CHAPTER FORTY-FOUR: INTERRUPTIONS
Tuesday, 16th March 1999
9am London Time
Faith stumbled slightly as she took in her surroundings. They were in the middle of an unfamiliar office that was filled with gold, silver and moving knickknacks. She stared mutely at the paintings n the walls, wondering whether or not they were supposed to be moving. She took in the rest of the room and gulped nervously when she saw the faces of the Scoobies looking at her disapprovingly.
She wiped at her eyes, embarrassed by her earlier outburst in front of Angel. She couldn't believe that she'd broken down like that, but she felt somewhat better now that someone knew the truth about what had happened.
"Ahh, you must be Faith," Dumbledore said gently.
Faith spun to see who had spoken, her eyes widening in shock as she took in the elderly wizard in the blue robes with a pointed wizards hat.
"And you must be Gandalf," Faith replied, the situation making her uncomfortable. She dealt with it in any way she could.
Willow looked at Faith in shock.
"You've read Tolkien?" the redheaded wiccan asked.
Faith just shrugged.
Giles cleared his throat softly.
"I presume that you are here on your own accord, yes?" Giles asked.
Faith nodded. "Yeah. Free will and all that."
The Scoobies all looked at her in confusion. They couldn't work out why the brunette Slayer would agree to accompany Angel back to Hogwarts. They'd been sure that Angel would only return with the recording device. To see the vampire with the Slayer in tow was a surprise for all of them.
"You admit that the murder was done by your own hand and not from Buffy's?" Giles clarified.
Faith sighed. She nodded. "Yeah. It was my fault."
"Why'd you do it Faith?" Xander asked softly.
The Slayer sighed. She shook her head, unable to explain her actions to even herself let alone anyone else.
"Not to be all dictatory, but…uh…Buffy's trial is probably starting and…well, I don't know about anyone else, but I'd really like for her to not be killed," Willow rambled.
"I'll second that," Draco said.
Faith stared at the platinum haired boy, her eyebrows raised appreciatively. Draco sneered at her, a hateful glare planted firmly on his face.
"If Buffy dies," Draco began, "so do you."
"Well, if you'd actually let me leave instead of yapping away, she ain't gonna die," Faith retorted before turning to look at Giles. "So…what do we gotta do?"
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"Miss Summers, you stand before the Elders of the Council, accused of the murder of Mr Allan Finch, the Deputy Mayor of Sunnydale, California," a Watcher in the centre of the table said, his voice cold and unforgiving. "Being aware of the fact that your position as Slayer will be forfeit if you do not confess your actions, how do you plead?"
Buffy swallowed hard and closed her eyes. She took a deep breath and voiced her answer.
"Not guilty."
The Watcher who had escorted her to the hall closed his eyes and hung his head. Buffy could feel her heart racing nervously in her chest.
"We were afraid you would say that Miss Summers," the Watcher in the centre of the table said. "As of this moment, you Buffy Anne Summers, are no longer a Slayer. You are a disgrace to this Council and to the name of the Slayers. Let all records of Miss Summers be destroyed, and her name shall be stricken from the Council records. The diaries belonging to Mr John Merrick Travers and Mr Rupert Edward Giles and Mr Wesley Wyndham-Pryce shall be destroyed, and a new Slayer shall be Called to take Miss Summers place."
A tear trickled slowly down Buffy's cheek. She had sentenced herself to death because she had told the truth. The most random of thoughts flitted through her mind. She'd studied the Salem Witch Trials during High School, and she remembered that the leaders had tried forcing confessions out of completely innocent people. When they'd denied the accusations, they'd been killed in the most horrible of manners. Buffy could completely sympathise with them now. She just hoped that the Council had moved past the idea of burning people at the stake.
"Miss Summers, you are hereby sentenced to death."
The double doors slammed open, and a clear voice rang out in the room. "Wait!"
Buffy spun around, completely shocked by the person entering the room.
"Faith," she whispered softly.
Faith met Buffy's eyes briefly, before she turned her attention to the table of Watchers beyond her sister-Slayer.
"Buffy's not guilty of the murder," Faith admitted. "I am."
The twelve Watchers all began talking at once, and a smile broke out on Buffy's face. Faith came to stand beside the blonde Slayer, and the two girls stared at each other for a long moment. Faith grinned at the shorter girl, a sheepish smile accompanied by a half-shrug.
"How you doin' B?" Faith asked.
Buffy grinned and couldn't resist the urge to hug Faith. "Five by five," she replied.
Faith couldn't help but laugh. Even when faced with the knowledge that the Council now knew the truth about Faith's guilt, she couldn't help but feel completely absolved. The hug they'd shared had told Faith everything she needed to know. She'd earned her redemption in Buffy's eyes and that was all that mattered. Her guilt was almost completely lifted now that she'd faced the consequences of her actions.
The centre Watcher banged his fist on the table, gaining the attention of the other eleven Watchers and the two Slayers. Silence reigned throughout the room.
"That news certainly puts a new spin on things," the Watched announced.
"Perhaps Miss Sebastian is merely trying to keep Miss Summers alive," Travers suggested maliciously.
"Or perhaps Miss Sebastian has finally done the right thing by coming forward and putting this entire mess to rights," the Watcher with the gentle green eyes said.
"Punishment must dealt out," one of the other Watchers said loudly.
"It was a mistake!" Faith yelled angrily. "What happened in that alley wasn't anyone's fault. Allan Finch was in the wrong place at the wrong time, and it was a tragic accident, but it was just that! An accident!"
The man who'd escorted Buffy to the hall spoke up once more. "Miss Sebastian's Watcher, Mr Marshall has always spoken of the potential that Miss Sebastian has as a Slayer. She has room to improve, as all Slayers have, but he spoke of a marked improvement in the past few weeks. I believe from reading Mr Marshall's reports that we will find that Miss Sebastian was just a confused young woman who was in a situation she couldn't extricate herself from."
Buffy shot the man a grateful look. She didn't know who he was or why he was barracking for herself and Faith, but whoever he was, she was infinitely grateful for the support.
"And what exactly would you suggest we do with the two Slayers?" Travers asked, his tone angry and incredibly unimpressed. He hadn't expected for Faith to come forward and admit to her own guilt.
The twelve Watchers began speaking amongst themselves again. Five minutes passed, and the Watchers looked no closed to reaching a decision than they had when the arguments had begun.
The two Slayers shared a look that spoke volumes about their shared dislike of the Council of Watchers. Faith got sick of it and brought her fingers to her mouth and wolf-whistled loudly.
"Why don't we just make it real simple for ya?" Faith asked. "B'll go back to Sunnydale where she belongs, and I'll go back to New York."
"New York?" Buffy repeated. She nodded approvingly. "Colour me jealous. I'd love to live that close to that many shops."
Faith smirked and looked questioningly back at the Watchers.
The Watcher at the centre of the table coughed uncomfortably. He hesitated a moment longer.
"Your terms are acceptable," he finally acquiesced. "However, if another incident like this occurs, there will be a complete investigation into the matter. Tread carefully, the both of you."
Travers looked as though he was about to argue the matter. The man with gentle green eyes shot Travers a look that reminded Buffy of Giles' Ripper-glare, and Travers immediately closed his mouth, conceding defeat.
"Meeting adjourned."
Eleven of the twelve Council members filed out quickly. The man with the green eyes lingered and Buffy immediately took advantage of the opportunity to ask who he was. The man smiled and shook his head slightly.
"How forgetful of me to introduce myself to you. Reginald Giles," he explained.
Buffy grinned suddenly. She should have realised it earlier. He had the same eyes and the same Ripper-glare as her Watcher had.
"Your Giles' dad," Buffy said.
Reginald nodded. "I have to say, he did a remarkable job in your training," Reginald said. "Merrick was aware that you were a unique Slayer, and when Rupert was given the chance to be your Watcher I worried that the two of you would not be able to co-exist."
Buffy grinned. "It took a lot of work, but…we eventually met in the middle," she explained.
"So I heard," Reginald replied. "Now, as for your Miss Sebastian….I must congratulate you on your bravery. It is not every person who will walk into the lion's den and face off against an unfed mob with no guarantee that you will ever see the light of day again."
Faith flushed slightly, and Buffy couldn't help but grin. She'd never seen the other Slayer so flustered. It was definitely a sight to remember.
"It was the right thing to do, y'know," Faith replied.
"That it was," Reginald agreed. "It still took courage, and you seem to have the lion's share."
Buffy turned to look at Faith curiously. "What changed your mind?"
Faith's eyes darkened. "You can thank your boyfriend for that one. He came and told me that they'd killed you. I…I kinda flipped when he told me that."
"Draco told you I was dead?" Buffy asked in confusion.
"Uhh…no. Angel told me…wait. Who the hell's Draco?" Faith demanded.
"My boyfriend," Buffy replied. "Hottie blonde guy I met at the school they sent me to."
Buffy paused for a moment before snippets of previous conversations came back to her.
"You're the one who got me into Hogwarts!" Buffy exclaimed, turning to look at Reginald Giles. "You're the Director at the Council who agreed to let me go there. You knew it was good cos Giles went there."
Reginald nodded. "I knew that Hogwarts would be the perfect environment for you. I knew that Travers would make your life miserable if you were to stay at the Council. When Rupert called me to explain what had happened, I spoke to Albus Dumbledore about getting you into Hogwarts. I convinced six of the other Council Directors so that we had the majority vote."
Buffy nodded, grinning. She couldn't help but like her Watcher's father. She'd never really thought about him before, but now that she had met him she knew that he was definitely someone that would be a good ally.
"Hang on…Snape said that the only reason Dumbledore agreed to letting me attend Hogwarts is cos they owed Giles a favour," Buffy said in confusion.
Reginald chuckled a little. "Yes, that is also true. Dumbledore once needed a place for several of his friends to hide out for a period of time to ensure their safety. He promised that if Giles ever needed a similar favour, he could be called on."
"What place?" Buffy asked curiously.
"Well, my dear girl, your Watcher is from a long line of wizards on his mother's side. And these witches and wizards were all from Gryffindor House. Giles inherited his mother's house when she passed away twenty years ago, bless her soul. She left him a house in Godric's Hollow, a place that only a very few select people knew about. Dumbledore used that house to hide a family that Lord Voldemort was trying to kill," Reginald explained.
"The Potters," Buffy guessed.
Reginald nodded. "Right you are. James, Lily and Harry Potter," the Watcher said. "Unfortunately they were betrayed and young Rupert blamed himself in part for their deaths. He never quite understood that Peter Pettigrew would have betrayed them to Voldemort wherever they had stayed."
Faith couldn't quite keep up with the conversation between the two, and let her mind wander. Her attention was caught by the clock on the wall.
"Oh shit…I almost forgot!"
Both Buffy and Giles turned their attention to the brunette Slayer. Faith removed a handkerchief from her pocket and unwrapped a silver paperclip. Buffy stared at it in confusion for a moment before remembering what Hermione had taught her about portkeys and how wizards usually disguised them as non-descript muggle items.
"Portkey?" Buffy asked, just to clarify.
"Yup. That Bumblebee guy said it would do it's funky mojo in…thirty seconds," Faith said, glancing back at the clock.
Buffy sighed and smiled at Reginald. "It was good to meet you Mr Giles," she said sincerely. "I won't forget what you did for us."
Buffy pressed her fingertips to the paperclip. Faith did the same and grinned at the Watcher. "What she said," Faith said nonchalantly.
Reginald bowed slightly to them, and within seconds the two Slayers felt tugs behind their navels, and they were transported back to Hogwarts where their family and their friends were waiting nervously for them.
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Awww, Faith redemption. I love Faith, she's a fantastic character.