Chapter Fourteen

Faith shut the water off in the shower, the tap creaking as the water trickled down to a stop and she reached for the towel on the rack, pulling it around her quickly, the bathroom still having a chill in the air despite the amount of warm steam that filled from her hour long shower. She was in the middle of trying not to panic, but it was hard to keep calm and ignore what she saw as soon as she'd stripped off her clothes.

The first thing she had noticed was her tattoo. The mark given to her by Kakistos was gone and the skin smooth, not a single mark or evidence that it had been there at all. The second was the only deep scar she had on her entire body, one that had been given to her by Buffy years ago when Buffy stabbed her with her own knife. The skin too was smooth, not even a remnant of the scar that served as a memory for her remained. Both things held heavy memories, events that had moulded her life into what it turned out to be.

"There's gotta be some kind of explanation for this," Faith muttered as she toweled herself off. "Something probably happened with that whole time jump fiasco."

Shaking her head, she started to dry her wet hair with the towel, standing in the middle of the cool bathroom completely naked. She didn't even flinch when she heard the door creak open slowly, didn't even move to cover herself up as she walked over to the sink and wiped away the steam from the mirror. She closed her eyes as she felt warm, soft hands touch her shoulders and trail smoothly down her back. She inhaled sharply at the feel of warm, wet lips on her shoulder blade as hands slipped over her hips and encircled her from behind. She bit her lip as she heard the towel drop to the floor with a soft thud.

"Everything has changed," Buffy whispered, leaning in slowly to kiss Faith's exposed neck. "Everything."

"B?" Faith was afraid to speak, wondering if this was some kind of weird dream. She hadn't slept in well over a day and her body, her mind was so unbelievably exhausted. "What's changed?"

Opening her eyes, she looked at Buffy in the mirror as she kissed her neck again, her tongue dipping out for a little taste. "Everything," she said quietly, her breath tickling over her damn skin in a way that sent shivers down her spine. "Don't you feel it?"

"I feel you."

"It feels different," Buffy said as Faith slowly turned in her arms. "Doesn't it?"

Faith wasn't sure what to say, but being in Buffy's warm embrace, it felt like finally coming home where she was supposed to be. Instead of trying to find the right words to say, words themselves failing to fall past parted lips, Faith leaned in and kissed Buffy with everything that she had. A soft knock on the bathroom door pulled them apart and Buffy picked up her towel and wrapped it around her body.

"Buffy?" Willow called out from the other side of the door. "Can I talk to you?"

Buffy waited until Faith had her own towel wrapped around her body before she opened the door. "What is it, Wil?"

"Oh, I didn't know Faith was—oh!" Willow stepped back, blushing a deep red as Buffy walked out of the bathroom with Faith lingering behind. "I'll uh, I'll be in my room, so uh, why don't you get dressed and come and talk to me in a few minutes?"

"About what, Wil?"

"Faith, you can come too. I think you both will want to hear this together," Willow said and she walked off, shaking her head as she pressed her hands to her flushed cheeks.

"What was that all about?" Faith asked as they stood there, unmoving.

"Your guess is as good as mine."

"Should probably get dressed and go see what she wants."

"Yeah," Buffy nodded and Faith laughed as she stepped out into the hallway. "Oh, Wil's room is next to mine."

"Don't know where your room is either, B."

"Last door on the left," she replied as she walked in the same direction Willow walked off to. Faith just watched her and when Buffy reached her door, she turned and smiled at her before walking inside.

Faith shook her head, smiling as she headed down to the room she was staying in, feeling like she was floating on cloud nine. Yet there was a lingering feeling that whatever Willow wanted to talk to them about would change everything. Not just between the two of them, but their lives as a whole.

Faith knocked on Willow's door tentatively about fifteen minutes later. She heard Buffy call out from inside for her to come in and she opened the door and stepped inside. Buffy and Willow were sitting on the queen sized bed, waiting for her it seemed and she shut the door behind her and stood where she was.

"Come and sit," Buffy said as she patted the bed next to her.

"Okay," Faith said quietly and she walked around to the left side of the bed and sat down next to Buffy. Willow sat in the middle, legs crossed and she was staring at the two of them, eyes darting back and forth quickly. "What's the what, Willow?"

"I'm not really sure where to start," she admitted easily and if Faith wasn't mistaken, she could see that Willow was nervous. "There's some things you both need to know about what happened when you killed the Goddess. When I went to her to give her the scythe to hide, she told me that killing her would change the future, protect us from the demon who had consumed her and was using her powers mixed with its own to put an end to our world as we knew it. Killing her prevented the demon from doing this, but what she didn't tell me was what else it would change for us. I don't think she truly knew the consequences of her death."

"But we killed her to stop the events that were happening here and that would continue to happen until we were all killed. Why would it change anything else but that?" Buffy asked and Faith idly scratched where her tattoo used to be and she glanced down, feeling weird not to see it marked there in her skin. "Willow, what has changed?"

"At first I just thought they were small, minor changes, things we wouldn't really notice or would actually affect our lives as a whole. I was wrong."

"Willow," Buffy said quietly. "Just tell me."

"Faith, what happened to your tattoo?" Willow asked suddenly and Buffy reached out to touch her arm where it had been. "When did it disappear?"

"Beats me," Faith shrugged. "It was there the other night, then we got sent back in time. Never dawned on me to look and see if it was still there, you know? Didn't notice it 'til I had a shower," she said and she shrugged again. "Not the only thing missing."

"What else?" Buffy whispered, her fingers trembling as she glided her fingers down Faith's arm, her eyes trailing to her stomach. "It's gone, isn't it?"

Faith nodded. "Yeah, it is."

"What's gone?" Willow asked.

"The scar B gave me," Faith replied, leaving it at that as to not drag up any more bad memories than she had to at the moment. "It's like it wasn't even there."

"Oh, Goddess," Willow gasped, her hands flying to her mouth. "This is so much bigger than I thought it was."

"Wil, we don't even know how big it already is!" Buffy exclaimed, the tension hanging between the three of them heavily. "Is…Sunnydale…?"

"The battle on the Hellmouth ended far differently," Willow said calmly. "When the Hellmouth collapsed, it only took the school and a few houses nearby. Sam is actually the one who found out what had happened. I—I kind of was told that your life, Buffy, and the path you were on would be restored, that you would be put back on the path you should've taken instead of the one you lived through. I don't know what things have changed and there's only so much we can go by with newspaper articles and records."

"I don't understand."

"Buffy," Willow said as she reached out and took Buffy's hands in hers. "I want you to hear this from me first. Your mom, she—" Willow choked up as the tears began to fall and Faith could feel her own tears forming as well. "She's alive. Again, or well, technically still alive since as far as she knows, nothing ever happened to her, no tumor and no complications from the surgery that caused the aneurysm. She's alive and still in Sunnydale, Buffy."

"No," Buffy gasped as she pulled her hands out of Willow's and she furiously wiped away her tears. "There's no way she's alive. There's no way. She's dead. Gone. Forever. How can she be alive, Wil?"

"I don't know, but she is."

"It's a trick."

"Buffy—"

"This is all a trick! An illusion! Something out there is playing us, all of us, and we're falling for it like fools! No, I don't believe any of it! My mother is dead, Willow! Sunnydale is gone!"

It wasn't Willow that Buffy reached out for as she broke down, it was Faith and Faith did her best to hold her and comfort her, watching Willow watch the two of them with curious eyes.

"It's going to take some time to figure out what changed and what remained the same," Willow said and she wiped away her own tears. "It seems like the Goddess made sure that somehow we would remember everything as it is and nothing as it has become. Surely there's a reason for that."

"Yeah, to make our lives that much more difficult," Faith muttered under her breath and she gently rubbed Buffy's back as she clung to her, grabbing on to the front of Faith's tank top as she buried her face into Faith's neck. "If everything went and changed on us, what the hell are we still doing here?"

"I don't know," Willow frowned. "I don't know."

A soft knock sounded on the door before Kennedy opened it and walked in. She looked like a mess and it was obvious she'd been crying, although the tears were gone as she shut the door behind her. Buffy moved out of Faith's arms, her eyes trailing over to look at Kennedy lingering by the door.

"By all accounts and purposes, you came here to check in on us," Kennedy replied in a bitter tone of voice. Willow scrambled to get off the bed and tried to wrap her arms lovingly around Kennedy, but she pushed her away. "Don't," Kennedy said coldly. "When you find out what I already know, you won't even want to come near me ever again."

"Ken—"

"You knew this would happen, didn't you? You lied to us, make it out to be because of the Slayer when it was more about you getting what you've been wanting for years," Kennedy said angrily. Faith got off the bed, ready to step between the two if she needed to, even though they both could handle themselves in their own way. Kennedy shoved a thick book into Willow's hands. "While you were off having your little Scooby meeting that I was not informed was even happening, I wandered around the compound and I found that," she said as she pointed at the book Willow clutched in her hands. "Figured I'd do you a favor, help you and everyone else figure it all out on your own. Whatever you want to know, most of it is in there."

"This is a Watcher's diary," Willow whispered as she opened the book and ran her fingers over the first page. "Giles' Watcher's diary. Where did you find this?"

"In the library with the rest of them. I knew something didn't feel right after that earthquake earlier, or whatever the hell it was, so I went looking for something, I didn't know what at first, but when I saw the diary sitting on the desk in the library, I knew that it was what I was looking for."

"Kennedy—"

Looking over at Buffy, Kennedy frowned. "Sorry for reading it. I just had to know."

"Know what?" Buffy asked her as Willow went to say her name again, but Kennedy just brushed them off as she opened the door and walked out without saying another word.

"Buffy, do you want to—"

"No," Buffy said as she shook her head. "Not right now. I don't think I can handle knowing everything, not after what you just told me, Willow."

"Can I?"

Buffy nodded as she walked towards the open doorway. "Yeah. You know you will even if I say no," Buffy chuckled dryly. "It's been a rough couple of days. I think I'm just going to get some sleep and we'll figure out…whatever it is we need to in the morning."

Faith didn't miss the not so subtle look Buffy flashed her way, not with her bedroom eyes and a sexy little smile that told her exactly what she wanted. She wanted Faith to follow her, to spend the night with her and even though she knew that it wasn't the best idea with the emotional state Buffy was in, she didn't want to leave her alone either.

Willow turned to look at Faith once Buffy had left the room. "Go," she said with a soft smile. "She wants you with her, so go."

"I, uh—"

"Faith? Don't worry about anything else tonight other than making sure she has everything she needs. I'll go through this," Willow said as she held up the book and she smiled though it faltered quickly. "I'll make notes."

Faith nodded and she walked out of the room and turned down to Buffy's slightly ajar door. She tapped on the door a few times before pushing it open and walking into the dimly lit bedroom. She barely had the door shut behind her before Buffy was pulling her towards the bed, her lips needy, kissing her with breathless desperation that Faith fell into the reckless desire and set her mind on giving Buffy absolutely everything that she needed and wanted. All night long.

Dean sat alone in the nearly dark kitchen, perched on a stool at the breakfast bar, sipping a cold beer as the radio played quietly. He couldn't sleep despite how exhausted he was and Sam had gone back to researching what he could, zoning out the rest of the world, lost in the tangled web the world was now in.

He heard the soft moans, the quiet whimpers, the not so subtle creaking of the bedsprings coming from the room above the kitchen and his stomach twisted in knots as he reached for the radio, turning the volume up a few more notches.

The things he'd been hearing all night long, none of it seemed remotely possible. Were they stuck in a different dimension all together or was it all real, had it all really happened? Did killing the Goddess really create such a huge ripple effect that it changed a whole life? What about his? And Sam's? Did their life stay the same because their world had simply just collided with theirs and wasn't truly connected to the fate of the Goddess? So many questions, never enough answers and it made his head hurt.

Dean turned on the stool as he heard the soft footsteps enter the kitchen. He wasn't at all surprised to see Willow, clutching a book to her chest with both hands, her skin appearing paler than normal in the dim light.

"Couldn't sleep either, huh?" Willow asked and she placed the book down on the counter near him before she grabbed the kettle, filled it and placed it on the stove. She turned on the burner and turned to face him. "Are you okay, Dean?"

"Just couldn't sleep, that's all."

"Yeah, me neither," Willow chuckled quietly. "I can't seem to stop reading that," she said as she pointed to the book near him. "So much is the same, yet the things that I thought mattered most, those life-changing events that affected not only Buffy, but the rest of us connected to her, are so very different."

"Sounds like quite a read."

"It is."

"Sounds like something you'd need a strong drink to help it all settle in."

"Of course."

"Tea?"

"What else would I pour some of Giles' premium Scotch in? I can't drink that straight," Willow chuckled as she reached into one of the cupboards and pulled out a fancy bottle of Scotch. "It's not every day you find out the love of your life is still alive, you know?"

"Yeah?" Dean leaned forward, watching her as her hands trembled while she poured more than a healthy amount of Scotch into a mug. "Tara, right?"

"You know about her?"

"Faith talked a lot about you guys, mostly just mentioned things here and there. Said Tara was your whole world and that some asshole shot her. I'm sorry."

Willow nodded, wiping away a few tears as she picked up the mug and took a sip. Immediately she pulled a face. "Do you want to read that?" Willow asked him and he shook his head no.

"Never was much of a reader. That's more of Sam's thing."

"What do you know about Faith's history in Sunnydale?"

"Just what she told me," Dean replied and he took a sip of his beer. "And I know it wasn't everything either, just what she wanted me to know."

"According to this," Willow said as she jabbed the book. "Faith didn't come to Sunnydale alone. She came with her Watcher, Diana Dormer. It was supposed to be a visit to train with Buffy, learn from a more experienced Slayer. From what Giles wrote down, they only stayed on when we learned that the Mayor was planning something. Faith didn't kill the Deputy Mayor. Buffy stopped her in time. He became an ally."

"Wait," Dean said in shock. "Faith killed someone before?"

"She didn't tell you?"

"I knew she was in prison, she just never told me why."

"Oh," Willow said sheepishly. "It was all an accident, a mistake, they were—"

"It doesn't matter," Dean cut her off. "She didn't tell me for a reason. I get that."

Willow frowned and Dean knew there was a lot more about Faith she hadn't told him and he wasn't sure he wanted to know anything else. The kettle started to whistle and Willow pulled it off the burner before pouring it in her mug and put a teabag inside. She walked back over to the breakfast bar, standing opposite of Dean and placed her mug down slowly.

"Things between Buffy and Faith, according to this, a lot of what we know happened, never did. They worked together as a team and they were friends. After we blew up the Mayor on the day of his ascension, Faith and her Watcher stayed in Sunnydale. After that summer, things are still pretty much the same. College, I met Tara, Buffy briefly dated Riley, but they didn't last, not like they really did. He did help us with the Initiative though and we made it through that year without much trouble. Even after that next summer, a lot of the same things happened. Dawn came to our lives the same way, Glory made our lives hell, only…only Buffy never died to save the world. The portal never got opened. Buffy and Faith, together they killed Glory before it happened."

"I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say that is a pretty big change. Faith told me how Buffy died and that you were able to bring her back a few months later. What about Buffy's mom?" Dean asked, only knowing what Faith told him once how Buffy's mother had died a few months before Buffy died to save the world.

"There's no mention of her, not during that year at all," Willow said quietly and she shook her head. "It was that summer after killing Glory that Giles noted a change between Buffy and Faith, that they'd grown much closer, become what you'd say inseparable. There is a month missing as Giles and Diana went on some kind of Watcher's retreat in England and—this is all very boring to you, isn't it?"

"No," Dean said, smiling as he raised his can of beer to his lips and took a sip. "It's not boring, but interesting actually. I mean, Faith told me things, but she didn't like to talk about her life in Sunnydale too much, you know? So, what happened after the entires started again?"

"They became a little less regular," Willow replied. "But from what I gathered, we spent the entire year being annoyingly bothered by the Trio. When Warren got out of control, there was a note that Giles dealt with Warren himself when he encountered him outside of Buffy's backyard, planning to kill her and Faith."

"This is the same guy who…" Dean said, referring to Tara, but not wanting to say her name because he didn't want to bring the witch to tears again. When Willow nodded, he did too. "Have you told them any of this?"

"Not yet, no," Willow said quietly and she lifted her mug to her lips and slowly sipped the hot tea. "Kennedy found this earlier and she brought it to me when I was trying to tell Buffy and Faith what I already knew, about Sunnydale, about Buffy's mom. Buffy was really upset and she didn't want to hear a word I had to say. She left and uh, Faith did too. Buffy needed someone to comfort her, she was really upset."

"So I've been hearing for the last hour," Dean grumbled under his breath and Willow chuckled as she glanced up at the ceiling briefly. "Should we be prepared for another time jump or whatever the hell happened to them the other day?"

"What makes you think they were…sleeping together the other day, Dean?"

"I saw them when I went to look for them," he replied quietly. "I didn't want to interrupt. It looked pretty intense from what I saw and knowing Faith, it didn't end with what I saw happening between them."

"Oh. Ooh!" Willow's eyes flew open and she started giggling. "I should've guessed. I mean, the Goddess of Love wanted her life to end, but she needed a catastrophic event to happen in order to bring the Slayers to a time where she was most vulnerable. It all makes complete sense."

"Doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me, sweetheart."

"A lot of things in our world don't make a whole lot of sense," Willow replied. "It's just something we've all gotten used to, you know?"

"I'm starting to get that," Dean nodded, smiling at Willow as she sipped her tea. They both looked up at the ceiling as they heard a crash and Dean rose to his feet, his hand reaching for his gun.

"Don't," Willow said as she held a hand up. "They just broke the bed."

"They just broke the bed?" Dean scrunched his eyebrows together, not wanting to think about how something like that could happen between two women. "I think I'm going to need a stronger drink. Feel like sharing some of that Scotch, Willow?"

Willow slid the bottle towards Dean and he drank straight from the half-empty bottle, ignoring the look Willow shot at him for doing that. He reached for the radio, turning the volume up a little more, trying to drown out the laughter from upstairs.

Faith gasped, trying to stop laughing as she and Buffy laid on the broken bed. Faith wasn't sure how it happened, but when it did, it'd definitely ruined the moment. Buffy groaned, clearly embarrassed as her laughed died and she rolled on to her stomach and buried her face into the feather pillow.

"You know, you surprise me, B," Faith whispered as she turned on her side and gently rubbed Buffy's back. "Didn't think you'd be into this, much less have something like this," she said, chuckling as she moved her hand to pull the strapless phallus out from inside of her and she tossed it to the end of the bed. Her body was slick with sweat and her heart was still racing wildly out of control. "Hey, B? What's up?"

"What if someone heard?" Buffy murmured into the pillow, unmoving. "Oh my god."

Faith smiled as she leaned in to kiss Buffy's bare shoulder. "I'll take the heat," she said softly. "Tell 'em if they ask we were just, I dunno, messing around, sparring and things got out of control."

Buffy turned her head and looked over at Faith. "Like they'd ever believe that."

"Do they got any other reason to believe anything else, B?"

"They saw us in the club," Buffy whispered. "They all know there is something going on between us."

"And that bothers you?"

"Strangely, no."

"But me fucking you, pounding that fake cock inside of you so hard and fast that we broke the bed does?" Faith asked with a teasing smile and Buffy groaned as she buried her face into the pillow again. "Come here," she whispered as she pulled Buffy closer to her and wrapped her arms firmly around her. "Don't think about it, okay? It was hot. Definitely wanna give that a go again sometime, just you know, on a bed that can handle it."

Even though she couldn't see Buffy's face as she laid her head on her shoulder, Faith knew she rolled her eyes. Chuckling, she smiled lazily as Buffy snuggled against her and she could feel Buffy's body relax against her own. Faith was experiencing a lot of firsts with Buffy, and not the obvious ones. She wasn't one to cuddle in bed, before or after sex. She didn't do pillow talk—if what they'd just talked about was considered some form of pillow talk, and she didn't do love. All those things she didn't do was becoming a reality and she was loving every last minute of it. There was no sense in trying to deny it, so she didn't even bother, she just basked in the feeling of the moment they were sharing together.

"Do you think it's true?" Buffy asked in a hushed whisper. "About Sunnydale? My mom?"

"I don't know, B. Maybe," she whispered back. "Let's not think about that right now, okay? We'll worry about it all in the morning."

"Aren't you thinking about it?"

"Nah," Faith grinned as she smoothed her hands down Buffy's back. "Thinking about a whole lot of something else."

Buffy laughed as she kept her head on Faith's shoulder and ran her fingers over Faith's arm that was wrapped around her. Faith tucked Buffy's hair behind her ear as Buffy raised her head and leaned in for a sweet, serene kiss, her tongue teasing Faith's lips apart. While Faith was still feeling up for more, it was clear that Buffy wasn't, not as she pulled back with a stifled yawn and frowned.

"What?"

"I'm just tired," Buffy replied. "Aren't you? You haven't slept in—wait, when is the last time you actually slept, Faith?"

"Uh," Faith groaned as she thought about it. "Couple nights ago."

"The day before this all happened?" Buffy asked as she leaned up a little more to look into Faith's eyes. Faith nodded gently. "Aren't you exhausted?"

"Beyond," she chuckled. "Still could go a few rounds yet."

"Why doesn't that surprise me," Buffy smirked and she kissed her once more before reaching over to turn off the bedside lamp. "We should get some sleep. We have to be up in a few hours anyway."

"Sure."

"Faith?" Buffy asked quietly. "What is this?"

"What do you mean, B?"

"What is going on with us?"

"I don't know," Faith replied honestly. "It's new and it feels good and I think we oughta just take it one day at a time, yeah?"

"I haven't forgotten your promise that we'd talk about this," Buffy reminded her gently and Faith laughed. "Seriously, Faith, we do have to talk about this one way or another."

"And we will."

Yet, that was a conversation Faith wasn't entirely looking forward to having. She'd deterred the question of what they were with answering it exactly what it was, not how she felt or what she thought it was. She knew Buffy was asking if this was more than a one-night stand, even though it was their second time together. She knew Buffy was worried about it just being about sex, but Faith was too afraid to even utter the words "it could never just be about sex when its you and me".

Faith lay awake long after Buffy had fallen asleep and she slowly untangled herself from Buffy's limbs and slipped out of bed. She didn't leave the room, she just walked over to the window and stared out into the slowly lightening yard. She turned back to the room and spotted a robe hanging on the hook of the open wardrobe door and she slipped it on before fishing out her cigarettes from her jean pocket. Cracking open the window a little, she sat on the windowsill and lit a cigarette, inhaling sharply as she watched grey clouds skirt across the early morning sky.

She was thinking more than of what they had all been through in the past couple of weeks. Were her days traveling all over the country over now? Were her days working with Dean at her side, hunting with him over now that her life had changed and now that his brother had joined up with him again? Was she ready for that? For her life to be consistent and not just one adventure in a new town after another?

Taking a long drag of her cigarette, she licked over her lips, trying to figure out not just her mind was saying, but what her heart was whispering to her too. She blew the smoke out the window and sighed heavily. She never just listened to her heart, always too afraid of where it would lead her. Always too afraid that if she listened to her heart, she'd find love, fall in love and end up with her heart broken beyond repair.

Faith knew she was in love with Buffy, there was no denying it anymore, and now that she had a part of Buffy she'd never had before, she wasn't sure she could just let go, even if Buffy decided tomorrow or the day after that that what she wanted didn't include her in the picture. Buffy was always the hardest person to read and even though she'd been forthcoming with her intentions, showing her feelings just as Faith had, she wasn't sure just how Buffy felt about what was going on between them, how Buffy felt about her.

Did Buffy want her to stick around? They'd barely spoken to each other in the week since the club and the attack at the hotel. They'd barely even looked at each other until the other night when Buffy had followed her outside and their actions led to the situation they were in now. More importantly, she had to ask herself if she wanted to stick around. Maybe that would be more than an adventure than the life she'd been living for the last ten months.

Life was full of the unknown, of adventure and living in the moment. Faith smiled as she finally made up her mind. She flicked her cigarette out the window and closed it, shutting out the chill that was slowly coming into the room. Her decision didn't make her feel uneasy, it made her feel everything but uneasy.

Now, all that mattered was seeing what tomorrow would bring and the adventures that would follow. And there would be many.