Buffy fell face-down on her bed. After a few moments, she rolled over to stare at the ceiling. Her mind racing as she wondered if they were ever going to find their way home. She missed her family and friends. Somehow she even missed going to school.

They had been searching for three weeks for a portal with absolutely no luck.

Whenever anyone started to take notice of their odd behavior, they would be forced to switch hotels. It was tedious but manageable. Faith convinced Buffy not to bother getting a real job. It was much more efficient to steal a bit here and there while focusing their time and energy on finding a way out of this dimension.

As the time dragged on, Buffy began to lose hope that she'd ever see her family or friends again. They couldn't even know for sure if there was going to be a way home.

"You OK?" Faith was hesitant to ask since the answer was so obvious. The pair had been getting along really well, but a lot of that was because they never actually talked about anything. They pretty much only discussed what their next move might be or who looked like a good mark.

Faith asking Buffy about how she was feeling was likely to open a can of worms that might damage their tentative friendship.

Buffy closed her eyes and tried to quiet her thoughts. "Just frustrated." Like Faith, Buffy was reluctant to say more and risk ruining the delicate balance between them.

Faith couldn't relate to Buffy's frustrations at all.

She wasn't sure how much she cared about going back to their lives. She was pretty much loving life right now. Other than the ridiculous pastel dresses she was forced to wear during the day - everything was kinda great.

For the first time in her entire life, Faith wasn't alone. And maybe they were only together because they had no choice, but Buffy wasn't acting like that. She was treating Faith like an equal, and Faith had never been happier.

No small part of what was making her happy - though she would never admit it, not even to herself - was that she had all of Buffy's attention. There were no other friends to split focus with. No other obligations that would eat up Buffy's time. Faith had never had anything like that before, but she knew that once they made their way back home - it would end.

"Something about this doesn't seem right," Buffy sat up abruptly, and she started pacing the room.

"What's wrong?" Faith asked, a little confused by Buffy's sudden frantic behavior.

"Before we started slaying together, I saw maybe two or three vamps each night. Five might have been the max, and never more than one at a time." Buffy was annoyed with herself for not noticing the pattern sooner.

Faith's eyes widened at the revelation. They had been encountering at least fifteen a night and always in groups of at least three. She had been too busy enjoying the heavy slaying load to worry that it might be abnormal.

"It almost feels like we're being tested," Buffy says and flops back onto the bed with a groan.

"Angel?" Faith asked, putting together that the first time he appeared was the same night they started slaying together.

Buffy didn't bother to answer the question. Mostly because she didn't want to admit it out loud.

"So what do you want to do? Track him down?"

"I..." Buffy starts but frowns. "I don't know if we should. I just want to get out of here."

Faith opted not to give Buffy a hard time about Angel. She was now was beginning to understand what a sore spot Angel was for Buffy. Buffy was already miserable, and once - she didn't want to add to someone's misery.

She told herself that this was because Buffy was more annoying when they weren't getting along. This wasn't true at all, but if she let herself accept that she didn't hate the older slayer, she'd be forced to think about how she really felt.

And that definitely wasn't happening any time soon.

"Huh." Buffy's confusion began to grow the more she thought about Angel.

"What's up?"

"Well, I had thought that this was our dimension - just a different time."

Faith raised an eyebrow and motioned for Buffy to continue.

"But if that is the case... Angel should have his soul at this point. So maybe he does? Maybe he'd help us?" Buffy was so desperate to find some hope that she ignored her suspicions from only moments ago that an evil Angel was testing them.

Faith hated the idea of asking Angel for help - ensouled or not. But this was the first time that Buffy seemed to have any kind of hope, and she didn't want to ruin that by pointing out the obvious.

Buffy put the pieces together on her own, and she shuddered as she remembered the look on Angel's face. There was no way he was the Angel with a soul that she had once known and loved. She sighed loudly and rubbed her face. "This must just be some other version of our world."

Faith nodded her agreement and tried to think of anything to do or say that might cheer Buffy up. "Dance with me." Faith said in a moment of inspiration.

"What?" Buffy looked at Faith like she was crazy.

They had picked up a cheap radio, the speaker let out a horrid, tinny sound - but it was still music, and Faith was sure that Buffy needed some kind of distraction. Faith tuned the radio as best she could. It was a song they'd heard hundreds of times by now but didn't know the name of.

"Come on - dance with me." Faith held out her hand and motioned for Buffy to join her. She started moving to the music - not at all in line with the melody pouring out of the radio.

Buffy couldn't help but smile as she watched Faith dance. She rolled out of bed and tried to follow Faith's lead. Faith grinned and twirled Buffy around. They rocked their bodies in perfect rhythm with each other as Faith sang along with some artist she'd never heard of before. Buffy was smiling, and for the few minutes that they danced absurdly in their hotel room - she forgot how miserable she was.

When the song ended and the block of commercials started up, Faith backed away. "Thanks, B."

Buffy nodded with a smile, but she could already feel the despair creeping back in.

"Maybe we should go to Sunnydale." Faith suggested out of nowhere. She wasn't even sure where the idea came from. She needed to keep Buffy moving - focused on something other than how desperate their situation was. It would have the added bonus of getting them far away from Angel.

Buffy took a moment to process the suggestion, "that… Might be a great idea."

Faith beamed at the approval. "We can check out the bus schedule tomorrow."

Buffy smiled and collapsed back onto the bed. She wasn't sure why this idea sounded so great to her. But it did, and she started to feel like maybe they'd get home after all.

She definitely missed her friends and family, but she found when they were focused - when they were out hunting - she wasn't thinking about them. All she was thinking about was slaying and how great it felt to have Faith by her side.

The younger slayer was growing on her - they rarely had disagreements or confrontations anymore. They still bickered and got on each other's nerves, but it was far more playful and less antagonistic than it was when they started.

After the near-miss, Faith had become far less reckless. She even started carrying her own stake instead of always having to borrow Buffy's. Buffy felt an odd sense of loss - like they had been building a tradition that died out without fanfare.

Faith's plan to go to Sunnydale meant they no longer had to spend their nights searching for possible portals. It was much easier to pickpocket during the day, and it only took a few hours to steal enough money for bus fare. The bus to Sunnydale wouldn't be leaving for a few days, but neither brought up the topic of continuing to slay in LA. Instead, they spent their days wandering around the city. Faith had never been on vacation before, but she thought this might be what it might feel like.

Faith was almost disappointed when the day finally arrived that they'd be able to travel to Sunnydale.

When the bus pulled into the gas station, everyone got off to stretch their legs. Faith immediately headed towards the bathroom. The bus ride reminded her a little too much of her trip from Boston to California, and she needed a minute to breathe.

She went into the first stall and shut the door. She then stood there for a full 30 seconds trying to decide what to do. Finally, in defeat, she agreed with herself that there was only one option. "B? You in here?" She said it quietly. A few people had followed her in, but she hoped only Buffy would hear her.

"Is something wrong?" Buffy whispered back.

"Just come to the first stall." Faith replied and leaned against the side of the stall, waiting for Buffy to arrive. When she saw Buffy's feet under the door, she opened it and motioned for the other slayer to enter.

Buffy hesitated for a moment, but finally, she entered. Faith shut the door and waited for Buffy to figure out why she called her over.

"Is that my room?" Buffy moved closer to the portal appearing on the bathroom stall door.

Faith shrugged, she hadn't spent much time in Buffy's bedroom, but she had thought it looked about like what they were seeing. It was perfectly tidy, with pink everywhere. The kind of room that made Faith seethe with jealousy.

"Who is that?" Buffy asked, taking a step closer to the portal.

A girl with long brown hair had entered the room and was poking around in the drawers.

"Are you reading my diary?!" Buffy forgot herself and tried to jump through the portal. Without thinking, Faith grabbed hold of her before she could pass all the way through.

"What are you doing here?!" The girl squealed and turned around. "And how are you in the wall?"

"Nevermind that - what are you doing with my diary?" Buffy asked again.

"You can't be here! You're not supposed to be out until tomorrow!" The girl screeched, and Faith winced at the piercing sound.

"Out? Out of what?"

"You know, out of the loony bin. I can't believe it myself. The stuff in your diary… I mean - come on! They should have locked you up for life." The girl rolled her eyes and put her hands on her hips.

Buffy's heart sank, and all anger about her diary melted away. "Loony bin." She said the words quietly, and her body went limp. If Faith hadn't still been holding onto her arm, she would have hit the ground.

Faith hauled her out of the portal and gently slapped her cheeks a few times. "B?"

Buffy managed to focus her eyes on Faith and then looked back at the portal. "Let's get out of here."

"Are you sure? This is the first portal we've seen in over a month - there might not even be another one." Faith argued and kinda hoped that Buffy would still say no.

Buffy frowned and hesitantly reached out for the latch on the door. It was only a few inches from the portal, and she didn't want to be anywhere near it. Steeling herself, she reached for it and yanked the door open.

"I'm sure." She said, and Faith followed her out of the bathroom. It wasn't like she was in any rush to get back, but Faith couldn't understand Buffy's reaction. They'd been searching all this time and found nothing.

They returned to their seats on the bus, with Buffy against the window and Faith in the aisle. Buffy rested her forehead against the glass and closed her eyes.

"When I was first called…" Buffy hesitated. Faith watched her closely as she waited patiently for the answer to a question she couldn't bring herself to ask. "My parents - they had me committed." Then Buffy breathed out a sigh of relief.

"Damn, B. That's cold.".

"I just… maybe that was dumb. I'm sorry, do you want to go back in there?" Buffy turned to Faith, and she quickly shook her head.

"Nah, B. I'm sure we'll find something in SunnyD. Don't sweat it." Faith relaxed back into her seat and hoped that the subject was dropped.

Buffy was so relieved that Faith didn't push the issue - or even give her a hard time about revealing her reasoning - that it didn't even occur to her to wonder why Faith wasn't more worried about passing up this opportunity to leave.

When they climbed off the bus, Buffy had to take a moment to adjust to how different the town she had been living in for over two years was. There hadn't been much to Sunnydale before, but now there was even less. There was a main street with a handful of stores, and that was about it.

They started to worry that they wouldn't even be able to find a place to stay. But there did happen to be one hotel, and they were lucky enough to get a room.

They decided to hide out inside until dark. The last thing either of them wanted was to go into the next dimension wearing the awful pastel dresses.

Buffy was relaxing on her bed, flipping through the newspaper. She'd gotten in the habit of reading the paper in LA, and even though this one was old - she still felt compelled to read every word.

"Huh?" She leaned forward and squinted at the image on the page.

"What's up?"

"Do you recognize this guy?" Buffy held up the paper and pointed to the grainy image on the front page.

Faith shrugged, "nope. Should I?"

"He looks just like our current mayor." Buffy read through the article. "Richard Wilkins II."

"I guess that's weird, but this probably isn't even our dimension or whatever these places are."

"Yeah, still… just kinda creeps me out. I guess he founded this town. They're breaking ground on the high school in a few months." Buffy dropped the paper and frowned.

"Is that a problem?"

"No - I guess not. Just… I thought we should check out the Hellmouth for a new portal. But since it was under the high school, we might not be able to get to it." Buffy frowned and wracked her brain, trying to think of other possible ways to reach the Hellmouth.

Waiting for dark, the slayers dressed in their all-black outfits and started their trek towards where the high school would eventually stand.

They traversed the high school grounds for over two hours, but there was no portal in sight.

"I'm sorry, B. I really thought there'd be something here." Faith said after giving up hope that her idea was actually a good one.

"It's not your fault, and there still could be something here. There was another way in. I think I know where to check next." Buffy said, finally remembering when she was first in Sunnydale and found a path from the graveyard to the Hellmouth.

Faith nodded and pushed out a disappointed breath. She had really hoped to be the one that came up with the idea that led them home. It was getting harder and harder to suppress her guilt at getting them into this mess. If she was the one that brought them back, then maybe she'd be able to forgive herself.

"Well, now. What are two nice young ladies such as yourselves doing out this late at night? And without an escort." Buffy recognized the Mayor and tried to keep her reaction in check.

"Um, nothing. Sir. We were just out for a walk." Buffy tried to sound respectful. Faith's chuckling behind her did not help at all.

"Is that right?" The Mayor grinned down at the pair, and Buffy took a step back. She didn't know what he was, but she was positive he was more than he appeared.

"Yeah, so we'll just be on our way." Faith reached out and tried to pull Buffy away, but Buffy seemed entranced by this man.

"I'm afraid that just won't do." The Mayor's large and friendly grin dropped, and suddenly they were encircled by ten vampires.

The sudden appearance of vampires brought Buffy out of her stupor. Buffy went back to back with Faith and was prepared for battle in an instant.

Just as the vampires were about to attack, a loud whistle cut through the air. The vampires parted enough to allow the Mayor to approach the slayers.

The Mayor pushed his way through the crowd of vampires. "There's no need for violence. I'm sure you ladies would like to find a way out of this dimension."

The slayers shared a glance and then dropped their defensive posture.

"I believe we can help each other out." The Mayor held up a small object. "You take care of a little vampire problem I'm having, and I will give you this."

"That will bring us home?" Buffy asked while trying to keep the hope out of her voice, but she could tell by the mayor's grin that it didn't work. He had the advantage, and they all knew it.

"I can't say for certain where it will take you. But it will allow you to leave this dimension."

"These vamps?" Faith motioned the vampires surrounding them, trying not to show her relief that it wasn't going to be an instant ticket home.

"Oh no, not these. There is a small contingent of vampires living in the sewers that have been unwilling to follow the rules. I need them removed so that I can restore this town to its former glory."

"Fine. Tell us where to go." Buffy hated making this deal, but she also really wanted to move on from this dimension.

The Mayor grinned and motioned to two vampires. "They will show you the way and ensure you finish the job."

Faith rolled her eyes but didn't argue the point. She was looking forward to a good slay, and even though she didn't really care about getting back home - she did think it would cheer Buffy up to find another portal.

"Fuck!" Faith hissed as she got hammered in the back by yet another vampire. She had been looking for a fight, but this was more than she had expected.

They should have realized that the Mayor wouldn't need their help if the vampires would easy to put down. They had been fighting endlessly for hours now. The two vampires that were meant to help them were taken out almost instantly.

"Faith!" Buffy shouted when she saw Faith drop to her knees. Buffy tapped into her rage and launched herself past the vampires she had been fighting to get closer to Faith. She managed to dust the two in her immediate area and help Faith to her feet before they were swarmed again.

They each took a calm and centering breath as they went back to back. They had been almost instantly separated when they dropped into the sewer. This was the first time that they'd be able to work together.

"Let's do this." Faith said and leaned back into Buffy briefly before starting her attack.

Without discussion, the slayers played off each other perfectly. They spun and wove their way through the remaining enemies. Neither slayer was even touched by an enemy, and the vampires started dropping like flies.

After barely twenty more minutes of fighting, the tunnel was cleared of enemies, and no more vampires could be heard. They carefully moved further into the sewer, searching for more. After checking for several minutes without finding anything, exhaustion began to set in.

"That was crazy." Faith said as she helped Buffy out of the sewer and into the sunlight. They both basked in the warmth for a moment before deciding what to do next.

"Synchronized slaying," Buffy said with a smile, and Faith grinned back.

"You ready to get the hell out of here?"

Buffy looked down at herself and grimaced. "Maybe a shower first?"

The Mayor was unexpectedly cooperative when it came time to collect their reward. Buffy found the whole thing very unsettling, but she was too relieved that they were leaving this dimension to dwell on it.

Deciding to try opening the portal in the same place that started all this, the slayers waited until nightfall and returned to Restfield cemetery. Buffy frowned when it disintegrated in her hand as soon as she activated it. There had been some hope that they might be able to hop dimensions whenever they wanted, but that was not going to be the case.

Buffy knelt down and dipped her head into the sewer, relieved to see the street in front of Sunnydale High School on the other side. It was dark, and no one was visible walking in the streets. The school looked the same as Buffy remembered. There was some hope that this might actually be their world, but Buffy wouldn't let herself believe it until they knew more. "Looks like Sunnydale, at least."

Faith nodded and tried not to let it be too obvious that she hoped it wouldn't be the right version of Sunnydale. She watched Buffy crawl through the portal and followed her just a moment after. It was disorienting as they climbed down the sewer but were climbing up onto the street.

They walked a few paces away from the portal and towards the school. Buffy couldn't help but be drawn to the familiar building and the hope that she was home.

A low whistle and a terrifying giggle froze them in their tracks. They quickly spun around to see something that they both definitely never wanted to see again.

"I just knew following you would be the best decision I've ever made." Angelus was standing there with a terrifying grin.

Each slayer pulled out a stake and moved towards the vampire.

"Don't look at me - you've got real problems coming." He grinned and then vanished into the darkness.

Buffy frowned but turned her attention back to the horde of vampires that were coming their way. There were at least two dozen of them, coming from three different directions. There only clear path of escape was in the direction Angel had vanished.

"We got this, B." Faith said and gave her a reassuring bump with her shoulder.

"Right," Buffy grimaced and moved to a fighting stance. She felt herself easily falling into the feeling of fighting side by side with Faith. She was even looking forward to it.

Just as the vampires were nearing them, a white van came screeching alongside them. Buffy was shocked to see Oz, Amy, and two other people she didn't recognize inside.

"Get in!" Amy shouted while the others jumped out of the van with crosses held out in front of them.

It wasn't really in their nature to run away. Still, the slayers decided to take the opportunity given to them and hopped in the van.

"What are you two doing wandering around at night?" Amy asked.

"It's kind of a long story." Buffy and Faith shared a glance. "What happened here?"

"The Master," Oz said, and Buffy grit her teeth.