YELLOW BRICK ROAD

By: Lisette (lisette@chaletian.co.uk)

Rating: PG-13 so far - might change later on.

Distribution: Want, take, have. Just e-mail me first.

Summary: Faith is released from prison - but there's a catch.

Feedback: God, please.

Angel, Buffy, the whole lot, belong to JW, Mutant Enemy, and anyone else who officially owns them. I don't. Big surprise.

Okay, a few notes. Firstly, I haven't seen any of season 3 yet, though I know vaguely what happens. So, definitely after "Billy", and Fred and Gunn are getting with the happy, but "WITW" never happened.

Thanks again for all reviews. Diane: I had no idea that Americans don't say "rang" in that context. How bizarre! Oscar Wilde really got it right!

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Chapter Thirty-Eight - Enough Guilt to Float a Ship

Lorne faced the accusing row of people, and gulped uncomfortably. He felt an urge to issue a scarily heartfelt "Don't shoot the messenger!", but was afraid speech was not a good idea at the moment.

"What do you mean, she's gone?" Unusually, it wasn't Cordelia, but Wesley, looking pale and, frankly, crappy as hell, easing himself up on one elbow, despite the concerned looks he was suddenly getting from the others.

"Um, Wes…" He ignored Gunn, and targeted Lorne.

"Gone where?"

"That's kind of the point, Wesley. I don't know." As an answer, it wasn't exactly satisfactory, and he raised a hand defensively. "Jeez, I don't know, okay? Look, everyone was all happy happy on account of Wesley-" he broke off to flash a grin at the man in the bed - "and then Faith was walking past and…okay, so this was weird, I admit. She sang."

"Faith doesn't sing," contradicted Cordelia definitely. Lorne raised an eyebrow at her.

"Hey, she sang, okay? Anyway, mucho confusion - think Julie Andrew half way through Sound of Music. So I just told her…"

"Told her what?" demanded Cordelia. "God, Lorne, will you just stop reading people's auras already?"

"I told her, Miss Smarty Pants, to follow her heart. She knew what she wanted, which, if you must know, was to stay. So, no, I have no idea where she is."

"Oh God!" At that despairing utterance, the team clustered round Wesley. Their initial jubilation at Wesley's awakening (which had materialised in the form of demented smiling and general joie-de-vivre-ness in the hospital room until a passing nurse had arrived and put a stop to it with a well-placed frown) had been dampened by Lorne's news: Faith was gone. And now it looked as if Wesley would be angst-ridden and… Wesley laughed ruefully.

"Unfortunately, Lorne, you failed to take into account Faith's all too well developed sense of self-sacrifice. I think it must be a slayer thing, which would make sense given the nature of their calling. I wonder if anyone's looked into this; it might make an interesting paper." Doped up in pain medication, Wesley was off on a tangent, and the others looked at him affectionately until a gentle cough from Angel returned him to the matter at hand. "Right. Faith." His smile disappeared. "I should have thought of this - you said the police found a dead man at the warehouse?" The question was directed at Angel, but it was Gunn who answered.

"Stuffed in a meat locked; stabbed in the gut. Nasty. A whole lot of blood. Was it…?"

"Not me. Faith."

"Oh. Oh!" They turned to Cordelia. "That's really not good, is it?"

"She's killed someone." Angel stated calmly. "A human. That's never good."

"And with Faith still trying to come to terms with what she did before… Plus, she probably feels that what happened to me is also her fault, since I was coming to rescue her." Wesley stopped, noticing the guilty look on Angel's face. "Angel-"

"No, I know, Wesley. I messed up; I should never have gone off like that with Faith out on a limb. You were right, what you said back then. I should have thought."

"Jeez, what is it with you guys and guilt? If I may remind you, it was Wolfram & Hart who kidnapped Faith, and one of their men who stabbed Wesley. If we're having blame here, let's at least put it where it belongs." There was a moment of silence as Angel and Wesley, the two worst offenders on the guilt front absorbed this, then Wesley continued.

"The fact remains that Faith is out there, feeling responsible for a whole lot of violence. Damn! I should have realised that she'd go off like this, I should have been more prepared…"

"Um, Wes? Unconscious much?" Wesley ignored Cordelia, which she took in her stride. He tried to sit up, and failed miserably, to the concerns of everyone around him. He closed his eyes in frustration, then turned to Angel.

"Can you find her?" Angel nodded, his face sober.

"Do you want me to bring her back?" Wesley thought for a moment, then reluctantly shook his head.

"No. I can't talk to her like this. All she'll see is blood and… Keep an eye on her. Make sure she doesn't disappear."