The Angel's Knight #21 - War Council
#
Los Angeles, October 15, 2017
#
I nodded off somewhere around four in the morning, I believe, shortly after Faith returned from her patrol. I don't think I am capable of going to sleep before knowing she is home safe. Maybe it's part of being a Watcher or maybe I just worry too much. She always tells me the latter, of course. Wes, she would say, get your English butt in bed and stop worrying. But there is a smile on her lips when she says it and I know she loves to see someone worried about her.
By ten o'clock I was fully awake again due to Fred's insistent shaking. We had a meeting planned for eleven, hoping to put together some facts about Diana. Unfortunately the sudden appearance of a second Slayer has suddenly become a lesser priority. Not that our all-night research session brought any new facts to the table anyway, but even if it had, this is somewhat more important.
Ten minutes after waking up we are gathered in the Hyperion's big conference room. We being Angel, Faith, Tara, Fred, Rupert, Graham, our current Initiative liaison, as well as myself. One of the monitors in front of us shows Riley's face, the commander of the Initiative joining us by way of videoconference. A glowing orb in front of Tara allows Maryke and her coven to partake in this discussion, the witches preferring a less high- tech approach to communications. Gunn is on his way here from the shelter and should arrive momentarily.
For a moment we considered inviting our new Slayer to this meeting, but then decided against it. There is too much we still don't know about Diana. The possibility that she might be some sort of plant can't yet be discarded. If necessary we can fill her in later on.
The monitor next to the one showing Riley is filled with static, but I can still make out the face of the person who called this emergency meeting.
"Hi, guys," Xander greets us, the fakeness of that cheery greeting audible even through the static. "Miss me?"
"Every second," Angel answers, barely a hint of sarcasm to be heard. "Fill us in, what's the emergency?"
Xander's face is crusted with sand and there are dark rings beneath his eyes. I know he entered Sunnydale some time yesterday morning because of some dreams he had. None of us was exactly happy letting him go in there alone without backup, but Xander insisted. With all our current information indicating that the Hellmouth was all but dormant we finally agreed. Somehow I fear, though, that our information was not exactly accurate. At least judging by the look in his eyes.
"It looks like the Hellmouth is up to its old tricks," he begins, running fingers through his sticky hair. "Sunnydale is packed, people, there are vampires and other creepy-crawlies everywhere. Hundreds of them. This magical Geiger crystal you gave me doesn't exactly come with a scale, but it went crazy in there."
I look around the table and see quite a few worried glances. The last time the Hellmouth poured out this level of energy was when Willow attempted her doomed ritual. If not for one of Cordelia's visions we would have lost every last citizen of Sunnydale in that catastrophe.
"Maryke," Angel says, his face showing nothing. "Could this be the center of that supernatural migration you picked up? Are all the demons heading towards Sunnydale?"
The orb in Tara's hands pulses for a moment, then Maryke's voice hails from it. There is a faint image of her head floating inside the crystal depths.
"I would say that is likely, Angel. Everything we know seems to indicate a westward movement. Even some members of our coven seem drawn somewhere, though none can explain why or where exactly they plan to go."
"The Hellmouth has always attracted all sorts of supernatural entities. If it's become active again it's logical to assume it is what is drawing all these creatures and magically inclined people towards it."
"There is something else, people," Xander calls from the screen. "I ... I'm not exactly sure what it is, but I picked up an old friend in Sunnydale who might be able to explain it a little better than I can."
He moves out of the camera's field of vision, making room for someone else. A woman in her thirties, short blonde hair, her face every bit as dirty as Xanders. There is a haunted look in her eyes, almost a mirror image to Xander's.
"Some of you might remember Amy Madison," Xander's voice explains from off- screen. "She went to school with Willow, Buffy, Cordelia, and me."
Rupert, who has been silent and distracted all morning, looks up upon hearing that name and there is recognition in his eyes. Looks like he is the only one, though. The others, including myself, are looking somewhat clueless.
"Hi, Mr. Giles," Amy says. "Sorry, I don't recognize any of the others."
"Hello, Amy," Rupert greets her. "It's been a long time."
There is something very strange about Rupert today, but I can't quite put my fingers on what it is. I know he returned home some time last night, returned by way of a teleportation spell he requested from Maryke's coven. I had planned to ask him about that, as these spells are quite tiring and cost a pretty penny. Tara told me she helped him with some kind of ritual involving some bones he brought back. He didn't tell her what he was up to, either.
I shake my head. This is no time for such distractions. Rupert knows what he is doing and we have more important things to deal with.
"What were you doing in Sunnydale, Amy?" Angel asks.
"I ... I was looking for my mother, actually. Catherine Madison. I had dreams about her."
Catherine Madison? I believe I remember reading about her in one of Rupert's diaries when I first came to Sunnydale as a Watcher. A witch, very powerful. I can't quite remember what happened to her.
"We fought Amy's mother during Buffy's first year in Sunnydale," Xander explains. "She was trying to banish Amy, her own daughter, with some sort of spell, but Buffy caused it to backfire on her and she vanished."
"I think I know now," Amy takes over again. "Xander and I met in the ruins of Sunnydale High. It seems to be the center of this demon gathering that is going on here. There is a group of humans there, dark witches as far as I can tell, and they are ... they are worshipping a statue of my mother."
Before I can come up with any sort of theory on this Xander speaks once more. "It's not so much a statue, people, as a cheerleading trophy grown to better-than-human size. Amy believes that her mother is somehow trapped inside that statue."
"I could feel her presence when we got close," Amy agrees. "It was ... not a good feeling."
"Do you think this coven you have observed are trying to free her from her imprisonment?" I ask him.
"Possibly. There is ... there is another possibility, though." Xander falls quiet for a long moment before speaking again. "You know I went here because I had dreams about Willow and she ... she is here. Or what's left of her."
"What do you mean?" Angel asks, worry in his voice. He once considered Willow a good friend and, despite his rage over what she did to Buffy's remains and later to the entire town, I doubt he would want to see her hurt.
Amy looks sideways, apparently at Xander, then back into the camera once more. "We found ... a body. It's draped over the statue of my mother like ... almost like it was crucified. We believe that it's ... it's Willow."
Silence spreads through the room. Everyone here knew Willow, some better than others, and I doubt any of us here could help taking a liking to her. To this day I find it hard to believe that the shy redhead I first met in Sunnydale all these years ago could do all the things I know she did in that last year before the Hellmouth erupted.
"Is she ... alive?" I hear myself asking.
Xander still isn't saying anything, leaving it to Amy to explain things to us. "We couldn't get close enough to check. With the amount of magical energy in the air there I assume it could be possible, but ... but I hope she isn't. Her body, it's ... I can't describe it. If there is anything left of her in there I have no doubt she wishes she were dead."
More silence, everyone is pondering Amy's words. Maybe this is God's way of showing us that even the purest and most innocent among us can fall from grace and nothing and no one is safe from being punished for their mistakes. I look up and share a brief look with Faith. Everyone here knows quite a bit about making mistakes that catch up with you, but the two of us, we did the catching up for each other.
"Cordelia saw this," Angel suddenly says, breaking the silence. "She saw a golden statue, a cheerleader, with a body draped across it. She also saw people worshipping that statue."
"She didn't happen to say what their plans are, did she?" Xander asks.
"I think I know," Fred speaks up.
"Fred?"
"I was ... I spent most of the last few days studying up on the Hellmouth. I have quite a few theories on it, too many to go into right now, but I think ... in the 1930s the vampire Heinrich Nest tried to open the Hellmouth and got stuck in it. It was dormant then until he was ... well, unstuck. We know that Willow somehow tapped into the Hellmouth for whatever she planned to do and ... since then the Hellmouth has been dormant again, so ..."
"My God," I mumble as I realize what she is saying.
"You mean Willow is ...," Xander begins, but finds himself unable to finish the sentence. "God, please no!"
"You realize what this means, right?" Faith asks after a minute or so. "With the hellish mojo levels on the rise again and these black guys running around ..."
"They're trying to free Willow," Angel finishes, "and thereby open the Hellmouth."
"And given the increasing energy levels in Sunnydale it looks like they're pretty close to succeeding."
For a long moment no one dares voice the logical consequence of what we just said. The thing we are going to have to do in order to keep the world safe. Finally it's Angel, like always, who takes the burden onto himself.
"We have to stop them from freeing her."
Xander, his face visible on the screen again, seems to be on the verge of a violent protest, but then visibly deflates, looking incredibly tired and ten years older than the last time I saw him.
"Angel, I ... I know we can't allow these guys to ... but it's Willow. If she's really stuck down there, if she's ... I mean, God alone knows what kind of pain she's in and ..."
I turn to look at Fred. No one has studied the Hellmouth more closely than she has. She looks back at me and no doubts understands my silent question, my plea. There has to be a way. We always find a way, don't we?
"There is no telling what kind of state Willow might be in," Fred finally speaks. "My theories regarding the Hellmouth ... let's just say it might not be exactly what we always thought it was. There might be a way of getting Willow out of there without causing all kinds of bad to go down, but it will take time and close study to find it."
"I think we can agree," Angel looks at Xander, "that these black mages you saw are not interested in just safely extracting Willow from the Hellmouth and leaving it at that, can we?"
Xander sighs. "Considering that they're hanging out with all the vamps and demons without becoming meals ... I kind of doubt that their motives are that pure."
"Riley," Angel shifts his attention to the Initiative commander. "How soon can you have your people in position to go into Sunnydale?"
"I can have a sizeable squadron there tonight, no problem."
"Good. We have about 300 trained people here in Los Angeles and can probably gather another one or two hundred from the other cities close by." He gives me a questioning look and I nod in agreement. These numbers should be about correct. "We will meet at Xander's location at sunset."
"We'll have dinner ready," Xander jokes half-heartedly. "Bring along the heavy artillery, though. There's enough creepy crawlies in there for everyone to have lots and lots of fun."
"Wait a minute," Amy shoves him aside, looking into the camera again. "Aren't we forgetting something? How is my mother fitting into this thing? That's her statue we saw in there, remember?"
Right! I almost forgot about that. If it's Willow that has somehow gotten herself imprisoned within the opening of the Hellmouth, how does Amy's mother's statue fit into all this?
"Amy," Angel begins. "Once we have managed to take Sunnydale, we might find a way to free your mother as well, but ..."
"Are you crazy?" she interrupts him. "The last time she was out she stole my body and tried to banish me into a statue. No way do I want her to be freed. My mother is a psycho."
"Not to mention a powerful witch," Giles adds, still seeming very absent. "We should take precautions. I do not know whether Tara alone will be capable of handling Catherine Madison on top of everything else we will have to deal with magical-wise." He looks at the crystal in front of Tara. "Maryke, we will need you and your people there."
I can see the hesitation on Maryke's face and understand it very well. We have had a long and beneficial working relationship with the New England coven. Their help has been invaluable more than once, but they are not warriors, never have been.
"I can't promise anything, Mr. Giles," she finally says, "but I will try and gather a group of my sisters to aid you."
"Thank you. Okay, people, you all know where we're going. We'll meet at sunset."
Riley and Xander sign off, vanishing from the screens.
"Talking about people we might need," Faith interjects. "What about the kid?"
"Diana?" Angel looks uncertain. "I really don't know about this."
"Having a second Slayer with us might make quite a difference," she reminds him.
"It would also add another unknown to a very uncertain and volatile situation." I hate playing devil's advocate, but somebody always has to. "While I agree that the value of a Slayer can hardly be overemphasized..."
"I think we should take her," Tara says. "I do not sense any deception in her. Also, I have something of a ... call it a hunch."
"A hunch?" Faith asks.
"Just a hunch. I think she could be ... meant to be there."
Angel looks at her for a long moment. I know Diana's presence has him quite confused and not just because she might very well be part of all this, whatever it is. Tara saw something happen between them when they were together. A spark, she said. For the first time since Buffy's death Angel might be drawn out of his self-imposed emotional exile, which I can't help but consider a good thing. Still, Angel has never been very good when it came to handling his own emotions. Having Diana there as part of the battle might very well prove very distracting for him.
"Tara, are you sure about this?" he finally asks.
"Nothing is one hundred percent certain, Angel, but I think that, in this case, the potential gain outweighs the risk. I have a feeling we are going to need every help we can get in the upcoming battle."
Angel hesitates for another moment, but then nods. "Very well, we'll take her with us. If we can convince her to go, that is. Considering that she has known about the existence of the supernatural for all of a day now she might be a bit reluctant to head straight into a big fight."
"I think I can persuade her," Faith says with a wink. "Kid doesn't show it much, but I think she got a lot of spunk behind that girly facade. Kinda like ..." Her voice trails off, but we all know who she was thinking of.
I have a feeling this is going to be a very long, hard day.
TO BE CONTINUED
#
Los Angeles, October 15, 2017
#
I nodded off somewhere around four in the morning, I believe, shortly after Faith returned from her patrol. I don't think I am capable of going to sleep before knowing she is home safe. Maybe it's part of being a Watcher or maybe I just worry too much. She always tells me the latter, of course. Wes, she would say, get your English butt in bed and stop worrying. But there is a smile on her lips when she says it and I know she loves to see someone worried about her.
By ten o'clock I was fully awake again due to Fred's insistent shaking. We had a meeting planned for eleven, hoping to put together some facts about Diana. Unfortunately the sudden appearance of a second Slayer has suddenly become a lesser priority. Not that our all-night research session brought any new facts to the table anyway, but even if it had, this is somewhat more important.
Ten minutes after waking up we are gathered in the Hyperion's big conference room. We being Angel, Faith, Tara, Fred, Rupert, Graham, our current Initiative liaison, as well as myself. One of the monitors in front of us shows Riley's face, the commander of the Initiative joining us by way of videoconference. A glowing orb in front of Tara allows Maryke and her coven to partake in this discussion, the witches preferring a less high- tech approach to communications. Gunn is on his way here from the shelter and should arrive momentarily.
For a moment we considered inviting our new Slayer to this meeting, but then decided against it. There is too much we still don't know about Diana. The possibility that she might be some sort of plant can't yet be discarded. If necessary we can fill her in later on.
The monitor next to the one showing Riley is filled with static, but I can still make out the face of the person who called this emergency meeting.
"Hi, guys," Xander greets us, the fakeness of that cheery greeting audible even through the static. "Miss me?"
"Every second," Angel answers, barely a hint of sarcasm to be heard. "Fill us in, what's the emergency?"
Xander's face is crusted with sand and there are dark rings beneath his eyes. I know he entered Sunnydale some time yesterday morning because of some dreams he had. None of us was exactly happy letting him go in there alone without backup, but Xander insisted. With all our current information indicating that the Hellmouth was all but dormant we finally agreed. Somehow I fear, though, that our information was not exactly accurate. At least judging by the look in his eyes.
"It looks like the Hellmouth is up to its old tricks," he begins, running fingers through his sticky hair. "Sunnydale is packed, people, there are vampires and other creepy-crawlies everywhere. Hundreds of them. This magical Geiger crystal you gave me doesn't exactly come with a scale, but it went crazy in there."
I look around the table and see quite a few worried glances. The last time the Hellmouth poured out this level of energy was when Willow attempted her doomed ritual. If not for one of Cordelia's visions we would have lost every last citizen of Sunnydale in that catastrophe.
"Maryke," Angel says, his face showing nothing. "Could this be the center of that supernatural migration you picked up? Are all the demons heading towards Sunnydale?"
The orb in Tara's hands pulses for a moment, then Maryke's voice hails from it. There is a faint image of her head floating inside the crystal depths.
"I would say that is likely, Angel. Everything we know seems to indicate a westward movement. Even some members of our coven seem drawn somewhere, though none can explain why or where exactly they plan to go."
"The Hellmouth has always attracted all sorts of supernatural entities. If it's become active again it's logical to assume it is what is drawing all these creatures and magically inclined people towards it."
"There is something else, people," Xander calls from the screen. "I ... I'm not exactly sure what it is, but I picked up an old friend in Sunnydale who might be able to explain it a little better than I can."
He moves out of the camera's field of vision, making room for someone else. A woman in her thirties, short blonde hair, her face every bit as dirty as Xanders. There is a haunted look in her eyes, almost a mirror image to Xander's.
"Some of you might remember Amy Madison," Xander's voice explains from off- screen. "She went to school with Willow, Buffy, Cordelia, and me."
Rupert, who has been silent and distracted all morning, looks up upon hearing that name and there is recognition in his eyes. Looks like he is the only one, though. The others, including myself, are looking somewhat clueless.
"Hi, Mr. Giles," Amy says. "Sorry, I don't recognize any of the others."
"Hello, Amy," Rupert greets her. "It's been a long time."
There is something very strange about Rupert today, but I can't quite put my fingers on what it is. I know he returned home some time last night, returned by way of a teleportation spell he requested from Maryke's coven. I had planned to ask him about that, as these spells are quite tiring and cost a pretty penny. Tara told me she helped him with some kind of ritual involving some bones he brought back. He didn't tell her what he was up to, either.
I shake my head. This is no time for such distractions. Rupert knows what he is doing and we have more important things to deal with.
"What were you doing in Sunnydale, Amy?" Angel asks.
"I ... I was looking for my mother, actually. Catherine Madison. I had dreams about her."
Catherine Madison? I believe I remember reading about her in one of Rupert's diaries when I first came to Sunnydale as a Watcher. A witch, very powerful. I can't quite remember what happened to her.
"We fought Amy's mother during Buffy's first year in Sunnydale," Xander explains. "She was trying to banish Amy, her own daughter, with some sort of spell, but Buffy caused it to backfire on her and she vanished."
"I think I know now," Amy takes over again. "Xander and I met in the ruins of Sunnydale High. It seems to be the center of this demon gathering that is going on here. There is a group of humans there, dark witches as far as I can tell, and they are ... they are worshipping a statue of my mother."
Before I can come up with any sort of theory on this Xander speaks once more. "It's not so much a statue, people, as a cheerleading trophy grown to better-than-human size. Amy believes that her mother is somehow trapped inside that statue."
"I could feel her presence when we got close," Amy agrees. "It was ... not a good feeling."
"Do you think this coven you have observed are trying to free her from her imprisonment?" I ask him.
"Possibly. There is ... there is another possibility, though." Xander falls quiet for a long moment before speaking again. "You know I went here because I had dreams about Willow and she ... she is here. Or what's left of her."
"What do you mean?" Angel asks, worry in his voice. He once considered Willow a good friend and, despite his rage over what she did to Buffy's remains and later to the entire town, I doubt he would want to see her hurt.
Amy looks sideways, apparently at Xander, then back into the camera once more. "We found ... a body. It's draped over the statue of my mother like ... almost like it was crucified. We believe that it's ... it's Willow."
Silence spreads through the room. Everyone here knew Willow, some better than others, and I doubt any of us here could help taking a liking to her. To this day I find it hard to believe that the shy redhead I first met in Sunnydale all these years ago could do all the things I know she did in that last year before the Hellmouth erupted.
"Is she ... alive?" I hear myself asking.
Xander still isn't saying anything, leaving it to Amy to explain things to us. "We couldn't get close enough to check. With the amount of magical energy in the air there I assume it could be possible, but ... but I hope she isn't. Her body, it's ... I can't describe it. If there is anything left of her in there I have no doubt she wishes she were dead."
More silence, everyone is pondering Amy's words. Maybe this is God's way of showing us that even the purest and most innocent among us can fall from grace and nothing and no one is safe from being punished for their mistakes. I look up and share a brief look with Faith. Everyone here knows quite a bit about making mistakes that catch up with you, but the two of us, we did the catching up for each other.
"Cordelia saw this," Angel suddenly says, breaking the silence. "She saw a golden statue, a cheerleader, with a body draped across it. She also saw people worshipping that statue."
"She didn't happen to say what their plans are, did she?" Xander asks.
"I think I know," Fred speaks up.
"Fred?"
"I was ... I spent most of the last few days studying up on the Hellmouth. I have quite a few theories on it, too many to go into right now, but I think ... in the 1930s the vampire Heinrich Nest tried to open the Hellmouth and got stuck in it. It was dormant then until he was ... well, unstuck. We know that Willow somehow tapped into the Hellmouth for whatever she planned to do and ... since then the Hellmouth has been dormant again, so ..."
"My God," I mumble as I realize what she is saying.
"You mean Willow is ...," Xander begins, but finds himself unable to finish the sentence. "God, please no!"
"You realize what this means, right?" Faith asks after a minute or so. "With the hellish mojo levels on the rise again and these black guys running around ..."
"They're trying to free Willow," Angel finishes, "and thereby open the Hellmouth."
"And given the increasing energy levels in Sunnydale it looks like they're pretty close to succeeding."
For a long moment no one dares voice the logical consequence of what we just said. The thing we are going to have to do in order to keep the world safe. Finally it's Angel, like always, who takes the burden onto himself.
"We have to stop them from freeing her."
Xander, his face visible on the screen again, seems to be on the verge of a violent protest, but then visibly deflates, looking incredibly tired and ten years older than the last time I saw him.
"Angel, I ... I know we can't allow these guys to ... but it's Willow. If she's really stuck down there, if she's ... I mean, God alone knows what kind of pain she's in and ..."
I turn to look at Fred. No one has studied the Hellmouth more closely than she has. She looks back at me and no doubts understands my silent question, my plea. There has to be a way. We always find a way, don't we?
"There is no telling what kind of state Willow might be in," Fred finally speaks. "My theories regarding the Hellmouth ... let's just say it might not be exactly what we always thought it was. There might be a way of getting Willow out of there without causing all kinds of bad to go down, but it will take time and close study to find it."
"I think we can agree," Angel looks at Xander, "that these black mages you saw are not interested in just safely extracting Willow from the Hellmouth and leaving it at that, can we?"
Xander sighs. "Considering that they're hanging out with all the vamps and demons without becoming meals ... I kind of doubt that their motives are that pure."
"Riley," Angel shifts his attention to the Initiative commander. "How soon can you have your people in position to go into Sunnydale?"
"I can have a sizeable squadron there tonight, no problem."
"Good. We have about 300 trained people here in Los Angeles and can probably gather another one or two hundred from the other cities close by." He gives me a questioning look and I nod in agreement. These numbers should be about correct. "We will meet at Xander's location at sunset."
"We'll have dinner ready," Xander jokes half-heartedly. "Bring along the heavy artillery, though. There's enough creepy crawlies in there for everyone to have lots and lots of fun."
"Wait a minute," Amy shoves him aside, looking into the camera again. "Aren't we forgetting something? How is my mother fitting into this thing? That's her statue we saw in there, remember?"
Right! I almost forgot about that. If it's Willow that has somehow gotten herself imprisoned within the opening of the Hellmouth, how does Amy's mother's statue fit into all this?
"Amy," Angel begins. "Once we have managed to take Sunnydale, we might find a way to free your mother as well, but ..."
"Are you crazy?" she interrupts him. "The last time she was out she stole my body and tried to banish me into a statue. No way do I want her to be freed. My mother is a psycho."
"Not to mention a powerful witch," Giles adds, still seeming very absent. "We should take precautions. I do not know whether Tara alone will be capable of handling Catherine Madison on top of everything else we will have to deal with magical-wise." He looks at the crystal in front of Tara. "Maryke, we will need you and your people there."
I can see the hesitation on Maryke's face and understand it very well. We have had a long and beneficial working relationship with the New England coven. Their help has been invaluable more than once, but they are not warriors, never have been.
"I can't promise anything, Mr. Giles," she finally says, "but I will try and gather a group of my sisters to aid you."
"Thank you. Okay, people, you all know where we're going. We'll meet at sunset."
Riley and Xander sign off, vanishing from the screens.
"Talking about people we might need," Faith interjects. "What about the kid?"
"Diana?" Angel looks uncertain. "I really don't know about this."
"Having a second Slayer with us might make quite a difference," she reminds him.
"It would also add another unknown to a very uncertain and volatile situation." I hate playing devil's advocate, but somebody always has to. "While I agree that the value of a Slayer can hardly be overemphasized..."
"I think we should take her," Tara says. "I do not sense any deception in her. Also, I have something of a ... call it a hunch."
"A hunch?" Faith asks.
"Just a hunch. I think she could be ... meant to be there."
Angel looks at her for a long moment. I know Diana's presence has him quite confused and not just because she might very well be part of all this, whatever it is. Tara saw something happen between them when they were together. A spark, she said. For the first time since Buffy's death Angel might be drawn out of his self-imposed emotional exile, which I can't help but consider a good thing. Still, Angel has never been very good when it came to handling his own emotions. Having Diana there as part of the battle might very well prove very distracting for him.
"Tara, are you sure about this?" he finally asks.
"Nothing is one hundred percent certain, Angel, but I think that, in this case, the potential gain outweighs the risk. I have a feeling we are going to need every help we can get in the upcoming battle."
Angel hesitates for another moment, but then nods. "Very well, we'll take her with us. If we can convince her to go, that is. Considering that she has known about the existence of the supernatural for all of a day now she might be a bit reluctant to head straight into a big fight."
"I think I can persuade her," Faith says with a wink. "Kid doesn't show it much, but I think she got a lot of spunk behind that girly facade. Kinda like ..." Her voice trails off, but we all know who she was thinking of.
I have a feeling this is going to be a very long, hard day.
TO BE CONTINUED
