith's scrutiny. Finally, Faith looked back up and gave Buffy a sexy smirk.

"This is me liking what I see," Faith said, her eyes sparkling.

Buffy laughed in relief, but only for a moment, before Faith planted a hungry kiss on Buffy's lips. They kissed passionately, over and over, letting their hands now run freely over each other's bare skin, their fingertips leaving trails of fire everywhere they went.

When Faith left Buffy's mouth, she took her kisses to Buffy's collarbone and then up the blonde's slender neck. Buffy gave a shiver and leaned her head back, sinking her hands into Faith's long hair.

"Oh God…" she moaned when Faith's hand touched her breast.

Faith softly caressed the breast several times, then gave it a squeeze as she lightly bit into Buffy's neck – not enough to cause pain or even to bruise the skin, but enough to render Buffy incapable of forming words. The blonde was able to make only a strangled groan as she pressed her hands against the back of Faith's head as an encouragement to her to continue exactly what she was doing.

"What the hell is going on here?!!!"

At the sound of Joyce's angry voice, Buffy and Faith instantly separated. The two slayers had been so caught up in each other that they had not heard Joyce knocking at the door and then opening it. When they saw Joyce scowling furiously at them, they immediately snatched up their shirts and put them back on.

They nervously shot guilty glances at one other and at Joyce until Buffy finally attempted to answer her mother's question. "Uhhh…I…we…uhhh…"

When Faith saw Buffy floundering, she tried to step in. "Yeah, we…ummm…we were just –"

"Wrestling!!!" Buffy suddenly blurted out, interrupting Faith. "A-A-As in the…Greek fashion," she went on awkwardly. "Hence the…mostly nakedness and the…" She growled in frustration and dropped the guise. "You're not buying any of this, are you?"

Joyce gave her daughter a harsh glare as an answer and then turned her attention to Faith. "How could you do this?!" she accused. "First you run out on her and then you try to…to…seduce her?! What kind of a person are you?!!"

"Mom, no! It's not like that," Buffy insisted, getting to her feet.

Joyce ignored Buffy's pleas and stayed focused on Faith. "I want you out of my house. Right now!"

Faith didn't say a word. She just got up and walked over to where her pants were lying on the floor. She picked them up and started pulling them on.

"No, no," Buffy said to her mother before backing up to talk to Faith. "Please…don't go," she told her.

Faith glanced at Joyce then back to Buffy. "I think I better." When she saw the distraught look on Buffy's face, she added softly, "I'm not 'leaving.' I'm just leaving here. I'll catch you at school later, okay?"

Buffy still seemed unhappy, but she whispered "okay" back anyway.

Once Faith had fastened her pants, she grabbed her boots and other clothes and headed out the bedroom door. Buffy watched her go, but as soon as Faith was out of sight, Buffy turned on her mother.

"Why did you do that?!!" Buffy demanded.

"This is my house, young lady," Joyce shot back. "And I'll decide who stays in it and what's…what's…" She paused, trying to come up with the right words. "…done in it!" she finished.

"But –"

"NO!!!" Joyce said sharply, cutting off Buffy's objection. "This is not open for debate!" She pointed toward Buffy's dresser. "Now get dressed and get to school," she ordered. "We'll talk about this when I get home from the gallery."

At that, Joyce stomped from the room and slammed the door, leaving a stunned Buffy behind.

Part 10

After parting ways with her furious mother, Buffy rushed to school. She hurried down the hallway toward the library. When she pushed open the double doors, she found Willow at one of the tables, dutifully studying before class.

"Oh, Willow, thank god you're here," Buffy said as she joined Willow at the table, dropping her bag on its wooden surface.

Willow looked up and saw a very upset Buffy in front of her. "What is it?" she asked worriedly. "What's wrong?"

"Something happened," Buffy replied. "With me and Faith."

"I knew this was gonna happen! I knew we couldn't trust her!" Willow exclaimed angrily. "What did she do?!" she demanded, leaning aggressively forward on the table.

Despite her distress, Buffy's lips curled into an amused grin. "Hold on there, Will. Don't get out your shovel yet."

Willow sat back in her chair and crossed her arms. "No thank you," she said resolutely. "I think I better hang onto it." She quickly uncrossed her arms and leaned forward again, though this time with curiosity and concern. "Seriously, what happened?"

Buffy rested her arms on the table. "Well, after Faith walked me home, I went inside and talked to my mom. I told her that I was okay and that the curse seemed to be broken and that Faith had been an important part of that."

Willow lifted a skeptical brow at that.

"Yeah, she took it about as well as you did," Buffy said, giving Willow a look. Then she went on. "I didn't tell her about me and Faith yet. Figured I'd give her a couple of days before I dropped that bomb on her."

Willow nodded her head in approval.

"Anyway, after the talk, she went to bed, I took a shower and went back to my room. When I got inside, Faith was at the window. I let her inside, and…well…she spent the night with me."

Surprised, Willow lowered her tone. "You snuck her into your room, and she stayed the whole night?"

Buffy gave a small nod and then shrugged. "Neither one of us had really wanted to say goodnight earlier, and we had a lot to talk about." After a brief pause, she continued. "So anyway, we got dressed for bed and turned in. We talked for a while, and then we went to sleep."

Willow pinned Buffy with a glare of doubt.

"Yes, we really did go to sleep," she told Willow firmly. "But this morning when we woke up, we were kinda fooling around, and things got…" Buffy blushed deeply. "…hot."

Willow swallowed noticeably. "H-H-How hot are we talking here?"

Buffy ducked her head for a moment and said, "Ummm….so hot that we were mostly clothes-less?"

Willow's eyes got really wide.

Then they heard a loud thud coming from the stacks above them. They turned in that direction.

"Giles?!" Willow called out in alarm.

A sheepish voice drifted from the stacks. "Sorry. Dropped a book. A very large book. Sorry to have startled you."

A look of outrage came over Buffy's face. "Were you eavesdropping?!"

Giles came to the railing above the girls. "Certainly not!"

Willow and Buffy gave him a look of disbelief.

"Not intentionally anyway," he corrected.

Willow and Buffy glared at him.

"It's not my fault that voices carry in here," he justified.

Willow and Buffy rolled their eyes and turned back to each other. Giles slipped back into the stacks. Willow and Buffy leaned closer and spoke in a slightly lower tone.

"So what happened? Did things get weird or something?" Willow asked. Anger flashed in the witch's eyes, and she leaned forward again. "Did she hurt you? Did she try to make you do something you didn't want to do?"

Appalled, Buffy said, "No! It was nothing like that." Then she smiled, a glow spreading over her face. "It was wonderful, actually." Her smile became a naughty grin as she added, "And good."

"So what went wrong?" Willow suddenly reached across the table and grabbed Buffy's hand. "She didn't go evil, did she?"

"No!" Buffy instantly denied. Then her tone became chiding. "Willow!"

Willow gave an embarrassed chuckle. "Sorry, ha…it's just…ha…um…" She cleared her throat and said, "You were saying?"

Buffy took a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Mom found us."

Willow gasped, lifting her hand to cover her mouth.

"She came in my room, and she saw us," Buffy said ruefully. "In the flesh. Yep, doin' the flesh thing."

"Dear Lord!" came Giles's distressed voice from the stacks.

It was quickly followed by a small crash that sounded like an avalanche of books. Buffy looked up at the railing.

"Not to worry…I'm all right," they heard the watcher say.

Buffy sighed and ignored Giles. Willow stayed focused on Buffy.

"What happened? What did she do?"

"What do you think she did?" Buffy replied. "She completely freaked. I mean, she just got an eyeful of me and Faith rounding second base in the middle of my bedroom floor. She –"

"Oh. My. God."

Willow paid no mind to the interruption; she merely stared off with a puzzled expression on her face. Buffy, however, let her shoulders slump and then turned toward the shocked voice. She found Cordelia and Xander standing a few feet away. Cordelia tilted her head in Buffy's direction.

"Did I just hear that correctly?" Cordelia asked pointedly, her eyes shining.

"I sure hope so," Xander added, grinning unrepentantly.

Buffy dropped her head into her hands.

Willow seemed to be still picturing the bedroom scene. "You were on the floor?" she asked, confused. "Why were you on the floor?"

"Who was on the floor?" Oz asked as he joined the group at the table.

"Buffy and Faith," Cordelia immediately answered, savoring the juicy gossip. "They were totally indulging in some shared slayer lust when her mother came in and found them."

Oz thought about that a second, his expression never changing. "Oh. Okay."

Buffy groaned loudly and dropped her head to the table. Somebody shoot me, she thought to herself.

Cordelia turned to Buffy. "Are you two a couple?" She didn't wait for an answer; instead, she turned to the others. "When did this happen? Why am I just now hearing about it?"

"Sorry," Xander said. "I haven't had time to tell you."

"You knew about this?" she accused.

"Well, it only just happened yesterday," he explained.

"Yesterday?" Cordelia turned back to Buffy. "Boy, you two sure are workin' fast, aren't you?"

"Too fast," Willow added emphatically.

Buffy suddenly straightened up and smacked her palms on the table. "Okay, that's enough." She got to her feet. "I'm leaving now. You'll be able to hash out my utter humiliation much better if I'm not here."

Buffy grabbed her book bag and angrily walked off.

Willow stood up, concerned about her friend. "Buffy? We didn't mean to –"

Buffy didn't even look back. She just waved her hand in a save-it gesture and kept walking.

Just then, Faith came into the library. When she saw how upset Buffy was, she reached out and stopped her. "What's wrong?"

"You mean other than what happened with my mother this morning?!" Buffy shot back. "Ask them!" She pointed back at the Scoobies and then stomped out, leaving a confused Faith behind.

Faith hesitated, not sure whether to follow Buffy or not. As Giles made his way down from the stacks, Faith finally walked over to the Scoobies, who were sporting a mixture of expressions.

Giles seemed nervous. Willow looked guilty. Cordelia was in defensive denial. Oz was…well…Oz. Xander looked afraid.

"What the hell is going on?!" Faith demanded as she scanned the group.

Angry slayer, angry slayer! Must flee! Xander thought to himself. "Nothing!" he blurted when Faith's glare landed on him. His eyes darted around the room. "We were just…" He grabbed Cordelia's arm. "Leaving!"

"No, we weren't," Cordelia said. "I want to hear what – Oooohhh!"

Cordelia couldn't finish her statement because Xander dragged her away.

Oz looked at Willow, and Willow gave him a nod. At that, Oz left the library. Willow then turned to Faith. "Buffy was talking about what happened this morning."

"She told all of you?" Faith demanded.

Giles awkwardly dropped his gaze to the floor. "No, not exactly. She, um…"

"She told me," Willow said, shooting a glare at the librarian. "Giles eavesdropped."

"I did not eavesdrop," Giles said in useless denial. "I-I-I merely overheard. By accident."

Willow shook her head and went on. "The rest just blundered in on the whole thing."

"Oh," Faith said. After a brief pause, she asked, "So…Buffy…she's upset?"

"Well, yeah! Do you blame her?" Willow shot back, taking a step in Faith's direction. "For God's sake, Faith, what were you thinking?!"

Faith flinched under the sudden attack.

"Did you want her to get in trouble? Is that it?" Willow accused. "Or are you so gung-ho on earning another conquest that you don't even care what happens to Buffy?"

Faith's eyes blazed as she turned to confront Willow. "Another conquest? Is that what you think I'm doing with Buffy?"

Willow didn't back down. She crossed her arms tightly. "You tell me."

Faith didn't answer right away. She just fumed for a moment. "I don't have to tell you anything!" she finally spat back. "What happens with me and Buffy is between me and Buffy. Got it?"

"Fine!" Willow said before stomping off in a huff.

A few steps later, she realized she had left all of her books on the table. Refusing to be embarrassed about the mistake, she walked purposefully back to the table, slammed her open book shut, and scooped her things into her book bag. Once she had swung her pack onto her shoulder, she looked right at Faith.

"Fine!" she repeated and then stormed out of the room.

Once Willow had left, Giles and Faith were alone. Neither spoke for a long time. They just stood in awkward silence, lost in their own thoughts. Eventually, Giles turned his gaze to Faith. She glanced his way briefly then sighed and ran her hand through her hair.

"Looks like I messed things up again," she said wearily.

Giles looked on sympathetically and simply waited for her to go on.

"I think I left the door unlocked," she explained in a quiet voice.

"The bedroom door, you mean?" he asked.

"Yeah," Faith answered sadly. "When I got up to go to the bathroom in the middle of the night." She shook her head disgustedly. "If I hadn't done that, then Buffy's mom wouldn't have been able to come inside and catch us."

"It was a simple accident, Faith," Giles told her. "Nothing more."

Faith wouldn't meet his eyes.

Giles tried again. "What happened between you and Buffy was something you both wanted, was it not?"

Faith looked up and nodded.

"Then you mustn't shoulder the whole burden yourself. Any blame to be assigned isn't yours alone. It's Buffy's as well."

Faith gave a rueful shrug. "Tell that to Buffy's mother."

Giles frowned a bit. "She, um, she didn't take it well, I presume?"

Faith scoffed loudly. "That's an understatement. She kicked me out of the house." She guiltily dropped her gaze. "Accused me of running out on Buffy then trying to seduce her." Faith raised her head and gave Giles a pleading look. "I swear that's not what I'm trying to do."

"I believe you, Faith," Giles said sincerely.

"I mean, the last thing I wanna do is hurt Buffy," Faith said. "But maybe being with her is hurting her more than not being with her." Faith looked away sadly. "Maybe she'd be better off without me."

Giles reached out and touched Faith's arm. "It's a bit early to make judgments like that, don't you think?"

Faith let herself feel his touch and concern for only a few seconds before she pulled out of his grasp and stepped away. "I mean, who am I kidding, Giles? I'm not relationship material. I've been fucked over so many times that I'm totally screwed up myself." She began pointing dramatically. "Willow knows it. Buffy's mom knows it. Hell, you probably know it too, you're just bein' all nice about it."

Giles smiled at her gently. "I assure you, I know nothing of the kind."

Faith refused to accept that. "What's the matter?" she challenged. "Didn't the Council give you a nice fat file with my name on it? Full of all kinds of juicy tidbits like 'lifetime of physical and emotional abuse' and 'prone to violent outbursts' and my personal favorite 'no chance of becoming a fully functional individual'?"

"Faith, I know your life's been difficult, but –" Giles began.

Faith scoffed softly. "Yeah. Right. 'Difficult'." Her pained expression quickly turned to one of anger and disgust with herself. "I mean, I don't know why I even care. She's not my mother." She crossed her arms tightly. "I don't owe her anything."

Giles sighed then softly said, "You care about what Joyce thinks because you care about Buffy."

The phone at the check-out desk began to ring, and Giles started moving in that direction. Faith followed along with him as they continued their conversation.

"Just remember that Mrs. Summers in shock right now," Giles told her. "Once she comes out of it, I'm sure she'll be much calmer and more understanding. You'll see."

When Giles got to the desk, he picked up the phone and answered it. "Library. This is Mr. Giles."

"Rupert," came Joyce's angry tone through the receiver.

Flustered surprise came over Giles's face. "Oh, Joyce, um, Mrs. Summers, I –"

"Do you know what I found Buffy doing this morning?!!!" Joyce's voice was so loud that Giles had to pull the phone away from his ear.

Faith's expression fell. "I'm outta here," she said before trudging away.

While helplessly watching Faith leave, Giles tried to form words to reply to Joyce's question but couldn't.

Joyce didn't wait for an answer anyway. "I need to see you immediately! I'm coming over there right now."

"Oh, um…why don't we meet at the coffee shop on the corner?" Giles managed to interject. "Neutral ground, as it were?"

"Fine," Joyce replied, clearly not happy. "I'll be there in ten minutes." Slam!

Giles grimaced at the sound. Then he sighed and put the receiver down.

Giles was already at the coffee shop when Joyce arrived. She was frowning as she walked over. Giles smiled at her, trying to smooth things over, but it didn't work. She just scowled back.

"Ah, Joyce…please sit down," he said. "It's, um, it's good to see you."

"Good?" she said sharply as she sat down. "There's nothing 'good' about any of this. I assume you know what happened."

Giles cleared his throat. "Well, um, yes. Buffy came in this morning and spoke with Willow about it, and I-I-I happened to overhear. She seemed quite upset about it."

"She's upset?!!" Joyce replied, incensed. "I just walked in on my seventeen-year-old daughter, half naked, in her room, making out with…with…Faith!"

A few nearby customers gave the two strange looks. Giles flashed them an embarrassed smile and then turned back to Joyce. When he opened his mouth to speak, Joyce interrupted.

"It was bad enough when I learned about her having sex with Angel, but this…"

Giles tried once again to interject but failed. Joyce was on a roll.

"I just don't get this…she's into girls now? I mean, where did this come from? She's been boy crazy since puberty for goodness' sake! Is she gay now?" Joyce leaned angrily across the table. "What has Faith done to my daughter?!!" she demanded.

As the other customers again looked at them strangely, Giles tried to calm Joyce down. He made a placating gesture and spoke slowly and gently. "I know you're upset, and you have every reason to be, but there are some things I need to tell you."

Although she was still far from calm, Joyce gave Giles a small nod, indicating that she was willing to listen.

"First of all," Giles told her, "you need to know that what is happening between Buffy and Faith is very real and it's entirely mutual. Faith is not in any way attempting to seduce your daughter. Her feelings are completely sincere, as are Buffy's feelings for her."

Joyce kept a stoic demeanor. "Go on."

"Secondly, you need to know that their relationship, as young and fragile as it might be, was critical in Buffy's breaking free of the backlash curse."

Joyce softened a bit at that. "Buffy said that Faith reached her when no one else could." She looked to Giles for confirmation.

"It's true," he said. "Buffy was extremely distraught right before the curse was broken. It was Faith who brought her back from the edge." He cleared his throat. "Metaphorically speaking, of course."

Joyce thought deeply about this, clearly not wanting to accept it. She finally sighed and slumped back in her chair. "I just don't understand how Buffy can be involved in this kind of relationship. I mean, my daughter, a lesbian?"

"Well, i-i-it's my opinion, actually, that Buffy may be bisexual, not lesbian," Giles explained. "In fact, Council records indicate that many slayers in the past have had partners from both sexes at one time or another. It's possible that bisexuality is more prevalent among slayers than the general female population. Or that the slayer power somehow brings forth the bisexuality inherent in the most people."

Joyce gave Giles a clear frown. "Was that supposed to make me feel better?"

"Uhhh, well, I, umm…I hoped it might."

"My little girl is sexually active, and she's not even out of high school yet," Joyce said. "I don't know how to feel good about that."

Giles reached out and put his hand over Joyce's. "She's growing up," he said softly, but in a tone designed to remind Joyce of the stated fact's inevitability. He gave her an encouraging smile. "But just remember this: No matter how grown up Buffy becomes, she will always need her mother. And right now, she needs her mother very much."

Joyce's eyes filled with tears as she considered his words.

After refusing to speak to her friends all morning, Buffy sat at a lunch table alone, staring at her tray and picking at her food. When she heard a shuffling of feet in front of her, she looked up and saw Willow and Xander standing there. Willow gave her a sheepish smile and shrug. Xander waved a small white flag made from a napkin and a straw.

"Truce?" Willow offered.

"Maybe," Buffy replied evenly.

Encouraged that the slayer had at least spoken to them, Willow and Xander eased into the empty chairs at Buffy's table.

"Look, Buffy, we're really sorry about this morning," Willow said.

"Yeah," Xander added. "You were trying to tell us something really important, and we –"

"Us? We?" Buffy asked pointedly, making Xander backtrack.

"Uhhh…I mean…you were trying to tell Willow something…something I had no business hearing, and which I have now completely erased from my memory!"

He flashed Buffy a smile, but she just scoffed and rolled her eyes. Erased from his memory…yeah right, Buffy thought to herself. More like permanently etched into his brain.

"I-I-I should've done something," Willow said. "Stopped everybody before it got too…" She struggled to think of an appropriate word. Failing, she simply said, "I'm sorry."

"It's not your fault, Will," Buffy said. "I should've known better than to discuss my private humiliations in gossip central."

"You know what we need," Xander interjected, a teasing expression on his face. He made them wait and then said, "A cone of silence." He ignored the twin eyebrow lifts and went on. "That way, any time two of us need to have a private conversation, we'll just activate the cone of silence."

"Yeah 'cause that worked so well for Maxwell Smart," Willow commented.

Buffy's mind instantly imagined herself and Willow in the library inside a transparent plastic device, yelling ineffectually at each other.

Buffy shook her head and laughed, unable to prevent herself from chuckling at the scene transpiring in her head.

Xander and Willow laughed with her, grateful that they seemed to be getting past the kink in their friendship.

Buffy's light mood quickly vanished, though, and she dropped her gaze to the table, frowning in worry.

Willow reached out and touched her friend's arm. "It went bad this morning, didn't it?" she asked softly.

Buffy just nodded her head in reply. "Mom was…furious," she said. "I don't think I've ever seen her so mad."

"She's just in shock, Buf," Xander said. "She'll calm down. You'll see."

"I don't think so," Buffy said ruefully. "She went off on Faith pretty bad."

Good! Willow thought to herself. She deserves it! As Buffy prepared to go on, Willow took a deep breath and pushed her angry thoughts aside and tried to think of a more diplomatic way of expressing herself.

"She kicked Faith out of the house," Buffy said, "ordered me off to school, and said we'd talk when she got home from work."

"Your mom's just worried about you," Willow suggested. "She doesn't want to see you hurt. And Faith's already hurt you once. She just doesn't trust Faith." Willow glanced away while continuing. "She sees her as the potentially heart-breaking sl…" At a glare from Buffy, she corrected herself. "…uh…slayer that she i…may be."

Willow managed to look a little repentant under Buffy's stare, but then the witch's eyes grew serious.

"I'm worried too," she told her best friend. "After all you've been through…losing Angel, getting hit with that curse…if she hurts you, I'm just scared that –"

"That's not going to happen," Buffy said, cutting her off. She looked Willow in the eyes and did the same for Xander. "I believe that," she said resolutely, her gaze coming back to the redhead.

After a long, wordless stare, Xander finally broke the silence. "Well, I'm glad we got that settled, eh?" Willow and Buffy didn't reply, so he went on. "Now…let's talk about more interesting topics, like what we are going to do to make up for our little bout of insensitivity this morning." He gestured at himself and Willow.

"Right," Willow said, brightening somewhat. Buffy looked at her friends curiously.

"We're gonna give you and Faith the rest of the week off on patrolling," Xander said proudly.

"Yeah, all of us," Willow added. "Even Giles."

An amused grin spread over Buffy's face. "You're kidding."

Xander put on an offended expression. "Hey, we handled patrol just fine while you were gone. Didn't we, Will?"

"You bet your sweet bippy, we did!"

Buffy tried not to laugh too hard. "Okay then, apology accepted. I will leave patrol in your capable hands." She reached out and shook Willow's hand to seal the deal. When she took Xander's, she could stop herself from adding, "Nighthawk."

"And don't you forget it," he told her, shaking her hand firmly.

At that, the three friends fell easily back into their usual comfortable banter, putting their heavy thoughts aside, at least for a time.

When classes were over that afternoon, Buffy and Willow were walking out of school together. Buffy moved at a pace only slightly faster than a snail's, and she kept her eyes trained on the ground. She sighed heavily about every five feet.

Willow decided to broach the subject. "So…almost time for the big talk, huh?"

"Uhhnn," Buffy whined as she stopped in place. "Don't remind me."

"I-I-I'm sure it'll go fine," Willow stated, trying to be positive.

Buffy rolled her eyes and looked over at her friend. "As fine as my 'coming out as a slayer' went over with Mom?"

"That was different," Willow insisted. "Everything was kinda crazy then, and it all got thrown in her lap at once in some big shocking surprise, a-a-and I'm not helping, am I?" The witch frowned.

"It's okay," Buffy replied. "I appreciate the effort."

The two friends smiled at each other. Suddenly, Willow's expression hardened when she saw Faith approaching. Buffy noticed and turned around.

"I'll see you later, okay?" Willow told Buffy, causing the blonde to turn back to her. "Call me tonight and tell me how things went."

Without waiting for Faith to arrive, Willow turned and left. Buffy seemed torn about what to do, turning toward Faith and then back to Willow again. But Buffy didn't call out to the witch.

"Hey."

Buffy turned toward the greeting and found a somber Faith standing in front of her. "Hey," Buffy answered.

Faith nodded her head in Willow's direction. "I probably should have worn a jacket. Gettin' cold around here."

Buffy gave an explanatory shrug. "She's still a little mad about this morning, that's all. Speaking of which…I'm really sorry I bailed on you at the library. Me makin' with the angry stomp-off, it didn't have anything to do with you. I just had to get out of there."

Faith didn't seem worried about that. "Yeah, Giles filled me in after you and everybody else left." She paused before adding, "Then your mom called."

A mortified expression came over Buffy's face. "My mom called Giles?"

Faith winced and nodded. "She was kinda yellin'."

Buffy's whole body slumped in defeat as the dread of what awaited her just took over. Faith instantly pulled her girlfriend into a warm hug. Buffy exhaled deeply and just let herself sink into the embrace, not realizing how much she needed it until she was in it.

After a long moment, she whispered, "I wish you could come with me."

Faith chuckled. "Don't think that's such a good idea right now."

"Phooey."

They pulled out of the hug and stepped apart.

"Can I call you? You know, after?" Buffy said, twisting her shirt tail nervously. "I, um, I have a feeling I'm going to need to talk."

Faith gave her a smile of affirmation. "I'll be at my place."

"I also have a feeling that I'm going to be grounded for the rest of my senior year, so you may get to be the Slayer of the Year after all."

Faith waved that notion away. "Ah, it won't come to that. Slayer stuff trumps everything, even moms."

Buffy let out a scoffing snort. "Oh I'm sure that little motto's gonna go over great with my mom. She'll probably cross-stitch it on a doily and keep it right by her bed. NOT!"

Faith saw a shadow pass over Buffy. She could see that the blonde looked quite frightened and very close to crying.

"What if…" Buffy began in a strained voice. "What if she tells me I can't see you anymore? I don't think I could –"

Faith covered Buffy's mouth with her hand to stop her impending emotional rant. Then she put her arms around Buffy once again and locked eyes with her, smiling as she did so.

"Not gonna happen," Faith told her. "I mean, she can't stop us. We can see each other as much as we want outside of her house. 'Sides, in a couple of months both of us will be eighteen anyway, right?"

Buffy nodded.

"See? Nothing to worry about."

At that, Faith linked her arm with Buffy's and began leading her down the sidewalk.

A short time later, Buffy trudged home to wait for her mother. When she found her mother's SUV already in the driveway, she groaned unhappily.

"Oh crap."

Resigned to her fate, Buffy went inside.

When Buffy shut the front door and stepped into the living room, she found her mother on the couch waiting for her.

"You're home early," Buffy noted.

"Yes, I wanted to be here when you got home from school," Joyce replied tersely.

Buffy entwined her fingers in an anxious gesture and said, "Time for the talk, huh?"

When Joyce nodded, Buffy slinked over to the other end of the couch and sat down. She cast only occasional glances at her mother, spending most of her time staring at her hands or the floor. It seemed like an eternity before Joyce finally began to speak.

"I want to say first of all that I don't like the idea that you are being sexually active at seventeen. I know that probably makes me sound like some kind of old-fashioned prude, but there it is." Joyce straightened her back and pulled her shoulders back as if to emphasize her statement. "I think you're too young."

Buffy remained silent, not wanting to interrupt her mother's speech. She glanced at her briefly then contritely looked away.

Joyce went on. "But I also realize that short of a slayer-proof jail cell, there's very little I can do to stop you. I had hoped that your unfortunate affair with Angel would have taught you not to jump into things so quickly, but I can see that hope was wasted."

Buffy hung her head even lower and didn't reply. A long time passed before Joyce went on. When she did, her voice was a bit softer.

"I talked to Mr. Giles this morning. He, um, he said that your feelings for Faith and Faith's feelings for you were very real and that those feelings were what helped pull you out of that backlash curse."

Buffy looked up in grateful surprise. "He said that?"

Joyce nodded then asked, "Is that true?"

"Yes," Buffy answered, tears forming in her eyes. "I don't know how or why, but it's true."

It was Joyce's turn to remain silent. She just looked at her daughter expectantly, waiting for her to go on.

"I-I-I know it seems weird that I've got feelings for another girl, but…" Buffy just shrugged, not knowing what else to say.

"And she feels the same way about you?" Joyce forced herself to ask.

Buffy looked her mother in the eyes and said with confidence, "Yes."

Joyce became quiet as if she were thinking very hard about something – and not necessarily liking what she was thinking about.

"I know you're worried that Faith might hurt me – that she's going to leave me or use me or run away," Buffy told her mother. "But that's not going to happen. You haven't gotten to see the Faith that I see when we're alone."

Joyce scoffed loudly. "Oh, I think I got a pretty good glimpse of that Faith this morning!"

Buffy turned red and dropped her head for a moment. "Not like that," she said, finally looking back up. "I mean her sensitive side. After the Pete thing, she took really good care of me. She did. She held me while I cried, she talked to me, she listened to me, she –"

" – ran away when you needed her," Joyce interjected.

Buffy sighed heavily then pressed on. "She ran away because we kissed," Buffy explained. "As in, for the first time."

A look of realization came over Joyce's face. "Oh."

"And for the record, I kissed her first," Buffy pointed out. "Still, Faith thought that she'd screwed up by letting us get involved when I was such a basket case, and basically, she just panicked and ran."

Joyce didn't seem impressed with Faith's reaction. She shot a skeptical look in Buffy's direction.

"I know, I know," Buffy admitted. "Not the smartest of choices. And I didn't take it well either. That curse had me so messed up that I just fell apart."

Buffy frowned for a moment, remembering. When she looked up, her expression was brighter. She began to speak strongly and passionately. Her mother watched and listened intently.

"But…she came back to me," Buffy said. "She reached out to me, with her whole heart, and I felt it, and that's when it stopped."

Joyce was confused. "When what stopped?"

"The curse. It ended right then and there. Because of Faith."

Her mother just stared, stuck somewhere between doubt and belief. Buffy's eyes began to fill with tears, and she went on in a very choked voice.

"When all I could think about was…" Buffy paused as if struggling to get out the next words. "…killing myself," she said finally, "just ending all the pain…she was there." A sob slipped out, and the tears started rolling down her face.

Joyce's eyes widened in alarm at what her daughter was confessing, but she was still frozen in her place on the couch.

Buffy met her mother's gaze. "She made me want to live again, Mom. She made me want to live…"

Joyce shook herself out of the shock she was in and rushed to the opposite end of the couch. "Oh Buffy…" she exclaimed as she pulled her daughter into a tight hug.

Buffy wrapped her arms around her mother and let the crying come. Her mother did the same, and for a long series of moments, that was all they did. Eventually, they pulled apart, though.

Buffy gave a rueful chuckle and wiped at her eyes. "God…I sound like some sappy romance novel, don't I?"

"Yeah, you do," Joyce said. "But I'm a sucker for sappy romance. You know that."

They shared a laugh, but once again, they went silent. After calming her breathing a bit, Buffy spoke up.

"I was going to tell you," she said. "About me and Faith, I mean. I just didn't want to dump everything on you all at once. The curse alone was enough."

Joyce nodded at that.

"I guess I didn't count on gettin' caught." Buffy tried another chuckle but quickly sobered when her mother didn't reciprocate. "I'm sorry you had to find out that way," she said sincerely.

"Thank you," Joyce said.

"When I invited her in last night, we didn't know we were gonna end up all…well, you know…you saw." She made a quick head duck then went on. "We just wanted to be together. And this morning, we, um, we got a little carried away, that's all. And totally forgot to check the door first. Next time we'll be sure to lock the door," Buffy assured her mother.

Joyce gave her an I-don't-think-so glare.

Buffy instantly backtracked, correcting herself. "O-O-Or we could just not have a next time. Any time soon. Here in your house."

"Good answer." Joyce sighed and looked at her daughter. "Buffy, I can't say that I'm happy about this relationship. I see too many potential problems to give it my blessing."

Buffy's expression became very sad. She looked down at her hands, dreading the words to come.

"But I know that it would be fruitless to ask you not to see her."

Buffy looked back up in shock.

"So…we've got to find a way to deal with this," Joyce said seriously.

Buffy's heart started beating fast. "Okay," she said, trying not to sound too excited.

"First, I want to see Faith, talk to her myself," Joyce said. "Do you think she would come over for dinner tonight?"

"Um, yeah," Buffy replied, nearly bouncing on the couch. "I mean, I think so. I can call her."

Joyce nodded but remained stern. "Second, I'll have to set some ground rules. I want the two of you to slow things down. That means no fooling around. No locked bedroom doors, no sleepovers, and absolutely no spending the night at Faith's."

Buffy started to object but immediately backed down when her mother glared at her. "Okay," she agreed, albeit somewhat reluctantly.

Joyce gave her daughter a small smile. "You're young, Buffy. You don't have to rush things. Get to know each other first."

Buffy nodded in dutiful acquiescence.

Meanwhile, Faith paced nervously in her motel room. She cracked the knuckles in one fist, then did the same for the other. She glanced at the phone for the thousandth time. When it didn't ring, she sighed and resumed pacing. The second she looked away, the phone rang. She whipped back around and ran over to snatch up the receiver.

"Hello?" she answered, a bit of trepidation in her voice.

"Do you want the good news or the bad news first?" Buffy said without so much as a greeting.

"Gimme the bad news first."

"Sorry, gotta give you the good news first," Buffy said teasingly.

"Why did you even ask me?" Faith groused, though not angrily.

"Just messin' with ya," Buffy said, laughing.

Faith visibly relaxed at the positive tone in Buffy's voice. She plopped on the bed and leaned back into her pillows.

"The good news is Mom's not ballistic anymore," Buffy went on. "And the even better news is that you and I can still see each other! Isn't that great?" At this last, Buffy practically squealed with glee.

Faith couldn't help but laugh at Buffy's reaction, and her face lit up in a truly happy smile. "Cool," she said. "What's the bad news, though?" she made herself ask.

"The bad news is she wants you to come to dinner tonight so that she can talk to you."

Faith paused then answered with an unenthusiastic "Oh."

Buffy sounded undaunted. "Looks like you get to have a 'Mom Talk' of your very own!" she said before succumbing to giggles.

Faith snorted. "Swell. A heart-to-heart with Mrs. Cleaver. Just what I need."

Stifling her giggling, Buffy said, "So, can you come?"

"Yeah, sure," Faith replied. "Long as I'm done in time for patrol."

"Faith!" Buffy chided. "You're still hurt. Giles told you to stay off patrol for a few days."

"No, he didn't," Faith corrected. "He said 'another day or so', meaning approximately one day, which would be last night."

"Noooo," Buffy countered. "He said 'another day or so at least', meaning last night and, at the very least, one more night, which would be tonight." When Faith started to object, Buffy cut her off. "Which is why….he and Willow and Xander are handling patrol tonight…and for the rest of the week. So no patrolling for you, missy!"

Faith groaned loudly and reluctantly said, "Fine." After a playful huff of a sigh, she asked, "What time tonight?"

"Seven?"

"Okay, I'll be there. With bells on," Faith added. "Whatever the hell that means."

"Thank you," Buffy said with all seriousness.

"No prob. See you tonight." When Faith hung up, she let out a long deep breath and draped her arm over her face. "Oh boy."

Part 11

After setting the table for three, Buffy hurried back into the kitchen where her mother was putting the finishing touches on a salad.

"What's next?" Buffy asked with a smile.

When Joyce looked up, she saw her daughter practically bouncing in place, ready for the next task. At first, Joyce had assumed that Buffy's eagerness was a simple case of her wanting to placate her mother, but now Joyce saw more.

The girl is downright giddy, Joyce thought to herself, suppressing the smirk that threatened to emerge. "You can stir the sauce," she told Buffy, who immediately rushed to stove and did just that.

Joyce watched her daughter out of the corner of her eye as she slowly and carefully stirred the large pot of sauce. She saw a series of emotions play across Buffy's face and repeat themselves in much the same pattern: irrepressible excitement then deep worry then determined optimism.

After about a minute of stirring, Buffy set the spoon aside and replaced the pot's lid; then she turned to her mother. "What else can I do?" she asked.

Joyce looked around the kitchen and nodded her head toward another large pot. "How about getting the water on the stove for the pasta?"

"I'm on it," Buffy said cheerfully.

As Buffy grabbed the pan and started filling it up at the sink, Joyce saw her glance nervously at the clock: 6:20 p.m. Her eyes didn't stay there for long, though. She quickly finished her task and turned back to her mother.

"Anything else?" Buffy asked, unconsciously cutting her eyes back to the clock.

"Yes, you can go get ready," Joyce told her. "I can see the primping countdown already starting in your brain," she added with a grin.

Buffy blushed a bit but definitely grinned back. "Are you sure?" she asked seriously.

"Go," her mother teasingly commanded.

"Okay!" Buffy chirped before all but skipping from the room.

Joyce laughed and shook her head. She's got it bad, she thought. A glowing smile lingered on Joyce's face for a time, until a concerned frown took its place. I just hope she doesn't end up with another broken heart. With a sigh, Joyce picked up the salad bowl and headed for the refrigerator.

"Nope. Nope. Nope."

One by one, Buffy tossed aside yet another trio of outfits that she had pulled from her closet.

"Arggghh! I have nothing to wear!"

Buffy plopped onto her clothes-laden bed and slumped in discouragement. After a moment of pouting, she straightened up and pulled her shoulders back resolutely.

"Okay, get a grip, Buffy," she chided herself. "This isn't an audience with the Pope or the President; it's dinner at home with your mother and your girlfriend. That's all. You need something nice but simple. You wanna look good but not slutty. So think!"

After several more minutes of sorting, she settled on a pair of tight black jeans and a sleeveless black top with a slightly-ruffled v-neck. She put her hair up but kept her accessories simple but elegant: moderately dangly earrings and a thin gold necklace. She refreshed her makeup then appraised her reflection in the mirror.

She tilted her head and then sighed. "It'll have to do."

Meanwhile, across town, Faith was having a fashion debate of her own. She had already laid out her own small wardrobe on the bed and, with her arms crossed tightly over her chest, she was now inspecting the possibilities with clear disappointment. Nothing, she decided, had the least bit of "mom appeal."

She sighed and uncrossed her arms. Her eyes caught a glimpse of the tattoo on her right arm. She pulled her arm around and glared at the black tribal design.

"I'm not exactly the 'bring home to mother' type," she grumbled to herself.

Faith thought back to the morning's events, frowning as she remembered the fury in Mrs. Summers' eyes.

"Ah, screw it," Faith said, exasperated. "She's gonna hate me no matter what I wear."

At that, Faith just picked some things from the pile and pulled them on: a maroon tank top, blue jeans, and a denim jacket. She brushed her hair and applied a fairly tame version of red lipstick to her lips.

She stepped from the bathroom and posed in front of the full length mirror on the wall.

"It'll have to do," she said with a shrug.

When Buffy stepped out of her bedroom, she met her mother in the hallway. Joyce had changed too, and they gave each other a look-over.

"You look nice," Buffy said sincerely.

"You too," Joyce said. She reached out and tucked an errant strand of hair behind Buffy's ear. "I like your hair up. You should wear it that way more often."

Buffy smiled at the compliment.

"Shall we?" Joyce said, indicating the stairs.

When Joyce turned to go, Buffy reached out and touched her mother's arm, causing her to turn back to her daughter. Buffy's face was creased with worry.

"Mom?" she asked. "Don't be too hard on Faith. This hasn't been easy for her either."

Joyce placed her hand over Buffy's. "Honey, I'm not going to be an ogre, for goodness' sake. Don't worry." She gave Buffy's hand a pat and then headed for the stairs.

"Easy for you to say," Buffy mumbled to herself as she began to trudge after her mother.

Just then, the door bell rang, and Buffy jumped into alert mode.

"I'll get it!" the slayer blurted before rushing past her mother on her way to the stairs.

She dashed down the steps and practically skidded to a halt in front of the door. She took a second to right herself and to smooth her hands over her hair and clothes. When she had taken a deep breath, she opened the door.

She found Faith standing there on the stoop, holding a small but colorful bouquet.

"Hey," Faith said simply, her light expression hiding the fear that was churning in her gut.

Buffy's heart nearly burst with pride when she saw the flowers in Faith's hand. Her face lit up in a huge smile as she gave Faith a "Hey" back. Buffy motioned for Faith to come inside, and when she had done so, Buffy shut the door.

"You got flowers," she said sweetly, just beaming at Faith.

Faith shrugged nonchalantly and handed them over. "They're kinda lame," she said. "Got 'em at the grocery store."

Buffy shook her head. "They're not lame at all," she assured her.

Buffy reached out for Faith and pulled her into a grateful hug. Faith returned the gesture, wrapping her arms around the blonde. Both sighed in relief, feeling their shared anxieties dissipating in the warmth of their embrace.

Meanwhile, from the stairs, Joyce quietly observed the exchange. Despite her disapproval of the relationship, she wasn't immune to the depth of emotion radiating from the two slayers. Involuntarily, her face softened at the sight of the girls, at how "right" they seemed to look together.

Soon, however, Joyce's critical side reasserted itself. She shook off the warm-and-fuzzies and put on a stern expression. Then she cleared her throat and started coming down the stairs.

At Joyce's throat-clearing, Buffy and Faith instantly separated, putting several feet of respectable space between them. Faith shoved her hands into her back pockets. Buffy pointed obviously at their visitor.

"Mom! Look!" Buffy announced. "Faith's here."

"Yes, I see that," Joyce stated evenly as she reached the bottom of the stairs.

"A-A-And she brought flowers!" Buffy said, lifting the bouquet in her hand.

Joyce gave her daughter a small smile and a nod of acknowledgement. "Why don't you go to the dining room and find a nice vase for them?" she suggested, although her tone made it sound more like a command.

Buffy's gaze darted nervously to Faith then back to her mother. "O-O-Okay," she said before reluctantly starting in that direction.

"And take your time," Joyce added, making clear eye contact with her daughter.

Buffy nodded and then slipped from the room.

Once Buffy had gone, Joyce and Faith were alone in the living room. They exchanged several uncomfortable glances before Faith finally spoke.

"Mrs. Summers," the slayer said in greeting.

"Faith," Joyce replied coolly.

After a long moment of silence, Joyce extended her hand. Though surprised, Faith took it, and they shook hands.

"Thanks for coming," Joyce said as she pulled her hand back.

"Thanks for inviting me," Faith replied. After a beat, she added, "I think."

Joyce smiled at that and chuckled a little. Faith smiled with her, until Joyce's expression grew hard. As another awkward silence descended, Faith directed her gaze to the floor, wishing that she could be anywhere but right here right now. She'd rather face a dozen vampires than this one angry woman. She pulled her hands from her pockets and started to speak.

"I, um…" Faith had to stop and clear her throat. "I'm sorry about this morning," she said, finally lifting her gaze to meet Joyce's eyes. "I…" Faith trailed off, not really knowing what else to say.

Joyce folded her arms across her chest and looked down at the dark slayer. "You understand why I was so upset?"

"Yeah. I imagine there's a whole buncha reasons you're pretty peeved about it." Faith tried to maintain eye contact, but felt herself glance away several times anyway.

"I won't lie, Faith," Joyce said. "I have concerns about where you and Buffy are headed. And I'm frightened at how fast you're moving."

Faith just nodded, letting Joyce have her say.

"But…both Buffy and Mr. Giles have told me how important you were in helping Buffy break the backlash curse. And for that, I am so grateful." Joyce unfolded her arms and took a step closer. She didn't reach out to the slayer, but she did gaze at her deeply. "You brought my daughter back to me," she softly told her. "Thank you."

Faith bore the intense stare as long as she could; then she looked away. "You're welcome," she mumbled, fidgeting in place.

Joyce waited until Faith looked up. Then she went on. "I said some harsh things this morning. Things I regret now. Things that were based on my own misinterpretations. I apologize for that." Joyce's apology was genuine, but her tone was completely neutral, as if her regret were still tinged with some of her earlier anger.

Faith merely shrugged in response. "I've heard worse."

Joyce nodded, considering Faith's words an acceptance of her apology. But then, once again, the two women fell into uneasy silence. Eventually, Faith spoke up.

"Mrs. Summers," she said, "I want you to know that I would never do anything to hurt Buffy. Never."

Joyce gave Faith a small and only slightly forced smile. When it didn't appear that Faith had anything more to add, Joyce spoke up, this time in a much lighter tone. "So…" she said, taking a step back and bringing her hands together in an almost-clap. "I think we're probably over the worst part. How about we eat now?"

Faith smiled and said, "I'm in. It smells good. What are we having?"

Before Joyce could answer, Buffy made a perfectly-timed re-entry into the room. "Grilled girlfriend," she said with a smirk. "It's the house special."

"Well, stick a fork in me," Faith said, chuckling. "I think I'm done."

After joining Buffy and Faith in a quick laugh, Joyce said, "We're having spaghetti. You like spaghetti, don't you?"

"Love it!" Faith answered enthusiastically. "There's not a pasta out there I don't like."

"Spam and gouda goulash?" Buffy offered impishly. Faith and Joyce both shot her twin looks of disgust.

"Nobody makes that," Faith scoffed, though with a twinkle in her eyes.

Buffy giggled and linked her arm in Faith's as the three moved from the living room. "Yeah, but you said…"

With the mood substantially lighter, they made their way to the dining room.

A short time later, the three were sitting down to the table, digging in to the Italian feast. The vase of flowers that Faith had brought was now at the end of the table.

"This is really good, Mrs. Summers," Faith said as she stuffed a forkful of spaghetti into her mouth.

"I helped, you know," Buffy claimed pointedly, gunning for a compliment.

"Well, kudos to you too," Faith added.

"You boiled the water," Joyce reminded her daughter.

"That's helping," Buffy whined, though with a grin.

"You mean like you were 'helping' in that baking photo?" Faith asked.

Buffy shot a mock glare at Faith. "Thou shalt not discuss the embarrassing photo of snaggle-tooth Buffy. Have you forgotten the first commandment?"

Joyce's face lit up. "Oh, that's one of my favorite pictures. Buffy was so cute!"

Buffy just groaned.

"It took me two hours to clean up the kitchen after Buffy's 'help', though," Joyce said.

"I bet," Faith replied. "I liked the ice skating picture, too."

"With or without the Dorothy-do?" Joyce inquired.

"Without," Faith answered. "The one where she looks so…I don't know…intense, confident, something."

Joyce instantly knew which photo Faith was referring to. "I like that one too."

Buffy sighed and rolled her eyes as the two continued to talk as if Buffy weren't even there. "I'm doomed to be the invisible topic of conversations everywhere…" she muttered melodramatically.

Joyce and Faith continued to ignore her, but Buffy didn't mind. She was just thankful that the two were talking at all, that her mother and her girlfriend had been able to put the morning's events behind them and have a normal conversation. Buffy smiled to herself and tuned back in.

"Buffy actually won several skating competitions," Joyce said. "She was very good."

"I'm glad somebody is," Faith grumbled.

"You can't ice skate?" Buffy said in surprise. "But…you're from Boston. Isn't that, like, mandatory in New England?"

"I only went once," Faith said. "Totally sucked at it. Spent most of the afternoon with my ass on the ice." She poked at her garlic toast with disgust.

"I'll take you some time," Buffy told her. "Show you the ropes."

"Gee, thanks," Faith said teasingly. "That way I can cross off 'learn to ice skate' on my 'Ten Things I Want To Do Before I Die' list."

After laughing with the two girls, Joyce turned to Faith and said, "Boston…that's such a long way from here. How did you end up in Sunnydale of all places?"

Faith and Buffy both froze at the innocent inquiry.

Buffy glanced worriedly at Faith, knowing the topic would raise painful memories for her. So before Faith could even form an answer, Buffy spoke up for her. "The Hellmouth!" she blurted. "That's where the Slayer is supposed to be, right Faith?"

After a moment's hesitation, Faith decided to play along with Buffy's plausible but entirely fabricated explanation. "Uhhh…yeah. Right."

Noting the averted gazes and fidgeting hands, Joyce eyed the girls suspiciously and waited. Eventually, Faith caved.

"My watcher was killed," Faith said, softly but matter-of-factly. "And the vamp that killed her came after me. Truth is…I didn't know where else to go." She paused and gave Buffy a grateful glance. "Luckily, Buffy helped me kill him once he tracked me here."

Joyce leaned toward Faith, a troubled expression in her eyes. "What about your family? Aren't they worried about you being so far away from home?"

Buffy looked at Faith with a combination of concern and curiosity, realizing for the first time that she herself didn't know much about Faith's past.

Faith barely blinked at the question. "I don't have any family," she stated flatly. "Not anymore."

Buffy and Joyce frowned and looked away. When it seemed that the two were gearing up for apologies and sympathies, Faith quickly interjected.

"Trust me," she told them with a large but forced smile, "I'm better off without them."

Buffy and Joyce smiled back, but they didn't appear to be reassured by Faith's statement.

Meanwhile, in one of the local cemeteries, Willow and Xander and the rest of the Scoobies were staking out several new graves. While Xander, Cordelia, and Giles were watching two graves about a hundred yards away, Willow and Oz were camped near another that was beside a large mausoleum. The two sat on a blanket with an array of snacks and weapons laid out in front of them.

Willow glanced over at the freshly dug grave and sighed in annoyance. "Is this guy ever going to rise?"

"Well, if we're lucky, he won't," Oz replied.

"Yeah. Right," Willow admitted but without a hint of enthusiasm about the idea.

"You wanna talk about it?"

"About what?"

Oz reached out and touched his girlfriend's lips, tracing her frown with his index finger. "About what's got my Willow-smile turned all upside down."

That got him a small smile, but it didn't last long. Soon Willow was frowning again.

"It's Buffy, isn't it? You're worried about her."

"Of course I'm worried about her!" Willow answered. "Aren't you?"

Oz put a hand over Willow's. "I'm sure things are going fine. It's just dinner."

"It's not dinner I'm worried about," Willow explained. "It's Faith. Sure, she's acting all devoted now, but what happens when the thrill is gone, when the thrill is gone away?"

"First of all," he said with a grin, "bonus points for the shout-out to B.B. But secondly…I don't think she's acting."

"Oh, come on, Oz! You've heard her stories. She's all about having fun and moving on, and Buffy's not like that. I just know this is going to end badly."

"People can change, Will."

Willow shook her head, and her expression became pained. "Losing Angel…it just about killed her."

"But it didn't," Oz softly pointed out. "She's a slayer. She's tough."

"Physically maybe, but she's still a girl…a girl who can get her heart broken."

Oz just shrugged in acknowledgement.

"A-A-And what about the backlash curse?" Willow went on, getting more upset as she went along. "What if it's not really gone? What if Faith dumps her and the curse comes right back?"

Oz didn't have an answer for that.

Willow dropped her gaze to her hands. When she looked back up, her eyes were filled with tears. "I don't want to lose her…" she said in shaky voice.

Oz reached over and cupped Willow's cheek, using his thumb to catch the tears that had begun rolling down her face. "You won't," he assured her. Then he gently kissed her and pulled her into a warm hug.

After they had finished dessert, Buffy and Faith cleared the table and washed the dishes while Joyce put away the food. Within minutes, the chores were completed, and the three women stood awkwardly in the kitchen, wondering what to do next.

Buffy finally broke the silence. "Thanks for dinner, Mom," she said. "It was really good."

"It sure was, Mrs. S.," Faith added. "Thanks for inviting me."

"You're welcome," Joyce said sincerely. But then she pinned both girls with a serious look. "Before we call it a night, though, I have a few more things to say."

Buffy and Faith exchanged nervous glances then turned back to Joyce.

"I told Buffy this earlier," Joyce said, "but I want to say it to you as well, Faith."

"Okay," the dark slayer answered.

"I know that I can't possibly police your behavior outside this house, but I do have ground rules that I expect both of you to follow," she told them. "No bed-sharing sleepovers. No sneaking in during the night. No locked bedroom doors if you're visiting. And no overnight stays for Buffy at your place either."

Faith nodded dutifully. "Yes ma'am."

"I want you girls to take things slow," Joyce said before putting on an encouraging smile. "You're young. You have all the time in the world."

Although Buffy and Faith gave Joyce brief smiles, their minds went simultaneously to the same unvoiced thought: Unless we get killed slaying.

Buffy shook off the pessimism to press her mother for a favor. "Mom, is it okay if I drive Faith home?"

Joyce eyed the girls warily.

"I'll come straight back, I promise," Buffy said.

Joyce stared at them a little longer then finally relented. "Okay," she said, "but be careful. And come right back."

"Thanks Mom!" Buffy said before giving her mother a big hug.

As soon as they had shut the front door behind them, Buffy tugged Faith to her and gave her an earnest kiss. When they pulled apart, Faith's expression lit up in a smirk.

"Mmmm…what was that for?" she asked.

"What? Can't I just kiss you 'cause you're cute and sexy?" Buffy countered playfully.

"Hey, you can kiss me 'cause I got five toes on each foot if you want to – especially if you kiss me like that."

Buffy laughed, and the two of them walked down the porch steps arm in arm. "It was just to say thank you," she explained. "For going above and beyond the girlfriend call of duty."

Faith gave a small shrug. "Wasn't as bad as I thought it was gonna be," she admitted. "Not sayin' it was a barrel o' fun, but it could've been a lot worse."

They separated, and Faith walked over to the passenger side of the SUV. Buffy opened the driver's side door and popped the locks. She and Faith got in and put on their seat belts.

Once they were settled into their seats, Faith turned in Buffy's direction. "Your mom's all right," she said sincerely. "She could've totally flipped her lid over this, but she didn't."

"Uhhh…excuse me, but that was you in my bedroom this morning, wasn't it?" Buffy asked pointedly as she put the key in the ignition and started the engine.

"I don't mean then," Faith explained. "She had every right to freak out then. I'm talkin' about after. She could've stayed mad, done something crazy like call the police on me or ship you off to boarding school. But she didn't."

"Yeah, she didn't," Buffy said with pleased wistfulness. "Thank God," she added, as the thought of those alternatives finally sank in.

Buffy put the car in reverse and concentrated on backing out. When she had done so, she shifted into drive and headed down the street.

"I think Giles had a lot to do with that," Buffy said, picking up where the conversation had left off. "They had a long talk today, and I think he really got through to her."

"Remind me to send him a big thank-you card, then," Faith joked.

"From both of us," Buffy added with a smile. "Seriously, it's nice knowing that he's behind us, you know?"

"Yep, Giles is pretty cool as watchers go."

"What was your watcher like?" Buffy asked cautiously.

At first, Faith didn't answer, but then she said, "She was cool too. Tough, but…I think she really cared." Faith chuckled. "Had a sweet old mansion in Cambridge. Definitely a step up from what I was used to. Hell, it was a whole staircase up!"

Buffy laughed with Faith, and the two of them continued on their way to Faith's motel.

A short time later, Buffy pulled into the parking lot of the cheap motel that Faith called home. They got out, and Buffy walked Faith to her room.

"I guess this is good night then," Faith said as they stood outside her door.

"I guess so," Buffy replied unhappily. "Wish it wasn't."

"Yeah, me too."

The two then moved into a long, warm hug. They didn't rush it; they just drank in each other's presence.

"I'll miss you," Buffy said, still entwined in Faith's arms.

"I'll miss you too," Faith answered.

"I slept so good last night," Buffy went on. "First time in a while that I didn't have any nightmares."

"Yeah, me too."

Buffy pulled back and looked at Faith. "You've been having nightmares? How long?"

"Long time," Faith said ruefully, drawing out the first word. She shrugged dismissively and added, "It's no big. It's not like I have 'em all the time."

"Are they 'slayer' dreams?" Buffy asked, a little worry in her voice.

"Sometimes," Faith answered softly, not meeting her eyes. Then she looked up and said, "Ehhh…most of the time they're just crap from my past. If V was here, she'd say they were 'unresolved issues' or some other bullshit."

"V?"

"Vanity Collins," Faith replied. "My case worker before I went into foster care."

Buffy frowned deeply at the term 'foster care.' When it looked like she was going to press Faith for more information, the dark slayer cut her off.

"You'd better start back," Faith said, diverting the focus from something she really didn't want to discuss. "Otherwise, your mom's gonna send out a search party."

"Right. Good idea," Buffy had to agree.

With a final hug and good night, the two reluctantly parted. Once Buffy had gotten in her car and driven away, Faith went inside her room.

As she shut the door, Faith felt the warmth of Buffy's embrace fade. Now alone, she sighed unhappily and glanced about her motel room.

It wasn't much, but at least the lights and water worked, and the door and window had been repaired since Kakistos's attack. She usually felt a small sense of pride when she came into her room; after all, it was hers, damn it, dinginess and everything. It also provided her with a greatly appreciated private space – one which she fiercely defended from unwanted occupancy. If she brought someone home with her, she made sure they took care of business and then got the hell out, sometimes shoving them out the door, clothes in hand.

But tonight her room just felt…lonely.

She sighed again and sank onto the bed, leaning back against the pillows. It was then that she realized just how tired she really was. The emotional roller coaster of the last few days had taken their toll, and she was completely exhausted. She sat up long enough to take off her jacket, kick off her boots, and turn off bedside lamp. Then she plopped back down onto the mattress and closed her eyes.

When the light from outside peeked through the curtained window and landed on her face, Faith grumbled and draped her arm across her eyes. Now in darkness, she tried to go to sleep. Unfortunately, her mind had other ideas as it dredged up unpleasant events from her past.

Being shuffled among relatives who clearly didn't want her. Being left with strange men while her mother disappeared for weeks at a time. Being forced to fend for herself in an apartment without food, heat, or electricity. Longing and praying for her mother's return only to wish soon after that the woman had never come back.

Faith growled in frustration at the onslaught of memories. "Just shut up," she told her brain. Then she turned onto her side and faced away from the window.

"Foster care?" Buffy repeated to herself once she had pulled away from Faith's motel. "I knew she had a hard life in Boston, but I didn't think it was that bad."

Buffy's thoughts immediately went to numerous well publicized cases of abuse in the foster care system. She frowned in concern.

"How long was she in it? She told me she had lost her mother. Is that why she went into foster care? Or did she go in before that…because of something her mother did? She hasn't mentioned her father. Where does he fit into all of this?"

Buffy didn't have answers to any of her questions. She slumped and sighed heavily. After a moment of thinking, she straightened in her seat, a determined expression on her face.

"I'll just ask Faith," she said. Then her resolve failed a little, and she got an uncomfortable look. "I-I-In a completely sensitive and totally non-invasive way, of course." She slumped again. "A-A-And in the years that is going to take, I'll ask Giles."

When Buffy got home, she found her mother in the living room watching TV. Buffy gave her mother a big smile and held up the car keys for her to see.

"Keys," Buffy announced as she put the ring on the table beside the front door.

Joyce nodded and asked, "Everything go okay?"

"Yes, everything went fine," Buffy replied as she made her way to the couch and sat down. "I managed to go three whole miles without hitting a single object." After grinning at her mother's eye roll, Buffy sobered and said, "Seriously, Mom…thank you. For everything."

Joyce smiled and rested her hand on her daughter's arm. After a moment of silence between them, Joyce pulled her hand back and looked away. When she glanced back up, she said, "I, um, I have to admit that Faith really impressed me. She wasn't what I expected."

Buffy gave her mother a curious look. "What were you expecting?"

Joyce shrugged uncertainly. "I don't know…defiance, maybe? Like she hadn't done anything wrong?" She shook her head. "Or at the very least, false regret. You know, just telling me what I wanted to hear so that she could get what she wanted?"

Buffy nodded, acknowledging that her mother's expectations were understandable. After thinking a moment, Buffy shyly asked, "So…you're okay with her…with us?"

"Yes, I'm okay," Joyce said with another smile. "But it's a tentative 'okay', okay?" she quickly added. "I still have my concerns."

"That's cool," Buffy said as she got to her feet. "You've got your concerns, and Will's got her shovel."

Joyce's face creased into a confused expression. "Huh?"

"Oh nothing," Buffy said, waving off the comment. "Let's just say that, between the two of you, I'm fully covered by my overprotective life insurance policy." She gave her mother a teasing grin. "In fact, if I don't get to my room and call Willow right now, she's going to be sending over a SWAT team."

Meanwhile, at the Rosenberg home, Willow was pacing in her bedroom.

What's going on? Why hasn't she called yet? Willow thought worriedly.

Just then, the phone rang. Willow leapt onto her bed and snatched up the receiver.

"Hello?" she answered.

"Hey, Will," Buffy said.

"Buffy! I'm so glad you called. I was starting to get worried."

"Starting to?" Buffy teased.

"Very funny," Willow said. "So tell me…how did things go?"

"Things went wonderful," Buffy replied. "Mom was so cool. I mean, she had her say, you know, but she didn't go nuts or anything, and Faith was…just…" Buffy made a contented murmur before blurting, "She brought flowers, did I tell you that?"

Willow could practically hear her friend glowing through the phone as she related the details of dinner. Willow sighed and leaned back against her pillows, her smile fading away.

I should be happy for her, Willow thought. I mean…listen to her. She hasn't been this happy in a long, long time.

"Willlllllow? Willlllllow?"

Buffy's voice broke into Willow's reverie. "Huh?" the redhead asked.

"Where did you go?"

"Uhhh, nowhere. Sorry. Y-Y-You were saying?"

"I was saying that I wished you would give Faith a chance, too."

"Oh." Willow didn't know what to say beyond that.

After a moment of silence, Buffy went on. "I know you think she might hurt me, but she's not like that. I swear. Not with me, anyway. If you'd get to know her better, you'd see that."

Willow still didn't speak. She opened her mouth several times, but didn't say anything.

"Please, Will…for me," Buffy said. "Would you try?"

Willow sighed heavily and closed her eyes. After a second or two, she opened her eyes and said, "Ohhh-kaaaay. I'll try."

"Oh, thank you, thank you, thank you!" Buffy said happily.

Willow smiled at Buffy's excitement. At the same time, she silently prayed that her friend's trust in Faith wouldn't turn out to be misguided.

The next day at school, as Buffy was coming out of class, she was thrilled to find Faith waiting for her.

The dark slayer was leaning against the far wall, with her thumbs hitched nonchalantly in the front pockets of her tight black jeans. She wore heavy black boots, a black leather belt studded with silver grommets, and a black tank-top that clung to her body, revealing every curve.

Buffy's face instantly lit up in a pleased and somewhat lusty smile. She waited until the crowd of students thinned and then crossed the hallway to where Faith was standing.

"Hey," Buffy said.

"Hey yourself," Faith said, returning Buffy's smile. "Headin' to the library?"

"I sure am."

The two slayers walked side by side as they slowly made their way toward the library. Neither put an arm around the other, and they didn't hold hands, but they walked close enough that their arms were touching most of the time. They barely watched where they were going, having eyes only for each other.

By the time they had gotten about halfway to the library, the hallway had cleared out. When the bell for the next class rang, Buffy suddenly grinned, grabbed Faith's hand, and yanked her into the girls' restroom. After a quick glance at the stalls to see that no one else was in the room, Buffy dropped her book bag, pulled Faith to her, and gave her a ardent kiss, which Faith eagerly returned.

When they pulled apart, Buffy said, "God, I missed you."

Faith smirked as she let their noses touch. "Ya did, huh?"

"Did you miss me?" Buffy asked mischievously.

Faith cocked her head and thought. "Mmmm…maybe a little." Then she flashed Buffy a full-dimpled grin.

Buffy gave Faith a mock-glare and then a swat on her arm. "Faith!" she accused.

In a split second, Faith grabbed Buffy's wrists and held them behind her back as she maneuvered the blonde against the bathroom wall. When she had her in place, she gave her a long, searing kiss that left Buffy breathless when it was over.

"Okay…maybe more than a little," Faith said with another grin.

Faith released Buffy's wrists and started to take a step back. Buffy reached out and grabbed Faith by her hips and pulled her close. Then she locked her fingers behind Faith's back to hold her in place. Faith didn't seem to mind and wrapped her own arms around Buffy.

"I missed holding you last night," Buffy complained. "And I missed waking up with you."

"Yeah, me too," Faith agreed.

At that, the two moved easily into a warm hug which lasted for a full minute. When they finally separated, Buffy put on big pout.

"Mom's rules suck," she pronounced.

Faith reached up and gave Buffy's lower lip a pluck with her finger. "Yep, they sure do," she told her. After giving her a quick kiss, she said, "We'll just have to find a way around them, won't we?" She pulled away and hitched her thumb over her shoulder toward the door. "Come on. We better check in with Jeeves."

Buffy rolled her eyes as she picked up her book bag. "You know he hates it when you call him that."

Faith just grinned. "I know."

After a quick lipstick check, the two girls headed out of the restroom.

Meanwhile, in the library, Willow and Oz were seated at the far table across from Xander and Cordelia. Giles was in his office.

"I can't believe we're going to the dance in a limo!" Willow said excitedly. "We'll be like movie stars, all glamorous. Ooo! Can we stick our heads out of the sun roof and woo-hoo down Main Street?"

Cordelia snorted condescendingly. "Yeah, 'cause that'd be so glamorous."

"Now, now, Cordy," Xander chided, "don't begrudge us our fun. We mere peasants are unaccustomed to the pleasures that the Chases know so well."

As Cordelia rolled her eyes, Oz turned to Willow. "So…have you told Buffy yet?"

Willow's enthusiasm fizzled. "No," she said. "I haven't had the chance. I –"

"Tell me what?"

At the sound of the voice, the four turned to see Buffy and Faith standing at the end of the table, looking at them expectantly.

Willow got a deer-caught-in-headlights expression. "Uhhh…about, um…uhhh…"

"About the limo we're getting!" Xander quickly interjected. "You know, for the dance."

"Uh-huh," Buffy said tersely as she gave them a disbelieving glare.

One by one they all looked away, except for Cordelia, who gave an annoyed sigh at her tablemates. "It's about Scott," she announced.

"What about Scott?" Buffy asked worriedly.

Once again, Willow and Xander couldn't get out the words, so Cordelia said, "He's going to the dance with Danielle."

There was a long, silent pause as everyone stared at Buffy, waiting for her reaction to this news.

"Oh," Buffy said simply as she took a few steps away from the table.

Faith didn't follow her. She just watched with concern in her eyes.

"He's going to the dance…with someone else," Buffy went on. She dropped her gaze to her hands. "He didn't waste any time, did he?"

As everyone continued to stare at Buffy, Faith just clenched her jaw and shoved her hands in her front pockets.

"Not that I care," Buffy announced as she turned back to the group. She quickly looked over at Faith. "'Cause I don't," she told the brunette. Then she looked back down at her hands. "It was just a stupid dance, after all."

"You can go with us," Willow offered. At Buffy's skeptical glance, Willow said, "Come on, it'll be fun. All of us in the limo, the original Scoobies showing up in style…"

Buffy shook her head as she looked at the two couples at the table. "No, that's okay. I don't wanna be a fifth wheel. Besides, I haven't even shopped for a dress or anything." Once again, her eyes fell to her hands.

After another long pause, Faith stepped over to Buffy and gave her an elbow nudge. "Hey, what'd'ya say we crash the dance together…you and me?"

Buffy looked up at Faith with a vulnerable and yet hopeful expression. "Really?"

Faith gave her playful grin. "Really."

Buffy's face lit up into a big smile.

As the two slayers indulged in a hug and kiss, Willow just scowled and crossed her arms.

Part 12