Home Coming

Dawn slowly opened her eyes to find herself still in Faith's bed. And as her hand moved behind her, to feel for the sleeping Faith, her eyes opened in surprise to find that the slayer was no longer lying next to her.

Where's Faith? Dawn thought to herself as she slowly sat up, to check her surroundings. "Faith?" Dawn called out, before her attention was brought to the kitchen, where Dawn could hear rattling and shuffling. As Dawn got up, she opened the door and walked into the hallway. After making her way into the kitchen, she smiled faintly as she watched Faith cook what appeared to be breakfast.

"Hey brat! Just making breakfast…" Faith began, as she cracked four eggs into the saucepan.

"Awesome…" Dawn replied, as she groggily watched Faith move around the kitchen with grace. "I'm a…I'm going to go take a shower" Dawn began, as she pointed in the direction of the bathroom, as Faith stopped for a moment to follow the girl's pointed finger.

"Sure! Just uh…just don't take forever ok? I'm making you breakfast" Faith replied with a busy look, her hair covering part of her face like it always did.

"Ok…" Dawn responded, before going into her room to grab for some fresh clothes.

Knowing that she was safe, since Faith was standing just outside, Dawn entered her room with minimal anxiety. As she grabbed for her clean clothes, Dawn returned to the hallway and strolled into the bathroom. After taking a quick and well-needed shower, Dawn quickly dried herself off and reentered the kitchen moments later.

"About time! I was just about to eat your bacon!" Faith commented with a sly grin, as Dawn slowly took her seat at the small kitchen table.

"Looks great Faith! Really it does…" Dawn began, her mind still groggy from sleep. Dawn ate her breakfast slowly; her eyes watching Faith's masculine physic attack the dishes with soapy water and a sponge.

"Why don't you come sit down and eat…and then afterwards I'll help you with the dishes" Dawn inquired; feeling slight guilt for eating breakfast while Faith combated the dishes.

"That's all right brat…I've been munching away at my breakfast as I clean"

"Why?"

"Well, we're kinda running late, now that I think about it. I was just about to go wake you, when you beat me to it" Faith replied, turning her head to glance at Dawn for a moment before continuing on with the dishes. "Oh! Guess what?"

"What?"

"I managed to fix the dishwasher this morning! So, we can just put our dirty dishes in the washing machine instead of washing them in the sink!" Faith replied cheerfully.

"How long have you been awake for?" Dawn asked out of curiosity, as she took a bite out of her crispy bacon, and watched the slayer intently.

"Uh…since 6, I think" Faith replied, as she pulled the plug out of the sink and moved to dry her wet hands with the dry dishtowel.

"Why so early?"

"Couldn't sleep last night…I was a little paranoid about The First and everything. Not to mention that I was a little anxious since its been like, what? Two and half weeks since I got the chance to go out slaying?"

"Pent up energy?"

"Yeah! Definitely some of that…" Faith replied, hiding part of the truth from Dawn.

It was true, Faith was feeling a little anxious about slaying, but she was also feeling the tension of having to sleep in the same bed as the girl of her affections. After throwing the dishtowel down onto the counter, Faith made her way towards the kitchen table and sat in front of Dawn. Her half eaten plate positioned in front of her.

"Not hungry?" Dawn asked, watching Faith shake her head in response.

"No, not really"

"I thought Slayers eat…a lot"

"we do. But…this slayer hasn't been out burning calories and energy and shit. So, not very hungry…" Faith replied, as she watched Dawn closely, her eyes showing that the slayer was deep in contemplative thought.

"What are you thinking about?" Dawn asked, as she finished up what was left of her eggs, and then washed them down with a sip of orange juice.

"Nothing really…just that I'm going to have the honor of seeing your sister again" Faith confessed with a flustered expression, making Dawn chuckle in amusement.

"She's not that bad…I guess" Dawn responded truthfully, as Faith nodded her in agreement.

"I know. She loves you…loves you a lot!" Faith began, her eyes searching Dawn's, as if attempting to read what was on the young key's mind.

"I know…she just gets so damn over protective some times!" Dawn answered with a hint of bitterness, as Faith chuckled in response; looking away to study what her fidgeting fingers were doing.

"No matter what goes down Dawnie…between you and your sister. Just know that she cares about you…and that everything she does…she does it for you" Faith responded with a gentle voice, her eyes looking deeply into Dawn's as if to add more truth to the comment.

"Is there some hidden meaning behind those words?" Dawn asked playfully, smiling as Faith smiled along with her.

"Take it for what it is Dawnie…just me telling you that no matter what crazy thing that your sister does-that'll piss you off and such. Just know that she had your best interests at heart" Faith responded wisely, making Dawn even more confused by the words spoken so softly by Faith.

"So, that spell was for my best interest?" Dawn asked, before gulping the rest of her juice, as Faith watched on with a look of longing.

"Yeah…" Faith began, pausing as she tried to think up something better to say, but found nothing that would be helpful to say. I should tell her… Faith thought to herself, as she stared off into the distance with an empty look in her eyes. I should just tell her everything. To hell what Buffy said about keeping her in the dark! The kid has the right to know. "We should get going…" Faith began, as she picked herself up off of the chair and moved towards her bedroom, leaving Dawn alone to stare after her.

"Should I take my things with me?" Dawn asked, as she watched Faith move around in her room, through the half opened door.

"Just take the things you'll need for an overnight stay…I don't know if we're coming back here straight after we visit your sister." Faith replied dully, her mood darkening as she secretly dreaded seeing Buffy again. Shit she's going to be pissed at me! Faith thought to herself as she grabbed her small bag of belongings and walked back into the hallway.

"I'll just bring my tooth brush and stuff like that…I have more clothes at home" Dawn commented as she moved to grab for those items, while Faith watched on.

Buffy is going to be so pissed at me! It's been two weeks and Dawn and I still haven't sealed the deal! Faith thought to herself, as she soon found herself walking out the door, down the hall, and out another door to face the warm afternoon air. Faith and Dawn walked alone in the abandoned street corners, in silence, as they studied the area around them.

"What will Buffy say when she finds out that we haven't slept together" Dawn asked randomly, causing the older slayer to jerk into attention.

"What?" Faith asked in the midst of her confusion, as Dawn eyed her knowingly. "I thought a lot about our situation for the past two weeks. It's obvious that everyone knew about the spell...that it was a bonding spell…and that we would have to make love in order to consummate the partnership. So, I'm guessing that when Buffy finds out that nothing happened…she's going to be pissed at you" Dawn finished plainly; stealing a glance at a visibly flustered Faith, who met her gaze with her own unwavering one.

"Yep…I guess you're right kid. Big sis is going to be pretty mad at me. Well…she would be mad at me either way actually. If I slept with you she'd kill me! If I didn't sleep with you she'll kill me-I don't have a very flattering odds of surviving today…" Faith answered, her eyes searching the area around her for any signs of danger. "And look! We're almost at Buffy's! Where I can be killed for doing something that if I actually did do I would be killed anyways…" Faith added in a mock serious tone, as Dawn shrugged her shoulders. There was a moment of silence as the two women turned the corner to find the Summer's residence only a few feet away.

"Uh, Faith?"

"Yeah Dawn?" Faith replied, before stopping at the feel of Dawn's hand on her arm.

"Thanks for letting me sleep in your bed with you" Dawn thanked genuinely, earning her a sheepish look from Faith.

"You're welcome Dawnie…" Faith answered with a smile, as she waited for Dawn to utter the next thing she wanted to say to Faith.

"And…I…I really appreciate the fact that you had the opportunity to take advantage of me-last night…but you didn't…" Dawn paused, as she looked deep into Faith's alluring gaze.

"I wouldn't dare take advantage of you when you really needed comfort…" Faith explained, as the two shared a moment that was only interrupted by the presence of Buffy, who was standing by the sidewalk staring at them. "Shit it's Buffy…" Faith added after stealing a glance at the slightly worried and suspicious Slayer, before returning her gaze to Dawn's eyes.

"She looks mad…" Dawn commented, as Faith nodded her head in agreement.

"She probably already knows that we didn't do anything…so I guess that's Buffy's way of saying, 'you're a dead girl walking!' if you know what I mean…" Faith responded with a light chuckle as Dawn watched her closely.

"Why would Buffy care if we slept together? Why is it so important that we do?" Dawn asked with a strange look, as Faith struggled to decide whether it was worth it to tell Dawn the truth or to continue to lie to the girl.

"I'm not supposed to tell you anything unless its Buffy approved. I'm sorry, but that's just the way it is" Faith responded with a worried look as she could practically feel Buffy's questioning gaze burning a hole right through her.

"What can you tell me?"

"That if Buffy finds out I didn't do what I was supposed to do…and that you pretty much don't like me…then I'm in very big trouble" Faith finished with a sigh as she turned to make eye contact with a frustrated Buffy, who gave her a look that didn't make Faith feel any more comfortable.

"Faith…"

"Shit she's making her way over here!" Faith stated in slight panic, obviously unaware that Dawn was trying to get her attention. Faith tried to remain calm, as she watched Buffy make her way towards her and Dawn.

"Faith…" Dawn called out again.

"Wha-" before Faith could finish, she felt Dawn's moist young lips mold into hers in a gentle kiss.

The kiss quickly turned passionate, as the desire unleashed the need to turn their innocent gentle kiss into a battle of dominance over the other. With lips crashing, and tongue tasting, Faith and Dawn were to lost in the moment to remember that Buffy was watching them. With Dawn's hand entangled in Faith's hair, and Faith's hand caressing Dawn's cheek, Buffy watched on with a plain yet somewhat disgusted look.

"Ewww…now that I have that to give me nightmares…don't you guys think that you two had all time in the world to do that, before you came here?" Buffy asked, with a raised eyebrow and a steady gaze on the two lovers passionate and wild kiss.

"Sorry B…I was just…busy" Faith responded to Buffy's question with an out a breath answer, as she pulled away from Dawn's lips.

"Why were you watching anyways?" Dawn asked, as she brought her gaze to Buffy, before returning to Faith's. Wow that was hot! Dawn thought to herself, as she tried to wipe off Faith's dark lipstick from her lips.

"Believe me I didn't want to…I got Faith's message today, and I was just itching to have a little one on one conversation with her." Buffy finished, her gaze resting dangerously on Faith's still aroused features. "Nice to see that you two are getting along" Buffy added, her gaze still cemented on Faith's.

"Yeah…I mean, it was tough at first…but we pulled through" Dawn answered with a smile and a shrug, as she watched Faith and Buffy eye each other closely.

"Dawn, can you give Faith and I a moment alone?"

"No-"

"now Dawn!" Buffy commanded; her arms crossed over her chest.

"I'll catch you later Dawn…" Faith said, offering the girl a warm smile.

"Ok…" Dawn replied, feeling slight worry that something extravagant was going to happen the moment she turned around. And as Faith watched Dawn make her way back to the Summer's residence, Buffy kept her eyes glued on Faith.

"What happened last night?" Buffy asked, as Faith tried her best to stand her ground.

"The First appeared to Dawn…" Faith responded meekly, her face plain and emotionless.

"How did that happen Faith? That spell was supposed to make sure that The First couldn't haunt my baby sister! As well as make sure that The Bringers could enter the apartment and hurt her…remember?" Buffy reminded, her voice low and venomous.

"I don't know-" Faith began before feeling Buffy's hand smack her across the face, hard.

"What the fuck was that for!" Faith exclaimed, now holding the side of her mouth with her hand.

"You put my baby sister in danger! All you had to do was sleep with her-seal the deal! Make you and Dawn one…if you did that, then The First would never have appeared to Dawn. If you did that, then you wouldn't be here!" Buffy explained, her face solid and stern, as Faith struggled to control the urge to punch Buffy.

"I didn't want to-"

"why?"

"Because it should be her choice!" Faith exclaimed loudly, as Buffy watched her curiously. "She should know what's going on…she should want to sleep with me-I want it to be her choice!" Faith explained further, as Buffy watched her in deep puzzlement.

"You actually care whether or not you hurt her?"

"Yes!" Faith responded truthfully, making Buffy even more confused.

"So let me get this straight. You didn't seal the deal with her because you didn't want to take advantage of her?"

"Yes. I thought I could…but I can't. I can't do that to Dawn. I want her to want to be with me-"

"She's not 'being' with you. It's just a temporary deal until we can defeat The First and Dawn will be safe. After that, you're getting the hell out of town" Buffy reminded snottily, as Faith clenched her jaw.

"I know…"

"You better not forget it! The only reason why I called you down here was so that you could do that spell with Dawn…and then, when it's all over and Dawn is no longer in danger…you were to leave and never come back! That was the deal!"

"Yes, I know"

"and you agreed to it, right?"

"Yes I did…" Faith replied, her jaw clenching painfully, her fists tightening.

"Let's get back inside…we'll talk more about this later with Giles and Willow…" Buffy began, as she turned to make her way back to the house, with Faith in close pursuit.

"The most ridiculous thing I have ever heard in my life…" Buffy grumbled, as Faith listened quietly. "The next thing you'll be telling me is that you actually have 'feelings' for my baby sister!" Buffy shot back, as Faith offered Buffy a darkened look.