PROMPT FOURTEEN: The Past
No matter how many years went by something always came around to remind them of the past. A comment made casually by a passerby, a song on the radio or even a picture on a wall could send her into a deep depression. They had all forgiven her so that wasn't even an issue, her past mistakes had been well erased by all the good she had done since then. The problem lay within the recesses of her own mind as she still could not, or would not forgive herself.
Buffy knew why it was so hard for her dark counterpart to relieve herself of the crushing history that always weighed down on her shoulders. Faith had loved him, like a father, and that just made everything he had asked her to do so much more unforgivable. Whilst Buffy could forgive the younger girl for doing what he asked because she knew as well as anyone that you always try to do everything you can to please your parents, even if it means killing an innocent man or plotting against an entire town. Faith on the other hand hates herself for giving in, for letting herself love him, for allowing another person into her life that took advantage of her. She let herself do the one thing she had vowed never to do, love and feel love and as she had predicted things had only ended badly for her. She had no one to blame but herself so if that meant shutting herself off, from never getting close than that was what she would do to keep herself safe, to never let anyone use her like that again.
That didn't mean that nobody wouldn't try to break through the walls that she had put up again and the blonde Slayer was at the forefront of that campaign. Whenever she noticed Faith was particularly down or was withdrawing she would not leave her side. Sometimes she would talk, mainly to herself because the dark Slayer was never very talkative when she got in these moods or sometimes she would just sit with her in total silence, just her presence easing some of the weight from the dark one's shoulders. On very rare occasions Faith would talk to her, give her glimpses of what she was feeling and Buffy cherished those moments when it felt like maybe they could move on. For the moment it would seem that the past had one up on the blonde but she was determined that it would not be victorious.