TPOV

I thought it was something I said, some unintentional little faux pas I had made that had put Faith in such a bad mood. It started off well as usual, she met me with a warm and loving smile as I parked my bicycle and kissed me with that long soft morning kiss that I had become addicted to but after first period everything changed.

"Fai, what's wrong? You seem bit annoyed, I'm sorry if it was something I did", I said meekly as I could feel her irritation coming off her in skin bleaching, confidence eroding waves.

"Nff", she just grunted back as she just pushed the peas around on her plate. If she was off her five-a-day then something bad was going on in her head, though she had been opening up in the last three weeks we had been dating but she had shut down completely. Seeing her like this really stung, not like an angered mosquito in your panties which, due to my one time at summer camp, I knew what that was like.

"Please Faith, just..."

"Don't fucking start Tara"

"What's up with you? Since when do ya treat your better half like this?", scolded Kennedy as she poked her best friend in the shoulder. The lunch room was full and the general bustle of the place couldn't drown out the static pissed off-ery that crackled the air around my girlfriend.

"Fuck you Ken, she don't fucking own me, alright", Faith snapped and shoved her lunch tray away, storming off in a twitching jumble of hormones and withdrawal.

I guess those nicotine patches weren't working too well, even the ones I got her in the shape of little devils faces, but she had been handling it well thus far. Even her excessive consumption of Jolly Ranchers had hit a peak but no amount of sugary treats could give her a happy today. But what did I do?

I sat there blushing furiously as Kennedy raced after her, I could hear them arguing as the latina girl told Faith off for treating me like that. It had only been a couple of weeks since Faith and I had become an item but her friends had accepted me so quickly and just like that I had friends at Sunnydale High, something I never though possible until she came into my life.

Xander apologised on Faith's behalf but I just said it was ok and shrugged it off though I can't deny it hurt. Deeply.

She didn't even wait for me after school, she just got on her battered old motorbike with her telltale helmet painted in blood red flames, and rode off without a word. Except for yelling at Anya to get out the way as Faith mounted the kerb and shot across the once pristine front lawn of the school. I can see another meeting with Principal Woods first thing tomorrow.

I had to know what i did.

I rode my bicycle as fast as I could round to her place, taking a short cut through the park where hobo's and stoned students swapped tales and incoherent babbling, and locked it up by the bottom of the fire escape by Faith's apartment building. I knew there was no way she was going to let me in, not that she could hear me anyway as I could feel the thud of her music from down here.

I reached up and pulled down the ladder, slowly making my way up the rusting metal steps to her window. I hated heights but for her, to find out what I did wrong, I would scale any building...within reason anyway.

Faith's mere presence had built my confidence so high so quickly, her kind words of encourgement and soft touches had made me feel so bold. I eventually capitulated and Faith got me wearing jeans, but I was uncomfortable showing off the shape of my legs like this and so chose bell bottomed keeping in with my hippie-ness, just they kept getting stuck on my bicycle chain so I was wearing these silly clips.

She had assured me that I looked great in the denim that hugged my ass so tightly as she loved a woman with curves, much sexier than those size zero cheerleaders that most fantasize over.

I wonder how long it would be before Faith held up her part of the bargain as I think she would look stunning in my brown suede skirt and off the shoulder top, which I had never been bold enough to wear actually. But, like she said, we made no time limit on our deal so it may be a while before she graces the halls of Sunydale High in wedges whilst bitching about the peach lipstick which would suit her so much better than that dark red hues she always wears. It's glossy too, mmm, Faith's lips...all glossy...wait Tara, now is so not the time for that.

I held my bag close to me and made sure I still had my gift, I hoped she liked it. As I peered through the window like a flower child stalker I could see Faith in her bedroom banging and crashing around, turning the air a shade of blue I never thought possible. Surely some of those words weren't even real.

I could see her working on her skateboard, hand painted with her name on the underside and the scuffs running along the edges where she was trying to impress me with her tricks in the parking lot of the Doublemeat Palace. I know she loved boarding and would love to turn pro, with that big local contest coming up I knew she was getting on edge about it but usually riding her board chilled her out.

I watched her seething, the anger radiating off her could crack the enamel from your teeth even at this distance. I tapped lightly on the window and, despite the music, Faith turned round and flashed me the saddest smile I had ever seen. Like her dimples would pool with tears, but why? What had I done that had hurt her so much?

She turned the stereo off and opened the window, the flaking paint taking another knock, and helped me inside, even in a mood like this she was still the well mannered girl I loved. As she held my hand I could feel the slight roughing of her knuckles where she had no doubt been hitting her duct tape covered punch bag without taping her wrists or using gloves...again. I had told her about that before but now was not the time for gentle constructive chiding.

"Sup T?", she snorted and looked away, trying to hide the redness of her eyes.

"N-nothing, I was just w-worried about you? You went off after school without saying anything to me or.."

"So I gotta run everything past you now?", she snapped. But I could see in her wet eyes she instantly regretted it.

"I...maybe I should go", I said softly.

"No...no it's.. fuck I'm sorry Tara, it's just...fuck!", she growled in frustration and kicked her bin leaving a hefty indentation.

"Was it Principal Woods complaining about the way we dress. saying we were all scruffy urchins? Because I had a plan about..."

"No, he can go fuck himself for all I care", she snapped as she threw her spare trucks onto the floor and stormed over to the window pressing her forehead to the pane of glass which fogged up with her furious breath.

"Then what is it...Faith...baby?", I implored using my softest tone.

She picked at the frayed thread on the hem of her NOFX t-shirt and just nodded towards the bed.

My eyes dropped to the duvet and the screwed up paper sitting idly on it. I sat down and untangled the ball which had a few holes poked through it now, it was her English test. She'd failed.

"Is this is it? You're in this mood just because of some silly little test?", I tried to shrug it off at inconsequential.

"It's not just some silly little test T, I tried...I mean I really fuckin' tried on it. Red, hell even that tweedy librarian guy had been helping me study for it all damn week, I tried so fuckin' hard...and I still failed", Faith trailed off quietly, her anger quick to subside as her fear and disappointment scoured her veins.

"So you can retake it, it's nothing big"

"You don't get it do you Tara, ", she said with tears brimming her eyes, uh-oh, she used my full name, "Ya see...fuck it... I let everyone down, Giles, me...you. Don't you see, even at my very best I'm still a fuckin' failure. I'm a loser T, a nothing, and that's never gonna change...you...you deserve better than that, you deserve someone better than me", she said as she turned to me with twin salty trails sliding down her cheeks. My heart clenched as I took in her face, a mixture of fear and crippled self esteem mangling her features.

I sat on her bed making my way up to her headboard and leant against it, and held out my hands to her, "Come here"

She took my hand and lay down on the bed next to me with her head across my midriff and wept as I held her in my arms. I said nothing as no words could show my devotion to her. No simple syllables would be able to convey just how much she meant to me. As she lay there she seemed so small and frail.

"After everything's that happened... I guess my Mom was right...I'm just a worthless piece of shit", she sobbed into me as I held her even tighter. I knew she needed to vent and I wished more than anything to take her pain and set her free, as she took a deep breath and launched into her story, her REAL story, my heart bled a little more as all the details of how she came to be here flooded out. It was such a far cry from the Faith of yesterday.

I had told her about my Dad and brothers and she swore something involving castration and power tools if she ever met them, so now, now her walls were down and she was totally vulnerable I wanted to be there for her the same way she had been for me during my scathing exposition. I knew her bad-ass act was all just for self preservation, the same way my shyness had been for me, I was just surprised just how much she wanted to confide in me. Just how much my opinion of her mattered to my beloved.

Half an hour later her voice was hoarse and my cable knitted top damp from her lonely burning tears as she finished her tale.

"...and so the courts said now that he's finished his degree I could come live with him...", Faith sniffled as I think she was all cried out. Probably even dehydrated.

As we lay there in silence I thought it was time for a gesture, to let her know that someone would always be looking out for her. I prised her arms off me and reached into my hemp woven tote bag.

"Baby, I got..well m-made you something", I said as she wiped her nose on her t-shirt sleeve. Nice.

"What is it?", Faith said back with a mix of growing excitement and curiosity.

I held it out to her and she looked puzzled.

"Cool, thanks, s'nice...what is it?"

"It's a dreamcatcher. Native Americans made them and you hang it over your bed so all your bad dreams stay away", I simply stated not sure whether it was true or not. I just think they're pretty.

"Does it work?"

"One way to find out"

"Thanks T...I mean it" she said as she delicately touched the strings and feathers intricately woven around the frame. I could see by her slow movement that she was so touched by something so simple, but it came from the heart.

Pulling down a partially torn Redsox pennant from above her bed she put the dreamcatcher on the wall and stood back to admire it. Reaching down she took my hand in hers and pulled me up so she could wrap her arms around my waist and just hold me. There was nothing sexual about this moment, it was just tender and mutual affection, twin virtues that had stabbed me through the heart and I would gladly bleed for her. Ok that came out all wrong, but you get what I mean.

"Tara...I got three little words I want to say to you"

Oh goddess, not those three little words were they? Even though I had wanted to say them to her every minute of every day for the last two weeks since we started dating, but Kennedy warned me off from saying them just yet as Faith had a reputation for 'high freakery' when it came to expressing affection. She usually showed it through a high five or a wedgie and to be honest, as much as I cherished any kind of sign of affection from her, having to crowbar my panties back out was not high on my list of romantic gestures.

"Tara...yo, T, come back", she said with a chuckle as she snapped her sweaty fingers in front of me.

"S-sorry, I zoned out. You w-were saying?"

"I said, Tara...I got three little words for ya"

"Oh yeah, w-what are t-they?". Damn stutter.

"Nice bicycle clips", she laughed.

That earned her a sure fire swat on the arm before I blushed manically.

"Oh you ass", I giggled as we hugged gently. There she was, the Faith with a cocky smile and a joke, the Faith with the glossy eyes that brightened my day. My Faith.

"Faith?", came a male voice from the living room as we heard the front door slam.

She quickly wiped her eyes and a wide bore smile erupted on her face as she bounced off the bed to go and greet her brother whom she loved so much I couldn't hep but feel a little jealous, but it was a different kind of love and, after hearing about their childhood, how could I ever fault her for holding onto that love like it was the most precious gift ever bestowed upon mortal hands. Being so long without him in her life I could see why she was so protective of him.

I followed her out in the living room area of the small, but clean, apartment to see her hugging a tall and good looking man.

"You ok?", he said with deep concern.

"Yeah, fine", she lied. Sort of.

"Angel this is Tara, T this is my dumb ass big bro", Faith said as she kept her arm around his waist.

"Oh so you're Tara, Faith's been talking about you non stop for the last two weeks"

"Hey", she said as she nudged her brother in the ribs as a small, yet distinct, rouging of her cheeks made her look around uncomfortably.

"Nice to met you Tara", he said as she shook my hand.

"P..pleased to m-meet you Sir", I stammered back nervously with the customary politeness I always used as I knew that Angel was the greatest thing in Faith's life and, if I was going to a part of it, then I needed his nod of approval.

"Sir? Hear that Faith, she called me Sir", he chuckled as my blush intensified.

Sensing my discomfort Faith unhooked her arm from her brother and came over to rest it on my shoulder. Her soft smile distilling my crippling shyness.

"Sorry Tara, I don't mean to embarass you but it's nice to see a young lady with some manners...for once", Angel said as he smiled at his little sister.

"Hey I got manners, I got manners coming out of the wazzoo", Faith said back as she whipped her head round and gestured flamboyantly with her hands.

"Faith, you refer to your principal as 'that pig thick shitting cunt'", Angel said back with a sigh of exasperation. A sigh I too had been using of late but Faith brought that out in a person.

"And? You met him so you know I'm right", my grinning girlfriend said.

"Tara, are you staying for dinner? Faith's making bolognese tonight", Angel asked as he emptied the paper grocery bag.

"I am? Since when?", she snapped back playfully.

"You said yesterday, I got the pasta just for it oh and I got your..."

"Great...thanks", she said curtly as she snatched the half full bag away and stuffed it in a cupboard.

"I hope it's the right color and..."

"Yeah, cool", Faith said back trying so hard to be casual but I wondered what she was hiding from me. And why she was all blushy and that. Hmmm.

"Sis, food?"

"Fine,", she said back with a hint of amusement as she looked for the least dirty saucepan, looks like she needed to bursh up on her homemaker skills, " T can you get the drinks?"

"Sure, where do I...?"

"The tap, we got some concentrate over there, it's only the cheap stuff cos we can't afford real orange juice and shit like that. Like Angel's only just making enough to get by so I gotta work too so between us we pay the rent, the bills and I gotta pay for my bike n' my board myself. And I gotta earn some cash for the odd beer as gel boy here won't buy them for me"

"Too right I won't, and you're not getting your fake ID back either."

"Jerk", Faith snorted before continuing, "But when he's at work I do the cleaning and stuff. We split the cooking though, and he does the ironing."

She pointed at the schedule on the fridge where the duo had worked out a rota. I couldn't help but notice the scrawling red typography across it written in her favourite shade of lipstick reading "Fuck you and your ironing board".

"Y'see I ain't some moocher who just sits around in a big fuck off house all day expecting their parents to pay all the bills, do the housework and still expect a massive allowance. No sirree, that ain't the way I roll, never have, never will"

Wow, she really had a strong work ethic. Strange how it didn't seem to apply in school, even with her trying her hardest on that test. I wonder if she has some difficulty with reading, like a form of dyslexia or something? How the hell was I going to be able to raise that without offending her as I knew she could be so sensitive at times. Myabe I could have a word with Angel later.

"Yo, Moonbeam, come back from Planet Spazz", Faith yelled.

Huh? Oh, was I spacing out there. As the two siblings stared at me I couldn't help but blush. Again. I have a feeling that if I hang out with these two I would be blushing a lot.

"Faith don't embarass her", said Angel as he came over to me and offered me a soft and sincere smile.

"She's cool, bro", Faith yelled over the top of the noise of the stove. Sounded like it was on it's last legs really. That's when I noticed that even though the place was clean and tidy pretty much everything was second hand or water damaged. I guess money really was tight for them, and yet Faith goes out buying me flowers and things? Awww.

"And what if Tara were to find out something embarassing about you?", the tall and decidedly handsome man goaded.

"Really? W-were you a n-nerd or something, Faith?", I said as Mr Stammer decided to intervene in my damned words again.

"Nah babe, I was always this cool"

"Oh really?", Angel said with a devilish smirk as he motioned me over to the sofa as he rummaged around in a drawer, "You see we never had much money growing up, still don't really, so when Faith was a kid she'd see all these girls running round in their communion dresses and got really jealous of them. I remember her saying to Mom "Do only pretty girls get pretty dresses? How come I don't got one? Ain't I pretty Momma?"

"Angel!", Faith screamed from the kitchen trying to stop the story before it got any worse as I could see her blush from here.

"So Mom put in some extra hours at the diner and for Faith's fifth birthday she got her a communion dress, see?", Angel said as he opened up the battered old family photo album to the cutest picture I had ever seen.

A young brown haired girl with the biggest smile and brightest eyes wearing the frilliest, laciest creation ever imaginable doing a sweet little curtsy. That was Faith? Oh...my...goddess!

I couldn't help but laugh out loud with Angel, right before he got a splatter of mince in the side of the head.

"You are such an asshole", growled Faith.

"What you gonna do about it...Fifi?"

At that I thought Faith's face was about to burst, it's crimson flush burnt her cheeks like sulphur as she bounded over the counter towards us. Angel sprang to his feet as she started to chase him round the sofa as I tucked my legs up under me giggling manically whilst Angel continued taunting her.

"See when she was a kid our grampa called her Fifi and she hated it so.."

"Fuck you Liam", she countered.

"Nice try", Angel said back. Oh, I guess that was a nickname too.

Faith managed to grab Angel and they both bundled onto the sofa besides me as she tried to wrestle him to the ground but he soon found her weak spot and started tickling her stomach as she kicked and laughed hysterically.

"C'mon Tara, now we got her where we want her, she'll agree to anything", enthused Angel as his fingers dug in her ribs and Faith gasped for air around her laughs.

"Don't you fuckin...hhahahaha, oh Tara you bi...hhahaha", she tried to say as I joined in the ticklefest.

This opening up of my love, the bond she had with her brother so strong and unbreakable, and their acceptance of me into their nation of two. I felt so privilidged to be part of this and this moment, like so many moments I had experiecnced with Faith, was another one to make me sure that this woman was the burning light in my life and I swore I would never let it become smouldering embers but an inferno of our love. Sappy, yes. But...oooh, her sneaker's come off, tickle toe time!

But Fifi? Oh, she is not going to live that one down anytime soon. Finally, I have some ammo. Maybe I can use it to get her into one of my dresses?

No-one's POV

Meanwhile.

The clean shaven man in the tailor made suit took one last drag of his cigarette and dropped it to the floor, extinguishing it under the heel of his expensive shoes.

"You're here...at last", he said a little gruffly as the young brunette sauntered up to him, her heels clacking viciously on the apshalt.

"Sorry about that but...hang on, why do I have to make excuses to you? Do you have what I wanted?", she said with a demanding tone that reeked of excess.

"Yes"

She took the brown manilla envelope and tore it open eager to get her hands on it's contents. Her eyes danced as the words on the papers bore deep into her devious mind, only shaken from her glee by the man's tar infused cough.

"What? Oh yes, here you go", she stated handing him a plain white envelope.

He opened it, quickly counted the numerous bills inside and smiled.

"We done here?", she asked, obviously weary of his presence.

"Yes, we're done. If you need my services again, well you know where to find me", the man said as he tucked away his generous fee and stepped out into the night. As a Private Investigator he knew he was in a most lucrative business due to the suspicious nature and inherrant mistrust of humanity.

The tall leggy woman smiled cruelly as she read on. Revenge was her mistress tonight and she would gladly heed her malificent call. Sliding the papers back into the envelope she looked up across the empty streets of Sunnydale.

"Well Faith, tomorrow you're going to find out what happens when you cross me. You're going to learn that no-one fucks with Cordelia Chase!"