Disclaimer: I do not own the characters in this story, nor do I own any rights to the television show "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". They were created by Joss Whedon and belong to him, Mutant Enemy, Sandollar Television, Kuzui Enterprises, 20th Century Fox Television and the WB Network.

Impressions

There were only a few secrets that Tara called her own. She hadn't a lot to hide. If someone had truly been interested, she would have shared her little story honestly, the little bits and pieces. Not that there were many people or friends that had ever asked about her story.

But she had two or three secrets that were her hers and hers alone. She would never reveal anything about it. She had vowed to keep it confidential and she would always be true to her word. Back then it had just been a small promise to a stranger. She had followed her request gladly because of the genuine smile that was her reward.

Never had Tara thought that she would meet that girl again, least of all under these circumstances.

xxx

Tara was new in this little town. She had rented a little dorm room for the time she studied at the Sunnydale University. And for the first days of college she barely left her room.

She was afraid to live in this foreign town all by herself. All the years before she was never separated from her family, but now it was the true reason she was here. Her studies a needed excuse for her getaway.

In the loud and colorful goings-on of the other students Tara felt surreal – strange. In the role of the outsider she took a look around her new home, learned to move among the others unobtrusively, became a part of this cosmos, at least at the outlines. She found a certainty in the routines of her curriculum, a moderate calmness with the little she called her own.

Before Tara came to Sunnydale, she hadn't really feared the dark. But in this town it felt different. The cold wind of the night always carried a touch of death with it. Tara could fell it in her bones, in her core, like a foreboding and so she tried to avoid the dark.

Her mother had told her once, that the night contains more than the human eye can see, but she never really felt it as clearly as in this city. Vague stories she didn't want to go into details, her own fear nagging at her consciousness.

One day Tara had lost track of time during her studies. Startled she discovered that the dusk had already set in. She gathered all her things in a hurry and stuffed them in her bag. With hurried steps she rushed the campus to reach her dorm room.

She just passed a block, her bag clutched in her arms, as the door of the emergency exit flew open. It hit the wall with a loud bang. Tara flinched hard, ducking her head. She ventured a short look over her shoulder. Two men, probably students, stumbled outside. In the predominant darkness they looked dangerous and old memories tried to take a hold of her.

The bigger man grabbed the door and slammed it back into its lock. "The goddamn bitch!" His rage exploded into a hard kick to the closed door. "She's not going to get away with that..."

"Hey Mike, calm down." His friend tried to steer him away from the block. "She's not worth the trouble..."

"Get your hands of me, jerk!" The man shouted and pushed his buddy away forcefully.

"Your trashed, man! So chill and we can go find some more booze...", his pal offered.

"Shit, dude... I'm not drunk!" He kicked the door once again. "I'm going to getcha, you whore!", he shouted at the door.

Tara took a few steps back to blend into the shadows. Paralyzed she watched the outburst of the man. The well-known combination of anger and alcohol got her shaking. And suddenly the drunken one turned to her and screamed.

"Whatcha staring at..." He took a threatening step towards her. "WHAT!"

"Leave her alone, Mike." His friend tried to calm him down. "...don't start something stupid, man."

"Can it, Josh!" Mike spat back. He made another step in Tara's direction and she could feel her fear creeping into her body and freezing her to the spot. Her chin dropped to her chest and her hair fell as a curtain around her face. An unconscious behavior to reduce her contact surface. Still he took the last step and looked down on her. "What?"

The harsh sound of this question made her flinch again. She shrunk even more.

"Watcha gawking at?" He poked her in the shoulder. "Huh?" A second jab followed as she showed no reaction. Tara opened her mouth trying to answer, to respond, something or anything... But the words got stuck in her throat. "WHAT?" She could smell the alcohol on his breath as he screamed into her face. "Answer already, you idiot!"

"I-I-I... I-I w-w-wanted t-to..." Tara's voice nothing more than a whisper.

"Whoa, shit, man. Zip it if you got nothing to say. Damn, you bitches are all the same." He punctuated every following word with a poke into her shoulder. "Shut. The. Fuck. Up."

Tara almost lost her balance and her bag slipped from her arms. She raised her arms to protect her face, but the anticipated blow didn't come. A shadow flit over her followed by the sound of a strike and an impact on the asphalt. Something hat happened, Tara was sure of that. So she squinted through her fingers expecting to see the chest of the drunken rowdy. But all she could make out was a dark brown mane that spilled over a jeans jacket.

"Hey, douchebag, if you treat all your girls like that, it's a given that they are looking for something better!" This voice burned itself into Tara's memory.

"How dare you, you piece of shit!" The student got to his feet with some effort.

"... and with that mouth you kiss your mommy?" Unimpressed she placed her hands on her hips.

Fascinated Tara watched the woman. She exuded power and self-confidence in a way she had never experienced before. Clad in jeans jacket, leathers and boots she radiated an air Tara could hardly describe. But one thing she knew for a fact although she hadn't seen her face yet. This woman was the embodiment of sexiness.

The drunken man growled with anger as he pulled his fist back for a violent strike. Panic bubbled through Tara, she wanted to scream a warning, wanted to pull the other one out of the way, but before she could make her first move, the young woman had grabbed the approaching fist and stopped it abruptly. Disbelievingly the man stared at the girl. After a moment a sigh fell from her mouth.

"You are such a wimp, trying to assault women." She stated calmly.

Tara could see the rage flash in his eyes. He tried to yank his fist from her hand, but she could hold him easily. Slowly his face contorted in pain. Fueling his anger he attempted a second attack, trying to reach her throat with his free hand. The girl just grabbed his wrist even before he managed half the way.

"You kidding!? You're really that dense?" Tara could hear the disdain in her voice.

Spellbound she watched the scene unfold. Tara's eyes jumped back and forth between hands of the man. But even in the meager light she could see them already changing to a deeper color. The pain was evident on his features. Under her pressure he slowly sank to his knees and Tara could feel the power that was hidden in her delicate figure.

"Now I'm going to show you what it feels like to be weak!", she hissed just sightly above a whisper.

In a blink of an eye she let go of his hands and floored him with a quick and hard backhand. Startled by this sudden violent outburst Tara took a step back.

"Hey dude!" The girl nodded towards the other guy. "Pick up your asshole buddy and get gone." She side-glanced the moaning heap at her feet and addressed the young man again. "If I ever catch you doin' something stupid, then you will learn that this ...", she pointed a single finger to his groaning pal, "...was just a little love tap. Got that?"

"Yeah, sure..." Hurriedly he stepped to his friend and helped him to his feet. Tara could see the fear in his eyes as he nodded his understanding and steered the other man in the opposite direction. She could hardly believe what she had just witnessed.

"You're okay?" Brown eyes watched her intensively.

Now that Tara could see her face, she realized how young this woman really was, probably even younger than herself. But still her aura of self-confidence, power and sexiness couldn't be denied.

"I-I-I... yes." Tara stuttered her shy answer.

As the girl lifted her hand to check if everything was alright, Tara flinched automatically. The woman paused for a moment and then nodded knowingly. "Right.", she said and bent down to pick up Tara's bag instead. "Here.", she simply said.

Hesitantly Tara took the offered bag. "Thank you." She really wanted to thank her savior but she was afraid to utter any further explanation.

"No problem.", the matter of fact answer.

Somehow Tara was sure that the woman understood anyway. A shy smile flit over the blondes face before she turned towards her dorm.

"I will walk you home. You shouldn't be out here alone... especially after dark." Tara risked a short glance to her counterpart as they walked side by side. Brown eyes looked at her seriously so she turned her gaze back on the path quickly. "It's dangerous, you know. And I not only mean those drunken douchebags." With a mindless gesture she pointed over her shoulder. But as Tara looked at her again for further information, the girl just shrugged.

Could those mystic stories that her mother once had told her be true? Could those be more than fairy tales and myths? Tara tried to read the person next to her. She could feel that the girl carried the truth. But would she really want to know? Would she want to lose a piece of her hope she had fought for so hard during the last months? They reached the door of her dorm in silence.

"Student." A short nod and then she went on, probably more to herself, "...figures." Was there a trace of disappointment in her voice? Tara could only vaguely trace the features of the girl in the dim light of the entrance.

"Thank you." This time Tara's voice was more certain. "C-Can I do a-anything to make it up to you?"

"No, it's alright." Awkwardly the girl shifted from one foot to the other. "Everything's five by five."

Puzzled Tara frowned, but with a shake of her head she tried to let go of her bewilderment. She offered her hand sheepishly. "I-I'm Tara."

"Cool. So... Tara." A fleeting gaze into the approaching night before she turned back to her. "You gotta promise me something." The young girl looked expectantly at her, so Tara slowly lowered her hand to her side.

"W-What would that be?" The blonde wasn't sure if she would like what was coming.

"Forget what you just seen.", the woman just answered.

"But..."

"No, really. It was nothin'." Another glace over her shoulder.

"But you did..." Tara tried.

"I didn't do anything.", the girl interrupted. "I don't need any more trouble, okay?"

Tara looked into pleading eyes and a sigh slipped past her lips in defeat. "O-Okay."

"This is our little secret, right?" And she almost sounded a bit wary. "Promised?"

Tara simply nodded and suddenly a genuine smile spread over the girls face.

"Promised. Cool!" She took a few steps back into the night without turning away from Tara. "And don't forget..." She pointed directly at the blonde. "...good girls are at home before dark. The night is dangerous."

Tara wasn't sure what she should answer to that. So she watched silently as her savior turn around and walked into the night. Suddenly a thought popped into her mind and she took a few steps away from her door.

"Hey, what's your name?" Tara's call resounded unexpectedly clear through the night, but the darkness had already swallowed the other woman. One last time Tara took a look around before she turned to open the door and walk to her room.

xxx

At first Tara had thought a lot about the stranger, looking for her unconsciously. However days, weeks and months passed without a single encounter. So after a while other things came to the fore and with all the different courses and her studying it just slipped her mind. But she never forgot the hint she received with the promise. Diligently she tried to be back at the dorm before dark. And when those mystic stories became reality she was even more thankful for the invaluable advice.

When they first met after all those months Tara hadn't recognized her. But she knew without a doubt that it wasn't Buffy sitting across from her. At their second encounter she identified the face immediately. Shocked she had to realize that she had banned Buffy's soul in her body.

Tara would have done everything to understand how it had gotten this far. This young woman she met before now walking on the dark side. She wanted to face her and talk to her, but before she even got her chance, the girl had disappeared. She only left her name behind.

Faith.

~~~ fin ~~~