The Power of Faith
by
Disclaimer: I have no claim. Don't own=don't sue. Please!
Author's Note: f/f slash. No complaints regarding this, please!
Summary: A prophecy is found, and coupled with there being no new Slayer called, is believed to be for Buffy. But a catch exists: A girl who is in love with Buffy, must call her back to life.
Rating: PG-13
Chapter Two
"Are you sure I have to touch him?" Faith groused, trying to get away from Spike's spread arms for the third time that night. Before Giles could answer, Spike grabbed her around the waist and pulled her to him, keeping her still in his arms.
"Yes, pet, I'm sure. Now would you stop struggling so that we can get on with this?" He complained back at her.
Faith glared at him, but then turned away and positioned herself in his magickally given shadow, before intoning the words that Willow, Tara, Anya, Cordy and Dawn had tried to use without success.
"Spirits of the living, I call thee!
"Spirits of the dead, I call thee!
"Bind together, bring me back the one who died too young, cut her a new line and send her back to the world of the living.
"With a heart full of love, I beseech thee." Faith closed her eyes, and when he looked close, the Watcher could see tears pressing at her eyelids, probably from memories that were evoked by thinking of Buffy. Respectfully silent, the rest of the Scoobies waited to see if anything would happen.
And all of a sudden, it did. There was a purple ball of fire spinning in the air before Faith, and as the Slayer seemed to concentrate harder and harder, it grew larger and larger, spinning faster and faster.
It grew into an oval shape, and became nearly as big as the girl who was apparently creating it. Then, when it reached a speed where it was just a blur, and a height where Xander, who was directly opposite Faith, couldn't see her over it, it seemed to shatter into a million pieces, and there stood Buffy, who immediately collapsed.
But she was alive.
The Scoobies surrounded the stunned girl, helping her to her feet, tears streaming down all of their faces, except for Tara and Anya. Even Giles' eyes were wet as he embraced the slight Slayer, and hugged her so tight that she had to push him away after a moment.
Xander and Willow hugged her, Willow spouting incoherent babble as she did so. Anya gave her an awkward gesture that could have been a hug, and said, "I'm glad you're back," which, from her, was high praise.
Dawn clung to her sister, her slender form encompassed by Buffy's shorter, but curvier figure. "God, Buffy, you're back," She cried. "You're back, you're back."
Tara held her lover as Willow cried tears of joy, and the group in the spotlight could not have been happier. Even Spike was allowed a quick embrace, and the brightness lighting his eyes seemed to make Buffy believe that he was sincere in wanting her, maybe even loving her.But when the blond Slayer's eyes fell upon her savior, the whole area went silent, awaiting her reaction. Faith, for her part, simply stood her ground, and let Buffy's stare wash over her.
"What are you doing here?" Buffy asked tightly.
"She saved you," Dawn told her sister from her position clutched at Buffy's side.
Buffy turned sharply to Giles, and he nodded, confirming Dawn's story. The blond Slayer didn't offer to hug the younger girl, but seemed to relax a little.
"Thank you."
No one wanted to stop touching her, making sure she was real, on the way back to the Magic Box, and Buffy didn't look too upset at the constant hugs and kisses. Only Spike and Faith were prevented from touching her whenever they wanted, and the glares at the vampire were only meant halfway, Faith noticed.
When the whole story had been spilled, Buffy looked around the table, everywhere but at the brunette Slayer. When she finally did let her gaze fall on Faith, she needn't have worried, the girl's head was down, her long hair obscuring her face as she stared at the tabletop.
Buffy's eyes shone with gratitude, and she tipped up Faith's chin gently to show the younger girl her eyes, and assure her that she wasn't mad. "I'm not upset for this, Faith," She told her former best friend. "I'm still not quite sure how to handle what happened before, and I'm sorry to say that I still don't think I can trust you, but I'm most certainly not mad about tonight."
Faith's eyes showed her gratefulness too, and she gave a shaky smile. "I'm not that person anymore, Buffy."
Buffy nodded. "I didn't think so."
The rest of the night was spent in a joyful reunion, until Giles reminded everyone that Buffy would have to lay low for a while, until the council had manufactured a reason for a supposedly dead girl to be once more alive. Buffy nodded, and told Giles that she'd be at the Summers' home, which hadn't yet been sold.
The happy crowd was broken up around two in the morning, and everyone went their own way. Buffy sent Dawn out to the car to wait for her, and faced only a nervous Faith in the main room of the Magic Box.
Staring at the younger woman with gratitude in her eyes, Buffy reached up a hand to brush her cheek. She tucked the brunette's hair behind her ears, and smiled tenderly. Then she leaned down slowly, and pressed a gentle kiss to her lips.
Pulling away, Buffy put her mouth against Faith's ear. "Thank you," She whispered. "Again."
Dawn crept from her bed early the next morning, her heart singing with joy. Buffy was back! Buffy, who'd promised never to leave her, and then had, came back for her!
The teenager only meant to go into the kitchen to grab a snack, her hunger practically burning a hole in her stomach. She hadn't eaten much at all since Buffy had died, and now, it was coming back to haunt her. But her sister's door was open, and she snuck inside, just watching the Slayer sleep.
Long moments later, the window pushed up softly, and Dawn crouched into a fighting stance, ready to attack anything that came through that window, but the dark hair and slight build alerted her quickly enough that she didn't wake her sister. "What are you doing her?" She hissed at Faith.
The dark-haired Slayer looked over at younger Summers' girl, and smirked. "Same thing you are, kiddo."
Dawn cocked her head in a silent challenge. "Which is?"
Faith blushed a little, and looked at the ground. "Watching her sleep," She admitted quietly.
Dawn stared up and down her form for a long moment, then nodded, and turned away. "I'm going to get a snack," She told the younger Slayer.
"Please don't tell anyone," Faith said pleadingly.
Dawn didn't answer for a long moment, then, closing the door behind her, said, "You were never here."
The blond Slayer awoke an hour later, and yawned, stretching her body lazily as she made her way down the hall. Dawn barreled out of her room, heading for the stairs, and Buffy grabbed her arm, stopping her. But, unlike usual, she had a smile on her face. "Whoa! Where are you going?"
Dawn grinned back at her sister. "To Spike's."
Buffy did a double-take. "Spike's?"
Dawn nodded. "Yep."
Buffy shook her head quickly, and mimed Dawn's look. "Nope," She told her sister.
Dawn's face went sad, and then angry. "Buffy, he helped save your life! You wouldn't be here if Spike wasn't around! And now, I can't go say thanks?"
Buffy's face softened a little, and she thought about it for a moment. "All right. But get back her by ten. And if you don't, I expect to see you with a good explanation, at the Magic Box by noon."
Dawn nodded, and unexpectedly, kissed her sister on the cheek, giving her a quick hug as she did so. "Thanks."
She rested her head against her sister's shoulder for a moment. "I'm glad you're back, Buffy." She told her softly, before pulling away and crashing down the stairs and out of the house in typical Dawn fashion. Buffy watched her go with a fond smile on her face.
Her bedroom window creaked open, and Buffy whirled, automatically in a fighting position. She looked into her room from the hall where she stood, and watched cautiously as it pushed all the way open.
Faith appeared in the frame, looking around. She held her hands up when she saw Buffy's stance. "Whoa! It's just me, B."
The older Slayer looked basically, confused. She didn't seem to know what to do with her best-friend-turned-enemy-turned-savior. Plus, if that wasn't enough, there was always the matter of Faith's feelings for Buffy.
"Hey," She greeted her, dropping her fists and moving her feet closer together. But her defenses stayed perfectly intact.
Faith pulled herself through the window, landing in a crouch on Buffy's floor. She pulled herself to her feet, and looked at the older Slayer. "Defensive much?" She asked sarcastically, and Buffy glanced down at her unconscious fighting posture. She relaxed a little, but didn't apologize for her pose.
"What are you doing here, Faith?" She asked bluntly.
Faith looked at the ground, the shy, retiring girl that Buffy had never before seen surfacing due to her unfortunate prison stay. "I... just wanted to see you. I've been in prison a long time, B."
Buffy threw her a wry smile. "Well, as much as things have changed, I guess some things never will. It's kind of nice to know."
Faith cocked her head a little, and tucked her hair behind her ear. "Huh?"
"You. And that crazy obsession with calling me 'B'."
"Oh. Sorry, B." They both laughed a little when they realized what she had done, and Faith looked at the floor. "I guess I'd better go."
Buffy stopped her with an arm on her shoulder. "Wait. I'm just about to fix breakfast, why don't you stay? We can talk a little, catch up."
Faith hesitated, and then nodded. "Thanks."
Buffy nodded, and turned to leave the room. In the doorway, she stopped, turning back to the formerly-rogue Slayer. "I just have one question."
Faith looked perplexed, but nodded. "Yeah?"
"Why not use the door?"
Dawn arrived to find her sister heavily involved in a make-out session on the couch of their home with a very attractive, brunette Slayer. The police guards stood outside the room, but were clearly aware of what was going on, because they had been talking to each other with funny smiles on their faces, stopping to snap to attention when the younger Summers' girl came home.
Dawn, never shy and not planning to take up the habit now, stood in the middle of the hall and cleared her throat loudly, making as much noise as possible. Buffy and Faith broke apart, looking guilty. Dawn noticed that her sister had dyed her hair a light reddish-brown, presumably to help keep her anonymous for a few more days, while the Watcher's Council got that stuff settled.
The Slayers stood from the couch, and Faith nodded to Buffy before taking off. "Thanks, B."
Buffy gave her a distracted smile, and nodded back. "I'll meet you at the Magic Box, later," She promised. She just stood there as Faith left, the police guards following closely behind her.
Then, she motioned to her sister. "Come here, Dawnie."
Dawn took her seat when Buffy had pointed, but didn't look at her sister. "So, is this a part-time thing, or are you completely swung that way?" She asked in the bizarre talk of the fourteen-year-old.
Having once been a fourteen-year-old, Buffy understood what she meant perfectly. "Part-time, I guess. I mean, I really loved Angel, and I really cared for Riley. So, I guess that means I'm bi."
Dawn admired her sister's frankness with her, but wouldn't dream of allowing that to show through her facade. "Interesting."
Buffy sat beside her. "Dawn, do you have trouble with me and Faith being together?" She asked.
Dawn considered it for a moment. "I guess not. It's kinda weird, you know, at first, but I'm getting used to it." She paused. "However, the part about her being a legally bound prison inmate, I'm still thinking on."
Buffy looked at her little sister, really looked, hard. "Dawn, this Faith isn't the same person she used to be. I really believe that, and I'm going to fight for her, because she deserves a second chance."
Dawn nodded slowly. "Okay."
Buffy smiled, and leaned over to hug her sister. Dawn backed away. Buffy pursued, and pretty soon, they were having an all-out tickle fight, rolling around on the ground with laughter, their sides and bellies aching.
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