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"Fuck," Faith groaned. Whatever bar pick-up was slobbering on her face was so going to get his ass kic-.

"Momma," a tiny hand slapped the crook of her arm. "You used the worst word ever!"

Suddenly her eyes shot open to see two sets of glaring eyes staring down at her. "Oops," Faith forced a look of contrition, not one she had much practice with, she freely admitted. "Forgiven babies?"

Hoppy nodded immediately but Lex was made of sterner stuff. "Mommy you said a naughty word last night too!" her son shook his head, his look firmly disapproving.

"I'm sorry," god if anyone ever got a tape of this conversation, she was turning psycho again and killing every last one of them. "Don't be angry at Mommy. I'll try harder."

"Honest Indian?" Hoppy broke in, her eyes grave.

"Honest Indian," she confirmed with a nod. God they were adorable and they were hers to look after. She wouldn't mess this up, it was too important. "But only if..." she allowed her voice to trail off.

"What mommy?" Hoppy asked.

"If," she linked her arms around her babies' waists and pulled them to her with a laugh. "We cuddle!"

"No," Xander shook his head firmly. "Not going to happen."

"But daddy," Lex looked confused as he stared up at the one-eyed man. "Isn't Uncle Angel doing a nice thing?"

Xander stared at his son. Angel sighed, as nice and novel as it was to see his old sparring partner stuck for words, this conversation wasn't going anywhere fast. "Xander, can I speak to you in my office please?"

"Oooh," commented Hoppy, her eyes wide. "Are you going to tell Daddy off Uncle Angel?"

Angel fought to remind himself that his image didn't allow for him laughing. "No Hope, your father and I have grown-up," he winced, grown-up with Xander Harris? "Things to discuss."

"But you're not going to shout at him?" Lex broke in, his face worried.

"No," he shook his head, before crouching in front of the three year old. It was becoming an even greater struggle to keep his face straight. "Just talk."

"Promise?" the toddler pressed with the tenacity of a congressional lawyer.

"I promise," he replied, his expression grave.

"Okay," Lex nodded his head slowly.

"Can we go now?" Xander asked, Angel noted the beginnings of a smile tugging at the young man's face. Both children nodded. "Okay, you be good for your mommy and auntie Dawn?"

"Okay daddy," the children chorused.

Angel's vampire hearing picked up Dawn's muttering. "Oh yeah, like that going to work."

Once inside the office, Xander glared at him. "I'm not taking your money Deadboy."

It was an effort but he managed not to throw the boy through the nearest wall. "Damn it Xander," he growled. "Four damn years and you still haven't grown up? Buffy and I have moved on, why haven't you?" the youth's face stayed impassive. Angel sighed, he had thought their talk last night had cleared the air, but obviously he'd been mistaken. "If you won't take the money for yourself, how about them? Faith needs some new things, and god knows your kids do!" The youth's eye looked down to the proffered notes but didn't reach for them. Sighing, he tried again. "If you want call it repaying a debt."

"Uh?"

"The night in the hospital with Angelus."

"Okay," Xander took the money with a nod. "Thanks. Angel, why did you stop anyway? We both know you would have torn me apart."

Angel nodded. "He would have," he admitted. "But he also knew that all those security would have run in to stop me-."

"They couldn't-."

"No they couldn't," he agreed. "But they might have given Buffy enough time to get away, and him killing you might have ended any conflict she had about killing him." Angel sighed. "At heart, any vampire, any demon is a coward. The soul gives a human the choice of being brave or not. Angelus had killed four Slayers in his time, but Buffy and Faith, are different, less constrained by Council doctrine. Either of them could take him." He turned to the door.

"Angel," he turned back to see the young man, a pensive look on his face, after taking a breath the male Scooby spoke. "Thanks for jumping in front of the bullets last night."

Angel smiled thinly, for a pair of innocents it hadn't even be a second's thought. "Forget it."

Xander shook his head. "There's some things you can't forget. I can't believe I'm doing this," he was surprised when the one-eyed man held out a hand. "Fresh start?"

A smile on his face, he took the hand. "Fresh start," he agreed.

Faith beamed as she glanced around the crowded mid-afternoon mall, she was having the best time. When she'd been a Boston Southie she'd never been a mall girl, never having the money or the friends to go with, responsible parents didn't want their kids hanging out with a junkie whore's daughter. She just hoped she would judge people by who they were and not who their family were. When she'd had gone to the mall, she'd always been on edge, either from having to shop-lift or knowing she'd have to put out in exchange for the food and stuff she'd been bought.

But this, this was different. She had money to spend, and her babies to spend it on. The look of excitement on their faces were so sweet she had to fight back tears of joy.

The only downer, the only slight shadow, was Xander. He joked with their companion, Dawn, and the way he was with their kids, he was going to make a great dad, but her, her he barely spoke to. "Give it time," she muttered. Once he realised she'd changed, he'd give her a chance. And it wasn't like he didn't have a right to hate her after what she'd done to him. "Mommy!"

Turning, she crouched down beside Lex and kissed him on his forehead. "What's the sitch little guy?"

"Daddy said we could go for pizza if you wanted. What you think?"

"How could I," she lifted her son up, cradling him in her arm and resting his head on her shoulder. "Say no to those eyes?" Your daddy's eyes, she was surprised to find herself adding mentally before stopping. What the fuck, she couldn't be developing feelings for him could she? He hated her even more than she'd hated B when she'd come out of the coma. Faith groaned, 'cause her life wasn't complicated enough.

"What's wrong mommy?"

She smiled at the concern in her son's voice. "Nothing baby," she lied. "Just you mentioning food reminded how hungry I am. Now where are the others?" Her eyes narrowed as she noticed a familiar figure in the distance, and then blinked as it disappeared. Must have been her imagination.

"Faith, can I speak to you for a minute?"

Faith glanced towards the Watcher standing by the hotel inner office. "Sure G."

"Granpappy Giles!" Hoppy ran over to the Englishman. "I bought some new books today, fairy tales and everything! Will you read them to me!"

"I've a better idea." She watched as the Englishman effortlessly scooped up her daughter. "Why don't you read them to me?"

Faith hid a smile as her daughter pouted. "But I don't read many words Grandpa."

"Then," the Englishman kissed Hope on the forehead. "We'll read together. How does that sound?"

"You'll help me?"

"But of course. It would be my honour."

"You talk funny Grandpa."

The Watcher chuckled. "So your father has frequently remarked. Now," Giles placed her daughter back on the floor. "Why don't you take your new things up to your room while I talk to your mother?"

"Okay Grandpa," Hoppy nodded. "But you'll come up later?"

The middle-aged man beamed. "Of course, how could I say no to the most beautiful little girl in the world." Once the others had disappeared, Giles turned to her. "They really are delightful."

Faith felt a surge of pride at G's praise. No-one had ever called her delightful when she was a kid, she was always 'the brat' or 'the nusiance'. "Yeah, they're wicked."

Giles winked at her. "If they're anything like their mother, positively devilish." The Englishman chuckled when she flipped him the finger. "Such manners from the mother of two young children why I do declare I see the fabric of American society dissolving before me."

"Asshole."

The Watcher winked before nodding towards the inner office door. "If you don't mind."

"Sure G."

Faith stiffened as she walked over the office threshold and saw Wesley sat behind the desk. "Uh uh, a Watcher double-team," she joked to hide her apprehension. Next to Xander, being around Wes made her more nervous than any of the others, partially because she'd hurt him the most, taken him apart piece by piece and revelled in it, her most calculatingly evil act. And also because of the changes in him, if she ever went bad again she knew that while the others were agonising about what to do, good old reliable Wes would be setting up a sniper rifle to blow her pretty little head off.

"Faith," seeing Giles was indicating a chair opposite the younger Watcher she sat down but continued to look at the older Watcher, unwilling to meet Wes' eyes. "I've called you here to give you this. Please bear in mind it's dated for the 1st July when I officially gain the power to access council -."

Faith looked down, her eyes widening as she realised she was holding a cheque for $ 250,000 made payable to her, Faith Wilkins. "W..what is this?" she managed to gasp.

"You are of course aware of my decision to start paying the Slayers four thousand dollars a month?" she nodded numbly at G's words. "Well as you have been a Slayer since Apr '98, that represents your back-pay so to speak."

Finally she found her voice. "Guys, I hate to break it to you but I spent more than three years of that time either evil, in a coma, or in prison."

"We're well aware of that," Giles replied, his expression understanding. "However given the circumstances surrounding your fall and the fault on both sides, consider the money as a sort of compensation -."

"But-." Faith began to protest.

"In fact as your children's grandfather I would have to insist," Giles overrode her. "What sort of responsible parent turns down a quarter of a million dollars?"

Suddenly she had an idea. "Split the money," she bargained. "Put it half and half in two accounts for them for when they're eighteen, sort of a college fund." Her babies were going to college, they were both wicked smart.

Giles beamed. "What a splendid idea. I'll get the paperwork drawn up as soon our current situation is cleared up."

"Thanks G," Faith nodded. The two Watchers rose. Licking her lips, she spoke, relieved that she couldn't hear any sign of nervousness in her voice. "Wes, can I talk to you for a minute?"

The two Englishman exchanged a glance. After a few seconds Wesley nodded. "Certainly." Once G had left Wes spoke. "Well?"

It took her a while but finally Faith found her voice. "I'm sorry."

"I beg your pardon?"

Gathering her courage, Faith spoke, the words bubbling out like a torrent. "For that day I tortured you, what I did..." Her voice trailed off as she flashed back to that day, her ears filling with Wes' pained gasps, he hadn't begged but he'd been unable to keep the pain inside, her nose filled with the stench of Wes' blood and sweat, and her eyes were filled with images of the wounds she'd caused. Suddenly she was shaking, bile choking her.

"Now there," she was surprised to feel a pair of strong hands on her shoulders. "There's no need for this. And as your Watcher I forbid it."

She giggled slightly at Wes' mock-severe tone. "This girl's not too good at taking orders."

"Really?" the Watcher chuckled. "I hadn't noticed. I quite pity Xander, two mini-Faiths and the genuine article. I doubt the poor lad as a clue what he's let himself in for."

The remark was meant as a joke but Faith flinched nonetheless. At least X wouldn't have to worry about his kids trying to kill him. "Faith, if I offended you?"

She shook her head and began to stand. "Nothing Wes, gotta jet-."

"Bloody sit down!"

She flinched at the hard note in the Englishman's tone and before she knew it she was sat down again. "Faith," the Englishman's tone had softened. "You know I didn't help you with the Council hit-team for you don't you?"

Faith nodded. "You did it for Angel." Why the fuck would he want to help her?

Wesley confirmed her suspicion with a nod. "Correct. He believed there was good in you, that you deserved a chance at redemption. Just as," the Watcher smiled crookedly. "He'd assisted me in a slightly different way. I had a debt to pay to a man I respected immensely and endeavoured to pay it. And," the Englishman paused. "Found that despite my misgivings he was correct. Faith, you have done terrible evil in your time," she grimaced. "And you should never forget that. But you should also remember the changes you've made, the good you've done, and be proud of that. The time to continue punishing yourself is long gone."

After a second Faith nodded and smiled. "Thanks Wes." If only Xander could see things that way.

"So we're agreed, Wolfe has to die?"

While both Xander and Angel agreed to Giles' question, Wesley hesitated. He thought about the scared girl who'd wanted nothing more than to have a friend, who instead he'd treated as nothing more than a tool. He thought of the evil he'd done for far less cause, setting the Council on Faith instead of trying with her, kidnapping Connor, imprisoning Justine, unleashing Angelus, and sleeping with Lilah. He'd done so much evil, unthinking or otherwise, it was time to redress the balance a little. "I don't have a problem with that." Killing an evil man to protect a girl he'd failed in the past and her children – it wasn't even a choice.

"Do you think Uncle Lorne will sing to us Auntie Rona?"

Rona grinned down at the little girl sat on her lap. It amazed her that a hell raiser like Faith could produce such a sweet little angel as Hope. "I tell you what," she replied. "Why don't I sing you a song myself?"

Hope's eyes widened. "That's be wicked Auntie Rona!"

"Okay," after clearing her throat she began singing 'You Make Me Feel Like A Natural Born Woman'.

After a few seconds the door swung open and Lorne walked in, his face split into two by a beaming smile. "Now Aretha's got comp-," suddenly the demon's face fell. "Girls! Get out of here now!"