Part II
Faith grinned as the air rushed past them in the convertible. She had never ridden in one before (except for Xander driving her to the motel after she dispatched that nasty Apocalypse demon), and she was seriously enjoying the experience. She looked over at Xander, who seemed to be at ease as he drove towards the restaurant. He looked different, somehow. She grinned at him and asked, "When did you get to be so cool?"
Xander smiled mysteriously at her and replied, "Somehow, it just seems right now." He paused a moment, then elaborated, "After convincing the leader of the world's first zombie street gang to defuse the bomb that was two seconds away from blowing us all into chunky salsa, somehow the world seems like a more comfortable place to be in, you know?" Abruptly, his face went serious again and he continued, "Also, it seems a certain Slayer took the time out of her busy schedule to let me know I wasn't the loser I was thinking I was at that moment. . .I know I said it before, but it bears repeating: thank you, Faith."
Faith was silent for a long moment, and Xander looked at her with concern. "Are you O.K.? Did I say the wrong thing?"
Faith looked at him with a rueful expression and replied, "No. . .it's just that I'm not used to anything I say meaning a damn. I spent the first sixteen years of my life in a situation where no one cared what I said or did. . .then I became a Slayer, and suddenly stuff I did was important, and no one much cared what I said or thought except. . ." She paused and Xander turned back to her, only to see her shrug and comment, "Well, anyway, thanks for telling me that. . .it means a lot. We can't have Cordelia taking cheap shots at you, can we?"
Xander was silent, and Faith saw his expression and decided it was her turn: "What's the matter?"
Xander sighed and replied, "I just don't feel right about taking shots at Cordelia. . it's one thing when she's actually there and giving as good as she gets, and I got a kick out of giving her an enigmatic smile and walking off after I beat Jack and his gang. . .but, let's face it, I cheated on her. She has a right to be pissed off at me. . .at least she hasn't gone psycho on me like Angelus did on Buffy. . .I ought to be grateful."
Faith snorted and replied, "That's a lot of crap, Xander. I've heard the whole story, and you and Willow were both trying to deal with it. . .Spike showing up and kidnapping you just totally screwed up the whole thing. Both of you ran right back to your significant others and tried to fix things: Willow was just more lucky when Oz decided to take her back. . .yeah, Cordelia had a right to be pissed off, but she's just been nasty. How many times have you saved her ass? That ought to count for something, you know?"
Xander nodded, and commented, "Yeah, I know. But she's actually come through herself a few times, you know. She saved Buffy by bluffing Lyle Gorch on Homecoming Night, and Willow and Miss Calendar would have died the night Buffy died if she hadn't shown up and driven into the school with her car. . .wish I could have seen that one." He smiled and concluded, "Anyway, don't think you have to take shots at Cordelia to make me happy. . .just being here with you is doing that just fine."
Faith felt a flush of warmth at the compliment, and she smiled at him, noticing the faint flush of his own as she watched. She noticed he was driving with one hand, and she reached out and gently squeezed his right hand as they approached the movie theater. She saw his smile, and she echoed it with one of her own as they pulled into the parking lot.
*****
Four hours later, they were driving to the restaurant where they had ten o-clock reservations. "Titanic" had been playing in the local fifth-run theater, and Faith had never seen it before. She had been moved by the whole thing, as sappy as the love story was.
"It's weird. . .I'm just not used to thinking that long term, you know? Can you imagine holding on to that kind of love for eighty-five years?. . .I'm happy if I can make plans that work out for next week, you know?" She paused when she saw Xander tense, and she immediately realized that she had screwed up. "Oh, hell, Xander, I'm sorry. . .you're probably not too thrilled at thinking about the whole Slayer life expectancy thing. . .particularly after almost losing Buffy all those times."
Xander nodded, and turned to her and met her eyes as he elaborated, "Almost losing you a couple of times kind of sucked too, you know?" Moved by the sincerity in his eyes, she nodded as he continued, "I guess I started thinking about Angel, too. Except for a few months last year, he's been living that whole life without hope thing for a hundred years. . .makes me wonder if I've been a jackass for treating him the way I have. . .and that just throws my whole world into turmoil, you know?"
Faith nodded, and thought about how she had casually decided to eliminate Angel when she found out he was back. . .and what that would have done to Buffy. She nodded and replied, "Mine too, I guess. We don't have to tell him, do we? I really hate the whole groveling apology thing."
Xander grinned, and whispered, "I won't tell him if you won't." They both laughed as they pulled into the restaurant parking lot and walked into the reception area. The head waiter escorted them to their table, and more than a few pairs of male eyes followed Faith as the two of them were seated. Faith had not missed the scrutiny, and was moved to chuckle and comment, "You'd think they never saw a girl before."
Xander laughed and replied, "Faith, you're pretty damned attractive even wearing what you usually do. . .in that dress, I'm just glad you didn't cause half a dozen traffic accidents on the way over here." Faith smiled at the compliment, though there was an odd sadness in her eyes. Xander noted the ambivalence, and took a moment to scrutinize the dress in question. He smiled and asked, "So, what did you do. . .blow your life savings on that dress?. . .if so, I'm terribly flattered, though you didn't have to go to that much trouble. . .but thank you, thank you, thank you."
Faith giggled at the terribly earnest expression on Xander's face, then she sobered and looked down at the table for a long moment before looking up at Xander and replying, "No. . .I've had this dress all along. . .Amanda made it for me." Noticing the puzzled look on Xander's face, she quickly elaborated, "Amanda Davis. . .my first Watcher."
Xander saw the sad look in her eyes, and remembered what Buffy had told him about how Faith's Watcher had been killed by Kakistos. After a moment of silence, Xander was about to say something when the waitress came. Xander and Faith quietly ordered their meals, and when the waitress departed, Xander leaned in to Faith with a sympathetic expression on his face and asked, "Faith, it's none of my business, but if you want to talk about her, I'm here."
For the first time, Xander saw Faith completely without the armor of humor and callousness that she used to defend herself against the rest of the world: he was startled at just how vulnerable she looked as she whispered, "Xander, you can't imagine what it was like. When I became a Slayer, and Amanda found me and told me what I was and what I would be doing, suddenly for the first time in my life there was someone who cared what I did, what I thought, what I felt. After we'd finish a nightly patrol, we'd talk for hours until we fell asleep. . .it just felt right. She made the dress for me on her own. . .when I asked her why, she told me that all young ladies should have a dress like this one, so that they could stand proud in front of the world and dazzle anyone who cared to look." She smiled and commented, "It's not as fragile as it looks, either. She made it out of some pretty tough fabric, and added a few hiding places for some. . .necessities." She motioned for Xander to look under the table, and when he did she lifted the hem of her dress to reveal sheathed daggers hidden underneath along her thighs.
Xander laughed and commented, "I love a practical woman." He looked into her eyes, and commented sadly, "I'm so sorry you had to lose her, Faith."
Faith smiled sadly, and Xander could see the haunted look in her eyes as she replied, "I appreciate that. . .I just wish I could make the dreams go away." Xander was startled to see a hint of tears in her eyes: he had never seen her so sad. "That bastard Kakistos and five of his thugs caught Amanda and me. . .he decided that he would make me watch as he killed her slowly. She never so much as gasped during the whole time. . .she just locked eyes with me and let me know what she expected of me. . .and I just lost it. I don't remember much of what happened after that, except gouging that bastard's eye out. I escaped and ran like hell, only stopping at her house long enough to pick up some things I needed. . .including this dress. It's the only thing I have left from her. . .I suppose you think it's a little silly."
Xander reached out and squeezed her hand, responding, "Faith, she clearly cared a lot about you. . . this whole thing with the Council of Watchers screwing over Buffy and sending that jerk Wesley to be your Watcher could tend to make you forget it, but I've read enough Watcher's diaries in the course of long and painful research to know that most Watchers love their Slayers as if they were their own children. . .amazing that that idiot Travers never clued in on that. I've seen Giles with Buffy, and I know where he is coming from. . .I'm sure she felt that way about you."
Faith looked down at the table and replied, "Yeah, I guess. . .I just can't help feeling I let her down. . .I always wonder how she'd feel about what I'm doing. . ."
Xander looked sad for a moment, then responded, "I can't tell you that for sure, Faith. I wish I could tell what people who aren't. . .here any more would think, because there are a couple of people that I wish I could have done better by. . .Jesse, Miss Calendar. . .but I can't, and I just have to hope that they'd understand why I did things the way I did." He squeezed her hand again and continued, "But I know how the rest of us feel about it, Faith. You've come through for us, and I'd like to think that you're beginning to trust us. We want you here. . .I want you here."
Faith smiled softly and commented, "You're really good at this, Xander. . .why didn't you use this approach during your infamous bar-cruising days? You could have had some of those babes eating out of your hand."
Xander looked embarrassed, then bowed his head slightly and replied in a lofty tone, "Like you, Faith, I have sworn to use my powers only for the side of goodness, not for deep and dark purposes such as the pickup line." He managed to keep a straight face for a full five seconds, then began laughing softly. Faith grinned and began laughing herself, and this continued until their meals arrived. They both smiled and began to dig in.
*****
Buffy and Willow had finished studying, and were quietly exchanging rumors they'd heard at school when someone knocked at the door. Since Joyce had retired for the evening, Buffy went to the door and opened it, smiling when she saw Giles before frowning and asking, "What's the matter? Do we have to save the world again? This gets old kind of quickly."
Giles smiled gently and replied, "No apocalypse tonight, Buffy, just . . .some surprising news." He glanced around and asked, "Is Faith here?"
Buffy quickly repressed a momentary surge of annoyance that Giles had come here to see Faith instead of her, then remembered that it had been her idea for the younger Slayer to move into her house in the first place. She smiled ruefully and replied, "Sorry, Giles. . .she's out on a hot date. . .with Xander."
Giles blinked twice, then managed to respond, "I. . .see." After a moment, he sighed and commented, "Better Xander than some local misfit. . .he knows to handle her delicately." He saw the look that the two young women gave him and amended, "I mean conversationally. . .Faith has been through a lot, and Xander knows it." He nodded and concluded, "Very well. Tell Faith I stopped by and that I need to speak with her in the morning."
Giles was turning away to leave when Buffy noticed the legal sized envelope in his hand and asked, "Giles, what's in the envelope?"
Giles frowned and replied, "Buffy, it's a matter that concerns Faith. . .it would be unethical for me to inform you of it before I am able to tell her about it."
Buffy frowned and replied, "That's a lot of crap, Giles. Whatever is in that envelope was important enough for you to come out here at almost midnight when you became aware of it, rather than waiting until morning or calling over here to leave a message for her. We've all been big players in the 'keep Faith on the mend' project, and anything as apparently important as what's in that envelope is something that we should know about right now." She turned to her best friend and asked, "Right, Willow?"
"Right!" Willow responded, elaborating no further but assuming what both recognized as her "resolve face." Buffy grinned and looked back at Giles, who sighed elaborately and moved to sit down, with the curious Buffy and Willow moving to sit across from him on the couch. He removed the letter contained in the envelope, and began to explain: "This letter was forwarded to Faith in care of me from a law firm in Boston. . .apparently the Council is rather sloppy about updating such matters. It involves the settlement of the living trust left by Amanda Davis. . .Faith's first Watcher." He noted the puzzled looks on Buffy and Willow's faces, and explained, "A living trust is a legal device designed to bypass the lengthy procedures of probate law when a person dies, so that his or her heirs come into possession of the deceased person's estate far more quickly. It seems that Ms. Davis provided for Faith in the trust."
Buffy was surprised at this: she knew from some things she had read in Watcher's diaries and a question or two to Giles that generally Watchers either left their assets to family or, if they had none, to the Council itself. It was more a matter of realism than anything: with the life expectancy of a Slayer, what was the point of leaving one property that they would not live to inherit? She nodded and replied, "She must have had a lot of confidence in Faith to do that. . .well, how much are we talking about here? I've seen the way you Watcher types dress. . .it can't be that much, can it?"
Giles silently handed the letter to Buffy and Willow, and they both read it. Remarkably, it was written in completely clear and understandable text, and it only took a minute or so for both to reach the crucial subject matter of the letter. Buffy blinked, and audibly gasped, but was unable to manage a verbal response. She turned to her articulate best friend, and only had to wait a few seconds before Willow moved her lips and managed a concise, whispered response to the news:
"Holy shit."
*****
The meal had mostly passed in silence, with both diners occasionally sneaking covert glances at the other, looking away when their scrutiny seemed to be noticed. The stalemate might have continued substantially longer if a familiar voice hadn't drifted over from several tables away: "I'm glad to see at least one guy in this town knows the importance of proper accessorizing, Jeremy. You wouldn't believe some of the losers I've had to deal with in the past."
Faith saw the hurt look in Xander's eyes as he heard Cordelia's nasty comment, and her first impulse was to walk over and clock the taller brunette a good one. Realizing that Xander would frown on that approach, she thought a moment before a nasty smile appeared on her face. Raising her voice to a level that would be clearly audible at Cordelia's table, she purred, "Oh, Xander, I've had the most wonderful time tonight. I can't imagine why I've let you slip out of my grasp for as long as I have." She shifted her position slightly so that she would be in full view of Cordelia, then watched the former May Queen out of the corner of her eye to gauge her reaction.
Cordelia was annoyed. Xander had to be at this very restaurant on the very night that she was trying to move on after their breakup? She was glad he probably had heard what she said. . .maybe it would give him a taste of what she had gone through. She turned to give a contemptuous look to Xander's dinner companion, only to be startled by the beautiful woman in the dress that even her Daddy wouldn't have coughed up the bucks to provide Cordelia with. * Where in the hell did he find her. . .I know he's too broke to afford an escort service just to piss me off. . .omigod it's Faith! * In an instant, all of her insecurities about Buffy. . .and now Faith, rushed back, and she felt dizzy for a long moment. She quickly recovered, but she could not resist glancing back at the Slayer every few seconds while Jeremy droned on about the long concluded football season.
Faith saw Cordelia turn white for a moment, and felt a nasty moment of inner triumph. She saw the older woman look away, but saw that she was still glancing back at Faith and Xander's table occasionally. Faith decided to raise the ante and was leaning across the table with the intention of giving Xander one hell of a kiss when Xander interrupted her train of thought by whispering pointedly, "What are you doing, Faith?"
Faith paused and replied silkily, "I think it's pretty obvious, Xander. I'm going to kiss you and seriously piss off your ex over there."
Xander nodded and replied in a whisper, "Faith, just don't."
Faith blinked, and quickly sat down: she looked hurt, and Xander knew he had some more damage control to do as he leaned in and asked, "Faith, if Cordelia hadn't been here, would you have done any of what you just did?"
Faith thought about it for a moment, then replied, "I really have had a wonderful time, and I am starting to wonder why I didn't chase you down the moment Cordelia cut you loose, but I wouldn't have been leaning over the table to kiss you, no. . .and I wouldn't have broadcast it to the room, either."
Xander smiled: it was better than he had thought it would be. He locked eyes with her and responded, "All right, then. I'm positively thrilled that you enjoyed yourself, and at this moment I wish you had tracked me down. . .but, Faith, I'm here tonight because I wanted to spend an evening with you, not to make Cordelia jealous or upset. She probably had that shock coming after that nasty comment she made, but anything after that is just overkill. . .if I just wanted to make her jealous, I would have scrounged up some cash and hired some hot looking escort. . .I wouldn't have used one of my friends, who just happens to be more spectacular than any escort I could hope to hire." He grasped her hand again and concluded, "Faith, I'm here for you tonight. Cordelia isn't even on my radar screen."
Faith smiled, and drew his hand to her mouth, where she kissed it softly before releasing it. Xander looked at her, causing her to comment, "Don't worry. . .I definitely wanted to do that for my own sake, Xander. If it annoyed Cordelia, that was just a bonus." Xander shook his head and grinned for a moment as the check arrived, and Faith excused herself for a trip to the restroom. When she emerged, Xander was involved in settling the bill, and Faith decided to wait outside while he concluded matters. The night was cool, but not uncomfortably so, and she was actually enjoying looking up at the stars while she walked towards Xander's car when she heard a harsh voice snap: "So, if it isn't the little bitch who decided to screw up how things are run in this town."
Faith sighed, and turned around to see. . .that little wimp who worked for the Mayor? What was his name. . oh yeah, Alan Finch. She snorted contemptuously and replied, "Little wusses who used to do the Mayor's dirty work while putting on an innocent act probably shouldn't piss off the Slayer when she's out on the town. Run along, little man. . .just because Slayers aren't allowed to kill humans doesn't mean I won't beat the crap out of you if you mess up my date."
Finch looked smug, and Faith only had a moment to process that before the Deputy Mayor replied, "Oh, there's good news and bad news on that, you little bitch. The good news is, I'm not human any more." His face morphed into vampiric form, and Faith had only a moment's regret at another human being killed in this town before remembering this human's complicity with evil and retorting sardonically, "Well. . .isn't this interesting? So, what's the bad news?"
Finch grinned and whistled sharply, bringing four vampires out of hiding that quickly moved to surround the Slayer. He chuckled and commented, "The bad news is that you aren't going to live long enough to finish that date. . .sorry."
. . .to be continued
As always, comments are welcomed and desired
Faith grinned as the air rushed past them in the convertible. She had never ridden in one before (except for Xander driving her to the motel after she dispatched that nasty Apocalypse demon), and she was seriously enjoying the experience. She looked over at Xander, who seemed to be at ease as he drove towards the restaurant. He looked different, somehow. She grinned at him and asked, "When did you get to be so cool?"
Xander smiled mysteriously at her and replied, "Somehow, it just seems right now." He paused a moment, then elaborated, "After convincing the leader of the world's first zombie street gang to defuse the bomb that was two seconds away from blowing us all into chunky salsa, somehow the world seems like a more comfortable place to be in, you know?" Abruptly, his face went serious again and he continued, "Also, it seems a certain Slayer took the time out of her busy schedule to let me know I wasn't the loser I was thinking I was at that moment. . .I know I said it before, but it bears repeating: thank you, Faith."
Faith was silent for a long moment, and Xander looked at her with concern. "Are you O.K.? Did I say the wrong thing?"
Faith looked at him with a rueful expression and replied, "No. . .it's just that I'm not used to anything I say meaning a damn. I spent the first sixteen years of my life in a situation where no one cared what I said or did. . .then I became a Slayer, and suddenly stuff I did was important, and no one much cared what I said or thought except. . ." She paused and Xander turned back to her, only to see her shrug and comment, "Well, anyway, thanks for telling me that. . .it means a lot. We can't have Cordelia taking cheap shots at you, can we?"
Xander was silent, and Faith saw his expression and decided it was her turn: "What's the matter?"
Xander sighed and replied, "I just don't feel right about taking shots at Cordelia. . it's one thing when she's actually there and giving as good as she gets, and I got a kick out of giving her an enigmatic smile and walking off after I beat Jack and his gang. . .but, let's face it, I cheated on her. She has a right to be pissed off at me. . .at least she hasn't gone psycho on me like Angelus did on Buffy. . .I ought to be grateful."
Faith snorted and replied, "That's a lot of crap, Xander. I've heard the whole story, and you and Willow were both trying to deal with it. . .Spike showing up and kidnapping you just totally screwed up the whole thing. Both of you ran right back to your significant others and tried to fix things: Willow was just more lucky when Oz decided to take her back. . .yeah, Cordelia had a right to be pissed off, but she's just been nasty. How many times have you saved her ass? That ought to count for something, you know?"
Xander nodded, and commented, "Yeah, I know. But she's actually come through herself a few times, you know. She saved Buffy by bluffing Lyle Gorch on Homecoming Night, and Willow and Miss Calendar would have died the night Buffy died if she hadn't shown up and driven into the school with her car. . .wish I could have seen that one." He smiled and concluded, "Anyway, don't think you have to take shots at Cordelia to make me happy. . .just being here with you is doing that just fine."
Faith felt a flush of warmth at the compliment, and she smiled at him, noticing the faint flush of his own as she watched. She noticed he was driving with one hand, and she reached out and gently squeezed his right hand as they approached the movie theater. She saw his smile, and she echoed it with one of her own as they pulled into the parking lot.
*****
Four hours later, they were driving to the restaurant where they had ten o-clock reservations. "Titanic" had been playing in the local fifth-run theater, and Faith had never seen it before. She had been moved by the whole thing, as sappy as the love story was.
"It's weird. . .I'm just not used to thinking that long term, you know? Can you imagine holding on to that kind of love for eighty-five years?. . .I'm happy if I can make plans that work out for next week, you know?" She paused when she saw Xander tense, and she immediately realized that she had screwed up. "Oh, hell, Xander, I'm sorry. . .you're probably not too thrilled at thinking about the whole Slayer life expectancy thing. . .particularly after almost losing Buffy all those times."
Xander nodded, and turned to her and met her eyes as he elaborated, "Almost losing you a couple of times kind of sucked too, you know?" Moved by the sincerity in his eyes, she nodded as he continued, "I guess I started thinking about Angel, too. Except for a few months last year, he's been living that whole life without hope thing for a hundred years. . .makes me wonder if I've been a jackass for treating him the way I have. . .and that just throws my whole world into turmoil, you know?"
Faith nodded, and thought about how she had casually decided to eliminate Angel when she found out he was back. . .and what that would have done to Buffy. She nodded and replied, "Mine too, I guess. We don't have to tell him, do we? I really hate the whole groveling apology thing."
Xander grinned, and whispered, "I won't tell him if you won't." They both laughed as they pulled into the restaurant parking lot and walked into the reception area. The head waiter escorted them to their table, and more than a few pairs of male eyes followed Faith as the two of them were seated. Faith had not missed the scrutiny, and was moved to chuckle and comment, "You'd think they never saw a girl before."
Xander laughed and replied, "Faith, you're pretty damned attractive even wearing what you usually do. . .in that dress, I'm just glad you didn't cause half a dozen traffic accidents on the way over here." Faith smiled at the compliment, though there was an odd sadness in her eyes. Xander noted the ambivalence, and took a moment to scrutinize the dress in question. He smiled and asked, "So, what did you do. . .blow your life savings on that dress?. . .if so, I'm terribly flattered, though you didn't have to go to that much trouble. . .but thank you, thank you, thank you."
Faith giggled at the terribly earnest expression on Xander's face, then she sobered and looked down at the table for a long moment before looking up at Xander and replying, "No. . .I've had this dress all along. . .Amanda made it for me." Noticing the puzzled look on Xander's face, she quickly elaborated, "Amanda Davis. . .my first Watcher."
Xander saw the sad look in her eyes, and remembered what Buffy had told him about how Faith's Watcher had been killed by Kakistos. After a moment of silence, Xander was about to say something when the waitress came. Xander and Faith quietly ordered their meals, and when the waitress departed, Xander leaned in to Faith with a sympathetic expression on his face and asked, "Faith, it's none of my business, but if you want to talk about her, I'm here."
For the first time, Xander saw Faith completely without the armor of humor and callousness that she used to defend herself against the rest of the world: he was startled at just how vulnerable she looked as she whispered, "Xander, you can't imagine what it was like. When I became a Slayer, and Amanda found me and told me what I was and what I would be doing, suddenly for the first time in my life there was someone who cared what I did, what I thought, what I felt. After we'd finish a nightly patrol, we'd talk for hours until we fell asleep. . .it just felt right. She made the dress for me on her own. . .when I asked her why, she told me that all young ladies should have a dress like this one, so that they could stand proud in front of the world and dazzle anyone who cared to look." She smiled and commented, "It's not as fragile as it looks, either. She made it out of some pretty tough fabric, and added a few hiding places for some. . .necessities." She motioned for Xander to look under the table, and when he did she lifted the hem of her dress to reveal sheathed daggers hidden underneath along her thighs.
Xander laughed and commented, "I love a practical woman." He looked into her eyes, and commented sadly, "I'm so sorry you had to lose her, Faith."
Faith smiled sadly, and Xander could see the haunted look in her eyes as she replied, "I appreciate that. . .I just wish I could make the dreams go away." Xander was startled to see a hint of tears in her eyes: he had never seen her so sad. "That bastard Kakistos and five of his thugs caught Amanda and me. . .he decided that he would make me watch as he killed her slowly. She never so much as gasped during the whole time. . .she just locked eyes with me and let me know what she expected of me. . .and I just lost it. I don't remember much of what happened after that, except gouging that bastard's eye out. I escaped and ran like hell, only stopping at her house long enough to pick up some things I needed. . .including this dress. It's the only thing I have left from her. . .I suppose you think it's a little silly."
Xander reached out and squeezed her hand, responding, "Faith, she clearly cared a lot about you. . . this whole thing with the Council of Watchers screwing over Buffy and sending that jerk Wesley to be your Watcher could tend to make you forget it, but I've read enough Watcher's diaries in the course of long and painful research to know that most Watchers love their Slayers as if they were their own children. . .amazing that that idiot Travers never clued in on that. I've seen Giles with Buffy, and I know where he is coming from. . .I'm sure she felt that way about you."
Faith looked down at the table and replied, "Yeah, I guess. . .I just can't help feeling I let her down. . .I always wonder how she'd feel about what I'm doing. . ."
Xander looked sad for a moment, then responded, "I can't tell you that for sure, Faith. I wish I could tell what people who aren't. . .here any more would think, because there are a couple of people that I wish I could have done better by. . .Jesse, Miss Calendar. . .but I can't, and I just have to hope that they'd understand why I did things the way I did." He squeezed her hand again and continued, "But I know how the rest of us feel about it, Faith. You've come through for us, and I'd like to think that you're beginning to trust us. We want you here. . .I want you here."
Faith smiled softly and commented, "You're really good at this, Xander. . .why didn't you use this approach during your infamous bar-cruising days? You could have had some of those babes eating out of your hand."
Xander looked embarrassed, then bowed his head slightly and replied in a lofty tone, "Like you, Faith, I have sworn to use my powers only for the side of goodness, not for deep and dark purposes such as the pickup line." He managed to keep a straight face for a full five seconds, then began laughing softly. Faith grinned and began laughing herself, and this continued until their meals arrived. They both smiled and began to dig in.
*****
Buffy and Willow had finished studying, and were quietly exchanging rumors they'd heard at school when someone knocked at the door. Since Joyce had retired for the evening, Buffy went to the door and opened it, smiling when she saw Giles before frowning and asking, "What's the matter? Do we have to save the world again? This gets old kind of quickly."
Giles smiled gently and replied, "No apocalypse tonight, Buffy, just . . .some surprising news." He glanced around and asked, "Is Faith here?"
Buffy quickly repressed a momentary surge of annoyance that Giles had come here to see Faith instead of her, then remembered that it had been her idea for the younger Slayer to move into her house in the first place. She smiled ruefully and replied, "Sorry, Giles. . .she's out on a hot date. . .with Xander."
Giles blinked twice, then managed to respond, "I. . .see." After a moment, he sighed and commented, "Better Xander than some local misfit. . .he knows to handle her delicately." He saw the look that the two young women gave him and amended, "I mean conversationally. . .Faith has been through a lot, and Xander knows it." He nodded and concluded, "Very well. Tell Faith I stopped by and that I need to speak with her in the morning."
Giles was turning away to leave when Buffy noticed the legal sized envelope in his hand and asked, "Giles, what's in the envelope?"
Giles frowned and replied, "Buffy, it's a matter that concerns Faith. . .it would be unethical for me to inform you of it before I am able to tell her about it."
Buffy frowned and replied, "That's a lot of crap, Giles. Whatever is in that envelope was important enough for you to come out here at almost midnight when you became aware of it, rather than waiting until morning or calling over here to leave a message for her. We've all been big players in the 'keep Faith on the mend' project, and anything as apparently important as what's in that envelope is something that we should know about right now." She turned to her best friend and asked, "Right, Willow?"
"Right!" Willow responded, elaborating no further but assuming what both recognized as her "resolve face." Buffy grinned and looked back at Giles, who sighed elaborately and moved to sit down, with the curious Buffy and Willow moving to sit across from him on the couch. He removed the letter contained in the envelope, and began to explain: "This letter was forwarded to Faith in care of me from a law firm in Boston. . .apparently the Council is rather sloppy about updating such matters. It involves the settlement of the living trust left by Amanda Davis. . .Faith's first Watcher." He noted the puzzled looks on Buffy and Willow's faces, and explained, "A living trust is a legal device designed to bypass the lengthy procedures of probate law when a person dies, so that his or her heirs come into possession of the deceased person's estate far more quickly. It seems that Ms. Davis provided for Faith in the trust."
Buffy was surprised at this: she knew from some things she had read in Watcher's diaries and a question or two to Giles that generally Watchers either left their assets to family or, if they had none, to the Council itself. It was more a matter of realism than anything: with the life expectancy of a Slayer, what was the point of leaving one property that they would not live to inherit? She nodded and replied, "She must have had a lot of confidence in Faith to do that. . .well, how much are we talking about here? I've seen the way you Watcher types dress. . .it can't be that much, can it?"
Giles silently handed the letter to Buffy and Willow, and they both read it. Remarkably, it was written in completely clear and understandable text, and it only took a minute or so for both to reach the crucial subject matter of the letter. Buffy blinked, and audibly gasped, but was unable to manage a verbal response. She turned to her articulate best friend, and only had to wait a few seconds before Willow moved her lips and managed a concise, whispered response to the news:
"Holy shit."
*****
The meal had mostly passed in silence, with both diners occasionally sneaking covert glances at the other, looking away when their scrutiny seemed to be noticed. The stalemate might have continued substantially longer if a familiar voice hadn't drifted over from several tables away: "I'm glad to see at least one guy in this town knows the importance of proper accessorizing, Jeremy. You wouldn't believe some of the losers I've had to deal with in the past."
Faith saw the hurt look in Xander's eyes as he heard Cordelia's nasty comment, and her first impulse was to walk over and clock the taller brunette a good one. Realizing that Xander would frown on that approach, she thought a moment before a nasty smile appeared on her face. Raising her voice to a level that would be clearly audible at Cordelia's table, she purred, "Oh, Xander, I've had the most wonderful time tonight. I can't imagine why I've let you slip out of my grasp for as long as I have." She shifted her position slightly so that she would be in full view of Cordelia, then watched the former May Queen out of the corner of her eye to gauge her reaction.
Cordelia was annoyed. Xander had to be at this very restaurant on the very night that she was trying to move on after their breakup? She was glad he probably had heard what she said. . .maybe it would give him a taste of what she had gone through. She turned to give a contemptuous look to Xander's dinner companion, only to be startled by the beautiful woman in the dress that even her Daddy wouldn't have coughed up the bucks to provide Cordelia with. * Where in the hell did he find her. . .I know he's too broke to afford an escort service just to piss me off. . .omigod it's Faith! * In an instant, all of her insecurities about Buffy. . .and now Faith, rushed back, and she felt dizzy for a long moment. She quickly recovered, but she could not resist glancing back at the Slayer every few seconds while Jeremy droned on about the long concluded football season.
Faith saw Cordelia turn white for a moment, and felt a nasty moment of inner triumph. She saw the older woman look away, but saw that she was still glancing back at Faith and Xander's table occasionally. Faith decided to raise the ante and was leaning across the table with the intention of giving Xander one hell of a kiss when Xander interrupted her train of thought by whispering pointedly, "What are you doing, Faith?"
Faith paused and replied silkily, "I think it's pretty obvious, Xander. I'm going to kiss you and seriously piss off your ex over there."
Xander nodded and replied in a whisper, "Faith, just don't."
Faith blinked, and quickly sat down: she looked hurt, and Xander knew he had some more damage control to do as he leaned in and asked, "Faith, if Cordelia hadn't been here, would you have done any of what you just did?"
Faith thought about it for a moment, then replied, "I really have had a wonderful time, and I am starting to wonder why I didn't chase you down the moment Cordelia cut you loose, but I wouldn't have been leaning over the table to kiss you, no. . .and I wouldn't have broadcast it to the room, either."
Xander smiled: it was better than he had thought it would be. He locked eyes with her and responded, "All right, then. I'm positively thrilled that you enjoyed yourself, and at this moment I wish you had tracked me down. . .but, Faith, I'm here tonight because I wanted to spend an evening with you, not to make Cordelia jealous or upset. She probably had that shock coming after that nasty comment she made, but anything after that is just overkill. . .if I just wanted to make her jealous, I would have scrounged up some cash and hired some hot looking escort. . .I wouldn't have used one of my friends, who just happens to be more spectacular than any escort I could hope to hire." He grasped her hand again and concluded, "Faith, I'm here for you tonight. Cordelia isn't even on my radar screen."
Faith smiled, and drew his hand to her mouth, where she kissed it softly before releasing it. Xander looked at her, causing her to comment, "Don't worry. . .I definitely wanted to do that for my own sake, Xander. If it annoyed Cordelia, that was just a bonus." Xander shook his head and grinned for a moment as the check arrived, and Faith excused herself for a trip to the restroom. When she emerged, Xander was involved in settling the bill, and Faith decided to wait outside while he concluded matters. The night was cool, but not uncomfortably so, and she was actually enjoying looking up at the stars while she walked towards Xander's car when she heard a harsh voice snap: "So, if it isn't the little bitch who decided to screw up how things are run in this town."
Faith sighed, and turned around to see. . .that little wimp who worked for the Mayor? What was his name. . oh yeah, Alan Finch. She snorted contemptuously and replied, "Little wusses who used to do the Mayor's dirty work while putting on an innocent act probably shouldn't piss off the Slayer when she's out on the town. Run along, little man. . .just because Slayers aren't allowed to kill humans doesn't mean I won't beat the crap out of you if you mess up my date."
Finch looked smug, and Faith only had a moment to process that before the Deputy Mayor replied, "Oh, there's good news and bad news on that, you little bitch. The good news is, I'm not human any more." His face morphed into vampiric form, and Faith had only a moment's regret at another human being killed in this town before remembering this human's complicity with evil and retorting sardonically, "Well. . .isn't this interesting? So, what's the bad news?"
Finch grinned and whistled sharply, bringing four vampires out of hiding that quickly moved to surround the Slayer. He chuckled and commented, "The bad news is that you aren't going to live long enough to finish that date. . .sorry."
. . .to be continued
As always, comments are welcomed and desired