Danke for the reviews, I love'm, so keep them coming, please. This chapter reflects on friendship and especially perspective.

Enjoy and review.

"Angel." She stated simply before embracing him. He returned it, not quite fully, but with 'heart' and soul. He nodded politely at the others, no smile gracing his handsome features.

Behind him stood Wes and Cordelia. Wes greeted them each with typical English courtesy, while Cordelia could only scowl and purse her lips in disapproval. She did not care for these people. They were here to visit a girl whom they had completely devastated, even before the deal with the Mayor had gone down. Sure, Cordy herself had blamed Faith and had clashed head to head - or elbow to cheek - against the Rogue Slayer, but things had changed. Faith had confessed and asked for jail. She had voluntarily signed up to do her time. For redemption.

Now, that in itself hadn't meant much to Cordelia at all.

Actually, it really had nothing to do with her, therefore, she didn't care. But one day, Angel asked a favor of her. She agreed, and soon she was on her way to visit Faith in Angel's place.

"You want me to visit Miss Psycho in prison?" She had given him the most incredulous of looks, but he was firm.

"Cordy, you owe me. And I promised I'd visit but this trip came up and I need you to go for me. It's clean, don't worry."

She'd muttered angrily but in the end, she enjoyed it and needless to say; she returned for more visits.

Faith slumped into the seat and picked up the receiver, a blank look on her face.

Cordelia had been surprised; there was no make up on, but still the girl was flatteringly beautiful. She picked up the phone on her side and held it to her ear.

"So. In all the time I'm gonna end up spending here, I never thought I'd ever see you in this dump, Cordy."

"Angel asked me to, this once. Don't worry, it's not gonna be a habit."

"Too bad. I was thinking about telling the girls that you're my new girlfriend."

"Egh. What in the world would possess you to do that? Oh wait, I forgot. You're just evil."

Faith smirked.

"Insulting me already? It's only been 5 minutes." She laughed, but there was no joy in it.

"For the record, Cor, I'm just sick of these fucking dykes trying to get me to get them off by trying to get me off so that I'll feel obligated to return the damn favor."

"Okay. Way too much information. How does Angel handle it?"

"Well I don't normally talk to him in a rude and brusque manner."

"So why to me?"

"You gave up on me, just like everybody else did. Angel didn't. Simple as that."

She was taken aback by the blunt honesty that she was given, though it was often known as a common characteristic that Faith had. Cordelia could only reflect on what Faith had said. It was rather strange. Although she was used to being held separate from the common throng of people due to her high social status and her looks, she was now being thrust into the same group she so desperately tried to distance herself from. The Scoobies. She didn't want to be placed near them in any situation, literal or figurative, yet here it was. It forced her to look at it from Faith's perspective, because for the Rogue Slayer, there were only two groups of people:

Friends. Enemies.

Angel. The rest of the world.

Funny, she'd never thought of how Faith would see things. Somehow she doubted that any of the people Faith had encountered ever thought about how the girl saw things. Except Angel.

Granted, Faith made many choices that any person in their right mind would condemn; you just can't go back and change that, but undoubtedly there were reasons behind the things she did. The way she acted towards others. Pretending to be untouchable, unbreakable, invincible. But the girl had rage. She had rage and pain and regret and a hate so deep that nobody saw past the cover of a woman (who was really just a girl) with extreme sex appeal and a bloodlust that couldn't be satisfied by doing good (or maybe it was just because she was never given the praise she needed to fuel what she was doing).

"And just because you're hot doesn't mean I'm gonna roll over and play dead like Xander would. I'm not Miss Reliable like Red always is, and the whole fucking world knows I'm not anything like goody-two-shoes Buffy Summers, Slayer fucking extraordinaire." Faith finished very calmly, eyes flashing so fast Cordelia almost missed it.

"I...I..."

Ladies and gentlemen, it seems that Miss Cordelia Chase has misplaced her voice. Please contact 1-800-FAITH-WINS-AGAIN for more information.

"Gonna get that out before time's up?" Mocking. Bitter. Perhaps even a bit angry.

It almost seemed as though she hadn't changed at all. But something in Cordelia told her different. She took a hold of herself and barged in, like a Chase should.

"Stop pretending to be what they expect you to be, Faith. No matter how much you try to relate me to the past, I'm nothing like those Sunnydale misfits, and you know it!" She snapped her retort and could feel her cheeks flushing.

Faith tilted her head in surprise and her eyebrows shot up, but it only took seconds for her to laugh at the outburst.

"Cordy, you're super hot when you get all worked up like that."

"Faith, I'm super hot all the time."

"Now don't go mixing yourself up with me. Prison's a bad place to have an identity crisis."

"Speak for yourself."

"I am. The second sentence was about me."

"When isn't everything about you?"

"Whenever everything is all about you, Queen C."

"I resent that."

"You would. I bet you expected your Sunnydale life to fall away once you left, huh?"

"One tends to think so, yes."

"Well, it doesn't work that way, princess. I mean, I'm stuck in this shithole, right? Nothing to slay, not much to eat, no one to do..." She wiggled her eyebrows seductively at her fashionably dressed counterpart.

"What about those 'dykes' you mentioned earlier?"

"Funny story, really. I've suddenly lost a taste for scum. Which kinda sucks, cause I just happen to be a fucking scum magnet of sorts."

"More like a scum fucking magnet." Cordelia chuckled in response.

"Touche. But then again, I'm not the one who dated Xander."

"No, you're the one who fucked him."

"Doesn't count. It only lasted 7 minutes." Both girls howled in laughter and suddenly all hostile barriers were broken down.

It went on, and eventually when it was time to leave, Cordelia found herself wanting not to go.

"Gonna visit again, Cor?"

"Count on it."

"Til next time then, you snot-nosed rich bitch."

"Bye, you psychotic slut-bomb."

"Yea, and try to eat something before you start puking up your insides instead of actual food."

"Well you just enjoy thinking about me eating actual food over the shit they dish out here."

They both grinned.

"Cya, Cordy."

"Later, Faith."

This had been months earlier, and the shaky relationship between the two strengthened and now it was a strong friendship. One sprinkled with many sexual innuendos, but still a very good friendship.

So Cordelia could not expressly welcome these people she did not like, because she worried for her friend, and although the past was hardly mentioned, she knew that the Rogue Slayer planned never to see them again. Strangely, for the last couple visits, Faith seemed less animated. Weaker, paler, thinner, even. As if she hadn't been eating enough or resting enough. She swore she was doing fine, and exercising every day to pass her time, but still both Cordelia and Angel voiced their concerns.

Now, it had come to this. They both internally blamed themselves, though they supported each other by assuring them that it was not their fault. But they knew that they both wished they had done something more.

"Hello Cordelia."

"Hey Cordy."

"Hi Cordy."

"Hey."

The ones she didn't really know only smiled or nodded or didn't give her a second glance.

She snorted and rolled her eyes, walking away angrily, Wes trying to assuage her frustration.

"So..." Xander started.

"How is she?" Willow finished helpfully.

"More like, what happened?" Buffy stepped forward.

Angel's lips were set in straight, grim line. He wasn't happy at all. Because this was Faith they were talking about.