Chapter Five - Story of My Life
A/N: Sorry for the crappiness and the short length of this chapter. I'm in the middle of revising for exams, and I'm planning a story of a Potential in-between furiously swotting up on politics…
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People poured out of the cinema as the doors opened several shielding their eyes from the bright Californian sun beating down on them on a warm and dusty Saturday afternoon. Buffy scanned the immediate area, wondering if Xander and Anya's chosen film had finished yet or whether they should go and shop like Dawn was pestering them to do.
"Well, I thought it was good." Her little sister announced as they started down the sidewalk.
Faith visibly grinned, "Mm, and I wonder why that is huh?" She countered, "Could it be cause of your insatiable Orlando obsession?"
Dawn glared good-naturedly; pouting in a manner that was similar to Buffy. The three walked down the road, and Faith slipped her hand inside Buffy's subtly. "What did you think Buff?"
She turned to her sister, "Me? I think you're both blinded by your movie star obsessions-"
"Hey, I do not have an obsession…" Faith protested in earnest.
Dawn giggled, "Uh, I think ya do. Remember an actress called Angelina?"
Faith bowed her head, conceding defeat, "OK, you may have a point." She steered the three of them to inside the mall, the air conditioning at the door ruining Dawn's hair. Tepid music filled the shops and Faith shook her head. As was visible by her clothes, she wasn't a mall shopping kinda gal. But Buffy and Dawn were. So, she let them guide her round the teenybopper shops in the faint hope that they could change her "less than modest clothes" as Giles politely put it.
She thought about Xander and Anya back at the cinema, probably making out like crazy on the back row. When Buffy had suggested the little "friendly outing to the cinema where Xander can kill me so dead" as Faith nicknamed it, she wasn't exactly thrilled with the concept. Until Xander had rung and they talked out their differences and Faith successfully persuaded him that she would do nothing to hurt the "Buffster".
"How about this?" Dawn came over to me as we stood in one of her favourite shops. She held up a mumsy blouse in front of me and I snorted in derision.
"I don't think so." I pushed it away gently, hanging it up on the closest rail; "I don't do those clothes."
"Hey! I have that shirt…" Buffy protested and I smiled, wrapping my arm clumsily around her neck and kissing the side of her forehead, helping her to forget what she was concerned about. Walking along the store as Dawn pointed out clothes that she wanted for her birthday in a non-subtle way, Faith felt a tap on her shoulder. Turning around she came face to face with someone she thought she'd left behind a long time ago.
"Faith. What a surprise to see you here." The girl smiled, pushing her pink tinged hair behind her shoulder.
"Lucy." Faith said shallowly, her voice gruff and low remembering Buffy's presence next to her. "What the hell are you doing here?"
Lucy smiled with an air of superiority, "Ah, little birdie told me, you know the drill." She paused, taking a step closer to Faith and Buffy, noticing the arm that Faith held round Buffy's waist, "Aren't you gonna introduce me?" She gestured towards Buffy and the approaching Dawn who wore a concerned expression.
"Buffy, this is Lucy, an old friend. Lucy, this is Buffy, my girlfriend." Faith paused as Dawn sidled next to her, "And Dawn, her little sister."
Lucie made a faux-surprised face, "Faithy, Faithy, Faithy. You're a dyke? Who woulda known?"
"Watch it." Intoned Dawn, taking a step towards Lucie with a stern expression.
"Got a little girl looking out for you now, Faith? Your standards have really lowered." Lucy smiled, glaring at Dawn.
"I am not a little girl." Dawn said forcefully, disregarding Faith's hand on her lower arm, trying to dissuade her from starting something with this Lucy girl.
Lucy stepped forward so she and Dawn were only inches apart and tapped Dawn's head patronisingly, "Whatever you say girlie."
"I think you should leave." Buffy stepped closer, and finally Lucy looked slightly worried, "It's obvious Faith doesn't want you around."
Lucy looked towards Faith, who briefly glanced at the ground and then up at her old friend, "Faith, you better watch out. You get me? 'Cause you can't have told your little friends about the things you used to get up to until you disappeared…'cause if ya did…" Her Boston voice grew darker and menacing, "You wouldn't see them for dust."
Lucy turned round, her biker boots squeaking on the newly cleaned floor of the shop, her pink toned hair waving behind her, attracting attention as she strutted through the mall. "See ya around Faithy!" She shouted back with what sounded like spiteful laughter without turning round and she just carried on walking, "I'll be sure to find ya!"
Lucy disappeared round the corner, and Faith started to breathe again. She had barely said a word in their encounter, but she'd known Lucy long enough to not have to communicate with words. It was the malicious edge in her voice that worried Faith…she knew Lucy inside and out, as much as she was loathed to admit it, and there were things, terrible things that would alienate the Scoobies even further away.
So terrible they could mean her losing Buffy forever. And losing Buffy would be worse than losing her life. And she didn't know what she would do without her.
"What the hell was that about?" Buffy said, standing in front of Faith, just managing to get her attention, "Was she on about?"
Faith swallowed, "Nothing. Lucy's got a screw loose." Buffy frowned, but seemed placated by Faith's words; she knew the kind of friends she had back in Boston. They'd talked about during their bouts of insomnia as they lay in bed together, hands entwined…but words couldn't articulate what some of Faith's old "buddies" were like.
"I'd say she's got more than one loose." Dawn said, joining at Buffy's side, looking behind them to where Lucy disappeared round the corner, as if checking that she was definitely gone. Pausing, Dawn spoke again, "So are we gonna go get a takeout or something, 'cause I am so starved!"
Dawn's voice faded out of Faith's mind as they continued on their shopping spree, waiting for Xander and Anya to emerge from the multiplex. She could hear Buffy admonishing Dawn for something she'd done that morning, most likely not taking out the trash, but it moved to the periphery of her mind. All that she could think about was that Lucy was around. Out there, ready to pounce. Like a panther waiting for its prey.
There were things. Things that she had done. Buffy couldn't know. She just couldn't. She couldn't lose this life. She couldn't lose the girl that she loved.
And Lucy was going to try to do just that.
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"The past won't go away,
It's the story of my life."
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Scuse the rubbishness of this chapter! Comments are welcome, don't be too harsh though!
A/N: Sorry for the crappiness and the short length of this chapter. I'm in the middle of revising for exams, and I'm planning a story of a Potential in-between furiously swotting up on politics…
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
People poured out of the cinema as the doors opened several shielding their eyes from the bright Californian sun beating down on them on a warm and dusty Saturday afternoon. Buffy scanned the immediate area, wondering if Xander and Anya's chosen film had finished yet or whether they should go and shop like Dawn was pestering them to do.
"Well, I thought it was good." Her little sister announced as they started down the sidewalk.
Faith visibly grinned, "Mm, and I wonder why that is huh?" She countered, "Could it be cause of your insatiable Orlando obsession?"
Dawn glared good-naturedly; pouting in a manner that was similar to Buffy. The three walked down the road, and Faith slipped her hand inside Buffy's subtly. "What did you think Buff?"
She turned to her sister, "Me? I think you're both blinded by your movie star obsessions-"
"Hey, I do not have an obsession…" Faith protested in earnest.
Dawn giggled, "Uh, I think ya do. Remember an actress called Angelina?"
Faith bowed her head, conceding defeat, "OK, you may have a point." She steered the three of them to inside the mall, the air conditioning at the door ruining Dawn's hair. Tepid music filled the shops and Faith shook her head. As was visible by her clothes, she wasn't a mall shopping kinda gal. But Buffy and Dawn were. So, she let them guide her round the teenybopper shops in the faint hope that they could change her "less than modest clothes" as Giles politely put it.
She thought about Xander and Anya back at the cinema, probably making out like crazy on the back row. When Buffy had suggested the little "friendly outing to the cinema where Xander can kill me so dead" as Faith nicknamed it, she wasn't exactly thrilled with the concept. Until Xander had rung and they talked out their differences and Faith successfully persuaded him that she would do nothing to hurt the "Buffster".
"How about this?" Dawn came over to me as we stood in one of her favourite shops. She held up a mumsy blouse in front of me and I snorted in derision.
"I don't think so." I pushed it away gently, hanging it up on the closest rail; "I don't do those clothes."
"Hey! I have that shirt…" Buffy protested and I smiled, wrapping my arm clumsily around her neck and kissing the side of her forehead, helping her to forget what she was concerned about. Walking along the store as Dawn pointed out clothes that she wanted for her birthday in a non-subtle way, Faith felt a tap on her shoulder. Turning around she came face to face with someone she thought she'd left behind a long time ago.
"Faith. What a surprise to see you here." The girl smiled, pushing her pink tinged hair behind her shoulder.
"Lucy." Faith said shallowly, her voice gruff and low remembering Buffy's presence next to her. "What the hell are you doing here?"
Lucy smiled with an air of superiority, "Ah, little birdie told me, you know the drill." She paused, taking a step closer to Faith and Buffy, noticing the arm that Faith held round Buffy's waist, "Aren't you gonna introduce me?" She gestured towards Buffy and the approaching Dawn who wore a concerned expression.
"Buffy, this is Lucy, an old friend. Lucy, this is Buffy, my girlfriend." Faith paused as Dawn sidled next to her, "And Dawn, her little sister."
Lucie made a faux-surprised face, "Faithy, Faithy, Faithy. You're a dyke? Who woulda known?"
"Watch it." Intoned Dawn, taking a step towards Lucie with a stern expression.
"Got a little girl looking out for you now, Faith? Your standards have really lowered." Lucy smiled, glaring at Dawn.
"I am not a little girl." Dawn said forcefully, disregarding Faith's hand on her lower arm, trying to dissuade her from starting something with this Lucy girl.
Lucy stepped forward so she and Dawn were only inches apart and tapped Dawn's head patronisingly, "Whatever you say girlie."
"I think you should leave." Buffy stepped closer, and finally Lucy looked slightly worried, "It's obvious Faith doesn't want you around."
Lucy looked towards Faith, who briefly glanced at the ground and then up at her old friend, "Faith, you better watch out. You get me? 'Cause you can't have told your little friends about the things you used to get up to until you disappeared…'cause if ya did…" Her Boston voice grew darker and menacing, "You wouldn't see them for dust."
Lucy turned round, her biker boots squeaking on the newly cleaned floor of the shop, her pink toned hair waving behind her, attracting attention as she strutted through the mall. "See ya around Faithy!" She shouted back with what sounded like spiteful laughter without turning round and she just carried on walking, "I'll be sure to find ya!"
Lucy disappeared round the corner, and Faith started to breathe again. She had barely said a word in their encounter, but she'd known Lucy long enough to not have to communicate with words. It was the malicious edge in her voice that worried Faith…she knew Lucy inside and out, as much as she was loathed to admit it, and there were things, terrible things that would alienate the Scoobies even further away.
So terrible they could mean her losing Buffy forever. And losing Buffy would be worse than losing her life. And she didn't know what she would do without her.
"What the hell was that about?" Buffy said, standing in front of Faith, just managing to get her attention, "Was she on about?"
Faith swallowed, "Nothing. Lucy's got a screw loose." Buffy frowned, but seemed placated by Faith's words; she knew the kind of friends she had back in Boston. They'd talked about during their bouts of insomnia as they lay in bed together, hands entwined…but words couldn't articulate what some of Faith's old "buddies" were like.
"I'd say she's got more than one loose." Dawn said, joining at Buffy's side, looking behind them to where Lucy disappeared round the corner, as if checking that she was definitely gone. Pausing, Dawn spoke again, "So are we gonna go get a takeout or something, 'cause I am so starved!"
Dawn's voice faded out of Faith's mind as they continued on their shopping spree, waiting for Xander and Anya to emerge from the multiplex. She could hear Buffy admonishing Dawn for something she'd done that morning, most likely not taking out the trash, but it moved to the periphery of her mind. All that she could think about was that Lucy was around. Out there, ready to pounce. Like a panther waiting for its prey.
There were things. Things that she had done. Buffy couldn't know. She just couldn't. She couldn't lose this life. She couldn't lose the girl that she loved.
And Lucy was going to try to do just that.
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
"The past won't go away,
It's the story of my life."
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
Scuse the rubbishness of this chapter! Comments are welcome, don't be too harsh though!