A/N wasn't that quick? But don't get used to it or anything, I was feeling
motivated, but that doesn't happen very often. Thanks for the reviews, keep
sending 'em, and enjoy...
3 Drinks With Friends
At around midday Wesley entered the Hyperion only to find it empty save Faith and Andrew who were sat around the coffee table playing what looked to be poker. When Faith looked up and saw him she grinned mischievously and asked if he wanted to play.
"That depends, what are you playing for?" he asked.
"Loser buys the others drinks," she replied and dealt him in, not bothering to wait for an answer. It was a very relaxed game, what with the stakes being so low, and at first the three were just making small talk, until the small talk became a conversation about their past sins.
"I mean," Andrew started, "the Scoobies are great people and all but sometimes they can be a tad critical with other people. I mean sure what I did was wrong but I never actually killed anyone like Willow did, she skinned a guy alive and they forgave her just like that." He snapped his fingers to show just how fast. Faith nodded in agreement. The kid may be irritating at times but he was right about this. She had wanted more than anything to be a part of their inner circle, but it just didn't happen, and after everything she had done, there was little chance of it ever happening. Wesley too, had also been in the same position, though it seemed to have worked out for the better in his case/
"Sometimes," Wes said calmly, "people are too blinded by their own emotions that they fail to see past their own prejudices and double standards to realize that other people can change too." He finished by placing his winning hand on the table.
"Fuck Wes! How are you so good at poker?!" Faith demanded a little upset that she hadn't won.
"Must just be my lucky day. Anyway you're not so bad yourself, sorry Andrew; I guess the drinks are on you."
With a big sigh Andrew stood and asked if the could play Dungeons and Dragons next time. Faith laughed and promised they would, and once again Wes was surprised at just how friendly Faith was being with the young geek. For a second he even entertained the thought that maybe she was attracted to him, but then he dismissed the idea. Andrew wasn't her type, was he? He didn't even bother to wonder why that thought would be causing him such uneasiness.
"So, what time do you wanna go out at?" she said, holding Andrew to his forfeit, "9 a clock okay with you Wes?" He was a little taken aback by this, he hadn't truly expected her to want to go out, despite her requesting he join their game.
"Sure. I'm not going to turn down a free drink." He answered, disguising his surprise. He hoped.
Just then the lobby doors opened and the Scoobies plus the new slayers all flooded in, loaded down with grocery bags. Apparently Angel didn't keep enough food in his kitchen to feed an army. Who'd of thought?
**********************************************
So, that evening, as arranged Andrew bought Faith and Wes drinks at a fairly decent local bar. They were gathered around a small table, talking about, of all things, M*A*S*H.
"Klinger was the coolest." Faith commented.
"I preferred Radar. He brought a little innocence to a dark and lonely war." Andrew said sipping his root beer.
"Wes lemme guess," Faith smirked, "Houlihan did it for you right?"
"No actually. I seem to have an aversion to bottle blondes, I can't possibly imagine why," he replied, mirroring her smirk and eliciting an earnest smile from the women who hadn't had a lot to smile about in her life. Faith had spent a lot of time in Buffy's shadow, and she couldn't describe how good it felt to have Wes say, even indirectly, that Buffy wasn't perfect either. It made her feel all warm inside, of course that could also be the alcohol.
"Next round's on me!" she said and headed for the bar.
"She can't forgive herself for what she did, can she?" Andrew asked the older man. Wesley cocked an eyebrow at his companion's unexpected perceptiveness.
"No. I don't suppose he can." He answered regretfully, before downing the last of his scotch as Faith returned.
"Oh!" Andrew cried, the metaphorical light bulb above his head suddenly illuminating, "I just thought of another thing that we all have in common! We all have layers, just like Shrek!"
Faith gave an exasperated sigh but refrained from retorting as she placed a shot down in front of each of them.
"Err Faith, this isn't root beer." Said the former supervillan.
"No shit Sherlock. It's tequila."
"Um I don't drink tequila, it makes me hurl." She stared skeptically at him for a second, before removing the shot from in front of him.
"All the more for us then," she grinned.
"Actually guys, I think I might walk back to the hotel, I'm pretty worn out," he said giving an exaggerated yawn.
"Are you suicidal?" Faith asked him sarcastically, "You can't walk through this neighborhood alone at night!"
"Here," Wesley handed him the keys to his SUV, "We'll walk back later, and neither of us is sober enough to drive anyway."
"Thanks Wes!" Andrew beamed uninhibitedly and said goodnight to his two new favorite people.
"You're quite fond of him, aren't you?" Wes asked her once he was out of earshot.
She shrugged, "He grows on you, kinda like a fungus." She wasn't lying, but it wasn't the only reason.
"And?" He prompted tentatively, not wanting to ruin a nice evening by pushing her too far. She looked at him, not sure how he knew that she was holding back, and for that matter why he was even interested. But still, she found herself wanting to confide in him.
"He reminds me of my little brother." Her index finger robotically running along the rim of her glass. "See, we have different dads, so when our mum died he went to live in Chicago. I haven't seen him since."
"When was that?"
"Seven years ago. He was eleven then, I was fifteen."
"Haven't you thought about trying to find him?"
"I have his address. I looked him up when I was inside, but that's as far as I got."
"Maybe you should write to him let him know that you're okay?" he suggested.
"Yeah maybe. Another round?" She changed the subject so he let it drop.
*********************************
An hour and a half and many shots later, they left the bar and headed back to the hotel. They were six blocks away from the bar when they heard a women scream, and they saw what Wes would later identify as a Grylaf demon attacking a young blonde woman. They now only slightly inebriated couple looked at each other and grinned, excited at the prospect of a fight.
Faith walked up behind the ugly yellow monster and tapped it on the shoulder; it grunted at the interruption and turned around, only to be punched in the face by the slayer. Still reeling from the punch, it took a few seconds to realize that its little blond snack had scarpered, just as Faith had hoped she would.
"Well, she did look a little skinny. I probably did you a favor." Faith informed him, before landing a powerful kick to it's midsection. Now he was pissed. He came at her with violent roar and threw her against the dumpster. Then he grabbed her by the throat and pinned her to the wall. The next thing she saw was Wes with a gun pointed at the demon's head. In a split second he had pulled the trigger and blown it's purple smelly brains out, and managed to hold his arm out to stop Faith from falling to the floor.
"I don' even wanna know where you've been hiding that gun," she joked.
"Are you okay?" he asked her as she tried to catch her breath, his hand still on her shoulder in case she needed the support, blissfully unaware that it was his hand touching her in such a concerned way that was in fact causing her shortness of breath.
"Five by five," she could only whisper as he pinned her with his icy blue eyes. And they were stuck in a moment, like in the movies when you know that the couple is desperately close to kissing, all they have to do is lean in a little...
But then the moment ended and they stepped away from each other, a little embarrassed and both confused beyond a doubt. Back with reality, Faith couldn't help but notice that she was covered in purple demon guts and groaned loudly.
"What's wrong?" he turned to her concern evident in his voice.
"I'm covered in fucking demon blood and guts that's what's wrong! Grosse!" tension now gone, he laughed.
"What are you laughing at English, you're all purple too!"
"My apartments closer than the hotel, we can go there first and clean up," he suggested, grimacing at the smelly slime all over his clothes.
"Sounds like a plan. Lead on," and so they headed for Wesley's apartment.
Not long later, Faith found herself sitting on Wes's sofa, wearing a pair of his sweatpants and one of his sweaters. Both of which were far too big, but she didn't care, she was comfy and they smelt kinda nice too, they smelt like Wes. Who at that moment walked through the door carrying two cups of coffee, one of which she took from him gladly.
"You're clothes should be dry soon," he told her as he sat down in the chair to the right of the sofa. Faith tool a long gulp of the strong hot liquid, relishing in the bitter warmth. She wanted more than anything to fill the silence that had descended upon them, wanted to be able to talk to him like none of the stuff in the past mattered, but she was finding it difficult to start.
"Can I ask you something?" she started hesitantly, he nodded for her to continue, "Why did you come and get me when Angelus pulled a Houdini?"
"Angelus is a master vampire, we needed someone with your strength to bring him back." He was holding back, even a high school drop out like Faith could tell that.
"Yeah, but I wasn't the only one who could've done it. And I defiantly wasn't the most accessible, being in jail and all. So why me?" She added the last part quietly. He knew she had him cornered, and despite his discomfort he was a little impressed that she had him exactly where she wanted him. For that fact alone she deserved the truth.
"There was once a time," he began, suddenly fascinated by the bottom of his coffee cup, "when I believed that some more grievous crimes couldn't be forgiven, that those guilty didn't deserve a second chance. Then the world ended. Not literally of course, but things were so messed up that it seemed like it was hell on Earth. I had betrayed my best friend trying to do the right thing. So when it came to bringing back Angel I wanted you, firstly because I knew you would never kill him, but also because if you really had changed then maybe I could and so maybe mankind was really worth saving, because if people aren't capable of changing, and no one learns to forgive, the world will end anyway."
"Were you right, when you hoped I could change, I mean?" she said it so quietly he wasn't sure he had heard right. At this he lifted his head and looked at her. Really looked. What he saw was a woman who had risen up against the odds and done the right thing. She had helped save the world for heavens sake! And now here she was, sitting on his sofa, her toes curled around the edge of his coffee table, her slender fingers gripping the cup with her hair covering her face, not wanting anyone to see her, and she was asking him if she was worthy of forgiveness?
"I'd say so yes," he could have sworn he saw the beginnings of a smile under the veil of hair, but she hid it quickly.
"Wicked," she replied with her usual indifferent expression.
"I'll go and see if your clothes are dry," he offered. Five minuets later he came back in carrying her freshly laundered clothes, and she stood to take them from him. As she reached for them, their fingers brushed and it was like electricity or something. In an instant they were sucked back into that moment, only this time they leant in. it wasn't by much, but enough for their lips to meet. And then they were kissing.
Faith was vaguely aware that she dropped her clothes she was holding as his hands wrapped around her waist and pulled her closer. And she raised her arms to the back of his neck and deepened the kiss in response. In a split second they had gone from a gentle, tentative kiss, into a kiss with enough passion to melt all of the polar ice caps and set all of the forests in the world on fire. And they couldn't stop it.
**********************************************
Coming soon: the morning after (with flashbacks to the night before) team AI bonds, and I'm thinking of bringing Cordy back for Angel as a subplot, just to annoy Buffy, what do you think?
3 Drinks With Friends
At around midday Wesley entered the Hyperion only to find it empty save Faith and Andrew who were sat around the coffee table playing what looked to be poker. When Faith looked up and saw him she grinned mischievously and asked if he wanted to play.
"That depends, what are you playing for?" he asked.
"Loser buys the others drinks," she replied and dealt him in, not bothering to wait for an answer. It was a very relaxed game, what with the stakes being so low, and at first the three were just making small talk, until the small talk became a conversation about their past sins.
"I mean," Andrew started, "the Scoobies are great people and all but sometimes they can be a tad critical with other people. I mean sure what I did was wrong but I never actually killed anyone like Willow did, she skinned a guy alive and they forgave her just like that." He snapped his fingers to show just how fast. Faith nodded in agreement. The kid may be irritating at times but he was right about this. She had wanted more than anything to be a part of their inner circle, but it just didn't happen, and after everything she had done, there was little chance of it ever happening. Wesley too, had also been in the same position, though it seemed to have worked out for the better in his case/
"Sometimes," Wes said calmly, "people are too blinded by their own emotions that they fail to see past their own prejudices and double standards to realize that other people can change too." He finished by placing his winning hand on the table.
"Fuck Wes! How are you so good at poker?!" Faith demanded a little upset that she hadn't won.
"Must just be my lucky day. Anyway you're not so bad yourself, sorry Andrew; I guess the drinks are on you."
With a big sigh Andrew stood and asked if the could play Dungeons and Dragons next time. Faith laughed and promised they would, and once again Wes was surprised at just how friendly Faith was being with the young geek. For a second he even entertained the thought that maybe she was attracted to him, but then he dismissed the idea. Andrew wasn't her type, was he? He didn't even bother to wonder why that thought would be causing him such uneasiness.
"So, what time do you wanna go out at?" she said, holding Andrew to his forfeit, "9 a clock okay with you Wes?" He was a little taken aback by this, he hadn't truly expected her to want to go out, despite her requesting he join their game.
"Sure. I'm not going to turn down a free drink." He answered, disguising his surprise. He hoped.
Just then the lobby doors opened and the Scoobies plus the new slayers all flooded in, loaded down with grocery bags. Apparently Angel didn't keep enough food in his kitchen to feed an army. Who'd of thought?
**********************************************
So, that evening, as arranged Andrew bought Faith and Wes drinks at a fairly decent local bar. They were gathered around a small table, talking about, of all things, M*A*S*H.
"Klinger was the coolest." Faith commented.
"I preferred Radar. He brought a little innocence to a dark and lonely war." Andrew said sipping his root beer.
"Wes lemme guess," Faith smirked, "Houlihan did it for you right?"
"No actually. I seem to have an aversion to bottle blondes, I can't possibly imagine why," he replied, mirroring her smirk and eliciting an earnest smile from the women who hadn't had a lot to smile about in her life. Faith had spent a lot of time in Buffy's shadow, and she couldn't describe how good it felt to have Wes say, even indirectly, that Buffy wasn't perfect either. It made her feel all warm inside, of course that could also be the alcohol.
"Next round's on me!" she said and headed for the bar.
"She can't forgive herself for what she did, can she?" Andrew asked the older man. Wesley cocked an eyebrow at his companion's unexpected perceptiveness.
"No. I don't suppose he can." He answered regretfully, before downing the last of his scotch as Faith returned.
"Oh!" Andrew cried, the metaphorical light bulb above his head suddenly illuminating, "I just thought of another thing that we all have in common! We all have layers, just like Shrek!"
Faith gave an exasperated sigh but refrained from retorting as she placed a shot down in front of each of them.
"Err Faith, this isn't root beer." Said the former supervillan.
"No shit Sherlock. It's tequila."
"Um I don't drink tequila, it makes me hurl." She stared skeptically at him for a second, before removing the shot from in front of him.
"All the more for us then," she grinned.
"Actually guys, I think I might walk back to the hotel, I'm pretty worn out," he said giving an exaggerated yawn.
"Are you suicidal?" Faith asked him sarcastically, "You can't walk through this neighborhood alone at night!"
"Here," Wesley handed him the keys to his SUV, "We'll walk back later, and neither of us is sober enough to drive anyway."
"Thanks Wes!" Andrew beamed uninhibitedly and said goodnight to his two new favorite people.
"You're quite fond of him, aren't you?" Wes asked her once he was out of earshot.
She shrugged, "He grows on you, kinda like a fungus." She wasn't lying, but it wasn't the only reason.
"And?" He prompted tentatively, not wanting to ruin a nice evening by pushing her too far. She looked at him, not sure how he knew that she was holding back, and for that matter why he was even interested. But still, she found herself wanting to confide in him.
"He reminds me of my little brother." Her index finger robotically running along the rim of her glass. "See, we have different dads, so when our mum died he went to live in Chicago. I haven't seen him since."
"When was that?"
"Seven years ago. He was eleven then, I was fifteen."
"Haven't you thought about trying to find him?"
"I have his address. I looked him up when I was inside, but that's as far as I got."
"Maybe you should write to him let him know that you're okay?" he suggested.
"Yeah maybe. Another round?" She changed the subject so he let it drop.
*********************************
An hour and a half and many shots later, they left the bar and headed back to the hotel. They were six blocks away from the bar when they heard a women scream, and they saw what Wes would later identify as a Grylaf demon attacking a young blonde woman. They now only slightly inebriated couple looked at each other and grinned, excited at the prospect of a fight.
Faith walked up behind the ugly yellow monster and tapped it on the shoulder; it grunted at the interruption and turned around, only to be punched in the face by the slayer. Still reeling from the punch, it took a few seconds to realize that its little blond snack had scarpered, just as Faith had hoped she would.
"Well, she did look a little skinny. I probably did you a favor." Faith informed him, before landing a powerful kick to it's midsection. Now he was pissed. He came at her with violent roar and threw her against the dumpster. Then he grabbed her by the throat and pinned her to the wall. The next thing she saw was Wes with a gun pointed at the demon's head. In a split second he had pulled the trigger and blown it's purple smelly brains out, and managed to hold his arm out to stop Faith from falling to the floor.
"I don' even wanna know where you've been hiding that gun," she joked.
"Are you okay?" he asked her as she tried to catch her breath, his hand still on her shoulder in case she needed the support, blissfully unaware that it was his hand touching her in such a concerned way that was in fact causing her shortness of breath.
"Five by five," she could only whisper as he pinned her with his icy blue eyes. And they were stuck in a moment, like in the movies when you know that the couple is desperately close to kissing, all they have to do is lean in a little...
But then the moment ended and they stepped away from each other, a little embarrassed and both confused beyond a doubt. Back with reality, Faith couldn't help but notice that she was covered in purple demon guts and groaned loudly.
"What's wrong?" he turned to her concern evident in his voice.
"I'm covered in fucking demon blood and guts that's what's wrong! Grosse!" tension now gone, he laughed.
"What are you laughing at English, you're all purple too!"
"My apartments closer than the hotel, we can go there first and clean up," he suggested, grimacing at the smelly slime all over his clothes.
"Sounds like a plan. Lead on," and so they headed for Wesley's apartment.
Not long later, Faith found herself sitting on Wes's sofa, wearing a pair of his sweatpants and one of his sweaters. Both of which were far too big, but she didn't care, she was comfy and they smelt kinda nice too, they smelt like Wes. Who at that moment walked through the door carrying two cups of coffee, one of which she took from him gladly.
"You're clothes should be dry soon," he told her as he sat down in the chair to the right of the sofa. Faith tool a long gulp of the strong hot liquid, relishing in the bitter warmth. She wanted more than anything to fill the silence that had descended upon them, wanted to be able to talk to him like none of the stuff in the past mattered, but she was finding it difficult to start.
"Can I ask you something?" she started hesitantly, he nodded for her to continue, "Why did you come and get me when Angelus pulled a Houdini?"
"Angelus is a master vampire, we needed someone with your strength to bring him back." He was holding back, even a high school drop out like Faith could tell that.
"Yeah, but I wasn't the only one who could've done it. And I defiantly wasn't the most accessible, being in jail and all. So why me?" She added the last part quietly. He knew she had him cornered, and despite his discomfort he was a little impressed that she had him exactly where she wanted him. For that fact alone she deserved the truth.
"There was once a time," he began, suddenly fascinated by the bottom of his coffee cup, "when I believed that some more grievous crimes couldn't be forgiven, that those guilty didn't deserve a second chance. Then the world ended. Not literally of course, but things were so messed up that it seemed like it was hell on Earth. I had betrayed my best friend trying to do the right thing. So when it came to bringing back Angel I wanted you, firstly because I knew you would never kill him, but also because if you really had changed then maybe I could and so maybe mankind was really worth saving, because if people aren't capable of changing, and no one learns to forgive, the world will end anyway."
"Were you right, when you hoped I could change, I mean?" she said it so quietly he wasn't sure he had heard right. At this he lifted his head and looked at her. Really looked. What he saw was a woman who had risen up against the odds and done the right thing. She had helped save the world for heavens sake! And now here she was, sitting on his sofa, her toes curled around the edge of his coffee table, her slender fingers gripping the cup with her hair covering her face, not wanting anyone to see her, and she was asking him if she was worthy of forgiveness?
"I'd say so yes," he could have sworn he saw the beginnings of a smile under the veil of hair, but she hid it quickly.
"Wicked," she replied with her usual indifferent expression.
"I'll go and see if your clothes are dry," he offered. Five minuets later he came back in carrying her freshly laundered clothes, and she stood to take them from him. As she reached for them, their fingers brushed and it was like electricity or something. In an instant they were sucked back into that moment, only this time they leant in. it wasn't by much, but enough for their lips to meet. And then they were kissing.
Faith was vaguely aware that she dropped her clothes she was holding as his hands wrapped around her waist and pulled her closer. And she raised her arms to the back of his neck and deepened the kiss in response. In a split second they had gone from a gentle, tentative kiss, into a kiss with enough passion to melt all of the polar ice caps and set all of the forests in the world on fire. And they couldn't stop it.
**********************************************
Coming soon: the morning after (with flashbacks to the night before) team AI bonds, and I'm thinking of bringing Cordy back for Angel as a subplot, just to annoy Buffy, what do you think?