The Elements Series

Timeline/Summary: Avoid if you're unspoiled for *anything* to do with season seven! The only spoilers I think, are the big bad for s7, and all new chracters in season 7.

The Elements Series is set immediately after 'And It Rained…' So you must read that first! Also, this fic isn't pure Buffy/Spike - Willow/Kennedy, Willow/Tara, Xander/Anya and hints of Dawn/Andrew are also included. Others will appear later on too, and I'm open to ANY suggestions to improve the fic! (though I completely draw the line at B/A or Riley returning - lol)

Distribution:  Just let me know please!

Disclaimer: Joss Whedon owns all the characters, and so does ME, Fox, etc

***

The six of them, except for Kennedy, eventually returned to the waiting room. They were preparing themselves for another extended wait, as they thought there were still two more people in casualty. Only now there was one. The other was walking over to them.

Amanda grinned, and jumped up to embrace Vi, who had her arm in a sling and a bandage around her head.

Buffy smiled, glad to see one more person on their feet, and Dawn got up to greet Vi, as Andrew waved a welcome from the seating area.

Amanda pulled away from Vi's hug, "How are you?"

Vi walked over to the seats and sat down, being careful not to bang her arm. "Been better. A lot better. But I'm okay." She looked around towards Buffy, noting that Spike was perched on the arm of her chair. Vi frowned. There was something different about the two of them…She glanced at Dawn and realized that she had just noticed it as well. But all the same, she ignored her suspicions and turned around to discuss the situation with Amanda.

Spike, when he thought no one was watching, had slid his arm around Buffy's waist to let her know he was there if she needed him. After noting Vi had survived he had figured out that that left a small amount of people left. Anya, Giles, Xander, Rhona and Molly. He had seen the others…the other potentials…he had seen them fall during battle. And he could imagine that Buffy was blaming herself at that moment. But it wasn't her fault.

And, most of all, she was hating herself for what had happened to Faith…

He bit his lip and put his hands in the pockets of his coat. If…if the rest of them hadn't survived…

Bugger.

He couldn't begin to understand what Buffy must have been going through. Or Kennedy. Okay, so he could understand slightly what Kennedy was going through. He had lost someone he loved once. And it nearly killed him. Spike glanced at Buffy, so grateful to have her back in the world. He could only hope Red's girlfriend wouldn't have to feel that pain.

***

Andrew leaned forward in his chair to try and talk to the girls.

"Hey…er…how are you guys…um…holding up?" He gave them what he considered his 'winning smile'. Luckily for his pride, he didn't notice Vi shaking with silent laughter at his award-winning grin.

"As okay as we can be," Dawn gave him a warm smile. Ooh. Andrew's heart skipped a beat. Dawn was a cute girl. Reminded him of Princess Leia. Mmm…gold bikini.

What do I do now? Ahh…er…I remember this! Chapter 7 of the handbook…cute girl smiles at you…so you reply…

"Wanna play a word game?"

Aha! She'll be falling for me in no time! Smooth Andrew my man, very smooth…

***

Buffy smiled to herself as she watched Andrew direct all of his attention onto her younger sister. Which was kinda unusual for her. But honestly, she didn't have the energy to play 'big sis' and defend Dawn from all things male at that moment in time. Dawn was her own person now, could make her own decisions. Even if they are kinda…weird, thought Buffy, as she glanced at the ex-evil-nerd and shook her head in amusement.

"Buffy…"

She turned around as she heard Spike murmur her name softly in her ear, even though she had sensed him even before he spoke. She slid her hand into his, not caring if anyone noticed. "Yeah?" Buffy smiled slightly at him. It felt strange to smile, after all this crying. And if she thought about it, even stranger that he was the one to make her smile. Every time, he makes the pain that little bit better. Her smile widened.

"The doctor you were talking to before…he's coming over here…"

Buffy's smile instantly vanished and she stood up abruptly.

Spike gave her hand a gentle squeeze and an encouraging smile, and took his hand away and sat back down, to give her some room.

The doctor approached the slayer. "You can see him now."

Buffy nodded faintly.

Giles.

*******

Giles looked up, wincing at the pain in his neck, as the door to his room in the hospital creaked open. In walked Buffy, who ran to him and flung her arms around his neck. Giles' eyes widened in slight surprise, but returned the hug.
"Oh thank God you're okay," he whispered.
"Back at ya," Buffy quipped, but inside she was beyond relieved that he had survived. She released him from her grasp, smiled at him and sat at his side, as Dawn cautiously wandered into the room, followed by Spike, Amanda, Vi and Andrew.
Dawn, who was practically shaking, rushed to Giles' side and gave him a quick hug before sitting on the end of his bed.

Giles looked quickly at everyone assembled in the room.

There was Spike, standing on the right side of his bed just behind Buffy, who nodded at him when their eyes met; Amanda and Vi perched on the end of his bed next to Dawn, looking slightly frightened at everything that had happened, and no doubt they were unnerved at his current state; and Andrew, hovering at the door, not really sure of his place in the group.

Giles frowned. This wasn't everyone.
But then again, he wasn't expected anyone. He wasn't expecting anything. He had no idea why they were still alive or how the First had been stopped.
But still.
This wasn't everyone.

"Buffy…" Giles started. "Where are…?" He gestured with his hands, but he was unable to finish the sentence. He was expecting the worst.
Buffy glanced at Spike, then at Giles and inhaled deeply.
"There's a lot to go through," she said, looking pointedly at the others, and brushed a strand of hair from her face.
Catching her hint, Dawn, Spike and the other four stood up hurriedly and shuffled out the door.

As soon as the door clicked shut, Buffy looked back at her watcher and burst into tears.
Shocked, Giles reached forward to embrace his slayer.
"Buffy," he murmured. "What happened?"
Tears streaming down her face, Buffy pulled away and looked him straight in the eye.
"I couldn't do it. I didn't understand." She wiped a tear away from her face. "But she did. I lost it as soon as the hellmouth opened, but Faith kept her ground."
"Faith?"
Buffy nodded. "It was her, Giles. She saved us."
"Where is she? How…?" He left the question unfinished.

Buffy looked down, and took a deep breath.
She was ready to finally admit to herself what had happened.
And so she began to tell Faith's tale.
How Faith had sacrificed herself to save the world.

******

Buffy slammed a demon into the wall of the school, which shook the entire building. It was going to fall down any second now, and they needed to get out of there.

She whipped her head around to try and find everyone and was horrified to find Molly's body lying across a broken table, bloody and beaten. Inwardly, she cursed herself. She had let another one die. So many potentials had been killed in the battle and she blamed herself for the deaths.

But the slayer had to move on.

She ran even closer to the hellmouth, staking a vampire as she ran.

"Spike!" she yelled. Spike responded to her warning and spun around, slicing a demon, just about to attack him, with an axe.
Buffy carried on fighting, and lost sight of Spike, as he ran back into the battle.

"Buffy!" Faith ran up to her. "We can't keep fighting. We have to shut the hellmouth!"
"How?" Buffy tried to make herself heard over the shouting and screaming.
Faith frowned. "You're the smart one, B."
Buffy staked another vampire. "Work in progress." And she continued fighting.

***

Buffy fought alongside Faith for what seemed like hours. The amount of demons leaving the hellmouth wasn't slowing down, and the fight wasn't getting any easier.
"Faith…" Buffy's voice dropped. "I can't…I can't do it."
"Yes you can" Faith screamed at her as she kicked away another demon.
And suddenly Buffy saw Faith lurch backwards and fall to the ground.
"Faith!"

She ran to the fallen slayer.
But before she could reach her, Faith was back on her feet and ran towards Buffy.
Buffy slowed down. "Faith, what…" And she was silenced by Faith punching her in the face. Buffy fell to the ground, shocked that she had just hit her. Slowly, she looked back at Faith.

"Guess what?" Faith grinned smugly at Buffy, grabbed her by the hair and whispered throatily in her ear. "I can possess people."
Buffy eyes widened and swung her legs around to kick Faith down. Only she wasn't Faith anymore. She was the First.
"Get out of her!" Buffy shouted and kicked at Faith again.
The First punched Buffy, and sent her flying. "I don't think so…B." It made Faith's face smirk.
"Faith!" Buffy yelled. "Fight it! You're stronger than it is!"

"Not gonna do any good little girl…" but then 'Faith' reeled back in pain. "Get out of me, you *******!" Faith yelled at the creature inside of her.

"Faith, hold on!" Buffy crawled towards her, her nose bleeding. "Fight it!"

Faith's body twisted in pain again. "You can't fight me! You can never hope to beat me! I am the original evil! Dimensions bow down before me! I am beyond this world!"

Buffy jumped up and kicked the First in Faith's face, so hard it sent her crashing into the wall. "So get the hell out of it," She muttered.

'Faith' screwed up her face and screamed. "That's right you moron," Faith fought against the force inside of her. "I'm not letting you destroy this world, however beyond it you may be." She forced her body to move towards the door of Principal Wood's office. "You're goin' down."

"Faith!" Buffy yelled for the hundredth time that night, ignoring the blood running down her face and over her clothes. "What are you doing?"

"Putting this thing back where it belongs," Faith screamed in agony as the First tried to take over her body again, but fought it with all she had left.

Buffy's heart began to race as she realized what Faith was doing. "Faith! Don't do it!"

"B," Faith dragged herself to the edge of the hellmouth. "I have to." She turned around to face Buffy, and for the first time, Buffy saw tears streaming down the rouge slayer's face.
"B…Buffy." Faith's voice caught in her throat. "Have a good life, you hear me? Don't let all this be for nothing."
Faith suddenly dropped to the ground, clutching her head and yelled at the thing inside her. "Back off! You're not gonna win this!"
She swung her head back round to Buffy again, gasping for breath. "Never give up hope." Faith let the tears fall to the ground and shook with fear. "Don't blame yourself for anything."
She looked Buffy straight in the eye. "I'm five by five, B." She nodded at her, smiled sadly and held Buffy's terrified gaze as she threw her pained and battered body into the mouth of hell.

"Faith!" Buffy screamed, and ran towards the hellmouth, attempting to grab her hand before she fell, but just missed her by a fraction of an inch. "Faith!"
She watched in horror as Faith fell into the fiery pits of the hellmouth itself and disappeared from sight.

Then all went quiet.

Buffy froze. And then, slowly, a tear rolled down her cheek. And then she lost it.

Her knees buckled, and Buffy's whole body shook with devastation and cried at the loss of the only other person in the world who knew…who knew what it felt like to be this trapped. To be a slayer. "Faith…" she whispered, as tears ran down her face. "Oh god…" Tears dropped to the ground, as did blood from her nose and a cut above her eye.

Then the ground began to shake. She whipped her tear-stained face up and she saw the building begin to fall around her. She couldn't see her friends anywhere, so all she could do was run. Somehow, she managed to get to her feet. Faith wouldn't have wanted both slayers killed that night.

She ran for all she was worth, through the corridors of the school as the walls crashed down around her.

She kicked the door opened and leaped outside of the school and hit the ground as Sunnydale High tumbled to the ground with a deafening crash.

The hellmouth was shut.


Buffy looked up to see her friends in front of her, slowly getting to their feet. Dawn was attending to a disturbed Xander, who was shaking violently. Buffy stared in horror at him, and couldn't imagine what had happened. Then she realized that Anya was missing. Buffy shook her head. She couldn't process it. She told herself Anya would be alive, because she had to be. No one else could have died. It wasn't possible in her mind. All the same, Anya wasn't there with them. She hadn't seen her all night, in fact. But Buffy didn't want to believe the worst. Not yet.
Turning her head from Xander, she saw Kennedy hobble towards a fallen Willow and begin to cry. Panicked, Buffy rushed to Will's side and checked her pulse, scared for her best friend's life. She let out a sigh of relief. The witch was only unconscious.
Scanning everyone else, she mentally checked off Andrew, Amanda and Vi from her 'alive' list, but with sorrow saw that Rhona was missing.
Then her gaze fell on Giles. He was lying on the ground, mot moving. She crawled over to him and checked his pulse as well. Oh thank the heavens. He was still breathing too. But he had lost a lot of blood. They needed to get him to a hospital, and fast.
In all her panic about her watcher, Buffy hadn't even noticed Spike's absence. In the back of her mind somewhere, she believed he was alive and didn't need to question it. She would know if he was dead. So it didn't cross her mind to check, and called Dawn to help her with Giles.

As the survived group of warriors limped towards the hospital, Buffy's mind wandered back to Faith.
She had been so brave. And Buffy wasn't going to let her down. She was going to live her life to the full. But she couldn't do that without her friends. They had to get through this.

As she wiped blood from the corner of her mouth and winced at the pain in her arm, Buffy was sure they would.

For Faith.

*******

AN : *hands out Kleenex* Reviiieeeww...for Faith. :P hehe.