Buffy POV

I look around at our ragtag group. It's not too impressive – two slayers who have only recently regained their powers – one of whom could get sucked into MaryAnn's thrall perhaps as soon as we strike. And then there's the locals: a mainstreamed vampire who had vowed to no longer kill humans for blood or sport, a newbie vampire fresh out of the grave, a telepathic waitress with no special powers besides the ability to read your dirty thoughts, her brother, and the local police detective, Andy Bellefleur.

I had been against letting the police in on the situation, but Jason vouched for the pot-bellied man. Plus, Andy seemed to know more about super-naturals than the typical law enforcer. And the more people with good aim and tranquilizer guns we have on our side, I reasoned, the better.

By the time nightfall came, Faith was more than just a little anxious to get back at MaryAnn. She had wanted to attack the maenad right away, arguing that she'd never expect a daytime ambush, but I pointed out that we'd be stronger with Bill fighting on our side. She balked at the idea of a vampire being of any help until I cautiously reminded her of Angel.

During the daylight hours, Jason and I did some reconnaissance to check on MaryAnn and her zombie minions. The kid had proved himself to be handy with a gun, so I trusted his skill-sets enough to come along with me. I knew Faith wouldn't do anything foolish, i.e. try to attack MaryAnn while we were gone, because of Sookie. With neither myself, Bill, nor Jason around, I knew Faith wouldn't leave her alone and unprotected.

I just wasn't sure I trusted Faith alone with the telepathic waitress for too long. But I suppose it was better than leaving her alone with Jason. Those two are kind of sex-on-legs. I think the world would implode if they ever hooked up. This jealousy thing is new to me. And I'm not sure I like it.

"So what's the big plan?" Sookie asks as we assemble our miniature army in Jason's kitchen the following evening.

I try to look as confident as I can with the situation before us. I've fought a Hell Goddess before and won – although it killed me. And I defeated the very thing that made Evil – but not without getting skewered and losing countless potential slayers along the way.

A maenad should be a walk in the park after everything I've encountered – if I had my Watcher and the most powerful Wicca this world has ever seen, and if I could trust that my sister-Slayer wouldn't go Dark again. I may have fought worse baddies before, but it's kind of like I'm starting all over.

To my chagrin, MaryAnn had relocated her party headquarters from the forest clearing to Sookie's house. We'd made the right decision staying at Jason's house the previous night, but I never thought the demon woman would set up shop in the waitress's grandmother's house. This bitch had balls, but that only made me determined to kill her even more.

"I don't really have a plan plan," I start, fidgeting with my ponytail. "There's no need for a sneak attack or diversions like last time. We've just got to get close enough to MaryAnn to kill her. Jason and Andy," I address the two men, "you're responsible for taking down any townsfolk with the tranquilizer guns. Bill, you and Jessica keep close," I warn the vampires. "I don't want any unnecessary bloodshed. MaryAnn's zombies are no more to blame for their actions than Faith was under her influence."

I glance fleetingly in the direction of the Boston girl. Her face looks dark, but that's not unusual. I know she's just mentally preparing for the battle. Or at least I hope she's thinking about that and not dwelling on the things MaryAnn made her do.

Bill's thin lips curl into a mocking smile. "Well, I suppose you were right about the beer and meat strategy last time, so we should trust you with this."

Not exactly a resounding cheer of 'Go Buffy,' but I'll take what I can get.

The new vampire, Jessica, eyeballs me with curiosity. "How come you smell different from other humans?" she bluntly asks.

"Jessica," Bill snaps, showing his displeasure at the redheaded vampire's lack of tact. "That is not conversation for polite company."

The reed-thin teen folds her arms across her chest and rolls her eyes. It's eerily reminiscent of Dawn – but then again, I suppose all teen girls act the same way….undead or alive.

"Gosh," she complains in a slightly lilting accent less pronounced than the other Southerns'. "How do you expect me to learn anything if I can't ask questions?"

Bill gnashes his teeth together in frustration. "We will discuss this later," he seethes. It sure doesn't take much to get Bill angry or offended. Pacifist my ass.

Now it's Faith's turn to look curious. She glances between the novice vampire and me. "Buffy smells different?" she asks. "What about me?"

Jessica gives a fleeting glance in Bill's direction as if seeking his approval to reply to the dark-haired slayer. He grumbles, but nods his head subtly.

"You smell good," she clarifies," and you're real pretty, too. But it's not like Buffy."

I can feel Jessica's startlingly blue eyes on me. "She's different," she breathes, not breaking her gaze. "It's-It's kinda distracting how…delicious she smells."

Faith is suddenly between me and the teenaged vampire. "Don't even think about it, Red," she growls threateningly. "If you so much as look at her the wrong way, you'll find out just how much harm a Slayer can do."

Instinctively, Jessica's fangs snap out and she hisses.

Bill is up from his seat on the couch in a flash and has positioned himself between the Boston girl and the newbie vampire. "Ladies," he says in a strained voice. "Let's not forget that at least for tonight, we're fighting on the same side."

Both women seem to back down a bit. Jessica's fangs retract into her mouth, and at least for now, Faith's fists are no longer raised. The Boston girl turns her back on the vampires and walks over to the dining room table where Jason has laid a number of household items that we can use as weapons. I'm still not sure how to kill a maenad, but decapitation sounds like a good idea to me.

I walk over to my sister-Slayer. "You didn't have to do that," I mumble to her.

Faith continues to pack weapons into a backpack. She shrugs nonchalantly, but doesn't look up from her task. "Don't need some green vampire tellin' me you smell good," she muttered. "Already knew that."

Even though she doesn't look up at me, and even though the words are not said with any flirtation or heat behind them, it still gives me butterflies to hear.

Suggested Listening: Luther Allison – Evil (Is Going On)

We make our way up the gravel driveway that leads to Sookie's house. Bill and Jason each drove their vehicles to caravan our group, Bill his black sedan and Jason his tricked-out truck. The two cars parked next to each other along the county highway form a charming paradox.

The gravel crunches beneath my boots as our group strides toward the old Stackhouse farm. Like I expected, the grounds are littered with some of MaryAnn's minions. Most of the humans are passed out or just stumbling around incoherently, however, no doubt from their 24/7 binge-orgy. I keep Jessica and Bill close by in case either of them gets a little hungry for the local cuisine. I know Bill hasn't fed from anyone besides Sookie in a while, but there's nothing that makes me trust the newly-made vampire girl.

"That maenad creature is inside the house," Bill states, his nostrils flaring. "I can smell her even from here."

Faith rolls her eyes beside me. "You vampires and your smelling things," she scoffs. "Don't you know how rude that is?"

Bill ignores the comment and instead strides confidently up the front porch of Sookie's grandma's house like he owns the place. Only he doesn't. And he bounces backwards when he tries to cross the threshold.

"What the…" he mumbles, looking at the open doorway with bewilderment. He glances at his blonde girlfriend. "Sookie, did you uninvite me?" His chiseled, pale features look wounded.

"No!" she insists. "I-I haven't done that since right before…before Gran died."

Jessica's face looks determined. "Well, only one way to find out," she mutters, boldly striding toward the open front door. Her feet stop just before she crosses the threshold.

"What the heck?" she exclaims. "It's like I want to go in, but my body won't let me. I can't move. Oh God," she panics aloud, "am I paralyzed? This is just great. I'm dead and paralyzed!"

Bill grabs the novice vampire by the arms and forcefully drags her away from the doorway. "You're not paralyzed, you fool," he grunts. "You just can't go inside Sookie's house."

Sookie stomps up the front steps. "What the hell is going on?" she demands. She turns and looks at her undead boyfriend. "Why can't you and Jessica go inside?"

Bill's jaw is set in a straight line. "I can only surmise it's because this house no longer belongs to you."

"Oh hell no," Sookie steams. "Let me get my hands on that woman!"

This is one roadblock I hadn't planned for. I thought we might have the edge with the Louisiana vampires on our side. The only thing to do is have Faith and I take her down by ourselves.

"We'll try to lead her outside if it gets out of control, okay?" I address the group. "But for now, just stay here. Stay safe."

Sookie's face is red and she looks ready to pop. "I feel about as useless as tits on a boar hog."

"You're more useful alive than dead," I venture.

The waitress's face falls slightly and she pushes out a deep breath, calming herself. "Fine," she reluctantly agrees. "I was just lookin' forward to some good 'ol-fashioned hair pullin'. Bitch can't get away with thinkin' she can take Gran's house."

I smile reassuringly at the blonde girl and lay a hand on her arm. "Don't worry, Sookie. Faith and I got this. I've faced a lot worse than this chick."

Faith snorts next to me. "Yeah," she agrees, "like me."

Not helpful.

Jessica, Bill, and Sookie remain outside with Andy and Jason. I charge them with making sure that no one gets else gets in or out of the house, so we don't get ambushed by a hoard of zombie-humans. I have to admit that I'm relieved they're not all jumping into this fight. It's taxing having to worry about others' safety in these kinds of situations. I know everyone just wants to be helpful, but this is why Slayers have always been better off alone.

Faith and I creep cautiously into the front foyer of the old Southern home. "So much for your plan," she mumbles next to me.

"I told you it wasn't a plan," I whisper as we make our way through the living room. "Why am I always in charge of the plans anyway?"

I know the house should feel familiar to me, but I feel like I'm on a Hollywood set instead of Sookie's house. It's a little too surreal. All the furniture and decorations remain, but everything inside is covered in a thin dusting of dirt. There's really no other way to describe it. It just feels dirty and primal.

Trees have sprouted mysteriously from the floorboards and vines creep along the wallpapered walls. It reminds me of Max's bedroom in that one kid's book my mom used to read me when I was little. I half expect some gnashing-teeth and terrible-clawed monster to jump out of the shadows and start a Wild Rumpus.

"I'm not the one with the hero complex tattooed to her ass," she mumbles. "Besides, last time I took the lead, people got blown up."

I grasp the ax that Jason procured for me tighter as we make our way into the now-dilapidated kitchen. It smells horrible. There's dirty dishes piled high in the sink and swarms of flies buzz around the rotting bits of food. But that's not the worst of it. The kitchen floor is caked in dried blood and muddy footprints. The linoleum looks like they've been slaughtering animals (or at least I hope it's just animals and nothing more…human). I'm actually really happy Sookie agreed to stay outside, because I don't think she'd be able to handle seeing her grandmother's house look like this. I know it pissed me off when even a window got broken in my mom's Sunnydale house.

"Let's just focus on killing this thing," I say under my breath, "and then you can have your pity party later."

The house feels eerily quiet. I had expected to find at least half a dozen of the zombie-fied townsfolk inside, but no one is here. I let down my guard slightly. Maybe MaryAnn isn't even here.

We come to the wooden staircase that leads to the second floor bedrooms. Faith's gaze travels up the stairs. "So what do you think? We check out upstairs next?"

"You check out the basement and I'll take the upstairs," I command. "If you find anything, come get me. I'll do the same." I give her a steely glare. "Do not try to take her on by yourself."

Faith gives me a mock salute. "Yes, sir." She gives me a cheeky smile.

I eyeball her. "I mean it, Faith," I tell her seriously. "Don't be impulsive."

"But I thought you liked it when I did surprising things?" she replies in a husky tone that hits me in all the right places. I feel those chocolate eyes rake over me and I can't help but get aroused. It's completely involuntary on my part, but I can't ignore the fact that it doesn't bother me at all.

I know she's trying to unsettle me, however, so I return the favor.

"Don't get killed tonight," I deliberately purr, stroking a finger along her jugular, along her clavicle, and stopping short of her cleavage, "and you can surprise me all you want. I might even have some surprises for you."

I hear choking noises as Faith struggles to respond. "I-uh."

I blow her a kiss and take my first steps up the stairs, feeling proud and justifiably smug. After all, it's a rare moment when I get the upper-hand on that girl.

The stairs creak under my step and it makes me wince. So much for sneaking up on whomever might be upstairs. Might as well just stomp up the wooden staircase or shoot up some warning flares before I make my grand entrance.

When I get to the second floor, all is still deathly quiet. The only sounds I hear are the squeaking wooden boards beneath my feet and the steady thump of my heart inside my ears.

The upstairs bathroom is empty. So is Sookie's childhood bedroom where I spent the night after getting attacked by a werewolf at Fangtasia. Which reminds me, I've got to look into that once this maenad situation is resolved. The only room remaining is Sookie's grandmother's bedroom. It seems sacrilegious that the maenad would be holed up in a dead woman's bedroom, but it certainly wouldn't surprise me.

The whitewashed door is slightly ajar, but not enough that I can peak in without moving the door out of the way. With the tip of my ax, I push the door open. It doesn't make a sound as it swings more fully open. The room is dark, with only the outside moonlight illuminating the space. I take a cautious step inside the bedroom. And then I'm attacked.

Two sets of strong hands seize me from either side. With the lights out, I can't see who's attacking me. There's no tingling in my body, however, so I assume that it's human. Strong, but still human. A foot lashes out and knocks me in the face and another leg kicks away the ax in my hands. My weapon falls to the ground with a heavy noise.

The overhead lights are suddenly flipped on and I squint into the unexpected lighting. Before my eyes can adjust to the light, I'm punched hard in the stomach, making me double over from the impact. A foot comes crashing down on my tailbone, forcing me to my knees.

I'm ripped back up from off the ground by the same, fierce hands. I twist and turn, struggling against my attackers, but their strength and efficiency is overwhelming. When I finally get a good look at who's been giving me this beat-down, I gasp when I recognize Tara and Eggs. Their eyes are dark pits, devoid of compassion.

A clucking noise alerts me that we're not alone in the room. I tear my eyes away from my assaulters and see MaryAnn reclined on Sookie's grandmother's bed. And she's wearing a horribly dated wedding dress.

"The '80s called," I taunt. "They want their prom dress back."

The crazed woman looks surprisingly calm. She gracefully sits up in the bed and stands. "Kakistos called," she retorts with a cruel smile, "and he wants your Heart."

I have no response. I simply wiggle and squirm, hoping to get out of Tara and Eggs' relentless hold.

The maenad sniffs, unimpressed. "I'm surprised you didn't run away." She appraises me with her dark, crazy eyes. "But it's no matter. I would have found you wherever you went. Kakistos always finds his own."

MaryAnn grabs onto the sleeve of my t-shirt and pulls hard, ripping away the material and exposing my upper arm. "Hey!" I complain, struggling against the tight grip of Tara and Eggs. "I liked this shirt!"

The woman stares hard at my bare flesh. "Where is the…where is His mark?" she demands, her normally beautiful features twisted into a horrible visage.

"Mark?" I ask, not sure to what she's referring.

"Hey, bitch," I hear a voice call out from behind me. Even without turning around – which I can't – I'd still recognize that voice anywhere. It's Faith. We must have been making enough noise up here that she heard the struggle down in the basement.

"Get her," the maenad shrieks. "I will not have her ruin my wedding day!"

Eggs releases his hold on me and launches his lithe swimmer-build at my sister-Slayer. She dodges his initial attack and he crashes into the doorframe. The impact shatters the frame and wood splinters fly in the air. The man slumps onto the floor like a giant sack of flour, momentarily unconscious from smashing his head into the plaster wall.

Tara forgets about me and she charges after Faith for injuring her mate. She releases an animalistic snarl and attacks. Faith is weaponless, but not. Our bodies are our weapons. She blocks the frantic clawing of the athletic bartender, but Tara is not one to give up easily.

I move to help my sister-Slayer, but a heated hand grips my wrist hard. It's MaryAnn. She's powerful. I can feel it in her fingers. She twists my hand backwards, crippling me. I can feel the tendons and tiny bones in my hand stretching and straining. She could crush my wrist with little effort.

Faith is able to get enough space between she and the possessed Bon Temps resident. She kicks out with a powerful leg, knocking Tara back and stunning her for a split second. It's just long enough that Faith is able to partially climb up the side of the wall and launch her body into a well-aimed spinning kick. Like a practiced gymnast, her long, lean body seems to hover in the air, spinning, turning, and connecting. Tara's head snaps to one side when my sister-Slayer's boot slams into her face and she falls on the ground next to her still-unmoving boyfriend.

It doesn't surprise me that Faith knocks out the two Louisianans so easily. We're both used to combat in confined spaces like this bedroom after all the fighting we do in sewers and crypts. I feel a tug at my Pride. I could have defeated them too if they hadn't surprise ambushed me.

MaryAnn lets out a startled cry when she sees her two helpers unconscious on the floor. She glares hard at the newcomer. "How dare you interrupt this," she seethes at the brunette slayer.

Faith rolls up the sleeve of her black t-shirt to reveal the familiar tattoo armband. "Hate to break it to ya lady, but you got the wrong Slayer," she sneers at the demonic woman.

"What?" MaryAnn cries out, releasing me and stepping away suddenly. Her face is incredulous. "I had you all along?"

Faith cocks her head to one side and leers at the maenad. "That's what you get for thinkin' B's the only one who can kill big daddy vamps."

MaryAnn's face twists into an ugly frown. "It's no matter," she says, almost to herself. "Now I'll just have you both. The Father will have you if it's the last thing I do."

For a split-second I worry that perhaps I was wrong – maybe Faith can't resist this woman's influence. Maybe there really is too much darkness inside her soul. But the Boston girl's eyes remain unchanged. The dark chocolate brown remains instead of being replaced by a soulless charcoal.

MaryAnn's facial features scrunch together, clearly confused that Faith hasn't fallen back under her thrall. My insides cheer and I rush over to Faith's side. The two of us face off against the powerful maenad.

The demon woman scowls and begins to mumble some gibberish under her breath. I'm afraid she's casting some kind of spell or summoning some of her possessed townsfolk. I lunge forward, not really planning my attack. My clenched fist meets the taller woman's jaw and her head jolts to one side from the impact. It might not have hurt her, but it at least stopped her crazy talking.

Faith follows up my attack with one of her own. The brunette slayer summersaults and picks up my discarded ax as she rolls forward. From her position on her knees, she hacks at the maenad's torso as though felling a giant tree. The ax finds its mark and becomes lodged inside the demon's stomach. MaryAnn lets out a pained shriek that tells me everything I need to know – she can feel pain.

The maenad stumbles backwards a bit. Her eyes flash with darkness and anger. MaryAnn takes the handle of the ax and wretches it free from her stomach. Thick, black liquid seeps from the wound and stains the front of her immaculately white wedding gown.

She raises the weapon above her head and with a whooping yell, she charges me. I avoid the first, unwieldy strike as the ax slices through the air. She surprises me, however by not following through. Instead, the end of the wooden handle finds my temple and it knocks me to the floor.

As I'm falling hard to the wooden floorboards, I hear Faith curse. When I hit the ground, my eyes close from the impact. When I open them again, Faith and the maenad are trading blows. The black stain on the front of MaryAnn's white dress continues to grow larger and larger as thick, viscid fluid bubbles out of her body.

"I could have made you great," the monster rants. She and Faith circle each other. "You had so much potential. The Father had high hopes for you."

Faith grits her teeth. "What can I say?" she barbs. "Never was about over-achieving or pleasin' anyone but myself."

And then, as if something torn out of Mortal Combat, Faith's fist thrusts forward and she plunges her hand deep into the demon's chest. I have a quick flashback to when I did the same to Adam, the hybrid demon-machine. A sick sucking noise fills the air, and when Faith retracts her arm, she's pulled out a black throbbing mass of flesh that I can only imagine is the monster woman's heart.

MaryAnn's mouth falls open like an unoccupied ventriloquist doll. More of that black fluid spills out of her slack jaw, and her body crumples to the floor in a heap.

"No one uses me as their bitch…you bitch," Faith mutters, towering over the maenad's unmoving form. Black liquid drips from the fingers on her right hand and she drops the creature's heart on the ground. After a few final struggling pulses, the dark mass ceases to move.

The Boston girl seems to shake herself, and she tears her eyes away from the maenad's body and turns to me instead. "You okay there, B?" Faith offers me her clean hand and I obligingly take it.

"Yeah," I grumble. "Just bruised my ego, is all."

The Boston girl hefts me off the dirty floor. The room spins a little from my knock to the head, but I know it's nothing to worry about. We both stare at the maenad's body, now just an empty shell, in contemplative silence.

"Do you think it worked?" Faith asks after a moment, her eyes not leaving the gruesome sight. "Do you think everything's back to normal?"

I shrug. "Only one way to find out, I guess."

The two of us share the view out of Sookie's bedroom window and view the landscape beneath us. I'm acutely aware of just how close Faith is standing next to me. I can literally feel the heat radiating off her body. After a confrontation like the one she just had with the maenad, I'm sure she's about ready to pop.

I try to wash that unsettling imagery out of my mind and focus instead on the view outside of the upper bedroom window.

A red-haired woman wearing too much blue eye shadow scampers noisily out of some shrubbery. She looks frazzled and disoriented. Her Southern drawl rings out among the muffled din: "Oh my Lord. What happened to my drawers?"

I can't help the giggle that bubbles out of my mouth. This has been one long and wild trip. I had planned on facing danger in New Orleans, but I never expected we'd face so much opposition along the way. With the heart-stealing maenad defeated, now Faith and I can continue our trip down Louisiana and track down the voodoo woman who supposedly has the key to defeating Twilight.

I breathe out a tired sigh and turn away from the windowsill.

"Speaking of drawers," Faith states, causing me to pause and lift an eyebrow in curiosity. "When do I get to cash in on that surprise you promised me?"

TBC