Sorry about the wait! So, I just heard that (due to my lack of thinking, I put the name, but have now erased it) died in the comics...and I've gotta say, I totally had a moment. Like true heartache. I could not even celebrate Buffy turning 30 (in technical years). So, I stepped up to the plate, ignored some homework...and decided to get this shit done. Also, thanks for the reviews, I should be able to respond to them all from this point on, and thanks to my new beta Salty-Goodness-Lover! That being said, before I was sure my files were compatibility I went through my file and did a bit of editing, then they emailed me their edited version, and I had done so much editing that I just tried to compare them side by side. That means, if mistakes are left, they are mine.

Chapter Eight: Touching Base (Reminisces of the Night Before)

Dawn stood in the far corner of the kitchen, leaning against the counter as she stared at her mug in the microwave. Bowling water on the stove would have taken longer than she was willing to wait, longer than she was sure she could stand up, considering how tired she was and an all too recent injury. The microwave dinged, and as she removed her mug the small bubbles within it began to subside. Technology was good for something beyond entertainment, after all. She placed the mug on the counter, picked up the t-bag she had set out, and placed the tea filled bag into the hot water, instantly getting a whiff of her usual strong morning tea.

As she dipped the bag in the water repeatedly, mostly because she didn't like to stand still for the necessary time it took for the tea to actually be ready, her mind wandered back to the night before. After arriving back at the academy, both of them relieved at not being caught due to their appearance which told the tale of an obvious fight, she and Lucy had gone out on the balcony in the library to look for Buffy and Faith to arrive. It was a large area for any of the girls that wanted to sit outside and read, study, or eat. There was sometimes the occasional date out there, because of course there were a few couples in the academy. A few painting classes came out for their landscape assignments; rows and rows of trees with a very distant glow of city. It was beautiful, and all of the girls loved having such a view, but the cold weather had recently forced most inside. For them, it being so late however, they didn't have too much to worry about anyways.

"God, it's freezing out here," Dawn had said, pulling her jacket tighter as she bounced slightly, and tried to keep her teeth from chattering. "You'd think I'd be used to this stuff by now."

Lucy had just smiled, a little blood dripping from a cut on the side of her forehead. The blonde hadn't done much talking since they had left the club, even after various attacks they had to ward off, but Dawn didn't feel comfortable asking her what was on her mind. She knew Lucy wasn't one to shy away from saying what she had to say, at least not when she was around anyways, so the silence meant that whatever was going on with Lucy, it was personal. Too personal to talk about.

"There they are." Lucy had pointed out into the distance where two figures could faintly be seen by Dawn's ordinary human vision, but she believed it was her sister. At that moment, the slayer beside her linked their arms. "Let's go inside and get that leg of yours stitched up."

Leaning on the shorter, but stronger girl, Dawn limped over to one of the long tables that stretched through the library. They pushed aside a few chairs, and then she sat on top of the table, sliding back some so she could prop her leg up on it. The cut on her calf turned out to be pretty deep, and it would need stitches as Lucy had predicted. While Lucy left the library to retrieve a first-aid kit, she wondered if maybe they had just had their last outing together, but when the blonde returned she had started to talk a bit more.

They were both sitting on top of the table when Lucy finished stitching her leg, having found it easier to stitch the wound with Dawn's leg in her lap, and Dawn insisted on looking at the cut on the blonde's head. She told Lucy to move closer, so then she was sitting between the girl's spread legs, her own bent at the knees, feet on the table on either side of the slayer.

Sitting up straighter, she looked at the cut and found that it was practically healed. "That has to be some kind of record," she had laughed, relaxing into a slight slouch as she let her fingers move from the cut, grazing the blonde slayer's soft skin. Their eyes had met then, and she found that Lucy's features had regained the intensity they had carried upon leaving the club. Just when she was about to say something, Lucy had began to lean towards her slowly...

"Morning," Lucy said, her head suddenly popping into Dawn's peripherals. She noticed the young woman's slight jump, and smiled. "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you." Taking a step back, she gave the brunette room to turn and face her. "How's the leg?"

Dawn removed the teabag from her mug, tossing it into the sink before grabbing the spoon she had set out and stirring her fresh, hot tea. "It's okay. I'm thinking of having Willow do a light healing spell for me, that way I won't have to worry about getting out of dodge if any sudden danger were to arise." That and in case she happened to go out somewhere danger happened to frequent.

"Good. Well, in that case, I was wondering if you wanted to go out later. I know this place, and it'd be cool if you came with me tonight," she said, moving forward slightly. Dawn just took a sip of her drink, staring down at her, which made her a little uneasy where she had been very confident before. "It's a club, which I know—been there done that, but this place is different. It's...it's kind of special to me."

"Full moon tonight," a girl said walking in with a few other slayers. "Think we'll see any weres?"

Lucy looked over her shoulder, frowning at the question. When the slayer's started to look at her and Dawn curiously however, she turned back to the woman with a small smile. "What do you say, you up for it?"

Dawn sighed. "I can't."

Lucy's smile fell, replaced by a worrying frown. She looked over her shoulder, making sure no one was too close to them before turning back to Dawn, moving in to talk quietly. "Is this about last night?" It wasn't surprising to her that Dawn was having some trouble with what had happened the night before. Most of the night, once they had gone their separate ways, had consisted of her wracking her brain trying to contemplate it all.

She watched as Dawn turned slightly to get a few of the first-aid items in order, knowing that though earlier she may have needed stitches for the cut on her head, it was probably on the verge of healing itself. Since they had left the club, having bumped into someone she hadn't expected to see ever again let alone in Boston, her mind kept wandering to her life outside of the slayer world. The parts of her that were complicating her life more than she could have ever imagined, and it wasn't that she didn't love and appreciate every aspect of her world, it was just that it was all so much. There was always something she needed to worry about, or keep in the back of her mind, and she just wanted a few moments of peace. A few moments to not think about all the crazy shit that was happening in her life, as it had been for years.

When Dawn was completely facing her again, asking her to move closer, she finally figured out why she was so comfortable around the brunette; why she was willing to let the woman go with her to the club earlier that night. It was the air they created between them, the sort of ease that she felt. There were no complications in the relationship, at least not direct complications, and she didn't feel like some outsider with the brunette, even though they were very different from one another. Perhaps it was because both of them were constantly surrounded by people that labeled them, and could see no further than that label; couldn't see them.

"That has to be some kind of record."

Dawn's fingers grazing the side of her face sent shivers through her, and because she was still wrapped up in her thoughts of what it was that made her feel so at ease, she mindlessly lent forward. It was Dawn's pulling back that lead to the landing of the severity of the situation.

"Lucy, I-" A noise caught their attention, and looking across the library they saw a young teen pick up the book she had dropped, apologizing before exiting quickly. Dawn cleared her throat. "We should clean this up."

At first, she started to move, to say something instead of just leaving some awkwardness in the air, but when the towel on her thigh shifted too quickly she had to stop. Placing the towel back over Mihaela's last feeding spot, she couldn't help but really think about what had just happened, and further more, what she had hoped would follow. "Yeah, okay," she said, standing slowly to pull down her skirt as she went. What a hassle those bite marks were turning out to be.

While she picked up the unused contents of the first-aid box and began to file everything away neatly, she glanced over at Dawn. The taller brunette was gathering all the things that needed to be thrown away, seemingly unfazed by her attempt to kiss her, or the fact that someone walked in on them. Dawn not caring about whatever gossip that was sure to make its way through the academy by sunrise was one of the reasons she liked the young woman. She didn't care what people thought about her, except maybe her family, but everyone had their issues there. And Dawn hadn't freaked out in a grossed out homophobic way, which was to be expected seeing that Willow Rosenberg was basically family to her. Yes, she could see that maybe it just wasn't the time to talk about it. But that definitely was the least of her worries.

Innocently enough, seeing the kiss didn't even happen and therefore didn't lead to any other activities, the intent was a serious dilemma. In no way was she supposed to be touched sexually by anyone other than Mihaela, and it wasn't because she was eternally hers and hers alone, because that seemed a bit extreme and she wasn't fooling herself when it came to the elders true love. It was because she was in the process of joining a family, or attempting to. There were rules laid down, and until she was officially part of the family—most likely still in her current state, she was forbidden to let anyone other than Mihaela touch her intimately. It wasn't something the ancient vampire was unwilling to bend, but Lucy had agreed, so it was put in place and going back on it now would be seen as a weakness. And how does one prove their devotion if it isn't through self sacrifice? In the vampire world, that's what it was all about, and if she were turned it would be easy for her to only obey Mihaela until the woman said otherwise. Not being a vampire, to her, meant that she needed to be strong.

So, after she and Dawn parted she went to her room in the academy and after undressing, she laid down. All the taking off the makeup and showering would have to wait till morning, she needed to do some thinking. There was no way she was going to screw up in joining Mihaela's family, but did that mean that she wouldn't be able to ever talk to Dawn again? Well for one, that would make her look extremely immature in Dawn's eyes, and she wasn't sure how she felt about that. Accessing the nature of the relationship was essential.

In terms of the moment on the table, she was sure that it was just because of a mutual existence that she had just figured out explained the whole absurdity of letting Dawn go to the club with her earlier that night. But then again, it was foolish of her to begin to get close with anyone in the academy. If she needed to make a run for it, staying gone and out of sight usually required not telling people anything about your past, or taking them to any places you may frequent in your secret double life. Had she lost her footing somewhere and hadn't noticed, or was it purely that she had lived with multiple people for so long that living on her own, and barely seeing the ancient vampire at all, had finally taken its toll? Before Mihaela, she had never been the solo type. It wasn't how she was raised.

Figuring that it was loneliness mixed with a bit of post slay rush, she decided it was perfectly possible for her and Dawn to continue being friends, but it had to stay separate from her vampire life. And now that Lauren was around, she had yet another aspect of her life to deal with. The part that came before slayers and vampires; her younger days in Mississippi. There was no harm in having someone to have a little fun with, and though things going sour were very likely in terms of her mission at the academy, she was not going to take the time to over think the aftermath. If some hurt feelings lead to bitterness down the years, if it all didn't result in death, then that was that and there was nothing she could do about it.

"Well, is it about last night?" she asked, Dawn having not yet answered.

"Lucy, it's not because of last night, but-"

"It just wasn't a big deal," Lucy blurted, interrupting the brunette. Dawn's brow rose in response, and so the blonde took a deep breath. "It doesn't have to mean anything."

For the first time, Dawn remembered something about the girl standing before her. In one single moment Lucy had reminded her of the fact that they were not the same age, but asking for that number at that moment would have seemed petty. "But it does, Lucy."

"I really didn't expect you to freak out about this," Lucy admitted.

"I'm not freaking out." The girl rolled her eyes, and Dawn scoffed at the ridiculousness of the blonde's attitude. "You really think I would freak out about any type of girl on girl action? I lived with Willow and her deceased girlfriend, who was also like family to me, while Buffy was dead...the second time. And have lived with Willow ever since, minus some time I spent away at school. So, I think I'm a little above whatever typical reaction you thought I was having just then."

"Well, I think you'd agree knowing someone who's gay and figuring out you're gay are two very different experiences," Lucy said, folding her arms.

Dawn squinted, her mouth slightly agape. "I'm going to ignore this whole encounter ever happened, because otherwise I would seriously reconsider our friendship. The reason that almost kiss mattered last night is because I'm not supposed to want to kiss anyone other than my boyfriend."

They both stood in silence, bits and pieces of other conversations filling their ears. It was almost like Lucy had forgotten Dawn too had a life elsewhere. "I'm not exactly single, either," she said, looking at the floor. "But I still don't think it's a big deal." When she looked up at the brunette, it was to see a frown on the woman's face, which she honestly wasn't expecting.

Dawn was starting to wonder if she should reconsider taking the encounter into consideration, because there was either some kind of disproportion in their attraction to one another, or one of them didn't exactly carry the same monogamous tone as the other. Whether one or the other, she did not want to deal with either of them during her Boston trip; a temporary stay. However, before they could say anything else to one another, Mimi Hampton walked into the kitchen, and Dawn just knew there would be trouble.

"Lucy," Mimi said, approaching them.

Lucy did yet another dramatic eye roll before turning around with a chipper smile on her face. "Afternoon, Mimi. How was your morning run?"

Dawn huffed at Lucy's phoniness, sipping on her tea and deciding to simply observe the two slayers, as a few others in the kitchen were already doing.

"I heard the two of you went out again last night. Do you not understand the word suspension? And we've already talked about taking civilians out into the field, no matter how trained they are. Until she's certified as a watcher, she can't be out there with you. We both know your missions haven't been running so smoothly lately, and I'm betting the underground club collapse I've been hearing about this morning leads right back to someone in this kitchen."

"Mimi, I assure you that I played no part in whatever club collapse you're insinuating I caused, but I understand what you're saying. My suspension is something I'm taking very seriously, and that fallout last night where Dawn and I were was not something I anticipated. A night of fun gone wrong, is what it was."

"You expect me to believe that?" Mimi questioned, stepping into the shorter slayer's space. "Here in my district there are rules about all kinds of patrolling, which includes checking out possible leads in inclosed spaces."

Dawn watched as Lucy continued to nod, as if she were seriously taking in what the bullying control freak of a slayer was saying. There were definitely a few things she was starting to notice about the blonde, and one was that every moment of her life seemed to be some sort of mission. She was starting to wonder which one was the real Lucy.

"I think you've forgotten one important thing," Dawn said, breaking her silence. She moved to stand beside Lucy. "You don't control either one of us, especially not me. I'm an adult, I can go anywhere I want, with whoever I want and there's nothing you or anyone else can say about it. I don't know what your conversation concerning us going out the other night was like in detail, beyond your suspension tactic, but mine and Willow's was pretty simple. She said be careful, I said...okay."

"And that's all fine and dandy back in Scotland, but here we run the show, and I don't have time to worry about our leader's sister getting killed in my district. It just doesn't look good, and I feel obligated to keep all of you alive, if possible. While you're here, I would appreciate it if you just get in line like everyone else. We have a system that works-"

"That's not what I hear," Dawn mumbled.

Mimi frowned, leaning her head forward as if to try to hear the woman better. "Excuse me?"

Internally, Lucy wished Dawn wouldn't be so challenging for one moment. Surely the older woman had experience with playing nice so not to draw any unnecessary attention. But it wasn't like her own situation was well known. Or at least, not the real important situation.

"I said, that's not what I hear. From what I've seen and heard there is a serious imbalance of power here between the top slayers in this academy, and I think you forget exactly who I am, and who I know." Feeling a little heated, she set her tea down, taking a more aggressive stance. Mimi was slightly taller than her, but that didn't matter. Slayer or not, there was no way she was going to submit to the cocky slayer before her. "I get that this is your place, but that doesn't mean you control every aspect of these girls' lives. You encourage them to do the right thing, to be safe, and work as a team, but you can't control them. And when you try, typically there's not such a good reaction. Buffy herself has been voted out of leadership, don't think it can't happen to you."

"Is that a threat?" Mimi asked, getting in the other brunette's face. "You using your supposed resources to impeach me would be a serious mistake. As usual, you people who aren't even one of us think you can run our lives, but we are a team. We are a family, and a slayer sticks with her own," she said, looking from Dawn to Lucy, and then back to Dawn. "You try it, I dare you to. I want to see how tough you really are."

Without thinking, Dawn pushed the girl and though it did have enough force behind it to actually move Mimi, there was no question in her mind that the fist she saw coming towards her face would surely make contact, so she simply closed her eyes and waited.

"What do you think you're doing?" Buffy asked, gripping Mimi's arm. She looked down the length of the girl's extended arm seeing that the fist was indeed aiming for her sister's face. "Please tell me you weren't about to punch my sister in the face."

Dawn's eyes went wide. This was not a situation she expected to land in. "Buffy, it's fine. I pushed her first."

"Why?" her sister asked.

"Because she won't back off. She found out about me and Lucy going out again last night, and now she's trying to put us both under lock down." Deciding to leave the latter threats of an uprising alone, she simply glared at the head slayer, who attempted to pull her arm away but failed.

Buffy simply let it go, laughing at what she had just heard. "I guess without Andrew around you don't get to hear all the tales of Dawn Summers being where she shouldn't be at the wrong time. Leave the both of them alone. If they get into trouble, I'll deal with it. That way, there will be no need for any more of these confrontations."

"You can't just come here and undercut my authority."

"I'm not trying to undercut your authority, Mimi. This is about the fact that we have bigger things to worry about than what my sister and Lucy do for fun around here. I promise once this is over Dawn will be out of your hair and will just go back to being a pain in my ass, and mine alone."

"I resent that," Dawn declared. "I will not be treated like a child here when I'm the only one acting like an adult. Minus the pushing, I will admit. That was very strange, and I apologize, but being here sucks when I'm constantly being treated like someone that is an obligation to be around, or even someone who doesn't warrant any type of seriousness in a situation that is obviously a big deal."

"Dawnie," Buffy began, but her sister just raised a hand to silence her.

"Just shut up. All I wanted was a nice quiet morning." She picked up her mug and headed out of the kitchen, mumbling a low, "This is exactly why I need my own place."

Buffy turned back to Lucy and Mimi. "Please, just leave it alone," she said before exiting the kitchen. Willow was waiting for her in one of the rooms upstairs where she was setting up everything they needed to do the spell to test her blood, as well as a few select slayers. Just as she was passing through the main corridor, she spotted Kennedy across the way. They both hesitated in their steps, looking at one another for a moment before Kennedy continued on her way.

Buffy walked into the academy slowly, peeking her head in first to see if she saw or heard anyone. There was minimal movement from what could tell, so she entered the low lit school and headed towards her room. She was sure there were easier and faster ways to get to her room, ones that probably wouldn't have so much activity around it usually, but she couldn't remember that part of the tour. A few girls did look her way as she went past them with a simple, 'goodnight.' But most of them were just walking zombies, either up because they couldn't sleep, or up because they just got home from their own extracurricular activities.

It wasn't until she was about to turn into the hallway her room was in that she bumped into Kennedy. "Oh, hey Kennedy."

"Buffy?" the slayer said, her voice raspy with sleep. "Are you just getting home from your patrol? Willow said you left before the second team went out." After wiping her eyes a bit, she got a clearer view of the woman before her, along with the bruised bite marks on her neck. "Whoa. What the fuck are those?"

"Hmm?" Suddenly realizing where Kennedy was looking, she began to rub her neck. "Oh, that's nothing. Some demon with weird claws, I was worried that the jabbing would lead to deformation," she laughed. "But, it hasn't. Thank goodness."

Kennedy stared at her with a blank expression. "That had to be the worse lie I've ever heard in my whole entire life, and I've heard my fair share from the always late arrival in my morning class, trust me. Buffy, are you..." She moved closer, dipping her head and sniffing the air slightly. The older slayer moved back, looking a bit appalled. "Did you get laid?" She paused. "Are you fucking the hybrid?"

Sure that Willow hadn't told Kennedy about her dreams, or where she was going that night, she was shocked by the younger slayer's ability to just guess that she had not only had sex, but with Faith specifically. Despite the fact that Willow did truly love Kennedy, there was a mutual agreement between the original scoobs—some things stayed between them.

"I-I, there wasn't." She didn't even know what she was trying to say, but within herself she made a decision that she knew she was going to stick to. "Yes, I am."

"Are you fucking kidding me? And this is a good idea, how exactly?" Kennedy asked. "Now I know you've had a thing for vamps in the past, but this is just getting out of control. There's no way you could possibly see this going well. We know nothing about her. Absolutely nothing, other than the fact that she's potentially dangerous, and that her maker is the oldest female vampire. Red flags, anyone?"

Though she understood Kennedy's concerns, she never took kindly to others trying to control her life, or judging it either. "Listen, I know you may not understand, and that's okay, but you don't need to worry."

"Don't I?" she asked, with some sadness. "Buffy, you're having a secret affair with a slayer-vampire who's past is a big question mark, and she's the child of someone even more enigmatic and dangerous. Going out with her, alone, is completely irresponsible on your part. Think about your family and friends. I'm sure Willow knew where you were tonight, and she may have seemed fine last time you saw her, but when you were gone I could tell something was worrying her. Seriously worrying. You need to get your act together. Let's get this mission done and go home."

Buffy found Willow in a large classroom with no windows. She had requested certain rooms in each academy for spells only from the very beginning, saying it is essential for ones practices to have a space devoid of disruption, that also becomes familiar over time. Buffy remembered being very receptive that day, it was a very big day in which they all decided just what was going to happen post-Sunnydale. All of them had imagined endless possibilities, especially Buffy haven finally ending her time in Sunnydale, walking away as one of many, except for the one and only. Turns out she hadn't been the one and only for a while, but she couldn't really count Faith as a fellow slayer.

"Morning Buff. How was your night?" Willow asked, making some odd shapes on the floor with violet grains from a jar. "Kennedy said she bumped into you really late last night. Anything interesting happen?"

"Interesting would be one way to put it," the slayer said, sitting cross legged on the floor a few feet away from where the witch was working. "We went out to an underground club-"

"Wouldn't happen to be the one that collapsed due to a mysterious fire, would it?" Willow asked, with a slight smirk. Though the whole ordeal was a little worrying, Buffy being in the same room with her without any injuries she could see made her imagine the scene unfolding excitingly. Chaotic, with grinning slayers at the helm, fighting the good fight. Kennedy always came back with a smile on her face after a victorious battle that left her with barely a scratch.

Buffy nodded. "That would be the one, but I'm still not really sure how that happened," she admitted, thinking back to the moments just before Faith tossed her off the balcony. "I think one of the vampires there, this robed guy, seemed very important, probably had something to do with the demon that was there. It would tap it's hands together and fire would appear. I think it was there as some sort of emergency protection, everyone else in the club at least looked somewhat human if not completely. This demon was big, possibly of the scale-ly variety. Faith kind of threw me off the balcony in the club when the fire was added to the chaos, then all of sudden—boom. The whole balcony's on fire."

Willow's brows rose. "Huh. Well, did you figure out why Faith took you to that club. It's a very private establishment, and the people that go there don't typically go just to have fun, or to let a few vamps have a bite."

"That would explain the robed guy, and also an elder named...Declan. I'm pretty sure that's who Faith was counting on seeing there, but after she just barged into his private party upstairs the robed guy told him he'd deal with us, basically. Then the elder left."

"Hmm, it's very rare for an elder to make an appearance, even at a place like that. They usually don't associate with younger vampires, unless they're trying to take over. Most of them are known for being recluses, even so far as to eventually be speculated as being dead, like Mother Mihaela."

"Maybe this Declan is the guy we're looking for, he could have been there looking for recruits. The one with the robe traveled around with this posy of vampires that Faith said were way to strong and fast for their age, and that it wasn't the robed ones blood that was the cause of it, for sure. She said finding their blood source could tell us just who's behind this sudden rise up, when most of the vamps in the world aren't as interested in taking over the world anymore."

Willow started to place a few crystals on the floor, and then handed a few of them to Buffy, pointing to their places on the floor. "It would be much easier to do that if we had a sample of their blood. There are plenty of blood banks across America that now cater to vampires."

"They could be using blood banks all down the cost, a few of them could just be covers with a few clients coming in for that extra umph, so when the time comes-"

"They'll be ready for the call," Willow concluded. "This is bigger than we thought."

"No surprise there," Buffy said, setting down the last of the crystals. "If we don't figure this all out soon, and stop it from the source, we're going to need more than just the slayers here to stop them. We may have to call in a few of the overseas teams."

"Xander left this morning to talk with the team in Beijing. Things have been pretty stable there lately, and we figured last night, after Kennedy's team found this vamp hide-out on the way back to the grounds, bringing in a few more girls would be a good idea. The problem is that we can't have all our best girls here, so they're going to have to find a way to divide things up. Move a few girls around every where."

"With the way things are looking, we may not be able to do that if we can't stop this blood from moving down the coast. We don't even know how much they've put out yet, which is a big problem." Though Buffy had spent most of her night consumed with the sensations she had felt in the cemetery, eventually she was able to fully comprehend all that happened that night, and what it it all meant. The dangers that were sure to come. "We may have to call Angel, see if we can get him to call in a few favors outside the slayer realm."

"Do you want me to take care of it, or-"

"No, I'll call him and give him all the details on the situation," Buffy said, shaking her head.

Willow grabbed a book from a shelf and approached her best friend. "All the details?"

"All the details," Buffy answered. "There are a few things I need to talk to him about, things that I think only he can help me understand about this whole thing with Faith," she said, looking down at the ground. Finding the redhead's close proximity and questioning gaze a bit unnerving, Buffy walked over to one of the shelves to lean against it.

"Buffy," Willow said calmly. "What happened last night?"

"I get it, you know. That itch for a fight, the fearlessness even against all odds."

They both slowed to a stop, Buffy turning to face Faith having finally made it back to academy grounds. The walk had been far from silent to her surprise, and the intimacy earlier that night no longer filled her senses. All the adrenaline had finally subsided, and now all was left was that low hum. Even the vampire blood in her system seemed to flow in a hushed pace. She wondered if it had anything to do with Faith's overwhelming calmness. Looking at the slayer-vampire, if you ignored her crisp clothing from the fire at the club, you wouldn't suspect that hours before she'd attacked someone out of anger, leading to a chaotic outburst in the low-key establishment. Nor would you suspect that she had unleashed such unrestrained passion upon the slayer that was standing in front of her.

Faith nodded her head towards the academy. "Looks like they beat us here," she said, spotting Lucy and Dawn on the balcony just before they turned to go inside the academy. "I guess they didn't take as many detours as we did," she laughed.

Buffy just smiled and then looked down at her shoes. "Well, I guess-"

"You know the thing I don't get about you?" Faith interjected, and Buffy's head shot up so their eyes met. "There are so many other ways you can take care of things here. You could have the witch do a few spells, and everything you want to know would be revealed. At least, in terms of me, and maybe even Mihaela. If you're lucky enough to catch her," she laughed. "But instead of taking the easy route, you decide to literally put your life on the line every single second you spend with me, not to mention letting yourself be surrounded by vamps without any backup at the club. I could snap your neck before you realized I've even moved; I could suck you dry and leave you out here in the cold, and no one would know you were even out here. Except maybe your sister and the other slayer, but even then...they'd be too late, because they have this sort of trust after seeing us together at the club and they're probably not thinking that I'd just outright kill you now."

"Are you planning on killing me?" Buffy asked almost sure of the answer and that, she knew, was the problem. That was exactly what Faith was trying to say. Somewhere along the lines, after spending time with the other woman without being killed on multiple occasions, she had gained some kind of trust in her safety as if she weren't in the presence of what was surely to become a legendary creature, whether good or evil.

"That's not the point, it doesn't even matter," Faith answered.

The slayer scoffed but said nothing.

"I've met slayers with a thing for vampires, and you don't strike me as the type to walk that line. But then again, I know that you've dated a vampire before. That you were in love with him even. Somehow, you trusted that your life wasn't in danger, because he had a soul. Which, by the way, doesn't mean a god damn thing when it counts." She paused for a moment, lost in thought before she shook it off. "I could see you feeling safe with him because he's weaker, but the name Angelus strikes no fear where I'm concerned, and I think you know that says a lot."

Buffy was more than aware of what Faith was saying, the point she was trying to prove. One of the most legendary vampires was no legend to Faith, and the number of slayers he may have killed, or people even, paled in comparison of the damage she could do. "I don't trust you completely," she said, quietly.

"But you trust me with your life, and that's more important than anything whether you can admit it or not. Don't you ever wonder why?" she asked, taking a step forward. "Or are you so blinded by whatever it is that you haven't even realized how moronic every decision you've made in Boston has been?"

"Why are you saying this to me? I'm not afraid of you, so what? I've been through more than you could ever imagine. I've died twice and came back both times to continue fighting what I was destined to fight. It's always the same, a new enemy comes along and they're supposedly invincible, and yet...who's left standing? Me. Little old mortal me. The facts mean nothing to me, because in our world there is nothing that's set in stone. You existing at all says that."

"I was just curious is all. Just doing a bit of thinking," Faith said as she began to back away. "Funny though, I've never heard of you hanging out with these not so invincible enemies, or letting them fuck you in a cemetery," she smirked. "Till next time." In a blur, she turned and then vanished.

"I know part of it comes from all the dreams I've had over the years, and all the time we spent together in them. It's not logical, but I just can't help but feel this sort of...comfortableness around her. Like my life isn't in danger, and she isn't someone I'd ever have to worry about, but—I don't know," Buffy sighed.

Willow nodded, still taking in all the details of the night. Kennedy had told her about their encounter in the hall, even going to far as to mention that she may have seem some bruising in the neck area, and the redhead was more than relieved to find out that they hadn't been bruised puncture wounds. But the fact still remained, Buffy was too comfortable with being around the slayer-vampire. "You told me before that you had all of these feelings because of your dreams of her, do you think maybe they've somehow become your real life feelings for her? You know, beyond just feeling safe around her?"

"I don't even know her," Buffy said, and the fact never seemed more true than it was in that moment. "She's nothing like the Faith in my dreams, except for the whole thrill seeking and lusty outbursts thing, but that makes sense. She's a slayer and a vampire."

"How do you think Angel's going to help?" she asked.

"For the longest time, when I couldn't see her face in my dreams, I thought it was him I was dreaming about. That maybe I was dreaming of a time where we'd be able to be together, and what's so scary about that is not that it's completely ridiculous, but also that I didn't know if it was Angel or Angelus. Sometimes she'd be so violent, so evil, and still I was there by her side. She would kill people, torture them, feed from them. Then suddenly we're going at it again. I just," she stood from leaning against the shelves, "I don't know who else to talk to about that, or who could better help me understand the dynamic between-"

"A vampire and their human," Willow said, finally understanding what her best friend was truly worried about. "Buffy, you're not—You wouldn't go there, not in real life. Dreams can sometimes delve into our deepest fears and desires. Things we would never do, but sometimes consider for just a moment. Just long enough for our subconscious to grab a hold of it and twist it enough to change our whole world in our dreams."

"I'm not so worried about it going that far, but I don't think it's a good idea for me to go about this with a blind fold on, either. Talking to any other vampire is out of the question, and Angel knows me, so maybe he can help me better understand the relationship Faith and I have in my dreams. That way I can deal with the real situation a little better, or at least consciously deal with it." There needed to be some kind of change, she was tired of feeling like a pawn in a game she didn't understand.


Faith turned over on her couch, laying on her stomach to stare at her television. She tried to pay attention to whatever new accomplishment the political vamps were going on and on about, but her mind kept taking her back to the previous night. During the day she had found peace in her deep slumber, but now that she was awake again her mind was consumed with thoughts and images of none other than Buffy Summers. As if her life wasn't already a complicated ball of chaos, which she had actually grown quite used to being tame for the first time in her undead life, or even her actual life because it too was far from spa like, now she had to worry about whatever thing was going on between her and Buffy.

She could still hear the sounds of the slayer's moans, feel the vibrations from the chest beneath her as Buffy desperately tried to catch her breath. The way the other woman's heart pounded so hard that Faith felt it as if it were her own; the way Buffy's hips moved against her, rising to meet her every thrust. She could still smell the woman's sweat and arousal all around her, and she knew it wasn't just because she had yet to shower. It was because they were so completely unforgettable. The sweetness with a pinch of something sour, something pungent.

The attraction was something she found understandable. The woman was tough. Strong-headed and fearless. All night she had watched her take out one vamp after another, never losing her step, never showing any sign of doubt in the outcome of each fight. Then there was the fact that she was gorgeous, and Faith was far from blind. But what she was far from was the type of person to obsess over another person. She had never met anyone she couldn't get off her mind after fucking them. It just wasn't her. But Buffy was starting to prove otherwise.

Sensing an arrival, she looked to the door. "Come in," she called before they could even knock.

The sound of a key unlocking the door filled the room, and then Paul walked in with a brown bag in his hands and a smile on his face. "I bring presents from Miha."

Faith laughed, sitting up slowly. "You know she'd kill you if you ever called her that, right?"

"Yeah, I tried it once...didn't go so well. Something about the ridiculousness of modern day culture and it's obsession with nicknames." He walked into the kitchen and retrieved two glasses from a cabinet. "So, how was your night?"

Getting up from the couch she went to lean on a wall outside the kitchen, watching as Paul pulled a bottle out of the bag as well as some strawberries. "Wow, she's going all out tonight. Sending actual food too."

"Actually, I think it's so we'll ignore who's blood it is," Paul said, pouring both of them a glass. "Smell familiar?" he asked handing her a glass, heading towards the couch knowing she'd follow.

Faith sniffed the glass, her nose scrunching instantly. "Lucy," she said, sitting down beside her prodigy.

"Bingo."

"So, what, she's part of the family now?" She wasn't so fond of the little brat, nor Mihaela's reasons for letting her begin trials for joining the family, but her maker was in charge and that was that at the end of the night. It was a long time coming considering everything that had happened since they met the blonde.

Paul took a big gulp, licking over his lips and marveling at the taste. There was even a slight sparkle in his eyes. The feel of Lucy's blood was like nothing else he'd experienced, and though he didn't care for her either, Lucy's blood was definitely something he wouldn't mind having access to. "No, not yet. She came to the hotel right before I left, got us all caught up on what happened at the club that she wasn't supposed to be at in the first place. Mihaela thought it would be better if we all had a bit of her blood in our system, just in case she needs help at some point. I tried to argue, but then Miha pointed out the fact that Lucy has gotten all of us out of plenty of situations, so it was only fair."

Faith scoffed, taking a sip of the blood. "She only did those things because Mihaela asked her to."

"Well that's pretty much why all of us get up at dusk, so I can't really say anything," Paul laughed. He sat back on the couch, crossing his legs in a rather feminine manner and taking one of Faith's hands into his own to place a kiss on it. When his nostrils were filled with an unfamiliar and yet familiar scent, he stopped short of kissing her hand, raising a brow at her. "You didn't," he said in a speculating tone.

A big grin spread across her lips and he burst into laughter. "I may have gotten a little carried away last night," she admitted. "But who doesn't on a mission?"

"True true. I have had my fair share of 'carried away' moments out there. How was it?" he asked, sitting up excitedly. "How was she? Did you feed from her? Is she any good? She doesn't look like it." He frowned. "Too small for my taste."

"Uh, yeah. She's not 6'1'' with a thirty inch waist, and eight inch cock. Or, you know...me." After taking another drink, this time more of a swallow than a sip, she relaxed into the couch as she decided what exactly she was going to say to Paul. In reality she knew it would be easier to talk to him about Buffy than it would be to talk to Mihaela, who was in love with her. "It was...fucking raw and animalistic. I couldn't even control myself."

"Oooh, sounds like my kind of night. Was she just as rough?" he asked, knowing that not many could keep up with Faith when she really let herself go. Really, no one could. He started to wonder if his maker ever had full blown sex with anyone other than Mihaela, being as freakishly strong as she was. "Or should I say, rough enough for your taste? And please do not avoid the feeding question, because I've always wondered if she'd taste different. You know, being a pure slayer. Naturally called and everything. Hmm," he thought for a moment. "Do you think her dying has changed the way she tasted, like with us?"

"Kid, you're going to have to keep your questions to a minimal. I'm losing track of them already." Spending quality time with Paul was always something she could appreciate. He was tough as nails and vicious as fuck when you needed him to be, but then he could turn into a chatter box and she'd feel like she was coming closer than she ever had before to having one of those sleepovers she had always heard about as a child. It wasn't like she could invite anyone over to her mother's place, that's for sure. "First off, I didn't feed from her. Mihaela told me that probably wouldn't be such a good idea, for some reason." Something she now knew she was going to question on a later date. "And I doubt her dying would change her much, because she's technically still alive, but something's not right about her at the same time. She smells like something more than a slayer. Anyways, I don't know how good she is either. I didn't even really let her touch me."

"What now?" Paul asked, frowning. "What do you mean you didn't let her touch you?" Suddenly he was excited again. "You totally wanted to show her who was boss, right? A little s&m," he grinned.

Faith laughed at his enthusiasm. She wasn't foreign to that realm of thinking, lots of humans were really into that when they slept with vampires, and she wasn't one to say no to sexual adventures. But what happened in the cemetery hadn't been a conscious decision, and that's what bothered her about it. "It wasn't like that," she said with a shake of her head.

Paul huffed, sitting back with a look of disappointment. "Bummer. I could totally see the attraction if she was into something like that."

"Maybe she is, I don't know. She didn't complain or anything, but she did try to cop a few feels here and there." She pictured herself biting the slayer every time those warm hands tried to touch her intimately, once again hearing her whimpers and moans. "It's not that I didn't want her to touch me." Her body had been screaming for it. "It was like I was pulled into this zone. Something inside me just..." She couldn't even find the words, she had never felt anything like it before. "This sort of instinct laced with a need for possession."

"Possession?" Paul questioned, deciding to set his glass of blood on the table beside the couch. He eyed his maker curiously. "So, you're telling me that you didn't feed from the original slayer when you had the chance, you wouldn't let her fuck you, and you weren't just trying to dominate her?"

She stared at him for a moment. "Paul..." she warned. "Don't even let your mind go there, or I swear to-"

"Mihaela told me that sometimes you just know, but this—this is too fucking much. I mean, you just started a ritual that most of us don't even know about, and those of us that do don't stick to it at all. Why do that when you can go the easy route like everyone else? Including you, usually. Or at least, where I'm concerned."

"Paul, just because-"

"Uh yes, just because. Because you don't lose control in those situations. Ever. In fact, you took a long ass time staying away from the lesser forms of creation so you wouldn't. You didn't even feed from her, and you know why? Don't you dare say it's because of Miha," he said just as Faith was about to respond. "First, because phase one is all about physical possession. Second, because she didn't give you permission to. You know what that means?"

"Absolutely fucking nothing, that's what that means," she said, angrily.

"Wrong, my sexy naïve maker. Wrong. But, if you want to ignore it that's you. I for one would see it as a golden opportunity to end whatever possible chaos that's about to sweep through Boston. Please," he said, with an over enthused smile. "Tell me, how exactly did she react to what happened last night."

"She was fine when I dropped her off at the academy. Let me tell you, I was pissed to leave the car behind."

"I'm so tempted to just carry you there, so I can get home and eat," Faith said, looking over at the slayer walking beside her. "You walk at a snails pace."

"Compared to you, sure. But the average person would say this is a normal, slightly sped up stroll," she joked.

For some reason Faith thought that was funny, or maybe she was just glad to have their silence finally broken. She was worried that the slayer was going to be awkward around her from that point on, which she could find slightly understandable because she was still trying to figure out what happened in the graveyard too.

"So, I was wondering," Buffy began. "You said that you used to have the dreams too, so that means you knew who I was at the club, right?"

She should have predicted the whole dreams thing would come up, but it was just one more thing on the list of unexpected aspects of the night. "I wasn't sure at first, the hair kind of threw me off, but yeah. I knew it was you."

"What were they like? The dreams, I mean. Mine are always so different, and yet the same overall, if I really think about it," she said with a sarcastic sounding laugh.

"Mine were always violent, very dark most of the time. They were pretty much just constant nightmares, confusing as fuck, but I hear that's the norm for slayer dreams." She thought back to the countless nights of tormenting nightmares, and sure there had been a few calmer moments, especially before her maker was killed but even then she hadn't been so fond of them. They brought her comfort in a sense that she wasn't alone, but a lot of the time she just felt the distance between them intensify. She guessed it was because eventually they would be so different from one another, while also being the same in one way. The slayer still lived within her, after all. "Yours?" she asked.

Buffy had stared at her for a long while without saying a word, and then she shrugged. "The same."

"After that we just started talking about all these awesome kills we've had over the years. No more serious talk, or at least, not until I challenged her decision making skillsby pointing out the fact that she's a moron for being so careless around me. By which I meant, being around me at all," she finished, finishing off her glass of blood as well.

Paul grabbed her glass, heading towards the kitchen to refill it. "And that my friend is called a defense mechanism. I'll grab the strawberries."