Part II
May 20, 1999
"Giles, we're getting wicked close to Graduation Day, and we still got jack on how to deal with the Mayor. . .can't we just kidnap him and dump him in the river tied to a bag of rocks? He's invulnerable, right? He won't die. . ."
Buffy chuckled at the innocent expression on Faith's face as the younger Slayer made her suggestion, and Giles was hard-pressed not to laugh himself, in spite of the grim situation. He managed to assume an annoyed air as he replied, "Faith, as irritating as it is that our current adversary is the primary governmental authority in this town, we still have to respect some level of propriety. Breaking into the Mayor's office to steal the Box of Gavrok was bad enough, particularly since it lead to Willow's abduction. . .but kidnapping the Mayor and disposing of him in the manner you suggest. . .I think that it would be best to consign that to the 'last resort, and only then if we have taken leave of our senses' file." He paused, then brightened as he commented, "Besides, even though we were forced to return the Box, we still have the Books of Ascension, and they are bound to have a clue as to the best means of dealing with His Honor when the time comes."
"Nice in theory, but it hasn't panned out in practice, Rupert." Danielle looked up from the thick volume she had been leafing through for the past hour, looking frustrated, and elaborated, "We know basically what will happen to him in the Ascension. . .we even know that he won't be invulnerable any more. However, given the sheer size and toughness of what the Mayor will become, I seriously doubt that anything short of a huge explosion or massed automatic weapons fire will do the trick. . .and if you think that kidnapping the Mayor would attract unwanted attention. . .?" She paused as Giles nodded in agreement, then continued, "Of course, the Books list half a dozen artifact weapons that could slay a true demon, but every one of them has been destroyed in incidents noted in the Council's records. . .we've got serious problems." She looked over at the Slayers and smiled, commenting. "On the bright side, Faith and Buffy are at the top of their games. . .the new training regimen that we came up with has worked wonders."
Buffy smiled back at Danielle and nodded. Faith's carelessness on defense had been Danielle's first target in training her new charge, and she had recruited Buffy to show Faith just how vulnerable she was in certain combat situations. At the same time, Buffy had realized that Faith's style was often rather effective against her, even if it left Faith exposed to painful counterattacks. She had spoken to Giles about it, and he had watched carefully and given Buffy some specific advice on how to counter Faith's moves. After about two months, the two Slayers had incorporated the advice of their Watchers, along with the acquired knowledge of each other's moves, in creating styles that combined the best elements of all of it. Faith was still not as adept as Buffy on defense, and Buffy had yet to reach the heights of ferocity that Faith achieved in battle, but their sparring matches had begun to resemble complex dances, as punches that would shatter reinforced concrete were gracefully blocked, and spinning side kicks that would stun a bull elephant were sidestepped with deceptive ease. The Watchers observed their Slayers with pride, while their friends watched with a mixture of terror and awe.
Xander had not been thrilled at the full contact sparring matches at first: he had objected once, and had needed to resort to a great deal of groveling and elaborate bouquets to convince Buffy to stop giving him the cold shoulder afterwards (on the other hand, Faith had thought his concern was "cute" and asked if he was volunteering to take Buffy's place. Xander declined gracefully and left in a cold sweat.). After that, he had gone to the last person he would have imagined he would be seeking help from a few months back. . .Angel, and requested that he help train him.
Angel had been amused at the irony of it: Xander had wanted him dead only months before, and now he was asking Angel to train him in order to allow him to protect Buffy as best he could. Things had changed between them, though. He had been hurt when Buffy decided to move on for good, and the fact that it had been Xander that she chose had stung: as much as he tried to ignore it, the young man's contempt for him had always hurt. However, he had noticed that Xander's antagonism towards him had been diminishing ever since the night that Angel had saved Willow from certain death at the hands of Gwendolyn Post, and he had been surprised to hear that Xander had pitched in with the others to try to find out what was wrong with him when the First Evil had come to town. Most importantly, Angel understood and respected Xander's motives: the young man had always been willing to throw himself into the thick of things, even when it would have been far wiser to restrain himself. . .Angel still shuddered when he thought about the night Spike had shown up last November to kidnap Willow, and how Xander had recklessly attacked the drunken vampire, only to be swatted down like a fly. Angel couldn't train Xander well enough to deal with Spike: he doubted that even Giles could deal with his childe one-on-one. . .but he could improve Xander's chances, and Buffy definitely approved of any activity where the two of them could be civil, even if it did involve them pummeling on each other.
Buffy blinked and returned her attention to the matter at hand, commenting, "We've still got some time. . .and since the Council has become more than a useless pain in the ass, if we find a weapon they can help us get our hands on it quickly. . .right, Giles?"
Giles nodded and replied, "The Council has always been adept in that particular area. . .consider how quickly Mr. Zabuto-" He paused in mid-sentence upon realizing what he had been about to say: the entire Acathla incident, particularly Kendra's death, was still an open wound to Buffy, and he gave her an apologetic look, causing her to smile softly at him to reassure him that she was O.K. He cleared his throat and continued, "Perhaps we should look outside the Books of Ascension. . .there may be artifacts dealt with elsewhere that could do the job." He nodded at the others and retreated to his office, and Danielle smiled reassuringly at the Slayers before returning to the volume she was reading.
Faith grinned and commented, "That's our cue, B. Come on. . .if we can't kill the bastard we can at least take out a few of his lackeys tonight." She walked out the library doors without looking back, and after a moment Buffy followed her.
* * * * *
Faith dreamed.
In their heart to heart talks following the close call with Deputy Mayor Finch during the Balthazar incident, the topic of Slayer's dreams had inevitably come up. Faith had been surprised to hear how traumatizing Buffy had found them to be, although when she thought about it for a while she realized that given Buffy's recent past, she wouldn't have liked getting a sneak preview of it if she had been Buffy, either.
For Faith, the dreams had always been a potent reminder of the power she had come into when she had been Called. . .she had always enjoyed them, and she tended to wake up after they were over with an all over tingle that beat sex any day of the week. . .well, almost any day. The creepy imagery. . .the overt threats to her safety and that of others. . .they were all no worse than a good kick in the pants to get her attention. . .to allow her to do what she loved most.
Faith found herself sitting at a table in a dark bar; at first, she thought it was Willy's place, but it was larger and the clientele was strictly human, as far as she could tell. She noted the Screwdriver in front of her and thought * definitely a business dream. . .if I were seriously partying I would have knocked off a couple of Mai-Tais by now *. She sipped her drink and waited for the main event to start.
"Excuse me. . .would you fancy another drink, luv?" Faith raised an eyebrow at the street-influenced English accent and turned to the speaker. He was a dark-haired man in his early twenties, wearing a leather jacket and jeans. Faith's heart skipped a beat: this guy was seriously hot. She was wondering if trying to pick him up would be some sort of violation of the Slayer's dream rule book when her eyes widened in recognition, and she whispered, "Giles?"
The man chuckled and replied, "Come now, Faith. . .I'm far too young and attractive to be called by my last name like some fortyish librarian. . . you can call me Ripper." He signaled to the bartender, and as the leather clad Englishman sat across from the startled Slayer, a waitress brought another Screwdriver for Faith and a Bloody Mary for Ripper. He winked at the waitress and turned back to Faith, commenting, "So I gather you're all in a bit of a mess. . .what with that Wilkins fellow wanting to be a true demon and all that. . .I think I've got something that might help."
Faith smiled and replied, "That's good, since I don't want to end my career as snake chow. . . but why are you here? The dreams I've had in the past have been more in the line of brief glances at seriously old looking books, or warnings of doom coming from some demon that I've had to gut with a pair of pruning shears. . .why the personal appearance from Giles' wicked, wicked past?"
Ripper grinned and replied, "Because the key is in something he learned while he was still me. . .tell him to look back at the story of Thornton's Folly, and tell him that if he hadn't spent so much effort repressing everything he did between the ages of seventeen and twenty-two, he would have figured it out on his own a long time ago."
Faith nodded, and responded, "Thornton's Folly. . .got it." She looked at her informant carefully, and quickly noticed that things didn't quite add up. She met his eyes and replied, 'You're not exactly the real Ripper, are you? Buffy told me some stuff. . .you seem a bit deeper than the guy she told me about."
Ripper sighed and acknowledged, "You've caught me, luv. I would have been far too busy staring at your knockers and plotting about how to shag you before the night was out to fill you in on the info I just gave you. . .so I've been 'blessed' with a little restraint and maturity, along with the knowledge of the older Rupert Giles, for this job." He grinned at her and asked, "So what do you think of the package?"
Faith looked at him appraisingly, and replied, "Not bad," but her face registered annoyance as she sipped her drink, then replied, "So do you have to bail now?"
Ripper grimaced and responded, "Ordinarily, I suppose so. . .but I gather that I'm here for another reason too." He took a good slug of the Bloody Mary, then asked, "So you fancy him, do you?"
Confused, Faith looked at Ripper and asked, "Fancy who?"
Ripper snickered and replied, "You know. . .the tweed guy. . .the G-man. . .the middle-aged fellow whom you described as being 'young and cute', thereby freaking out your big sister on the day you met her? That guy."
Faith contemplated lying, then realized the pointlessness of it before replying, "Yeah, what about it? It's not as if he even notices I'm a girl. . .I'm starting to identify with Willow and all of her years pining after Xander. . .he doesn't have a clue I'm interested."
Ripper looked at her for a moment, then replied, "You're right. . .he doesn't have a clue. . .but as to whether he's noticed you're a girl. . .you're sadly mistaken, Faith."
Faith snorted, "You don't say. . .well, he sure doesn't act like it. Look at Xander and Oz. . .even if I wanted to, I couldn't pry them away from Buffy and Willow with a crowbar, but they do notice me. . .even flirt a little: I've gotten some seriously dirty looks from B and Willow over that, believe me. But Giles. . .not the slightest bit of interest, or flirting. . .or even a raised eyebrow. He's just. . .Giles, and I don't have a clue as how to get through to him."
Ripper sighed, then commented, "Faith, if you want to get through to him. . .you have to understand where he's coming from." He took another sip from his drink, then continued, "Faith, I'm what Rupert looked like just before the incident with Eyghon." He took a longer pull from his drink as Faith remembered what Buffy had told her about Giles' past, and she smiled sadly at him as he began again, "It changed him completely. . .he saw what a life lived irresponsibly could lead to, and he turned his back on. . .me. . .without ever looking back, except for a few incidents including an unfortunate encounter with cursed sweets." He smiled rakishly and admitted, "It was fun to come out and play for a while, not to mention the fact that Buffy's mum was-"
Faith held up her hand to stop him as she retorted, "All right, Hormone Guy. . .even the Slayer with the dirty mind over here doesn't want to hear that story." She flushed momentarily: Buffy's recent encounter with the telepathic demons had been difficult on all of them, and Faith had resorted to rather drastic measures to keep the older Slayer out of her thoughts. . .Faith had wondered whether the discovery of her mother's encounter with Giles, or the barrage of erotic thoughts that Faith had concentrated on to avoid Buffy discovering what she really had been thinking about had been more unsettling to Buffy. She cleared her throat and commented pointedly, "You were about to make a point, Ripper?"
Ripper chuckled and replied, "If you insist, luv, but it's such a lovely story. . ." The Slayer glared at him, and the young man sighed and continued, "Faith, with Angel around, it's difficult sometimes for you to notice when someone is carrying around a lot of guilt, but Giles does. . .and a lot of it concerns you."
Faith blinked and responded, "Giles feels guilty about me? What the hell for?. . .I thought he did a pretty good job, all things considered. . .he gave me my space and didn't cross me once. . .not a hell of a lot of people I can say that about, you know?" She felt the green eyes reproaching her gently, and she burst out, "All right! Maybe I was a little jealous of the fact that Buffy came first with him. . .but he was her Watcher first, and they went through a lot together before I came along. . .didn't mean he didn't do his best for me."
Ripper smiled softly at her and replied, "Yes, Faith. . .but don't you think that it tore at him a little; after all, as much as he cares for Buffy, the path you've followed over the last few years has given you more in common with him than he ever will have with her. Also, the recent unpleasantness with the Council is another factor."
Faith raised an eyebrow and retorted, "Don't see why. . .it was B that they decided to pull that stupid test on, not me. Giles saved her ass and clued me in. . .why should I hate him for that?"
"Because it was just one more thing that might have caused you to lose any trust you had left, Faith." Ripper's voice was quiet and sad as he continued, "Your childhood, the way you lost Amanda, then that bitch Post showing up just as you were having doubts about Buffy. . .it was almost as if the fates were conspiring to drive you mad. . .or worse. He always appreciated the fact that you trusted him. . .he's not going to do anything that he thinks might violate that trust. . .even though you have your own Watcher to look out for your interests."
Faith closed her eyes for a moment, and her voice was sardonic as she commented, "So a jail-bait Slayer is pretty much off limits as far as he's concerned."
"On the bright side, that won't be a problem for you much longer." Ripper's voice was cheerful as he gave Faith a stage leer, then continued, "That's not all there is to it, Faith. . .you have to convince him that you are doing this of your own free will, and that it is not a relapse into self-destructive impulses on your part." He sighed and concluded, "Bloody inconvenient, if you ask me. . .if it were me, I'd have you back at my flat for a good shagging before you could say 'Maggie Thatcher'. . .but that's just me, I guess."
Faith gave him a wistful look and replied, "A few months back, I'd have taken you up on that. . .and you would have needed some serious medical care in the morning." She gave him a pointed look, and Ripper winced as she continued, "But I'm trying a new approach to things. . .and I want Giles to be a part of it. . .so how do I go about it?"
Ripper grinned wickedly at her, and locked eyes with her as he stood up and responded, "Sorry, luv. . .I can't give you the whole plan. . .but give it some thought. . .you're bound to come up with something. You're a bright girl. . .and he does fancy you, even though he wouldn't admit it now even if you pumped him full of sodium pentathol. You won't be eighteen until November. . .plenty of time to think your plans through. . .and bring them into effect." He chuckled and replied, "He better damned well appreciate it, after all of the time he's spent pretending I never existed." He walked over to Faith and squeezed her shoulder, then disappeared into the crowd.
Faith sighed, finished her drink, and left the bar, wondering how in the hell she was ever going to break through the Great Wall of England when Giles was apparently so determined to thwart her. Being preoccupied, she never saw the familiar figure sitting in a corner table.
Buffy stared at Faith as she left, then shuddered as the force that had prevented her from getting out of her seat dissipated, leaving her unfettered and deeply confused. * Oh, gee thanks, Oh Powers that Be. . .you couldn't give me a decent night's sleep. . .you just had to let me know that Faith wants Giles, and that under a few layers of guilt. . .Giles might want her too. Do I even have the right to say anything. . .it's not like I want him for myself. . .and he's lost so much. He'd never hurt Faith. . .if he goes ahead with it, it's for the best. . .I hope. *
As that last thought went through Buffy's mind, she blinked and found herself staring at the sunlit ceiling of her room. She sighed and dressed quickly.
Buffy was sitting in the library when Faith walked in, looking for Danielle and Giles. The younger Slayer called out, "Hey B. . .I had the most intense Slayer dream last night. . .we might have a bead on a weapon to take out the Mayor."
Buffy smiled sadly and replied, 'I know, Faith. . .I had a corner booth in the bar." Buffy saw Faith pale, and quickly led her to a seat next to hers. She looked into Faith's worried eyes and continued, "Faith. . .I just have one thing to say to you." She took a deep breath and concluded, "Be careful. . .love tends to suck on the Hellmouth. . .I don't want either of you hurt."
Faith smiled softly at Buffy, and whispered, "Thanks, B." They were interrupted by the entrance of Danielle and Giles, who had clearly spent a sleepless night poring over arcane tomes. Faith locked eyes with Giles and called out, "Hey, Giles. . .had the most interesting dream last night. . .apparently something called Thornton's Folly might be the trick for dealing with the Mayor." Faith saw Giles' eyes widen with shock and the sudden return of a very old memory, and she couldn't resist the obvious follow-up:
"Oh, and Ripper sends his regards."
. . .to be continued
As always, comments are welcomed and desired
May 20, 1999
"Giles, we're getting wicked close to Graduation Day, and we still got jack on how to deal with the Mayor. . .can't we just kidnap him and dump him in the river tied to a bag of rocks? He's invulnerable, right? He won't die. . ."
Buffy chuckled at the innocent expression on Faith's face as the younger Slayer made her suggestion, and Giles was hard-pressed not to laugh himself, in spite of the grim situation. He managed to assume an annoyed air as he replied, "Faith, as irritating as it is that our current adversary is the primary governmental authority in this town, we still have to respect some level of propriety. Breaking into the Mayor's office to steal the Box of Gavrok was bad enough, particularly since it lead to Willow's abduction. . .but kidnapping the Mayor and disposing of him in the manner you suggest. . .I think that it would be best to consign that to the 'last resort, and only then if we have taken leave of our senses' file." He paused, then brightened as he commented, "Besides, even though we were forced to return the Box, we still have the Books of Ascension, and they are bound to have a clue as to the best means of dealing with His Honor when the time comes."
"Nice in theory, but it hasn't panned out in practice, Rupert." Danielle looked up from the thick volume she had been leafing through for the past hour, looking frustrated, and elaborated, "We know basically what will happen to him in the Ascension. . .we even know that he won't be invulnerable any more. However, given the sheer size and toughness of what the Mayor will become, I seriously doubt that anything short of a huge explosion or massed automatic weapons fire will do the trick. . .and if you think that kidnapping the Mayor would attract unwanted attention. . .?" She paused as Giles nodded in agreement, then continued, "Of course, the Books list half a dozen artifact weapons that could slay a true demon, but every one of them has been destroyed in incidents noted in the Council's records. . .we've got serious problems." She looked over at the Slayers and smiled, commenting. "On the bright side, Faith and Buffy are at the top of their games. . .the new training regimen that we came up with has worked wonders."
Buffy smiled back at Danielle and nodded. Faith's carelessness on defense had been Danielle's first target in training her new charge, and she had recruited Buffy to show Faith just how vulnerable she was in certain combat situations. At the same time, Buffy had realized that Faith's style was often rather effective against her, even if it left Faith exposed to painful counterattacks. She had spoken to Giles about it, and he had watched carefully and given Buffy some specific advice on how to counter Faith's moves. After about two months, the two Slayers had incorporated the advice of their Watchers, along with the acquired knowledge of each other's moves, in creating styles that combined the best elements of all of it. Faith was still not as adept as Buffy on defense, and Buffy had yet to reach the heights of ferocity that Faith achieved in battle, but their sparring matches had begun to resemble complex dances, as punches that would shatter reinforced concrete were gracefully blocked, and spinning side kicks that would stun a bull elephant were sidestepped with deceptive ease. The Watchers observed their Slayers with pride, while their friends watched with a mixture of terror and awe.
Xander had not been thrilled at the full contact sparring matches at first: he had objected once, and had needed to resort to a great deal of groveling and elaborate bouquets to convince Buffy to stop giving him the cold shoulder afterwards (on the other hand, Faith had thought his concern was "cute" and asked if he was volunteering to take Buffy's place. Xander declined gracefully and left in a cold sweat.). After that, he had gone to the last person he would have imagined he would be seeking help from a few months back. . .Angel, and requested that he help train him.
Angel had been amused at the irony of it: Xander had wanted him dead only months before, and now he was asking Angel to train him in order to allow him to protect Buffy as best he could. Things had changed between them, though. He had been hurt when Buffy decided to move on for good, and the fact that it had been Xander that she chose had stung: as much as he tried to ignore it, the young man's contempt for him had always hurt. However, he had noticed that Xander's antagonism towards him had been diminishing ever since the night that Angel had saved Willow from certain death at the hands of Gwendolyn Post, and he had been surprised to hear that Xander had pitched in with the others to try to find out what was wrong with him when the First Evil had come to town. Most importantly, Angel understood and respected Xander's motives: the young man had always been willing to throw himself into the thick of things, even when it would have been far wiser to restrain himself. . .Angel still shuddered when he thought about the night Spike had shown up last November to kidnap Willow, and how Xander had recklessly attacked the drunken vampire, only to be swatted down like a fly. Angel couldn't train Xander well enough to deal with Spike: he doubted that even Giles could deal with his childe one-on-one. . .but he could improve Xander's chances, and Buffy definitely approved of any activity where the two of them could be civil, even if it did involve them pummeling on each other.
Buffy blinked and returned her attention to the matter at hand, commenting, "We've still got some time. . .and since the Council has become more than a useless pain in the ass, if we find a weapon they can help us get our hands on it quickly. . .right, Giles?"
Giles nodded and replied, "The Council has always been adept in that particular area. . .consider how quickly Mr. Zabuto-" He paused in mid-sentence upon realizing what he had been about to say: the entire Acathla incident, particularly Kendra's death, was still an open wound to Buffy, and he gave her an apologetic look, causing her to smile softly at him to reassure him that she was O.K. He cleared his throat and continued, "Perhaps we should look outside the Books of Ascension. . .there may be artifacts dealt with elsewhere that could do the job." He nodded at the others and retreated to his office, and Danielle smiled reassuringly at the Slayers before returning to the volume she was reading.
Faith grinned and commented, "That's our cue, B. Come on. . .if we can't kill the bastard we can at least take out a few of his lackeys tonight." She walked out the library doors without looking back, and after a moment Buffy followed her.
* * * * *
Faith dreamed.
In their heart to heart talks following the close call with Deputy Mayor Finch during the Balthazar incident, the topic of Slayer's dreams had inevitably come up. Faith had been surprised to hear how traumatizing Buffy had found them to be, although when she thought about it for a while she realized that given Buffy's recent past, she wouldn't have liked getting a sneak preview of it if she had been Buffy, either.
For Faith, the dreams had always been a potent reminder of the power she had come into when she had been Called. . .she had always enjoyed them, and she tended to wake up after they were over with an all over tingle that beat sex any day of the week. . .well, almost any day. The creepy imagery. . .the overt threats to her safety and that of others. . .they were all no worse than a good kick in the pants to get her attention. . .to allow her to do what she loved most.
Faith found herself sitting at a table in a dark bar; at first, she thought it was Willy's place, but it was larger and the clientele was strictly human, as far as she could tell. She noted the Screwdriver in front of her and thought * definitely a business dream. . .if I were seriously partying I would have knocked off a couple of Mai-Tais by now *. She sipped her drink and waited for the main event to start.
"Excuse me. . .would you fancy another drink, luv?" Faith raised an eyebrow at the street-influenced English accent and turned to the speaker. He was a dark-haired man in his early twenties, wearing a leather jacket and jeans. Faith's heart skipped a beat: this guy was seriously hot. She was wondering if trying to pick him up would be some sort of violation of the Slayer's dream rule book when her eyes widened in recognition, and she whispered, "Giles?"
The man chuckled and replied, "Come now, Faith. . .I'm far too young and attractive to be called by my last name like some fortyish librarian. . . you can call me Ripper." He signaled to the bartender, and as the leather clad Englishman sat across from the startled Slayer, a waitress brought another Screwdriver for Faith and a Bloody Mary for Ripper. He winked at the waitress and turned back to Faith, commenting, "So I gather you're all in a bit of a mess. . .what with that Wilkins fellow wanting to be a true demon and all that. . .I think I've got something that might help."
Faith smiled and replied, "That's good, since I don't want to end my career as snake chow. . . but why are you here? The dreams I've had in the past have been more in the line of brief glances at seriously old looking books, or warnings of doom coming from some demon that I've had to gut with a pair of pruning shears. . .why the personal appearance from Giles' wicked, wicked past?"
Ripper grinned and replied, "Because the key is in something he learned while he was still me. . .tell him to look back at the story of Thornton's Folly, and tell him that if he hadn't spent so much effort repressing everything he did between the ages of seventeen and twenty-two, he would have figured it out on his own a long time ago."
Faith nodded, and responded, "Thornton's Folly. . .got it." She looked at her informant carefully, and quickly noticed that things didn't quite add up. She met his eyes and replied, 'You're not exactly the real Ripper, are you? Buffy told me some stuff. . .you seem a bit deeper than the guy she told me about."
Ripper sighed and acknowledged, "You've caught me, luv. I would have been far too busy staring at your knockers and plotting about how to shag you before the night was out to fill you in on the info I just gave you. . .so I've been 'blessed' with a little restraint and maturity, along with the knowledge of the older Rupert Giles, for this job." He grinned at her and asked, "So what do you think of the package?"
Faith looked at him appraisingly, and replied, "Not bad," but her face registered annoyance as she sipped her drink, then replied, "So do you have to bail now?"
Ripper grimaced and responded, "Ordinarily, I suppose so. . .but I gather that I'm here for another reason too." He took a good slug of the Bloody Mary, then asked, "So you fancy him, do you?"
Confused, Faith looked at Ripper and asked, "Fancy who?"
Ripper snickered and replied, "You know. . .the tweed guy. . .the G-man. . .the middle-aged fellow whom you described as being 'young and cute', thereby freaking out your big sister on the day you met her? That guy."
Faith contemplated lying, then realized the pointlessness of it before replying, "Yeah, what about it? It's not as if he even notices I'm a girl. . .I'm starting to identify with Willow and all of her years pining after Xander. . .he doesn't have a clue I'm interested."
Ripper looked at her for a moment, then replied, "You're right. . .he doesn't have a clue. . .but as to whether he's noticed you're a girl. . .you're sadly mistaken, Faith."
Faith snorted, "You don't say. . .well, he sure doesn't act like it. Look at Xander and Oz. . .even if I wanted to, I couldn't pry them away from Buffy and Willow with a crowbar, but they do notice me. . .even flirt a little: I've gotten some seriously dirty looks from B and Willow over that, believe me. But Giles. . .not the slightest bit of interest, or flirting. . .or even a raised eyebrow. He's just. . .Giles, and I don't have a clue as how to get through to him."
Ripper sighed, then commented, "Faith, if you want to get through to him. . .you have to understand where he's coming from." He took another sip from his drink, then continued, "Faith, I'm what Rupert looked like just before the incident with Eyghon." He took a longer pull from his drink as Faith remembered what Buffy had told her about Giles' past, and she smiled sadly at him as he began again, "It changed him completely. . .he saw what a life lived irresponsibly could lead to, and he turned his back on. . .me. . .without ever looking back, except for a few incidents including an unfortunate encounter with cursed sweets." He smiled rakishly and admitted, "It was fun to come out and play for a while, not to mention the fact that Buffy's mum was-"
Faith held up her hand to stop him as she retorted, "All right, Hormone Guy. . .even the Slayer with the dirty mind over here doesn't want to hear that story." She flushed momentarily: Buffy's recent encounter with the telepathic demons had been difficult on all of them, and Faith had resorted to rather drastic measures to keep the older Slayer out of her thoughts. . .Faith had wondered whether the discovery of her mother's encounter with Giles, or the barrage of erotic thoughts that Faith had concentrated on to avoid Buffy discovering what she really had been thinking about had been more unsettling to Buffy. She cleared her throat and commented pointedly, "You were about to make a point, Ripper?"
Ripper chuckled and replied, "If you insist, luv, but it's such a lovely story. . ." The Slayer glared at him, and the young man sighed and continued, "Faith, with Angel around, it's difficult sometimes for you to notice when someone is carrying around a lot of guilt, but Giles does. . .and a lot of it concerns you."
Faith blinked and responded, "Giles feels guilty about me? What the hell for?. . .I thought he did a pretty good job, all things considered. . .he gave me my space and didn't cross me once. . .not a hell of a lot of people I can say that about, you know?" She felt the green eyes reproaching her gently, and she burst out, "All right! Maybe I was a little jealous of the fact that Buffy came first with him. . .but he was her Watcher first, and they went through a lot together before I came along. . .didn't mean he didn't do his best for me."
Ripper smiled softly at her and replied, "Yes, Faith. . .but don't you think that it tore at him a little; after all, as much as he cares for Buffy, the path you've followed over the last few years has given you more in common with him than he ever will have with her. Also, the recent unpleasantness with the Council is another factor."
Faith raised an eyebrow and retorted, "Don't see why. . .it was B that they decided to pull that stupid test on, not me. Giles saved her ass and clued me in. . .why should I hate him for that?"
"Because it was just one more thing that might have caused you to lose any trust you had left, Faith." Ripper's voice was quiet and sad as he continued, "Your childhood, the way you lost Amanda, then that bitch Post showing up just as you were having doubts about Buffy. . .it was almost as if the fates were conspiring to drive you mad. . .or worse. He always appreciated the fact that you trusted him. . .he's not going to do anything that he thinks might violate that trust. . .even though you have your own Watcher to look out for your interests."
Faith closed her eyes for a moment, and her voice was sardonic as she commented, "So a jail-bait Slayer is pretty much off limits as far as he's concerned."
"On the bright side, that won't be a problem for you much longer." Ripper's voice was cheerful as he gave Faith a stage leer, then continued, "That's not all there is to it, Faith. . .you have to convince him that you are doing this of your own free will, and that it is not a relapse into self-destructive impulses on your part." He sighed and concluded, "Bloody inconvenient, if you ask me. . .if it were me, I'd have you back at my flat for a good shagging before you could say 'Maggie Thatcher'. . .but that's just me, I guess."
Faith gave him a wistful look and replied, "A few months back, I'd have taken you up on that. . .and you would have needed some serious medical care in the morning." She gave him a pointed look, and Ripper winced as she continued, "But I'm trying a new approach to things. . .and I want Giles to be a part of it. . .so how do I go about it?"
Ripper grinned wickedly at her, and locked eyes with her as he stood up and responded, "Sorry, luv. . .I can't give you the whole plan. . .but give it some thought. . .you're bound to come up with something. You're a bright girl. . .and he does fancy you, even though he wouldn't admit it now even if you pumped him full of sodium pentathol. You won't be eighteen until November. . .plenty of time to think your plans through. . .and bring them into effect." He chuckled and replied, "He better damned well appreciate it, after all of the time he's spent pretending I never existed." He walked over to Faith and squeezed her shoulder, then disappeared into the crowd.
Faith sighed, finished her drink, and left the bar, wondering how in the hell she was ever going to break through the Great Wall of England when Giles was apparently so determined to thwart her. Being preoccupied, she never saw the familiar figure sitting in a corner table.
Buffy stared at Faith as she left, then shuddered as the force that had prevented her from getting out of her seat dissipated, leaving her unfettered and deeply confused. * Oh, gee thanks, Oh Powers that Be. . .you couldn't give me a decent night's sleep. . .you just had to let me know that Faith wants Giles, and that under a few layers of guilt. . .Giles might want her too. Do I even have the right to say anything. . .it's not like I want him for myself. . .and he's lost so much. He'd never hurt Faith. . .if he goes ahead with it, it's for the best. . .I hope. *
As that last thought went through Buffy's mind, she blinked and found herself staring at the sunlit ceiling of her room. She sighed and dressed quickly.
Buffy was sitting in the library when Faith walked in, looking for Danielle and Giles. The younger Slayer called out, "Hey B. . .I had the most intense Slayer dream last night. . .we might have a bead on a weapon to take out the Mayor."
Buffy smiled sadly and replied, 'I know, Faith. . .I had a corner booth in the bar." Buffy saw Faith pale, and quickly led her to a seat next to hers. She looked into Faith's worried eyes and continued, "Faith. . .I just have one thing to say to you." She took a deep breath and concluded, "Be careful. . .love tends to suck on the Hellmouth. . .I don't want either of you hurt."
Faith smiled softly at Buffy, and whispered, "Thanks, B." They were interrupted by the entrance of Danielle and Giles, who had clearly spent a sleepless night poring over arcane tomes. Faith locked eyes with Giles and called out, "Hey, Giles. . .had the most interesting dream last night. . .apparently something called Thornton's Folly might be the trick for dealing with the Mayor." Faith saw Giles' eyes widen with shock and the sudden return of a very old memory, and she couldn't resist the obvious follow-up:
"Oh, and Ripper sends his regards."
. . .to be continued
As always, comments are welcomed and desired