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Chapter 23

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Buffy struggled to pay attention in class, but her thoughts kept returning to the night before. What had happened? She had almost kissed Spike, for God's sake. She hadn't realized her feelings for him until that moment, when she had hovered above him, the coolness of his skin sending shivers down her spine. He had been the one to initiate the sparring match, and he had been the one to kiss her. So why had he leapt away like she was on fire? He had said something about it being too dangerous, and she couldn't understand why he believed that. He was scared of something- that much she knew- and the thought that something could terrify him made her feel uneasy.

After class she joined her friends on the roof, enjoying the feel of the sun on her skin. Willow helped her with her homework and she actually got some work done. She knew she had been slacking in most of her classes, but she did have a valid excuse. Her training took up most nights, and the few hours between classes and dinner were spent relaxing. She liked to do her homework before class, scribbling short answers in a hurry while she gulped down breakfast. Willow had actually been a great help, both to her and Xander. As the redhead gave an exasperated sigh, correcting yet another wrong answer, Buffy exchanged a sheepish grin with Xander.

She glanced up as Faith approached and remembered her promise to allow the girl to train with her. Faith waved, jogging over, and Buffy was amazed at the change the brunette had gone through. A simple smile had brightened her entire face, and she no longer carried such a dark expression. She had finally been allowed back into school, after much pleading on Fred's and Buffy's part. Angel had admitted to missing his young protégé, and had given her another chance. Faith was adamant not to mess up again, which is why Buffy was keeping good on her promise. If she could make Faith feel better about herself, then maybe the brunette would have a better chance at a proper future.

"Hey B," Faith said.

"Hey yourself," Buffy replied with a grin. "Ready for some action?"

Faith nodded. "Yup. Just gotta get changed and then I'll meet you in the library."

Buffy nodded and watched the girl depart.

"Man, she's so…" Xander struggled to find a suitable word.

"Strange?" Cordelia supplied. "Weird? Passé?"

"Happy," he finished. "Happy."

"It's odd," Oz said, cocking his head to the side. "Yet strangely refreshing."

Buffy smiled at her friends. "I'll leave you to it then. See you in the hall?"

"Yeah. See ya, Buff!"

She made her way down to her floor, and then strolled into her room. Slipping on her workout pants and a tight red tank top, she quickly tied her hair up. It had taken her a good hour to convince Giles to let Faith train with her, but it wasn't until the brunette had given her word that she would not use her training for anything except emergencies that he had agreed. Even then he had to pass it through Angel, who actually believed it was a good way to keep her out of trouble.

As she made her way towards the library, she wondered if Faith would be able to keep up. She needed to learn the basics, which was just an extended version of the combinations and techniques used in her Slayer studies. That should take up the entire first training session, and she grinning in anticipation of the pain Faith would be in for the next few days. She was going to work Faith's butt off, and the brunette was going to ache in muscles she never knew she had.

Faith was hovering outside the library door when she approached, and was almost bouncing in sheer excitement. She had wanted to learn from Buffy ever since she found out the blonde was the Slayer, because she knew no one could do the things the Slayer could. She would learn from the best, and maybe when she finally graduated Angel would allow her to join his team. She would help him to repay his kindness and faith in her.

When she saw Buffy coming down the hall, she instantly calmed her body and took up a casual pose. Even if she wasn't the bad girl of the school anymore she still had a reputation to uphold. It would not do for the other students to see her hopping around the place like an over excited kid.

"You ready, B?"

"Dressed to kill," she replied, and Faith saw that she indeed was dressed to kill. Any male within seeing distance would certainly have a heart attack over her tiny top and bared, tanned stomach.

They pushed the door open, and saw that Wesley was already waiting for them. One of the expectations Angel had made was that Wesley or Giles train them, and since Giles was busy with God know's what, Wesley had volunteered. Buffy didn't mind; Wesley was a really great guy. He never kept secrets from her like the others did. If she was doing something wrong in training or on patrol he told her in a gentle way and then helped her correct it. He gave her straight answers to her questions when the others tried to hide the truth beneath long words or their almost perfected avoidance methods. And she could speak to him like a friend. He never expected anything from her, and he never put pressure on her. She found herself telling him things that she had only told her closest friends, like what had happened with her father. He had listened attentively as she poured her heart out, and had only spoken once she was finished. He told her about his own father, who expected him to act like an adult when he was five. He had been thrown into the world of Watcher's, Slayers and vampires not long after that, and had been handed the path he was to take in life. Buffy found herself sympathizing with him, and was glad that someone older than her understood her. He treated her like a capable woman, not a fragile child who needed protecting. Buffy could tell that Giles was slowly learning from this other Watcher, and she was grateful for Wesley's company.

She did not expect, however, for Angel to be with him. The vampire and principal of ASG smiled back at them, breaking off his conversation with Wesley.

"Afternoon, ladies," he said. "I have nothing better to do, so I've decided to watch you both train."

Buffy and Faith exchanged a glance and shrugged.

Suddenly, the door behind them was shoved open, and a panting, thin man stormed in.

"Doyle!" Angel breathed, rushing forward to support his friend. Wesley helped guide Doyle to a chair, and the two girls watched in stunned silence.

"What happened?" Wesley asked.

"They…They found out," Doyle said, an Irish accent audible beneath his panting and wheezing.

"How?" Angel said sharply.

"I…I don' know," he answered. "It was lucky I 'eard one of them talking 'bout offing me, or else I'd be dead by now. I was about to head out on a surveillance mission, when I 'eard them. I got out of there quick smart, and no doubt they know I'm gone now."

"How did they find out?"

"I think I know, Angel." Doyle straightened, pushing the bangs away from his eyes. "There's nobody but ASG know who I am. I'm thinking there's a spy here.  And an awful good one, at that."

"But no one could possibly infiltrate our school," Wesley protested, scratching his chin thoughtfully.

"It's damn hard, but it ain't impossible," Doyle said.

"No one finds out about this," Angel said suddenly. "Doyle, we'll announce your return at the next staff meeting, but no details about this spy business are going to be exposed. Okay?"

It was then that Doyle spotted the two girls standing by the door. "Who the hell are they?"

Angel and Wesley turned and saw them, squinting as though only just remembering they were in the room. Buffy and Faith smiled weakly and tried to shuffle towards the door.

"This is Faith, a student here, and Buffy."

Doyle frowned. "Buffy? As in Buffy the Slayer?"

"One and only," Buffy quipped.

A big, genuine smile appeared on his lips, and he stuck out a hand for them to shake. "Good to meet yer' both," he said. "And I'm Doyle, by the way."

"You girls don't need me to repeat my warning, do you?" Angel asked, raising one eyebrow.

They assured him that he had nothing to worry about, and then tried to make for the door. Wesley intercepted them with a reminder about their training.

"Haven't forgotten, I hope?" he asked with a slight smile. Buffy knew he was intentionally making them stay, and that he saw right through them. They had been about to race up to the garden again and retell the juicy new development to their friends. He was a great person, but sometimes he was too perceptive for his own good.

Doyle left to get himself cleaned up, and Wesley and Angel led the girls down the passage. Buffy felt an odd tingling down her spine as the walked on, but dismissed it as mild claustrophobia. There could not possibly be anything down here. The feeling only left when they entered the training room, and she shook the remnants of the feeling away. Faith gave a low whistle as she saw the room used to train, and sauntered over to the weapon's wall. She fingered a long sword in awe, and shot Buffy a wicked look. Buffy grinned back, remembering her own awe at first seeing the room. Now, though, it was like her second home. She spent many, almost too many hours in here, training away her frustrations and energy.

Walking on to the sparring mat reminded her of the last time she had been in there. It seemed like a lifetime ago when she was straddling him, leaning forward to touch his sweet…No. She shoved the thoughts of Spike to the back of her mind and focused on the brunette instead. They did a quick sparring session to warm up, and Faith was again awed by Buffy's strength. She was also a bit daunted by it. Buffy was definitely holding back, and Faith was still having trouble getting a blow to land on the blonde.

She was breathing heavily by this stage, and sat out to watch Wesley attack Buffy while she wore a blindfold. It was amazing to watch. Buffy instinctively knew where Wesley was going to be, and twirled and leapt out of the way. When she had finally swept the Watcher's feet from beneath him, she removed the blindfold and helped him up.

"That was…awesome!" Faith said, grinning widely.

"Yes," Wesley agreed. "It was. Up for some fencing, Faith?"

Her eyes flared in enthusiasm, and she didn't even answer before racing toward the weapons. Buffy laughed and turned to find Angel watching the brunette with amusement.

"At least she's happy," he said.

Buffy chuckled. "Better to have her swinging her fists here than on the other students."

"My thought's exactly," he said. "Care for some tai chi?"

She loved tai chi, especially when Angel joined her. He was a master at the art, his body so graceful and his movements so smooth that he reminded her of a dancer. It seemed to calm her, and give her some much needed time away from the world. The beautiful movements allowed her to clear her thoughts and focus entirely on her body and mind. All the tension and stress seeped from her body, and he felt relaxed and tranquil. Her mind told her to move her let arm, and it moved. There were no other thoughts, no other movements other than the ones he mind told her to do.

She and Angel had been going for thirty minutes at least, when she finally became aware that Faith and Wesley were watching the both of them. She blushed with embarrassment and grabbed a towel from the bench, wiping away the sweat on her forehead.

"I never knew you did tai chi, Buffy," Wesley murmured.

"Yeah, neither did I until Angel here showed me."

"You mean you only recently learnt it?"

She nodded.

"Well, you move better than some people I know, and they've been practising the art for forty years!"

She ducked her head as a fresh wave of heat crawled up her neck.

"Anyway," Wesley continued. "Better grab a shower."

Buffy and Faith thanked them both and escaped up the stairs. It was an unsaid agreement that they were going to tell their friends about Doyle and the spy before having a shower, and they both headed towards the garden. Without realizing it, they both pondered the same question: who was the spy?

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Sorry about the wait, but hopefully updates should be coming more often. Please review and tell me what you think.