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I finally have a chance to sit down. It's been crazy since I arrived. The big emergency wasn't quite as bad as Willow was afraid of, but it's definitely nothing good. Seems the girls were out on a routine patrol, the three of them each taking a cemetery. They met up at Kensington Gardens afterwards, the park a favorite haunt of the undead.

They all were surprised at the lack of activity that night. Kennedy got the most action, staking three vamps as they rose. The other two only got one in. They made their way to their favorite spot, the statue of Peter Pan. Apparently it was Jen's favorite story. She's the one who noticed the lone figure standing in the shadows. Kennedy and Opal were quick to notice, slayer senses kicking in. They split apart and approached him from both sides. This is how Kennedy told the story:

He watched them until they got within a few hundred feet. Then he stepped out of the shadows, standing under a lone light. He was about 6 feet tall with long, black hair. He was dressed in a simple black suit with a matching cloak. Kennedy said he seemed like something out of an Ann Rice novel. She soon learned she wasn't far off the mark.

"Ladies, so good of you to stop by," he said with a smile, his voice rich with a British accent. "I was beginning to think you weren't coming tonight but I suppose I was just impatient."

Kennedy took a few steps closer, the other two girls standing still. Her instincts were telling her to stake now, ask questions later but she had a feeling something's up. "Who are you?"

"Orlando," he answers with a nod. He looks at her for a moment, "You haven't heard of me? Pity. I must say I'm disappointed. Shouldn't the slayers know the history of the city they make their home?"

"How do you know who we are?" Opal pipes in. Kennedy turns and gives her a look, clearly wanting them to stay quiet.

"My dear girl, I've made it a point to learn all about you." Orlando walks towards Kennedy, looking over her shoulder at Opal as he answers her question. Then he turns his gaze solely on Kennedy, looking her over slowly. "I'm not particularly happy with my city being overrun with slayers."

Kennedy shrugs her shoulders, grinning slightly. "Too bad, we aren't particularly happy with your kind so I guess we're even."

"We're far from even," he replies, his gaze growing cold. "You are messing with the natural order. Did you think there wouldn't be consequences for your actions?"

"What actions would that be?" Kennedy asks, her voice echoing her growing impatience with the situation.

"Into each generation a slayer is born. One girl, in all the world..." he begins.

Kennedy interrupts him, "Yeah, we've heard it before. Times change."

"You have altered with forces way past your level of understanding. The balance between good and evil is no longer equal."

"That's a good thing if you ask me," Kennedy smiles at him. "And I think it's about time for that balance to shift a little more."

With that Kennedy whips a stake out of her back pocket and advances. Orlando is ready for her, blocking the first couple punches with ease. Just when Kennedy thinks she has the advantage, his arm swings up and he quickly backhands her. She goes flying backwards, knocking her head on the bronze statue they came to see.

Orlando watches her for a moment but she lays still, unconscious. He turns to Opal and Jen, both looking afraid. They are relatively new slayers, they can handle themselves but after seeing Kennedy taken out so easily they aren't so sure.

He smiles at them, "Ladies, it's been a pleasure but I must take my leave. Places to go, people to...see," he flashes them a grin, letting his fangs show. He turns and quickly walks back into the shadows, blending in and quickly disappearing from sight.

The girls rush over to Kennedy, checking her pulse and trying to revive her. Suddenly they are surrounded by five vampires. The girls start to fight but are a little numbered. Opal takes out two vampires, then joins Jen who is fighting the other three. They manage to take them out but not before Opal sprains her ankle and Jen's arm gets broken.

The girls call for help and are all rushed to the hospital, which is when Willow was notified. She called me quickly, very worried because Kennedy hadn't woken up yet. The doctors said she'd be fine once she awoke, which happened just before we landed. Opal and Jen were released that night, Opal on crutches and Jen with a cast on her arm. Both girls will be fine, slayer healing a bonus.

Kennedy stayed over night, mostly for observation. Willow rushed to her side as soon as we landed and stayed with her. Dawn, Xander and I went to the apartment I keep and called it a night.

Early the next afternoon Willow brought Kennedy home. She told us the story and Giles immediately went into watcher mode. Seems the name Orlando rang a bell and he recruited Willow and Xander to help research. Willow quickly jumped onto the Internet, doing her best to find something out while Xander helped Giles make his way through the volumes of text we have here.

I took some of the girls outside, wanting to see where they are with their training. It seems the other night's events have got them all spooked. Kennedy isn't exactly easy to get the best of and now they're all nervous.

I paired the girls off and told them to spar. I walked around, giving pointers here and there, but I mostly just observed. I quickly saw a major problem with the way they train. They're holding back. "All right, stop."

They quickly stop, turning to look at me. "You're all slayers, you're built for fighting. You need to forget what you learned, this isn't an exam. You need to feel each other out and fight on instinct. Karen, come here."

Karen steps away from the others and walks towards me. I take a defensive stance and motion for her to attack. She throws a couple punches and I quickly have her pinned to the ground. I let her up and she walks back to the others with her head down, embarrassed I took her down so easily, "How'd I do that?"

The girls shuffle their feet, looking around at each other. I'm about to answer my own question when a voice answers from behind me, "Her attack was by the book, anyone worth their salt would see it coming."

"Right," the girls look behind me as a smile creeps onto my face. I turn and am face to face with Faith. I can't help the slight blush that covers my face as I remember what happened the last time I saw her. I called her to fill her in on Kennedy's condition but we didn't talk long, she was on her way out. I can't help but sound happy when I ask, "What are you doing here?"

She shrugs, walking over to stand next to me, giving the girls a once over, "Thought you might need some help."

"Thanks," I smile at her. I turn to the others, "This is Faith."

Everyone nods, a few blank faces quickly turning to understanding as the ones who have heard of Faith fill them in. She nods to the group, "Training I see. How's it going?"

"Actually," I grin, "I could really use your help. Feel like sparring?"

"You know me B, always ready for a good rough and tumble."

The girls back away, taking a seat. "Like I said earlier, you have to fight on instinct. I want you girls to pay attention."

I turn and see Faith stretching, loosening her muscles. My eyes roam over her slowly, my back to the girls thankfully. Wouldn't do them any good to see my face, probably flushed from the sudden desire I'm feeling. Faith looks over and I know instantly I'm right. She raises an eyebrow at me and smirks, "Think you can take me B?"

"Only one way to find out F."

I circle around Faith, her eyes following me until I move in, throwing a few punches. She blocks them and throws a couple of her own. We easily fall into a routine, going back and forth from offensive to defensive. I throw a right hook that gets past her and connects with her chin. She wiggles her jaw a little and looks at me, "That the best you got B? Xander hits harder than that."

"You challenging me Faith?" I lower my guard slightly.

She winks at me, "I'm always challenging you B."

"Alright, lets step it up a notch," I say while punching her again. As she stumbles I quickly land a kick in her stomach, knocking her on her ass.

"Just like old times," she says. As I move to attack again her leg darts up, catching me behind the knee. She jumps to her feet as I fall to my knees. I feel her foot hit the center of my back and I'm suddenly face first in the grass. As I get onto my knees to stand up she wraps her arm around my neck, pinning me and keeping me down on the ground, "Sure you wanna be going there B?"

"Didn't scare me then," I answer, using my weight to pull her over my shoulders. She lands on her back, forcing her to lose her grip on me. I smile down at her as she looks up at me from flat on her back. I reach down and mess up her hair, "Don't scare me now."

She grins a little and we both get back on our feet. She swings her arm around to back fist me and I block with my own. She twists her wrist, grabbing my arm and pulling me down as her other arm pushes against my abdomen forcefully, sending me flying back ten feet.

I stand up and brush my legs off, visibly off guard, "Nice move."

"Thanks," she says, relaxing from her defensive stance when she sees me not going on the offensive. We turn and look at the girls, a few of their jaws hanging open. "Did we scare them?"

I take a step forward, their eyes falling on me. "Now you know what a slayer can do. It's not good enough to know the moves, you have to make them a part of you. Feel them, embrace your power. I expect to see a better effort tomorrow. For now, go clean up and get ready for lunch."

The girls quickly get on their feet, shuffling back to the dorms. I turn and look at Faith, still surprised she's here. She grabs her duffle bag, "Did you mention lunch? I've got a mad case of the munchies."

"Why doesn't that surprise me?" I raise my eyebrow at her.

"You know me B," she grins and saunters towards me, her bag flung over one shoulder. She stops just off to my side, leaning over so her lips barely graze my ear. "Unless you wanna show me to my room..."

I feel my cheeks flush at what that could lead to. She takes that as a good sign, stepping a little closer and brushing some stray hairs behind my ear. I look up slightly and am met with the biggest brown eyes. I go to answer but my words are stopped by her lips. I hear her bag hit the ground just before I feel her arm snake around my waist. My hands find her neck and I play with her hair. I moan softly, my lips parting slightly. Her tongue darts out, licking my lips before slipping past, the kiss deepening.

I hear someone clear their throat and it snaps me back to reality. I turn to see Willow watching us, a very amused look on her face. Faith steps back, picking her bag up off the ground, "Hey Red."

"Hey Faith," Willow replies. "Buffy, we're meeting in Giles' office for lunch. Try to be on time, we've got some new information to go over."

I nodded, regaining my composure. "I'll show Faith inside and we'll meet you there."

"Twenty minutes," Willow says as she smiles at Faith. "Good to have you with us."

"Good to be here," Faith says.

Willow quickly turns and walks back to the main building. I reach down and take Faith's hand, pulling her with me. "Come on, I'll show you around."

I played tour guide, showing her the main points of interest. She was impressed with the offices and library, but only really showed enthusiasm for our training and weapons facility. I had to drag her away promising she could come back later.

We made it to Giles' office just as lunch arrived, a variety of deli sandwiches, soda and bags of chips. We each grabbed some food, Faith more than any of us, and sat down around his conference table.

After a few moments of eating and the exchange of pleasantries, Giles got down to business. "The vampire Kennedy spoke of, Orlando, has no mention in our texts for several centuries. It was a popular belief that he died in the Great Fire of London in 1666. Aside from the occasional unconfirmed sighting there is no mention."

"So why now?" Faith asks, her mouth half full of food. Everyone looks at her and she shrugs in apology, finishing her food. "I mean, why come out and say hi now?"

"Kennedy mentioned something about us altering the balance between good and evil," I said, turning to look at Willow.

"Yeah," she agrees. "She said we messed with the natural order, or so he says. He mentioned the slayer prophecy. I'm guessing this has to do with the spell we cast."

"Quite right," Giles said, sipping his tea. "I'm going to continue researching into Orlando's past. With the vast majority of texts destroyed it'll be hard, but hopefully I'll find something useful. Xander, are you available to help?"

"That's what I'm here for," he grumbles, munching on his chips.

Willow stands up, grabbing her things. "I'd stay but I have to go check on Kennedy. The doctor doesn't want her left alone for more than a few hours."

I stand and push my chair in, "If you and Xander can handle it, mind if I go help Faith get settled?"

At the mention of her name Faith looks up from her food. She pops the rest of her sandwich into her mouth, standing and looking at Giles as she grabs her bag.

"No, by all means. And I think it best you don't take the girls patrolling tonight. We don't want them running into Orlando until we know more about him."

Faith steps out of his office and I go to follow, "No problem, I'll take patrol tonight."

I close the door just as he places a big, dusty book in front of Xander. I can hear him groan through the wall as Faith and I make our way out.

"So, which way to the dorms?" she questions as we make our way through the halls.

"You want to stay here?"

She shrugs, "Isn't that where everyone is staying?"

"Willow and Kennedy have their own apartment. I keep a place in town and Xander's crashing with us." I pause at the main entrance, "It's up to you where you wanna stay."

She shifts her weight, "I don't wanna impose..."

"That settles that then," I say, walking outside. She looks a little disappointed as I lead her around the building. We cross a small street and I point kitty corner from us, "The dorms are there."

"Alright, thanks." She says, taking a step off the curb.

"Faith," I chuckle softly. "This is my car. You're staying with us, but you asked so I thought I'd tell you."

I unlock the doors and climb into the drivers seat. She tosses her bag into the back and gets in. "Good one B."

We drive most of the way in silence. She plays with the radio, not liking any of the stations I have programmed. I lead her into my building and upstairs. We're barely through the door when Faith is tackled by Dawn.

"Oh my god! What are you doing here?" she asks while hugging Faith.

Faith smiles, hugging her back. "When B left it seemed kinda important, thought you guys could use a hand."

"This is so cool," she backs off slightly, letting Faith walk inside and set down her things. "I'm gonna show you around, there is so much to see!"

"Cool it Dawn," I say. "This isn't a pleasure trip."

Dawn's face drops and Faith pouts at me. "Come on B, we can do a little sight seeing can't we?"

They both give me puppy dog eyes. They're already teaming up against me. Something tells me I should have seen this coming. "Fine. But right now let Faith get settled in."

Dawn nods and leads Faith down to our other guest room. The phone rings and Dawn is quickly engrossed in a conversation about the latest episode of the OC. Faith shakes her head slightly before turning to me. "Mind if a take a shower? I was flying all night and feel a little grody."

"I was gonna say something..." I tease. She lowers her eyes and I put up my hands. "Kidding! Go ahead, second door on your left."

She fished some things out of her bag and was soon busy in the bathroom. I changed for patrol and am now patiently waiting for Faith to finish. I figure I'll show her around a little so she gets the lay of the land. Then we'll grab a bite to eat and start patrol. I'll fill you in again later, once we know more.