The doors sprang open at her shove, and Faith took three strides into the hallway. It was as far as she got.
"I thought I saw you lurking in the hallways earlier. How fortunate that I decided to take a stroll around the building this afternoon." Principal Snyder smirked and stepped in front of her. "Maybe you can explain why you – someone who is not a student here – spends more time on campus than most of the non-dedicated student body?"
Faith ignored the question and peered over Snyder's head. Travers was almost to the main hallway. If she didn't catch him now… She sidestepped the principal with the intention of continuing her pursuit.
"I asked you a question, young lady!" Snyder wasn't giving up. He took her arm in a tight grip and moved even closer. "Or do I need to call the police and have you arrested for trespassing and, if I'm not mistaken, truancy?"
Travers disappeared around a corner.
"Listen, you little…" Faith snarled.
"Faith!" Giles's clipped voice cut her off. Faith and Snyder turned to face him. He stood in the library entrance and peered at them with lips pursed. "Have I not told you to keep a civil tongue?"
Had he been hitting the Scotch, too? Faith stared at him in confusion. "Uhh…" What was she supposed to say?
"Indeed." Marching up to her, Giles smiled apologetically at Snyder. "Forgive me, Principal Snyder. My ward has appalling manners. It is something I am working to correct, believe me."
Snyder's grip relaxed slightly, and Faith pulled away. "I wasn't aware you had a… ward, Mr. Giles. You neglected to inform me or the Board of your change in status." Glaring at Giles in disbelief, he continued. "I've seen her roaming the hallways for months, and yet she still isn't enrolled here. As a member of the faculty, I would have expected that to have been your first order of business."
"A mix up with her previous records." Giles was good at this. Faith slumped in mock sullenness to bolster Giles' cover story and watched him deftly handle Principal Snyder. "Until I can obtain them, I did not want to inflict her upon you."
Giving Giles a sympathetic look, Snyder said, "She can't be any worse than some of our other students, Mr. Giles. Bring the court documents to the office on Monday, and we'll get her signed up for classes." With a last glare for Faith, he walked away.
"Now what, 'Uncle' Giles?" Faith pushed past Giles and returned to the library. "That friend of yours is long gone and we ain't got a clue where he's holed up." And they were running out of time. She started to pace back and forth in front of the research tables.
Giles hurried to follow and closed the doors in their wake. "Although I mistrust Quentin, the Cruciamentum is a long-standing tradition for Slayers. We must allow Buffy to prove herself to the Council, as have scores of her predecessors." His voice was flat and monotone.
It was the last straw. Faith stopped pacing and spun so fast that Giles nearly ran into her. "Who're you trying to convince, Tweed? You heard that asshole. B's so good they got something extra up their sleeves to make it even harder for her to pass this test. And, I got to tell ya', ain't too many Slayers walking out alive, anyhow." Faith remembered the unemotional accounts in the journals and clenched her fists. "I don't get it. You don't like this Travers guy. He was so pissed at you he tried to get you fired. Why the fuck are we here and not helping get B back on her feet?"
Avoiding her glare, Giles stepped around Faith and continued to the checkout desk. "I'm afraid you don't understand, my dear."
No way. He was not pulling that crap with her. "Oh, I understand just fine," Faith snapped. "You're hanging B out to dry – like all the rest of them Watchers." Quoting from memory, she said, "'Emmaline's performance was disappointing.' That's gonna be you. If B…"
"It will not happen that way." They were nearly shouting at each other. "Buffy is the finest Slayer in history." Giles whipped off his glasses and waved them at Faith. "I have every confidence she will complete this assessment with distinction." His voice lowered nearly to a whisper. "She has to."
"I hate to tell you this, Giles…" Faith was so serious she didn't register her use of his full name. "It don't matter how good B is if they rigged the test. Them books or journals in your office? All of the Slayers died. All of them!"
It might have been a trick of the light. When Giles looked up at her final statement, Faith thought there were tears in his eyes. "Yes, I know. I've read those accounts many, many times." Falling silent, he began to wipe the lenses of his glasses with a handkerchief. "I…I always knew this moment would come." He replaced the handkerchief in his pocket and stared sightlessly over Faith's head. "I never realized…" He seemed at a loss. Standing with the handkerchief wrapped around the glasses, Giles stared fixedly at the carpet.
Not sure how to proceed, Faith too stayed frozen and watched Giles.
Finally, Giles came back to life. "The test is tradition, Faith. It is a way to measure a Slayer's skills in the unlikely event she must face the supernatural without her own enhanced abilities," Giles muttered.
Faith looked around for the cue cards Giles was reading because everything coming out of his mouth sounded stilted and stiff. "Giles…" Faith could almost see him arguing with himself as he stood in front of her. "Red's got the books at her place. You wanna read them again? The only thing they're testing is how long B can last before whatever they brought with them from the Mother Country kills her. Fuck tradition. B's your Slayer. She needs your help," she finished softly, willing Giles to get off the fence and make the right decision.
Her patience paid off. This time, when Giles looked up, the indecision was absent from his expression. Aligning his glasses on his nose, he said, "Yes. Yes, she does. Thank you for reminding me where my first duty lies."
Barely holding back a raucous shout of victory, Faith straightened. "Wicked!" Ready to stop wasting time and get down to business, she asked, "You got some kind of shit to make B a Slayer again?"
Her exuberance was short-lived. Giles shook his head. "I'm afraid not. The serum – and its antidote – is closely monitored by the Council. I was only given enough of the drug itself to ensure Buffy was properly prepared for her test."
"You fucking gave her that drug and didn't have nothing to fix her?" Faith took a step in Giles' direction. He never did anything without a backup.
Giles held up a hand to stop her and forestall any more outbursts. "It is only a temporary condition," he said quietly. "Even though, as you pointed out, many Slayers have failed to survive the experience, the Council cannot risk leaving their Champion in a permanently weakened condition."
The knowledge didn't help much, and it further enraged Faith. "You're kidding, right?" Planting her hands on her hips, she nearly shouted, "You said you read the books! All the fucking Council's gotta do is let their Champion die, and they get a new one."
It was a low blow. Giles went pale and his mouth opened and closed without a sound.
Grudgingly, Faith backed off. "Sorry." She tried to bottle up the anger still flaring inside and get things moving again. "We don't got to worry about B staying out of the game. What about finding out what your buddies are up to? Any ideas where we should look?" If Giles knew where they were… Well, maybe Buffy wouldn't have to fight anything until the drug wore off. Faith wouldn't complain about taking over and doing a little fighting and staking in the afternoon.
"I'm afraid not." Leaning against the checkout desk, a still-pale Giles appeared to consider their options. "My contacts within the Council haven't been able to discover anything. And they are becoming exceedingly tired of my questions. I dare not push for more."
Despite the bad news, Faith smiled slightly. Giles hadn't been completely behind the Council's test, after all, if he'd been trying to sweet talk information out of his friends. "If you're feeling lucky, we can check in with Red and B. If anybody can track down Travers and his goons, it'd be Red and her computer. Just got to hope B don't drag herself out of bed and kill you when we show up."
Giles didn't share her smile. "It is worth the risk, Faith." He straightened and met her eyes. "Losing Buffy's …" His words trailed off for a second. "…trust is painful, yet understandable, after my actions. Losing her permanently, however, must not be allowed to happen."
It was exactly what Faith needed to hear. "Then let's motor, Tweed." She was at the library door in a two strides.
"Wait!" Giles ordered.
"What the fuck? I thought you said you was back on the right side?" Faith left her hand on the door and glared at Giles over her shoulder.
He glared back. "I am, as you say, on the right side. However, after Quentin's visit, I am not certain he will not have me watched. Going to the Council… I may have pushed too hard to have the test delayed. If he no longer trusts my judgment…"
Faith's hand slipped off the metal touch plate. "Gotcha. You wanna go out the back?" She was already doing a mental tour of the school. "Ain't nobody in the lunchroom now. The loading dock sound good?"
"Excellent. Perhaps you were listening when I spoke about the importance of tactics and strategy." Giles led Faith out of the library and down the hallway to the left.
Snyder was nowhere in sight. Knowing that they might be under surveillance, though, Faith kept her senses strained to the limits. Humans didn't ping on her radar; that didn't mean she couldn't hear or see them before they did her. "I hate to break it to you," Faith murmured to Giles as they hurried toward the cafeteria. "I learned all about back entrances way before I met you and B. Call it part of my Southie schoolin'."
Giles' chuckle surprised her. "Perhaps I should allow you to do the lecturing on occasion. Bursting through the front door, while impressive, is not always the best tactical decision."
"Yeah. Right." Faith gave him a disbelieving look and went up on her toes to peer through the high, round windows of the cafeteria doors. "Empty. Looks like we're good to go."
In minutes, they exited the building through the delivery entrance.
Taking the lead, Faith skirted the student parking lot. "B's at Red's place. You up for a run, Tweed?" She gave Giles' suit and polished loafers a withering look.
"Watchers are required to maintain an excellent level of physical fitness," he answered.
Not bothering to comment, Faith took off at a steady jog. She kept them off the main streets – and also avoided any of her usual trips through back yards. From the gasping and wheezing behind her, Giles 'excellent' conditioning would make scaling fences and outrunning family dogs out of the question.
There was no sign of pursuit during the trip.
Still on alert, Faith approached Willow's house from an adjacent street. "See anyone you know?" She scanned the few cars and people on the quiet street. Her senses were clear. Everyone wandering by was human.
"No." Pressing a hand to Faith's back, Giles headed for the Rosenberg's front door. "None of Quentin's associates would be caught dead in anything so American as a mini-van." Despite the humor in his tone, Faith felt the tension in his body. "I do not believe the Council understands how very resourceful Willow is. She would not rate a team."
"Dumb bastards," Faith responded. Pressing the doorbell, she continued to watch the street. "Can't wait to see Travers' face when she finds a way for us to get B a passing grade on the test." Not hearing anything from inside, Faith tried the bell again. Where the fuck was Willow?
As if her thought had summoned Willow, the door opened. "Faith!" Willow started to smile until she saw Giles. "And Giles." Her normally green eyes seemed to glow with an eerie light as she glared over Faith's shoulder.
The hand on Faith's back fell away.
Before the situation got out of hand, Faith intervened. "Save the bitching for later, Red. You got any news?" She gently pushed Willow out of the way and stepped into the house. "The Council's in town, and they got something special planned for B."
There was a deadly silence behind her as Faith put her foot on the lowest stair. "Maybe," Willow finally said. "Buffy and I thought the Council might use a warehouse for the test. They need something big and out of the way. I'm checking tax and property records now."
"A safe house," Giles chimed in. His footsteps were close behind Faith. "Bloody hell. How could I not have realized…"
"Don't have time for that, Tweed. You wanna feel bad about missing the easy stuff, save it for later." Excitement put new energy in Faith's stride as she reached the landing. "You got any ideas where I should look?" Buffy was in no shape to go hunting so Faith would have to do the reconnaissance and report back.
She opened the door to Willow's room, already distracted with thoughts of the fun to come – and walked right into the fuzzy slipper flying through the air.
"I don't need superhearing to hear you on the stairs!" Buffy announced. Tears streaked her face as she huddled against the pillows on the bed. "Why is G-Giles here?" Her voice broke on the name. "He's the one that did this to me. How could you bring him here, Faith?"