Faith
"Get this fucking door open!" I know she's in there, she's still alive. Nothing was going to stop her from getting to Buffy. She was going to save her.
The soldiers, newly freed from their mind control, turn to Riley for instruction. "You heard her, get it open."
"Charges set, everyone back away."
They retreated and covered their ears, the explosion rocked everyone but Faith to the ground. She was running through the newly created opening before the dust settled. Running full tilt into another room with no clear path to where she knew Buffy was. She walked to the area of the wall where she could sense Buffy the most and reach out, finding that her hand passed right through it.
She pushed her way through the wall without waiting for any of the rest to follow her.
"Hello, Faith." Willow floated in the center of the room, her hair and eyes pitch black.
"What's up, Red? Though I guess I can't call you that anymore. Have to say, I dug your old look a lot more." Faith took in the space, cringing at the sight of Buffy strapped to the table with blood painted on her face.
"Always so cocky," Willow smirked and blasted Faith with energy, slamming her to the ceiling and dropping her to the floor.
"Willow please, you have to stop doing this." Buffy's voice was weak and barely audible.
"Do I? Who is going to make me stop?"
Faith had regained her feet while Willow was distracted and launched herself at the floating witch. Willow only laughed at the attempted tackle and threw Faith back into the wall. This time Faith did not get up right away.
"No! What did you do?" Buffy screamed, thrashing against her bonds, trying to see where Faith landed.
"I'm ok." Faith groaned and rolled over, but did not rise. "Five by five." She choked out the words, hoping to lessen Buffy's worry while fighting to regain control of her body.
Willow floated over to her, "Let's just see what we can do about that." She raised her hands and shot dark energy into Faith, making her scream and writhe. It only lasted a few moments before the energy sputtered out. Willow frowned and dropped to the ground. Looking at her hands with confusion.
"Willow!" Tara rose from her bed and moved towards Willow. "You have to stop. This isn't who you're supposed to be."
"Where did my magic go?" Willow pouts, tears beginning to stream down her face.
"Maybe you don't deserve it." Faith scoffed at her, finally gaining enough of her strength to stand. "Maybe you're not strong enough to have this much power."
"Look who's talking, you murdered people!" Willow spits back.
Faith only laughed, "Are you kidding me? Look at yourself. You're trying to compare what I did to what you've done? What you were planning to do?"
Willow crumbled to the ground, completely drained of all energy. Faith pulled a dagger out of her boot and took a step towards Willow. "Faith!" Buffy cried out. "What are you doing?"
"What I have to. She's too dangerous." Faith moved forward shakily, even though she knew killing Willow was the only option - it did not feel right to her.
Buffy was helpless to stop her, still restrained on the platform. Faith hoped Buffy would eventually understand why this needed to be done. Even though she knew it would end whatever was growing between them, she still had to do it.
Faith knelt down before Willow and Tara. "Let me." Tara reached for the blade.
"Are you sure?" Faith hesitates, she was given explicit instructions that she needed to be the one to take out Willow. She hadn't been too excited about the idea. She couldn't help but be worried about what it would mean for her if she killed another human. If Tara wanted to do it, she wasn't going to stop her.
"Faith! It has to be you." The first appeared as Buffy, hands on her hips, furiously yelling at Faith. "You can't let the witch have that blade!"
"Why does it matter?" Faith held the knife out to the blonde witch who had accepted it and was now feeling its energy.
"You did this!" Tara yells at the First, her demeanor filled with confidence.
The First growls furiously, changing forms several times to people none of them recognized. "You haven't won anything, don't think that you have!" It screeches at them before vanishing in a flash of light.
"Um, want to clue us in?" Faith asks, she was completely confused by this turn of events, but also hopeful that it meant she wouldn't have to kill anyone.
"Where did you get this dagger?" Tara asks, furrowing her brow as she kept her eyes on the weapon.
"Angelus gave it to me, he and the First told me I could use it to take out Willow. They were pretty serious about it being me that used it." Faith frowned, guessing that she had been duped and hating herself for it. How do I keep letting myself get tricked into doing bad things? At least this time, I didn't realize what I was doing was wrong. I guess that's better.
"Did Giles know about this?"
Faith thought about it, "No, Angelus gave it to me on our way back here. Shit, I should have known." Faith groaned and moved to release Buffy from her restraints. The blonde slayer sat up, rubbing her wrists which were slightly irritated from the bonds.
"So what is that thing? What do we do now?"
Tara sat quietly for a second. Faith was about to repeat her question before Tara spoke again. "If you had used this knife on her, it would have killed you and let her drain all your power. She would have gained the essence of the slayer, preventing a new one from being called."
"Those fuckers!" Faith screamed, starting to head towards the exit, fully intent on finding Angelus and ending him.
"Faith! Wait." Buffy calls out and runs to her. Gently turning her around. "We need to stick together, please. I can't lose you again." Her voice was soft, and Faith wanted to give into it, wanted to believe that the emotion was real.
It can't be real. There's no way she cares about me. She just needs me to help deal with this Willow shit. I'll stick around until this is over, then I'm gone. Faith shook her head, but she stayed.
"What happens when she wakes up?" Buffy turned back to the witches.
"She shouldn't wake up for a while. I sorta snuck a pouch into her pocket when I attacked her. It's why her power stopped working. Glad they didn't lie to me about that too."
Tara looked down sadly at Willow, whom she clearly loved deeply. "I think I can change the enchantment on this blade. If I do it right, it will expel the First's corruption from her. It should turn her back into the Willow she used to be."
"That doesn't sound like too sure of a bet. What happens if it doesn't work? Plus won't someone still have to stab her with it?" Faith was losing her hope that this was going to end without her having to get her hands bloody.
"It shouldn't require actual stabbing, and I'm still going to do it. Do you think it's safe to get out of here? I need some supplies."
"It should be good. The soldiers are free of their mind control. Riley was in charge and seemed to want to help."
Buffy moved to pick up the unconscious Willow, she carefully cradled her to her chest and followed Faith through the tunnel, Tara following closely behind.
"Faith? Is it over?" Riley asked as soon as she appeared through the tunnel. With Willow drained of her magic and unconscious, the glamour had faded, and they could now see the path that led to the secret lab. He frowned when he saw that Willow was still alive.
"It's not quite over, but it's safe for now." Faith shrugged, she wanted to appear calm and confident. Not letting it show that she was still completely freaked out.
"Do you need us to do anything?"
"I don't think so, just make sure we have a clear path. Tara needs to get to her supplies so we can finish this."
"It's all clear."
"You might want to double-check all the entrances. We pissed off the First. It might be planning an attack."
"Got it." Riley nodded and ordered his men to keep an eye on surveillance. Faith had told him of the secret path through the tunnels, which he sent several soldiers to guard.
"When did you get to be so in charge?" Buffy playfully asked, grinning at the dark slayer. "I like it," Buffy whispered and winked at Faith as she walked passed with Willow.
Faith rubbed her shoulder, nervously, embarrassed by Buffy's overt and very inappropriately timed flirting. Tara chuckled as she walked passed. "You might not want to believe it. But it's real."
Faith looked over at the blonde witch confused. "What are you talking about?"
Tara only shrugged and kept walked to keep up with Buffy. What the hell was that about? Can she read minds or something? Do I even care if it's real? This isn't the time to be thinking about any of this!
Buffy
"What's going to happen to you after you use the dagger on Willow?" Buffy asked Tara as they walked side by side. She was clutching Willow tightly, cradling in her arms and trying not to think about what her friend had been trying to do.
"What should have happened already. I'm not supposed to be here."
Buffy frowned, she had grown to like Tara and didn't want to her die. "There's no other way?"
Tara smiled sadly. "It's ok. It's how things are meant to be. You'll have Willow, together the three of you will be able to end this war. The balance in the world will begin to restore."
They reach the second floor, and Tara leads them to her's and Willow's room. Buffy places Willow on the bed and steps away. "Do you need anything? Should we stay or go?"
Tara moved to sit beside Willow, holding her hand. She sighed sadly and returned her attention to the two slayers. Buffy was confused as to why the girl wasn't answering and why she seemed to be watching them so intently, or at least the space in between them. Her expression was unreadable, and Buffy began to worry.
"Tara? Is everything ok? I guess that's a stupid question… But you know what I mean." Buffy shuffled around nervously. There were so many things to worry about still. She couldn't help mostly being worried that Faith was going to leave. Faith had barely entered the room and kept glancing at the door.
Tara stood up and moved over to the desk against the wall, sliding open several drawers until she found what she was looking for. "I want to show you both something." She motioned for them to come closer, Buffy moved without hesitation. Faith, on the other hand, glanced at the door one more time before shrugging her shoulders and moving closer. Tara held out a large blue crystal, "you should both touch it."
Buffy touched it first, having complete trust in Tara. Once her fingertips reached the cool material, her eyes widened. "Wow! Is this what you see all the time?" She looked around the room in wonder. The swirling trails of energy surrounding her and Faith, she could see how they reached and intertwined with each other. Buffy's energy was a swirl of light reds and dark blues, while Faith's were darker reds and deep greens. She was in awe of how they danced around each other.
She looked at the still form of her once best friend on the bed with a little shock. There were several shades of light blue and green, but there was also a swirling of black dancing on the edges, pushing its way in. The lighter colors swirled and were drawn to Tara, whose own vivid swirl of energy seemed to embrace. The auras of the witches glowed brightly, but nothing compared to what surrounded the slayers.
"Did you not see that before? That darkness... is it the First?" Buffy almost whispered.
Tara sighed, looking over at the red witch. "I saw it. I just couldn't accept what it meant. Anytime I seemed to doubt Willow or worry that something wasn't right… well, you saw what happened." Buffy nodded, confirming that whatever magic was keeping her alive wouldn't allow her to question Willow.
Faith was finally getting annoyed at being left out, reached over to add her hand to the crystal. "What the hell is that?!"
"It's what our auras look like. Tara can see them naturally." Buffy couldn't help but stare at Faith. She looked amazing bathed in the colorful lights. She could see her own energy brighten as she watched Faith.
Faith slowly placed her hand back on the crystal. "I feel like I'm on an acid trip or something." She grumbled.
Tara chuckled, "it can seem like that sometimes."
After a few more moments, the slayers removed their hands. "Thanks for showing us that, it's very cool." Buffy smiled at Tara. I wish I'd had the chance to know her better. She seems like an amazing person. I'm glad Willow had her in her life, even if it wasn't for as long as it should have been. She felt sadness and guilt sweep through her, knowing that if things hadn't have gone so wrong, Tara might not have had to die.
"It's not your fault. It's very likely I would have died when I did, even if you were there."
"How did you die?"
Tara frowned, "I don't exactly remember. I know it wasn't a magical death, I think… I think someone shot me."
Buffy's eyes widen with shock, she had been expecting an answer but that. "Why would anyone shoot you?"
"I don't know, maybe Willow will." Tara frowns, gripping the crystal tightly in her hands. "Here, you can keep this. Willow will be able to recharge it for you if you ever want to try it again." She slipped the crystal back into its pouch and handed it to Buffy.
"So, what happens now?" Faith asks, back to anxiously migrating towards the exit.
"I guess it's time to say goodbye. It should take about an hour for me to prepare everything."
"Then Willow will be OK?" Buffy asks, "and you'll be…"
"Willow will be ok, and I'll be where I'm supposed to be." Tara wrapped Buffy in a hug. "I don't know how much she'll remember. It might be really hard for her at first. She's going to need both of you to help her through this." Tara looks pointedly at Faith.
"What does she need me for? We were never friends."
"Buffy, why don't you go wait in your room. I need to talk to Faith." Buffy reluctantly backs away from Tara. Hoping that whatever Tara needs to tell Faith will convince her to stay, but not wanting to be overly optimistic. She has to push her way passed Faith who had planted herself in the doorway. "I'm pretty sure she won't bite," Buffy comments to Faith, wanting to laugh at the stiff and scared dark slayer.
Faith twitches at the comment, seeming to realize how tensely she had been standing and tried to relax. Buffy only grins and heads down the hall. Hoping that this wasn't the last thing she would ever get to say to Faith.